OpportunityTitle: The Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization (POWER) Implementation Grants
CategoryExplanation: Eligible activities include helping communities: develop and implement local and regional programs to respond on behalf of affected workers and businesses; strengthen or develop emerging industry clusters; prepare and train the existing workforce for new jobs in high-growth or in-demand sectors and occupations; and develop and execute coordinated economic and workforce development activities based on communities&#8217; strategic plans.  These activities should result in more skilled workers moving into new job opportunities.
AdditionalInformationOnEligibility: Applicants are welcome to apply to any combination of funding from EDA, ETA, SBA, and ARC (for projects located within the Appalachian Region ).  Since each agency has distinct eligibility requirements, applicants with strong and diverse partnerships will be best suited to seek funding from multiple funding sources.  Applicants should pay close attention to the eligible applicant portion of the funding from the different agencies since eligibility varies by program. For specific details of eligible applicants for each program please see Section III of the full opportunity available under the &quot;related documents&quot; tab.  EDA applicants should apply using the application package available through this grants.gov posting.  Other applicants must refer to section V.B for specific submission requirements for other participating agencies.  EDA Applicants must provide third-party data that clearly indicates 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 &#8220;Special Need,&#8221; as determined by EDA.  Applicants will also need to demonstrate a &#8220;nexus&#8221; with coal economy closures (including official announcements of future closures) for events since 2011.
Description: This FFO announces the availability of funding for implementation grants under the Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization (POWER) Initiative. The POWER Initiative is a new interagency effort to assist communities and workers negatively impacted by changes in the coal industry and power sector. Booming natural gas production, declining costs for renewable energy, increases in energy efficiency, flattening electricity demand, and updated clean air standards are changing the way electricity is generated and used across the country. These industry shifts impact workers and communities who have relied on the coal economy as a source of good jobs and economic prosperity. The goal of the POWER Initiative is to align, leverage, and target complementary federal economic and workforce development resources to assist communities and workers negatively impacted by changes in the coal economy. By aligning and leveraging the resources of DOC&#8217;s EDA, DOL&#8217;s ETA, ARC, and SBA, this initiative seeks projects that reach across economic development and workforce development systems and support local solutions that implement existing economic development strategic plans. This FFO is intended to competitively award grants to partnerships of regionally-oriented economic and workforce development organizations and other key stakeholders located in and supporting impacted coal communities. These grants will enable grantees to take deliberate and measured steps to build economic resilience, industry diversification, local and regional workforce pipelines, and promote new job creation opportunities. Funds across all four programs will be prioritized to those applications that establish a clear linkage between the proposed project and how it will result in local economic growth and diversification, job creation, and job training and reemployment for dislocated workers as outlined in a broader economic and workforce development strategy. In addition to funds made available under this FFO, the POWER initiative makes EDA funds available for planning assistance. Additionally, eight additional federal agencies and offices participating in the POWER initiative will provide technical assistance and education and outreach to winning applicants, and/or preference points for additional agency funding.
GrantorContactEmailDescription: POWER email dropbox
GrantorContactText: the agency-specific representatives identified in the full opportunity found under the &quot;related documents&quot; tab.  Questions may also be addressed to the POWER email dropbox, and they will be routed to the appropriate agency for response.