What's happening with the Center for Rural Affairs? Find the latest on rural America and our work here.
11.07.2017
Iowa’s 2017 legislative session ended without a bill to create a long-term, stable funding source for water quality. Hard feelings amassed all around, between the House and Senate, and between the legislature and the public at large.
- Policy
11.06.2017
Note: This is the second in a series highlighting lending activities from Sept. 1, 2016, to Aug. 31, 2017. Our staff placed 124 loans totaling $2,541,952 in that time period. To apply for a microloan...
- Lending
11.04.2017
Note: This is the first in a series highlighting lending activities from Sept. 1, 2016, to Aug. 31, 2017. The below features a select number of businesses, our staff placed 124 loans totaling $2,541...
- Lending
11.03.2017
When it comes to rural development, the town of Bloomfield in southeast Iowa is holding its own.
- Policy
11.02.2017
Disparity in rural high-speed internet access has recently garnered national attention.
- Small Towns
11.02.2017
The expansion of internet access for rural Nebraska is the focus of a recently released grant funding opportunity and upcoming legislative hearings.
- Small Towns
11.01.2017
“Right man, right place, right time,” said Al Leal, president of Al’s Old House Repair, LLC. His historic carpentry and renovation business landed him in the “right place” of Red Cloud, Nebraska, a town with fewer than 1,000 people, and at the former home of Pulitzer Prize winning author, Willa Cather, and the internationally known Willa Cather Foundation.
- Lending
10.31.2017
The demographic challenges that try rural communities in nearly all aspects of health care delivery are also prominent in the delivery of behavioral and mental health care services.
- Policy
10.30.2017
October is Women’s Small Business Month, a perfect time to reflect on the growth and success of Women’s Business Centers all over the U.S. The Center for Rural Affairs Women’s Business Center is in...
- Lending
10.27.2017
Family farmers and ranchers have waited years for the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to institute basic fairness protections in the poultry and livestock industries. However, last week...
- Farm and Food
10.26.2017
With the state unicameral legislature out of session until 2018, policy advocates are using the downtime to drum up conversations about imbalances in the state's tax system, particularly agricultural property taxes.
- Farm and Food
- Small Towns
10.26.2017
Both the U.S. House and Senate have passed their versions of a budget resolution, including “reconciliation” instructions to cut spending and pave the way for Congress to pass sweeping tax cuts for the wealthy with only 51 votes.
- Farm and Food
- Small Towns
10.24.2017
Today, the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) released its comprehensive 2018 farm bill policy platform, "An Agenda for the 2018 Farm Bill."
- Farm and Food
10.20.2017
Last week, the Local Food and Regional Market Supply Act (The Local FARMS Act) was introduced in Congress by Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), and Reps. Chellie Pingree (D-ME), Sean Patrick Maloney (D-NY), and Jeff Fortenberry (R-NE).
- Farm and Food
10.19.2017
Today, the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition released findings from the first-ever comprehensive evaluation of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Beginning Farmer and Rancher...
- Farm and Food
10.19.2017
Did you know the Center for Rural Affairs has an endowment? We do! It’s called the Granary Foundation, and it exists to ensure the Center can continue doing our important work in rural America for generations to come.
- Small Towns
10.18.2017
Transmission projects announced during the last 10 years are now beginning to come online. Combined with new wind and solar installments, these projects have become important pieces of the economic puzzle in the rural Midwest and Great Plains. The significance of renewable energy to rural economic development is well understood, however, less is known about the impact of transmission development.
- Small Towns
10.18.2017
Octubre es el Mes Nacional de la Granja a la Escuela, un tiempo para reconocer la importancia de mejorar la nutrición infantil, apoyar las economías locales y educar a las comunidades sobre los orígenes de sus alimentos.
- Small Towns
10.17.2017
Members of the Omaha Tribe are working to improve access to fresh food, starting with growing produce in their own communities. The Center for Rural Affairs has worked alongside them during the last...
- Small Towns
10.17.2017
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced today a rollback of two rules of the Grain Inspection, Packers, and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA). Also today, Agriculture Sec. Sonny Perdue...
- Farm and Food