Manchin, Capito Announce $12.3 Million From ARC POWER Program For West Virginia Organizations

Source: United States Senator for West Virginia Joe Manchin

September 16, 2021

Washington, DC – U.S. Senators Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), members of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today announced 14 awards totaling $12,356,197 from the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization (POWER) program for organizations across West Virginia. The POWER program is a congressionally funded initiative that targets federal resources to help communities and regions that have been affected by job losses in coal mining, coal power plant operations, and coal-related supply chain industries due to the changing energy sector.

“The ARC continues to be a strong partner for West Virginia, and the POWER program will help coal communities create stronger local economies and promising futures for West Virginians. I am thrilled that this is the largest POWER investment to date, with more awards for West Virginia organizations than any other state. ARC is investing more than $12.3 million through 14 different awards across the Mountain State, supporting projects ranging from broadband deployment to downtown revitalization to youth entrepreneurship,” said Senator Manchin. “I look forward to seeing the impact of these awards in years to come, and I will continue to stand with our hardworking coal miners and West Virginians to create good-paying jobs and opportunities.”

“From broadband infrastructure to health care to outdoor recreation, each of these POWER grants is an investment in the growth and vitality of West Virginia’s economy. ARC provides critical support to local communities, and today’s announcement will impact multiple sectors of our state. As Ranking Member of the Environment and Public Works Committee, which oversees ARC, I’ll continue working as a federal partner to ensure our state gets the resources it deserves,” said Senator Capito.

“I congratulate the 14 grantees in West Virginia on their POWER projects to create a more vibrant economic future in our coal-impacted communities,” said ARC Federal Co-Chair Gayle Manchin. “These competitive grants work to diversify local economies and result in new opportunities for our residents. In fact, new data shows that our previous POWER grants met or exceeded targets for jobs retained and/or created, businesses created, and revenues increased.”

Individual awards listed below:

$2,500,000 – Woodlands Development Group, Woodlands Route 33 Middle/Last Mile Fiber Deployment Project
$2,500,000 – Pocahontas County Commission, Pocahontas County Broadband Project
$1,499,924 – High Rocks Educational Corporation, The Market Fail, Power Skills, and the Social Enterprise Mindset: The WV Jobs Network
$1,464,309 – Coalfield Development Corporation, Appalachia FORWARD (Freight Opportunities Reducing Waste And Revitalizing Development)
$1,270,482 – WV Community Development Hub and Natural Capital Investment Fund, Inc, Downtown Appalachia: Revitalizing Recreational Economies (DARRE)
$1,123,656 – Glenville State College, Cybersecurity and Safety Workforce Development Initiative
$1,089,360 – Friends of The Cheat, Launching the Mountaineer Trail Network
$630,000 – Future of Nursing West Virginia, WV Center for Nurse Entrepreneurship
$50,000 – The Center for Rural Health Development, Health Care Workforce Gap Analysis Project
$50,000 – Braxton County Development Authority, Trail Town Plan for the Elk River Rail Trail System
$49,974 – West Virginia University, Equity in Entrepreneurship: Strategic Planning for Youth Entrepreneurship
$47,500 – RenewAll, Inc., RenewAll Cultural Wealth Hub: An investment in Heritage Tourism and Entrepreneurship
$40,680 – Lewis County Commission, Lewis County Greenways: A Feasibility Study
$40,312 – West Virginia Association of Rehabilitation Facilities, Job Placement of Disability Community Expansion

To see Senator Manchin’s POWER program announcement video, please click here.