Rural News Clips, Oct. 15, 2024
Rural News Clips, Oct. 15, 2024
Walz unveils Harris’ plan for rural voters; disaster loan program fully ‘exhausted’ with Congress still out of town; Trump's rural ground game undercut by slow internet that crashes app
CAMPAIGN FOR RURAL PROGRESS
PBS NewsHour
How colleges are reaching out to often overlooked students from rural areas
Oct. 14, 2024
“Students in rural communities graduate from high school above the national average. But when it comes to applying to college or getting their degree, those students' rates of attendance and completion are well below their peers in urban and suburban areas. A New Mexico initiative is helping to narrow that gap.”
POLITICS AND ELECTIONS
The Associated Press
Walz unveils Harris’ plan for rural voters as campaign looks to cut into Trump’s edge
Oct. 15, 2024
“Democratic vice presidential nominee Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz on Tuesday unveiled his ticket’s plans to improve the lives of rural voters, as Vice President Kamala Harris looks to cut into former President Donald Trump’s support.”
“The Harris-Walz plan includes a focus on improving rural health care, such as plans to recruit 10,000 new health care professionals in rural and tribal areas through scholarships, loan forgiveness and new grant programs, as well as economic and agricultural policy priorities. The plan was detailed to The Associated Press by a senior campaign official on the condition of anonymity ahead of its official release.”
“The Harris-Walz plan calls on Congress to permanently extend telemedicine coverage under Medicare, a pandemic-era benefit that helped millions access care that is set to expire at the end of 2024. They are also calling for grants to support volunteer EMS programs to cut in half the number of Americans living more than 25 minutes away from an ambulance.”
“It also urges Congress to restore the Affordable Connectivity Program, a program launched by President Joe Biden that expired in June that provided up to $30 off home internet bills, and for lawmakers to require equipment manufacturers to grant farmers the right to repair their products.”
The Guardian
Trump rura lground game undercut by slow internet that crashes app
Oct. 14, 2024
“Donald Trump’s campaign has limited ability to know whether their ground game operation is reaching target voters in battleground states, as the software being used needs fast internet service to properly track canvassers, according to multiple people familiar with the situation.”
“The Trump campaign this cycle is targeting so-called low propensity Trump voters, who are often in rural areas, as part of their bet that hitting those people who don’t typically vote but would cast a ballot for Trump if they did, could make a difference in a close election.”
“But the Trump campaign and the Elon Musk-backed America Pac, which is now doing an outsized portion of the Trump ground game, use a management app called Campaign Sidekick that struggles in areas with slow internet and means canvassers have to use an offline version.”
The app is so slow in many rural areas that the geotracking feature on the app can’t tell whether the canvassers actually knocked on doors and talked to voters or “cheated” by sticking a pamphlet in the door and taking off.
The New York Times
In Rural Wisconsin, Race Is an Undercurrent of the Presidential Election
Oct. 14, 2024
“Sauk County has been a presidential bellwether in recent years, voting for the winner in the past four elections.”
Residents are “complaining about the divisive racial undercurrent in the campaign — an issue that could influence the way voters here and in other swing state communities decide.”
“Sauk County, which is mostly white with a small but growing nonwhite population, has been roiled by its own racial skirmishes in recent years.”
“The way the candidates’ messaging is landing in places like Sauk County matters to both campaigns as they scramble to pick up votes across the battleground state of Wisconsin, where Ms. Harris and Mr. Trump are essentially tied.”
NC Newsline
In battleground North Carolina, both parties struggle to turn out the youth vote
Oct. 15, 2024
North Carolina Democratic Party Chair Anderson Clayton, “a Gen Zer who at 26 is the youngest state party chair in the country, knows how critical the youth vote will be not only in this election, but future ones.”
“But gaining the youth vote also means getting those voters to actually fill out ballots and overcome their dismay with the political process and, for Democrats, issues like the Hamas-Israel war.”
