I 
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117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1617 
To establish a White House Rural Council, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 8, 2021 
Mr. CARTWRIGHT (for himself, Mr. ROGERS of Kentucky, Mr. BISHOP of 
Georgia, Mrs. BUSTOS, Mr. COSTA, Mr. CRAWFORD, Mrs. HAYES, Mr. 
KIND, Ms. KUSTER, Mr. O’HALLERAN, Mr. PAPPAS, Ms. PINGREE, Mr. 
THOMPSON of Mississippi, and Mr. YOUNG) 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. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Transforming Hiring 
in Rural Industries and Vital Economies Act of 2021’’. 
SEC. 2. WHITE HOUSE RURAL COUNCIL. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 
Executive Office of the President a White House Rural 
Council (in this section referred to as the ‘‘Council’’). 
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(b) MEMBERSHIP.— 
(1) CHAIR.—The Secretary of Agriculture shall 
serve as the Chair of the Council. 
(2) MEMBERS.—The Council shall be composed 
of the heads of the following: 
(A) The Department of the Treasury. 
(B) The Department of Defense. 
(C) The Department of Justice. 
(D) The Department of the Interior. 
(E) The Department of Commerce. 
(F) The Department of Labor. 
(G) The Department of Health and 
Human Services. 
(H) The Department of Housing and 
Urban Development. 
(I) The Department of Transportation. 
(J) The Department of Energy. 
(K) The Department of Education. 
(L) The Department of Veterans Affairs. 
(M) The Department of Homeland Secu-
rity. 
(N) The Environmental Protection Agency. 
(O) The Federal Communications Commis-
sion. 
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(P) The Office of Management and Budg-
et. 
(Q) The Office of Science and Technology 
Policy. 
(R) The Office of National Drug Control 
Policy. 
(S) The Council of Economic Advisers. 
(T) The Domestic Policy Council. 
(U) The National Economic Council. 
(V) The Small Business Administration. 
(W) The Council on Environmental Qual-
ity. 
(X) The White House Office of Public En-
gagement and Intergovernmental Affairs. 
(Y) The White House Office of Cabinet Af-
fairs. 
(Z) Any other department, agency, or of-
fice of the executive branch as the President or 
Secretary of Agriculture may designate. 
(3) DESIGNEES.—Any member of the Council 
may designate a senior-level official, who is employed 
full-time in the department, agency, or office of such 
member, to carry out the duties of the member 
under this section. 
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(c) MEETINGS.—Not later than six months after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, and every six months 
thereafter, the Council shall convene a meeting of rep-
resentatives of the executive departments, agencies, and 
offices represented on the Council to develop plans to co-
ordinate the efforts of such executive departments, agen-
cies, and offices and facilitate efficient services to stake-
holders. At such meetings, each such representative 
shall— 
(1) share information regarding the rural eco-
nomic development efforts and activities of the rep-
resentative’s executive department, agency, or office; 
(2) identify opportunities for collaboration and 
coordination of research agendas, vulnerability as-
sessments, data collection and analysis, and plan-
ning and implementing rural economic development 
projects; 
(3) identify rural economic development infor-
mation needs, research gaps, and decision support 
needs that are not met by any executive department, 
agency, or office represented on the Council and 
make available such identification for purposes of in-
formation to be submitted to the Council; 
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(4) identify common and complementary goals 
for rural economic development within each region 
to be prioritized for the coming year and beyond; 
(5) identify barriers to rural economic develop-
ment planning and implementation that can be over-
come or minimized through Federal action and spe-
cific suggestions for improvement; 
(6) evaluate progress and jointly develop a 
strategy for realizing rural economic development-re-
lated goals, including clearly identified responsibil-
ities by each collaborating regional office, center, or 
program; and 
(7) share experiences and best practices in 
stakeholder engagement and communication, deci-
sion support, and economic development interactions 
that support the realization of identified rural eco-
nomic development goals. 
(d) DUTIES.—The Council shall carry out the fol-
lowing: 
(1) Coordinate with the Domestic Policy Coun-
cil and the National Economic Council to develop 
the policy of the Council. 
(2) Coordinate with departments, agencies, and 
offices of the executive branch to develop policy rec-
ommendations that promote economic prosperity and 
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quality of life in rural areas (as defined by the Sec-
retary of Agriculture) throughout the United States. 
(3) Make recommendations to the President, 
through the Director of the Domestic Policy Council 
and the Director of the National Economic Council, 
on how to best use Federal investments in rural 
areas for the purpose of facilitating job growth and 
economic development. 
(4) Coordinate and increase the effectiveness of 
Federal engagement with rural stakeholders, includ-
ing agricultural organizations, small businesses, edu-
cation and training institutions, health care pro-
viders, telecommunications services providers, re-
search and land grant institutions, law enforcement, 
State, local, and Tribal governments, and non-
governmental organizations regarding the needs of 
rural areas throughout the United States. 
(5) Coordinate Federal efforts directed toward 
the growth and development of geographic regions 
that encompass both urban and rural areas. 
(6) Identify and facilitate rural economic oppor-
tunities associated with energy development, outdoor 
recreation, and other conservation-related activities. 
(e) ADMINISTRATION.—The Secretary of Agriculture 
(or staff designated by the Secretary) shall provide to the 
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Council administrative support services and additional re-
sources, as appropriate, to the extent permitted by law and 
within existing appropriations. The Secretary shall deter-
mine the amount of funding and personnel necessary for 
the Council to carry out its duties and the amount of fund-
ing and personnel each department, agency, or office rep-
resented on the Council should contribute in order for the 
Council to carry out such duties. Such department, agen-
cy, or office shall, upon the request of the Secretary, make 
available to the Council personnel, administrative support 
services, and information. 
(f) NO ADDITIONAL FUNDS AUTHORIZED.—No addi-
tional funds are authorized to carry out the requirements 
of this section. Such requirements shall be carried out 
using amounts otherwise authorized. 
Æ 
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