Investment is part of $86 Million Announced Nationwide
WASHINGTON, Nov. 18, 2021 – U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced the Department is investing $86 million to improve equitable access to jobs, business opportunities, education, housing and health care for people who live and work in rural areas. The investments are part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to ensure that people living in rural communities have equitable access to the infrastructure and opportunities often taken for granted by people living in urban and suburban areas. As a part of this nationwide announcement, five organizations will receive a total of $867,841 to help rural Maine communities.
“Regardless of where they live, their race, ethnicity or gender, or the size of the town in which they live, all people must have access to good jobs, decent housing, clean water and good job opportunities,” Vilsack said. “This is foundational to a healthy society and stable communities. Today’s announcements build on the historic investments made possible by the American Rescue Plan Act signed into law by President Biden to ensure equity during a time when people living in underserved places are suffering the most. The investments I am announcing today will go a long way toward helping America ‘Build Back Better’ toward a just and more equitable society.”
USDA Rural Development Acting Maine State Director Tommy R. Higgins said, “Maine communities will be strengthened through important investments announced today in a number of critical ways, including quality housing, water and wastewater system improvement, empowering cooperatives, and supporting economic development in some of Maine’s most rural towns.”
Maine communities will benefit from a total of $867,841 as follows:
- The Island Institute is receiving a Rural Community Development Initiative Grant in the amount of $193,800. This Rural Development investment will be used to help Island Institute continue its fellowship program in five low-income communities to build capacity to perform economic and community development activities. In the city of Eastport, the fellowship program will help with the need for more energy efficient elderly housing and to support local efforts to expand access to affordable broadband. In the town of Beals, the fellowship program will help the Downeast Institute provide marine science education to support the local shellfish industry and fishery to develop sustainable practices. In the town of Machias, the fellowship program will help Sunrise County Economic Council to support the creation of jobs and prosperity in Washington County, the poorest county in Maine. In the town of Sullivan, the fellowship program will help Sullivan-Sorrento Historical Society preserve the natural and cultural history of this coastal region to make it available to locals and visitors. In the town of Vinalhaven, the fellowship program will help with strategic and capital improvement plans with committees focusing on affordable housing, sea level rise, broadband, update the GIS database on infrastructure needs, and assist with the annual town report.
- RCAP Solutions, Inc. will receive a Rural Community Development Initiative Grant in the amount of $250,000. This Rural Development investment will be used to provide financial and technical assistance for building capacity projects in communities in Maine, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania. The first project is a Geographic Information System mapping tool for rural, low-income water and wastewater systems, and the second project will focus on intensive financial and managerial capacity building for water and wastewater system leadership.
- Penquis CAP is receiving a Housing Preservation Grant in the amount of $124,604. This Rural Development investment will be used for the rehabilitation of very low and low income, owner occupied homes in Penobscot, Piscataquis, and Knox counties. The program will focus on immediate health and safety issues and energy conservation repairs for the homeowner.
- Western Maine CAP is receiving a Housing Preservation Grant in the amount of $124,604. This Rural Development investment will be used for the rehabilitation of very low and low income, owner occupied homes in Penobscot, Piscataquis, and Knox counties. The program will focus on immediate health and safety issues and energy conservation repairs for the homeowner.
- Cooperative Development Institute, Inc. is receiving a Socially Disadvantaged Groups Grant in the amount of $174,833. This Rural Development investment will be used to support the implementation and evaluation of cooperative development training and technical assistance in Maine, Massachusetts and New York, for socially-disadvantaged groups such as New American, Black, Indigenous and people of color groups. Cooperative Development Institute's (CDI) commitment to prioritizing their work with these groups aims to build and retain equity and empowerment for them and the next generation, passing along greater success to wealth through ownership and entrepreneurship in rural areas.
Background:
Vilsack highlighted 218 investments that USDA is making in six programs specifically designed to help people and businesses in rural areas. These programs include Tribal College Initiative Grants, Rural Community Development Initiative Grants, Housing Preservation Grants, Delta Health Care Grants, Socially Disadvantaged Group Grants and Water and Waste Disposal Grants.
The funding will help more than 425,000 people in 46 states, Puerto Rico and the Western Pacific. They reflect the many ways USDA Rural Development helps rural residents, businesses and communities address economic development, infrastructure and social service needs. They will help low-income people make health and safety repairs to their homes. They will help build and improve water and wastewater infrastructure for people living in U.S. communities along the Mexico border. They will help rural business owners in the Mississippi Delta get access to capital and business development assistance. They also will help colleges that serve Tribal populations upgrade campus buildings and services.
Under the Biden-Harris Administration, Rural Development provides loans and grants to help expand economic opportunities, create jobs and improve the quality of life for millions of Americans in rural areas. This assistance supports infrastructure improvements; business development; housing; community facilities such as schools, public safety and health care; and high-speed internet access in rural, Tribal and high-poverty areas. For more information, visit www.rd.usda.gov. USDA Rural Development is prioritizing projects that will support key priorities under the Biden-Harris Administration to help rural America build back better and stronger. Key priorities include combating the COVID-19 pandemic; addressing the impacts of climate change; and advancing equity in rural America. For more information, visit www.rd.usda.gov/priority-points. If you’d like to subscribe to USDA Rural Development updates, visit our GovDelivery subscriber page.
USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. In the Biden-Harris Administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe, healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate-smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America. To learn more, visit www.usda.gov.
###
USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender.