WASHINGTON, June 17, 2013 – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today kicked off National Small Business Week by highlighting USDA’s actions to help rural small businesses create jobs, get access to capital and spur economic growth. He also announced the selection of recipients for USDA’s Rural Business Enterprise Grants. USDA remains focused on carrying out its mission, despite a time of significant budget uncertainty. “Small businesses are the backbone of the economy in small towns and rural communities, just as they are in our biggest cities,” Vilsack said. “USDA supports small businesses by providing job training, business development opportunities, strategic community planning and other resources. We’re focused on making sure that Main Street businesses have the tools they need to grow.” Secretary Vilsack announced 54 awards under the Rural Business Enterprise Grants program in 21 states. In Nevada, the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe (PLPT) in Northern Nevada and Ely Shoshone Tribe in Eastern Nevada competed successfully for the grant funding. Over the past two years, Nevada’s Native American tribes have garnered over $208,700 in funding from the national level Native American set-aside for Rural Business Enterprise Grant funding. “We are very pleased that Nevada’s tribes are competing so well at the national level for these funds and making progress toward sustainable economic development,” said USDA Rural Development State Director Sarah Adler. “More Nevada tribes are building travel plazas, looking at ways to develop businesses and create jobs, and we are glad to be a key partner supporting that effort.” Pyramid Lake Tribe will use $70,000 for a feasibility study and business plan on developing a Tribally-owned internet service provider. The Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe has nearly completed over 44 miles of fiber optic cable with 29 anchor sites; now the goal is to identify the feasibility of developing a PLPT Telecom service to provide internet service to tribal residents and enterprises. The feasibility study would also review whether the PLPT telecom service could expand to serve other areas, such as Fernley. The Ely Shoshone Tribe received $20,000 for a feasibility study on the tribal economic development opportunities associated with the Ely Shoshone Conservation District program. The Tribe will use the funds to investigate the feasibility of business opportunities associated with pine nut gathering, wood cutting operations and other woodland projects. USDA has made a concerted effort to deliver results for the American people, even as USDA implements sequestration – the across-the-board budget reductions mandated under terms of the Budget Control Act. USDA has already undertaken historic efforts since 2009 to save more than $828 million in taxpayer funds through targeted, common-sense budget reductions. These reductions have put USDA in a better position to carry out its mission, while implementing sequester budget reductions in a fair manner that causes as little disruption as possible. #
Posted on: Tue, 18 Jun 2013 03:30:07 +0000
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