Duties of the office

(1) The office shall coordinate the activities of the various divisions within the department of local affairs for the purpose of: (a) Cooperating with and providing technical assistance to local officials for the orderly development of rural Colorado; (b) Encouraging and, when requested, assisting local governments to develop mutual and cooperative solutions to rural community development; (c) Studying the legal provisions that affect rural development and recommending to the governor and the general assembly such changes and provisions as may be necessary to encourage rural development; (d) Serving as a clearinghouse for rural development information, including state and federal programs designed for rural development; (e) Carrying out studies and continuous analyses of rural development in the state with particular emphasis on its effect on population dispersion and economic opportunity; (f) Encouraging and assisting, when requested, local governments to develop mutual and cooperative solutions to rural community development; (g) Contracting with the federal government or any agency or instrumentality thereof and receiving any grants or moneys therefrom for purposes of rural development in Colorado.