U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development Under Secretary Xochitl Torres Small announced recently the department is accepting applications for grants to help start, expand or improve rural cooperatives and other mutually-owned businesses.

The USDA is offering priority points to projects that advance key priorities under the Biden-Harris Administration to help communities recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, advance equity and combat climate change.

These extra points will increase the likelihood of funding for projects seeking to address these critical challenges in rural America.

The USDA is making the grants available under the Rural Cooperative Development Grant program to help improve economic conditions in rural areas through cooperative development.

For Fiscal Year 2022, the maximum award is $200,000.

Grants are awarded on a competitive basis through a national competition.

Nonprofit organizations and institutions of higher education are eligible to apply for grants to provide technical and cooperative development assistance to individuals and rural businesses.

Electronic applications must be submitted to grants.gov by 11:59 p.m. June 6.

Interested applicants are encouraged to contact their local USDA Rural Development State Office in advance of the application deadline to discuss their project and ask any questions.

Contact information for state offices can be found at http://www.rd.usda.gov/contactus/state-offices.

Additional information on the required materials and how to apply for the RCDG program are available on page 19842 of the April 6, Federal Register.

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