FEDERAL AGENCY:
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
AUTHORIZATION:
Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965, as amended, Public Law 105-393, 42
U.S.C. 3149 et seq.; 112 Stat. 3596.
OBJECTIVES:
To assist State and local interests design and implement strategies to adjust or bring
about change to an economy. Program focuses on areas that have experienced or are under
threat of serious structural damage to the underlying economic base. Such economic change
may occur suddenly or over time, and generally results from industrial or corporate
restructuring, new Federal laws or requirements, reduction in defense expenditures,
depletion of natural resources, or natural disaster.
TYPES OF ASSISTANCE:
Project Grants.
USES AND USE RESTRICTIONS:
Strategy Grants help organize and carry out a planning process resulting in a
Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) tailored to the community's specific
economic problems and opportunities. Implementation Grants support one or more activities
identified in an EDA-approved CEDS. Activities may include, but are not limited to, the
creation/expansion of strategically targeted business development and financing programs
such as: Revolving loan funds, infrastructure improvements, organizational development,
and market or industry research and analysis.
ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS:
Applicant Eligibility: Eligible applicants include economic
development districts; States, cities or other political subdivisions of a State or a
consortium of political subdivisions; Indian tribes or a consortium of Indian tribes;
institutions of higher learning or a consortium of such institutions; or public or
nonprofit organizations or associations acting in cooperation with officials of a
political subdivision of a State. Applicants using EDA defense appropriations are limited
to defense-impacted areas. Applicants using EDA supplemental disaster assistance will
generally be restricted to disaster-impacted areas.
Beneficiary Eligibility: Geographic areas, usually counties
or groups of counties, which meet one of the following criteria: 1) An unemployment rate
that is, for the most recent 24 month period for which data are available, at least one
percent greater than the national average unemployment rate; 2) per capita income that is,
for the most recent period for which data are available, 80 percent or less of the
national per capita average income; and 3) a special need, as determined by EDA, arising
from actual or threatened severe unemployment or economic adjustment problems resulting
from severe short-term changes in economic conditions. Special need criteria are listed in
the Agency's annual NOFA.
Credentials/Documentation: Applicants for assistance to
develop a CEDS must identify the actual or anticipated adjustment problem and indicate how
the strategy will be developed. Implementation grant applications must be consistent with
an approved CEDS.
APPLICATION AND AWARD PROCESS:
Preapplication Coordination: EDA's Economic Development
Representative (EDR) or regional office representative will meet with the proponent to
determine whether preparation of a project proposal is appropriate. If appropriate, the
proponent will be requested to prepare a brief project proposal according to an outline
provided by the EDR. Following a review by the EDA, the Regional Director will determine
whether to invite a formal application. An environmental impact assessment is necessary;
an environmental impact statement may also be required. This program is eligible for
coverage under E.O. 12372, "Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs." An
applicant should consult the office or official designated as the single point of contact
in his or her State for more information on the process the State requires to be followed
in applying for assistance, if the State has selected the program for review. The standard
application forms as furnished by the Federal agency and required by 15 CFR Part 24 must
be used for this program.
Application Procedure: If an application is invited by the
regional office, an EDR or regional office representative will provide necessary forms and
assist in filling them out. This program is subject to the provisions of OMB Circular No.
A-110 and 15 CFR Part 24.
Award Procedure: Final decision on grant applications from
eligible applicants is made by the Regional Office Director of the Economic Development
Administration, Department of Commerce.
Deadlines: Dates are published in the Federal Register.
Range of Approval/Disapproval Time: Normally within 120 days
of acceptance of a fully completed application.
Appeals: None.
Renewals: None.
ASSISTANCE CONSIDERATIONS:
Formula and Matching Requirements: EDA my generally fund 50
percent of a project's cost, however certain conditions of high economic distress or an
applicant's inability to provide all of the matching share may permit a higher grant rate.
Grant rate requirements may be found in EDA's regulations at 13 CFR Chapter III.
Length and Time Phasing of Assistance: None.
POST ASSISTANCE REQUIREMENTS:
Reports: With the exception of strategy grants, quarterly
financial reports are required until one year after final disbursement of funds. Reports
on RLF grants are initially required semi-annually but may be graduated to annual reports
with the consent of the agency. Grantees are also required to report on program
performance and project outcomes at intervals prescribed by the agency in compliance with
GPRA of 1993.
Audits: In accordance with the provisions of OMB Circular No.
A- 133 (Revised, June 24, 1997), recipients that are States, Local Governments, Non-profit
Organizations (to include Hospitals), and Institutions of Higher Learning shall be subject
to the audit requirements contained in the Single Audit Act Amendments of 1996 (31 U.S.C.
