Economic Adjustment Assistance
Program Funding
Annual program obligations reported to SAM.gov.
Who has received this funding
Organizations awarded under CFDA 11.307 (USAspending.gov).
- Office Of Workforce Strategy $23,930,442
- Wtia Workforce Institute $23,500,000
- The Ohio Manufacturers' Association $23,492,808
- Florida Gulf Coast University $22,871,501
- City Of Cleveland $17,987,491
- City Of Lake City $13,500,000
- The Research Foundation For The State University Of New York $13,054,893
- Hampton Roads Workforce Council $11,006,941
- Generation West Virginia Inc $10,764,400
- City Of Hazard $10,675,000
Program Objective
The EAA program provides a wide range of technical, planning, public works and infrastructure, and other financial assistance in regions experiencing adverse economic changes that may occur suddenly or over time. These adverse economic impacts may result from a steep decline in manufacturing employment following a plant closure, changing trade patterns, catastrophic natural disasters, a military base closure, or environmental changes and regulations.
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. Individuals and for-profit entities are not eligible for funding; (vi) an economic development organization; or (vii) a public-private partnership for public infrastructure.
Beneficiaries
- Other
Beneficiaries of investments made under Economic Adjustment are those communities who satisfy one or more of the economic distress and/or “Special Need” criteria set forth in the NOFO, 13 C.F.R.§ 301.3(a), or 13 C.F.R. § 300.3 to revitalize, expand, or upgrade their economic development assets to attract new industry, encourage business expansion, diversify their local economies, and generate or retain long-term private sector jobs and capital investments. Investments are intended to alleviate long-term deterioration and sudden and severe economic dislocation in distressed communities and regions.
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. b. 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 90 to 120 days
Program details & compliance
Description
The Economic Adjustment Assistance (EAA) program is EDA’s most flexible program; it provides a wide range of technical, planning, and public works and infrastructure assistance in regions experiencing adverse economic changes that may occur suddenly or over time. These adverse economic impacts may result from a steep decline in manufacturing employment following a plant closure, changing trade patterns, catastrophic natural disaster, a military base closure, or environmental changes and regulations. The EAA program can assist state and local entities in responding to a wide range of economic challenges through: (1) Strategy Grants to support the development, updating or refinement of a Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) and (2) Implementation Grants to support the execution of activities identified in a CEDS (or equivalent), such as infrastructure improvements, including site acquisition, site preparation, construction, rehabilitation and equipping of facilities. Specific activities may be funded as separate investments or as multiple elements of a single investment.
Under EAA, EDA can also fund market and environmental studies, planning or construction grants, and capitalize or recapitalize Revolving Loan Funds (RLFs) to help provide small businesses with the capital they need to grow.
EDA also runs specific programs under the EAA program including:
-Disaster Relief and Recovery: to meet expenses related to flood mitigation, disaster relief, long-term recovery, and restoration of infrastructure in areas that received a major disaster designation.
Workforce: to support regional workforce training systems to establish sectoral partnerships that train and place workers in high-quality jobs.
Mission Categories
Primary: Economic Development
Use of Funds
Allowed Uses
The EAA program can assist state and local entities in responding to a wide range of economic challenges through:
Strategy Grants to support the development, updating or refinement of a Comprehensive Economic
Development Strategy (CEDS).
Implementation Grants to support the execution of activities identified in a CEDS, such as infrastructure
improvements, including site acquisition, site preparation, construction, rehabilitation and equipping of facilities.
Specific activities may be funded as separate investments or as multiple elements of a single investment
Required Documentation
In order to be eligible for funding under this NOFO, an applicant must propose a project that meets EDA’s distress criteria. Applicants must self-define the appropriate region geographically. The geographic area comprising a region need not be contiguous or defined by political boundaries but should constitute a cohesive area capable of undertaking self-sustained economic development. Applicants must provide third-party data that clearly indicate that the relevant region is subject to one (or more) of the following economic distress criteria: (i) an unemployment rate that is, for the most recent 24-month period for which data are available, at least one percentage point greater than the national average unemployment rate; (ii) per capita income that is, for the most recent period for which data are available, 80 percent or less of the national average per capita income; or (iii) a “Special Need,” as determined by EDA. Applicants may find EDA-funded tools useful in characterizing economic development needs in their region. These can be found https://www.eda.gov/grant-resources/tools.
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