Rural America in a New Century

Rural America in a New Century was an October 1999 report by the Vice President and Director of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, Mark Drabenstott, for the Center for the Study of Rural America's newsletter The Main Street Economist.

In the introduction the report notes that the farm economy is in a deep slump and that there are major economic challenges facing rural communities within the US. The second section is titled, "A new farm crisis?" and argues that it is important for the government to continue and expand it's assistance to rural communities. The article also questions whether concentrated and corporatized agriculture will be beneficial to the majority of rural communities and states, "Agricultural policy no longer cures rural ills."