I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 5203 

To establish the Rural Export Center, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 20, 2019 

Mr. PETERSON (for himself and Mr. ARMSTRONG) introduced the following 

bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 

A BILL 

To establish the Rural Export Center, and for other 

purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Promoting Rural Ex5 ports Act of 2019’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) Rural businesses are often located far from 

9 information clusters and major transportation cor10 ridors. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
2 

•HR 5203 IH

1 (2) Because of their location, rural businesses 

2 face higher barriers to accessing international mar3 kets. 

4 (3) A dedicated Rural Export Center within the 

5 United States and Foreign Commercial Service pro6 viding business- and product-specific support can 

7 help companies in the United States looking to ex8 port their products. 

9 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE RURAL EXPORT CENTER. 

10 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

11 (1) ASSISTANT SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Assist12 ant Secretary’’ means the Assistant Secretary of 

13 Commerce and Director General of the United 

14 States and Foreign Commercial Service appointed 

15 pursuant to section 2301(a)(2) of the Export En16 hancement Act of 1988 (15 U.S.C. 4721(a)(2)). 

17 (2) COMMERCIAL SERVICE.—The term ‘‘Com18 mercial Service’’ means the United States and For19 eign Commercial Service established under section 

20 2301(a)(1) of the Export Enhancement Act of 1988 

21 (15 U.S.C. 4721(a)(1)). 

22 (b) ESTABLISHMENT OF THE RURAL EXPORT CEN23 TER.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

25 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Assistant 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
3 

•HR 5203 IH

1 Secretary shall establish a Rural Export Center (in 

2 this section referred to as the ‘‘Center’’) for the pur3 pose of providing businesses located in rural areas in 

4 the United States with resources to help those busi5 nesses export their products. 

6 (2) LOCATION OF THE CENTER.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Center shall be es8 tablished at an office of the Commercial Service 

9 in the United States in existence before the 

10 date of the enactment of this Act. 

11 (B) CRITERIA FOR SELECTING LOCA12 TION.—In selecting a location for the Center, 

13 the Assistant Secretary shall give preference— 

14 (i) based on expertise and operations 

15 at Commercial Service offices that support 

16 rural businesses exporting to new markets 

17 before the date of the enactment of this 

18 Act; and 

19 (ii) to such offices not located in 

20 major metropolitan areas. 

21 (C) LOCATION OF STAFF.—Any researcher 

22 or staff directly supporting the operation of the 

23 Center shall be primarily based at the Center. 

24 (c) EXPORT CENTER OPERATIONS.— 

25 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Center shall— 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
4 

•HR 5203 IH

1 (A) provide in-depth, customized, and ac2 tionable market research services that— 

3 (i) a business may opt into based on 

4 need; and 

5 (ii) are— 

6 (I) focused on actionable and 

7 measurable results for a business; 

8 (II) business- and product-spe9 cific; 

10 (III) targeted to not more than 3 

11 international markets; 

12 (IV) based on high-quality data, 

13 including data from international 

14 trade association subscription data15 bases; and 

16 (V) based on market analysis and 

17 export services of the Commercial 

18 Service available before the date of 

19 the enactment of this Act, including 

20 the Rural America’s Intelligence Serv21 ice for Exporters program; and 

22 (B) conduct strategic planning and export 

23 support services for rural businesses as needed. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
5 

•HR 5203 IH

1 (2) MEASURE OF EFFECTIVENESS.—To meas2 ure the effectiveness of the Center, the Center shall 

3 collect and make available data on— 

4 (A) the number of businesses that sign up 

5 for market research assistance; 

6 (B) the number of export assistance serv7 ices a business engages in following the re8 search assistance, including— 

9 (i) trade shows; 

10 (ii) trade missions; and 

11 (iii) other services facilitated by the 

12 Center; and 

13 (C) the total monetary value of exports fa14 cilitated by the services provided by the Center. 

15 (3) WEBSITE FOR THE CENTER.—The Center 

16 shall maintain an internet website that includes— 

17 (A) data collected by the Center; 

18 (B) best practices for rural businesses be19 ginning to evaluate export opportunities; and 

20 (C) appropriate contact information for 

21 staff at the Center. 

Æ 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS