Strengthening Rural Cooperatives and Communities Act

Bill: 119-hr-1951
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Riley, Josh [D-NY-19]
Introduced: 2025-03-06
Policy area: Agriculture and Food
Latest action: action_date: 2025-03-28
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Commodity Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development.

Summaries:
action_date: 2025-03-06
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p><strong>Strengthening Rural Cooperatives and Communities Act</strong></p><p>This bill reauthorizes through FY2029 and modifies the Rural Cooperative Development Grant (RCDG) Program. This Department of Agriculture (USDA) program provides grants to nonprofit institutions to help individuals and businesses start, expand, or improve rural cooperatives and other mutually-owned businesses through Rural Cooperative Development Centers.</p><p>USDA must give preference to grants that commit to providing technical assistance and other services to socially vulnerable,&nbsp;underserved, or distressed communities. Under current law,&nbsp;USDA must give preference to underserved and economically distressed areas in rural areas.</p><p>In addition, USDA may give an additional&nbsp;preference to applications that commit to providing a 25% matching contribution for the center with private funds and in-kind contributions.&nbsp;Specifically, USDA&nbsp;may&nbsp;award the maximum points in application scoring criteria to applicants that satisfy this requirement.</p><p>Under the bill, cooperative development includes activities (e.g., outreach, education, training, and technical assistance) to support the startup, expansion, or ongoing sustainability of new and existing cooperatives. Current law does not define cooperative development.</p><p>The bill directs the RCDG interagency working group to submit an annual report to Congress on its activities.</p><p>Finally, the program currently includes cooperative research program requirements to collect data on the effects of all types of cooperatives on the national economy. Under the bill, USDA must analyze the data resulting from the research and include the data and analysis in the annual report to Congress.</p>

tv_txt: I 119th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 1951 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES March 6, 2025 Mr. Riley of New York (for himself and Mr. Valadao ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture A BILL To amend the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act to reauthorize rural cooperative development grants.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Strengthening Rural Cooperatives and Communities Act . 2. Reauthorization of rural cooperative development grants Section 310B(e) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act ( 7 U.S.C. 1932(e) ) is amended— (1) in paragraph (1), by adding at the end the following: (C) Cooperative development The term cooperative development means activities including outreach, education, training, and technical assistance, to support the startup, expansion, or ongoing sustainability of new and existing cooperatives. ; (2) in paragraph (4), by inserting , and award maximum points in scoring criteria to applicants that satisfy the requirements of paragraph (5)(F), before if the plan ; (3) in paragraph (5), by striking subparagraph (D) and inserting the following: (D) commit to providing technical assistance and other services to socially vulnerable, underserved, or distressed communities; ; (4) in paragraph (6)(B), by striking If the Secretary determines it to be in the best interest of the program, the and inserting The ; (5) in paragraph (10), by adding at the end the following: The Secretary shall analyze the data resulting from the research, and include the data and the analysis in the annual report submitted by the interagency working group under paragraph (12). ; (6) in paragraph (12), by adding at the end the following: Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this sentence and annually thereafter, the interagency working group shall submit to the Congress a report describing the activities carried out by the working group. ; and (7) in paragraph (13), by striking 2014 through 2023 and inserting 2025 through 2029 .