“Rural area” means any open country or any place, town, village, or city which by itself and taken together with any other places, towns, villages, or cities that it is part of or associated with: (a) has a population not exceeding 10,000; or (b) has a population not exceeding 20,000 and is contained within a nonmetropolitan area. “Rural area” additionally includes any open country, place, town, village, or city located within a Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area if the population thereof does not exceed 20,000 and the area is not part of, or associated with, an urban area and is rural in character. This definition may be changed by the department or the agency, as the case may be, to conform to changes in federal programs.

(Amended by Stats. 1979, Ch. 1045.)