Empower Rural Iowa
Revitalizing Iowa
Connecting, Growing & Investing in Iowa's Rural Communities
The Center for Rural Revitalization, housed within the Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA), is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the Empower Rural Iowa (ERI) initiative, implementing ERI task force recommendations, acting as a liaison to rural communities and helping small communities access programs that support rural areas.
Annual Task Force Recommendations
The Governor’s ERI initiative was created by executive order in July 2018. It is a partnership with the Iowa Rural Development Council (IRDC) and co-chaired by Lt. Governor Adam Gregg and IRDC Chair Sandy Ehrig. The Empower Rural Iowa Act also created three task forces, which develop recommendations for Gov. Kim Reynolds in advance of each legislative session:
- Investing in Rural Iowa – created to address the rural housing shortage and develop strategies to support rural businesses and entrepreneurs
- Growing Rural Iowa – created to address leadership, recruitment and retention in rural communities
- Connecting Rural Iowa – created to address the issue of financing broadband connectivity
IEDA’s community development programs provide support for downtown development projects. For more information on best practices and resources for revitalizing rural communities, visit the Iowa Rural Development Council. For updates on ERI meetings and resources, follow Empower Rural Iowa on Facebook and Twitter.
Empower Rural Iowa Grant Programs
Rural Housing Assessment Grant Program
The Rural Housing Assessment Grant program supports the use of publicly available, online information through the “Profile of Iowa” tool and rural community efforts to interpret publicly available hard data to implement changes through development codes, local ordinances and housing incentives specific to individual community needs.
Rural Innovation Grant Program
The Rural Innovation Grant program supports creative, non-traditional ideas that focus on current issues and challenges faced by rural communities associated with the themes of community investment, growth and connection.