Closures of nuclear power plants (NPPs) throughout the United States have had a significant impact on the economic foundations of surrounding communities through sudden job losses and a reduction to the local tax base.
EDA has a strong history of working with communities facing structural economic adjustments, including those impacted by nuclear power plant closures.
In FY 2020, EDA is deploying $15 million appropriated to the agency to support communities impacted by nuclear plant closures.
May 8, 2020
Guest blog post by Son Lam, Management Analyst and Contracting Officer’s Representative, U.S. Economic Development Administration
My name is Son Lam and I am a Management Analyst and Contracting Officer’s Representative for the Commerce Department’s U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA). I work in the Office of Finance and Management Services (OFMS) and I am responsible for all contracting actions for EDA. I help EDA program offices develop statements of work, cost estimates, and all other documents required for contracting purchase requests. Everything that the agency needs, I help procure, including everything from copiers, new computer equipment, cell phones, and services. It is challenging and rewarding at the same time. I get to work with everyone in EDA from my budget teammates in my direct office to the staff in each of EDA’s six regional offices.
My family and I were war refugees from Vietnam. After the fall of the Republic of Vietnam, we were lucky to escape the communist forces. I was only three years old when we arrived at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton in California. My earliest memories were sitting in a huge aircraft hangar and seeing what seemed like thousands of blankets spread across the hanger bay. While many Vietnamese families stayed in Southern California, we were resettled in New Jersey with thousands of other Vietnamese families.
May 6, 2020
Guest blog post by Kimberly Trimble, Human Resource Liaison, U.S. Economic Development Administration
My name is Kimberly Trimble and I am a Management Analyst at the Commerce Department's U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA). I also serve as the Human Resource Liaison for EDA where my duties include recruitment, classification of positions, position management, security and payroll activities for EDA. I work closely with the Human Capital Client Services, Office of Employment & Compensation to get recruitment and classification activities completed. I also work closely with Enterprise Services Management to get payroll issues completed and resolved while improving performance, efficiency, and service delivery.
A native Washingtonian, I grew up in Temple Hills, Maryland, where I attended Prince George’s County public schools. Upon completion of high school, I attended Bowie State University majoring in Business Administration. While attending Bowie State full-time, I started working for the federal government under the Student Temporary Employment Program. After graduating college, I became a permanent employee as a Management Analyst with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In 1998, my career in the human resources arena began, and my passion for helping others blossomed.
The Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation (PIDC) is Philadelphia’s public-private economic development corporation. Their mission is to spur investment, support business growth, and foster developments that create jobs, revitalize neighborhoods, and drive growth to every corner of Philadelphia.
EDA’s long-standing partnership with PIDC and estimated $25 million in investments over the past 20 years was critical to transforming the former Philadelphia Navy Yard to commercial use.
EDA’s female employees play a vital role in leading economic development all over the country. Our team has a diverse variety of backgrounds, and their personal and professional experiences help shape creativity in economic development.
In celebration of National Women’s History Month, read about some of the impacts our women are making on American communities:
March 30, 2020
Guest blog post by Lisa Larsen, Civil Engineer, U.S. Economic Development Administration
I am a Civil Engineer and work for the Commerce Department's U.S. Economic Development Administration. I oversee and manage a multitude of projects related to the construction of public infrastructure in communities that are economically distressed. The work we do includes upgrading water/sewer lines, facilitating the development of a manufacturing facility that offers high-paying jobs, renovating a building to house an Emergency Operations Center to help a rural community hit by natural disasters, and establishing a workforce training center to expand the workforce in a local community. The ultimate goal of these projects is to boost economic activity, create or retain jobs, and assist in long term economic recovery in distressed communities.
Growing up, becoming a Civil Engineer was unknown to me. I was born in South Korea and adopted by an American family when I was six-years old. I was very fortunate to have parents who sowed the seeds of hard work, discipline, honor, and a can-do attitude.
