Fy25 Guidelines For Brownfield Assessment Grants (Community-Wide Assessment Grants For States And Tribes)
This grant provides funding to state agencies and Tribal Nations to assess and plan for the cleanup and reuse of contaminated brownfield sites, particularly in disadvantaged communities.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is now accepting applications for FY25 Community-Wide Assessment Grants for States and Tribes to support the identification, inventory, and initial planning for the cleanup and reuse of brownfield sites. These sites, impacted by the potential presence of hazardous materials, often hinder community redevelopment efforts. Funded under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the program aims to advance environmental justice and climate resilience goals in alignment with the EPA’s strategic objectives. The EPA expects to award 18 grants totaling approximately $36 million, with individual awards ranging from $1 million to $2 million. Applications must be submitted via Grants.gov by November 14, 2024, at 11:59 p.m. ET. This program supports state agencies and Tribal Nations, including Intertribal Consortia and certain Alaska Native entities. Applicants can request up to $2 million to conduct brownfield site assessments, community engagement, and site planning. Funds may also cover costs for community involvement activities, developing site reuse plans, environmental assessments, and planning for brownfield cleanup. However, grant funds cannot be used for actual cleanup efforts. Applicants are required to assess a minimum of ten sites during the project period, prioritizing at least three specific areas and five priority sites, with at least one site per target area. EPA encourages projects that consider both environmental justice and climate resilience by focusing on disadvantaged communities disproportionately affected by environmental hazards. The program aligns with the Justice40 Initiative, aiming to channel 40% of certain federal investments into underserved areas. Applications will be evaluated on how well the proposed projects demonstrate environmental and social benefits to these communities, support equitable redevelopment, and promote climate adaptation and resilience strategies. Funds can be used for allowable programmatic management expenses, community engagement, and environmental assessments. Specific uses include participant support costs, such as travel and childcare expenses for community meeting attendees, and stipends for community liaisons involved in the project. In addition, up to 10% of grant funds may be allocated to health monitoring for populations exposed to contaminants from brownfield sites, with prior EPA approval. Ineligible costs include expenses related to federal law compliance outside of cleanup, penalties, fines, and lobbying. Eligible applicants must submit a complete application through Grants.gov, including a Narrative Information Sheet and a detailed Narrative. The application must outline the applicant's plan for community engagement, target areas, priority sites, and strategies for equitable redevelopment. Applicants must also meet threshold criteria, including confirmation that they have no more than one open assessment grant with less than 60% of the funds drawn down by October 1, 2024. Documentation to support applicant eligibility and compliance with procurement and subrecipient requirements must also be included. Successful applicants will enter into a cooperative agreement with the EPA, which will provide substantial oversight to ensure compliance with program goals. This may include project monitoring, EPA participation in project activities, review of Quality Assurance Project Plans, and approval of contractor procurements exceeding $250,000. Award decisions are expected to be made within six months after the submission deadline, and projects may extend up to five years. To apply, applicants must have a System for Award Management (SAM) account, a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI), and be registered on Grants.gov. Applicants are responsible for ensuring that their submissions comply with EPA guidelines, including the page limits and content specifications outlined in the application package instructions.
Award Range
Not specified - $2,000,000
Total Program Funding
$36,000,000
Number of Awards
18
Matching Requirement
No
Eligible Applicants
Additional Requirements
The following information indicates which entities are eligible to apply for a Community-wide Assessment Grant. • General Purpose Unit of Local Government. [For purposes of the EPA Brownfields Grant Program, EPA uses the definition of Local government at 2 CFR § 200.1: Local government means a county, municipality, city, town, township, local public authority (including any public and Indian housing agency under the United States Housing Act of 1937), school district, special district, intrastate district, council of governments (whether or not incorporated as a nonprofit corporation under state law), any other regional or interstate government entity, or any agency or instrumentality of a local government.] • Land Clearance Authority or another quasi-governmental entity that operates under the supervision and control of, or as an agent of, a General Purpose Unit of Local Government. • Government Entity Created by State Legislature. 14 • Regional Council established under governmental authority or group of General Purpose Units of Local Government established under Federal, state, or local law (e.g., councils of governments) to function as a single legal entity with authority to enter into binding agreements with the Federal Government. • Redevelopment Agency that is chartered or otherwise sanctioned by a state. • State.20 • Federally recognized Indian Tribe other than in Alaska. (The exclusion of Tribes from Alaska, with the exception of the Metlakatla Indian Community as noted below, from Brownfields Grant eligibility is statutory at CERCLA § 104(k)(1). Intertribal Consortia, comprised of eligible Indian Tribes, are eligible for funding in accordance with EPA’s policy for funding intertribal consortia published in the Federal Register on November 4, 2002, at 67 Fed. Reg. 67181. This policy also may be obtained from your Regional Brownfields Contact listed in Section VII.) • Alaska Native Regional Corporation, Alaska Native Village Corporation, and Metlakatla Indian Community. (Alaska Native Regional Corporations and Alaska Native Village Corporations are defined in the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 and following). For more information, please refer to the FY25 FAQs.) • Nonprofit organization described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. • Limited liability corporation in which all managing members are 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations or limited liability corporations whose sole members are 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations. • Limited partnership in which all general partners are 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations or limited liability corporations whose sole members are 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations. • Qualified community development entity as defined in section 45D(c)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. Note, individuals, for-profit organizations, organizations exempt from taxation under section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code that lobby the Federal government,21 and nonprofit organizations that are not tax exempt under section 501(c)(3) are ineligible to receive Brownfields Assessment Grants.
Geographic Eligibility
All
Application Opens
September 3, 2024
Application Closes
November 14, 2024
Grantor
Elyse Salinas
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