Economy

10/15/2009 -- (HELENA) - The Governor’s Office of Economic Development, Montana Department of Commerce, Montana Department of Labor and the Montana Economic Developers Association (MEDA) have partnered to make the BEAR (Business Expansion and Retention) Program available statewide.

The Montana BEAR project provides economic development teams with the tools to help local business owners and operators access resources to improve and/or expand their businesses. The State’s purchasing the rights to the BEAR program has made it far more affordable for Montana communities.

“Small businesses are the backbone of Montana’s economy,” said Governor Brian Schweitzer. “I’m proud to be able to offer this development tool to help our communities prosper.”    » read more »

Oct. 15, 2009 -- Colorado Governor Bill Ritter Jr. today announced the release of new reports that outline how funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act are being used in every county across Colorado. The 64 reports can be found here and are the first of several new sources of data that will be released in the next few weeks to help Coloradans track Recovery Act dollars.    » read more »

State Report on Recovery Contracting Shows Significant Investment, Job Creation

Washington, Oct 15, 2009 -- Members of Maryland’s Congressional Delegation issued the following statement today after the Obama Administration released preliminary Recovery Act reporting on federal contracting for each state.

The data reports that Maryland contractors have been awarded a total of $590 million and have directly saved or created approximately 965 private sector jobs. Today’s numbers are the first to be issued by the independent Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board, and are a preview of the comprehensive Recovery Act report to be released on October 30th.    » read more »

Oct. 15, 2009 -- CHARLESTON -- West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin, along with the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the West Virginia Division of Highways, this week announced the awarding of 26 projects as part of the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act totaling approximately $6.3 million.

These grants will provide West Virginia communities with funding assistance for the design and development of non-traditional projects such as improving safety for pedestrians and bicyclists through the construction of sidewalks and trails.

Listed by county, grant recipients for 2009 ARRA funding include:

BERKELEY
$329,000 to the City of Martinsburg for the Martinsburg Town Square Pedestrian Plaza

BROOKE
$200,000 to the City of Wellsburg for the Wellsburg Sidewalks 2009    » read more »

Rhode Island Governor Donald L. Carcieri and the Rhode Island Office of Energy Resources (OER) today issued contracts to the state’s seven regional Community Action Program Agencies (CAP agencies) to distribute $12.2 million for the statewide Weatherization Program, funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). Under the Recovery Act, Rhode Island will received $20 million in weatherization funds.    » read more »

Oct. 15, 2009 -- Harrisburg – The commonwealth’s first Citizens’ Update on its Recovery Act spending and programs is now available at www.recovery.pa.gov, Pennsylvania Governor Edward G. Rendell said today.

The report, produced by the state’s Office of Accountability, provides a user-friendly narrative that expands on the required quarterly federal reports the commonwealth submitted on Oct. 9.

“Pennsylvania is among the top 10 states in terms of putting its Recovery transportation funds to use,” Rendell said. “We also want to be among the best in transparency. That means providing timely and easy-to-understand information to our citizens about how we are investing Recovery dollars. The Citizens’ Update is part of doing just that.”    » read more »

U.S. Treasury’s tax credit exchange funds to restart 10 projects, create jobs

BOSTON – October 15, 2009 – As part of the Patrick-Murray Administration’s Massachusetts Recovery Plan to secure the state’s economic future, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick today announced that the state will utilize $50.3 million in federal recovery funds to create hundreds of jobs and revive affordable housing developments stalled throughout the Commonwealth due to the lack of equity available in low-income housing tax credit markets.    » read more »

Businesses Also Eligible for Solar Thermal Grants

October 14, 2009 -- Connecticut Governor M. Jodi Rell today announced the state is dedicating $4 million in federal stimulus funds to help homeowners and businesses pay for the installation of solar-powered hot water heating systems, an investment that will lower utility bills and promote the use of alternative fuels.

“I am proud of Connecticut’s leadership in promoting and using greener, cleaner technology,” Governor Rell said. “This incentive will help hundreds of families and businesses make the switch to renewable energy by saving them money on installation costs and ultimately their hot water bills. It would also be a much-needed boost in business for those who sell and install these systems.”    » read more »

Funding Provided by the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act

Washington, DC – U.S. Senators Blanche Lincoln and Mark Pryor and U.S. Representatives Marion Berry (AR-01), Vic Snyder (AR-02), and Mike Ross (AR-04) today announced $5.1 million for forest service projects in Arkansas. The funds are allocated through the U.S. Department of Agriculture and provided by the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act.    » read more »

Urge Actions to Stem Foreclosures and Stabilize Housing Market

October 15, 2009 -- Washington, DC – Following the recent release of a Congressional Oversight Panel (COP) report, which found that the Administration’s current housing relief efforts lack scope, scale and permanence, Congressman Joe Sestak (PA-07) and top economist Dr. Mark Zandi, today, held a press conference to highlight the need for a comprehensive homeownership vesting plan to address the nearly 12 million homeowners who are currently underwater-- owing more on their mortgage than the value of their home.    » read more »

October 15, 2009 -- (Washington, DC) -- Congresswoman Gwen Moore (D-Wisc.) today announced that three Milwaukee research facilities will receive a combined $3,940,596 in Recovery Act dollars to fund cutting-edge medical research in the Milwaukee area.

The grants are provided through the National Institutes of Health (NIH), a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Marquette University will receive $2,003,655 to fund nine research projects, the BloodCenter of Wisconsin will receive $1,123,553 to fund five projects and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee will receive $813,388 to fund four projects.    » read more »

October 15, 2009 -- New York, NY – Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY), Chair of the Joint Economic Committee, issued the following statement regarding the New York State Labor Department’s September 2009 state employment data. The data showed that New York State’s unemployment rate remained at 8.9 percent in September.    » read more »

October 15, 2009 -- WARWICK, RI - Congressman Jim Langevin (D-RI) today expressed outrage over news of more massive bonuses to Wall Street executives, including $198 million to be distributed by AIG next March and indications that Goldman Sachs is on track to provide a record payout to its executives by the end of 2009.    » read more »

Oct 15 2009 -- Congressman Jim Himes (CT-4) announced today that Connecticut has received its second and final installment of the State Energy Program funding provided under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The Department of Energy delivered an additional $19 million to the state, which has now received a total of $38 million through the State Energy Program to support energy efficiency and renewable energy projects across the state.

“The Recovery Act State Energy Program creates jobs, helps protect family pocketbooks, and makes us safer both at home and abroad,” said Congressman Himes. “There’s no better way to reduce both energy costs and our dependence on foreign oil than to use less in the first place.”    » read more »

Bill Will Help Families, Put Money Into Economy

October 15, 2009 -- Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley announced today that he has co-sponsored legislation to extend assistance to those currently unemployed. The legislation will provide up to an additional twenty weeks of unemployment insurance benefits to Oregonians who have exhausted their benefits by the end of December 2009.

“During these difficult economic times it’s important to ensure that jobless Americans can make ends meet while they’re looking for a fresh start,” said Merkley. “These benefits will help ease the burden on unemployed Oregonians and put money back in their pockets to help stimulate the local economy.”    » read more »