Resources

Last updated 8/21/2023

Outlined below is a list of resources relevant to history, actions, and reports that have been provided to Equity Commission and Subcommittee members. This list is updated as new information is identified and/or requested by the members.

Executive Orders

• Executive Order 13985 On Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government
  (Published January 20, 2021)
• Memo to Agencies: Advancing Equity in Procurement
  (Published December 2, 2021)
• Executive Order 13988 Preventing and Combating Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity and Sexual Orientation
  (Published January 20, 2021)
• Memo to Agencies on Modernizing Regulatory Review
  (Published January 20, 2021)
• Executive Order on Transforming Federal Customer Experience and Service Delivery to Rebuild Trust in Government
  (Published December 13, 2021)
• Strategic Plan to Advance Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility in the Federal Workforce
  (Published November 2021)

American Rescue Plan

• American Rescue Plan Website and Fact Sheet
• American Rescue Plan of 2021
  (Published February 22, 2021)

• Advancing Equity through The American Rescue Plan Report
  (Published May 2022)

Federal Government Resources

• Engaging People with Lived Experience to Improve Federal Research, Policy, and Practice | U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services
  (Visited April 2023)

• A Whole-Family Approach to Serving Families in Rural America | White House Domestic Policy Council
  (Published November 2016)

• Are Rights a Reality? Evaluating Federal Civil Rights Enforcement
  (Published November 2019)
• Agricultural Credit Needs and Barriers to Lending on Tribal Lands
  (Published May 2019)
• IT Modernization: USDA Needs to Improve Oversight of Farm Production and Conservation Mission Area
  (Published September 23, 2021)
• USDA Market Facilitation Program: Oversight of Future Supplemental Assistance to Farmers Could Be Improved
  (Published January 4, 2022)
• GAO-12-976R, U.S. Department of Agriculture: Progress toward Implementing GAO’s Civil Rights Recommendations
  (Published August 29, 2012)
• GAO-09-62 U.S. Department of Agriculture: Recommendations and Options to Address Management Deficiencies in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights
  (Published October 2008)
• Information on Credit and Outreach to Socially Disadvantaged Farmers and Ranchers Is Limited
  (Published July 11, 2019)

• FACT SHEET: Biden-⁠Harris Administration Announces New Measures to Promote Equitable Community Development
  (Published June 27, 2023)

• FACT SHEET: President Biden Announces Actions to Promote Educational Opportunity and Diversity in Colleges and Universities
  (Published June 29, 2023)

• Biden-Harris Administration Makes Historic, $11 Billion Investment to Advance Clean Energy Across Rural America Through Investing in America Agenda
  (Published May 16, 2023)

Office of the Inspector General Assessments / Analyses

• The Pigford Cases: USDA Settlement of Discrimination Suites by Black Farmers
  (Published May 29, 2013)
• Garcia v. Vilsack: A Policy and Legal Analysis of a USDA Discrimination Case
  (Published February 22, 2013)
• USDA Oversight of Civil Rights Complaints | USDA
  (Published October 22, 2021)
• Outreach and Assistance for Socially Disadvantaged Farmers and Ranchers and Veteran Farmers and Ranchers Program (2501 Program) in Fiscal Years 2018 and 2019 | USDA
  (Published November 10, 2021)
• Hispanic and Women Farmers and Ranchers Claim Resolution Process | USDA
  (Published March 31, 2016)
• Market Facilitation Program—Interim Report | USDA
  (Published September 30, 2020)
• Black Farmers Discrimination Litigation (BFDL) Audit Report
  (Published December 2013)

USDA Reports, Resources, and Tools

• Farm Safety Net Programs: Background and Issues
  (Published August 2015)
• Farm Commodity Programs: Direct Payments, Counter-Cyclical Payments, and Marketing Loans
  (Published March 2006)
• Heirs’ Property and Land Fractionation: Fostering Stable Ownership to Prevent Land Loss and Abandonment
  (Published September 2019)
• Civil Rights at the United States Department of Agriculture
  (Published February 1997)
• USDA Oversight of Civil Rights Complaints
  (Published September 2021)
• Implementation of the Civil Rights Action Team Report at USDA: An Interim Progress Report
  (Published September 1997)
• Independent Assessment of the Delivery of Technical and Financial Assistance: Civil Rights Assessment, Executive Summary
  (Published March 31, 2011)
• Independent Assessment of the Delivery of Technical and Financial Assistance: Civil Rights Assessment, Final Report (also known as the “Jackson Lewis Report”)
  (Published March 31, 2011)

• Jackson Lewis Equity Recommendations

  • USDA Exit Memo 2017

  • The People’s Department – A New Era for Civil Rights

• Equity at USDA Fact Sheet (PDF, 572 KB)

• 2017 USDA Agriculture Census

• Map Tool on the Census Website

• USDA Direct Farm Loans Journey by GSA and FSA
  (Published July 10, 2018)

• USDA FY 2023 Budget Summary (PDF, 1.9 MB) and 2023 USDA Budget Explanatory Notes

• Tribal Consultations Website and Framing Papers (Published April 2022)

  • Framing Paper: Economic Development (PDF, 249 KB)
  • Framing Paper: Food, Safety, and Trade (PDF, 203 KB)
  • Framing Paper: Farming, Ranching, and Conservation (PDF, 256 KB)
  • Framing Paper: Forests & Public Lands (PDF, 227 KB)
  • Framing Paper: Education & Research (PDF, 202 KB)

• Your FSA Farm Loan Compass
  (Revised March 2021)

• Office of the Ombudsperson at USDA

  • Fact Sheet (PDF, 120 KB)
  • Introduction to the Office of the Ombudsperson Presentation (PDF, 226 KB)
  • Frequently Asked Questions (PDF, 96.9 KB)

• Farm Service Agency Committees: In Brief
  (Updated January 29, 2021)

• Racial and Ethnic Equity in U.S. Agriculture: Selected Current Issues
  (Published April 11, 2022)

FSA County Committee Resources

• County Committee Federal Register Notice-33063, Page 8 (Published June 5, 2022)

• 2019 Farm Service Agency County Committee Election Report (Published 2019)

• County Committee Eligibility to Vote Factsheet (Published June 2022)

• Code of Federal Regulations, Selection and Functions of Farm Service Agency State and County Committees (Published June 2012)

• County Committee Frequently Asked Questions (Published June 2022)

Rural Data Gateway Website

USDA Procurement Forecast Tool (Viewed June 2023)

Discrimination Financial Assistance Program (Section 22007 of the Inflation Reduction Act)

• Program Press Release (Published July 7, 2023)
• Program Website (Viewed July 7, 2023)
• Program Fact Sheet (Published April 2023)

RCED Resources

• Economic Innovation Group. Redefining Rural: Towards a Better Understanding of Geography, Demography, and Economy in America’s Rural Places.
• Blandin Foundation. Place-sensitive distributed development – a strategy to lift up rural areas with technology  
• Brookings. Countering the geography of discontent: Strategies for left behind places.
• Aspen Institute: Rural Development Hubs: Strengthening America’s Rural Innovation Infrastructure.
• Aspen Institute: Measure Up: Principles for Measuring Rural and Native Nation Development Progress.
• Berkeley. Targeted Universalism Policy and Practice

USDA Advisory Committee Reports

• Advisory Committee on Minority Farmers Website (ACMF)

  • ACMF Recommendations (Published 2012) (PDF, 2.6 MB)
  • Letter to Secretary Vilsack (Published October 2015) (PDF, 28.2 KB)
  • ACMF Recommendations (Published February 2021)
• Advisory Committee on Beginning Farmers and Ranchers Website (ACBFR)

• Council for Native American Farming and Ranching Website (CNAFR)

  • CNAFR Recommendations (Updated June 2018) (PDF, 615 KB)
• A Time to Act: A Report of the USDA National Commission on Small Farms
  (Published December 31, 1997)
• Indian Country Extension Commission Report
  (Published April 2022)

USDA Strategic Plan & Equity Action Plans

• Blog Post: USDA Mission Areas, Agencies, and Offices’ Equity Action Plans Are Making Progress
  (Published August 1, 2023)

• USDA Equity Action Plans
  (Viewed August 2023)

• Advisory Committee on Minority Farmers Website (ACMF)

  • ACMF Recommendations (Published 2012) (PDF, 2.6 MB)
  • Letter to Secretary Vilsack (Published October 2015) (PDF, 28.2 KB)
  • ACMF Recommendations (Published February 2021)
• Advisory Committee on Beginning Farmers and Ranchers Website (ACBFR)

• Council for Native American Farming and Ranching Website (CNAFR)

  • CNAFR Recommendations (Updated June 2018) (PDF, 615 KB)
• A Time to Act: A Report of the USDA National Commission on Small Farms
  (Published December 31, 1997)
• Indian Country Extension Commission Report
  (Published April 2022)

Other

• Redefining Rural Towards a Better Understanding of Geography, Demography, and Economy in America’s Rural Places | Economic Innovation Group
  (Published March 2021)

• Countering the Geography of Discontent: Strategies for Left-Behind Places | Brookings Institution
  (Published November 2018)

• Rural Development Hubs: Strengthening America’s Rural Innovation Infrastructure | Aspen Institute
  (Published June 2020)

• Measure Up: Principles for Measuring Rural and Native Nation Development Progress | Aspen Institute
  (Published June 2022)

• Targeted Universalism Policy and Practice | Othering & Belonging Institute at UC Berkeley
  (Published May 2019)

• Advocating for Family Success – A 2-Gen Approach in Rural Settings | Highland County Community Action Partnership
  (Viewed April 2023)

• Improving Business Processes for Delivering Work Supports for Low-Income Families | Urban Institute
  (Published March 2016)

• Why Government Technologists Love the Domino’s Pizza Tracker | Statescoop
  (Published September 2021)

• Place-sensitive Distributed Development – A Strategy to Lift Up Rural Areas with Technology | Blandin Foundation
  (Published November 2018)

• CFPB Finalizes Rule to Create a New Data Set on Small Business Lending in America | Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
  (Published March 30, 2023)

• What Is Fronter? | National Center for Frontier Communities
  (Viewed June 2023)

• Rural Energy Program Draws Scrutiny over Biden Equity Plan | Politico
  (Published July 27, 2023)