As a component of the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Skills for Business initiative, The Communities That Work Partnership is a new joint project aimed at accelerating industry-led workforce development and training efforts.

The Delta Regional Authority (DRA) announced the establishment of a consortium for research and innovation that is intended to have a long-term positive economic impact on the region. The 35-member consortium will be comprised of universities and other private and public institutions in eight states – Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, and Tennessee.

Two private venture firms have committed to raising a total of $125 million to invest in rural, early stage startups under the Department of Agriculture's Rural Business Investment Program. The program was launched last April, when Advantage Capital Partners launched the first $150 million Rural Business Investment Company (RBIC) fund.

Last week, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced a Request for Applications (RFA) for cities seeking economic revitalization through the National Resource Network (The Network), a public-private initiative that works with national experts and strategic partners to increase the economic competitiveness of cities and reverse population decline, job loss, and high poverty rates.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a report calling for reforms aimed at patent “trolls” to help lower the number of frivolous lawsuits filed by shell companies, a move welcomed by the tech industry that has pushed for reform because of the cost of lawsuits that result from the activity and its negative effect on innovation, research and development.

The Economic Development Administration (EDA), the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC), and the Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration (ETA) have announced $38.8 million in funding as a part of the Obama administration’s Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization (POWER) Initiative – a coordinated federal effort to align, leverage and target a range of federal economic and workforce development programs and resources to assist communities negatively impacted by global transition away from coal. In addition to $38.8 million in federal support, the federal partners anticipate that POWER investments will help coal-impacted communities leverage an additional $67 million from other public and private partners.

In August, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced over $40 million in available federal funding for a new DHS Center of Excellence (COE) for Homeland Security Quantitative Analysis via two federal funding opportunities (FFO).

The National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI), established in 2001 as a collaboration of 20 federal agencies and cabinet-level departments with an interest in nanotechnology R&D and commercialization, has released a draft of its 2016 strategic plan. The National Nanotechnology Initiative Strategic Plan, which describes the initiative’s vision and goals as well as potential strategies to achieve these goals. The plan is an update to and a replacement of a plan originally released in December 2013. Prior to the new plan’s official publication, the public is encouraged to submit comments online by September 23, 2016.

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and the National Economic Council (NEC) published a call to action concerning the upcoming National Manufacturing Day (October 7, 2016) &n

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recently announced the Zero Energy Districts Accelerator, an initiative to develop best practices for establishing commercial districts that have net-neutral energy consumption. The accelerator is now one of 12 listed under the Better Buildings Initiative, which also includes dedicated programming for community and manufacturing initiatives.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) released a notice of intent to issue two future Federal Funding Opportunities (FFOs) in 2016 for the recompetition of state MEP centers in 22 states. Each state MEP center provides manufacturing extension services to primarily small- and medium-sized manufacturers in their respective state.

Through the Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization (POWER) Initiative, an effort among multiple federal agencies led by the Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA), up to $35.5 million in funding is now available to provide investments in communities and workers negatively impacted by changes in the coal industry a

U.S. Senators Cory Gardner (R-CO) and Gary Peters (D-MI) sent a letter requesting a 4 percent increase in appropriations for the National Science Foundation and National Institute of Standards and Technology to the Senate Appropriations Committee.

The White House announced an executive order to review the H-1B visa program, and the accompanying language suggests the administration’s interest in reforms to emphasize applicant skills and wages.

Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney lifted the federal hiring freeze last week and asked agencies to plan for workforce reductions.

On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced the designation of 12 new communities as part of the Investing in Manufacturing Communities Partnership (IMCP) initiative. This second round of manufacturing communities was selected by an interagency panel to receive targeted support from 11 different federal agencies and programs. The IMCP initiative is intended to accelerate U.S. manufacturing by investing in partnerships and long-term economic development strategies in key regions. More than $1 billion in federal assistance will be available to the 12 designated communities.

The 21st Century Cures Act was signed by President Obama on Tuesday and is broadly intended to facilitate the research, development and transfer of medical discoveries in order to better-address diseases affecting American people. While the bill has received mainstream coverage for its bipartisanship – the core authors were two Democrats and two Republicans – and billions in new research spending – more than $5 billion in authorizations – the text also contains potentially significant changes for federally-supported medical research policy.

Congress approved the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2017, which now awaits the President’s signature. The bill includes several significant provisions for the innovation community, including:

The Delta Regional Authority  (DRA) released the Regional Development Plan III (RDPIII) – an economic development strategy to help guide DRA’s 252-county region’s economic growth over the next five years. In RDPIII, DRA identifies three goals and related action items to guide its economic development efforts in the Delta region:

As part of an effort to support rural, small businesses in cutting-edge fields such as bio-manufacturing and advanced energy production, the USDA announced a new capital access initiative to facilitate private investment. The $150 million investment fund is being formed under USDA’s Rural Business Investment Program and will be managed by Advantage Capital Partners. Read the announcement.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is accepting applications for the Research Evaluation and Commercialization Hub (REACH) program to support proof-of-concept centers (Hubs) that facilitate and accelerate the translation of biomedical innovations into commercial products that improve patient care and enhance health. NIH intends to award approximately $9 million to institutions of higher education to establish three new REACH Hubs.