“Some are ditching party affiliations entirely, political experts say. North Carolina, a battleground state, provides a microcosm in how partisans and others are trying to get young adults to the polls.”
“Last presidential election, Trump carried the state by a 1.4-percentage-point margin, or about 75,000 votes.”
“The gap could be closed on those 75,000 votes, Clayton said, by pulling in various coalitions such as young and rural voters.”
NPR
Native voters could swing Arizona. Both parties want their votes
Oct. 14, 2024
“Both parties are ramping up their efforts to court Native American voters in the final stretch to Election Day.”
“This demographic could swing the election results in several closely divided states like Arizona.”
“President Biden only won Arizona in 2020 by about 10,000 votes — less than a 1% margin — in a state where Native Americans make up 5% of the population.”
“Native Americans have traditionally voted for Democrats, and the Harris campaign is seeking to ensure that pattern continues in 2024.”
The New York Times
Opinion: America Is on the Brink of a Great Political Realignment. It’s Already Visible in Arizona.
Oct. 14, 2024
“Look, the economy in Arizona does not favor Democrats, and Arizona is a conservative state,” said the Republican strategist Barrett Marson. “We’re just not a Trump state.”
“Even if Trump wins Arizona in November, the damage he’s done to the state’s Republican Party could keep its candidates on the ropes for the foreseeable future.”
“‘There’s part of me that is pessimistic, that thinks that the Republican Party might be a lost cause,’ said John Giles, mayor of Mesa, Ariz.]. He wonders if a new conservative party could emerge. ‘Maybe we have three parties for a while in our country. But we need to have more than one strong party, and we don’t have that now,’ he said.”
A related Politico article notes that Kari Lake, who has allied herself with Trump in her Senate run, “isn’t getting as much support as Trump is, not even from diehard MAGA fans — and is trailing [Rep. Ruben] Gallego in the latest polls by upwards of 6 points.”
The Washington Post
More Republicans expect election ‘fraud’ in minority areas than in White ones
Oct. 14, 2024
“Polling released by CBS News on Sunday presented a remarkable demonstration of the divide between Democrats and Republicans on basic matters of fact and on the reliability of different sources of information.”
The poll asked “nearly half of the Republicans who claimed there would be rampant fraud where this fraud would occur. Nearly all of that group said it would occur in ‘major cities and urban areas,’ meaning that about 44 percent of Republicans think there will be widespread fraud. Relatively few think it will happen in rural areas.”
“Most of the Republicans who thought there would be rampant fraud agreed that it would probably occur in ‘racial minority communities.’ Less than half thought it would occur in ‘mostly White communities.’”
DISASTERS
Politico
Disaster loan program fully ‘exhausted’ with Congress still out of town
Oct. 15, 2024
“The nation’s loan program for disaster survivors has fully exhausted its funding, the Biden administration announced Tuesday. And lawmakers, the only ones who can greenlight more funding, are slated to be out until after Election Day.”
“Without congressional action, the Small Business Administration can’t make new loan offers to people trying to rebuild businesses and homes hit by disasters like Hurricanes Helene and Milton.”
“Speaker Mike Johnson has repeatedly said he does not intend to call lawmakers back to town before the scheduled Nov. 12 return, however, saying over the weekend that it would be ‘premature’ to gavel back in to approve emergency disaster aid before states have calculated their recovery needs from the two hurricanes.”
UK Now
UK leads study focusing on flash flooding in Appalachia, preparation, prevention
Oct. 14, 2024
“Parts of Eastern Kentucky are still recovering after unprecedented, devastating flooding in late July 2022. A group of researchers at the University of Kentucky want the region to better understand what happened to be better prepared for future flooding events.”
“The four-year project is titled ‘The Flooding in Appalachian Streams and Headwaters Initiative: Mitigating impacts of climate change and flash flooding in Appalachia.’”
