From our colleagues at USDA-Rural Development
From: Agans, Suzette - RD, Washington, DC [mailto:Suzette.Agans@wdc.usda.gov]
Sent: Friday, December 13, 2013 11:22 AM
Subject: Publications, Learning, and Funding
PUBLICATIONS
USDA Overhauls Single Family Housing Guaranteed Loan Program - Changes will strengthen rural housing markets; encourage new construction
WASHINGTON, Dec. 9, 2013 – U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced a series of sweeping changes to a popular loan program for rural homebuyers. The changes are part of an extensive overhaul that will strengthen rural housing markets, increase the availability of rural home loans and spur the construction of new homes in rural areas.
"These improvements will help create jobs and enable more people to participate in the rural home loan guarantee program," Vilsack said. "The changes will add significant capital to rural areas and give rural Americans more opportunities to make financing decisions that lay the groundwork for the future prosperity of their families."
The changes are published in today's Federal Register. They take effect Sept. 1, 2014 and make several improvements to USDA Rural Development's Single Family Housing Guaranteed Loan Program. Among other things, they expand the types of lenders who are eligible to participate. With the rule change, any lending entity supervised and regulated by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the National Credit Union Administration, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Reserve Banks, or the Federal Housing Finance Board may underwrite loans guaranteed by Rural Development. This will enable many small community banks and credit unions to participate in the guaranteed loan program. Currently, these entities are not eligible lenders.
Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City: People tend to earn less and spend less when they retire. Authors Alison Felix and Kate Watkins find that, as the baby boom generation retires, the aging of the U.S. population will likely reduce state governments' revenue per capita from income taxes and sales taxes significantly. Macro Bulletins in some cases are short summaries of Economic Review articles and in other cases are stand-alone snapshots of other macroeconomic research findings from the Kansas City Fed. http://www.kansascityfed.org/publications/research/er/index.cfm?ealert=econrev120513
Poorest SNAP households least likely to get additional support from unemployment insurance
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and unemployment insurance are two countercyclical assistance programs. In economic downturns, more people become eligible for the programs and participation grows. A recent ERS report found that the poorest SNAP households are the most likely to rely on SNAP alone without unemployment insurance, perhaps because they lack the work histories and sufficient earnings to be eligible for unemployment insurance. In 2009, just 6.7 percent of SNAP households with annual incomes below 50 percent of the poverty line also received unemployment insurance. In comparison, 22.6 percent of SNAP households with incomes between 150 and 199 percent of poverty received unemployment insurance. In 2005 (a full-employment year), 3.6 percent of SNAP households in the lowest income group received unemployment assistance.
Case Studies of Regional Extension Centers Serving Rural Practices: Minnesota and North Dakota
Focuses on the HIT Regional Extension Center serving Minnesota and North Dakota and its experiences working with rural physician practices in the two states.
Organization: University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center. Date: 11 / 2013
Frontier Extended Stay Clinics: Understanding and Facilitating Rural Health Transformation
An overview of the Frontier Extended Stay Clinic (FESC) demonstration project, which allows participating clinics to expand services to include extended stay and emergency services. Discusses the benefit of this type of facility as an option for small rural communities. Organization: Rural Health System Analysis and Technical Assistance
| Rural high-poverty counties are concentrated in the South and Southwest |
| The national poverty rate (based on pre-tax income of less than $23,492 for an average family of four) was 15.0 percent in 2012; the rate was 17.7 percent in nonmetro areas and 14.5 percent in metro areas. High-poverty counties—those with a poverty rate of 20 percent or higher—are often geographically clustered. During 2007-11, there were 703 high-poverty counties in the United States; 571 were nonmetro, mostly in the South and Southwest. Most newly-classified rural high-poverty counties are located adjacent to clusters of historically high-poverty counties, but some were outside these clusters, mainly in areas with substantial losses in the real estate market and manufacturing employment between 2006 and 2009. This map is found in Rural America at a Glance, 2013 edition, released November 2013. |
LEARNING
WEBINAR: Small Changes, Real Impact: Applying Behavioral Economics in Asset-Building Programs, Tuesday, December 17, 2013 | 3 - 4 pm EST
Speakers:
- Daria Sheehan, Citi Foundation
- Katy Davis, ideas42
- Matthew Darling, ideas42
- Pamela Chan, CFED
Last year, the BETA Project was launched to improve the effectiveness of products and services designed to help people bolster their financial security. In the 12 months since, we’ve worked closely with three organizations to understand a problem in their program, design solutions and test them.
On December 17, join CFED, ideas42 and the Citi Foundation as we discuss findings from this year-long project. During the webinar, speakers will report on the research conducted at BETA Project partner sites, explore the implications of applying insights from behavioral economics to asset-building program design and provide helpful tips on how to incorporate the behavioral perspective into your organization. More information on the project is available here. Advanced registration is required for the event and space is limited. Click here to sign up. Free
WEBINAR: Utility Scale Renewable Energy Development – Project siting & Conflict Resolution, December 18, 2013 (Wednesday), 1:00 PM – Eastern Time
http://connect.msu.edu/ncrcrd, there is no registration and no fee for attending this webinar. To join the webinar go to http://connect.msu.edu/ncrcrd, “enter as a guest” is by default already chosen. Type your name into the text box provided, and click on “Enter Room”. You are now in the meeting room for the webinar.
Large-scale wind farm development requires non-bias, factual based information on both the positive and negative community impacts to guide conflict resolution and the evolution of community perceptions. Local elected officials and decision makers need access to research-based information that will help them better understand the potential benefits and impacts on their community. Extension is uniquely positioned to help given its connection to university resources, its objective and unbiased research, and its commitment to transformational education. This webinar will provide an introduction to a 3 module curriculum developed with funding through the NCRCRD that addresses topics on project development, utility siting issues and concerns, and methods for resolving conflict involving wind farm projects.
About the Speakers:
Eric Romich, Ohio State University Extension Field Specialist for Energy Development. His research, outreach, and extension education efforts are focused in the areas of renewable energy development, shale energy development, and energy policy. As a statewide Extension Field Specialist, Romich works with elected officials, community planners, community residents, and state government agencies to develop and deliver educational programs. His energy programs are designed to guide informed decision making on energy development, facilitate local conflict resolution, and enhance the overall environmental and economic quality of life for Ohioans.
Peggy Hall, Director of the Agricultural and Resource Law Program at Ohio State University and a faculty member in the Department of Extension. She conducts research and outreach on legal issues affecting agriculture, land use and resource development and teaches Agribusiness Law in the College of Food, Agricultural & Environmental Sciences at OSU. Hall is currently the President of the American Agricultural Law Association and has served as Chair of the Ohio State Bar Association Agricultural Law Committee, on the Board of Directors for the American Agricultural Law Association and on the Advisory Board for the National Agricultural Law Center.
Wayne Beyea, Extension Specialist, Michigan State University, School of Planning, Design and Construction. Mr. Beyea maintains a teaching and outreach program with an emphasis on the science and policy of green community planning, renewable energy siting and infrastructure, and sustainable development and climate change law. He has over 20 years of experience in the fields of community planning, economic development, and land use law at the local, county, regional and state levels.
FUNDING
FISKARS is offering Community Garden Grants to provide funding for tools, materials, and other support to help communities reach their goals for neighborhood beautification, community collaboration, and healthy, sustainable food sources. Deadline: 12/31/2013. Click here to visit the website and to apply.
The Administration for Children and Families is offering grants to provide services through transitional living programs or maternity group homes for runaway and homeless youth, including youth from rural areas. Application deadline: 1/15/2014. Click here to visit the website.
The Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP) is accepting applications to its FY 2014 Rural Health Network Development Planning Grant Program. A rural health network is defined as an organizational arrangement among at least three separately owned regional or local health care providers that come together to develop strategies for improving health services delivery systems in a community. Networks can include a wide range of community partners including social service agencies, faith-based organizations, mental health agencies, charitable organizations, educational institutions, employers, local government agencies or other entities with an interest in a community’s health care system. Applications due January 16.
