Today, the U.S. Department of Commerce is announcing the Regional Economic Research Initiative (Regional Initiative), a new data initiative to improve our nation’s understanding of local regional economies and their ability to compete. The importance of place has often been overlooked in favor of other ways of studying and growing the economy, which has contributed to the concentration of economic...

Roxanne Moadel-Attie, New York Regional Office Program Manager, U.S. Census Bureau When asked what most motivated me to join the Commerce Department’s U.S. Census Bureau, I often point to my graduate research on the psychosocial impacts of racial classification, modeling the integration of both Middle Eastern North African (MENA) and Hispanic/Latino race categories as well as other recommendations...

Expanding Protections for Pacific Remote Islands Toward Goal of Conserving 30% of U.S. Ocean by 2030 Following President Biden’s call to action at the White House Conservation in Action Summit and a Presidential Memorandum issued today, the Commerce Department directed the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to initiate a process to consider designating all U.S. waters around...

Today, Deputy Secretary Graves met with Puerto Rico Financial Oversight and Management Board (FOMB) Executive Director Robert Mujica to discuss efforts on economic development and the Biden-Harris Administration’s priorities for the archipelago, which were framed around Economic Deliverables agreed upon during last December’s Joint Economic Dialogue . As Puerto Rico Economic Growth Coordinator...

By Brittany Sickler, Networks Program Manager, U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) Women’s History Month has always been an important time for me to consider the remarkable—and ordinary—stories in our country’s journey to equality. For instance, just after my mother was born in 1944, a bill was introduced proposing employers be required to pay women equal pay for equal work – an...

By Nicolette Mena, International Program Specialist, Commercial Law Development Program (CLDP) My name is Nicolette Mena, and I am an International Program Specialist at the Commerce Department’s Commercial Law Development Program (CLDP). I have worked at CLDP for almost four years, primarily focusing my efforts on the South Caucasus, Eastern Europe, and Latin America regions. Before joining CLDP...

Today, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Department of Commerce (DOC) announced efforts to pursue a whole-of-government approach to review its march-in authority as laid out in the Bayh-Dole Act, which promotes commercialization of research results, maximizes the potential for federally-funded technologies to become products, and serves the broader interest of the...

By Dr. Jeanette Davis, Marine Microbiologist and Policy Advisory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) My name is Dr. Jeanette Davis. I am Marine Microbiologist and Policy Advisor to the Deputy Undersecretary at the Commerce Department’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). I started my journey as a scientist at Hampton University where, as a freshman, I...

Guardrails Will Ensure Innovations and Technology Funded by CHIPS Act Bolsters Technological and National Security for America and Our Allies The U.S. Department of Commerce today released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for the guardrails included in the CHIPS Incentives Program to advance America’s technological and national security. The national security guardrails are intended to ensure...

Today, Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo had a call with Germany’s Vice Chancellor and Minister of Economic Affairs and Climate Action Robert Habeck to reaffirm the Department of Commerce’s commitment to working together in cooperation on Transatlantic trade concerning critical minerals, semiconductors, and clean technology. Secretary Raimondo noted the essential nature of critical minerals for...