1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Rural Prosperity Act of 2022”.
Rural Prosperity Act of 2022
A BILL
To establish the Office of Rural Prosperity, and for other purposes.
2. Office of Rural Prosperity
In general— There is established in the Executive Office of the President the Office of Rural Prosperity (referred to in this section as the Office).
Purpose— The purpose of the Office is to address the social, economic, and community well-being and resilience of rural areas in the United States by addressing unique structural challenges experienced by rural communities, including housing, education, healthcare, small business development, and job creation.
Chief Rural Advisor—
In general— The Office shall be headed by the Chief Rural Advisor, who shall be appointed by the President.
Compensation— The Chief Rural Advisor shall be compensated at the rate provided for level II of the Executive Schedule in section 5313 of title 5, United States Code.
Duties— The Chief Rural Advisor shall—
not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, develop, and not less frequently than every 3 years thereafter, update, a comprehensive strategy for rural development across the Executive Branch, which shall—
identify the most pressing priorities of the United States to promote rural prosperity in the 10-year period following the date of submission of the report under subsection (f)(2); and
describe the policy actions that will be taken by the Federal Government, across Federal agencies and programs, to accelerate and support social and economic prosperity in rural areas;
using the metrics developed under subsection (e), develop whole-of-government recommendations to improve the return on investment of Federal resources and engagement relating to the needs of rural areas in the United States;
make recommendations to the President on coordinating, streamlining, and leveraging Federal investments in rural areas to increase the impact of Federal dollars to improve economic opportunities and the quality of life in rural areas in the United States;
coordinate, and improve community-level outcomes and return on investment of, Federal engagement relating to the needs of rural areas in the United States with stakeholders based in rural communities, including—
agricultural organizations;
small businesses;
education and training institutions;
health care providers;
telecommunications services providers;
electric service providers;
transportation providers;
research and land-grant institutions;
law enforcement agencies;
State, local, and Tribal governments (including a Native village and a Native Corporation, as those terms are defined in section 3 of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1602)); and
nongovernmental organizations;
coordinate Federal efforts directed toward the growth and development of rural geographic regions that encompass metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas;
identify and facilitate rural economic opportunities associated with energy transitions, outdoor recreation, and other conservation-related activities;
identify common economic and social challenges faced by rural communities that could be overcome through better coordination of existing Federal and non-Federal resources; and
convene public hearings (including with the power to call witnesses and request documents from Federal agencies) on the state of rural areas in the United States and the comprehensive strategy for rural development developed under paragraph (1).
Metrics—
In general— Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Chief Rural Advisor shall develop metrics to measure the effect of Federal programs on rural areas in the United States.
Requirements— In developing the metrics under paragraph (1), the Chief Rural Advisor shall—
develop a comprehensive list of federally administered programs that are available to individuals, businesses, nonprofit organizations, units of local government, or other entities located in rural areas in the United States; and
develop a comprehensive set of metrics, including—
employment in a rural area;
inequality in a rural area;
economic competitiveness of a rural area;
inflation or deflation in a rural area;
housing availability and costs in a rural area;
access to health care or telehealth in a rural area;
the rate of small business startups in a rural area;
educational attainment in a rural area;
workforce participation in a rural area; and
other metrics, as determined appropriate by the Chief Rural Advisor.
Availability of data of other Federal agencies—
In general— For purposes of developing metrics under paragraph (1), the head of any other Federal agency shall provide to the Chief Rural Advisor, on request by the Chief Rural Advisor and at no cost to the Office, any data relating to the work of the Office collected by the Federal agency.
Privacy and security— The Chief Rural Advisor shall take any necessary steps to maintain the privacy and security of data provided under subparagraph (A).
Reports to Congress— The Chief Rural Advisor shall—
not later than 1 year after establishing the metrics under subsection (e), and not less frequently than annually thereafter—
prepare a report describing the effect that the programs on the list developed under subsection (e)(2)(A) have on rural areas, based on the metrics developed under subsection (e)(2)(B), with demographic breakdowns by race, age, and geographic region; and
submit to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate and the Committee on Agriculture and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives, and make publicly available, the report prepared under subparagraph (A); and
not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, and not less frequently than every 3 years thereafter, submit to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate and the Committee on Agriculture and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives the comprehensive strategy for rural development developed under subsection (d)(1).
Funding— This section shall be carried out using existing amounts otherwise available to the Executive Office of the President.
Savings provision— Nothing in this section authorizes the hiring of additional staff.
3. Rural Prosperity Council
In general— There is established a Rural Prosperity Council (referred to in this section as the “Council”).
Chair— The Secretary of Agriculture shall serve as the Chair of the Council.
Members— The Council shall be composed of the heads of the following executive branch departments, agencies, and offices:
The Office of Rural Prosperity.
The Department of Agriculture.
The Department of the Treasury.
The Department of Defense.
The Department of Justice.
