South Dakota Ag Connection - USDA to Help Socially Disadvantaged Rural Businesses

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USDA to Help Socially Disadvantaged Rural Businesses
South Dakota Ag Connection - 06/24/2016

USDA Rural Development Acting State Director Bruce Jones announced that USDA is seeking applications for grants to provide assistance to socially-disadvantaged business groups in rural areas.

"These grants help socially-disadvantaged business owners develop skills they need to grow their business and create jobs, expanding the economic opportunities in rural America," said Jones.

The funding is being provided through the Socially Disadvantaged Groups Grant (SDGG) program. USDA provides grants to local cooperatives and other organizations that provide technical assistance to socially disadvantaged groups in rural areas. Examples of technical assistance include providing leadership training, conducting feasibility studies and developing business and strategic plans.

Recipients eligible for these grants include groups of cooperatives, individual cooperatives and cooperative development centers that serve socially-disadvantaged groups. The cooperatives or development centers can be based in any area, but the groups that receive technical assistance must be located in an eligible rural area. USDA is encouraging applications for projects in census tracts with poverty rates of 20 percent or higher.

USDA is making $3 million in grants available. The maximum award a recipient may receive is $175,000. All grants are awarded through a national competition. Paper applications must be submitted by August 5, 2016, or electronically by Aug. 1.

USDA awarded 126 grants totaling $19.5 million through the Socially Disadvantaged Groups Grant program between 2009 and 2015. Of this total, six grants totaling $1,059,259 was awarded in South Dakota.

Past recipients of these grants have been able to make life-changing improvements in rural areas. For example in South Dakota, in 2015, Intertribal Buffalo Council based in Rapid City, received a $134,259 SDGG grant to provide technical assistance to small, socially-disadvantaged buffalo producers in rural areas. The funds will be used for training and best management practices for the development of disease management programs.

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