Van Hollen, Cardin Announce Appropriations Committee Passage of Over $10 Million for Maryland Small Business and Community Development Projects in Key Funding Legislation | U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland
Hollen, Cardin Announce Appropriations Committee Passage of ... Senator Chris Van Hollen
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Bill includes $375 Million for FBI Headquarters project
Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen, chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government, and Senator Ben Cardin (both D-Md.) announced the inclusion of $10,855,000 in key Senate Committee legislation providing direct federal funding for community-led projects throughout Maryland. These community projects, funded at the Senators’ request, are within the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government’s proposed funding legislation for fiscal year 2024. The projects seek to help grow Maryland’s small businesses – with a focus on those in underserved areas – and support nonprofit organizations working to meet local community needs. This subcommittee legislation was released as part of the annual Congressional Appropriations process and passed on a bipartisan basis by the full Senate Appropriations Committee earlier this month. The bill will proceed to consideration before the full Senate – funding is not finalized until the Appropriations bills are passed by the Senate, reconciled with the House of Representatives, and signed by the President.
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) emphasized:
- Goal 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
- Goal 10: Reduced Inequalities
- Goal 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities
- Goal 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions
Senator Van Hollen’s Statement
“In Congress, one of our top priorities is securing federal investments to support our communities. These funds will help advance promising initiatives to help Maryland’s small businesses succeed and promote more inclusive growth across our state. These projects can make a real impact, and that’s why I’m determined to keep working to get these investments over the finish line,” said Senator Van Hollen.
Senator Cardin’s Statement
“Team Maryland continues to work together in an unprecedented way to move forward community-based funding requests that directly support local needs and priorities,” said Senator Cardin. “These projects will expand local capacity, transform neighborhoods, strengthen public safety and protect the integrity of our elections. As Chair of the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee, I’m especially proud of the resources and tools that will be available to support underserved entrepreneurs and leverage taxpayer dollars for the benefit of our small businesses, working families and regional economies in Maryland and nationwide.”
Critically for Maryland, the legislation also includes $375 million to move forward on a new, consolidated FBI headquarters, which the lawmakers are working to bring to the state.
The Senators secured funding for the following projects in the Senate Appropriations FY2024 Financial Services and General Government funding legislation. Additional projects will be announced as the Subcommittees continue to release their respective bills.
Projects funded:
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Project Name: African American Heritage Center
Applicant: African American Resources-Cultural and Heritage Society Inc.
Project Location: Frederick County
Amount Included: $162,000
Description: The Society and the City of Frederick are converting a long-vacant city-owned commercial property into an African American Heritage Center to offer exhibits and programs for visitors to learn about Frederick County’s history. Funds will be used to support the digitization of historical records.
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Project Name: Baltimore Community Lending Business Development and Resource Center Program
Applicant: Baltimore Community Lending
Project Location: Baltimore City
Amount Included: $500,000
Description: Funds will be used to provide technical assistance and coaching services to launch emerging businesses that will provide much needed consumer products and services, create new local jobs, and strengthen the economic foundation of communities in Baltimore.
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Project Name: Baltimore Community Lending Business Development and Resource Center Site Development
Applicant: Baltimore Community Lending
Project Location: Baltimore City
Amount Included: $1,000,000
Description: Funds will be used to fit-out a new space for the Business Development and Resource Center and co-working space to support new and emerging small businesses in Baltimore City. The center will be a one-stop-shop for training, support, and access to resources.
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Project Name: Baltimore Courthouse
Applicant: General Services Administration
Project Location: Baltimore City
Amount Included: $1,500,000
Description: The existing Edward A. Garmatz Courthouse is unable to meet the long-term space, safety, and security needs of the courts currently housed within the facility. Funds will be used to support site acquisition and design work for a new courthouse.
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Project Name: Crownsville Hospital Historic Documentation and Storytelling
Applicant: Anne Arundel County
Project Location: Anne Arundel County
Amount Included: $500,000
Description: The Crownsville Hospital has a painful history dating back to 1911, which includes physical and mental experimentation on Black patients. Funds will help preserve records and artifacts and collect oral histories to establish Crownsville Hospital Memorial Park as a museum of reconciliation and healing.
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Project Name: Exploring, Transitioning and Building with The 3rd
Applicant: The 3rd
Project Location: Columbia
Amount Included: $500,000
Description: Funds will be used to establish a business incubator and accelerator program for women of color that includes capacity building, networking, and access to capital opportunities. The 3rd will serve entrepreneurs in the Baltimore-Washington region in all fields and stages of business.
