Revitalizing Rural America:
Creating Opportunity In Rural Communities

Hundreds of thousands of rural Americans have fallen below the poverty line under President Bush's watch. Hundreds of thousands of family farmers have gone out of business. People have steadily left rural communities to seek opportunity elsewhere. Wes Clark will work to protect America's small towns and communities and the rural way of life. Wes Clark's plan to secure the future of the rural communities is based on three principles:

1. Creating opportunity.

2. Investing in rural businesses and infrastructure.

3. Ensuring quality of life in rural communities.

CREATING OPPORTUNITY

Under Bush, the number of unemployed in non-metropolitan areas has increased by 600,000. More than 500,000 rural Americans fell below the poverty line during Bush's first year in office. Earnings in rural labor markets average 20 percent below those of urban areas. People have steadily streamed out of rural communities, seeking opportunities in more populated areas. Wes Clark will work to protect the rural way of life by investing in job creation, cutting taxes for working families, and creating incentives for business development in counties with high out-migration.

• Invest in job creation. Job creation is Wes Clark's top economic priority. His three-part strategy devotes $100 billion over two years to jumpstart job creation without increasing the deficit by investing in local infrastructure and security and providing job creation tax credits to businesses creating new jobs. In addition, Wes Clark will increase the minimum wage to $7 an hour.

• Cut taxes for working families. Wes Clark has a simple, fair and progressive tax reform plan that will cut taxes on working families. His Families First Tax Reform plan eliminates taxes for a family of four making up to $50,000 and cuts taxes for all families earning less than $100,000 a year. The typical family will receive $1,500 in tax relief. In addition, Families First will consolidate and expand the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), raising the income for the nearly 25 percent of rural residents who live in poverty.

• Expand incentives to encourage new investment in rural communities. Wes Clark will expand investment in rural communities by expanding New Market Tax Credits so that rural communities that have been hard hit by the economic down-turn can qualify for incentives to encourage business investment. In addition, Wes Clark will simplify the grant-writing process so that small towns that don't have extensive staff resources can more easily apply for federal grants for economic development.

• Create opportunity in areas that are losing population. Job loss in rural areas starts a cycle that undermines many communities: when young people and young families leave to find work, schools lose students, businesses lose customers and the tax base shrinks. Key government functions and crucial private sector services become unsustainable. Schools, hospitals, and post offices close or consolidate their services. Historically the federal government has addressed the problem of high unemployment and high poverty communities by providing incentives to encourage investment in these areas. Rural communities with high levels of out-migration often don't qualify because of low unemployment levels. Wes Clark would restructure this approach so that high out-migration areas can qualify for investment incentives. He will allocate tax credits to businesses that create jobs and move to or expand in these communities.

INVESTING IN RURAL BUSINESSES AND INFRASTRUCTURE

Locally owned and owner-operated businesses are among the greatest economic assets in many rural communities. Wes Clark will help rural businesses access the capital they need to expand and help rural communities improve their infrastructure in order to support new business development.

• Nurture rural entrepreneurship. The Small Business Administration provides funds for loans, technical assistance, and training programs for small businesses in rural areas. But funding is not adequate for all areas that need assistance. Wes Clark would increase funding for the SBA so that it can reach more rural businesses that need assistance.

• Develop renewable energy. The potential impact of the wind, ethanol and biomass energy industries on America's rural economies is significant. Renewable energy is a great way to diversify struggling rural economies. Increased production of renewable fuels has the potential to create millions of new jobs and revitalize America's economy, starting with the heartland. America's farmers and a new generation of rural entrepreneurs can lead the way. Wes Clark will work to ensure that farmers and ranchers receive increased access to capital through tax credits, incentives, and technical assistance so they can take advantage of opportunities to increase profit through renewable energy production.

• Invest in high-speed Internet. In order to remain competitive and tap bigger markets, rural businesses must be able to effectively reach customers outside of their immediate communities. Wes Clark supports investments in rural infrastructure to ensure that rural communities have access to high-speed Internet service.

ENSURING QUALITY OF LIFE IN RURAL COMMUNITIES

In addition to creating opportunity to revitalize rural communities, Wes Clark believes we need to maintain a high quality of life in our small towns by preserving small schools and access to health care. Wes Clark understands that, to thrive, small towns must be able to keep important community centers, like schools, even when they serve a smaller number of students.

• Expand Access to Rural Health Care. The health care crisis in America has hit rural communities the hardest. Wes Clark's health care plan provides access to health insurance for all Americans. He will work to repair unfair funding formulas that provide less compensation for rural health care providers.

• Expand access to health care through technology. Wes Clark will work to expand access to telehealth options to enhance diagnostic and preventive services for rural communities.

• Make Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement fair for rural doctors. Wes Clark will work to fix the funding formulas for Medicare and Medicaid to ensure fair and equitable reimbursement rates for rural healthcare providers.

• Strong Small Schools. Rural schools serve over 40 percent of our nation's students but receive only 22 percent of federal education funding. These schools have special needs that don't conform to one-size-fits-all state and federal education programs. Wes Clark understands the important role rural schools play in their communities and he will protect small schools from consolidation. He will improve rural schools and ensure that they remain vibrant by immediately providing states with fiscal relief to alleviate crises that have forced states to cut school budgets. In addition, Wes Clark would fully fund programs like the Rural Education Achievement Program (REAP) that provide targeted assistance for rural schools to hire and retain qualified teachers, take advantage of new distance learning technology and other resources for students, and repair crumbling schools. Finally he will work to make distance learning equipment widely available and encourage inter-district as well as high school-community college cooperation to protect small schools.