DONALD, OR -- The USDA Under Secretary for Rural Development met with the leaders of 18 rural Oregon cities Thursday, along with Congresswoman Andrea Salinas.
In the Donald Fire Station, in northern Marion County, Mayors, City Councilors and City Managers from the Willamette Valley talked about the challenges of accessing Rural Development funds. Donald City Manager Eric Underwood says his town needs a new drinking water well and waste water treatment plant. But the cost of such work in Donald is the same as for a much larger city, "We’re a city of about a thousand population. We have six people on staff. We are on a tight budget, we’re on a cash basis. And, it is almost impossible for us to match some of the requirements for these federal grants." It was a struggle shared by many others, who say federal requirements are too stringent and the process is too arduous.
Under Secretary Xochitl Torres Small agreed things need to change. "I talked to a lot of folks who received Rural Development funding in the past, and I get the chance to learn from them about how we can do it better in the future." She tells KBND News, "When it comes to supporting rural people and rural governments, it’s about providing flexibility and making it easier to access our programs. So, whether that’s investing in technical assistance - folks who could help support going through those applications - or finding ways to just make the applications easier." She committed to looking into ways to address statutory and regulatory burdens.
Torres Small is encouraged by the work communities and the state are doing to move infrastructure projects forward, "What I saw that was really interesting was some local expertise on how to weave all of the different funding sources that exist. And, to see the state investing in that, to see private philanthropy invest in that, and to see an interest in receiving some support federally as well, I think is exciting because it shows Oregon wants to support rural places and rural people."
U.S. Rep. Andrea Salinas invited Torrres Small to the Sixth District as part of her work on the Farm Bill Reauthorization, "I have to get all of my project requests and authorizations in by the end of April and our communities are in need." After hearing about a pilot project available in other areas, Salinas wants to expand access to the Rural Partners Network in the Farm Bill.
