CNBC
Summary
The Biden administration on Tuesday announced nearly $11 billion in grants and loans to help rural energy and utility providers bring affordable clean energy to their communities across the U.S.
Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said during a media briefing the funding will provide rural areas with a more dependable power grid and help lower future energy costs. Rural electric cooperatives, renewable energy firms and electric utilities can apply for funding through two programs under President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act signed into law in August.
The new money represents the single largest federal investment in rural electrification since President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Rural Electrification Act into law in 1936, the White House said.
“These investments will also combat climate change and significantly reduce air and water pollution that put children’s health at risk,” Vilsack said.
The Empowering Rural America program makes $9.7 billion available to eligible rural electric cooperatives to deploy renewable energy systems, zero-emission and carbon-capture systems. Rural electric cooperatives, which serve 42 million people across the country, will be eligible to apply for grants starting July 31, the USDA said.
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