I 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 7019 

To establish the Office of Rural Prosperity, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 9, 2022 

Ms. CRAIG (for herself, Mr. NEWHOUSE, Mrs. AXNE, Mr. SMITH of Nebraska, 

Mr. O’HALLERAN, and Mr. FEENSTRA) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture 

A BILL 

To establish the Office of Rural Prosperity, 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 ‘‘Rural Prosperity Act 

5 of 2022’’. 

6 SEC. 2. OFFICE OF RURAL PROSPERITY. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is established in the Execu8 tive Office of the President the Office of Rural Prosperity 

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


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1 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the Office is to ad2 dress the social, economic, and community well-being and 

3 resilience of rural areas in the United States by addressing 

4 unique structural challenges experienced by rural commu5 nities, including housing, education, healthcare, small 

6 business development, and job creation. 

7 (c) CHIEF RURAL ADVISOR.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Office shall be headed 

9 by the Chief Rural Advisor, who shall be appointed 

10 by the President. 

11 (2) COMPENSATION.—The Chief Rural Advisor 

12 shall be compensated at the rate provided for level 

13 II of the Executive Schedule in section 5313 of title 

14 5, United States Code. 

15 (d) DUTIES.—The Chief Rural Advisor shall— 

16 (1) not later than 1 year after the date of en17 actment of this Act, develop, and not less frequently 

18 than every 3 years thereafter, update, a comprehen19 sive strategy for rural development across the Exec20 utive Branch, which shall— 

21 (A) identify the most pressing priorities of 

22 the United States to promote rural prosperity 

23 in the 10-year period following the date of sub24 mission of the report under subsection (f)(2); 

25 and 


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1 (B) describe the policy actions that will be 

2 taken by the Federal Government, across Fed3 eral agencies and programs, to accelerate and 

4 support social and economic prosperity in rural 

5 areas; 

6 (2) using the metrics developed under sub7 section (e), develop whole-of-government rec8 ommendations to improve the return on investment 

9 of Federal resources and engagement relating to the 

10 needs of rural areas in the United States; 

11 (3) make recommendations to the President on 

12 coordinating, streamlining, and leveraging Federal 

13 investments in rural areas to increase the impact of 

14 Federal dollars to improve economic opportunities 

15 and the quality of life in rural areas in the United 

16 States; 

17 (4) coordinate, and improve community-level 

18 outcomes and return on investment of, Federal en19 gagement relating to the needs of rural areas in the 

20 United States with stakeholders based in rural com21 munities, including— 

22 (A) agricultural organizations; 

23 (B) small businesses; 

24 (C) education and training institutions; 

25 (D) health care providers; 


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1 (E) telecommunications services providers; 

2 (F) electric service providers; 

3 (G) transportation providers; 

4 (H) research and land-grant institutions; 

5 (I) law enforcement agencies; 

6 (J) State, local, and Tribal governments 

7 (including a Native village and a Native Cor8 poration, as those terms are defined in section 

9 3 of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act 

10 (43 U.S.C. 1602)); and 

11 (K) nongovernmental organizations; 

12 (5) coordinate Federal efforts directed toward 

13 the growth and development of rural geographic re14 gions that encompass metropolitan and nonmetro15 politan areas; 

16 (6) identify and facilitate rural economic oppor17 tunities associated with energy transitions, outdoor 

18 recreation, and other conservation-related activities; 

19 (7) identify common economic and social chal20 lenges faced by rural communities that could be 

21 overcome through better coordination of existing 

22 Federal and non-Federal resources; and 

23 (8) convene public hearings (including with the 

24 power to call witnesses and request documents from 

25 Federal agencies) on the state of rural areas in the 


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1 United States and the comprehensive strategy for 

2 rural development developed under paragraph (1). 

3 (e) METRICS.— 

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

5 the date of enactment of this Act, the Chief Rural 

6 Advisor shall develop metrics to measure the effect 

7 of Federal programs on rural areas in the United 

8 States. 

9 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—In developing the metrics 

10 under paragraph (1), the Chief Rural Advisor 

11 shall— 

12 (A) develop a comprehensive list of feder13 ally administered programs that are available to 

14 individuals, businesses, nonprofit organizations, 

15 units of local government, or other entities lo16 cated in rural areas in the United States; and 

17 (B) develop a comprehensive set of 

18 metrics, including— 

19 (i) employment in a rural area; 

20 (ii) inequality in a rural area; 

21 (iii) economic competitiveness of a 

22 rural area; 

23 (iv) inflation or deflation in a rural 

24 area; 


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1 (v) housing availability and costs in a 

2 rural area; 

3 (vi) access to health care or telehealth 

4 in a rural area; 

5 (vii) the rate of small business 

6 startups in a rural area; 

7 (viii) educational attainment in a 

8 rural area; 

9 (ix) workforce participation in a rural 

10 area; and 

11 (x) other metrics, as determined ap12 propriate by the Chief Rural Advisor. 

