Over the past several months, parents across Virginia and the country have struggled to find baby formula, particularly in rural communities. Many rural Virginia communities are food deserts, where residents do not have easy access to nutritious and affordable food.

Elyssa Schmier, vice president of government relations for the advocacy group MomsRising, said parents in those towns and villages face additional barriers to accessing formula.

"Their stores are few and far between that might carry formula," Schmier explained. "And with rising gas prices and people who are working full-time jobs, the ability to drive all over God's green earth looking for baby formula is a struggle."

In 2020, the state of Virginia launched a Food Access Investment Fund to support new groceries in food deserts.

Schmier contended the federal government should also look for long-term solutions, such as reconsidering a failed $28 million appropriations bill to help regulators prevent future shortages.

A 2019 report from the National Institutes of Health found rural infants are more commonly fed formula than their urban and suburban counterparts, and rural areas may face "a disparity in the access to and affordability of infant feeding resources."

Schmier noted low-income parents cannot use WIC benefits to purchase formula online.

"So even if they were able to find it on an online store, which would obviously open up more avenues for someone who lives in a rural community, they can't use WIC dollars for that," Schmier explained.

Schmier recommends against home brewing infant formula, watering down formula or giving babies animal-produced milk if they're younger than one year old. She also advised parents to consult with a pediatrician or health care provider before switching infant formula types.

A dozen rural Oregon counties have voted to leave the state over the past three years. It's a signal that large parts of the state don't feel like they belong.

Wallowa County was the latest to vote in favor of moving Idaho's border to include their residents, with the measure passing by eight votes.

A native of rural Oregon, Rozalyn Mock recently graduated from Harvard with a master's in public policy and is moving back to work in Roseburg.

She said people in these communities want to be part of the decision making process on the future of rural Oregon.

"They have really valuable perspective to provide but there's really no way to capture it," said Mock. "And I think there's been some work where we 'engage' with rural communities, but really we want a seat at the table. "

All twelve counties that have voted to join Idaho are in eastern Oregon, although the movement isn't likely to succeed because the move would need approval from the two states and Congress.

Mock also noted that while these counties are all east of the Cascades, rural Oregon is not a monolith.

She said there are ways to reach rural Oregonians, such as reviving the Office of Rural Policy, which was created in 2004 but got cut four years later during the Great Recession.

"What it would do," said Mock, "is it would increase rural capacity and improve the way our communities work with state and local government while also rebuilding trust in our state government."

Mock said urban Oregonians can help heal the state's divides.

"Knowing that understanding, respecting one another doesn't always mean we have to agree with each other," said Mock, "but knowing our rural and urban neighbors makes it really hard to divide us."




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A small Pennsylvania community is hoping Congress will remember the needs of rural areas as lawmakers negotiate the final, contentious debt ceiling deal.

Jamie Kinder, mayor of Meadville, said larger cities tend to get more attention and funding from federal and state governments, and small rural areas like hers are more likely to be left out. She added her town has benefited from Bipartisan Infrastructure Act dollars, which have funded projects and programs in the community.

Kinder contends federal funding for small, rural areas must continue.

"We have used that federal money; we bought a fire truck," Kinder pointed out. "That's what helped us be able to bring the EMS service into Meadville. We don't have a lot of money, we have no way of bringing in revenue for a city, right? They tie your hands at the state level. So, the only way you get money in a city is through property tax."

As part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Pennsylvania is expected to receive about $13.2 billion over five years in federal funding for highways and bridges. In Meadville, road resurfacing on one major street is part of more than $12.5 million in state work scheduled this year by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.

Kinder emphasized Meadville relies on funding from the federal government, noting her town's economic needs are just as great as those in larger cities and suburban areas.

"We are a small community of 13,000," Kinder said. "And just because we are small doesn't mean that our citizens aren't worth as much, right? So, we want to make sure that we're giving the same opportunities to rural places as we are big cities and urban places."

Kinder added the town has also received grants to purchase ambulances and equip the fire station and historic Market House with solar energy. Meadville has also created a climate action plan focusing on its future.

State grants could bring high-speed internet access to nearly 15,000 Washingtonians.

The State Broadband Office is awarding $121 million to 19 projects largely designed to ensure broadband for rural communities.

Director of the Washington State Broadband Office Mark Vasconi said an even greater number of communities will need to be served after this round of grants.

"We received over $300 million worth of requests," said Vasconi. "So, I think that shows the need that's out there and, frankly, we were glad that we were able to award the projects that we did."

The state has a goal of ensuring every Washingtonian has access to 150 megabits per second speed internet by 2028.

According to the latest Federal Communications Commission broadband map, 93% of Washingtonians have access to internet with speeds of at least 100 megabits per second.

Vasconi said internet availability will equalize access to services for the people who live in Washington.

"You have access to services, access to information that you otherwise would not have," said Vasconi. "It's really essential in order to conduct your daily life, whether that be health care information, educational information, banking information."

Funds are going to counties and electric co-ops - as well as the Spokane Tribe, which is receiving about $3.4 million. The state is funding the project with investments from the federal Coronavirus Capital Project Fund.




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