7501-7507). Commercial organizations shall be subject to the audit requirements as
stipulated in the award document. States, local governments, and non-profit governments
that expend $300,000 or more in a year in Federal awards shall have a single or
program-specific audit conducted for that year.
Records: As necessary for audit and as required by OMB
Circular No. A-110 and 15 CFR Part 24. All financial and programmatic records, supporting
documents, statistical reports and other records of grantees or sub grantees are required
to be maintained by the terms of the agreement. The grantee must retain records for 3
years after completion of the project or submission of the final financial report,
whichever is later, and be readily available for inspection and audit.
FINANCIAL INFORMATION:
Account Identification: 13-2050-0-1-452.
Obligations: (Grants) FY 99 $136,958,000 (includes funds
appropriated for economic adjustment, defense adjustment, 1996 Floods, Tri-State Floods,
1997 Upper Midwest Floods, Hurricane Andrew and Alaska Fisheries); FY 00 est $125,722,000
(includes funds for economic adjustment, defense adjustment, 1996 Floods, Tri-State
Floods, 1997 Upper Midwest Floods, Defense Adjustment Assistance, Hurricane Andrew,
Northeast Fisheries, S. California Earthquake, Fran and Hortense and Alaska Fisheries);
and FY 01 est $109,950,000 (includes funds for economic adjustment and defense
adjustment).
Range and Average of Financial Assistance: No specific
minimum or maximum.
PROGAM ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
In fiscal year 1999, 300 projects were funded.
REGULATIONS, GUIDELINES, AND LITERATURE:
13 CFR, Chapter 111, Part 308; Civil Rights Guidelines, RLF Plan Guidelines, CEDS
Guidelines, RLF Audit Guidelines, RLF Administrative Manual and Standard Terms and
Conditions; and program literature available from Regional Offices.
INFORMATION CONTACTS:
Regional or Local Office: Refer to Appendix IV of the Catalog
for EDA regional office addresses.
Headquarters Office: David F. Witschi, Director, Economic
Adjustment Division, Economic Development Administration, Room H7327, Herbert C. Hoover
Building, Department of Commerce, Washington DC 20230. Telephone: (202) 482-2659. Use the
same number for FTS.
Web Site Address: http://www.doc.gov/eda/.
RELATED PROGRAMS:
None.
EXAMPLES OF FUNDED PROJECTS:
Grants received under the Economic Adjustment Program: (1) develop strategy for
recovery from plant closure and major permanent job loss; (2) rehabilitate vacant
industrial facility for multi-tenant use or as an incubator; (3) establish revolving loan
funds, and/or recapitalization of revolving loan funds.
CRITERIA FOR SELECTING PROPOSALS:
All proposals and applications for funding submitted to EDA are evaluated competitively
for: 1) Conformance to statutory and regulatory requirements; 2) relative severity of the
economic problem of the area; 3) quality of the scope of work proposed to address the
problem; 4) merits of the activity(ies) for which funding is requested; and 5) the ability
of the prospective applicant to carry out the proposed activity(ies). Additional criteria
in the project selection process will be reviewed, as applicable, for: Strategy Grants: 1)
Proper authority, mandate, and capacity of the applicant to lead and manage the planning
process and strategy implementation; 2) representation of the public and private sectors
in the development of the strategy's objectives, which may include: public program and
service providers, trade and business associations, educational and research institutions,
community development corporations, minorities, labor, low-income, etc; and 3) the
proposed scope of work for the strategy focuses on the structural economic problem(s) and
includes provisions for undertaking appropriate research and analysis to support a
realistic, market-based, adjustment strategy. Implementation Grants: 1) An understanding
of the economic problems being addressed; 2) an analysis of the economic sectors that
constitute the community's economic base, including particular strengths and weaknesses
that contribute to or detract from a community's current and potential economic
competitiveness; 3) strategic objectives that focus on stimulating investment in new
and/or existing economic activities that offer good prospects for revitalization and
growth; and 4) identified resources and plans for coordinating such resources to implement
the overall strategy. The proposed project must also be identified as a necessary element
of or consistent with the strategy. Revolving Loan Fund Grants: 1) The need for a new or
expanded public financing tool to enhance other business assistance programs and services
targeting economic sectors and/or locations described in the strategy; 2) the types of
financing activities anticipated; and 3) the capacity of the RLF organization to manage
lending, create networks between the business community and other financial providers, and
contribute to the adjustment strategy.
