According to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), nearly 50 million people living in rural areas throughout the country experience energy challenges due to being isolated from larger grids. This results in many of them having unreliable access to power and higher electric bills. Energy is not the only resource that is inconsistent, though. Other infrastructure necessities, like clean drinking water and transportation networks, are also lacking.
In December 2024, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that it is investing $6.3 billion in rural and Tribal communities across 44 states to shore up their infrastructure and take aim at the issues directly facing these communities via the Electric Infrastructure Loan and Loan Guarantee Program. The effort will work to expand residents’ access to clean and reliable electric lines and grids and provide safe drinking water, all the while creating good-paying jobs.
Photo Courtesy Rappahannock Electric Cooperative
This program provides $5.7 billion in funding to help utilities and electric cooperatives build and improve lines and smart-grid technologies in 23 states. According to the department, more than 200 projects are being financed to strengthen the nation’s rural infrastructure, “growing the American economy from the middle out and bottom up.”
This funding will benefit areas in Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia and Wisconsin.
Photo Courtesy Rural Action
Projects in the South will bring reliable electricity to rural communities. In Arkansas, the Carroll Electric Cooperative Corporation received $432 million to build and improve nearly 900 miles of electric line for more than 10,000 residents. Almost $11 million of the aforementioned $432 million will be used for smart grid technologies.
In Virginia, the Rappahannock Electric Cooperative was awarded $293 million to build and service 880 miles of line, with nearly $160 million going toward smart grid technologies. This effort will connect more than 11,000 residents.
Through the USDA Rural Development Agency’s Water and Waste Disposal Loans and Grants and the Solid Waste Management Grants programs, the USDA is also investing nearly $642 million in water infrastructure. These projects will expand clean and reliable drinking water access, sanitary waste disposal, and stormwater drainage for people in 41 states — from Utah and Alaska to South Carolina and Maine.
In the Midwest, Iowa’s Rock Rapids Municipal Utilities received $25 million for upgrades to its wastewater treatment facility. The funding will alleviate an imminent sanitary hazard and meet water treatment quality standards. The project is set to improve the health and safety of 2,550 Lyon County residents.
Photo Courtesy Rock Rapids
This funding follows the November 2024 announcement of $18.3 million through the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) for 195 projects benefiting agricultural producers and rural small business owners across the Hawkeye State.
In Ohio and West Virginia, Rural Action Inc. received $122,000 to fund a project to encourage waste management best practices by improving recycling and composting techniques in 14 Appalachian counties. It covers 150,000 residents across 12 Ohio counties and two in West Virginia.
Photo Courtesy Rural Action
The USDA said the main focus of this funding effort is improving the quality of life for millions of Americans in rural areas.
“These investments will build modern infrastructure that will attract employers to the nation’s smallest towns and most remote communities, creating jobs, vibrant Main Streets, and lasting economic growth for the people who live there,” Tom Vilsack, former USDA secretary, said in a press release.
