Washington state has passed another milestone on the path to 100% clean electricity. The Washington State Department of Commerce and Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (UTC) adopted administrative rules for implementation of the Clean Energy Transformation Act (CETA).
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A changing of the guard occurred Jan. 4, 2021 at the Washington State Public Works Board when Lincoln County Commissioner Scott Hutsell stepped down as Board Chair. Commissioner Hutsell joined the board as an Elected County Representative in 2012 and was appointed Chair by Gov. Jay Inslee in 2017.
The COVID-19 pandemic barreled in to 2020 like a wrecking ball. As a relatively small state agency with about 370 employees who lead nearly 100 programs related to economic and community development, every team within the state Department of Commerce was called in to the response in some way.
Newest $100 million grant round prioritized industries with disproportionate impacts such as restaurants, fitness centers and indoor entertainment venues OLYMPIA, WA – The state Department of Commerce today announced that over 7,800 small businesses will receive a Working Washington grant. Gov. Jay Inslee announced the new round of business assistance in November and approved $100 million for the grants. Public health measures have disproportionately impacted certain industries such as full-service…
State teams up with Safe Start Fund to provide 24 partnership grants to nonprofits, local governments and educational service districts to develop community-based plans for expanding child care capacity OLYMPIA, WA – The Washington State Department of Commerce today announced a second round $1.8 million in grants to 24 organizations. The organizations are leading collaborative efforts to expand child care capacity in communities throughout the state. Grantees will receive just…
Commerce partners with Philanthropy Northwest to engage communities of color in assisting those experiencing disproportionate impacts from the pandemic. OLYMPIA, WA — Recent data show communities of color in Washington state are experiencing disproportionately higher percentages of COVID cases and economic impact. Several demographic groups have case and hospitalization rates from seven to 10 times higher than for white people, and death rates twice to over three times higher. Additionally,…
State Housing Trust Fund grants and loans will create and preserve 1,685 units of housing for low-income households, people experiencing homelessness and others in need OLYMPIA, WA — Nearly 21 million Americans – nearly half of all U.S. renters in 2020 – paid more than 30% of their income on housing, and nearly a third paid more than half (Harvard University). Stable housing is the foundation for financial self-sufficiency, health…
Commerce today announced $9.8 million in Electrification of Transportation Systems (ETS) grants for 14 projects in communities across the state.
The Department of Commerce is working to deliver better actionable data to stakeholders. This update means revamping the existing project level dashboards and making a single, more comprehensive dashboard to visualize the important things to homeless system performance and the management of services. The first step in this process is evaluating how everyone engages with the current data visualizations and what they want to see improved. Keep in mind that…
State Housing Trust Fund estimates new HUD funding will approximately double existing capacity to serve vulnerable people statewide OLYMPIA, WA — The Washington State Department of Commerce has been awarded one of only seven grants from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to develop new rental housing for extremely low-income people with disabilities. The $6 million grant recognizes the state’s leadership in creating permanent supportive housing models…