The Environmental Protection Agency today announced it will begin to accept requests, from December 9, 2013 through January 31, 2014, for grants to supplement State and Tribal Response Programs. A December 6 FEDERAL REGISTER notice provides guidance on eligibility for funding, use of funding, grant mechanisms and process for awarding funding, the allocation system for distribution of funding, and terms and reporting under these grants. EPA has consulted with state and tribal officials in developing this guidance.
The primary goal of this funding is to ensure that state and tribal response programs include, or are taking reasonable steps to include, certain elements and a public record. Another goal is to provide funding for other activities that increase the number of response actions conducted or overseen by a state or tribal response program. This funding is not intended to supplant current state or tribal funding for their response programs. Instead, it is to supplement their funding to increase their response capacity. For fiscal year 2014, EPA will consider funding requests up to a maximum of $1.0 million per state or tribe. Subject to the availability of funds, EPA regional personnel will be available to provide technical assistance to states and tribes as they apply for and carry out these
grants.
The Department of Labor is offering grants to nonprofits, LEAs and others to provide high school students with education and training that combines rigorous academic and technical curricula focused on specific in-demand occupations and industries. Deadline: 1/27/2014. Click here for guidelines and an application.
EDA Launches $1.3B Manufacturing Communities Competition - The U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) has announced a new competition to reward communities demonstrating best practices in attracting and expanding manufacturing. EDA will offer the competition as part of its Investing in Manufacturing Communities Partnership (IMCP), which helps support comprehensive, integrated efforts to boost manufacturing and jobs. EDA has published a Federal Register notice, seeking applications for regions to be designated one of up to 12 manufacturing communities. The communities will be eligible for an array of cross-agency federal assistance totaling $1.3 billion.
Grants for Transportation of Veterans in Highly Rural Areas - Application deadline: Feb 3, 2014 (Extended deadline)
Awards grants to organizations that assist veterans in rural areas with transportation to VA medical centers and other VA and non-VA facilities for medical care. Sponsor: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
Nurse Education, Practice, Quality and Retention (NEPQR) Program – Interprofessional Collaborative Practice - Application deadline: Feb 3, 2014
Grants for projects that create and/or expand Interprofessional Collaborative Practice (IPCP) environments where nurses and other professional disciplines join together to provide comprehensive healthcare services for patients and their families. Sponsor: Bureau of Health Professions
Direct Community Investment Program - Application deadline: Applications accepted on an ongoing basis.
Provides low-interest loans to organizations or financing intermediaries that give disadvantaged populations access to jobs, housing, education, and health care. Sponsor: Catholic Health Initiatives
American Association of University Women Accepting Applications for 2014-15 Community Action Grants Deadline: JANUARY 15, 2014
Grants of up to $10,000 will be awarded to individuals and organizations conducting programs or non-degree research projects that promote education and equality for women and girls....
Bringing Theory to Practice Accepting Proposals for Campus Engagement, Civic Development Projects DEADLINE: MARCH 14, 2014
Grants of up to $10,000 will be awarded for projects designed to strengthen the engaged learning, civic development, and psychosocial well-being of college and university students....
NCTM Invites Proposals for Teacher Action Research Grant DEADLINE: MAY 2, 2014
One grant of up $3,000 will be awarded to support collaborative action research projects involving university faculty, pre-service teachers, and classroom teachers seeking to improve their understanding of mathematics in preK-8 classrooms....
eWomenNetwork Foundation Announces Grants for Small Organizations that Support Women and Children DEADLINE: MARCH 31, 2014
Grants of $6,000 will be awarded to small entrepreneurial organizations for projects that address the health, wellness, and/or safety of underprivileged women and/or children in North America....
Suzette M. Agans
Community and Economic Development
Rural Development | U.S. Department of Agriculture
1400 Independence Ave., S.W. | Washington, D.C. 20250-3253
Phone: 202.401.1922 | Fax 202.401.7311
www.rurdev.usda.gov
"Committed to the future of rural communities"
"Estamos dedicados al futuro de las comunidades rurales"
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