March 20, 2009
March 20, 2009
Governor's radio address encourages locals to pursue competitive grant opportunities
LANSING - In her weekly radio address, Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today said that the billions of dollars the state is slated to receive through the federal economic recovery act will help Michigan citizens and families by putting people to work, by protecting health care for the vulnerable, making college more affordable, and keeping our communities safe.
"Citizens who are hurting during these challenging times will begin to feel the impact of the economic recovery program as early as Monday when unemployment checks will increase by $25 per week, Granholm said. "And on April 1, citizens receiving food assistance will see an increase in their monthly food allotments. Also on that day, tax cuts for families and businesses will take effect."
Granholm added that last week, the federal government announced that $380 million will be coming to Michigan for weatherization programs that will help families reduce their home heating costs and help us invest in the new energy economy. And, just this week, the state House of Representatives approved legislation that authorizes $873 million in spending for road and transit projects across the state that will create some 25,000 jobs.
The governor said that there are billions of dollars available through competitive grant opportunities.
"Not only is Michigan going after every dollar, we want our local partners to be just as aggressive. And that's why, this week, I began meeting with groups and organizations to talk about the exciting opportunities these grants represent for Michigan communities," Granholm said. "As information on these federal grant opportunities becomes available, it will be posted on our economic recovery site at www.michigan.gov/recovery ."
The governor's weekly radio address is released each Friday morning and may be heard on broadcast stations across the state. The address is available on the governor's Web site at (www.michigan.gov/gov) for download, together with a clip of the quote above. The radio address is also available as a podcast on the Web site, as well as on iTunes and vi2a RSS feed for general distribution to personal MP3 players and home computers. Links to the audio files and text of today's address follow.
Governor Jennifer M. Granholm
Radio Address - Economic Recovery Plan
Full: http://www.michigan.gov/documents/gov/Gov189Full_271474_7.mp3
Edited: http://www.michigan.gov/documents/gov/Gov189Edit_271477_7.mp3
Quote: http://www.michigan.gov/documents/gov/Gov189Quote_271479_7.mp3
This is Governor Jennifer Granholm.
Over the next two years, Michigan is slated to receive billions of dollars through the federal economic recovery plan. These funds will help citizens and families by putting people to work, by protecting health care for the vulnerable, making college more affordable, and keeping our communities safe.
These recovery funds will accelerate our plan - a plan we are already working - to diversify our economy and create jobs today and jobs tomorrow.
Citizens who are hurting during these challenging times will begin to feel the impact of the economic recovery program as early as Monday when unemployment checks will increase by $25 per week. And on April 1, citizens receiving food assistance will see an increase in their monthly food allotments. Also on that day, tax cuts for families and businesses will take effect.
Last week, the federal government announced that $380 million will be coming to Michigan for weatherization programs that will help families reduce their home heating costs and help us invest in the new energy economy. And, just this week, the state House of Representatives approved legislation that authorizes $873 million in spending for road and transit projects across the state that will create some 25,000 jobs.
While Michigan expects to receive more than $7 billion in funding for existing programs, there are also billions of dollars additionally available through federal competitive grants. There are more than 40 different grant opportunities available - ranging from economic development and education, to public safety and jobs training. We want to make sure that every organization - every city, every county, village, township, school district, and nonprofit agency that is eligible - we want to make sure they all apply for this funding.
Not only is Michigan going after every dollar, we want our local partners to be just as aggressive. And that's why, this week, I began meeting with groups and organizations to talk about the exciting opportunities these grants represent for Michigan communities.
Right now, local law enforcement agencies, for example, can apply for funding to hire officers to patrol our streets and neighborhoods as well as crackdown on drugs and gangs.
As information on these federal grant opportunities becomes available, it will be posted on our economic recovery site at www.michigan.gov/recovery
While we know that the recovery plan will not solve all of the economic challenges facing our state, we know that it will have a tremendous impact on helping us accelerate our plans to diversify our state's economy and create jobs for our citizens. And it will provide the immediate help Michigan families need to make it through these tough economic times.
Thank you for listening.
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