Opportunity Overview
The North Dakota Department of Commerce Workforce Development Division is accepting applications for the Regional Workforce Impact Program (RWIP). RWIP funds locally led, regional workforce solutions organized around sector strategies. Applications are currently open, reviewed in the order received, and funded until the applicable regional allocations are secured under grant agreements.
Funding and Tracks
Applicants may apply under one of two tracks per application. Track A supports comprehensive sector-strategy planning. Track B supports implementation of a sector strategy developed within the prior five years. Both tracks may provide up to $150,000 per application. A required match equal to 25% of the grant funds requested applies to every project. Grant and match funds must be used during the agreement period, and grant funds must be spent by June 30, 2027.
Eligibility
Eligible applicants are North Dakota-based economic development organizations, incorporated cities, counties, chambers of commerce, job development authorities, Tribal entities, regional councils, and Regional Education Associations. Projects and populations served must be in North Dakota.
Private businesses, institutions of postsecondary education, school districts, private schools, individuals, child care providers, and out-of-state applicants are not eligible direct applicants. Single-business solutions are ineligible. Projects must involve meaningful regional and industry partnerships, and each selected industry must include more than one partner.
Healthcare Workforce Relevance
Healthcare is a verified RWIP sector. In August 2026, Commerce awarded $130,100 to Tri-County Regional Development Council for a dual-sector workforce strategy focused on energy/utility and healthcare, and $60,000 to the City of Beach for regional healthcare workforce planning. This establishes a clear pathway for qualifying regional entities to develop healthcare-sector workforce strategies with multiple healthcare employers and regional partners.
Project Requirements
Track A projects must include partnership with one or two industries, include industry partners on the project team, use an independent third-party consultant for the plan, and produce a sector strategic plan. Track B applicants must submit an existing sector strategy developed within the past five years and may implement strategies such as talent-attraction marketing, retention, and other actions analyzed in that plan.
Workforce training to upskill, reskill, or prepare new or existing staff is not an eligible implementation activity under RWIP; Commerce points applicants to other funding sources for training. Capital housing projects, child care investments, lobbying, duplicative state-funded programs, and single-business solutions are also ineligible.
N9+ and QC Healthcare Fit
N9+ Fit Score: 0/100. RWIP is a regional workforce strategy program, not a clinical-equipment or healthcare-technology acquisition program. A healthcare provider can participate as an industry partner in a qualifying regional healthcare strategy, but N9+ procurement should not be positioned as the purpose of an RWIP application.
Atlas Analysis
Atlas Opportunity Score: 84/100. The program has strong healthcare-workforce relevance because Commerce has already funded healthcare-focused regional strategies. The strongest Atlas pathway is through an eligible regional applicant coordinating multiple healthcare employers and partners. The 25% match, regional-impact requirement, multi-partner structure, and prohibition on direct workforce-training implementation are material design gates.
Submission
Applications must be submitted through the North Dakota Commerce online portal and are reviewed in the order received. Applicants should use the current RWIP guidance and FAQ, document the regional workforce problem with data, identify industry and regional partners, provide at least three unique letters of support, document the required match, and submit while regional allocations remain available.
Official source: North Dakota Department of Commerce — Regional Workforce Impact Program.