NASULGC's Farm Bill Provisions

441. Extension of
Agricultural Telecommunications Program to Rural Development

Summary

Adds rural development as a permissible purpose for
activities and funding under the program, and makes other technical changes.

Legislative
Language

SEC. 441. EXTENSION OF AGRICULTURAL TELECOMMUNICATIONS
PROGRAM TO RURAL DEVELOPMENT.

Section 1673 of the
Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (7 U.S.C. 5926) is
amended –

(1) by inserting “AND RURAL
DEVELOPMENT” after “AGRICULTURAL” in the heading;

(2) in subsection (a) –

(A) by striking
“agricultural communications” and inserting “agricultural
and rural development communications”;

(B) by inserting after “and
products” the following: “, and to facilitate and enhance rural
development programs and activities”; and

(C) by striking
“agricultural research” and inserting “agricultural and
rural development research”;

(3) in subsection
(b)(1), by striking “and research” and inserting “research,
and rural development”;

(4) in subsection
(b)(3), by striking “industries” and inserting “industries,
and rural development”;

(5) in subsection (b)(4), by
inserting “and rural development” after
“agricultural”;

(6) in subsection (c), by—

(A) striking paragraph (1); and

(B) redesignating
paragraphs (2) through (7) as paragraphs (1) through (6), respectively;

(7) in subsection (d), by
amending paragraph (1) to read as follows:

“(1) The
Secretary of Agriculture shall establish a program, to be administered
through the Higher Education Program of the Cooperative State Research,
Education, and Extension Service (or its successor organization), under which
financial and technical assistance may be provided to eligible institutions
that participate in a network that distributes programs consistent with the
objectives described in subsection (b) of this section.”;

(8) in subsection (f)(1), by
inserting “rural development,” after “research,”; and

(9) in subsection (f)(2), by striking from
“applications” through “Applications”, and inserting
“applications that”.