WASHINGTON - Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo is announcing Friday $1 billion worth of federal grants for manufacturing, clean energy, farming, biotech and other sectors that will go to 21 regional partnerships.

The winners were chosen from 529 initial applicants vying for grants that were part of last year’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package. The Biden administration has repeatedly laid out a vision for the economy that is more self-sufficient and driven by high-tech manufacturing and the development of renewable energy.

“The whole point of this is we’re not going to let you get left behind as we transition to a more digital economy, to a more technical economy, to a green economy,” Raimondo said. “People want to work where they live. People want to know there is a place for them in the changing economy.”

The $1 billion in grants is part of a longer-term effort to revitalize parts of the country that have needed an economic jolt for existing industries and capital for new ventures. The grants are the largest ever for local economic development provided by the Commerce Department.

The grants include $65.1 million in California to improve farm production and $25 million for a robotics cluster in Nebraska. Georgia gets $65 million for artificial intelligence. There is $63.7 million for lithium-based battery development in New York. Coal counties in West Virginia would receive $62.8 million to help with the shift to solar power and find new uses for abandoned mines.

Raimondo said the winners were chosen based on merit rather than politics. She estimated that the investments, which will be provided over five years as reimbursements, will result in at least 100,000 jobs.

Solidly Republican states such as Oklahoma and South Dakota also received funding.

There is $44 million for regenerative medicine in New Hampshire. Pennsylvania is set to receive $62.7 million for robotics and artificial intelligence.

The massive amount of coronavirus aid at the start of President Joe Biden’s tenure helped to accelerate job growth as the U.S. recovered from the pandemic. But accompanying the hiring was a burst of inflation that hit a 40-year peak this summer, crushing consumer sentiment and putting the administration on the defensive to show how its policies are helping the economy.

Even as much of the coronavirus money has been disbursed, the administration has said it still needs more money to contain the disease and its variations.