“Project partners include a collaborative group of civil engineers, environmental scientists and social scientists from UK, University of Louisville, Eastern Kentucky University, West Virginia University and Marshall University.”
“The team will study flash flooding in small headwater streams in Appalachia and then apply that research to develop better early warning systems to help people evacuate their homes and communities before flooding gets worse.”
DRUGS AND ADDICTION
Stateline
Overdose deaths are down nationally, but up in many Western states
Oct. 14, 2024
“Despite an encouraging national dip in the past year, overdose deaths are still on the rise in many Western states as the epicenter of the nation’s continuing crisis shifts toward the Pacific Coast, where deadly fentanyl and also methamphetamine are finding more victims.”
However, West Virginia stoll has the nation’s highest drug overdose death rate.
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Brookings
Commentary: Policy innovations that strengthen rural capacity to access investment
Oct. 15, 2024
Up for discussion in Tony Pipa’s newest Reimagine Rural podcast: “The importance of public investment, and the difficulty rural places have in accessing it, are recurring themes in the stories we gather for the podcast.”
“Communities often lack the time and staff to navigate the maze of available resources and match them to their project plans and aspirations.”
“Policymakers are beginning to recognize that strengthening local rural capacity is a key to unlocking the investment that these communities need to thrive.”
“Pipa sits down with state and federal leaders to learn how they are developing new ways to support rural America and the impact it’s having.”
EDUCATION
The Hechinger Report
What one state learned after a decade of free community college
Oct. 14, 2024
In 2014 Tennessee became the first state to offer “the state’s high school graduates free tuition to attend any two-year public community college or technical college in Tennessee.”
Since then, 36 more states have implemented some version of a free community college program.
It will take years to know the impact of the programs, but the article has some early numbers.
Community college graduation rates are rising and “Tennessee projects that since its inception, the scholarship program will have produced a total of 50,000 college graduates by 2025.”
FARM BILL
Iowa Agribusiness Radio Network
Scientists examining corporate influence over food and farm bill
Oct. 14, 2024
“The Union of Concerned Scientists recently released a report analyzing the influence of lobbying on food and agriculture systems.”
“The report finds that agribusinesses, industry associations, and other interest groups have spent more than US$500 million to influence legislation, including the Farm Bill, between 2019 and 2023.”
“The current Farm Bill, which expired in September 2023, was extended for an additional year, but that extension has now expired.”
HOUSING
Stateline
Garage apartments, in-law suites win support in rural communities
Oct. 15, 2024
“state lawmakers and city planners across the country are increasingly eyeing [accessory dwelling units, or ADUs,] as one way to combat the challenges of housing affordability and availability, including in rural areas.”
“ADUs are cheaper to build than new single-family homes and face less of the pushback that frequently accompanies big housing developments such as apartment complexes.”
“Still, the idea has faced opposition from some residents who worry about added density in their neighborhoods, which could bring parking, traffic and utility challenges.”
IMMIGRATION
The New York Times
What a Crackdown on Immigration Could Mean for Cheap Milk
Oct. 15, 2024
The price of just about everything in America has risen sharply in recent years, including the production costs for dairy farmers.
But the price of milk has stayed fairly low because it’s a commodity, and dairy farmers sell it through a cooperative. That means they don’t have any say in the price of their milk, and they’re barely making ends meet.
But since one of the only things dairy farmers can directly control is labor costs, dairies are overwhelmingly dependent on undocumented immigrant labor.
A 2015 survey found that about 51% of dairy workers nationwide are foreign-born, and research suggests that most of them are undocumented.
JAILS AND PRISONS
The Daily Yonder
A Prison Newspaper Hopes to Bridge ‘Inside’ and ‘Outside’ Worlds in Rural California
Oct. 15, 2024
“Rural prisons tend to have fewer programs for incarcerated residents than urban prisons do. A new media project at the Central California Women’s Facility is bucking that trend.”
