Historically, rural agencies have learned to create economies of scale by joining forces and sharing resources. These cooperative joint efforts not only maximize available resources and provide essential services to those who otherwise would go without, but also build relationships that can be relied upon in times of daily and emergency need. RIEM will facilitate the convergence, collaboration, and communication between federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies in five counties of northeast South Dakota. The goals are to maximize job creation, enhance the efficient and effective sharing of criminal justice information, prevent crime and combat drugs, thus providing a direct economic benefit to individual communities and the region as a whole. RIEM will serve as a model for other rural American law enforcement jurisdictions to emulate.