Bill · S. 2281· Senate(119-S-2281)
Rural Recovery Act of 2025
- Introduced
- 7/15/2025
- Last activity
- 7/15/2025 — Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.
- Sponsored by
- Peter Welch
- Cosponsors
- - 1 - 0
- Introduced
- In Committee
What this bill would do
The Rural Recovery Act of 2025 directs the Secretary of Agriculture to establish a program to provide technical assistance to rural communities recovering from disasters. This assistance is intended for communities within areas covered by a major disaster declared by the President. The program involves providing help with planning, applying for funds, and implementing recovery efforts for various types of infrastructure. Technical assistance can be provided by State offices or through contracts with specific public or private nonprofit entities. The program focuses on areas such as water, housing, energy, and business infrastructure.
Yes· 3 of 7
Would people in rural areas be better off under this?+8
The bill specifically creates a program to provide technical assistance for disaster recovery to rural communities.
Does this invest in rural communities?+7
The bill specifically targets rural communities to assist with infrastructure recovery such as water, energy, and telecommunications.
Does this improve help for people hit by a disaster?+6
The bill provides specialized technical assistance for communities recovering from major disaster declarations.
The opposite
No question was scored the opposite.
Who it would affect, and how
Potential Positive Impacts for People
-
Disaster Recovery Support: The program provides assistance for planning, identifying solutions, and finding sources of funding to help communities recover from disasters (Section 2(d)(1)(A)).
-
Application Assistance: Technical assistance includes help with preparing and submitting applications for disaster recovery assistance to Federal and State agencies, as well as addressing application denials (Section 2(d)(1)(B)-(C)).
-
Infrastructure Improvements: The assistance may involve critical recovery needs such as telecommunications, water infrastructure, housing, energy infrastructure, community facilities, business infrastructure, and local government infrastructure (Section 2(d)(2)).
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Implementation of Funds: The program provides help in implementing funding received for disaster recovery from Federal and State agencies (Section 2(d)(1)(D)).
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Equitable Outreach: Providers are required to coordinate with State governments and local stakeholders to ensure outreach is distributed equitably to eligible rural communities (Section 2(c)(3)).
Potential Negative Impacts for People
- Limited Timeframe for Assistance: An eligible rural community may only receive assistance during a 3-year period starting from the date of the disaster declaration, unless the Secretary grants a case-by-case extension (Section 2(e)(1)).
Groups and Interests Ranking
Every group the model scored this bill for, from -10 to +10. Hover a score for the reason it gave.
- Environment Energy And Infrastructure
- Improves Rural Development+7Improves Disaster Relief And F E M A+6
- Demographic And Interest Groups
- Good For Rural Residents+8Good For Business Owners+4
- Economy And Finance
- Improves Small Business Support+5
- Social Issues And Justice
- Improves Affordable Housing+5
- Education And Technology
- Improves Internet Access+4
- 7/15/2025
- Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.
- 2 Cosponsors added.
- Introduced in Senate
One bill Congress.gov lists as related to this one — companions in the other chamber, earlier versions, and bills this one absorbed or was folded into.
Bernie SandersIndependent · Vermont
Jeanne ShaheenDemocrat · New Hampshire