EL PASO, Texas (KFOX14/CBS4) — El Paso City Council members have unanimously approved a plan to co-apply for the University of Texas at El Paso’s (UTEP) Build Back Better Regional Challenge Grant.
This initiative, part of a $1 billion fund, aims to promote regional industry development.
The city will jointly manage $10 million in grant funds and assume administrative duties.
Omar Martinez, assistant director of the Strategic and Legislative Affairs Department, explained, “This is a continuation of that program by UTEP and the city partnering. It’s just to make the program stronger.”
The partnership follows the suspension and eventual termination of a $160 million National Science Foundation grant to UTEP due to incorrect information in the proposal.
Under the Build Back Better initiative, UTEP will receive $15 million for programming, supplier readiness, and technical assistance to help small and medium manufacturers qualify for aerospace and defense contracts.
City officials emphasize that this move is not a rescue but a way to streamline operations. Martinez noted, “The city already offers one set of services. UTEP has historically provided a similar set of services. By joining forces, we can create efficiencies there and bring in the city’s capacity into the fold, so city staff that already has a lot of expertise.”
The partnership is expected to create 500 jobs by 2027.
Martinez highlighted the benefits, saying, “This is a great opportunity for UTEP graduates and the brain drain that our leaders have often talked about by investing in our local businesses and bringing them more opportunities to contract with the federal government and other nationwide supply chains.”
The city and UTEP plan to submit their revised paperwork once the federal government shutdown ends.
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