[Federal Register: February 25, 2002 (Volume 67, Number 37)] [Notices] [Page 8515-8517] From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr25fe02-30] ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Rural Business-Cooperative Service Inviting Applications for Rural Business Opportunity Grants AGENCY: Rural Business-Cooperative Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: The Rural Business-Cooperative Service (RBS), an Agency within the Rural Development mission area, announces the availability of grants of up to $50,000 per application from the Rural Business Opportunity Grant (RBOG) Program for fiscal year (FY) 2002, to be competitively awarded. For multi-state projects, grant funds of up to $150,000 will be available on a competitive basis. DATES: Any applications received in the Rural Development State Office after the date of this notice will be considered for funding after June 30, 2002. ADDRESSES: For further information, entities wishing to apply for assistance should contact a Rural Development State Office to receive further information and copies of the application package. Potential applicants located in the District of Columbia must send their applications to the National Office at: [[Page 8516]] District of Columbia Rural Business-Cooperative Service, USDA Specialty Lenders Division 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Room 6867 Washington, DC 20250-3225 (202) 720-1400 A list of Rural Development State Offices follows: Alabama USDA Rural Development State Office Sterling Center, Suite 601 4121 Carmichael Road Montgomery, AL 36106-3683 (334) 279-3400 Alaska USDA Rural Development State Office 800 West Evergreen, Suite 201 Palmer, AK 99645-6539 (907) 761-7705 Arizona USDA Rural Development State Office 3003 North Central Avenue, Suite 900 Phoenix, AZ 85012-2906 (602) 280-8700 Arkansas USDA Rural Development State Office 700 West Capitol Avenue, Room 3416 Little Rock, AR 72201-3225 (501) 301-3200 California USDA Rural Development State Office 430 G Street, Agency 4169 Davis, CA 95616-4169 (530) 792-5800 Colorado USDA Rural Development State Office 655 Parfet Street, Room E-100 Lakewood, CO 80215 (720) 544-2903 Delaware-Maryland USDA Rural Development State Office P. O. Box 400 4607 South DuPont Highway Camden, DE 19934-9998 (302) 697-4300 Florida/Virgin Islands USDA Rural Development State Office P. O. Box 147010 4440 NW. 25th Place Gainesville, FL 32606 (352) 338-3402 Georgia USDA Rural Development State Office Stephens Federal Building 355 E. Hancock Avenue Athens, GA 30601-2768 (706) 546-2162 Hawaii USDA Rural Development State Office Federal Building, Room 311 154 Waianuenue Avenue Hilo, HI 96720 (808) 933-8380 Idaho USDA Rural Development State Office 9173 West Barnes Dr., Suite A1 Boise, ID 83709 (208) 378-5600 Illinois USDA Rural Development State Office 2118 West Park Court, Suite A Champaign, IL 61821 (217) 403-6202 Indiana USDA Rural Development State Office 5975 Lakeside Boulevard Indianapolis, IN 46278 (317) 290-3100 Iowa USDA Rural Development State Office Federal Building, Room 873 210 Walnut Street Des Moines, IA 50309-2196 (515) 284-4663 Kansas USDA Rural Development State Office Suite 100 1303 SW First American Place Topeka, KS 66604 (785) 271-2700 Kentucky USDA Rural Development State Office 771 Corporate Drive, Suite 200 Lexington, KY 40503 (859) 224-7300 Louisiana USDA Rural Development State Office 3727 Government Street Alexandria, LA 71302 (318) 473-7921 Maine USDA Rural Development State Office P. O. Box 405 967 Illinois Avenue, Suite 4 Bangor, ME 04402-0405 (207) 990-9106 Massachusetts/Rhode Island/Connecticut USDA Rural Development State Office 451 West Street, Suite 2 Amherst, MA 01002-2999 (413) 253-4300 Michigan USDA Rural Development State Office 3001 Coolidge Road, Suite 200 East Lansing, MI 48823 (517) 324-5100 Minnesota USDA Rural Development State Office 410 AgriBank Building 375 Jackson Street St. Paul, MN 55101-1853 (651) 602-7800 Mississippi USDA Rural Development State Office Federal Building, Suite 831 100 West Capitol Street Jackson, MS 39269 (601) 965-4316 Missouri USDA Rural Development State Office 601 Business Loop 70 West Parkade Center, Suite 235 Columbia, MO 65203 (573) 876-0976 Montana USDA Rural Development State Office P. O. Box 771 900 Technology Blvd., Unit 1, Suite B Bozeman, MT 59715 (406) 585-2580 Nebraska USDA Rural Development State Office Federal Building, Room 152 100 Centennial Mall North Lincoln, NE 68508 (402) 437-5551 Nevada USDA Rural Development State Office 1390 South Curry Street Carson City, NV 89703-9910 (775) 887-1222 New Jersey USDA Rural Development State Office Tarnsfield Plaza, Suite 22 790 Woodlane Road Mt. Holly, NJ 08060 (609) 265-3600 New Mexico USDA Rural Development State Office 6200 Jefferson Street, NE. Room 255 Albuquerque, NM 87109 (505) 761-4950 New York USDA Rural Development State Office The Galleries of Syracuse 441 South Salina Street, Suite 357 Syracuse, NY 13202-2541 (315) 477-6400 North Carolina USDA Rural Development