Alaskan Sen. and member of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee Mark Begich outlined a piece of legislation to provide more funding for rural community development, including new affordable housing.

The Rural Educator and American Community Housing Act will provide $50 million in affordable housing assistance that will be used to build homes or improve living conditions for educators, public safety officers and medical providers working in rural communities. Sen. Begich noted that the lack of sufficient housing has been a contributing factor to the low retention rates of public servants, and said the bill is designed to help attract more teachers, police officers and health providers.