I 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6459 
To provide funds to enable counties to make competitive grants to qualified 
local units of government to address major community development and 
public infrastructure challenges, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 7, 2020 
Ms. CRAIG introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 
on Agriculture 
A BILL 
To provide funds to enable counties to make competitive 
grants to qualified local units of government to address 
major community development and public infrastructure 
challenges, 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 ‘‘Small Cities and 
Towns Investment Act’’. 
SEC. 2. GRANTS FOR COUNTIES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Agriculture, 
through the Rural Development Innovation Center, shall 
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make a block grant in accordance with this Act to a county 
with a submission approved by the Secretary under section 
3, for each year in the 5-year period during which the plan 
included in the submission is to be in effect. 
(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this Act: 
(1) QUALIFIED
LOCAL
UNIT
OF
GOVERN-
MENT.—The term ‘‘qualified local unit of govern-
ment’’ means a town, city, village, township, or simi-
lar entity that has a population of no greater than 
30,000 individuals. 
(2) REGIONAL PLANNING ENTITY.—The term 
‘‘regional planning entity’’ means a regional plan-
ning commission, regional council, or council of gov-
ernments. 
(3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
the Secretary of Agriculture. 
SEC. 3. SUBMISSION; CONSOLIDATED PLAN. 
(a) SUBMISSION.—A county that desires grants 
under this Act shall submit to the Secretary a consolidated 
plan that— 
(1) provides a broad overview of the projects for 
which the grants are to be used; 
(2) identifies ways to engage residents of the 
county (including by holding public hearings, pub-
lishing information on available funds, or providing 
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technical assistance for persons interested in apply-
ing for grant funds) throughout the process of ap-
plying for, and using grants provided under this Act; 
(3) identifies specific areas in need of improve-
ment in the county; 
(4) describes the short- and long-term commu-
nity and economic development objectives of the 
county; 
(5) identifies the private, public, and nonprofit 
institutions that are willing and able to assist in car-
rying out the plan; 
(6) has been developed in coordination with the 
regional planning entity for the area in which the 
county is located (or, if there is no such entity for 
the area, the Secretary), and using the Comprehen-
sive Economic Development Strategy developed by 
the Economic Development Administration in coordi-
nation with the regional planning entity (or, if there 
is no such entity, the Secretary); 
(7) specifies the 5-year period during which the 
plan is to be in effect; 
(8) is submitted to the Secretary and the office 
of economic development of the State in which the 
county is located, not later than 45 days before the 
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beginning of the 5-year period referred to in para-
graph (7); and 
(9) includes— 
(A) a binding commitment from the State 
in which the county is located to provide the 
county with $10 (from funds not provided by 
the Federal Government) to carry out the plan 
for each $85 in funds provided to the county 
under this Act to carry out the plan; and 
(B) a binding commitment from the county 
that the county will, alone or in combination 
with one or more local units of government in 
the county, expend a total of $5 (from funds 
not provided by the Federal Government) for 
each $85 in funds provided to the county under 
this Act to carry out the plan. 
(b) APPROVAL; DISAPPROVAL.— 
(1) APPROVAL.—The Secretary shall approve a 
submission that meets the requirements of sub-
section (a) if— 
(A) not less than 80 percent of the grants 
to be provided to the submitter under this Act 
would be distributed to one or more qualified 
local units of government through a competitive 
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grant program, and the submitter would retain 
not more than 20 percent of the grants; 
(B) the grants would be used, in accord-
ance with the consolidated plan contained in the 
submission, to purchase, construct, improve, or 
operate essential community facilities (including 
health care facilities; public facilities, such as 
town halls, courthouses, airport hangers, or 
public transportation; community support serv-
ices, such as workforce housing, child care cen-
ters, community centers, or transitional hous-
ing; public safety services; educational services, 
including classroom technological moderniza-
tion; utility services, including environmental 
protection services such as sewage disposal, 
sanitation, and pollution abatement; local food 
systems; and local amenities), purchase equip-
ment, and pay related project expenses, con-
sistent with section 5; and 
(C) each qualified local unit of government 
that would be receiving such a grant would en-
sure that each laborer and mechanic employed 
by a contractor or subcontractor in performance 
of construction work financed, in whole or in 
part, by the grant would be paid wages at rates 
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not less than the rates prevailing on similar 
construction in the locality as determined by 
the Secretary of Labor in accordance with sub-
chapter IV of chapter 31 of title 40, United 
States Code (commonly known as the Davis- 
Bacon Act); and 
(D) the submitter demonstrates that there 
is substantial community support for the plan. 
(2) DISAPPROVAL.—The Secretary shall make 
available to the general public the reasons for the 
disapproval of a submission made pursuant to this 
section. 
SEC. 4. ALLOCATION OF FUNDS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall allocate the 
amounts made available by this Act among counties with 
submissions approved under section 3, in accordance a for-
mula prescribed by the Secretary in regulations, that the 
Secretary determines would best allow counties to address 
major community development and public infrastructure 
challenges. In developing the formula, the Secretary shall 
consider the following criteria: 
(1) Per capita income levels. 
(2) Population growth rates. 
(b) EVALUATION.—Every 2 years, the Secretary shall 
evaluate the effectiveness of the formula prescribed under 
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subsection (a), and revise the formula, as necessary, to 
best enable counties to address major community develop-
ment and public infrastructure challenges. 
(c) REPORT
TO CONGRESS.—The Secretary shall 
submit to the Congress a report on each formula used 
under this section, which sets forth the formula and ex-
plains how allocating the amounts made available by this 
Act best achieves the purposes of this Act. 
SEC. 5. LIMITATIONS; USE OF FUNDS. 
(a) LIMITATIONS.—A local unit of government to 
which a grant is made under this Act may not use the 
grant— 
(1) to discriminate against any person on the 
basis of race, color, sex, age, sexual orientation, or 
national origin; 
(2) as matching funds to receive Federal funds 
under any other law; or 
(3) in contravention of the requirements under 
sections 3141 through 3144, 3146, and 3147 of title 
40, United States Code. 
(b) USE OF FUNDS.—A county to which funds are 
provided under this Act for a fiscal year shall reserve 1 
percent of the funds for administration of the funds. 
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SEC. 6. ANNUAL ACTION REPORTS; AUDITS BY THE INSPEC-
TOR GENERAL. 
(a) ANNUAL ACTION REPORTS.—By the end of each 
year for which a grant is made under this Act to a county, 
the county shall submit to the Secretary a report that— 
(1) identifies the development goals of the coun-
ty for the succeeding year; 
(2) contains a brief summary of the actions and 
activities to be undertaken with funds provided 
under this Act, and identifies specific, measurable 
goals that match the priorities identified in the plan 
to be carried out using the funds; 
(3) outlines the Federal and non-Federal re-
sources that will be used in doing so; 
(4) details the progress made by the county in 
achieving the goals identified as described in this 
subsection for the preceding year; and 
(5) includes information on the amount of the 
grant provided to the county for the year covered by 
the report, and details on how the money was dis-
tributed for each project under the plan referred to 
in section 3. 
(b) AUDITS BY THE INSPECTOR GENERAL.—The In-
spector General of the Department of Agriculture shall 
conduct periodic and random audits of the projects to 
which funds are provided under this Act. 
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SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
There 
is 
authorized 
to 
be 
appropriated 
$10,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2021 and each succeeding 
fiscal year to make grants under this Act. 
Æ 
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