[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 124 (Friday, October 6, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Page S10076]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           NATIONAL RURAL DEVELOPMENT PARTNERSHIP ACT OF 2000

  Mr. CONRAD. Mr. President, I am pleased to be a cosponsor of the 
National Rural Development Partnership (NRDP) Act of 2000 introduced 
yesterday by my friend from Idaho, Senator Craig, and 25 of our 
distinguished colleagues.
  The NRDP is a nonpartisan interagency working group whose mission is 
to ``contribute to the vitality of the nation by strengthening the 
ability of all rural Americans to participate in determining their 
futures.'' Today the NRDP is comprised of nearly 40 State Rural 
Development Councils [SRDCs]. The NRDP also brings to the task of 
developing rural America more than 40 agencies, in addition to state, 
local, tribal, for- and non-profit organizations.
  The Partnership has thrived in recent years because of the hard work 
of thousands of dedicated Americans throughout the country who are 
committed to reinvigorating rural life through coordination of their 
efforts and those of the public and private sectors. However, the NRDP 
has never been formally authorized. The future of this important 
organization can only be secured if the NRDP, the National Rural 
Development Council, and the SRDCs are formally recognized by the 
Congress and authorized to receive appropriations.
  Mr. President, that is exactly what this legislation would do. 
Additionally, the Craig-Conrad bill delineates specific 
responsibilities for each component of the NRDP while refocusing and 
reinvigorating many current activities. It does not, however, create 
any new bureaucracy. This legislation grew out of a hearing of the 
Agriculture Committee's Subcommittee on Forestry, Conservation, and 
Rural Revitalization that Senator Craig and I, as chairman and ranking 
member, held on March 8 of this year. The support expressed at that 
hearing for the NRDP was broad-based and considerable.
  I cannot emphasize enough the importance of the NRDP's work. Every 
region of our nation has benefited. In my part of the country, the NRDP 
has been particularly valuable in bringing together previously 
independent rural development efforts, creating a synergistic effect.
  As I have discussed on the Senate floor and in committee on numerous 
occasions, in the Upper Great Plains we are facing a crisis of 
staggering proportions, placing unprecedented stress on every aspect of 
economic and community life. This is a very serious matter for the 
entire country. The farms of the Dakotas and the surrounding states 
produce wheat, corn, and soybeans in abundance, but something much more 
important: good families and great kids. The rural way of life helps 
foster the values of hard work and fortitude that have made America 
great.
  In my view, the ongoing crisis in agriculture represents as great a 
threat to our nation's future as any of the foreign threats we face 
today. As we work to combat this domestic national security threat and 
preserve the rural way of life, the NRDP is a truly vital asset. I hope 
all my colleagues will join the 27 of us on this bill in pressing for 
its passage and enactment at the earliest possible moment.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.

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