Support Small Business on Small Business Saturday
Saturday, November 30, 2019 is Small Business Saturday ? a day to celebrate and support small businesses and all they do for their communities. Every year since 1963, National Small Business Week has been recognizing the critical contributions of America?s entrepreneurs and small business owners.
More than half of Americans either own or work for a small business, and small businesses create about two-thirds of new jobs in the U.S. each year.
U.S. Department of Commerce Proposes Rule for Securing the Nation?s Information and Communications Technology and Services Supply Chain
The U.S. Department of Commerce issued a notice of proposed rulemaking and requested comment on the implementation of Executive Order 13873, Securing the Information and Communications Technology and Services (ICTS) Supply Chain.
The proposed rule sets out the procedures the Secretary of Commerce plans to use to identify, assess, and address ICTS transactions that pose an undue risk to ICTS in the United States, to the critical infrastructure or the digital economy in the United States, or an unacceptable risk to national security or to the security and safety of U.S. persons. The public will have a 30-day period to submit comments.
Joint Communique from the U.S.-Brazil CEO Forum
The 10th meeting of the U.S.-Brazil CEO Forum was held today in Washington, D.C., with CEO members providing joint recommendations to both governments on how to strengthen the U.S.-Brazil commercial relationship and grow bilateral trade and investment.
During the plenary meeting, CEO forum members presented their joint recommendations and new ideas for furthering the U.S.-Brazil economic relationship. The CEOs? joint recommendations included proposals to increase bilateral trade, infrastructure cooperation, collaboration in the technology sector, and improvements in health, education, and workforce development.
U.S. International Trade Commission Affirmative Injury Vote Reinforces Commerce?s Tomato Suspension Agreement
The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) voted 4-0, making an affirmative determination that dumped tomatoes from Mexico threaten to injure the American tomato industry. As a result, the recently finalized agreement ? negotiated by the Department of Commerce ? suspending the antidumping duty (AD) investigation of fresh tomatoes from Mexico will remain in place.
Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross said: ?This action cements the strong suspension agreement that Commerce recently negotiated that protects the U.S. tomato industry from the damaging effects of unfair trade and provides certainty for the market.?
U.S. Department of Commerce Extends Huawei Temporary General License
The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) of the U.S. Department of Commerce announced that it will extend for 90 days the Temporary General License (TGL) authorizing specific, limited engagements in transactions involving the export, reexport, and transfer of items ? under the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ? to Huawei and its non-U.S. affiliates which are subject to the Entity List.
?The Temporary General License extension will allow carriers to continue to service customers in some of the most remote areas of the United States who would otherwise be left in the dark,? said Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross. ?The Department will continue to rigorously monitor sensitive technology exports to ensure that our innovations are not harnessed by those who would threaten our national security.?
Secretary Ross Announces Six Organizations in the Healthcare, Nonprofit and Education Sectors win Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award
The U.S. Department of Commerce announced today that six organizations will be presented with the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. Baldrige is the nation?s only presidential award for performance excellence, recognizing U.S. organizations and businesses that have shown an unceasing drive for innovative solutions to complex challenges, visionary leadership and operational excellence.
GDP Increases in Third Quarter
Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased 2.1 percent in the third quarter of 2019, according to the ?second? estimate released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The growth rate was 0.2 percentage point higher than the ?advance? estimate released in October. In the second quarter, real GDP rose 2.0 percent.
How Census Bureau Data Can Help Older Americans Afford Housing
When John Wilson became a King County, Wash., assessor two years ago, housing affordability was headed in a downward spiral, especially for the county?s low-income senior citizens, the disabled and disabled veterans.
To help older residents, the state provides a property tax exemption for homeowners over the age of 61 who are on fixed or low incomes. According to the 2017 American Community Survey (ACS) one-year Estimates, King County is home to 362,157 residents age 62 and over.
FDI in Agribusiness: Feeding the U.S. Economy
In honor of Thanksgiving and the recent addition of the agribusiness industry page to the SelectUSA website, it is a great time to look at how foreign direct investment (FDI) in agribusiness helps support feasts and festivities around the country.
Fly Me (Partway) to the Moon
Recently, scientists from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and the University of Guelph sent a telescope to the top of the sky, almost to space itself. The trip was a moonlight-gathering mission that has yielded some of the best measurements ever taken of the brightness, or more specifically the surface reflectance, of Earth?s nearest neighbor, the Moon.
Active 2019 Atlantic Hurricane Season Comes to an End
The 2019 Atlantic hurricane season, which ends on November 30, was marked by tropical activity that churned busily from mid-August through October. The season produced 18 named storms, including six hurricanes of which three were ?major? (Category 3, 4 or 5). NOAA?s outlook called for 10-17 named storms, 5-9 hurricanes and 2-4 major hurricanes, and accurately predicted the overall activity of the season.
New Report on Underrepresented Groups in Patenting
America?s long-standing economic prosperity and global technological leadership depend on a strong and vibrant innovation ecosystem. To maximize the nation?s potential, it?s more important than ever that all Americans who are willing to work hard, persevere and take risks have the opportunity to innovate, to start new companies, to succeed in established companies, and ultimately, to achieve the American dream. To maintain our technological leadership, the United States must seek to broaden our innovation, entrepreneurship and intellectual property ecosystems demographically, geographically, and economically.
Message from the Assistant Secretary, John Fleming, M.D.
As the end of the year approaches, I?d like to take a moment to reflect on the work EDA has accomplished over the past six months. When I took office as Assistant Secretary in March, I was eager to start advancing President Donald J. Trump and Secretary Wilbur Ross?s economic agenda at the Department of Commerce. I am pleased to share that we have made great strides thus far.
First Official County GDP Stats Coming Dec. 12
The size of every county?s economy with industry detail will be officially released for the first time by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis on Dec. 12. ?BEA will estimate annual gross domestic product, or GDP, for the years 2001 through 2018 for more than 3,000 counties. The data will include contributions to GDP by 34 industries, such as manufacturing, retail trade, and health and social assistance.
