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H.R. 5037

U.S. House•In House Committee

Summary

H.R. 5037, the Middle Mile for Rural America Act, was introduced in the House on Aug 26, 2025 by Rep. Randy Feenstra (R) with 10 co-sponsors. It was referred to Subcommittee on Commodity Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development, and last saw action on Jan 13, 2026: Referred to the Subcommittee on Commodity Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development.

Record

Text

H.R. 5037 has 10 co-sponsors.

hb5037/introduced-in-house.txt
119 HR 5037 IH: Middle Mile for Rural America Act
 U.S. House of Representatives
 2025-08-26
 text/xml
 EN
 Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.
 I  119th CONGRESS  1st Session  H. R. 5037  IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES   August 26, 2025   Mr. Feenstra  (for himself,  Mr. Riley of New York , and  Mr. Moore of Alabama ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the  Committee on Agriculture , and in addition to the Committee on  Energy and Commerce , for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned   A BILL
To expand middle mile infrastructure into rural areas.
1.
Short title
This Act may be cited as the   Middle Mile for Rural America Act  .
2.
Expansion of middle mile infrastructure into rural areas
Section 602(g) of the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 ( 7 U.S.C. 950bb–1(g) ) is amended by striking  2018 through 2023  and inserting  2026 through 2031 .

Tracker

The tracker indicates the progress of this legislation as it moves through the legislative process.

  1. Introduced2025-08-26
  2. Passed House
  3. Passed Senate
  4. Conference
  5. To President
  6. Became Law

CRS Summary

The summaries are the Congressional Research Service’s, one per stage. Read them in full.

Introduced in House Aug 26, 2025

hb5037/introduced-in-house.md

Shown Here:
Introduced in House (08/26/2025)

Middle Mile for Rural America Act

This bill reauthorizes through FY2031 a Department of Agriculture program to support middle mile broadband infrastructure in rural areas. Under the program, middle mile infrastructure is broadband infrastructure that does not connect directly to end users (including anchor institutions) and may include interoffice transport, backhaul, internet connectivity, data centers, or special access transport to rural areas.

The program provides grants, loans, and loan guarantees for middle mile projects in rural areas. It was established in 2018 but has not been funded.

Sponsors

Rep. Randy Feenstra (R) sponsors H.R. 5037, and 10 members have co-sponsored it, 2 of them from the day it was introduced.

Committees

H.R. 5037 went before 3 committees: Commodity Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development Subcommittee, Energy and Commerce and Agriculture.

Commodity Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development Subcommittee
Commodity Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development Subcommittee
Referred to · Jan 13, 2026 · 46 Bills
Energy and Commerce
Energy and Commerce
Referred To · Aug 26, 2025 · 1,636 Bills
Agriculture
Agriculture
Referred To · Aug 26, 2025 · 226 Bills

Actions

H.R. 5037 has taken 3 actions since Aug 26, 2025, the latest on Jan 13, 2026.

ChamberAction
Jan 13, 2026
House
Referred to the Subcommittee on Commodity Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development.Commodity Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development Subcommittee
Aug 26, 2025
House
Introduced in House
Aug 26, 2025
House
Referred to the Committee on Agriculture, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.Agriculture Committee

Votes

H.R. 5037 has not gone to a roll call.

2 bills are related to H.R. 5037.

Titles

H.R. 5037 goes by 3 titles, 1 of them short titles.

  • Middle Mile for Rural America Act — Display Title
  • Middle Mile for Rural America Act — Short Title(s) as Introduced
  • To expand middle mile infrastructure into rural areas. — Official Title as Introduced

Lobbying

2 clients hired 2 firms and 17 registered lobbyists who named H.R. 5037 in 8 quarterly filings, 2025 to 2026. Reported under the Lobbying Disclosure Act; a filing’s income covers everything its registrant worked that quarter, so the amounts below are the filings’, not this bill’s.

Filed under Taxation/Internal Revenue Code, Telecommunications, Agriculture, Budget/Appropriations, Clean Air and Water (quality), Defense, Disaster Planning/Emergencies, Energy/Nuclear.