The Bureau of Indian Affairs.
The Department of the Interior.
The Department of Commerce.
The Economic Development Administration.
The Department of Labor.
The Department of Health and Human Services.
The Department of Housing and Urban Development.
The Department of Transportation.
The Department of Energy.
The Department of Education.
The Department of Veterans Affairs.
The Department of Homeland Security.
The Environmental Protection Agency.
The Federal Communications Commission.
The Office of Management and Budget.
The Office of Science and Technology Policy.
The Office of National Drug Control Policy.
The Council of Economic Advisers.
The Domestic Policy Council.
The National Economic Council.
The Small Business Administration.
The Council on Environmental Quality.
Designees— A member of the Council may designate, to perform the Council functions of the member, a senior-level official who is—
part of the department, agency, or office of the member; and
a full-time officer or employee of the Federal Government.
Duties— The Council shall—
ensure coordination among Federal agencies, States, units of local government, nonprofit organizations, and other stakeholders, as appropriate, in addressing the needs of rural areas in the United States;
coordinate Federal efforts directed toward the growth and development of rural geographic regions that encompass both metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas;
identify and facilitate rural economic opportunities associated with energy transitions, outdoor recreation, and other conservation-related activities;
make recommendations to the President, acting through the Chief Rural Advisor, on streamlining and leveraging Federal investments in rural areas, where appropriate, to increase the impact of Federal dollars and create economic opportunities to improve the quality of life in rural areas in the United States;
provide a means for discussion and resolution of disputes between Federal agencies with regard to programs that address the needs of rural areas in the United States; and
develop plans and strategies to address the needs of rural areas in the United States.
Public Outreach— Not less frequently than twice annually, the Council shall hold public meetings in a rural community for the purpose of—
soliciting feedback from the public, units of local government, Indian Tribes, and dislocated workers on concerns relating to the social, economic, and community well-being and resilience of rural areas; and
soliciting recommendations on actions the departments, agencies, and offices represented on the Council may consider to support the economic development of rural communities.
4. Rural prosperity action plan
In general— The Secretary of Agriculture (referred to in this section as the Secretary), in coordination with the Under Secretary for Rural Development, shall develop a rural prosperity action plan (referred to in this section as the action plan), which shall describe the actions to be carried out by the Secretary for the purposes of addressing the social, economic, and community well-being and resilience of rural areas in the United States by addressing unique structural challenges experienced by rural communities.
Coordination— Each activity carried out under this section shall be carried out in coordination with the Office of Rural Prosperity.
Administrative support and funding— The Secretary shall provide administrative support and funding in the development of the action plan, to the extent permitted by law and using appropriations available to the Secretary as of the date of enactment of this Act.
Activities— In developing the action plan, the Secretary shall—
examine each rural development activity carried out by the Secretary as of the date of enactment of this Act; and
identify regulatory and policy changes that could be made by the Secretary that would accomplish the goals described in subsection (a), including changes that would—
remove barriers to economic prosperity and quality of life in rural areas of the United States;
strengthen and expand educational opportunities for students in rural communities, particularly in agricultural education, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics;
empower the State, local, and Tribal agencies that implement rural economic development, agricultural, and environmental programs to tailor those programs to relevant regional circumstances;
respect the unique circumstances of small businesses that serve rural communities and the unique business structures and regional diversity of farms and ranches;
ensure access to a reliable workforce and increase employment opportunities in rural-focused businesses, including agriculture;
promote the preservation of family farms as they are passed from generation to generation;
ensure that private property rights of water users are not encumbered when the water users attempt to secure permits to operate on Federal land;
improve food safety and ensure that regulations and policies implementing Federal food safety laws are based on science and account for the unique circumstances of farms and ranches;
encourage the production, export, and use of domestically produced agricultural products;
further the energy security of the United States in the rural landscape;
address hurdles associated with access to resources on Federal land for rural communities that rely on cattle grazing, timber harvests, mining, recreation, and other multiple uses;
identify and facilitate rural economic opportunities associated with energy development, outdoor recreation, and other conservation-related activities; and
coordinate and improve the effectiveness of Federal engagement with rural stakeholders, including agricultural organizations, small businesses, education and training institutions, health care providers, telecommunications services providers, research and land-grant institutions, law enforcement, State, local, and Tribal governments, and nongovernmental organizations, regarding the needs of rural areas of the United States.
Submission of action plan— Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit the action plan, including recommendations for regulatory and policy changes identified under subsection (d)(2) that the Secretary considers appropriate, to—
the Chief Rural Advisor;
the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate;
the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate;
the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives; and
the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives.
Progress report— Not later than 1 year after the action plan is submitted in accordance with subsection (e), the Secretary shall submit a report describing the progress of the Secretary in meeting benchmarks described in the action plan to—
the Chief Rural Advisor;
the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate;
the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate;
the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives; and
the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives.