Washington DC - US Senators Charles E. Schumer and Hillary Rodham Clinton today announced that the Senate Appropriations Committee had approved $250,000 for Rural Opportunities Inc for their Upstate New York Community and Business Development Initiative. The funding was requested by Schumer and Clinton and included in the Senate FY 2004 VA HUD Appropriations bill and was approved on Friday. The funding bill still needs to be approved by both the Senate and the House and then be signed into law by the President.

"There are no two ways about it. We have to pump more money into our rural communities to give the economy the shot in the arm it needs," Senator Schumer said. "That means more money for technology, and a focus on agriculture, tourism, manufacturing and retail."

"Just last week I was proud to join with Rural Opportunities to launch the "Northern Adirondack Trading Cooperative: A global marketplace for local products," a pilot program that will bring together eBay, HP, HSBC Bank USA, the St. Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce, Clarkson University, SCORE North Country Chapter and the principles of micro enterprise to create employment and economic opportunity in New York's North Country," Senator Clinton said. "This funding today is an important investment in the future of Upstate New York, helping Rural Opportunities develop and foster the business and agricultural success stories of tomorrow. These types of initiatives are to be commended for their support of Upstate New York's rural economies and the communities that surround them."

Begun in 1969, Rural Opportunities, Inc. (ROI) is a private, not-for-profit regional community development and human service organization providing services to farm workers, low-income families and economically depressed communities throughout New York.

ROI's Upstate New York Community and Business Development Initiative aims to use the New Market Tax Credit program as the primary vehicle to attract private investment capital to grow and expand business opportunities within communities and neighborhoods throughout Upstate New York region. The initiative hopes to involve an effort to build capacity among community development organizations in several upstate counties for greater use of the New Markets Tax Credit in these communities. The initiative will include a series of community investor forums with local and state private investors and local community and business leaders. Through this initiative, ROI hopes to target the following business sectors: - value-added agriculture - technology (including bio-tech) - tourism - manufacturing and retail.

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