The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is two years old this week. A key element of the bipartisan bill is the Opportunity Zones initiative. Since January 2018, EDA has invested $346 million in 239 projects in or near Opportunity Zones. An Opportunity Zone is an economically-distressed community where private investments, under certain conditions, may be eligible for capital gain tax incentives...

The following is a cross-post from the Small Business Administration Saturday, November 30, 2019 is Small Business Saturday – a day to celebrate and support small businesses and all they do for their communities. Every year since 1963, National Small Business Week has been recognizing the critical contributions of America’s entrepreneurs and small business owners. More than half of Americans...

EDA’s Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) program provides small businesses and entrepreneurs with the gap financing they need to start or expand their businesses. On October 12, Romeo Chocolates, LLC, celebrated the grand opening of its brick-and-mortar location in Long Beach, California. Founded in 2014, Romeo Chocolates is a micro-batch, artisanal confection line featuring world-sourced chocolate with...

The U.S. Department of Commerce announced today that six organizations will be presented with the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. Baldrige is the nation’s only presidential award for performance excellence, recognizing U.S. organizations and businesses that have shown an unceasing drive for innovative solutions to complex challenges, visionary leadership and operational excellence. “With...

Guest blog by Jeffrey Burton, Administrative Director, Denver Regional Office, U.S. Economic Development Administration As the Administrative Director for the Denver Regional Office of the Economic Development Administration (EDA), I am responsible for leading a team of dedicated professionals in empowering 100 Economic Development Districts across 10 western states in meeting the economic...

Guest blog post by Craig Buerstatte, Acting Director, Office of Innovation & Entrepreneurship, U.S. Economic Development Administration As a young high schooler in a small Wisconsin town, I was fortunate to receive mentorship from an amazing group of community-focused Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) instructors. Their adventures of service and combat took them to places like Panama...

Guest blog post by John C. Fleming, M.D., U.S. Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development I am honored to serve the American people in the service of President Donald J. Trump and Secretary Wilbur Ross at the Economic Development Administration (EDA) as we work together to help drive private sector investment to our nation’s most distressed communities. Through the President’s...