New Commerce grants designed so 'everyone’s included' in pandemic recovery: Raimondo

Three billion dollars in new Commerce Department pandemic recovery grants announced Thursday are designed so "everyone’s included," Secretary Gina Raimondo told ABC News.

Whether it is investing in a coal mining community, or in regional tourism, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo says new "investing in America" grants being announced Thursday are designed so every community in America feels empowered and included to get back on their feet in the wake of the pandemic. She said the Commerce Department is making $3 billion in grants available for a myriad of programs, using funds passed as part of the American Rescue Plan. Interested communities will have to apply for the grants, which exclude businesses. "It'll be a nationwide competition to quite literally 'build back better,'" Raimondo told ABC News’s Karen Travers, using the name President Joe Biden uses for his recovery program. "Building back certain communities from the ground up so that everybody can thrive in the new economy."