,i  #aaith ,,congress  #b;d ,session    
,h4 ,r4 #gbja  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of  
,,representatives  ,january #bb1        
#bjbf,ms4 ,bynum introduced the         
following bill2 which was referred to   
the ,committee on ,agriculture1 and in  
addition to the ,committee on ,education
 and ,workforce1 for a period to be     
subsequently determined by the ,speaker1
 in each case for consideration of such 
provisions as fall within the           
jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
,a ,,bill  ,to establish a program to   
fill critical rural workforce shortages 
through an education assistance and loan
 repayment in exchange for service in   
designated rural areas1 and for other   
purposes4  #a4 ,short title ,this ,act  
may be cited as the ,rural ,service and 
,workforce ,corps ,act4  #b4 ,rural     
,service and ,workforce ,corps ,program 
7a7 ,design  7#a7 ,in general ,the      
,secretary of ,agriculture shall design 
a program to be known as the ,rural     
,service and ,workforce ,corps ,program1

 modeled after the service-for-benefits 
framework of the ,national ,health      
,service ,corps1 to fill critical       
workforce shortages in targeted rural   
areas1 through the provision of         
scholarships1 tuition assistance1       
student loan repayment1 stipends or wage
 support during service1 and relocation 
and retention incentives in exchange for
 #c years of service in a rural area    
designated by the ,secretary4  7#b7     
,priority employment sectors  7,a7 ,in  
general ,the program shall be designed  
to prioritize filling workforce         
shortages in the following employment   
sectors1 subject to subparagraph 7,b73  
7i7 ,health care1 including primary     
care1 behavioral health1 dental1 and    
emergency services4  7ii7 ,skilled      
trades1 such as electricians1 plumbers1 
heating1 ventilation1 and air           
conditioning1 welding1 and construction4
  7iii7 ,energy infrastructure1 such as 
lineworkers1 renewable energy           
technicians1 grid operators4  7iv7      

,utilities and public works1 such as    
water and wastewater operators and      
broadband technicians4  7v7 ,other      
sectors with aging workforces1 as       
determined by the ,secretary of ,labor4 
7,b7 ,updating ,the ,secretary of       
,agriculture1 in consultation with the  
,secretary of ,labor1 shall1 from time  
to time1 update the employment sectors  
to be prioritized under subparagraph    
7,a71 as necessary to ensure that the   
program prioritizes any sector facing an
 aging workforce and a limited          
recruitment pipeline4  7#c7 ,targeted   
rural areas ,the program shall be       
designed to target any rural area-- 7,a7
 categorized by the ,economic ,research 
,service of the ,department of          
,agriculture as a persistent poverty    
county2  7,b7 designated by the ,health 
,resources and ,services ,administration
 of the ,department of ,health and      
,human ,services as a health            
professional shortage area2 or  7,c7 in 
which an ,indian tribal1 an ,alaska     

,native1 or a ,native ,hawaiian         
community resides4  7#d7 ,employer      
participation ,the program shall be     
designed to allow public1 nonprofit1    
cooperative1 tribal1 and private        
employers that meet such wage and       
training standards as the ,secretary of 
,agriculture shall establish1 in        
consultation with the ,secretary of     
,labor1 to participate in the program4  
7b7 ,administration ,the ,secretary of  
,agriculture shall carry out the program
 in consultation with-- 7#a7 the        
,secretary of ,education1 with respect  
to the provision of scholarships1       
tuition assistance1 and student loan    
repayment2  7#b7 the ,secretary of      
,labor1 with respect to the provision of
 stipends or wage support during        
service1 and relocation and retention   
incentives2  7#c7 the ,secretary of     
,health and ,human ,services1 with      
respect to the health care employment   
sector2  7#d7 the ,secretary of ,energy1
 with respect to the energy             

infrastructure and utilities employment 
sectors2 and  7#e7 the heads of other   
,federal departments and agencies1 with 
respect to any matter calling for the   
expertise of the relevant department or 
agency4  7c7 ,reports ,within #d years  
after the date of the enactment of this 
,act1 the ,secretary of ,agriculture    
shall prepare and submit to the         
,congress a written report on the       
implementation and effectiveness of the 
program provided for in this ,act1 which
 shall-- 7#a7 include information1 with 
respect to the #ast cohort subject to   
the #c-year service requirement under   
the program1 on-- 7,a7 the number of    
persons in the cohort2  7,b7 the        
employment sectors in which a member of 
the cohort has been placed2  7,c7 the   
geographical spread of the placements2  
7,d7 the types of employers referred to 
in subsection 7a77#d7 with whom a member
 of the cohort has been placed2  7,e7   
the number of the placements2 and  7,f7 
the percentage of the cohort who remain 

in the geographic area in which placed2 
7#b7 address any challenges arising from
 interagency coordination2 and  7#c7    
include recommendations for improvements
 in the program4  7d7 ,definition of    
rural area ,in this section1 the term   
rural area has the meaning given the    
term in subparagraph 7,a7 of section    
#cdc7;a77#ac7 of the ,consolidated ,farm
 and ,rural ,development ,act1 subject  
to subparagraphs 7,d7 and 7,f7 of such  
section4  #c4 ,effective date ,this ,act
 shall take effect on the date that is  
#a year after the date of the enactment 
of this ,act4