13 (3) AVAILABILITY OF DATA OF OTHER FED14 ERAL AGENCIES.— 

15 (A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of devel16 oping metrics under paragraph (1), the head of 

17 any other Federal agency shall provide to the 

18 Chief Rural Advisor, on request by the Chief 

19 Rural Advisor and at no cost to the Office, any 

20 data relating to the work of the Office collected 

21 by the Federal agency. 

22 (B) PRIVACY AND SECURITY.—The Chief 

23 Rural Advisor shall take any necessary steps to 

24 maintain the privacy and security of data pro25 vided under subparagraph (A). 


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1 (f) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—The Chief Rural Advi2 sor shall— 

3 (1) not later than 1 year after establishing the 

4 metrics under subsection (e), and not less frequently 

5 than annually thereafter— 

6 (A) prepare a report describing the effect 

7 that the programs on the list developed under 

8 subsection (e)(2)(A) have on rural areas, based 

9 on the metrics developed under subsection 

10 (e)(2)(B), with demographic breakdowns by 

11 race, age, and geographic region; and 

12 (B) submit to the Committee on Agri13 culture, Nutrition, and Forestry and the Com14 mittee on Appropriations of the Senate and the 

15 Committee on Agriculture and the Committee 

16 on Appropriations of the House of Representa17 tives, and make publicly available, the report 

18 prepared under subparagraph (A); and 

19 (2) not later than 1 year after the date of en20 actment of this Act, and not less frequently than 

21 every 3 years thereafter, submit to the Committee 

22 on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry and the 

23 Committee on Appropriations of the Senate and the 

24 Committee on Agriculture and the Committee on 

25 Appropriations of the House of Representatives the 


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1 comprehensive strategy for rural development devel2 oped under subsection (d)(1). 

3 (g) FUNDING.—This section shall be carried out 

4 using existing amounts otherwise available to the Execu5 tive Office of the President. 

6 (h) SAVINGS PROVISION.—Nothing in this section au7 thorizes the hiring of additional staff. 

8 SEC. 3. RURAL PROSPERITY COUNCIL. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is established a Rural Pros10 perity Council (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Coun11 cil’’). 

12 (b) CHAIR.—The Secretary of Agriculture shall serve 

13 as the Chair of the Council. 

14 (c) MEMBERS.—The Council shall be composed of the 

15 heads of the following executive branch departments, 

16 agencies, and offices: 

17 (1) The Office of Rural Prosperity. 

18 (2) The Department of Agriculture. 

19 (3) The Department of the Treasury. 

20 (4) The Department of Defense. 

21 (5) The Department of Justice. 

22 (6) The Bureau of Indian Affairs. 

23 (7) The Department of the Interior. 

24 (8) The Department of Commerce. 

25 (9) The Economic Development Administration. 


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1 (10) The Department of Labor. 

2 (11) The Department of Health and Human 

3 Services. 

4 (12) The Department of Housing and Urban 

5 Development. 

6 (13) The Department of Transportation. 

7 (14) The Department of Energy. 

8 (15) The Department of Education. 

9 (16) The Department of Veterans Affairs. 

10 (17) The Department of Homeland Security. 

11 (18) The Environmental Protection Agency. 

12 (19) The Federal Communications Commission. 

13 (20) The Office of Management and Budget. 

14 (21) The Office of Science and Technology Pol15 icy. 

16 (22) The Office of National Drug Control Pol17 icy. 

18 (23) The Council of Economic Advisers. 

19 (24) The Domestic Policy Council. 

20 (25) The National Economic Council. 

21 (26) The Small Business Administration. 

22 (27) The Council on Environmental Quality. 

23 (d) DESIGNEES.—A member of the Council may des24 ignate, to perform the Council functions of the member, 

25 a senior-level official who is— 


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1 (1) part of the department, agency, or office of 

2 the member; and 

3 (2) a full-time officer or employee of the Fed4 eral Government. 

5 (e) DUTIES.—The Council shall— 

6 (1) ensure coordination among Federal agen7 cies, States, units of local government, nonprofit or8 ganizations, and other stakeholders, as appropriate, 

9 in addressing the needs of rural areas in the United 

10 States; 

11 (2) coordinate Federal efforts directed toward 

12 the growth and development of rural geographic re13 gions that encompass both metropolitan and non14 metropolitan areas; 

15 (3) identify and facilitate rural economic oppor16 tunities associated with energy transitions, outdoor 

17 recreation, and other conservation-related activities; 

18 (4) make recommendations to the President, 

19 acting through the Chief Rural Advisor, on stream20 lining and leveraging Federal investments in rural 

21 areas, where appropriate, to increase the impact of 

22 Federal dollars and create economic opportunities to 

23 improve the quality of life in rural areas in the 

24 United States; 


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1 (5) provide a means for discussion and resolu2 tion of disputes between Federal agencies with re3 gard to programs that address the needs of rural 

4 areas in the United States; and 

5 (6) develop plans and strategies to address the 

6 needs of rural areas in the United States. 