State Office 4405 Bland Road, Suite 260 Raleigh, NC 27609 (919) 873-2000 North Dakota USDA Rural Development State Office P. O. Box 1737 Federal Building, Room 208 [[Page 8517]] 220 East Rosser Avenue Bismarck, ND 58502-1737 (701) 530-2037 Ohio USDA Rural Development State Office Federal Building, Room 507 200 North High Street Columbus, OH 43215-2418 (614) 255-2500 Oklahoma USDA Rural Development State Office 100 USDA, Suite 108 Stillwater, OK 74074-2654 (405) 742-1000 Oregon USDA Rural Development State Office 101 SW Main Street, Suite 1410 Portland, OR 97204-3222 (503) 414-3300 Pennsylvania USDA Rural Development State Office One Credit Union Place, Suite 330 Harrisburg, PA 17110-2996 (717) 237-2299 Puerto Rico USDA Rural Development State Office 654 Munoz Rivera Avenue IBM Plaza, Suite 601 Hato Rey, Puerto Rico 00918-6106 (787) 766-5095 South Carolina USDA Rural Development State Office Strom Thurmond Federal Building 1835 Assembly Street, Room 1007 Columbia, SC 29201 (803) 765-5163 South Dakota USDA Rural Development State Office Federal Building, Room 210 200 4th Street, SW. Huron, SD 57350 (605) 352-1100 Tennessee USDA Rural Development State Office 3322 West End Avenue, Suite 300 Nashville, TN 37203-1084 (615) 783-1300 Texas USDA Rural Development State Office Federal Building, Suite 102 101 South Main Street Temple, TX 76501 (254) 742-9700 Utah USDA Rural Development State Office Wallace F. Bennett Federal Building 125 South State Street, Room 4311 P. O. Box 11350 Salt Lake City, UT 84147-0350 (801) 524-4321 Vermont/New Hampshire USDA Rural Development State Office City Center, 3rd Floor 89 Main Street Montpelier, VT 05602 (802) 828-6010 Virginia USDA Rural Development State Office Culpeper Building, Suite 238 1606 Santa Rosa Road Richmond, VA 23229-5014 (804) 287-1550 Washington USDA Rural Development State Office 1835 Black Lake Boulevard, SW. Suite B Olympia, WA 98512-5715 (360) 704-7740 West Virginia USDA Rural Development State Office Federal Building 75 High Street, Room 320 Morgantown, WV 26505-7500 (304) 284-4860 Wisconsin USDA Rural Development State Office 4949 Kirschling Court Stevens Point, WI 54481 (715) 345-7610 Wyoming USDA Rural Development State Office Federal Building, Room 1005 100 East B Street P. O. Box 820 Casper, WY 82602 (307) 261-6300 SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATON: Paperwork Reduction Act In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the information collection requirements pertaining to this Notice are approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and were assigned OMB control number 0570-0024. The RBOG program is authorized under section 306 of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (CONACT) (7 USC 1926(a)(11)). The Rural Development State Offices administer the RBOG program on behalf of RBS at the state level. The primary objective of the program is to improve the economic conditions of rural areas. Assistance provided to rural areas under this program may include technical assistance for business development and economic development planning. A total of $2,100,000 of non-earmarked funds is available for the RBOG program for FY 2002. To ensure that a broad range of communities have the opportunity to benefit from the available funds, no grant will exceed $50,000, unless it is a multi-state project where funds may not exceed $150,000. Pursuant to the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriation Act, 2002 (Pub. L. No. 107-76) a total of $3,000,000 has been earmarked for Native Americans, the Mississippi Delta area, and Empowerment Zones, Enterprise Communities, and Rural Economic Area Partnerships. There is no project dollar amount limitation on applications for earmarked funds. Awards are made on a competitive basis using specific selection criteria contained in 7 CFR part 4284, subpart G. 7 CFR part 4284, subpart G, also contains the information required to be in the application package. The State Director may assign up to 15 discretionary points to an application, and the Agency Administrator may assign up to 20 additional discretionary points based on geographic distribution of funds, special importance for implementation of a strategic plan in partnership with other organizations, or extraordinary potential for success due to superior project plans or qualifications of the grantee. The projects that score the greatest number of points based on the selection criteria and discretionary points will be selected. Applications will be tentatively scored by the State Offices and submitted to the National Office for review, final scoring, and selection. The National Office will review the scores based on the grant selection criteria and weights contained in 7 CFR part 4284, subpart G. All applicants will be notified by RBS of the Agency decision on the awards. Dated: February 14, 2002. John Rosso, Acting Administrator, Rural Business-Cooperative Service. [FR Doc. 02-4407 Filed 2-22-02; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 3410-XY-P