Funding Wizard

The health and vitality of our urban & community forests are critical to all our Nation’s Forests. Communities often act as gateways for invasive pests and disease, and well managed community forests, especially when a part of shared stewardship across the landscape, can slow or even halt the spread before they infect neighboring private, state or National forests. Our forests are also under threat from natural disasters including wildland fires, hurricanes, tornados, flooding and landslides. Well managed forests are better prepared to withstand these threats, protecting lives, infrastructure, homes, habitats, water quality, economies, and social health and well-being. To better equip our communities in preventing and responding to these threats, the U&CF program requests innovative proposals that strengthen urban and community forest resiliency and align with the goals in the National Ten Year Urban and Community Forestry Action Plan (2016-2026). Collaborative solutions may include but are not limited to: research; prevention; planning; policy; preparedness; implementation; best management practices; recovery; and reforestation that promotes the resilience of our Nation’s urban & community forests. Urban and Community Forestry Program Requirements Innovative Forest Resiliency proposals shall have national or multi-state application and impact. A proposal’s content must meet the Urban and Community Forestry program authorities as designated by Congress in the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act, (Section 9 PDF, pp. 19-24) State & Private Cooperative Forestry Handbook of Programs and one or more of the goals in the National Ten Year Urban and Community Forestry Action Plan (2016-2026) Available Funding: The U.S. Forest Service anticipates that the statutory authority (Sub Title 9 of the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act) for the Fiscal Year 2020 Urban and Community Forestry (U&CF) Program may provide, approximately $900,000 in grant funds to be awarded through the 2020 National Urban and Community Forestry Grant Program. Funds are to support national urban and community forestry projects on nonfederal public land that have a national or multi-state impact and application. All awards are based on the availability of funding, which may be subject to change. Eligible Applicants: Any U.S. Non-Federal and Tribal Organization, operating within the United States or its territories, may apply for the Challenge Cost-Share grant. While collaboration with Federal agencies is encouraged, a Federal agency may not receive funding or be used as match to the Federal funds being requested. Individuals and private land are not eligible. Proposals are required to address national, multi-state, or multi-tribal-land urban and community forestry issues. The Forest Service will address any conflicts of interest. Not Eligible: If an entity has a local/state tree-planting projects, capital improvements to property of any ownership, and/or projects that have only a local/single state impact and applicability are not eligible. Applicants with local proposals should contact their State Urban and Community Forestry Coordinator for assistance in identifying funding alternatives at the local level. The list of State Coordinators may be found at the following website at the bottom of the page: State Urban Foresters' Contact List Matching Requirements: All grant funds must be matched at least equally (dollar for dollar) with non-Federal source funds. This match may include in-kind donations, volunteer assistance, and private and public (non-federal) monetary contributions. All matching funds must be directly related to the proposed project. The source of matching funds must be identified, and grantees must comply with all applicable Federal regulations. Applicant ID Numbers: All applicants are to include and ensure their DUNS and SAM's numbers are current and won't be expiring within the next 6-9 months. Inquiries: All questions regarding the program should be directed to Nancy Stremple, National Urban and Community Forestry Specialist, at nancy.stremple@usda.gov from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. (Eastern) 2020 National Urban and Community Forestry Innovation Grant Category: Creating and Enhancing Resilient Urban and Community Forests: The USDA Forest Service seeks innovative (new, cutting-edge or builds upon existing studies) grant proposals for program development, study, and collaboration that will address urban and community forest resilience and aligns with one or more applicable goals in the National Ten Year Urban and Community Forestry Action Plan (2016-2026). By clicking on the title link it will download the document for more detailed information about each category listed below. The applicant is to list the Goal(s) their proposal is addressing. 1. Integrate Urban and Community Forestry into All Scales of Planning (Page 26): 2. Promote the Role of Urban and Community Forestry in Human Health and Wellness (Page 33): 3. Cultivate Diversity, Equity and Leadership within the Urban Forestry Community (Page 42): 4. Strengthen Urban and Community Forest Health and Biodiversity for Long-Term Resilience (Page 50): 5. Improve Urban and Community Forest Management, Maintenance and Stewardship (Page 58): 6. Diversify, Leverage and Increase Funding for Urban and Community Forestry (Page 66): 7. Increase Public Awareness and Environmental Education to Promote Stewardship (Page 74): Research Goal D (Page 16): Research is needed to better understand and monitor current threats, to diminish tree loss, maintain urban forest health, and to sustain ecosystem services. Studies are needed to help anticipate emergent threats or negative conditions to enable proactive management response, as well as, social or policy studies that can help to reveal the institutional best practices that can be put in place for threat response and community engagement for forest sustainability and resiliency. Information on how to apply may be found on the following websites: Grant Application Website: (https://grants.urbanandcommunityforests.org) will have application information, how to download the application form, and submit the completed grant proposal package. Grants.gov Synopsis (Search: Opportunity: USDA-FS-UCF-01-2020, or CFDA, 10.675, Agency Forest Service). This will include the link to the grant application website where the grant proposal application can be down-loaded, and grant package uploaded. https://grants.urbanandcommunityforests.org USDA Forest Service UCF Website. This will include the link to the grant application website where the grant application can be down-loaded, and grant proposal package uploaded https://grants.urbanandcommunityforests.org All grant proposal application instructions, downloadable application forms, and grant package submissions are located on: https://grants.urbanandcommunityforests.org unless one does not have the capacity to use or have the availability of a computer. They may contact Nancy Stremple, National Urban Forestry Specialist nancy.stremple@usda.gov , 202 205-7829 for application information to be mailed to them. Application Deadlines: Proposals must be submitted to https://grants.urbanandcommunityforests.org or courier hard copies received by 11:59 PM Eastern, March 30, 2020. The USDA. Forest Service typically awards the successful projects as Federal Financial Assistance Grants no later than September 30, 2020. Successful applicants will receive formal notice of their grant award from the Forest Service grants and agreements official. Consequently, grantees may not begin their projects prior to official grant award notification. Hardcopy applicants will be required to utilize a courier service (i.e. FedEx, UPS, etc.) to send their application to the Forest Service’s National Urban and Community Forestry Specialist, Nancy Stremple. Hardcopy applications should be submitted on white 8.5” x 11” paper. Please do not enclose proposals in folders or binders (staple in the top, left hand corner of each copy) and do not include unsolicited material as it will be removed and destroyed. To apply by hardcopy, please use a courier service to send one hard copy and a copy on a disk to: Nancy Stremple, National Urban and Community Specialist USDA Forest Service 201 14th. St. SW, Sidney Yates Bldg. 3NW-03B Washington, D.C. 20024 nancy.stremple@usda.gov *Note: To ensure delivery, include both the mail stop (3NW-03B) number and the street address when addressing your package for shipment.

