U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell, D-AL, alongside Rep. Adrian Smith, R-NE, recently introduced the Revitalizing Underdeveloped Rural Areas and Lands (RURAL) Act, which is aimed at preserving jobs and encouraging infrastructure development by expanding access to government grants and assistance, including rural broadband grants and disaster relief funds, to tax-exempt cooperative organizations.

“Our rural communities depend on reliable infrastructure, access to broadband and secure energy sources for their local economies to thrive,” Sewell said. “Alabama’s rural electric co-ops provides essential broadband services in rural areas where high-speed internet is limited but essential to those areas’ economic growth.”

Sewell said that more must be done to provide internet access, as well as the opportunities and resources it provides, to the “22.4 million American living in rural parts of our country without quality internet access.

The RURAL Act would amend the Internal Revenue Code to ensure that tax-exempt cooperatives are able to maintain their status when applying for or using government grants.

“The RURAL Act would ensure that these co-ops can retain their tax-exempt status when applying for grants to expand rural broadband or disaster assistance and provide these co-ops with the ability to secure the grants needed to continue to grow their renewable energy, economic development and energy efficiency initiatives,” Sewell said.

The bill has the support of a number of energy cooperatives, including the Alabama Rural Electric Association (AREA) and the Central Alabama Electric Cooperative (CAEC).

“Crucial community infrastructure projects in central Alabama have materialized because Central Alabama Electric Cooperative (CAEC) has successfully obtained grants,” said CAEC President and CEO Tom Stackhouse. “Over the years, these federal, state and local allocations have funded a rural wastewater system and new entry roads in county business parks.”

Stackhouse applauded Sewell for her “leadership and diligence.”

Likewise, AREA President and CEO Fred Braswell stated thanked Sewell for “continuing to fight for programs to help the rural cooperatives” and the areas they serve.

“Rural Electric Cooperatives have historically received grants from various sources to assist in providing services to their members, such as renewable energy development, energy efficiency and conservation and, more recently, helping to deploy vital broadband service to rural Alabama communities,” Braswell said. “Recent changes in the Revenue Code create an unintended consequence for cooperatives that may jeopardize their tax-exempt status.”

A Senate companion to the bill was carried by Sen. Rob Portman, R-OH, and Sen. Tina Smith, D-MN.