Building Communities for Future Generations

Maria Gallegos Herrera is the State Director for USDA Rural Development in California and has seen firsthand the challenges that impact rural residents in the state. A native resident of the San Joaquin Valley, she recalls times while growing up that she and her parents, who were agricultural farmworkers, didn’t have access to safe drinking water at home.

“What I have learned, by both living and working in rural California, is that rural and Tribal communities don’t ever just have one challenge,” Gallegos Herrera shared. “It’s not just about the lack of access to safe drinking water or housing; it’s really about a number of challenges, that in some instances reflect the historic disinvestments that have occurred in these communities.”

Though she can see the barriers to progress, Gallegos Herrera’s leadership, and her personal interest in sharing and pursuing opportunities to overcome barriers, drives her to pursue successful paths and positive results for California’s rural people.

“My favorite part of this job is being able to help advance the Biden-Harris Administration's commitment to equity,” said Gallegos Herrera. “I want to ensure we are doing all we can to reach communities who have been historically underserved, that we learn from those communities, and that we look at ways we can improve how we deliver programs.”

According to the 2020 United States Census, California has 39.5 million residents. All but one of California’s 58 counties has rural populations. Considering the state’s varied geography and vast size, this means “rural” California looks different across the state.

To meet needs where they exist, Gallegos Herrera oversees USDA Rural Development’s more than 70 programs that support prosperity in California. Working in partnership with local-level leaders and community-driven organizations, USDA Rural Development provides financial and technical assistance that can help get ideas off the ground.

“One of the reasons why I really enjoy the work that I do is because of our mission,” Gallegos Herrera said. “USDA Rural Development is focused on improving the economy and quality of life in rural America.”

Gallegos Herrera shared she is especially proud of the work USDA Rural Housing Service does, because of the homeownership opportunities these programs provide to families. One point of pride for her was a $540,000 grant offered to Our Town St. Helena, a housing nonprofit, which supported eight low-income families to build homes in St. Helena, Napa County. This funding was provided under USDA Rural Development’s Mutual Self-Help Technical Assistance Grant Program and works in partnership with the Single-Family Housing Direct Loan Program to offer affordable mortgages to these same families and individuals.

The “Our Town St. Helena - Brenkle Court '' project is a culmination of a multi-year effort to bring about affordable housing opportunities to the workforce of Napa County, who historically have been left behind due to the rising cost of housing and income inequalities.

Housing solutions like this are especially important in places like Napa County where chronic housing shortages force many people who work there, especially farmworkers, to reside outside the county.

“The reason why that project stood out to me is because people often think of the wine industry and how expensive it is to live in Napa County,” shared Gallegos Herrera. “I felt like that was a prime example of how our programs truly can advance prosperity and create access for all our rural residents.”

Another success Gallegos Herrera shared was funding a $27 million water infrastructure project to construct a new water transmission main and three new booster pump stations to the Coachella Valley Water District. That project, funded by the Water and Waste Disposal Loan and Grant program, provided $22 million in loan and a $4.8 million in grant including set-aside funding specifically for Colonias,  which allowed the Coachella Valley Water District to lift a building moratorium put in place for many years due to lack of adequate water infrastructure. The project will replace more than 27,000 linear feet of aging and undersized pipeline and construct three new booster pump stations that will improve water distribution availability to the North Shore and Mecca communities and create opportunities for local development, including increased affordable housing opportunities.

“I’m proud of that investment because not only are we advancing the human right to water, but we’re also creating infrastructure that will enable the local jurisdictions and community partners to build much-needed affordable housing,” Gallegos Herrera said.

USDA Rural Development is committed to equity and ensuring that rural communities, especially historically underserved communities, can improve their neighborhoods.

“We have resources that are designed to enhance the quality of life, drive economic prosperity and make rural California a place where people can call home,” shared Gallegos Herrera. “My hope is that rural California is a place where people want to stay and raise their children because they have access to the things that we need to have a thriving community.”