The Competitive State Wildlife Grant (C-SWG) Program provides Federal grant funds to help State, Commonwealth, and Territory fish and wildlife agencies and their partners implement programs for the benefit of fish and wildlife and their habitats, including species that are not hunted or fished. Activities must contribute directly to the implementation of a State Wildlife Action Plan (Plan) approved by the Director of the Service or other Service designee. Priority for use of these funds must be placed on identified species of greatest conservation need (SGCN) and should take into consideration the relative level of funding available for the conservation of these species. The C-SWG Program is nationally competitive. Ranking criteria used to evaluate applications are published annually in the Notice of Funding Opportunity. These criteria are developed in coordination with State, Commonwealth and Territory fish and wildlife agencies and the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (AFWA).

The Rural Utilities Service (RUS), an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), announces the availability of up to $10 million in competitive grants to assist communities with extremely high energy costs. The grant funds may be used to acquire, construct, or improve energy generation, transmission, or distribution facilities serving communities where the average annual residential expenditure for home energy exceeds 275% of the national average. Eligible projects also include on-grid and off-grid renewable energy projects and the implementation of energy efficiency and energy conservation projects for eligible communities. Projects cannot be for the primary benefit of a single household or business. Grant funds may not be used for the preparation of the grant application, operating costs, or for the purchase of any equipment, structures, or real estate not directly associated with the provision of community energy services.

The National Park Service provides matching grants to states and through states to local governments for the acquisition and development of lands and waters for outdoor recreation purposes.

