Governor signs Sandlin bill into law that assists rural areas through hiring of grant writers
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Governor signs Sandlin bill into law that assists rural areas through hiring of grant writers
Legislation designed to help distressed areas by supporting economic development through the hiring of grant writers was signed into law by Gov. Jay Inslee on Thursday.
House Bill 1783, sponsored by state Rep. Bryan Sandlin, requires the Department of Commerce (DOC) to establish a grant program to support associate development organizations (ADO) in the recruiting, hiring, and retention of grant writers.
The ADOs are local organizations designated by each county to serve as the DOC’s primary partner in local economic development activities in their county.
“As rural areas work to bring in economic development, one of the biggest challenges they face is finding grant writers to assist with grant applications for economic development assistance from government and philanthropic sources,” said Sandlin, R-Zillah. “The goal of this legislation is to recruit and retain skilled and trained grant writers for the rural and distressed areas.
“Grant writers are not easy to find, especially in the rural areas of our state and we have a number of counties that have high rates of unemployment that could use some assistance with economic development,” added Sandlin.
The new law allows county ADO’s to work with the department to ensure they can recruit and retain grant writers. It provides the DOC with the resources and authority necessary to make that happen.
It is Sandlin’s first bill signed into law. It passed the House and Senate unanimously.
The measure take effect July 22, 2023.