MINING AND DRILLING
West Virginia Watch
Years after CONSOL ended retiree benefits, judge finds merit in case claiming miners were defrauded
Oct. 14, 2024
“Several retired coal miners are feeling validated this month as a federal judge found merit in their case alleging that CONSOL Energy engaged in a decades-long scheme to rob them of lifetime health benefits for them and their spouses that were promised as a condition of employment.”
“The coal miners who brought the case all worked at CONSOL Energy mines between 1969 and 2014. Unlike many of their colleagues, they abstained from joining a union to work in the CONSOL mines, largely due to promises made by leaders at CONSOL that if the workers stayed non-union, they would earn higher wages and receive lifetime health benefits that were competitive with those offered by the United Mine Workers of America.”
NATIVE AMERICANS
ProPublica
Tribal College Campuses Are Falling Apart. The U.S. Hasn’t Fulfilled Its Promise to Fund the Schools.
Oct. 14, 2024
“In the 1970s, Congress committed to funding a higher education system controlled by Indigenous communities. These tribal colleges and universities were intended to serve students who’d been disadvantaged by the nation’s history of violence and racism toward Native Americans, including efforts to eradicate their languages and cultures.”
“But a quarter-billion-dollar annual shortfall has led to crimped budgets and crumbling buildings, even as enrollment rises.”
PHARMACIES
MedCity News
Commentary: Community Pharmacies Fill Critical Healthcare Gaps in Rural Areas — Here’s How We Can Empower and Support Them
Oct. 14, 2024
“We need to equip pharmacists with technology that can help them to make impactful clinical interventions in the pharmacy and reimburse them for these services, which would help to address the provider shortage.”
POPULATION
USA Today
Why young people continue to flee big cities even as pandemic has faded
Oct. 14, 2024
“Since the pandemic, cities with more than 1 million residents have lost adults ages 25 to 44 while towns with smaller populations have gained young people, after accounting for both those moving in and leaving, according to a University of Virginia analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data.”
“Younger adults have driven most of the shift towards small towns and rural areas since the pandemic,” said Hamilton Lombard, the study's author and a demographer at the University of Virginia’s Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service.
“Even as fears around COVID-19 have eased significantly, the endurance of the remote work shift sparked by the crisis and lower costs in smaller metro areas have continued to encourage young Americans to move to rural communities.”
“The migration of younger adults into small towns and rural areas picked up last year rather than returning to pre-pandemic trends,” he said.
SENIORS
The Wall Street Journal
Medicare Plans Are Making Big Changes for 2025. Here’s How to Navigate Them.
Oct. 15, 2024
“The enrollment period for picking 2025 Medicare health-insurance coverage starts Tuesday, and it could be tough to navigate.” It lasts until Dec. 7.
“Some insurers are dumping plans, trimming popular offerings like dental coverage and increasing charges such as deductibles in response to new federal government requirements and to improve profits.”
“Because of the changes, about 1.5 million people will see their Medicare Advantage plans eliminated next year, while a further 3.5 million are losing their current Medicare drug policies, known as Part D plans.”
“Average Medicare Advantage premiums are expected to decline next year, with many plans promising no monthly bill at all. But other types of costs might be rising … the maximum out-of-pocket cost, in particular.”
“The biggest changes for next year’s Medicare plans are in the drug benefit. The number of stand-alone Part D plans is dropping by about a quarter, to the lowest number ever. And many of the remaining plans are raising drug deductibles and making other changes that can increase … out-of-pocket costs.”
“On the bright side, out-of-pocket costs for Part D medications will top out at $2,000 in 2025, a new limit set by federal law.”
“More hospital systems are leaving Medicare Advantage plan networks” because the insurers are notoriously stingy with prior authorizations and slow to pay.
“Some of the most appealing features of Medicare Advantage plans are the extra benefits they promise, from dental and vision coverage to fitness classes. Those extras are also getting trimmed in some cases.”