Federal Funding Available for State and Local Governments

Posted on 03/13/2012 by VLCT Communications

 

Nearly $1.3 billion is current available for state and local governments from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), Department of Energy (DOE), Department of Agriculture (USDA), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and Economic Development Agency (EDA) to support climate and energy initiatives, including transportation, energy efficiency, renewable energy, green infrastructure, and sustainability planning. Here are some highlights:

 

USDA 2012 Hazardous Fuels Woody Biomass Utilization Grant – $3 million. Application Due: April 2, 2012. The U.S. Forest Service requests proposals for wood energy projects that require engineering services. These projects will use woody biomass, such as material removed from forest restoration activities, wildfire hazardous fuel treatments, insect and disease mitigation, and/or forest management due to catastrophic weather events. The woody biomass shall be used in a bioenergy facility that uses commercially proven technologies to produce thermal, electrical, or liquid/gaseous bioenergy. The funds from grant program must be used to further the planning of such facilities by funding the engineering services necessary for final design and cost analysis. More information is at USDA grant opportunity synopsis.

 

EPA Green Infrastructure Technical Assistance – Approximately $950,000. Application Due: April 6, 2012. Green infrastructure uses vegetation, soils, and natural processes to manage stormwater, and can decrease temperatures in the urban environment by deflecting solar radiation, providing shade, and removing heat from the air through evapotranspiration. Technical assistance will be provided through EPA contract support and can help communities with any level of green infrastructure implementation. The value of the assistance available to each of the 10 to 20 projects selected will be approximately $50,000 to $100,000. More information is on the EPA funding notice page.

 

EPA National Award for Smart Growth Achievement. Application Due: April 6, 2012. EPA is seeking nominations for the 11th annual National Award for Smart Growth Achievement. The award recognizes and supports communities that use innovative policies and strategies to strengthen their economies, provide housing and transportation choices, develop in ways that bring benefits to a wide range of residents, and protect the environment. This competition is open to public- and private-sector entities that have successfully used smart growth principles to improve communities. For the 2012 awards, one winner will be selected for each of four categories:

1. Programs and Policies
2. Equitable Development
3. Main Street or Corridor Revitalization
4. Overall Excellence in Smart Growth (all applicants to the three categories above are eligible)

 

Winners will be recognized at a ceremony in Washington, DC, in December 2012, and public-sector winners will receive one complimentary registration to the New Partners for Smart Growth Conference in 2013. More information is on the EPA award opportunity page.

 

HUD Choice Neighborhood Implementation Grants – $110 million. Application Due: April 10, 2012. The HUD Choice Neighborhoods Implementation Grants Program aims to help communities implement a comprehensive neighborhood revitalization strategy. The goals of the program include transforming distressed public and assisted housing into energy-efficient, mixed-income housing that is physically and financially viable over the long term, and transforming distressed, high-poverty neighborhoods into viable, mixed-income neighborhoods with access to well-functioning services, including public transportation. More information is on the HUD grant opportunity synopsis.

 

DOE State Energy Program 2012 Competitive Awards – Approximately $15 million. Application Due: April 16, 2012. DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy’s State Energy Program seeks applications to advance policies, programs, and market strategies that accelerate job creation and reduce energy bills while achieving energy and climate security for the nation. This Funding Opportunity Announcement focuses on three areas of interest:

 

1.   Advancing energy efficiency in public facilities that will assist states to develop holistic, whole-building, deep retrofit programs or strategies across as broad a segment of the state’s public building portfolio;
2.   Stimulating energy efficiency action that will assist states in generating the necessary policy and program frameworks to support investment in cost-effective energy efficiency and establish or increase a statewide energy savings goal by calendar year 2015; and
3.   Improving or developing a fee-based self-funded Public Facilities Energy Retrofit Program that will assist states in developing/improving and implementing a self-funded program that can be used successfully to retrofit public facilities statewide across many sectors.

For more information, visit the DOE grant opportunity synopsis.

 

DOE State Energy Program - PY 2012 Formula Grants – $30 million. Application Due: Varies by program year, next due date is April 30, 2012. DOE solicits the annual grant applications under the State Energy Program for Program Year (PY) 2012. The program seeks to provide grants to state energy offices in all states and U.S. territories to design and carry out their own energy efficiency and renewable energy programs. States use grants to address their energy priorities and program funding to adopt emerging energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies. For more information, visit the DOE grant opportunity synopsis.

 

HUD Choice Neighborhood Planning Grants – $5 million. Application Due: May 1, 2012. The HUD Choice Neighborhoods Planning Grants Program is aimed at helping communities create a comprehensive neighborhood revitalization strategy. The goals of the program include transforming distressed public and assisted housing into energy-efficient, mixed-income housing that is physically and financially viable over the long term, and transforming distressed, high-poverty neighborhoods into viable, mixed-income neighborhoods with access to well-functioning services, including public transportation. More information is at the HUD grant opportunity synopsis.

 

DOE Program Year 2012 Weatherization Formula Grants – $65 million. Application Due: Varies by program year, next due date is May 1, 2012. The purpose of the Weatherization Assistance Program is to increase the energy efficiency of dwellings owned or occupied by low-income persons, reduce their total residential expenditures, and improve their health and safety. The priority population for the Weatherization Assistance Program is people who are particularly vulnerable, such as the elderly, persons with disabilities, families with children, high residential energy users, and households with high energy burden. In fiscal year 2012, a total of $65 million is available. For more information, visit the DOE grant opportunity synopsis.

 

EDA Economic Development Assistance Programs Federal Funding Opportunity – $50.06 million. Application Due: Varies by program year, next due date is June 8, 2012. Under the Economic Development Assistance Programs (EDAP) Federal Funding Opportunity (FFO) announcement, EDA will make construction, non-construction, and revolving loan fund investments under the Public Works and Economic Adjustment Assistance Programs. Grants made under these programs will leverage regional assets to support the implementation of regional economic development strategies designed to create jobs, leverage private capital, encourage economic development, and strengthen America’s ability to compete in the global marketplace. Through the EDAP FFO, EDA solicits applications from rural and urban communities to develop initiatives that advance new ideas and creative approaches to address rapidly evolving economic conditions. In fiscal year 2012, a total of $50,060,000 is available. For more information, visit the EDA grant opportunity synopsis.

 

Local officials interested in additional information about developing and implementing cost-effective climate and energy strategies that help further environmental goals and achieve public health and economic benefits may visit EPA’s State and Local Climate and Energy Program site.