Committee hears bill to create state match account, expand grant tools to help communities win federal funds

House Bill 1057 was presented to the Technology, Economic Development and Veterans Committee as a package of measures aimed at helping Washington communities access federal grant dollars by offering state matching support and expanded technical assistance.

Department of Commerce staff told the committee the bill would require Commerce to create scoring criteria to prioritize state matching funds, expand an existing grant‑writer recruitment program to include more local economic development organizations and rural and frontier counties, expand the FundHubWA website to list all federal economic opportunities by July 1, 2026, and create a “matched account” that would reserve state funds for approved applicants until they receive a federal award, are denied, or withdraw their application. For the record, Martha Whaling, staff to the committee, summarized the bill’s…