H.R. 7201

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7201 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7201

To establish a program to fill critical rural workforce shortages 
through an education assistance and loan repayment in exchange for 
service in designated rural areas, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

January 22, 2026

Ms. Bynum introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Agriculture, and in addition to the Committee on Education 
and Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the 
Speaker, 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 areas, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Rural Service and Workforce Corps 
Act''.

SEC. 2. RURAL SERVICE AND WORKFORCE CORPS PROGRAM.

(a) Design.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of Agriculture shall design 
a program to be known as the ``Rural Service and Workforce 
Corps Program'', modeled after the service-for-benefits 
framework of the National Health Service Corps, to fill 
critical workforce shortages in targeted rural areas, through 
the provision of scholarships, tuition assistance, student loan 
repayment, stipends or wage support during service, and 
relocation and retention incentives in exchange for 3 years of 
service in a rural area designated by the Secretary.
(2) Priority employment sectors.--
(A) In general.--The program shall be designed to 
prioritize filling workforce shortages in the following 
employment sectors, subject to subparagraph (B):
(i) Health care, including primary care, 
behavioral health, dental, and emergency 
services.
(ii) Skilled trades, such as electricians, 
plumbers, heating, ventilation, and air 
conditioning, welding, and construction.
(iii) Energy infrastructure, such as 
lineworkers, renewable energy technicians, grid 
operators.
(iv) Utilities and public works, such as 
water and wastewater operators and broadband 
technicians.
(v) Other sectors with aging workforces, as 
determined by the Secretary of Labor.
(B) Updating.--The Secretary of Agriculture, in 
consultation with the Secretary of Labor, shall, from 
time to time, update the employment sectors to be 
prioritized under subparagraph (A), as necessary to 
ensure that the program prioritizes any sector facing 
an aging workforce and a limited recruitment pipeline.
(3) Targeted rural areas.--The program shall be designed to 
target any rural area--
(A) categorized by the Economic Research Service of 
the Department of Agriculture as a persistent poverty 
county;
(B) designated by the Health Resources and Services 
Administration of the Department of Health and Human 
Services as a health professional shortage area; or
(C) in which an Indian tribal, an Alaska Native, or 
a Native Hawaiian community resides.
(4) Employer participation.--The program shall be designed 
to allow public, nonprofit, cooperative, tribal, and private 
employers that meet such wage and training standards as the 
Secretary of Agriculture shall establish, in consultation with 
the Secretary of Labor, to participate in the program.
(b) Administration.--The Secretary of Agriculture shall carry out 
the program in consultation with--
(1) the Secretary of Education, with respect to the 
provision of scholarships, tuition assistance, and student loan 
repayment;
(2) the Secretary of Labor, with respect to the provision 
of stipends or wage support during service, and relocation and 
retention incentives;
(3) the Secretary of Health and Human Services, with 
respect to the health care employment sector;
(4) the Secretary of Energy, with respect to the energy 
infrastructure and utilities employment sectors; and
(5) the heads of other Federal departments and agencies, 
with respect to any matter calling for the expertise of the 
relevant department or agency.
(c) Reports.--Within 4 years after the date of the enactment of 
this Act, 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 Act, which shall--
(1) include information, with respect to the 1st cohort 
subject to the 3-year service requirement under the program, 
on--
(A) the number of persons in the cohort;
(B) the employment sectors in which a member of the 
cohort has been placed;
(C) the geographical spread of the placements;
(D) the types of employers referred to in 
subsection (a)(4) with whom a member of the cohort has 
been placed;
(E) the number of the placements; and
(F) the percentage of the cohort who remain in the 
geographic area in which placed;
(2) address any challenges arising from interagency 
coordination; and
(3) include recommendations for improvements in the 
program.
(d) Definition of Rural Area.--In this section, the term ``rural 
area'' has the meaning given the term in subparagraph (A) of section 
343(a)(13) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act, subject 
to subparagraphs (D) and (F) of such section.

SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE.

This Act shall take effect on the date that is 1 year after the 
date of the enactment of this Act.
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