A bill to establish a rural community service program, and for other purposes.

SECTION 1. RURAL COMMUNITY SERVICE.

    Title XI of the of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1136 
et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new part:

                   ``PART C--RURAL COMMUNITY SERVICE

``SEC. 1171. FINDINGS; PURPOSE.

    ``(a) Findings.--The Congress finds that--
            ``(1) the Nation's rural centers are facing increasingly 
        pressing problems and needs in the areas of economic 
        development, community infrastructure and service, social 
        policy, public health, housing, crime, education, environmental 
        concerns, planning and work force preparation;
            ``(2) there are, in the Nation's rural institutions, people 
        with underutilized skills, knowledge, and experience who are 
        capable of providing a vast range of services towards the 
        amelioration of the problems described in paragraph (1);
            ``(3) the skills, knowledge, and experience in these rural 
        institutions, if applied in a systematic and sustained manner, 
        can make a significant contribution to the solution of such 
        problems; and
            ``(4) the application of such skills, knowledge, and 
        experience is hindered by the limited funds available to 
        redirect attention to solutions to such rural problems.
    ``(b) Purpose.--It is the purpose of this part to provide 
incentives to rural academic institutions to enable such institutions 
to work with private and civic organizations to devise and implement 
solutions to pressing and severe problems in their communities.

``SEC. 1172. PROGRAM.

    ``The Secretary is authorized to carry out a program of providing 
assistance to eligible institutions to enable such institutions to 
carry out the authorized activities described in section 1174 in 
accordance with the provisions of this part.

``SEC. 1173. APPLICATIONS FOR RURAL COMMUNITY SERVICE GRANTS.

    ``(a) Application.--
            ``(1) In general.--Each eligible institution desiring a 
        grant under this part shall submit to the Secretary an 
        application at such time, in such form, and containing or 
        accompanied by such information and assurances, as the 
        Secretary may require by regulation.
            ``(2) Contents.--Each application submitted pursuant to 
        paragraph (1) shall--
                    ``(A) describe the activities and services for 
                which assistance is sought; and
                    ``(B) contain assurances that the eligible 
                institution will enter into a consortium to carry out 
                the provisions of this part that includes, in addition 
                to the eligible institution, one or more of the 
                following entities:
                            ``(i) A community college.
                            ``(ii) A rural local educational agency.
                            ``(iii) A local government.
                            ``(iv) A business or other employer.
                            ``(v) A nonprofit institution.
            ``(3) Waiver.--The Secretary may waive the consortium 
        requirements described in paragraph (2) for any applicant who 
        can demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Secretary that the 
        applicant has devised an integrated and coordinated plan which 
        meets the purpose of this part.
    ``(b) Priority in Selection of Applications.--The Secretary shall 
give priority to applications that propose to conduct joint projects 
supported by other local, State, and Federal programs.
    ``(c) Selection Procedures.--The Secretary, by regulation, shall 
develop a formal procedure for the submission of applications under 
this part and shall publish in the Federal Register an announcement of 
that procedure and the availability of funds under this part.

``SEC. 1174. AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.

    ``Grant funds made available under this part shall be used to 
support planning, applied research, training, resource exchanges or 
technology transfers, the delivery of services, or other activities the 
purpose of which is to design and implement programs to assist rural 
communities to meet and address their pressing and severe problems, 
such as any of the following:
            ``(1) Work force preparation.
            ``(2) Rural poverty and the alleviation of such poverty.
            ``(3) Health care, including health care delivery and 
        access as well as health education, prevention and wellness.
            ``(4) Underperforming school systems and students.
            ``(5) Problems faced by the elderly and individuals with 
        disabilities in rural settings.
            ``(6) Problems faced by families and children.
            ``(7) Campus and community crime prevention, including 
        enhanced security and safety awareness measures as well as 
        coordinated programs addressing the root causes of crime.
            ``(8) Rural housing.
            ``(9) Rural infrastructure.
            ``(10) Economic development.
            ``(11) Rural farming and environmental concerns.
            ``(12) Other problem areas which participants in the 
        consortium described in section 1173(a)(2)(B) concur are of 
        high priority in rural areas.
            ``(13)(A) Problems faced by individuals with disabilities 
        and economically disadvantaged individuals regarding 
        accessibility to institutions of higher education and other 
        public and private community facilities.
            ``(B) Amelioration of existing attitudinal barriers that 
        prevent full inclusion of individuals with disabilities in 
        their community.

