EDITORS/NEWS DIRECTORS:
The Biden administration is sending $1 billion worth of federal grants for manufacturing, clean energy, farming, biotech and more to 21 regional partnerships across the nation.
The grants were part of the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package that President Joe Biden signed into law in March 2021. There were 529 applicants to the Commerce Department for the grants, a figure that was narrowed to 60 finalists and 21 winners.
Unlike much of the pandemic aid that was meant to address immediate needs, the grants are part of a longer-term effort to revitalize parts of the country that have needed an economic jolt. The money will include funds for existing industries and capital for new ventures with the goal of ensuring that people can find jobs in the communities where they live.
The grants range from $65.1 million for California to improve farm production and $25 million for a robotics cluster in Nebraska. Georgia gets $65 million for artificial intelligence. There is $63.7 million for lithium-based battery development in New York. Coal counties in West Virginia would receive $62.8 million to help with the shift to solar power and find new uses for abandoned mines.
The government will pay out the grants on a rolling five-year period as reimbursements, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said in an interview.
A list of the grant winners with links to their specific projects is here. Find AP's coverage here.
Some tips for localizing the story:
QUESTIONS/REPORTING TIPS
— What specific elements of your project will the grants fund and what are your most immediate priorities?
— How did the competitive application process change and help refine your project?
— What other funding sources are supporting the project? Do the grants enable you to leverage additional funding sources? Who are all the partners involved in the development projects?
— How many jobs will the project create and over what time?
— Visit the sites where the projects are going forward. These include empty manufacturing facilities that will be renovated, farms, labs and other facilities. Ask for the application to understand what is being proposed.
— Talk to local political leaders about how the projects compare to previous federal grants for development and what they could mean for the upcoming elections.
— Talk with business leaders and residents who might have to transition to new jobs and how they feel about that prospect.
RESOURCES
Each winner has videos of their proposals on YouTube with the links here on the individual project pages.
Searchable economic data about that is localized is here. You can also find local economic data, including job composition by industry, by searching for a state "economy at a glance." For example, typing into Google “Louisiana economy at a glance BLS” will take you to this federal government page maintained by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That site will show you how many jobs came from energy production (classified as mining and logging), manufacturing and other industries. It will also provide metro area data.
ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND
Raimondo estimated that the investments, which will be provided over five years as reimbursements, will result in at least 100,000 jobs.
She said the winners were chosen based on merit rather than politics.
Solidly Republican states such as Oklahoma and South Dakota received funding, and money also is going ahead of November’s midterm elections toward political battlegrounds that could decide control of Congress. There is $44 million for regenerative medicine in New Hampshire, where Democrat Maggie Hassan is defending her U.S. Senate seat. Pennsylvania, which has an open Senate seat, is set to receive $62.7 million for robotics and artificial intelligence.
In announcing the grants at a Friday White House event, Biden specifically referenced the political aspect ahead of the November midterm elections by asking a Pennsylvania delegation: "How is this going to play out on the political scene?”
Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald, a Democrat, quickly answered with a campaign ready line: “President Biden continues to invest in people and in jobs and in our future.”
