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
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.
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.