,,ii #aahth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,s4 #ddhj ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,june #e1 #bjbd,mr4 ,welch 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,sanders1 and ,mrs4 ,shaheen7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,agriculture1 ,nutrition1 and ,forestry ,a ,,bill ,to direct the ,secretary of ,agriculture to establish a program to provide to rural communities technical assistance in recovering from disasters1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,rural ,recovery ,act of #bjbd4 #b4 ,rural development disaster recovery technical assistance program 7a7 ,definitions ,in this section3 7#a7 ,disaster ,the term disaster means a major disaster declared by the ,president under the ,robert ,t4 ,stafford ,disaster ,relief and ,emergency ,assistance ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #eaba et seq474 7#b7 ,eligible rural community ,the term eligible rural community means each rural community all or part of which is within an area covered by a disaster4 7#c7 ,program ,the term program means the program established under subsection 7b74 7#d7 ,rural community 7,a7 ,in general ,subject to subparagraph 7,b71 the term rural community means any census designated place with a population of less than #bj1jjj4 7,b7 ,modification2 waiver ,the ,secretary may1 as the ,secretary determines to be necessary-- 7i7 modify the definition of rural community under subparagraph 7,a72 or 7ii7 waive the applicability of the definition of rural community under this paragraph to a particular area4 7#e7 ,secretary ,the term ,secretary means the ,secretary of ,agriculture4 7b7 ,establishment ,the ,secretary shall establish within the rural development mission area a program to provide technical assistance for eligible rural communities4 7c7 ,providers of technical assistance 7#a7 ,in general ,technical assistance under the program shall be provided by-- 7,a7 a ,state office of the rural development mission area2 7,b7 an entity described in paragraph 7#b7 that enters into a contract with a ,state office of the rural development mission area2 or 7,c7 both entities described in subparagraphs 7,a7 and 7,b74 7#b7 ,eligibility of contractors 7,a7 ,in general ,an entity eligible to enter into a contract under paragraph 7#a77;,b7 is a public body or private nonprofit corporation described in section #cjf7;a77#bf77;,a7 of the ,consolidated ,farm and ,rural ,development ,act 7#g ,u4,s4,c4 #aibf7;a77#bf77;,a774 7,b7 ,priority ,in entering into contracts under paragraph 7#a77;,b71 the ,secretary shall give priority to entities described in section #cjf7;a77#bf77;,b7 of the ,consolidated ,farm and ,rural ,development ,act 7#g ,u4,s4,c4 #aibf7;a77#bf77;,b774 7#c7 ,coordination ,a provider of technical assistance under the program shall1 to the extent practicable1 coordinate with ,state governments and local stakeholders to ensure the equitable distribution of outreach to eligible rural communities4 7d7 ,requirements of technical assistance ,a provider of technical assistance under the program shall provide technical assistance to eligible rural communities relating to disaster recovery-- 7#a7 including assistance in-- 7,a7 planning1 and identifying issues1 potential solutions1 and sources of funding1 with respect to disaster recovery2 7,b7 preparing and submitting applications with respect to assistance for disaster recovery to ,federal agencies1 such as the ,economic ,development ,administration1 the ,federal ,emergency ,management ,agency1 and the rural development mission area1 and ,state agencies2 7,c7 addressing denials of applications described in subparagraph 7,b72 and 7,d7 implementing funding received for disaster recovery from ,federal agencies and ,state agencies described in subparagraph 7,b72 and 7#b7 which may involve-- 7,a7 telecommunications2 7,b7 water infrastructure2 7,c7 housing2 7,d7 energy infrastructure2 7,e7 community facilities2 7,f7 business infrastructure2 and 7,g7 local government infrastructure4 7e7 ,duration 7#a7 ,in general ,an eligible rural community may receive technical assistance under the program during the #c-year period beginning on the date on which a disaster is declared for the area within which all or part of the eligible rural community lies4 7#b7 ,extension ,the ,secretary may extend the period of eligibility described in paragraph 7#a7 for an additional #c-year period with respect to an eligible rural community on a case-by-case basis4 7f7 ,multiple recipients ,more than #a eligible rural community all or part of which are within an area covered by a disaster may receive technical assistance under the program4 7g7 ,funding 7#a7 ,provision ,as soon as practicable after the date on which a disaster is declared for the area within which all or part of an eligible rural community lies1 the ,secretary shall make available to the applicable ,state office of the rural development mission area amounts available to carry out this section1 without any requirement for the submission of an application by such ,state office4 7#b7 ,allocation ,the ,secretary shall allocate amounts made available to carry out this section for each fiscal year to eligible rural communities in accordance with a formula established by the ,secretary that is based on the population of individuals affected by a disaster1 as determined using data from the most recent decennial census4 7h7 ,authorization of appropriations ,there is authorized to be appropriated to the ,secretary to carry out this section #ej1jjj1jjj for each fiscal year4