Background

Under the Biden Administration, Congress allocated hundreds of billions of dollars for energy communities, thanks in part to recommendations made in our National Economic Transition (NET) platform.

Despite the historic amount of funding available, these communities faced significant barriers to accessing it to support their projects.

In 2021, we saw an opportunity to help hard hit coal communities access this historic federal investment as a critical first step in growing and diversifying their economies, and opened our Federal Access Center.

Federal Access Center Impact

Building on our early work helping communities access POWER grants, and our NET platform, we opened our Federal Access Center (FAC) to help drive the available federal funding into coal communities to advance economic diversification, workforce development, and infrastructure projects.

$2.8 Billion Leveraged

We helped communities leverage a total of $2.8B to move local economic development projects forward to create jobs, train workers, connect households to the internet, and support entrepreneurs and small businesses

56X ROI

The FAC offered a 56X return on investment for our philanthropic partners

234 Federal Applications Supported

We proudly supported 234 federal applications for investment across every coal-impacted state

How Our Federal Access Center Helped

Through flexible grants and tailored assistance, we helped both ready-to-apply and those still in early planning build the momentum needed to compete for significant investment.

From 2021-2025, we offered these services through our FAC, a centralized resource center to help communities overcome barriers to accessing and securing the federal investment needed for local economic solutions. We also gathered data and feedback and made recommendations to federal agencies about how to make federal investment more accessible to disadvantaged energy communities.

While our FAC is not currently a standalone initiative, building directly on our previous successes, in 2026, we launched our Local Economy Lab to continue to help coal communities leverage public investment to seed, grow, and scale transformative economic projects. We support our grantees in the Local Economy Lab apply for available federal funding.

Spotlight on Federal Access Center Wins

With our support, local and Tribal governments, community organizations, and NGOs were more prepared to apply for and secure funding. Our FAC successes prove that when communities have the right support, they can successfully compete for and manage significant federal investment to transform their economies and build a bright future for residents.

Pennsylvania

$90M to Build Broadband Infrastructure

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CoreConnect was awarded over $90M from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority (PBDA) through the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program. This significant funding will enable CoreConnect to build and operate essential fiber-optic infrastructure, connecting over 10,327 units across 10 counties in Northwest Pennsylvania and bridging the digital divide in rural and underserved areas.

West Virginia

$63M to Transform Former Coalfields Photo

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The Appalachian Community Transformation (ACT Now) Coalition (WV) secured a $63M Build Back Better Regional Challenge grant to transform former coalfields into a hub of green innovation, creating thousands of new jobs in the solar industry, expanding technology businesses, upgrading buildings to be more energy efficient, and converting abandoned mine lands and former industrial spaces for 21st century manufacturing.

Illinois, Ohio, Wisconsin

$60M to Create Workforce Opportunities and Support Environmental Health

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Great Lakes Water Innovation Engine, led by Current, won $60M through the National Science Foundation’s Regional Innovation Engines program. The project will develop a “circular blue economy” by deploying innovative technologies that will create workforce opportunities and maintain environmental health.

Kentucky

$40M to Connect Young Residents to Local Jobs

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Shaping Our Appalachian Region (SOAR) won $40M from the Economic Development Administration’s Distressed Area Recompete Pilot Program. SOAR (eastern KY) won $40M – the largest single award – to connect prime-age residents to resources and training for good jobs.

Wyoming

$36M to Launch Indigenous-Led Eco-Tourism Economy

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Wind River Development Fund won $36M from the Economic Development Administration’s Distressed Area Recompete Pilot Program. The Wind River Development Fund (Wind River Indian Reservation, WY) received $36M to catalyze an Indigenous-led eco-tourism economy.

West Virginia

$45M to Connect Homes to Reliable Internet

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Generation West Virginia leveraged a combined $45M to successfully connect more than 32,000 households to reliable internet across the state, which ranks last in broadband access. This funding is transformational to the local economy, contributing an estimated $720M across 15 previously disconnected counties.

North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee

$15M to Build Regional Capacity for Textile Jobs

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North Carolina Textile Innovation and Sustainability Engine, led by Industrial Commons, was awarded $15M through the National Science Foundation’s Regional Innovation Engines program. The project will create and retain nearly 2,000 textile jobs across North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee, build the region’s capacity for environmentally sustainable textiles, reduce carbon outputs and the number of textiles in landfills, and develop new product lines within the expanding workforce.

Kentucky, Tennessee

$10M to Create A Tourist Destination on Former Mine Land

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Appalachian Wildlife Foundation and the Cumberland Trails Conference (KY, TN) received nearly $10M from the Appalachian Regional Commission’s ARISE initiative. This funding will support Boone’s Ridge, an outdoor recreation tourist destination on former mine land in Kentucky and Tennessee.

Arizona

$9M to Deploy Microgrid on Tribal Land

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Hopi Utilities Corporation (AZ) was awarded over $9M through the Department of Energy’s Energy Improvements in Rural or Remote Areas program. Hopi Utilities Corporation will deploy a hybrid microgrid to power IT, waste management, and other services.

Arizona

$8M to Connect Tribal Homes and Train Indigenous Workforce

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Native Renewables (AZ) was awarded $8M through the Department of Energy’s Energy Improvements in Rural or Remote Areas program. Native Renewables will install off-grid solar and battery storage systems to electrify Hopi and Navajo homes while training and employing an Indigenous workforce.

"We appreciate JTF's flexibility with regards to federal matching grants. Non-federal cash match remains perhaps the single biggest obstacle our communities face!"

Sara Cottingham
Mon Forest Towns Partnership, West Virginia

"JTF assisted us with the technical writing of the grant as well as providing us with a $40,000 match. If they had not helped with the match requirement, we probably could not have applied for the grant."

Karla Roberts
Red Bird Mission Inc., Kentucky

"The activities funded by the JTF not only supported the specific goal of applying for the POWER grant but also substantially built West Virginia Women Work’s overall capacity to compete for federal funding. This enhanced capability will be critical in expanding our services and programs to support women in nontraditional occupations across West Virginia, thereby contributing to our long-term mission and sustainability."

Carol Phillips
West Virginia Women Work

"Overall, JTF funds have been instrumental in building our organizational capacity, making us more adept at managing current projects and positioning us for future funding success."

Shaleen Old Coyote
Plenty Doors Development Corporation, Crow Reservation, Montana

"We could not be more appreciative of the guidance and support we received from JTF. We would not have received, and could not have even applied for, our $2 million award if it had not been for your guidance, support and encouragement."

Kevin Shoemaker
Southern Ohio Diversification Initiative

"We're scaling up our just transition work after years of support from JTF. We want to be able to bring something tangible to our communities instead of only talking with residents about it. We need to do both."

Sarah Martik
Center for Coalfield Justice, Pennsylvania

"The transition in Illinois is happening and JTF's support has allowed us to bring coal communities into the fold, winning and now implementing big state policy programs for energy community reinvestment. The consistent support has allowed us to build trust and relationships with communities to clean up the legacy pollution of the past and explore new opportunities."

Amanda Pankau
Prairie Rivers Network, Illinois

“I so value what you all do at JTF because it is ABUNDANTLY CLEAR that you care so much about the work, the organizations, and the people who work in them. Thank you for being such an amazing example of what philanthropy can be.”

Alex Weld
Generation West Virginia

Continuing Federal Support for Coal Communities

We know federal investment plays a key role in advancing locally led economic development projects, providing the scale of funding often needed to move projects from planning to implementation. In 2026, we launched our Local Economy Lab to help coal communities seed, grow, and scale transformative economic projects by accessing available public resources and private sector partnerships.