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Secretary Elaine L. Chao
Presentation of National
Emergency Grant to the Commonwealth of Virginia
Ronald Reagan Washington
National Airport
Arlington, Virginia
November 1, 2001
Good afternoon.
Governor Gilmore, I am pleased to be here on behalf of the President, to
announce a National Emergency Grant of $10 million to help Virginians get back
to work after the terrorist attacks of September 11th.
Those attacks sent an economic shockwave through Virginia and other
parts of our nation.
The attack on the Pentagon wreaked havoc on northern Virginia jobs, as
did the temporary closing of Ronald Reagan National Airport. The airport's
closing also caused numerous layoffs in the tourism and hospitality industries
throughout the state.
Governor Gilmore jumped into action - requesting this emergency grant to
deal with the most immediate effects of the September 11th attacks. The
Virginia Congressional delegation also pushed hard for quick approval of this
grant. And while this is an important step toward meeting urgent needs, we are
also working together to address the longer-term impact on Virginia's economy.
We are not just a nation at war, we are in a wartime economy. And that
requires wartime measures: speed, resolve, commitment - and pushing the levers
of government as far as they can go to help to those who need it.
That is the commitment our President has made: to win the war on
terrorism and heal our land of the harm that has been inflicted upon it.
The grant we announce today can be used by the Commonwealth of Virginia
to help dislocated workers train for new jobs and get back in the labor force.
In certain cases it can be used to pay the rent, a mortgage, or child care.
These National Emergency Grants are a proven and effective response to
disaster-related layoffs. That's why the President made them the $3 billion
centerpiece of his Back-to-Work plan - a proposal to help those who have lost
jobs, by paying their family expenses and reconnecting them to the workforce as
soon as possible.
Under the President's proposal, these grants could be used to help any
industry, any region, any worker. And they may be used to pay for COBRA
benefits. They are designed to be targeted, responsive, and easy to administer.
And, we trust governors like Governor Gilmore to do what's best for the people
of their state.
In addition to these special grants, the President's Back to Work
program will provide for l00% federal funding of an additional 13-week
extension of unemployment insurance benefits in states most affected by the
September 11th attacks. We expect this element of the President's plan to
provide about $5 to $8 billion dollars to dislocated Americans who have
suffered from the attacks of September 11th.
The grant I present to you today is an example of the strong and robust
support that the current government unemployment and safety net programs
provide.
When the president's Back to Work proposal passes Congress - which must
happen by Thanksgiving, as the president said yesterday - that safety net will
be strengthened further to help people hurt by the attacks of September 11th.
In the mean time, I know that the money from today's grant will bring
both help and hope to the dislocated workers of Virginia.
God bless the Commonwealth of Virginia, and God bless America.
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