Funding Available to Cooperatives

Funding Available to Cooperatives

Rural Economic Development Loan and Grant Program (REDLG)

Offers grants and zero-interest loans to local utility organizations who provide funding options for local businesses. Supports economic development in rural areas by funding projects designed to create or preserve job opportunities.

Application Deadline: Mar 31, 2024
Sponsor: USDA Rural Development (USDA RD)
USDA Intermediary Relending Program

Seeks to improve economic development, create employment opportunities, and reduce poverty in rural areas, especially disadvantaged and isolated communities. Offers 1% low-interest loans to local lenders known as intermediaries, that then re-lend funds to businesses in rural communities to foster community development.

Application Deadline: Apr 1, 2024
Sponsor: USDA Rural Development (USDA RD)
Farmers Market Promotion Program (FMPP)

Increases communities' access to locally and regionally produced food and agricultural products by developing, coordinating, and expanding direct producer-to-consumer operations and activities, such as domestic farmer's markets, roadside stands, community-supported agriculture (CSA) programs, agritourism activities, online sales, or other market opportunities. Builds organizational capacity and provides outreach, training, and technical assistance in order to help producers achieve a greater impact on local and regional food systems.

Application Deadline: May 14, 2024
Sponsor: USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS)
Local Food Promotion Program (LFPP)

Develops, coordinates, and expands local and regional food business enterprises that function as intermediaries for indirect producer-to-consumer marketing with the goal of making local and regional agricultural products more available and accessible to communities. Supports both planning and implementation activities to establish, improve, or expand local or regional food businesses. Assists businesses through feasibility studies, market research, training, and technical assistance to strengthen food system infrastructure and increase sales of locally and regionally produced agricultural products.

Application Deadline: May 14, 2024
Sponsor: USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS)
Regional Food System Partnerships (RFSP)

Promotes partnerships able to connect and utilize public and private resources to strengthen regional food systems. Supports partnerships to improve viability and resilience of the local or regional food economy.

Application Deadline: May 14, 2024
Sponsor: USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS)
ReConnect Loan and Grant Program

Provides loans and grants to help expand broadband access to rural communities without sufficient high-speed internet connectivity. Aims to increase private sector investment to support the construction or improvement of critical broadband infrastructure to deliver internet access to a wide range of rural sites and facilities, including residential homes, community healthcare and public safety facilities, schools, libraries, business and industry, agricultural operations, and other sites.

Application Deadline: May 21, 2024
Sponsor: USDA Rural Development (USDA RD)
Business & Industry Loan Guarantees

Offers programs to guarantee loans to rural businesses to increase access to business capital and improve rural economies. Allows commercial lenders to offer affordable financing to rural businesses to support business operations and create or preserve employment opportunities.

Applications accepted on an ongoing basis
Sponsor: USDA Rural Development (USDA RD)
High Cost Program - Connect America Fund

Offers financial support to telecommunication service providers who provide rural communities with access to high-speed broadband access, specifically in markets that do not support the infrastructure and network costs of telecommunications carriers' providing the service.

Applications accepted on an ongoing basis
Sponsor: Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC)
Strategic Economic and Community Development

Supports regional economic development plans for rural areas by giving funding priority to multi-jurisdictional projects implemented through USDA Rural Development programs. Projects are intended to build community prosperity by using community assets, identifying resources, convening partners, and leveraging federal, state, local or private funding.

Applications accepted on an ongoing basis
Sponsor: USDA Rural Development (USDA RD)
Telecommunications Infrastructure Loans & Loan Guarantees

Aims to improve rural communications and economic development by providing loans and technical assistance to build, improve, and further develop telecommunication services in rural communities.

Applications accepted on an ongoing basis
Sponsor: USDA Rural Development (USDA RD)
Rural Business Development Grants (RBDG) Inactive

Offers funding to support technical assistance and training for rural businesses that have fewer than 50 new workers and generate a gross revenue less than $1,000,000. Funds can also be used on projects to support and benefit rural businesses as specified in the grant application. Supports the expansion of rural businesses through economic development, planning, and other related activities.

Application Deadline: Feb 28, 2024
Sponsor: USDA Rural Development (USDA RD)
USDA Community Connect Grants Inactive

Awards grants for the deployment of broadband in rural communities where private sector internet service providers are unable to develop the infrastructure to provide broadband service due to economic and cost challenges. Support internet services to foster economic development and employment, and improve educational and healthcare opportunities in eligible areas.

Application Deadline: Feb 20, 2024
Sponsor: USDA Rural Development (USDA RD)
Healthy Start Initiative: Eliminating Disparities in Perinatal Health Inactive

Funds programs to address high rates of infant death by improving health outcomes before, during, and after pregnancy and reducing well-documented racial/ethnic differences in rates of infant death and adverse perinatal outcomes. Supports the provision of direct and enabling services, including screening and referrals, case management, care coordination, health and parenting education, and linkages to clinical care, to enrolled program participants.

Application Deadline: Dec 15, 2023
Sponsor: Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB)
Build to Scale Program (B2S) Inactive

Funds technology-based economic development initiatives that promote job growth, innovation, economic opportunity, global competitiveness, and the development of future industry-leading companies in regions across the U.S. Aims to help startups and companies access investment capital, grow their companies, empower entrepreneurs, and commercialize new technology. Projects are intended to benefit underserved populations and communities, including rural areas.

Application Deadline: Jul 28, 2023
Sponsor: Economic Development Administration (EDA)
Socially-Disadvantaged Groups Grant Inactive

Provides technical assistance to socially disadvantaged groups in rural areas, whose members have experienced racial, ethnic, or gender prejudice because of their identity. Funds cooperatives and Cooperative Development Centers that offer various types of technical assistance, including feasibility studies, business plans, strategic planning, and leadership training, among others.

Application Deadline: May 16, 2023
Sponsor: USDA Rural Development (USDA RD)
Rural Broadband Loans, Loan/Grant Combinations, and Loan Guarantees (Farm Bill Broadband Program) Inactive

Provides loans and loan guarantees to build, improve, or acquire the facilities and equipment necessary to deliver services at the broadband lending speed to eligible rural areas. Supports projects that improve rural economies and the quality of life in rural communities. Seeks to fund projects related to technological innovation, e-connectivity, and the rural workforce.

Application Deadline: Sep 30, 2019
Sponsor: USDA Rural Development (USDA RD)
Rural Health Integration Models for Parents and Children to Thrive (IMPACT) Inactive

Funds to establish 3 demonstration projects to implement evidence-based 2-generational strategies addressing issues facing rural at-risk children, prenatal to age 3, and their parents, such as adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), maternal depression, mental health disorders, substance use disorder (SUD), opioid use, and related neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS). Offers technical assistance, training, and support to demonstration sites to coordinate programs and services that support healthy childhood development and increase family economic opportunity.

Application Deadline: Jul 2, 2018
Sponsor: Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB)