Commerce Dept.

Only One Week Left to Prepare for the June 12 National Switch to Digital Television

June 5, 2009 --
WASHINGTON -- U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke today urged Americans who rely on over-the-air broadcasting – typically those who use older televisions with “rabbit ears” or a rooftop antenna – to take immediate action so that at least one television in their household continues working when the nationwide switch to digital television occurs one week from today. The transition to digital will free up airwaves for broadband and enhanced emergency communications for our police officers, firefighters and other first responders.

Consumers who have TV sets with digital tuners or that are connected to cable, satellite or another pay TV service do not need to act.    » read more »

June 3, 2009 -- WASHINGTON —The U.S. Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) announced today that the two agencies are working with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) and VeriSign on an initiative to enhance the security and stability of the Internet.

The parties are working on an interim approach to deployment, by year’s end, of a security technology—Domain Name System Security Extensions (DNSSEC)—at the authoritative root zone (i.e., the address book) of the Internet. There will be further consultations with the Internet technical community as the testing and implementation plans are developed.    » read more »

"Stimulus Should Be Used to Create Jobs, Not Relocate Them"

June 3, 2009 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) wrote to Commerce Secretary Gary Locke today regarding a plan by the city of Columbus, Georgia to request economic recovery funds to help support the relocation of NCR from Dayton, Ohio. Brown urged Locke to prevent economic recovery funds from being used to relocate jobs from one state to another.

“The purpose of ARRA is to create or retain jobs, not to relocate them from state to state,” Brown wrote in his letter today to Secretary Locke. “Stimulus funds should not be used in a manner that benefits one local economy at the expense of another.”    » read more »

Guidelines to Assist in Testing Voting System Accuracy, Reliability and Security

June 1, 2009 -- GAITHERSBURG, Md. – The Commerce Department’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) today delivered to the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) a draft revision to the 2005 federal Voluntary Voting System Guidelines (VVSG) Version 1.0, specifying how electronic voting machines are built and tested. The EAC has made the draft revision available for public comment today, with a final version expected by the end of 2009.    » read more »

June 1, 2009 -- WASHINGTON – Iowa Governor Chet Culver and U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke today announced a $4.6 million Economic Development Administration (EDA) investment to St. Luke’s Health Care Foundation and Coe College of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, to help build an energy efficient, natural gas, steam heating plant that will restore permanent heating capacity to the hospital and college following flood damage inflicted in 2008. St. Luke’s Hospital and Coe College employ more than 3,000 workers.

The announcement comes after Governor Culver met with Secretary Locke in Washington, D.C., to discuss ongoing recovery efforts after last year’s natural disasters.    » read more »

390 New Jobs Expected

May 29, 2009 -- Washington – U.S. Senators Blanche Lincoln and Mark Pryor and Representative Marion Berry today announced that the City of Batesville has been awarded a $1.8 million economic development grant to convert Emerson Climate Technologies’ White-Rodgers facility, a former machining facility, into a manufacturing plant, a process that is expected to create hundreds of jobs for the region.

Last August, Emerson announced that the company planned to expand and re-tool the former White-Rodgers facility to produce components for the company’s air conditioning compressor manufacturing facilities. The ultimate $120 million investment is expected to bring 390 new full-time jobs to Batesville at an average wage of $14.51 per hour.    » read more »

June 1, 2009 -- WASHINGTON – Senator Chuck Grassley announced today that St. Luke’s Health Care Foundation and Coe College in Cedar Rapids received a grant totaling $4.65 million from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration.

“Getting the Cedar Rapids community back on its feet after the 2008 floods is a priority,” Grassley said. “This is a nice step forward for St. Luke’s and Coe College.”

The funds will help pay for the construction of a steam heating plant to be shared by St. Luke’s Hospital and Coe College. These entities previously received steam from a plant that was destroyed by the 2008 flooding.    » read more »

390 New Jobs Expected

May 29, 2009 -- Washington – U.S. Senators Blanche Lincoln and Mark Pryor and Representative Marion Berry today announced that the City of Batesville has been awarded a $1.8 million economic development grant to convert Emerson Climate Technologies’ White-Rodgers facility, a former machining facility, into a manufacturing plant, a process that is expected to create hundreds of jobs for the region.

Last August, Emerson announced that the company planned to expand and re-tool the former White-Rodgers facility to produce components for the company’s air conditioning compressor manufacturing facilities. The ultimate $120 million investment is expected to bring 390 new full-time jobs to Batesville at an average wage of $14.51 per hour.    » read more »

$120 Million in Recovery Act Grants to provide long-term economic benefits

May 27, 2009 -- GAITHERSBURG, Md. – The U.S. Commerce Department’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has announced the availability of approximately $120 million in competitive grants for the construction of new or expanded scientific research buildings at higher education institutions and nonprofit organizations. Approximately eight to 12 projects will be funded by these grants, which are part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act).

Possible projects include laboratories, test facilities, measurement facilities, research computing facilities, and observatories.    » read more »

May 20, 2009 -- On May 18, 2009, U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced significant progress that will help expedite development of a nationwide “smart” electric power grid.

A Smart Grid would replace the current, outdated system and employ real-time, two-way communication technologies to allow users to connect directly with power suppliers. The development of the grid will create jobs and spur the development of innovative products that can be exported. Once implemented, the Smart Grid is expected to save consumers money and reduce America’s dependence on foreign oil by improving efficiency and spurring the use of renewable energy sources.    » read more »

May 18, 2009 -- WASHINGTON -- U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu today announced significant progress that will help expedite development of a nationwide “smart” electric power grid.

A Smart Grid would replace the current, outdated system and employ real-time, two-way communication technologies to allow users to connect directly with power suppliers. The development of the grid will create jobs and spur the development of innovative products that can be exported. Once implemented, the Smart Grid is expected to save consumers money and reduce America’s dependence on foreign oil by improving efficiency and spurring the use of renewable energy sources.    » read more »

May 18, 2009 -- WASHINGTON - U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu today announced significant progress that will help expedite development of a nationwide "smart" electric power grid.

A Smart Grid would replace the current, outdated system and employ real-time, two-way communication technologies to allow users to connect directly with power suppliers. The development of the grid will create jobs and spur the development of innovative products that can be exported. Once implemented, the Smart Grid is expected to save consumers money and reduce America's dependence on foreign oil by improving efficiency and spurring the use of renewable energy sources.    » read more »

May 12, 2009 -- WASHINGTON—U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke issued the following statement on the release of the March 2009 U.S. International Trade in Goods and Services report by the Commerce Department’s U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. Today’s report showed that U.S. exports decreased by 2.4 percent to $123.6 billion since February 2009. Imports decreased 1.0 percent to $151.2 billion. Overall, the trade deficit grew 5.5 percent during the same time period.    » read more »

May 13, 2009 -- WASHINGTON -- U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke hosted a meeting with South Korea’s Minister for Trade Kim Jong-Hoon at the Commerce Department today. This was the first meeting between Minister Kim and Secretary Locke.

Secretary Locke and Minister Kim recognized the importance of the $83 billion in goods trade between the two countries in 2008. They expressed support for continuing to deepen cooperation on trade and investment issues.    » read more »

Commerce to Increase Outreach to Most Unprepared Communities During Final 30 Days

May 12, 2009 -- WASHINGTON—U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke is urging Americans to prepare for the national switch to digital television (DTV) before the June 12 deadline—just 30 days from today. In the final month before the national switch, the Commerce Department is increasing its outreach efforts into communities that have been identified as the least prepared for the transition.    » read more »