The U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) has opened a funding opportunity for communities affected by disasters over the past few years. The competition includes an “industry transformation” path that borrows much from the agency’s model for the Tech Hubs, Build Back Better Regional Challenge (BBBRC), and Recompete programs: applicants propose 3-5 projects that are designed to advance a specific industry and region with $20-50 million in federal investment.
While the industry transformation path presents an outstanding opportunity, competition will be fierce (EDA received 529 proposals for BBBRC), and the use of a single-round process forces applicants to take one intensive shot before receiving formal feedback. To merit the time investment, regions must have robust industry and stakeholder engagement, an ambitious yet achievable vision for achieving economic growth, and the ability to craft a compelling ten-page narrative.
Given the level of competition and time required, regions would be smart to utilize an approach that leverages the application development process to build momentum around a strategy that the region will be interested in supporting regardless of the a federal award.
Industry transformation path requirements
EDA defines several ambitious goals for this funding path. These include accelerating economic recovery, leveraging private investment, engaging the private sector, expanding trade, and addressing persistent poverty.
Eligibility. Applicants for this funding path must meet several requirements to merit consideration:
- EDA’s normal entity type eligibility requirements
- Being in or addressing an area that was the subject of a federal disaster declaration in calendar years 2023 or 2024.
- Alignment with a Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS)
- A coalition of regional entities that must include private sector partners and may include higher education, regional governments, and community, economic, and workforce organizations.
Industries. The notice of funding does not define a set of industries that regions must support. The examples that are provided cover a wide range: semiconductor manufacturing, maritime industry, and food systems.
Projects. Awardees will receive funding for approximately 3-5 cohesive projects. There are no firm requirements for what these may be, and each set of applicant examples in the opportunity description includes projects that cover coalition building, technological implementation, workforce development, and infrastructure investment. Projects may be either construction or non-construction.
Funding. Total federal funding across these projects is expected to be $20-50 million, with an additional 20% non-federal match averaged across projects—and additional private funding or public commitments beyond this level.
Evaluation. EDA has defined a relatively clear approach to evaluating the industry transformation proposals:
- 1/3 of evaluation – “Performance goals and measures of success,” particularly –
- Dollar value of the (non-match) commitments
- Number of jobs to be created or retained
- 2/3 of evaluation split evenly (i.e., each is 1/6 of total) across the following categories–
- Region demonstrates understanding of its needs and opportunities
- How well the project would address region’s needs and EDA’s objectives
- Project’s likelihood of success
- Coalition’s level of preparedness
Deadline. Proposals for this funding path are due March 3, 2026.
Support for industry transformation applicants
EDA is providing more than eight months between the opportunity announcement and the industry transformation path application deadline. While this is a longer application window than previous competitions, regions should leverage this period to their full advantage.
From my experience working with the BBBRC Community of Practice and the designated Tech Hubs leaders, as well as regional economic strategies outside of specific competitions, the top issues I suggests regions address over the next few months are the following:
- Defining and building a cohesive region. The applicant region must benefit an area that was the subject of a disaster declaration, and there may be work to do to incorporate the stakeholders of an affected area into a regional approach. Additionally, while it does not appear to be a requirement that regions submit only one proposal, past competitions have been skeptical of regions that could not align around a single plan.
- Identifying the right industry for the proposal. The best sectors to receive support from EDA’s competition will demonstrate a clear need that can be addressed by these projects but also will have a strong enough presence in the region so that businesses can make meaningful financial commitments to the projects. Further, the region should select a sector that pays well and contributes to the region’s broader economic goals.
- Ensuring alignment with CEDS. Unlike some of EDA’s other supplemental competitions, industry transformation projects must align with the local CEDS (and possibly multiple CEDS, if the region is covered by more than one existing plan). If there are questions about alignment, the coalition should work with EDA as soon as possible to explore plan modifications, creation, or alternatives.
- Cultivating business support. Under Tech Hubs and similar programs, regions improved their competitiveness both by demonstrating active participation from companies at different levels of the industry’s activity in the region (e.g., corporations and startups, primes and suppliers) and by securing tangible commitments to the projects (e.g., financial contributions or hiring pledges). Depending on the region’s existing relationships, a long lead time may be required to engage the right leaders in the proposal.
These are high priorities because of the time that may be involved to complete each item, but the processes of defining the right projects, securing match, designing a governance structure, collecting necessary data, crafting a compelling narrative, and completing 3-5 complete applications will also demand ample resources from applicants.
Regions looking for assistance in building a competitive proposal can get assistance from Excel Regional Solutions for the entire process or for specific elements.
This illustration depicts key proposal targets for the next eight months and how Excel could help regions develop the right approach:
Excel is available for a limited number of projects between now and the application deadline, so schedule a meeting to discuss your region’s plans soon.
Book a meeting now or contact Jason Rittenberg (rittenberg@excelregions.com).
Depending on the client’s needs and scope, Excel can work independently—we have a wealth of experience assisting regions that performed well in EDA competition, and our recent work has focused on supporting coalition strategies—or tap our network for additional national or local expertise.
Opportunity for small- and mid-sized regions
Excel will be recruiting this fall for a compensated, pilot cohort of our philanthropy-backed cluster strategy curriculum (read more about the curriculum and contact Jason Rittenberg about participating).