7 (f) PUBLIC OUTREACH.—Not less frequently than 

8 twice annually, the Council shall hold public meetings in 

9 a rural community for the purpose of— 

10 (1) soliciting feedback from the public, units of 

11 local government, Indian Tribes, and dislocated 

12 workers on concerns relating to the social, economic, 

13 and community well-being and resilience of rural 

14 areas; and 

15 (2) soliciting recommendations on actions the 

16 departments, agencies, and offices represented on 

17 the Council may consider to support the economic 

18 development of rural communities. 

19 SEC. 4. RURAL PROSPERITY ACTION PLAN. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Agriculture (re21 ferred to in this section as the ‘‘Secretary’’), in coordina22 tion with the Under Secretary for Rural Development, 

23 shall develop a rural prosperity action plan (referred to 

24 in this section as the ‘‘action plan’’), which shall describe 

25 the actions to be carried out by the Secretary for the purVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:05 Mar 12, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7019.IH H7019

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1 poses of addressing the social, economic, and community 

2 well-being and resilience of rural areas in the United 

3 States by addressing unique structural challenges experi4 enced by rural communities. 

5 (b) COORDINATION.—Each activity carried out under 

6 this section shall be carried out in coordination with the 

7 Office of Rural Prosperity. 

8 (c) ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT AND FUNDING.—The 

9 Secretary shall provide administrative support and fund10 ing in the development of the action plan, to the extent 

11 permitted by law and using appropriations available to the 

12 Secretary as of the date of enactment of this Act. 

13 (d) ACTIVITIES.—In developing the action plan, the 

14 Secretary shall— 

15 (1) examine each rural development activity 

16 carried out by the Secretary as of the date of enact17 ment of this Act; and 

18 (2) identify regulatory and policy changes that 

19 could be made by the Secretary that would accom20 plish the goals described in subsection (a), including 

21 changes that would— 

22 (A) remove barriers to economic prosperity 

23 and quality of life in rural areas of the United 

24 States; 


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1 (B) strengthen and expand educational op2 portunities for students in rural communities, 

3 particularly in agricultural education, science, 

4 technology, engineering, and mathematics; 

5 (C) empower the State, local, and Tribal 

6 agencies that implement rural economic devel7 opment, agricultural, and environmental pro8 grams to tailor those programs to relevant re9 gional circumstances; 

10 (D) respect the unique circumstances of 

11 small businesses that serve rural communities 

12 and the unique business structures and regional 

13 diversity of farms and ranches; 

14 (E) ensure access to a reliable workforce 

15 and increase employment opportunities in rural16 focused businesses, including agriculture; 

17 (F) promote the preservation of family 

18 farms as they are passed from generation to 

19 generation; 

20 (G) ensure that private property rights of 

21 water users are not encumbered when the water 

22 users attempt to secure permits to operate on 

23 Federal land; 

24 (H) improve food safety and ensure that 

25 regulations and policies implementing Federal 


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1 food safety laws are based on science and ac2 count for the unique circumstances of farms 

3 and ranches; 

4 (I) encourage the production, export, and 

5 use of domestically produced agricultural prod6 ucts; 

7 (J) further the energy security of the 

8 United States in the rural landscape; 

9 (K) address hurdles associated with access 

10 to resources on Federal land for rural commu11 nities that rely on cattle grazing, timber har12 vests, mining, recreation, and other multiple 

13 uses; 

14 (L) identify and facilitate rural economic 

15 opportunities associated with energy develop16 ment, outdoor recreation, and other conserva17 tion-related activities; and 

18 (M) coordinate and improve the effective19 ness of Federal engagement with rural stake20 holders, including agricultural organizations, 

21 small businesses, education and training institu22 tions, health care providers, telecommunications 

23 services providers, research and land-grant in24 stitutions, law enforcement, State, local, and 

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1 nizations, regarding the needs of rural areas of 

2 the United States. 

3 (e) SUBMISSION OF ACTION PLAN.—Not later than 

4 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec5 retary shall submit the action plan, including rec6 ommendations for regulatory and policy changes identified 

7 under subsection (d)(2) that the Secretary considers ap8 propriate, to— 

9 (1) the Chief Rural Advisor; 

10 (2) the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, 

11 and Forestry of the Senate; 

12 (3) the Committee on Appropriations of the 

13 Senate; 

14 (4) the Committee on Agriculture of the House 

15 of Representatives; and 

16 (5) the Committee on Appropriations of the 

17 House of Representatives. 

18 (f) PROGRESS REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after 

19 the action plan is submitted in accordance with subsection 

20 (e), the Secretary shall submit a report describing the 

21 progress of the Secretary in meeting benchmarks de22 scribed in the action plan to— 

23 (1) the Chief Rural Advisor; 

24 (2) the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, 

25 and Forestry of the Senate; 


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1 (3) the Committee on Appropriations of the 

2 Senate; 

3 (4) the Committee on Agriculture of the House 

4 of Representatives; and 

5 (5) the Committee on Appropriations of the 

6 House of Representatives. 

Æ 


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