This report offers three broad suggestions for redefining how small town service delivery is examined. First, it uses a very broad definition of service delivery that encompasses revenue enhancement methods, expenditure reduction options, and innovative program arrangements. Second, it argues that three interrelated categories of research needs…

Argues that state government must take a strong lead in promoting rural development. Justification for such a role includes improving the efficiency of the state's economy; making full use of fixed investments; improving rural-urban equity; preserving a rural lifestyle; and responding effectively to population density differences between rural and…

The United States does not have a coherent national rural policy. The federal government has focused on a sector-based policy that has only indirect impact on rural America. State governments have failed to move beyond their traditional focus areas of education, corrections, Medicaid, and other state services. The diversity of rural America makes…

The decline of rural areas caused by agricultural mechanization may now have run its course with the rise of post- or advanced-industrialism which is offering a new set of opportunities and problems for the development of many rural areas. Instead of the pastoral subsistence farm of the past, rural America is becoming primarily non-agricultural…

This book examines cases of rural community development initiatives in the United States, Canada, and Europe, identified during a study of multicommunity collaboration projects. Section 1 includes 36 community development ideas operating at provincial, regional, and local levels. Included are ideas such as bank community development corporations,…

Four commissioned papers prepared for a conference on key concepts in the areas of economic productivity and adaptability in the Northeastern states are presented in this document. These papers reflect an important fact: that major socioeconomic changes are underway that will affect the ability of Northeastern states to maintain productive and…

Williamsburg County, South Carolina, is an almost entirely rural area near the coast. Although nearly 50% of the population is under 21, there has been a sharp decline in population since its high in 1950. The outmigration, prounounced for black youth, is caused by a lack of industrial opportunities, although there is slow, steady industrial…

Large-scale energy or resource development projects in rural areas cause environmental, social, and economic changes in the community. The negative aspects of these impacts can be mitigated and the positive aspects enhanced, through the use of effective impact management strategies by local and state governments (together and separately), the…

Careful long-range planning and slow, deliberate growth have benefitted Kershaw County's 500,000 pleasantly varied acres near the state capitol. The county, famous for its equestrian activity, boasts prestige stables, riding clubs, and trails. In addition there are lakes and numerous parks. Leaders want to maintain this aesthetic appeal while…

Emphasizing developmental problems caused by the rapid population and employment growth in rural America during the 1970's, this document describes social, economic, and governmental trends in rural America and suggests some federal policy choices that might be made in support of rural development. Problem areas and policy suggestions are…

The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC), established by Congress in 1965, is a unique partnership of federal, state, and local government action attempting to provide every person living in the region with the health and skills needed to compete in everyday life and to attract new industry to the region, thus providing more jobs and a more…

The major participants in the formation of policy and programs for rural areas include agricultural interest groups, nonfarm groups, certain legislators, and--less directly--the media. Policy is developed in many institutional arenas: the local community and state governments, the Department of Agriculture, the White House, and the Congress and…

There is no present consensus regarding long-term consequences of rural industrialization on society. Since 1950, smaller rural communities in the South and Southwestern United States have gained in industrialization due to their generally low-wage non-union labor supply and lower tax structure, both attractive to industry seeking greater profits.…