March 26, 2020
Guest blog post by Julianne Kingery, Economic Development Specialist, U.S. Economic Development Administration
My name is Julianne Kingery and I am an Economic Development Specialist at the Commerce Department's U.S. Economic Development Administration’s (EDA) Denver Regional Office. Our office covers a ten-state region that includes Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming. I have worked with EDA for a year and a half, first as an Economic Development Assistant and now as an Economic Development Specialist. In these roles, I have processed disaster recovery grant applications, assisted partners in the administration of grants, identified innovative strategies for improving resiliency in our region, and supported my teammates in a variety of other EDA programs.
During my time working on disaster recovery, I had the opportunity to support two FEMA mission assignments (in Missouri and Nebraska) in response to the catastrophic flooding across the Midwest that began in March 2019. These two mission assignments opened my eyes to the world of disaster recovery as seen through the lens of a federal agency and, since that time, it has become a passion of mine that I have been able to weave throughout my work at EDA.
March 24, 2020
Guest blog post by Cindy Edwards, Area Director, U.S. Economic Development Administration
I am an Area Director in the U.S. Economic Development Administration’s (EDA) Denver Regional Office. I oversee several EDA grant programs in Denver’s ten state region.
EDA provides grants and technical assistance to economically distressed and disaster impacted communities to help create jobs and sustain their economic viability.
I joined the EDA team over ten years ago as a Civil Engineer. My background in engineering, public works, and construction are a great fit for my role at EDA, where I provide assistance to communities to develop and build their economic infrastructure.
I joined the EDA team over ten years ago as a Civil Engineer. My background in engineering, public works, and construction are a great fit for my role at EDA, where I provide assistance to communities to develop and build their economic infrastructure.
On February 19, during National Entrepreneurship Week (February 15-22), EDA announced the launch of its redesigned Regional Innovation Strategies (RIS) program. With a 40 percent budget increase and recent reauthorization, the redesigned program now called Build to Scale (B2S), builds regional economies through scalable startups. The modernized brand reflects the spirit of the entrepreneurship communities it serves.
Congress has appropriated $33 million for the RIS program in FY20, and EDA has designed a streamlined application process to better address growing demand. The increased funding and improved application process will enable EDA to reach more communities and scale the impacts of the program.
Closures of nuclear power plants (NPPs) throughout the United States have had a significant impact on the economic foundations of surrounding communities through sudden job losses and a reduction to the local tax base.
My name is Son Lam and I am a Management Analyst and Contracting Officer’s Representative for the Commerce Department’s U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA). I work in the Office of Finance and Management Services (OFMS) and I am responsible for all contracting actions for EDA. I help EDA program offices develop statements of work, cost estimates, and all other documents required for contracting purchase requests. Everything that the agency needs, I help procure, including everything from copiers, new computer equipment, cell phones, and services. It is challenging and rewarding at the same time. I get to work with everyone in EDA from my budget teammates in my direct office to the staff in each of EDA’s six regional offices.
My name is Kimberly Trimble and I am a Management Analyst at the Commerce Department's U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA). I also serve as the Human Resource Liaison for EDA where my duties include recruitment, classification of positions, position management, security and payroll activities for EDA. I work closely with the Human Capital Client Services, Office of Employment & Compensation to get recruitment and classification activities completed. I also work closely with Enterprise Services Management to get payroll issues completed and resolved while improving performance, efficiency, and service delivery.
The 
EDA’s female employees play a vital role in leading economic development all over the country. Our team has a diverse variety of backgrounds, and their personal and professional experiences help shape creativity in economic development.
I am a Civil Engineer and work for the Commerce Department's U.S. Economic Development Administration. I oversee and manage a multitude of projects related to the construction of public infrastructure in communities that are economically distressed. The work we do includes upgrading water/sewer lines, facilitating the development of a manufacturing facility that offers high-paying jobs, renovating a building to house an Emergency Operations Center to help a rural community hit by natural disasters, and establishing a workforce training center to expand the workforce in a local community. The ultimate goal of these projects is to boost economic activity, create or retain jobs, and assist in long term economic recovery in distressed communities.
My name is Julianne Kingery and I am an Economic Development Specialist at the Commerce Department's U.S. Economic Development Administration’s (EDA) 
On February 19, during