Section 1B-1 - Rural areas and federal programs(a) The term "rural" under this section shall be strictly used to determine if an area qualifies for a federal program that requires that an area be defined or designated as rural under state or federal law. This section does not connote any land use functions for the area so designated or in any way affect the use or definition of rural districts established pursuant to section 205-2.(b) An area that qualifies as rural pursuant to a federal definition shall be considered rural by the State for purposes of this section only.(c) If an area does not qualify as rural pursuant to a federal definition, the following definitions may be used for determining the area's rural status for the purposes of a federal program that accepts state definitions:(1) Any island with a population density fewer than or equal to five hundred people per square mile shall be considered rural; and(2) If an island's population density exceeds five hundred people per square mile, an area within the island shall be considered rural if it is within a zip code tabulation area with a population density below eight hundred people per square mile as determined by the population of the last official census and using the entire zip code tabulation area as determined by the United States Census Bureau.Added by L 2013, c 144,§ 2, eff. 7/1/2013.