Last week, Congresswoman Fischbach (MN-07) introduced the Investing in Rural America Act to provide critical capital resources to rural communities through improvements to the Community Facilities Loan and Grant Program.
“Rural communities across the country are struggling to retain population, much less attract future generations. One way Congress can support them is by eliminating unnecessary regulatory barriers to capital investment, particularly on critical community facilities like hospitals, childcare centers, and senior care centers,” said Rep. Fischbach. “I am proud to introduce the Investing in Rural America Act to attract private sector investment in these kinds of facilities, strengthening our rural communities, and encouraging future generations to see them as home.”
“The Investing in Rural America Act will help unlock the immense potential of our rural communities,” said Congressman Davis (NC-01). “Following decades of population decline, rural communities in eastern North Carolina and across America are struggling to keep jobs and maintain opportunities as hospitals close and the American dream falls out of reach for our young people. By prioritizing economic growth, strengthening infrastructure, and building up essential community facilities in our rural communities, the Investing in Rural America Act moves us one step closer toward creating a brighter future for all residents of rural America.”
“With the help of Farm Credit Institutions, rural areas are able to access critical resources that help their communities thrive,” said Rep. Finstad (MN-01). “Right here in the First District, state-of-the-art facilities like Lakeview Methodist Health Care Center were made possible because of financing through partnerships with Farm Credit Institutions. The Rural Investment Act will strengthen these institutions’ ability to partner with local lenders in providing capital to rural areas and bring increased investment to community facilities, like Lakeview, that serve the entire southern Minnesota region.”
“Too many rural communities struggle to attract investments because they lack important services like hospitals, schools, and broadband. No one should have fewer opportunities just because of where they live. I’m proud to work with Congresswoman Fischbach and our colleagues to introduce the bipartisan Investing in Rural America Act to help connect these communities with the resources they need to thrive,” said Rep. Caraveo (CO-08).
The Investing in Rural America Act encourages investment in rural communities by:
• Restoring and codifying farm credit institutions’ eligibility to finance essential rural facilities in partnership with local lenders and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Community Facilities Loan and Grant Program,
• Placing explicit guardrails around FCI’s authorities in financing essential community facilities, including a requirement to offer participation with at least one non-FCI lending institution on any potential project, and
• Requiring a report to Congress on the projects undertaken by FCIs, including the partnerships established between lending institutions for such projects.
This bill has the support of the Farm Credit Council, National Council of Farmer Cooperatives, National Association of Counties, National Rural Health Association, American Psychological Association, National Farmers Union, National Association of Community Health Centers, American Academy of Family Physicians, National Grange, and AgCountry Farm Credit Services.
“We thank Reps. Michelle Fischbach, Don Davis, Brad Finstad, and Yadira Caraveo for their commitment to rural communities and for introducing the Investing in Rural America Act,” said Farm Credit Council president and CEO Todd Van Hoose. “This legislation ensures that Farm Credit, community banks, and other lenders can continue to partner to ensure credit is readily available for rural hospitals, childcare centers, education, and other essential rural community facilities. We look forward to working with Reps. -Fischbach, Davis and Finstad and other members of the agriculture committee to have this commonsense legislation included in the upcoming Farm Bill.”
“Community facilities are the lifeblood of their rural communities, providing vital services that ensure rural Americans’ quality of life. National Grange supports this legislation allowing Farm Credit to more easily partner with local commercial banks to finance critical rural infrastructure like health care facilities and critical access hospitals,” said Betsy Huber, President, National Grange.
“Rural hospitals are in crisis. Since 2010, 149 rural hospitals have shut down, leaving many rural communities without access to health care services. NFU is proud to support this bill, which will help offer reliable and consistent access to capital so that rural hospitals, childcare facilities, and health care centers can stay open. We need to ensure that rural America continues to thrive for the more than 60 million people who live there,” said NFU President, Rob Larew.
“Facilities such as hospitals, fire departments, and emergency medical services, often supported by county governments, are part of the critical infrastructure that helps our rural communities thrive,” said National -Association of Counties Executive Director Matthew Chase. “The Investing in Rural America Act would provide much-needed resources for these facilities to continue to serve rural America. Counties applaud Representatives Fischbach, Davis, Finstad, and Caraveo for introducing this bipartisan legislation.”
“Since 2005, over 190 rural hospitals have closed, in part because of a lack of access to affordable long-term capital. That’s why the National Rural Health Association (NRHA) supports Representatives Fischbach (R-MN), Davis (D-NC), Finstad (R-MN), and Caraveo’s (D-CO) proposal to streamline Farm Credit’s ability to finance rural community facilities and bring more consistent, reliable credit to rural America,” said Alan Morgan, Chief Executive Officer, National Rural Health Association.
“On average, rural residents are older and face more health challenges than their urban counterparts. Increasing rural residents’ access to health care is critical to addressing this issue. That is why the National Association of Community Health Centers supports this bill to allow Farm Credit greater ability to finance rural community facilities and community health centers and provide the capital they need to serve rural America,” said Rachel Gonzales-Hanson, Interim President & CEO, National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC).
“Extending access to mental health care continues to be a challenge in many rural and frontier communities,” said Arthur C. Evans Jr., Ph.D., CEO of the American Psychological Association. “The Investing in Rural America Act opens up a new line of capital investment for a broad array of community-based entities that wish to establish or expand these services. We applaud Reps. Fischbach, Davis, Finstad, and Caraveo for adopting a population health approach in this bill and ensuring that the full needs of the community are met by allowing them to guide where and how services are delivered.”
“These projects are critical to the long-term success of the rural communities we serve,” said Marc Knisely, president and CEO of AgCountry Farm Credit Services. “Our member-owners have been clear about the need for childcare, health services, and other infrastructure in their communities. It’s our mission to meet our members’ needs and to strengthen the vitality of rural communities. We thank Congresswoman Fischbach for her leadership and support in these efforts.”
“Rural America is in a quiet crisis today with a lack of funding for essential community facilities,” stated Jase Wagner, President and CEO of Compeer Financial, a Farm Credit cooperative serving portions of Minnesota, Illinois, and Wisconsin. “We applaud Representative Fischbach’s leadership in introducing the Invest in Rural America Act. Supporting Rural America is a team sport that takes the involvement of Farm Credit, local banks, and USDA Rural Development working together to address community needs in health care, senior living, child care, public safety, and other essential community facilities. We’re all here to see rural communities thrive, and with this legislation and the partnerships of us all working together, we have the ability to help revitalize rural America.”
