By Colleen Callahan, Director of Illinois USDA Rural Development
When we’re looking for an answer to something these
days, it’s common to “google it” or ask, “Is there an app for that?”
It turns out there is an app for job creation. It’s
the intended application of USDA Rural Development. As a lender, rural
development’s commitment is to finance the future of rural communities. To
that end, USDA Rural Development has been working to pursue some of the same
strategies suggested recently in the proposed American Jobs Act.
In Illinois, rural development has assisted rural
communities to provide the infrastructure and support for innovative businesses
that are the key to job creation and retention.
USDA Rural Development assists with building basic
infrastructure that supports economic development in rural communities,
including electricity, water systems, broadband and housing.
We create and sustain rural job opportunities and
support entrepreneurs from the micro-enterprise level to large-scale
manufacturing, so those who live in rural communities don’t have to commute to
metropolitan areas in order to support their families and pay their
mortgages.
In partnership with other public and private sector
businesses, the loans we are providing to rural businesses have created or
saved more than 5,600 jobs in Illinois. And we continue to improve the economic
climate of rural areas by helping develop additional job opportunities for the
underserved rural areas and populations.
Those of us in rural America know that in difficult
times, we need to come together to work out a solution that benefits everyone,
not just a few or just those in certain geographic areas.
It’s about balance.
What happens when our atmosphere gets out of
balance? We have storms.
What happens when our systems get out of
balance? We get sick.
And what happens when we don’t use a balanced
approach to our governmental decision-making? We create our own demise.
Elected leaders in Washington need to acknowledge
the consequence of one-sided initiatives as they work to support job growth and
build a stronger future for all Americans.
A wise man once said that nothing can ever be
sliced so thinly as to not have two sides. His wisdom can be applied to
how we find solutions to our current needs.
Consequently, there is an app for job creation.
It’s called common sense.
And partnering with rural development, when rural
communities and businesses want to create and sustain jobs, makes good sense.
