US Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administation

What US Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administation does

The U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) is the only federal agency within the U.S. Department of Commerce focused exclusively on economic development. Established in 1965 under the Public Works and Economic Development Act and most recently reauthorized under the Thomas R. Carper Water Resources Development Act of 2024, EDA distributes competitive and non-competitive grants to state and local governments, Economic Development Districts, Indian tribes, institutions of higher education, public and private nonprofits, and public-private partnerships. Programs span infrastructure construction, workforce training, disaster recovery, innovation and entrepreneurship, and economic adjustment for distressed communities, with the typical federal share covering up to 80% of project costs (up to 100% for Tribal and severely distressed applicants).

EDA's product surface consists of a portfolio of grant programs including Economic Adjustment Assistance, Public Works, Build to Scale, Regional Technology and Innovation Hubs (Tech Hubs), the new AI Upskill Accelerator Pilot, Planning/Local Technical Assistance, Revolving Loan Fund, and Disaster Recovery programs. Grant administration runs through Grants.gov for most solicitations and EDA's proprietary EDGE electronic grants management system for application submission and post-award management. EDA does not develop proprietary technology products beyond EDGE, and the agency has no public/partner-facing API. The agency operates through six regional offices (Atlanta, Austin, Chicago, Denver, Philadelphia, Seattle) serving all 50 states, U.S. territories, and freely associated states, with locally-based Economic Development Representatives supporting applicants in each state.

Financially, EDA is funded through Congressional appropriations and supplemental disaster recovery allocations rather than commercial revenue. In FY2025, the agency awarded $423.8 million across 312 grants, creating or saving 9,873 jobs. Larger multi-year funding flows include the $1.45 billion FY2025 Disaster Supplemental and $4.71 billion in cumulative supplemental disaster appropriations since the early 1990s. In 2025, EDA completed a congressionally approved 505 reorganization creating the Office of Regional Operations, Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, and Office of Disaster Recovery and Resilience, while discontinuing the University Center, Trade Adjustment Assistance for Firms, and STEM Talent Partnership programs to reprioritize toward AI initiatives.

Name

US Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administation

Legal name

U.S. Economic Development Administration

Website

https://eda.gov

Company type

Private

Founded year

1965

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

The U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) is the only federal agency focused exclusively on economic development, distributing competitive grants for infrastructure, workforce training, disaster recovery, and innovation across all U.S. states and territories through six regional offices.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Federal Economic Development Grants

NAICS

Administration of Economic Programs (9261), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

akta.pro primary industry

Grantmaking Agencies & Education Program Grants Administration (EDADAHAD)

Keywords

• Economic development grants
• Disaster recovery funding
• Workforce development grants
• Infrastructure investment grants
• Federal grant programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Federal Grant Disbursements: EDA distributes federal economic development funding through competitive and non-competitive grant programs to eligible recipients including state and local governments, Economic Development Districts, Indian tribes, institutions of higher education, nonprofits, and public-private partnerships. The agency receives annual appropriations from Congress and supplemental disaster recovery funding.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

EDA is a federal grant-making bureau within the U.S. Department of Commerce that distributes economic development funding to state and local governments, tribal governments, institutions of higher education, and nonprofit organizations. It supports job creation, infrastructure, innovation, and disaster recovery through a portfolio of competitive and non-competitive grant programs administered through six regional offices.

Product overview

EDA operates as a federal grant agency within the U.S. Department of Commerce, offering a portfolio of economic development programs. The agency provides competitive grant funding through multiple core programs including Economic Adjustment Assistance (flexible funding for economic challenges), Public Works (infrastructure development), Build to Scale (startup/entrepreneurship support), and Regional Technology and Innovation Hubs (tech ecosystem development). EDA also administers specialized programs for coal communities, disaster recovery, trade adjustment, and university partnerships. The AI Upskill Accelerator Pilot Program represents a new workforce training initiative focused on AI skills. All programs are accessed through EDA's EDGE system and Grants.gov, with funding opportunities supporting planning, technical assistance, and infrastructure construction.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Public Works
• Economic Adjustment Assistance
• Build to Scale
• Regional Technology and Innovation Hubs (Tech Hubs)
• Recompete Pilot Program
• Planning Program
• Local Technical Assistance
• Revolving Loan Fund (RLF)
• Disaster Recovery Programs
• Assistance to Coal Communities (ACC)
• Trade Adjustment Assistance for Firms
• University Centers
• AI Upskill Accelerator Pilot Program

