Governor Schweitzer Presents $5.7 Million in Commerce Funds to Stinger Welding Project in Libby, Montana

Governor Brian Schweitzer http://governor.mt.gov/ today presented a total of $5,715,500 in Montana Department of Commerce http://commerce.mt.gov/ funds to officials involved in the Stinger Welding http://www.deckjoint.com/ business expansion project in Libby. Stinger Welding, a bridge and expansion joint fabricator, is opening its first Montana operation at the Kootenai Business Park Industrial District in Libby. The Arizona-based company plans to build a 104,800 square foot manufacturing facility that will employ a minimum of 204 people.

“Montana is open for business,” said Governor Brian Schweitzer. “The State of Montana is proud to welcome Stinger Welding to Libby. This project will provide hundreds of good paying jobs, many of which pay at least $13.55 per hour, on top of benefits. This project will play a prominent role in attracting other businesses to the Libby area and to Montana.”

“This is a significant business expansion project for Montana,” said Anthony Preite, Director of the Montana Department of Commerce. “Stinger Welding http://www.deckjoint.com/ is a welcomed addition to the Kootenai Business Park and Lincoln County. Many partners, including the Montana Board of Investments, contributed a great deal of hard work to help this project come to fruition. They all deserve applause for their efforts.”

The contributing funds from the Montana Department of Commerce are made up of grants and loans from several Department programs:

* Workforce Training Grant (WTG) – $1,020,000 – Awarded to Stinger Welding – to train a minimum of 204 workers within four years.

* Montana Board of Investments (BOI) – $3,366,500 – Awarded to Kootenai Business Park Industrial District – infrastructure loan for purchase of the land and building. Funds are provided through the Permanent Coal Tax Trust. Stinger will use this loan to pay the construction loan from Glacier Bank.

* Community Development Economic Development (CDBG-ED) -$800,000 – Awarded to Lincoln County and the City of Libby – for equipment purchases. Equipment will be owned by industrial park and leased to Stinger Welding.

* Big Sky Economic Development Trust Fund (BSTF) – $529,000 – Awarded to Lincoln County – for equipment purchases. The funds will support the creation of 71 of the total jobs created.

The total amount of leveraged funds is $7,100,000:

$3,400,000 – Kootenai Business Park Industrial District

$2,700,000 – Glacier Bank (loan)

$1,000,000 – Stinger Welding

The MBOI is attached to the Montana Department of Commerce for administrative purposes. In addition to its investment responsibilities on behalf of the State of Montana, the Board provides creative solutions to financial issues facing new and expanding businesses in the state of Montana. To accomplish this goal, the Board administers a number of different loan programs that can be specifically tailored to meet an individual business’s or local government’s needs. These programs are designed to stimulate economic development by assisting the private sector and local governments in financing new or expanded businesses as well as infrastructure development. Programs include the In-state Loan Program to help finance new or expanded businesses, the INTERCAP Program that provides loans to local governments, the Short Term Investment Pool (STIP) that allows state agencies and local governments short term investment opportunities, and the Unified Investment Program that invests and manages all state investment funds including state pension funds.

The WTG program is a state-funded program that provides grant funds to businesses for training of new and existing full-time workers. No more than $5,000 of grant funds will be provided for training each full-time employee. Workforce Training Grants may be awarded to primary sector businesses that provide education or skills-based training for new and existing employees. To be eligible for funds, at least 50% of the business’s sales must be from outside of Montana or the business must be a manufacturing company with 50% of its sales from companies that have 50% of their sales outside of Montana.

The CDBG-ED program is a federally funded program designed to stimulate economic development activity by assisting Montana’s private sector in job creation or retention. The program receives funding from the Community Development Block Grant program funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Economic Development Administration. CDBG-ED funds are limited to Montana’s local governments (towns, cities, and counties) with the exception of Billings, Great Falls and Missoula, which receive their own CDBG entitlement funds annually. Indian tribes are ineligible to apply as tribes receive funds directly from an Indian CDBG Program. Businesses must work with their local government to apply for CDBG-ED funds on their behalf.

The BSTF program is a state-funded program designed to aid in the development of good paying jobs for Montana residents and to promote long-term stable economic growth in Montana. The BSTF program is designed to provide financial assistance in the following two categories:

Category I: Economic Development Projects: 75% of BSTF earnings shall be awarded to local governments in the form of grants and loans for economic development projects that create net new qualifying jobs for Montana residents. Applications will be accepted on an open-cycle basis until all available funds are committed to approved projects.

Category II: Planning Grants: 25% of BSTF earnings shall be awarded to Certified Regional Development Corporations and other qualified economic development organizations in areas not covered by a CRDC in the form of a grant for planning activities such as feasibility studies, business plans and preliminary architectural reports.

For more information on these programs, contact the Montana Department of Commerce Business Resources Division at 841-2730 or visit http://commerce.mt.gov/.

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