In a recent installment of SSTI’s federal funding video series, SSTI program director Jerry Coughter conducted a two-part interview with Amanda Kosty, management and program analyst with the Economic Development Administration’s Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

The Distressed Area Recompete Pilot Program (Recompete Pilot Program)—authorized by the CHIPS and Science Act— will invest $200 million toward interventions that spur economic activity in geographically diverse and persistently distressed communities nationwide. The program will support economic revitalization in distressed communities across the country.

Expanding U.S. innovation capacity sits at the heart of SSTI’s mission, and it was that driving force that guided our response to the Economic Development Administration’s request for information to inform the planning and design of the regional Technology and Innovation Hub (Tech Hubs) program last week. With $10 billion authorized for the program, and $500 million appropriated, the opportunity for growth in the nation demands a thoughtful and actionable plan.

More than five months into fiscal year 2024, Congress has approved an agreement covering six of the twelve annual appropriations bills. Many tech-based economic development (TBED) programs received funding equal to the FY 2023 base appropriation—a strong sign of support for a year in which Congress agreed to return to FY 2022 overall spending levels and many programs across the federal government, therefore, saw cuts.

By a bipartisan vote on Tuesday, the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works approved legislation that would reauthorize the Economic Development Administration for the first time since 2004.

This week the Economic Development Administration (EDA) announced it had completed awarding $27.9 million in cooperative agreements to establish eight economic development Communities of Practice, including the Technology-Based Economic Development (TBED) Community of Practice led by SSTI to help build the capacity and disseminate effective technology-based economic development practices across the innovation industry

Late last week, the Economic Development Administration (EDA) released “Tech Hubs Program Fact Sheet,” which provides some information on where the Tech Hubs program is headed. However, the sheet leaves many questions unanswered and raises new questions about how the program will be administered. The program, authorized in the CHIPS and Science Act at $10 billion, received $500 million in funding to date.

EDA is now accepting applications for its $4.5 million FY 2023 STEM Talent Challenge to support programs to train science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) talent and help fuel regional innovation economies.

SSTI is pleased to announce a new project with the Economic Development Administration (EDA) to build a Community of Practice focused on EDA’s important technology-based economic development (TBED) investment priority area. This new partnership will help regions across the entire country become more resilient, more equitable, and more competitive in the global innovation-centered economy.

A total of $47 million has been awarded to 51 organizations by the U.S. Economic Development Administration to support programs that accelerate innovation and tech-based economic development as part of the Build to Scale program,  U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo announced yesterday. The 2022 awardees will leverage an additional $48 million in matching funds from private and public sector sources.

The Economic Development Administration (EDA) recently issued a Request for Information (RFI) on the Regional Technology and Innovation Hub (Tech Hubs) program.

SSTI has released a new video in our Federal Funding Video Library featuring Trent Thompson, economic development representative with the Economic Development Administration’s Denver Regional Office. In this interview, we discuss how EDA’s Economic Adjustment Assistance (EAA) funds can be leveraged to support technology-based economic development (TBED) activities.

The Economic Development Administration today announced $504 million in funding across 12 Tech Hubs, the culmination of a 14-month selection process to choose the first regions funded for implementation projects under the program. The 12 Hubs receiving implementation awards are listed in the graphic below.

The U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration (EDA) recently announced the 22 finalists of the Distressed Area Recompete Pilot Program (Recompete) and 24 Strategy Development Grants. Recompete, authorized through the CHIPS and Science Act, targets the hardest-hit and most economically distressed areas of the country, specifically ones where prime-age (25-54 years) employment is significantly lower than the national average.

The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) recently announced the 11 recipients of the 2023 STEM Talent Challenge. The challenge supports programs to train science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) talent and fuel regional innovation economies across the nation.

The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) has received 378 applications from 48 states for Phase 1 of the Regional Technology and Innovation Hubs (Tech Hubs) competition. In total, 48 states and three territories submitted 378 Tech Hubs Phase 1 applications.

In an email sent out this morning, EDA announced, “Given the high volume of applications, EDA is now only requiring the Lead Organization to register in EDGE.” EDGE is EDA’s new grants management platform. The email encourages applicants to “please focus on getting your application materials prepared and having the Lead Organization submit them in EDGE. Application acceptance will not be affected if consortium members are not registered in EDGE.

The EDA’s Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) can be an important tool for supporting tech-based economic development initiatives. In the newest addition to SSTI’s Federal Funding Video Library, Matt Knutson, program analyst with EDA, provides an overview of how organizations can use this funding opportunity. Whether you’re seeking to understand the application process or explore how the RLF program aligns with your region’s TBED strategy, this video offers valuable insights and guidance.

The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) announced the designation of 31 Tech Hubs in regions across the country and 29 Strategy Development Grants. This announcement marks the first phase of the new Tech Hubs program, an economic development initiative authorized in the CHIPS and Science Act and designed to drive regional innovation and job creation by strengthening a region’s capacity to manufacture, commercialize, and deploy technology that will advance American competitiveness.

As the Economic Development Administration (EDA) continues to award its $3 billion allotment of pandemic relief funding made available by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA), many states are taking aim at several specific areas of economic concern — while others are maintaining a broad perspective.

U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina M.

This week, Congress approved a new version of legislation to incentivize semiconductor manufacturing facilities, create a Regional Technology Hubs program, and reauthorize many science-related agencies. The Senate passed the bill on the 27th, and the House passed the legislation a day later.

The U.S. Department of Commerce has announced a new $25 million Good Jobs Challenge Notice of Funding Opportunity for investment in high-quality, locally led workforce training programs that lead to good jobs.

Following its announcement of implementation awards to 12 Tech Hubs regions, the U.S. Economic Development Administration made Consortium Accelerator Awards of $500,000 to each of the additional 19 Tech Hubs designated regions.

The Distressed Area Recompete Pilot Program, a program authorized by the CHIPS and Science Act, targets areas where the share of prime-age (25-54 years) employment is significantly lower than the national average.