Steve Howell, formerly agriculture and legislative liaison with the Indiana Department of Environmental Management and the Indiana Soybean Alliance, is the new state director of federal Rural Development.
“I really have a heart for rural Indiana,” he said. “It's a great, we always say it's a great place to raise a family, work, to grow a business, but we have challenges, and I want to be a part of addressing some of those challenges.”
Howell said those challenges include availability of healthcare, expansion of broadband access, and fire station upgrades.
There’s also money available for infrastructure improvement through sewer projects, water treatment facilities, and housing.
“Rural Development is there to support rural communities, and a lot of rural communities don't have the resources to fund a lot of this on their own,” Howell said.
Regarding recent cuts to federal Rural Development funding, Howell says U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins is committed to making the department more efficient and effective and that his team is ready to “take on those challenges.”
