Investments for Public Works and Economic Development Facilities
Program Funding
Annual program obligations reported to SAM.gov.
Funded Projects
Examples of what this program has supported.
Program Objective
EDA’s Public Works program helps distressed communities revitalize, expand, and upgrade their physical infrastructure. This program enables communities to attract new industry, encourage business expansion, diversify local economies, generate local investment, and create or retain long-term jobs through land acquisition, development, and infrastructure improvement projects that establish or expand industrial or commercial enterprises.
Eligibility
Eligible Applicants
- Other
Pursuant to Section 3(6) of PWEDA (42 U.S.C. § 3122(6)(A)) and 13 C.F.R. § 300.3 (Eligible Recipient), eligible applicants for EDA financial assistance under the Public Works and EAA programs include a(n): (i) District Organization of an EDA-designated Economic Development District; (ii) Indian Tribe or a consortium of Indian Tribes; (iii) State, county, city, or other political subdivision of a State, including a special purpose unit of a State or local government engaged in economic or infrastructure development activities, or a consortium of political subdivisions; (iv) institution of higher education or a consortium of institutions of higher education; (v) public or private non-profit organization or association acting in cooperation with officials of a political subdivision of a State; (vi) an economic development organization; or (vii) a public-private partnership for public infrastructure. Individuals and for-profit entities are not eligible for funding.
Beneficiaries
- Other
Pursuant to Section 3(6) of PWEDA (42 U.S.C. § 3122(6)(A)) and 13 C.F.R. § 300.3 (Eligible Recipient), eligible applicants for EDA financial assistance under the Public Works and EAA programs include a(n): (i) District Organization of an EDA-designated Economic Development District; (ii) Indian Tribe or a consortium of Indian Tribes; (iii) State, county, city, or other political subdivision of a State, including a special purpose unit of a State or local government engaged in economic or infrastructure development activities, or a consortium of political subdivisions; (iv) institution of higher education or a consortium of institutions of higher education; (v) public or private non-profit organization or association acting in cooperation with officials of a political subdivision of a State; (vi) an economic development organization; or (vii) a public-private partnership for public infrastructure. Individuals and for-profit entities are not eligible for funding.
How to Apply
Award Procedure
Review and Selection Process
a. Competitiveness Review (CR) Process
For construction and non-construction projects, except proposals for preparation or revision of a CEDS, EDA will conduct a Competitiveness Review (CR).
In CR, each Regional Office will review applications for their region. This review will be conducted by at least two EDA staff members. This CR team will review each application against the pass/fail evaluation criteria described in the NOFO. Applications that the two reviewers agree fail any of the listed criteria will be deemed “Not Competitive” and will not receive further consideration. Projects that pass all criteria will be deemed “Competitive” and will advance to a full merit review by an Investment Review Committee (described below). Grants for the preparation or revision of a CEDS are not subject to CR. Investment Review Committee (IRC) Process
For projects deemed Competitive after the CR, and all proposals for preparation or revision of a CEDS, each EDA Regional Office will convene periodic IRCs consisting of at least three EDA staff members. The IRC will make a group evaluation of the merits of each application based on the extent to which the application meets the program specific award and application requirements. The IRC will evaluate and rate projects according to the criteria listed in E.1.b. of the NOFO.
Note: Throughout the application review and selection process, strategy grants will be evaluated independently from all other applications and will be reviewed based on specified strategy grants evaluation criteria.
Decision Timeline
- Approval: From 120 to 180 days
Program details & compliance
Description
Through the primarily construction-oriented Public Works program, EDA provides catalytic investments to help distressed communities build, design, or engineer critical infrastructure and facilities that will help implement regional development strategies and advance bottom-up economic development goals to promote regional prosperity. The Public Works program provides resources to meet the construction and/or infrastructure design needs of communities to enable them to become more economically competitive. Examples of projects that have been funded previously include, but are not limited to:
• acquisition and development of land and improvements for use in public works or other types of development facilities;
• design and engineering, construction, rehabilitation, alteration, expansion, or improvement of public works, public service, or related development facilities, including related machinery and equipment;
• water and sewer system improvements;
• creation or expansion of industrial parks;
• creation or expansion of business incubator and accelerator facilities;
• expansion of port and harbor facilities;
• construction or expansion of facilities for workforce development;
• redevelopment of brownfield sites;
• expansion, construction, or improvements of technology-based facilities and research and development commercialization centers, including the procurement of necessary equipment;
• construction, expansion, or improvement of wet labs, including the procurement of necessary equipment;
• construction of multi-tenant manufacturing facilities;
• expansion or improvement of research, business and science parks; and
• expansion or enhancement of public facilities with higher quality fiber optic cables and telecommunications infrastructure and broadband infrastructure deployment.
Mission Categories
Primary: Economic Development
Use of Funds
Allowed Uses
EDA Public Works program investments help facilitate the transition of communities from being distressed to
becoming competitive by developing key public infrastructure, such as technology-based facilities that utilize distance learning networks, smart rooms, and smart buildings; multitenant manufacturing and other facilities;
business and industrial parks with
fiber optic cable; and telecommunications and development facilities. In addition, EDA invests in traditional public works projects, including water and sewer systems improvements, industrial parks, business incubator facilities, expansion of port and harbor facilities, skill-training facilities, and brownfields redevelopment
Required Documentation
An applicant must obtain, complete, and submit an application electronically through the Economic Development Grants Experience (EDGE) at sfgrants.eda.gov. EDA will not accept paper, facsimile, or email transmissions of applications except as provided below. In order to obtain and submit an
application through EDGE, an applicant must register for an EDGE account at sfgrants.eda.gov. As part of the registration process, you will register one Authorized Representative for your organization. The Authorized Representative will be the only official with the authority to submit applications.
Matching Requirements
Generally, the amount of the EDA grant may not exceed 60 percent of the total cost of the project. Projects may receive an additional amount that shall not exceed 30 percent, based on the relative needs of the region in which the project will be located, as determined by EDA.
In addition, EDA’s regulations allow an investment rate of up to 100 percent for Indian tribes, for a State or political subdivision of a State that can document that it has exhausted its effective taxing and borrowing capacity, or for a non-profit organization that can document that it has exhausted its borrowing capacity.
Reporting & Compliance
Applicable 2 CFR 200 Subparts
- Subpart B — General Provisions
- Subpart C — Pre-Federal Award Requirements
- Subpart D — Post-Federal Award Requirements
- Subpart E — Cost Principles
- Subpart F — Audit Requirements