Forty rural communities are receiving a total of $50 million for community facilities and infrastructure projects that will benefit 631,000 rural residents in 17 states.

“Modern and accessible education, health care, public safety and municipal services are foundational to quality of life in any community,” said Acting Assistant to the Secretary for Rural Development Joel Baxley.

USDA is making the investments and has $2 billion in additional funding available through the Community Facilities Direct Loan Program. Interested applicants should contact their USDA Rural Development state office.

The 40 projects Baxley announced June 24 are in Alabama, Arkansas, California, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Maine, Michigan, Missouri, North Carolina, Nebraska, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, and Virginia.

Examples include:

More than 100 types of projects are eligible for funding under USDA’s Community Facilities program. Eligible applicants include municipalities, public bodies, nonprofit organizations and federally recognized Native American tribes. Projects must be in rural areas with a population of 20,000 or less.

USDA will make additional funding announcements in coming weeks. Congress appropriated $2.8 billion for Community Facilities direct loans and grants in fiscal year 2019.

USDA Rural Development provides loans and grants to help expand economic opportunities and create jobs in rural areas. This assistance supports infrastructure improvements; business development; housing; community facilities such as schools, public safety and health care; and high-speed internet access in rural areas. For more information, visit www.rd.usda.gov.

Source: USDA, which is solely responsible for the information provided and is wholly owned by the source. Informa Business Media and all its subsidiaries are not responsible for any of the content contained in this information asset.