WA Commerce announces $1.8 million to rural counties for COVID-19 pandemic response

OLYMPIA, WA --- Washington State Department of Commerce Director Lisa Brown today announced $1.8 million in additional state Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) to rural counties to assist people and businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Awarded through the Economic Opportunity Grant program, these funds can be used at the discretion of county authorities to meet a variety of emerging local needs, such as providing food and rental assistance, small business support and health services. Counties provide for these and other urgent needs through partnerships with local service providers. 

The state CDBG program receives an annual funding allocation from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to assist rural communities to meet local priority needs. Since 1982, the state CDBG program has awarded over $525 million in grants to over 1,500 locally prioritized community development projects. Larger cities and counties receive CDBG funding directly from HUD, and are not a part of the state CDBG program.

For detailed information about CDBG, please visit http://www.commerce.wa.gov/cdbg. Contact Kaaren Roe, CDBG Section Manager, at (360) 725-3018 for assistance.