Clients

Who paid to be heard, by how many filings named the bill.

ClientBusinessStateFirmsFilingsReported
COMPETITIVE CARRIERS ASSOCIATION—District of Columbia14—
NATIONAL RURAL ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE ASSOCIATION (NRECA)—Virginia14—

Firms

Registrants who filed on the bill, by filings.

RegistrantClientsFilingsReported
COMPETITIVE CARRIERS ASSOCIATION14—
NATIONAL RURAL ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE ASSOCIATION (NRECA)14—

Lobbyists

Named on the filings that cite the bill.

LobbyistFirmsClientsFilings
CHRISTOPHER STEPHEN114
EMERALD LITKE-SMITH114
HANNAH SCOTT114
HILL THOMAS114
JASON COOKE114
JOSEPH CIRRINCIONE114
KATIE CULLETON114
LOUIS FINKEL114
MARIBETH COLLINS114
MARY KIRLIN114
MICHAEL HORDER114
MONTEE WYNN114
PAUL GUTIERREZ114
TIMOTHY DONOVAN114
WILL MITCHELL114
GRANT CUMMINGS113
JOHN HOWES112

Filings

The documents themselves, on the Senate’s Lobbying Disclosure site, largest reported first.

ClientRegistrantPeriodReportedDocument
NATIONAL RURAL ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE ASSOCIATION (NRECA)NATIONAL RURAL ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE ASSOCIATION (NRECA)2026 second_quarter$980K2nd Quarter - Report
NATIONAL RURAL ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE ASSOCIATION (NRECA)NATIONAL RURAL ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE ASSOCIATION (NRECA)2026 first_quarter$850K1st Quarter - Report
NATIONAL RURAL ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE ASSOCIATION (NRECA)NATIONAL RURAL ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE ASSOCIATION (NRECA)2025 third_quarter$840K3rd Quarter - Report
NATIONAL RURAL ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE ASSOCIATION (NRECA)NATIONAL RURAL ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE ASSOCIATION (NRECA)2025 fourth_quarter$770K4th Quarter - Report
COMPETITIVE CARRIERS ASSOCIATIONCOMPETITIVE CARRIERS ASSOCIATION2026 second_quarter$170K2nd Quarter - Report
COMPETITIVE CARRIERS ASSOCIATIONCOMPETITIVE CARRIERS ASSOCIATION2025 third_quarter$160K3rd Quarter - Report
COMPETITIVE CARRIERS ASSOCIATIONCOMPETITIVE CARRIERS ASSOCIATION2026 first_quarter$150K1st Quarter - Report
COMPETITIVE CARRIERS ASSOCIATIONCOMPETITIVE CARRIERS ASSOCIATION2025 fourth_quarter$150K4th Quarter - Report

Classification

The Congressional Research Service files H.R. 5037 under Science, Technology, Communications, one of its 31 policy areas.

CRS Subjects

CRS assigns every bill one policy area from its 31; H.R. 5037’s is Science, Technology, Communications.

hr5037/policy-areas.txt
Science, Technology, CommunicationsAgriculture and FoodAnimalsArmed Forces and National SecurityArts, Culture, ReligionCivil Rights and Liberties, Minority IssuesCommerceCongressCrime and Law EnforcementEconomics and Public FinanceEducationEmergency ManagementEnergyEnvironmental ProtectionFamiliesFinance and Financial SectorForeign Trade and International FinanceGovernment Operations and PoliticsHealthHousing and Community DevelopmentImmigrationInternational AffairsLabor and EmploymentLawNative AmericansPublic Lands and Natural ResourcesSocial WelfareSports and RecreationTaxationTransportation and Public WorksWater Resources Development

Constitutional authority

The clause the sponsor cites as Congress’s power to enact H.R. 5037, as entered in the Congressional Record.

[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 141 (Tuesday, August 26, 2025)][House]From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]By Mr. FEENSTRA:H.R. 5037.Congress has the power to enact this legislation pursuantto the following:Article 1 Section 8[Page H3711]

Source: congress.gov · legiscan.com