U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker today announced the first 12 communities that will be designated Manufacturing Communities as part of the Investing in Manufacturing Communities Partnership (IMCP) initiative. The U.S. Commerce Department-led program is designed to accelerate the resurgence of manufacturing in communities nationwide by supporting the development of long-term economic development strategies that help communities attract and expand private investment in the manufacturing sector and increase international trade and exports.

“The 12 Manufacturing Communities announced today represent a diverse group of communities with the most comprehensive economic development plans to attract business investment that will increase their competitiveness,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker. “IMCP is a critical part of our ‘Open for Business Agenda’ to strengthen the American manufacturing sector and attract more investment to the United States. Innovative programs like IMCP encourage American communities to work together to craft  strong, clear, strategic plans to attract manufacturing investment and jobs to transform themselves into globally competitive commercial hubs.”

“IMCP is one of the main programs at the center of the Administration’s efforts to support job creation and accelerate manufacturing growth to make our communities more globally competitive,” said U.S. Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development Jay Williams. “These 12 Manufacturing Communities are diverse, public-private consortiums that have put in place best practice economic development strategies that can be replicated by other American communities – including all those who applied for the IMCP designation.”

From the 70 communities that applied, these 12 were selected by an interagency panel, based on the strength of their economic development plans, the potential for impact in their communities, and the depths of their partnerships across the public and private sector to carry out their plans.

The first 12 Manufacturing Communities include:

• Southwest Alabama, led by the University of South Alabama
• Southern California, led by the University of Southern California Center for Economic Development
• Northwest Georgia, led by the Northwest Georgia Regional Commission
• The Chicago metro region, led by the Cook County Bureau of Economic Development
• South Kansas, led by Wichita State University
• Greater Portland region in Maine, led by the Great Portland Council of Governments
• Southeastern Michigan, led by the Wayne County Economic Development Growth Engine
• The New York Finger Lakes region, led by the City of Rochester
• Southwestern Ohio Aerospace Region, led by the City of Cincinnati
• The Tennessee Valley, led by the University of Tennessee
• The Washington Puget Sound region, led by the Puget Sound Regional Council
• The Milwaukee 7 region, led by the Redevelopment Authority of the City of Milwaukee

The 12 designated Manufacturing Communities will receive coordinated support for their strategies from the following eleven federal agencies with $1.3 billion available in federal economic development assistance:

• Appalachian Regional Commission
• Delta Regional Authority
• Environmental Protection Agency
• National Science Foundation
• Small Business Administration
• U.S. Department of Agriculture
• U.S. Department of Commerce
• U.S. Department of Defense
• U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
• U.S. Department of Labor
• U.S. Department of Transportation

These communities will also receive a dedicated federal liaison at each of these agencies that will help them navigate available federal resources. They will also be recognized on a government website, accessible to prospective private foreign and domestic investors, looking for information on communities’ competitive attributes.

In order to earn the designation, communities had to demonstrate the significance of manufacturing already present in their region and develop strategies to make investments in six areas: 1) workforce and training, 2) advanced research, 3) infrastructure and site development, 4) supply chain support, 5) trade and international investment, 6) operational improvement and capital access.

In September 2013, the U.S. Commerce Department’s Economic Development Administration and other agencies awarded $7 million in IMCP grants to 44 communities to support the development of long-term economic development strategies to help them attract and expand private investment in the manufacturing sector and increase international trade and exports. The Obama Administration officially launched the national IMCP competition in December 2013. Later this year, the Administration plans to launch a second IMCP competition to designate additional communities, as well as convene the 70 communities that applied for designation to share best practices in economic development planning.

For more information on IMCP, please visit: http://www.eda.gov/challenges/imcp/index.htm