``SEC. 1175. PEER REVIEW.

    ``The Secretary shall designate a peer review panel to review 
applications submitted under this part and make recommendations for 
funding to the Secretary. In selecting the peer review panel, the 
Secretary may consult with other appropriate Cabinet-level Federal 
officials and with non-Federal organizations, to ensure that the panel 
will be geographically balanced and be composed of representatives from 
public and private institutions of higher education, labor, business, 
and State and local government, who have expertise in rural community 
service or in education.

``SEC. 1176. DISBURSEMENT OF FUNDS.

    ``(a) Multiyear Availability.--Subject to the availability of 
appropriations, grants under this part may be made on a multiyear 
basis, except that no institution, individually or as a participant in 
a consortium, may receive a grant for more than 5 years.
    ``(b) Equitable Geographic Distribution.--The Secretary shall award 
grants under this part in a manner that achieves equitable geographic 
distribution of such grants.
    ``(c) Matching Requirement.--An applicant under this part and the 
local governments associated with its application shall contribute to 
the conduct of the program supported by the grant an amount from non-
Federal funds equal to at least one-fourth of the amount grant, which 
contribution may be in cash or in kind, fairly evaluated.

``SEC. 1177. DESIGNATION OF RURAL GRANT INSTITUTIONS.

    ``The Secretary shall publish a list of eligible institutions under 
this part and shall designate such institutions of higher education as 
`Rural Grant Institutions'. The Secretary shall establish a national 
network of Rural Grant Institutions so that the results of individual 
projects achieved in 1 rural area can be generalized, disseminated, 
replicated and applied throughout the Nation.

``SEC. 1178. DEFINITIONS.

    ``As used in this part:
            ``(1) Rural area.--The term `rural area' means any area 
        that is--
                    ``(A) outside an urbanized area, as such term is 
                defined by the Bureau of the Census; and
                    ``(B) outside any place that--
                            ``(i) is incorporated or Bureau of the 
                        Census designated; and
                            ``(ii) has a population of 75,000 or more.
            ``(2) Eligible institution.--The term `eligible 
        institution' means an institution of higher education, or a 
        consortium of such institutions any one of which meets all the 
        requirements of this paragraph, which--
                    ``(A) is located in a rural area;
                    ``(B) draws a substantial portion of its 
                undergraduate students from the rural area in which 
                such institution is located, or from contiguous areas;
                    ``(C) carries out programs to make postsecondary 
                educational opportunities more accessible to residents 
                of such rural areas, or contiguous areas;
                    ``(D) has the present capacity to provide resources 
                responsive to the needs and priorities of such rural 
                areas and contiguous areas;
                    ``(E) offers a range of professional, technical, or 
                graduate programs sufficient to sustain the capacity of 
                such institution to provide such resources; and
                    ``(F) has demonstrated and sustained a sense of 
                responsibility to such rural area and contiguous areas 
                and the people of such areas.

``SEC. 1179. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS; FUNDING RULE.

    ``(a) In General.--There are authorized to be appropriated such 
sums as may be necessary in each fiscal year to carry out the 
provisions of this part.
    ``(b) Funding Rule.--If in any fiscal year the amount appropriated 
pursuant to the authority of subsection (a) is less than 50 percent of 
the funds appropriated to carry out part A in such year, then the 
Secretary shall make available in such year from funds appropriated to 
carry out part A an amount equal to the difference between 50 percent 
of the funds appropriated to carry out part A and the amount 
appropriated pursuant to the authority of subsection (a).''.

Summary: Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to establish a rural community service program. 
Authorizes appropriations.