The study reviews how the lack of connectivity between rural cites and urban centers cause instability and lower state performance.
- U.S. Energy Information Administration expects energy consumption to increase steadily for the next 30 years.
- The need to modernize rural electric infrastructure for over 25 million rural residents and businesses with funding for more than 91,000 miles of electric line.
- Investment in renewable energy, smart grid technology and air quality improvement technologies.
- Investment in rural development has fallen by nearly one-third since 2003. Action to reverse this decline is critical to creating and sustaining vibrant rural communities.