By Eugene T. Lowe
November 1, 2004

President George W. Bush signed S. 1134, the Economic Development Reauthorization Act of 2003 into law October 27. The bill, which authorizes the Economic Development Administration (EDA) for five years, was passed by the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee and the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

Earlier versions of the bill had brownfields redevelopment sections, but these were deleted in the final package. One of the bill's benefits is that local governments would be able to keep any funds that were not spent on a project. The bill also increased the authorization level for EDA to $400 million in FY2004, and the increase would rise to $500 million by FY2008, which is the final year of the five-year bill.

The United States Department of Commerce press statement said that: "The reauthorization legislation contains valuable enhancements, critical to EDA's continued success, and will provide EDA and its valued partners across the nation with the economic development tools necessary to achieve President Bush's goal to leave no demographic or geographic area behind the pursuit of more fully participating in the American Dream."

"The Economic Development Administration is proud of the broad-based, bipartisan support for this important legislation that led to its swift Congressional passage," said Assistant Secretary for Economic Development David A. Sampson. "This news opens a new and exciting chapter for EDA and its mission to lead the federal economic development agenda by promoting innovation and competitiveness, preparing American regions for growth and success in a worldwide economy," he added.