Report on Rural America

Enlarge Image Image Gallery Golden grains of wheat. Elenathewise/Fotolia.com

Earlier this month, the White House Rural Council released a new report entitled Jobs and Economic Security for Rural America, which lays out the economic landscape rural Americans face today and highlights the Administration’s key accomplishments in rural communities.  The Jobs and Economic Security for Rural America report focuses on five critical areas: creating jobs and promoting economic growth, improving access to quality health care and education, fostering innovation, expanding outdoor opportunities, and supporting veterans and military families.

 “This report on Jobs and Economic Security in Rural America underscores the commitment my Administration is making to rural communities,” said President Obama.  “It highlights some of the many programs and policies my Administration has implemented in rural America to support economic growth.  It also offers a look at the economic agenda we will continue to pursue during my Presidency.”

“This report highlights the importance of understanding some of the specific needs as well as unique opportunities found within rural America,” Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack said. “It also presents vital strategies that can and will be used to seize those opportunities and tackle some of the toughest challenges facing our rural communities.”

On June 9, President Obama signed an Executive Order establishing the first White House Rural Council to accelerate the ongoing work of promoting economic growth in rural America.  The Council is focused on increasing rural access to capital, spurring agricultural innovation, expanding digital and physical infrastructure in rural areas, and creating economic opportunities through conservation and outdoor recreation. 

This week, the President and members of the White House Rural Council hosted the White House Rural Economic Forum at Northeast Iowa Community College in Peosta, Iowa, as part of the President’s three-day economic bus tour in the Midwest. The Forum brought together farmers, small business owners, private sector leaders, rural organizations, and government officials to discuss ideas and initiatives to promote economic growth, accelerate hiring, and spur innovation in rural communities and small towns across the nation. During the tour, President engaged directly with a variety of rural leaders from across the nation to discuss the importance of growing small businesses and strengthening the middle class in rural America.

The report is available online. Highlights from the report include:

● The Administration has made significant investments in supporting job creation in rural America, including providing more than $6.2 billion in financing to help nearly 10,000 rural businesses expand, grow, and innovate, creating or saving over 250,000 jobs; providing more than $5 billion in farm operating and ownership loans to help over 35,000 small and medium sized operations; and expanding U.S. agricultural exports, supporting over 800,000 American jobs and generating a 35-to-1 return on investment.