I 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5217 

To establish a White House Rural Council, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 8, 2018 

Mr. CARTWRIGHT (for himself and Mr. BISHOP of Georgia) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture 

A BILL 

To establish a White House Rural Council, 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 ‘‘Transforming Hiring 

5 in Rural Industries and Vital Economies Act of 2017’’. 

6 SEC. 2. WHITE HOUSE RURAL COUNCIL. 

7 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

8 Executive Office of the President a White House Rural 

9 Council (in this section referred to as the ‘‘Council’’). 

10 (b) MEMBERSHIP.— 


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1 (1) CHAIR.—The Secretary of Agriculture shall 

2 serve as the Chair of the Council. 

3 (2) MEMBERS.—The Council shall be composed 

4 of the heads of the following: 

5 (A) The Department of the Treasury. 

6 (B) The Department of Defense. 

7 (C) The Department of Justice. 

8 (D) The Department of the Interior. 

9 (E) The Department of Commerce. 

10 (F) The Department of Labor. 

11 (G) The Department of Health and 

12 Human Services. 

13 (H) The Department of Housing and 

14 Urban Development. 

15 (I) The Department of Transportation. 

16 (J) The Department of Energy. 

17 (K) The Department of Education. 

18 (L) The Department of Veterans Affairs. 

19 (M) The Department of Homeland Secu20 rity. 

21 (N) The Environmental Protection Agency. 

22 (O) The Federal Communications Commis23 sion. 

24 (P) The Office of Management and Budg25 et. 


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1 (Q) The Office of Science and Technology 

2 Policy. 

3 (R) The Office of National Drug Control 

4 Policy. 

5 (S) The Council of Economic Advisers. 

6 (T) The Domestic Policy Council. 

7 (U) The National Economic Council. 

8 (V) The Small Business Administration. 

9 (W) The Council on Environmental Qual10 ity. 

11 (X) The White House Office of Public En12 gagement and Intergovernmental Affairs. 

13 (Y) The White House Office of Cabinet Af14 fairs. 

15 (Z) Any other department, agency, or of16 fice of the executive branch as the President or 

17 Secretary of Agriculture may designate. 

18 (3) DESIGNEES.—Any member of the Council 

19 may designate a senior-level official, who is employed 

20 full-time in the department, agency, or office of such 

21 member, to carry out the duties of the member 

22 under this section. 

23 (c) MEETINGS.—Not later than six months after the 

24 date of the enactment of this Act, and every six months 

25 thereafter, the Council shall convene a meeting of repVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:11 Mar 16, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5217.IH H5217

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1 resentatives of the executive departments, agencies, and 

2 offices represented on the Council to develop plans to co3 ordinate the efforts of such executive departments, agen4 cies, and offices and facilitate efficient services to stake5 holders. At such meetings, each such representative 

6 shall— 

7 (1) share information regarding the rural eco8 nomic development efforts and activities of the rep9 resentative’s executive department, agency, or office; 

10 (2) identify opportunities for collaboration and 

11 coordination of research agendas, vulnerability as12 sessments, data collection and analysis, and plan13 ning and implementing rural economic development 

14 projects; 

15 (3) identify rural economic development infor16 mation needs, research gaps, and decision support 

17 needs that are not met by any executive department, 

18 agency, or office represented on the Council and 

19 make available such identification for purposes of in20 formation to be submitted to the Council; 

21 (4) identify common and complementary goals 

22 for rural economic development within each region 

23 to be prioritized for the coming year and beyond; 

24 (5) identify barriers to rural economic develop25 ment planning and implementation that can be overVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:11 Mar 16, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5217.IH H5217

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1 come or minimized through Federal action and spe2 cific suggestions for improvement; 

3 (6) evaluate progress and jointly develop a 

4 strategy for realizing rural economic development-re5 lated goals, including clearly identified responsibil6 ities by each collaborating regional office, center, or 

7 program; and 

8 (7) share experiences and best practices in 

9 stakeholder engagement and communication, deci10 sion support, and economic development interactions 

11 that support the realization of identified rural eco12 nomic development goals. 

13 (d) DUTIES.—The Council shall carry out the fol14 lowing: 

15 (1) Coordinate with the Domestic Policy Coun16 cil and the National Economic Council to develop 

17 the policy of the Council. 

18 (2) Coordinate with departments, agencies, and 

19 offices of the executive branch to develop policy rec20 ommendations that promote economic prosperity and 

21 quality of life in rural areas (as defined by the Sec22 retary of Agriculture) throughout the United States. 

23 (3) Make recommendations to the President, 

24 through the Director of the Domestic Policy Council 

25 and the Director of the National Economic Council, 


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1 on how to best use Federal investments in rural 

2 areas for the purpose of facilitating job growth and 

3 economic development. 

4 (4) Coordinate and increase the effectiveness of 

5 Federal engagement with rural stakeholders, includ6 ing agricultural organizations, small businesses, edu7 cation and training institutions, health care pro8 viders, telecommunications services providers, re9 search and land grant institutions, law enforcement, 

10 State, local, and Tribal governments, and non11 governmental organizations regarding the needs of 

12 rural areas throughout the United States. 

13 (5) Coordinate Federal efforts directed toward 

14 the growth and development of geographic regions 

15 that encompass both urban and rural areas. 

16 (6) Identify and facilitate rural economic oppor17 tunities associated with energy development, outdoor 

18 recreation, and other conservation-related activities. 

19 (e) ADMINISTRATION.—The Secretary of Agriculture 

20 (or staff designated by the Secretary) shall provide to the 

21 Council administrative support services and additional re22 sources, as appropriate, to the extent permitted by law and 

23 within existing appropriations. The Secretary shall deter24 mine the amount of funding and personnel necessary for 

25 the Council to carry out its duties and the amount of fundVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:11 Mar 16, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5217.IH H5217

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1 ing and personnel each department, agency, or office rep2 resented on the Council should contribute in order for the 

3 Council to carry out such duties. Such department, agen4 cy, or office shall, upon the request of the Secretary, make 

5 available to the Council personnel, administrative support 

6 services, and information. 

7 (f) NO ADDITIONAL FUNDS AUTHORIZED.—No addi8 tional funds are authorized to carry out the requirements 

9 of this section. Such requirements shall be carried out 

10 using amounts otherwise authorized. 

Æ 


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