Quantifiable outcome

• 312 grants awarded in 2025
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers18 records

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEDA serves as the coordinating (or lead) federal agency for the Economic Recovery Support Function (ERSF) under the National Disaster Recovery Framework (NDRF), working in coordination with FEMA and other interagency partners to help state, local, tribal, and territorial governments sustain and rebuild businesses and employment after large-scale disasters.
• U.S. Department of CommercecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEDA manages the Economic Recovery Support Function (ERSF) role on behalf of the Department of Commerce under the National Disaster Recovery Framework. EDA operates as an agency within the Department of Commerce.
• Rural Community Assistance Partnership (RCAP) and OECDminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated on research report 'Enhancing Rural Innovation in the United States' examining strategies for understanding innovation in rural places and supporting regional development initiatives.
• Urban InstituteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerReceived grant from EDA's Research and National Technical Assistance program to examine EDA's funding allocations, grantmaking programs, history, goals, and the extent to which EDA investments spur local economic growth.
• U.S. Census BureauminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with U.S. Census Bureau to evaluate the AI Upskill Accelerator Pilot Program's impact on job retention and wages using Census data.
• National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with NIST's Center for AI Standards and Innovation to help inform collective understanding of how AI workforce training can improve outcomes like productivity and efficiency.
• Carolina Institute for Battery Innovation (CIBI)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCIBI received $10.2 million EDA grant for battery manufacturing testbed facility; industry partners include EnerSys (lithium-ion gigafactory in Greenville) and Swiss-based Phenogy (U.S. headquarters in Columbia)
• Florida Chief Financial OfficerminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRoundtable discussion with Florida CFO and Trump Administration officials from EDA to highlight economic development funding for communities impacted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• USDA Rural Development: Federal agency administering grant and loan programs for rural economic development, infrastructure, and business growth—directly comparable to EDA's Public Works and Economic Adjustment Assistance programs with overlapping rural and distressed-area focus.
• U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA): Federal agency that distributes grants, loans, and technical assistance to small businesses and entrepreneurs—the closest direct comparable to EDA given overlapping federal economic development grant programs and similar grantee base including nonprofits and state/local governments.
• Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC): Federal-state regional economic development partnership funding infrastructure, workforce, and business development in distressed Appalachian counties—operates an almost identical grant-making model to EDA at a regional scale.
• Delta Regional Authority (DRA): Federal-state economic development authority investing in distressed communities in the Mississippi Delta region via grants for infrastructure, workforce, and business development—directly comparable structure and mandate to EDA programs.
• Northern Border Regional Commission (NBRC): Federal-state partnership providing economic development grants to distressed counties in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and New York—uses virtually identical grant mechanisms and program structure to EDA's Economic Adjustment Assistance.
• Denali Commission: Federal-state partnership funding critical infrastructure and economic development in rural Alaska—operates a directly comparable infrastructure-grant model targeting remote and distressed communities.

Broad incumbents

• U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) CDBG Program: Federal agency operating the Community Development Block Grant program with broader scope than EDA but overlapping grant mechanism, grantee base (state/local governments), and infrastructure/economic development focus.
• U.S. Department of Commerce (Bureau of Economic Analysis, International Trade Administration, NIST): Parent department and sister bureaus within Commerce (BEA, ITA, NIST) provide adjacent economic and innovation program capabilities—EDA sits within this portfolio as the dedicated economic development unit.

Emerging players

• Economic Development Authority entities (state-level, e.g., California GO-Biz): State-level economic development agencies replicating parts of EDA's grant/incentive model at sub-national scale—emerging as more agile alternatives for specific state-targeted programs that complement federal EDA grants.

Others

• World Bank / OECD Development Assistance Committees: International development finance institutions funding infrastructure and economic development in distressed regions globally—methodologically comparable in grant-design philosophy and rural/regional focus, recently co-developed research on rural innovation with EDA's partner network.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/US_EDA
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCvowkb4AaAVx_oLlash6G9A
• Facebookfacebook.com/eda.commerce
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/us-economic-development-administration
• Instagraminstagram.com/edagov

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors

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M&A

Investments505 records

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Frequently asked questions about US Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administation