USDA Says Stimulus Has Saved Or Created 300,000 Rural Jobs

A new report issued by the Department of Agriculture on Wednesday shows that President Barack Obama’s 2009 Recovery Act has preserved or produced hundreds of thousands of jobs in rural America.

Office of Rural Development spokesman Dallas Tonsager said the funds obligated to USDA have had a lasting effect on less populated areas of the country.

“With Rural Development’s loans, grants, and loan-grant combination financing for new and existing programs, we have leveraged our Recovery Act funds to ensure the greatest bang for the taxpayer’s buck, allowing our agency to make unprecedented and lasting investments in rural America,” said Tonsager.

USDA has distributed $40 billion worth of Recovery Act dollars it received last year, with over half of it going to rural communities in the form of investments in hospitals, education, public health and access to broadband internet service. According to the report, that money has also fueled lending to small businesses and has alleviated sewage issues in remote areas.

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