The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development is pleased to announce Jill Rees has been selected to serve as the Acting State Director in Oregon.
Rees is filling the position after the departure of John E. Huffman. As an appointed official in the Trump Administration, Huffman resigned on January 20, 2021.
As Acting State Director, Rees oversees the delivery in Oregon of more than 50 programs administered by the Rural Housing Service, Rural Business and Cooperative Service, and Rural Utilities Service. Under the umbrella of USDA Rural Development, these programs provide financial and technical assistance to support infrastructure improvements; business development; housing; community facilities such as schools, public safety, and health care facilities; and high-speed internet access in rural areas. Last year alone, these programs invested $680 million in rural Oregon communities. To learn more about how these programs can assist your rural community, contact a local staff member.
Before being appointed to this role, Rees served as the Oregon Associate Enterprise Director, overseeing agency operations for Rural Development in the state.
Over her 20-year USDA career, Rees has served in the roles of Acting State Director, Assistant State Director, and Community and Economic Development Director for Rural Development. In addition, she has served as a Public Affairs Specialist for both Rural Development and the Natural Resources Conservation Service. In these various capacities, she has worked for USDA in Champaign, Illinois; Riverside, California; Albuquerque, New Mexico; Washington, DC; and Portland, Oregon.
Rees has a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She holds a Professional Certificate in Tribal Relations and a certificate from the Executive Seminar Program in Natural Resources through Portland State University’s Hatfield School of Government in Portland, Oregon. She also completed the three-year certificate program for Professional Community and Economic Developers through the Northwest Community Development Institute in Boise, Idaho, and the Natural Resources Leadership Development Institute through Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana.
Rees, who has lived in Oregon with her husband for the past 15 years, hails from a rural area of north-central Illinois.