AmeriCorps grants are awarded to eligible organizations proposing to engage AmeriCorps members in evidence-based or evidence-informed interventions to strengthen communities. An AmeriCorps member is an individual who engages in community service through an approved national service position. Members may receive a living allowance and other benefits while serving. Upon successful completion of their service, members earn a Segal AmeriCorps Education Award from the National Service Trust that members can use to pay for higher education expenses or apply to qualified student loans.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), requests applications for the fiscal year (FY) 2020 Regional Food System Partnerships (RFSP) grant program. AMS will competitively award grants to eligible applicants for projects that support partnerships to plan and develop local or regional food systems.It is anticipated that approximately $10 million, less USDA administrative costs, will be available to fund applications under this solicitation. The final amount available is subject to Congressional action.RFSP is implemented through two project types: Planning and Design, the awards for which range from $100,000 to $250,000, and Implementation and Expansion, the awards for which range from $250,000 to $1,000,000. A 25 percent cash match of total Federal funds is required.Partnerships are eligible to apply to RFSP. A partnership is an agreement between one or more eligible entities and one or more eligible partners. See the RFA section 3.0 for more information. An application may be submitted by an eligible entity or an eligible partner on behalf of the partnership. The partnership must specify in its application which organization(s) in the partnership are responsible for receiving and managing the award.All applicants must be domestic entities owned, operated, and located within the 50 United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, or Tribal Governments.

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) through the Environmental Studies Program (ESP) is offering a cooperative agreement opportunity to study shipwrecks and benthic hard-bottom habitat in the mesophotic zone in the Gulf of Mexico. There is a clear need to characterize seafloor features and their ecological role to develop proper management and avoidance strategies based upon their ecological community structures. Objectives include documenting and mapping sites. Only applicants noted in "Additional Information on Eligibility" are eligible, but cooperative research is encouraged and applicants may include subcontracts to other organizations in their proposals. See complete program announcement. Section 1345(e) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) authorizes BOEM to enter into cooperative agreements with affected States for purposes that are consistent with the OCLSA, including the joint use of available expertise, joint planning and review, and the formation of joint surveillance and monitoring arrangements.

The Bureau of Reclamation intends to issue a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), for grants/cooperative agreements for The Central Valley Project Improvement Act (CVPIA) program. The NOFO has a goal to improve salmonid habitats in the Sacramento River in northern California. The CVPIA describes activities to be carried out in furtherance of the anadromous fish doubling goal in the Act. See specifically sections 3406(b)(1), 3406(b)(13), and 3407(e). This NOFO implements the continued spawning and rearing habitat restoration activities outlined in Reclamation’s and the California Department of Water Resources Biological Assessment, dated October 2019, and the Biological Opinion from NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service on the Reinitation of Coordination on the Long-Term Operation of the Central Valley Project and State Water Project. The need for the habitat restoration work to be funded under the NOFO is to improve anadromous fish production and survival to make progress towards the doubling goal of the CVPIA. Improved populations will result in fewer operational constraints on the Central Valley Project. Successful applicants will enter into a financial assistance agreement with Reclamation. Period of Performance will not exceed 5 years from date of issuance. BOR-CGB-20-F002 will post on grants.gov, at www.grants.gov. The end date for receipt of proposals is on May 21, 2020, no later than 2p.m. System for Award Management (SAM) applies to this NOFO. Prospective recipients must be registered in the SAM database or offeror is ineligible for an award. Information on SAM registration can be obtained via the Internet at http://www.sam.gov. The NOFO must be downloaded at the grants.gov website. No paper copy will be distributed. Questions concerning this NOFO must be directed, via email or letter, to John Hannon at jhannon@usbr.gov.

The purpose of the CRISI Program is to assist in funding capital projects that improve intercity passenger and freight rail transportation safety, efficiency, and reliability.

The National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP) seeks to mitigate earthquake losses in the United States through basic and directed research and implementation activities in the fields of earthquake science and engineering. The NEHRP program supports the mission area of the Quadrennial Homeland Security Review titled Strengthen National Preparedness and Resilience, as well as the national preparedness goal of mitigation, as provided in the Presidential Policy Directive (PPD-8). NEHRP also supports the FEMA 2018-2022 Strategic Plan, by contributing to the accomplishment of Strategic Goal 1: Build a Culture of Preparedness and Strategic Goal 2: Ready the Nation for Catastrophic Disasters. Participation in the FEMA NEHRP State Assistance program (and the Individual State Earthquake Assistance funding opportunity) is limited to those States and Territories that have been determined to be at a High to Very High risk of earthquakes. Participation in this funding opportunity is further limited to those States and Territories that can provide the statutory 25% non-Federal cost share. The Cost Share requirement does not apply to those Territories that are considered "Insular Areas" (Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) and the U.S. Virgin Islands), and otherwise eligible for program participation. All activities funded by the FEMA NEHRP, Individual State Earthquake Assistance grant program must be consistent with NEHRP Vision, Mission, Goals and FEMA Program Responsibilities (See Appendix C.), of the NOFO, and ultimately result in a measurable enhancement of National seismic safety and earthquake risk awareness.