Happening in the Executive Branch
White House Releases First American Pandemic Preparedness Plan Annual Report
On September 3, 2021, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and the National Security Council released the “American Pandemic Preparedness Plan: Transforming Our Capabilities” outlining the transformational capabilities needed to directly address future threats. Since this release, the US government has worked diligently to advance progress toward implementing a number of the transformational capabilities outlined in the plan. On September 1 of this year, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy released the first Annual Report on Progress Towards Implementation of the American Pandemic Preparedness Plan. The report details crucial advancements towards pandemic preparedness, including providing priority areas for investment and additional efforts needed in the years ahead. Read the White House Fact Sheet.
Department of Commerce's Build Back Better Regional Challenge Grant Award Includes Central Valley Community Foundation
Earlier in September, the Economic Development Administration announced its 21 winners for the $1 billion Build Back Better Regional Challenge (BBBRC). With a focus on equity and building resiliency, the BBBRC is accelerating regional economic development by enabling regions to achieve decades of investment in just five years, setting them up to thrive in a global economy. Funded through the American Rescue Plan, the selected regional coalitions will each receive between $25 and $65 million to implement multiple projects that uniquely address their region’s economic challenges and leverage their assets. Congratulations to the Central Valley Community Foundation in Fresno, CA for its leadership of The Fresno-Merced Future of Food Innovation (F3) Coalition which received $65.1 million for its proposal to accelerate the integration of technology and skills in the region’s agriculture industry—improving productivity and job quality for existing farm workers while driving a more resilient and sustainable food system. Find out about all 21 coalition winners on the Back Better Regional Challenge website.
Department of the Treasury Announces Emergency Capital Investment Program
On September 26, Treasury announced that 162 community financial institutions across the country received over $8.28 billion through the Emergency Capital Investment Program (ECIP). These funds will support the efforts of community financial institutions to provide loans, grants, and other assistance to small and minority-owned businesses and consumers, especially in low-income and financially underserved communities that struggled during the COVID-19 crisis. The communities served by these ECIP investments are geographically diverse and many share a common characteristic of having suffered from a lack of investment as opportunity has been disproportionately concentrated in certain neighborhoods and areas of the country. Find the list of recipients in the Treasury press release.
Departments of Interior and Commerce Partner on New Climate Website
On September 8, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Department of the Interior jointly launched a new website to help communities across the nation understand the real-time climate-related hazards in their area, analyze projected long-term exposure to those hazards, and identify federal funds to support climate resilience projects for their communities. The Climate Mapping for Resilience and Adaptation portal, an easily accessible and interactive geospatial website, will help federal, state, local, and tribal governments, as well as non-profit organizations, learn about climate hazards impacting their communities.
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