The Center for Rural Affairs is committed to rural development on a variety of fronts, making small business loans available to rural businesses and advocating for policy that supports producers and entrepreneurs.
Rural Microentrepreneur Assistance Program
Our major focus in federal rural development policy is the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Microentrepreneur Assistance Program (RMAP). The Center successfully fought for the creation of RMAP in the 2008 farm bill. RMAP supports third-party organizations, such as the Center, in administering microloans to rural entrepreneurs with less than 10 employees.
Click here for a detailed overview of RMAP.
Broadband
At the state level, the Center has worked diligently to advocate for broadband access in rural areas, most notably playing a key role in the creation and passage of Nebraska Legislative Bill 996. Passed unanimously by the Nebraska Legislature in 2020, this bill creates the Broadband Data Improvement Program, which will help ensure the state is able to fully access federal broadband grant programs by complying with data verification requirements.
