Senator Chris Coons offered his support today for a series of initiatives unveiled by President Obama this week to grow the economy and create jobs in rural communities.
“Washington can and must do more to help America’s businesses create jobs,” Chris said in a statement to the press. “The initiatives the President unveiled this week to help rural businesses are consistent with what I’m hearing from Delaware’s small business owners, who need better access to capital to grow and expanded health care services in their communities to keep costs down.”
To help small businesses get better access to capital, President Obama this week proposed to double the Small Business Administration’s investment funds for rural small businesses over the next five years as part of its Startup America Initiative. The President is also launching a series of conferences nationwide to connect private equity and venture capital investors with rural start-ups.
To help out-of-work Americans find jobs, President Obama announced a partnership between the Department of Labor and the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to increase access to existing job search and job training opportunities by making them available at USDA’s 2,800 field offices nationwide.
This initiative by the White House coincides with this week’s announcement of more than $48,900 in U.S. Department of Agriculture funding to four agricultural producers and small businesses in Kent and Sussex counties. The grants are designed to encourage the integration of renewable energy sources and implementation of energy efficiency measures in their operations to reduce dependence of foreign oil, promote job creation, and spur the economic competitiveness of rural communities.
“By investing in clean energy technology, Delaware’s rural businesses are investing in a sustainable, profitable future that will help them compete on a global level,” Chris said in a statement to the press. “Encouraging farmers and small businesses to increase their energy efficiency can have a positive ripple effect for the entire country. I congratulate the winners of these grants and applaud the President for leading in this effort to strengthen our agricultural communities.”
To read Chris’ statement on the White House rural economy initiative, click HERE.
To read Chris’ statement on the USDA grant to Delaware farms and rural small businesses, click HERE.
To read more about Chris’ work for Delaware’s agricultural community, click HERE
To read more about President’s Obama’s rural tour, click HERE.