ABSTRACT
Rural areas in the United States face lagging economic performance, shrinking populations, and waning political influence. Over the years a number of different policies and programs have been introduced to face challenges related to rural economic development, housing, education, and health. Other policies such as transportation, communication, and social services also have important consequences for rural regions.
The overall aim of this chapter is to review the evolution of rural policy in the United States and analyze how rural development policy is designed. This chapter describes the institutional context (economic, political, social, and demographic) that has shaped US rural development policy, and how it has long been under the shadow of agriculture and agriculture policy. Further on, it discusses how despite the ebb and flow of interest, rural policy has emerged as a key to achieving several environmental, energy, and most recently also political goals. Finally, the development of US rural policy is framed in the context of the changing global conditions providing a basis for comparative rural policy analysis.
