MBN USA

November 05, 2021

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Commerce Department announces $30 million in economic development funding

U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo recently announced that the Department’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) is awarding $1 million American Rescue Plan grants to 30 states and territories across the nation to support statewide economic development planning efforts.

The funding will assist communities nationwide in their efforts to build back better by accelerating the economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic and building local economies that will be resilient to future economic shocks, boost economic development, enhance U.S. competitiveness, combat the climate crisis and recover from the pandemic.

Projects vary in scope based on locally driven needs. For example, Nebraska and Delaware are both utilizing parts of the funding for a skills-gap analysis to identify the gaps between the jobs that businesses need to fill and the trained workforce in the state, Idaho and Oregon are utilizing the funding to support broadband planning, Washington is building the first statewide innovation cluster development program to accelerate the scaling of industry in the state.

All 59 states and territories were invited to apply for a $1 million grant through EDA’s Statewide Planning program—one of six programs EDA developed to equitably distribute its $3 billion in American Rescue Plan funding. On October 24, EDA announced $24 million in initial statewide planning grant investments covering 24 states. Remaining grants will be disbursed in the coming weeks and months.

“The Biden Administration is giving states and territories the unprecedented opportunity to bring all their communities together to develop comprehensive plans to build back better and stronger,” said Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo. “The $1 million Statewide Planning grants will be used to lay the groundwork for President Biden’s Build Back Better agenda to build resilient economies and increase U.S. competitiveness.”

“Planning is the backbone of economic development and Building Back Better,” said Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development Alejandra Y. Castillo. “EDA is proud to partner with state and territory leaders as they begin to tackle a wide range of challenges—including workforce training, business recruitment, capital access, infrastructure, broadband, entrepreneurial growth, economic diversification, and pandemic recovery—and develop a comprehensive plan for their entire state or territory that ensures communities work together toward a common economic development vision for the future.”

The following states were awarded $1 million grants today:

• Alaska
• American Samoa
• Arizona
• California
• Colorado
• Washington, D.C.
• Delaware
• Guam
• Iowa
• Idaho
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Louisiana
• Maryland
• Minnesota
• Missouri
• Montana
• North Dakota
• Nebraska
• New Hampshire
• New Mexico
• Ohio
• Oregon
• Puerto Rico
• South Dakota
• Texas
• Virginia
• Vermont
• Washington
• Wyoming

For more about EDA’s Statewide Planning grant and other American Rescue Plan programs, please visit: https://www.eda.gov/arpa/.

About the U.S. Economic Development Administration (www.eda.gov)
The mission of the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) is to lead the federal economic development agenda by promoting competitiveness and preparing the nation's regions for growth and success in the worldwide economy. An agency within the U.S. Department of Commerce, EDA invests in communities and supports regional collaboration in order to create jobs for U.S. workers, promote American innovation and accelerate long-term sustainable economic growth.