Biden touts 'historic' improvements for rural Americans thanks to COVID rescue funds

On Tuesday, ahead of President Joe Biden’s first State of the Union address, the administration touted the investments made in rural America since his inauguration.

“In its first year, the Biden Administration has made historic investments in rural communities through the American Rescue Plan: slashing poverty and lowering costs, creating jobs and new economic opportunities, and expanding access to health care,” said a White House press release.

The rhetoric echoes statements Biden made while campaigning for president in 2020, as rural Americans faced disillusionment with Trump administration failures on key issues like trade, the overall economy, and the COVID-19 virus. The Biden campaign called for policies like tax cuts for the middle class, investing in rural schools, and partnering with rural communities to enable them to access federal resources. In office, the administration has addressed several of those campaign priorities.

Biden signed the American Rescue Plan in March 2021, after it passed Congress with only Democratic votes. According to the Urban Institute, after the plan’s passage the annual poverty rate for the United States was projected to fall from 13.7% to 7.7% for 2021. The Institute attributed the drop in poverty to benefits sent out by the Rescue Plan, including unemployment benefits, child tax credits, and means-tested benefits.

The plan has subsequently been a source of support for multiple programs affecting millions in rural areas.

One of the key provisions of the Rescue Plan that reached rural families was the expansion of the child tax credit. The plan raised payments per child and increased the age limit for children eligible to receive benefits. In an analysis of census data, the website Daily Yonder found that rural children were 10 percentage points more likely to have received the credits than children in urban areas, due to changes in the Plan that expanded eligibility for benefits.

The tax cut expired in December 2021, and in his State of the Union address, Biden called on Congress to extend the credit “so no one has to raise a family in poverty.”

Rural families also benefitted from a provision in the plan that allowed families affected by COVID-19 who have their mortgages backed by the Department of Agriculture to refinance them, receiving a lower interest rate resulting in lowered monthly payments. Families that rent have also been able to access emergency rental assistance under the act.

Child care cost and accessibility has historically been a strain on people living in rural America, where smaller populations spread out over a wide area limit the number of providers available. This adversity was increased due to the pandemic. According to the Center for American Progress, families in those regions on average spend 12% of their income paying for child care services in contrast to 10.8% in metropolitan regions.

The rescue plan allocated $39 billion in relief funds to keep child care providers in business with direct payments allowing providers to pay rent, mortgage, utility bills, and payroll costs. This allowed families to continue accessing their vital services while living through the pandemic.

“This funding has already reached more than 150,000 child care providers, including those across rural America,” the Biden administration noted.

Food banks serving rural areas also saw a boost to their resources from the act.

In one example, the Middle Georgia Community Food Bank, which serves over 100,000 residents of central Georgia experiencing food insecurity, received funds that will contribute to a $4 million expansion and improvement effort.

The Department of Education announced in January that rural institutions of higher education would be prioritized in the allocation of $198 million allocated for all institutions of higher learning across the country. Those funds can be used to assist rural students with housing, food, and access to child care on campus, among other needs.

Rural hospitals received critical funds needed to deal with COVID-19 after the plan allocated $8.5 billion to be sent to over 40,000 providers. COVID-19 has killed people living in rural areas at twice the rate of those living in urban regions, which has been attributed to lower vaccination rates and a preexisting dearth of medical services in those regions. Rescue Plan funds are going for COVID-19 testing and purchasing personal protective equipment like masks, gloves, and similar tools at rural hospitals.

In addition to projects funded under the American Rescue Plan, the Biden administration said in a statement that rural areas are poised to benefit from the recently passed Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.

“The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law delivers on the President’s promises to provide high speed internet, safe roads and bridges, modern wastewater systems, clean drinking water, reliable and affordable electricity, and good paying jobs in every rural community,” the statement noted.

Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.