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Project Name: Federal Lab Leveraging Innovation to Products (FLLIP) Pilot Program
Applicant: Maryland Technology Development Corporation (TEDCO)
Project Location: Howard County
Amount Included: $1,150,000
Description: Funds will help small underrepresented healthcare and biotech businesses in Maryland form productive partnerships with the state’s more than 70 federal labs, enabling them to develop innovative solutions to healthcare challenges and grow their businesses and our economy.
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Project Name: Government Certifications Contracting & Match Making Solutions Center
Applicant: Morgan State University Foundation Inc. Baltimore Metropolitan Women’s Business Center
Project Location: Baltimore City and Baltimore, Howard, Carroll, Harford, and Charles Counties
Amount Included: $700,000
Description: Women-owned businesses, including those owned by veterans and women of color, are underrepresented in government federal, state, and local contracting. Funds will be used to provide technical assistance and coaching to help these businesses successfully access contracting opportunities.
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Project Name: Increasing Diversity in State Contracting
Applicant: State of Maryland
Project Location: Statewide
Amount Included: $740,000
Description: Funds will be used
SDGs, Targets, and Indicators Analysis
1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?
- SDG 1: No Poverty
- SDG 5: Gender Equality
- SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
- SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure
- SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities
- SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities
- SDG 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions
The issues highlighted in the article include supporting small businesses, promoting inclusive growth, providing resources for underserved entrepreneurs, strengthening public safety, preserving historical records, promoting diversity in state contracting, and supporting minority-owned businesses. These issues align with various SDGs, including SDG 1 (No Poverty), SDG 5 (Gender Equality), SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure), SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities), SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), and SDG 16 (Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions).
2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?
- Target 1.3: Implement nationally appropriate social protection systems and measures for all, including floors, and by 2030 achieve substantial coverage of the poor and the vulnerable.
- Target 5.5: Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic, and public life.
- Target 8.3: Promote development-oriented policies that support productive activities, decent job creation, entrepreneurship, creativity, and innovation, and encourage the formalization and growth of micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises.
- Target 9.3: Increase the access of small-scale industrial and other enterprises, in particular in developing countries, to financial services, including affordable credit, and their integration into value chains and markets.
- Target 10.2: By 2030, empower and promote the social, economic, and political inclusion of all, irrespective of age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion or economic or other status.
- Target 11.4: Strengthen efforts to protect and safeguard the world’s cultural and natural heritage.
- Target 16.6: Develop effective, accountable, and transparent institutions at all levels.
Based on the article’s content, the specific targets under the identified SDGs include ensuring social protection systems for the poor and vulnerable (Target 1.3), promoting women’s participation in decision-making (Target 5.5), supporting entrepreneurship and job creation (Target 8.3), improving access to financial services for small-scale enterprises (Target 9.3), promoting social and economic inclusion (Target 10.2), safeguarding cultural heritage (Target 11.4), and strengthening institutions (Target 16.6).
3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?
Yes, there are indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets. Some examples include:
- Number of small businesses supported and their growth rate
- Percentage of women in leadership positions in small businesses
- Number of underserved entrepreneurs provided with technical assistance and coaching
- Percentage increase in access to financial services for small-scale enterprises
- Number of contracts awarded to historically underserved businesses
- Number of cultural heritage sites preserved and protected
- Level of transparency and accountability in institutions
These indicators can be used to track progress towards the identified targets and assess the effectiveness of the initiatives mentioned in the article.
SDGs, Targets, and Indicators Table
SDGs Targets Indicators SDG 1: No Poverty Target 1.3: Implement nationally appropriate social protection systems and measures for all, including floors, and by 2030 achieve substantial coverage of the poor and the vulnerable. Number of small businesses supported and their growth rate SDG 5: Gender Equality Target 5.5: Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic, and public life. Percentage of women in leadership positions in small businesses SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth Target 8.3: Promote development-oriented policies that support productive activities, decent job creation, entrepreneurship, creativity, and innovation, and encourage the formalization and growth of micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises. Number of underserved entrepreneurs provided with technical assistance and coaching SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure Target 9.3: Increase the access of small-scale industrial and other enterprises, in particular in developing countries, to financial services, including affordable credit, and their integration into value chains and markets. Percentage increase in access to financial services for small-scale enterprises SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities Target 10.2: By 2030, empower and promote the social, economic, and political inclusion of all, irrespective of age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion or economic or other status. Number of contracts awarded to historically underserved businesses SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities Target 11.4: Strengthen efforts to protect and safeguard the world’s cultural and natural heritage. Number of cultural heritage sites preserved and protected SDG 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions Target 16.6: Develop effective, accountable, and transparent institutions at all levels. <
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Source: vanhollen.senate.gov
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