Department of Labor Announces WIRED Grants

This has been in the works awhile and a variety of areas have started making plans to distribute the money.

The WIRED grants are designed to help local economies build on their strengths. For instance, after 9/11 Northeastern PA decided it could become the “data backup facility” for Wall Street.

Huntsville AL is trying to exploit its NASA connection to become a technology exporting region.

I’m sure that anything that pumps up local economies will help the trend to small and home based businesses by accident if not by design. If, per chance, the grants spawn growth that clog the highways, then telecommuting will increasingly be prevalent too, though not by design.

Here’s the announcement if you want to know more.

The Department of Labor today announced the third generation of
Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development (WIRED) regions.
Each of the 13 self-identified areas successfully competed for $5
million to be awarded over a three-year period.

WIRED’s Generation III regions include:

- five counties in central New Jersey;
- 25 cities and counties in southeastern Virginia;
- 15 counties in central Kentucky;
- 18 counties in southeastern Mississippi;
- 12 counties in south central and southwest Wisconsin;
- 36 counties in south central and western Minnesota;
- 14 counties in southeast Missouri;
- 10 counties in south central Kansas;
- eight counties in central New Mexico;
- four counties in southern Arizona;
- eight counties in south central Idaho;
- seven counties in greater Portland and Salem, Ore.; and
- five counties in Washington’s Pacific Mountain region.

June 20 News Release
http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/eta/eta20070880.htm

WIRED Fact Sheet
http://www.doleta.gov/wired/files/WIRED_Fact_Sheet.pdf

Map of WIRED Regions (Generation I, Generation II, Generation III)
http://www.doleta.gov/wired/regions/