All articles tagged with #grant
Micron Technology has been awarded a $6.1 billion grant from the federal government to construct a large complex of computer chip plants in Syracuse, New York, and to expand a chips plant at its headquarters in Boise, Idaho. The preliminary, non-binding deal with the U.S. Department of Commerce was announced by U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer and a senior Biden administration official.
Singapore's Culture Minister downplayed the size of the grant paid to Taylor Swift, stating that it was not as high as speculated, but declined to disclose the specific amount due to business confidentiality. The grant has sparked complaints from neighboring countries, with Thailand's Prime Minister expressing regret over not securing Swift's concerts for Thailand. Despite the controversy, Swift's sold-out concerts in Singapore are expected to have significant economic benefits for the city-state, particularly in the tourism sector.
Chaos erupted at an Oakland news conference as Mayor Sheng Thao announced a new $3.5 million grant for public safety, with recall protesters clashing with the mayor's supporters. The tension escalated to physical altercations, prompting the news conference to relocate. The grant, in collaboration with Family Bridges, aims to expand a safety ambassador program in Chinatown to other areas. Critics cite the city's loss of grant money last year and a spike in violent crimes as reasons for their protests, while Mayor Thao emphasizes the importance of such grants in addressing the city's public safety challenges.
SpaceX is criticizing the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for refusing to reinstate an $886 million broadband grant awarded to Starlink. The FCC rejected SpaceX's appeal, stating that the company failed to meet the requirements for the grant. The grant was intended to subsidize the deployment of broadband to rural areas with limited access. SpaceX argues that Starlink is the best option to connect unserved and underserved Americans, but the FCC questioned the satellite provider's ability to consistently provide high-speed, low-latency service.
Amtrak has been awarded a $178.4 million grant by the Transportation Department to fund track and signal work, crossing upgrades, and station improvements necessary to restore passenger train service along the Gulf Coast, nearly 18 years after Hurricane Katrina. The project aims to connect New Orleans and Mobile, Alabama, with two daily round trips, including stops in Mississippi cities. The grant will cover 80% of the $223 million in improvements, with the remaining 20% contributed by the railroads and the states. The funding is part of Amtrak's $75 billion plan to expand its services to more cities and towns.
Mount Sinai's Department of Rehabilitation and Human Performance has received a $6.2 million grant from the Steven & Alexandra Cohen Foundation to expand the Cohen Center for Recovery From Complex Chronic Illnesses (CoRE). The funding will support research and clinical care for chronic Lyme disease, long COVID, and other infection-associated complex chronic illnesses. The center aims to develop and test novel therapies, provide specialized rehabilitation, manage concurrent conditions, offer cognitive rehabilitation, and explore advanced testing and diagnosis for Lyme patients. The CoRE will collaborate with the PolyBio Research Foundation to analyze samples and focus on understanding the root causes of infection-associated chronic diseases.
Oakland has missed out on a $267 million grant to combat retail theft after city leaders failed to meet the application deadline. The grant was intended to help cities struggling with rampant looting in California. The city's leaders blamed alleged technical difficulties for the missed deadline, leaving businesses and residents furious. Oakland has seen a significant increase in crime, with larceny rising by almost 50% and robbery increasing by 32% since 2019. The missed opportunity has sparked criticism from community leaders and business owners, who believe the city officials should be held accountable. The governor's office plans to distribute the funds to other cities, while Oakland's city administrator investigates the mistake.
Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz is facing a complaint alleging an improper grant of thousands of dollars to Buffalo's Italian Cultural Center. The complaint suggests that the grant was issued due to Poloncarz's relationship with an official at the center. The Erie County Comptroller's Office has reviewed the contracts and found that all rules were followed, but Poloncarz's opponent in the County Executive's race believes there should have been disclosure of any potential conflict of interest. The opponent is calling for further investigation by the U.S. Attorney's Office. Poloncarz denies any physical altercation in his recent domestic incident with his ex-girlfriend.
Alabama will receive $1.4 billion from the U.S. Department of Commerce to expand broadband access to unserved areas. The Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs will administer the grant funds. The state has invested $88.6 million of state dollars through grant awards supporting 109 projects through the Alabama Broadband Accessibility Fund since 2018. The agency has also developed a statewide broadband map and the Alabama Connectivity Plan to guide the state’s expansion efforts into unserved areas.
The Kansas City Area Transportation Authority has applied for a grant to explore the possibility of an intercity rail system that would impact 15 counties in the area, extending from Topeka to Independence. The rail corridor would extend north to south from De Soto to Kansas City International Airport, providing better accessibility and environmental benefits by reducing energy consumption and emissions with less cars on the road.
The National Institute of Health (NIH) has restarted a bat virus research grant that was canceled three years ago under the Trump administration. The original grant funded research into mixing various bat viruses to study SARS and also funded research at the coronavirus research lab in Wuhan, China. The new version of the award, granted to EcoHealth Alliance (EHA), will not focus on mixing live bat viruses, and the Wuhan Institute of Virology will no longer be directly involved in research. The EHA will partner with the Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore to identify how coronaviruses might infect human cells.
The US government has renewed a grant for EcoHealth Alliance, a research organization with ties to the Wuhan Institute of Virology, to continue its work on "bat-origin coronaviruses." The grant, which was terminated shortly after the pandemic broke out in 2020, will provide $568,370 per year for the next four years. EcoHealth has committed not to subcontract work to China, collect new virus samples from the wild, or engage in any "gain of function" research. The decision is expected to spark debate in the US Congress and beyond.