Federal & State News—February 2023
FEDERAL NEWS
It Was The Spy Balloon, Wasn’t It?
No, not really. But the geopolitical dynamic between China and the U.S. is morphing before our very eyes, with impacts on the countries’ economic ties.
Work has been underway by the Biden Administration to restrict US firms from investing in Chinese-based advanced manufacturing operations. And the U.S. Treasury now is poised to issue new regulations that limit the “how” and “what” of American capital used to finance businesses in China.
This move by the Administration, intended to short circuit a similar movement in the Congress, will restrict hedge funds, private equity firms, and investment banks from making investments in certain “adversarial” countries, now including China, in areas that could have military or surveillance applications, like quantum computing, advanced semiconductors, and A.I. capabilities. And such firms in the U.S. would be required to report more information to the government about their planned investments in those countries.
Although the federal government already restricts companies from purchasing certain goods from Chinese firms (check out the fine print in federally funded grant agreements that prohibit buying from China-based Huawei), this would be the first move to limit the flow of money from the United States to China (i.e., outbound investment screening).
By way of relative scale, U.S. companies expended approximately $11 billion during 2022 in buying or investing in Chinese companies.
STATE NEWS
JobsOhio Finalizes $237 million In Support To Honda And LG Energy Solutions
This week, grant agreements were executed for $4.2B in development projects to occur in Fayette County and across Honda’s existing footprint in Ohio, all focused on electric vehicle production.
Wet ink has been signed to 30-year contracts for:
- $140MM, along with $10MM in workforce grants, for the Honda / LG joint electric vehicle battery production facility in Fayette County (2,200 new jobs); and,
- $87MM to retool Honda’s three existing plants in Anna, East Liberty and Marysville to manufacture electric vehicles (327 new jobs).
OAQDA and Ohio EPA Collaborate to Pursue Federal Funding: What You Should Know
As part of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) passed in 2022, a new federal program was created that provides great opportunity for Ohio – the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF). It allocates $27 billion in financial assistance through three programs to reduce harmful air pollutants, mobilize financing and private capital, and deliver benefits for low-income and disadvantaged communities.
read moreThis isn’t Nashville. This is West Chester, Ohio.
60,000 concert goers attend inaugural 4 day Voices of America Country Music Festival in West Chester, Ohio with Alabama, JoDee Messina, Lainey Wilson, Dan +Shay, and many more!
read moreHousing: An Overlooked Solution Puzzle Piece
The word is out Central Ohio is a wonderful place to live and work. While job opportunities are prevalent, the housing market is a challenge. The headlines are focused on new builds and further directed at greenspace and farmland depletion, zoning, density, affordability, transportation, congestion, the impact on schools, and concerns about community identity. New builds are vital, but the housing puzzle has an overlooked solution piece with abandoned and underutilized property.
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