Grant Opportunities

EPA Grants to Develop Climate Change Showcase Communities
Application deadline: July 22, 2009

Ohio EPA Clean Diesel School Bus Fund Retrofit Grant Program
Application deadlines: September 1, 2009

TIGER Discretionary Grants
Application deadlines: September 15, 2009

Economic Development Administration (EDA) American Recovery Program
Applications accepted on continuing basis and processed as received

EPA Grants to Develop Climate Change Showcase Communities

EPA is announcing the availability of up to $10 million in first of its kind, “Climate Showcase Communities” grants to local and tribal governments to establish and implement climate change initiatives that will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The agency expects to award approximately 30 cooperative agreements, each one ranging from $100,000 to $500,000. Approximately 5 percent of the funds ($500,000) are set-asides for tribal governments.

EPA requests proposals from local governments, federally-recognized Indian tribal governments, and inter-tribal consortia to create replicable models of sustainable community action, generate cost-effective greenhouse gas reductions, and improve the environmental, economic, public health, and social conditions in a community. A 50 percent cost-share is required for recipients, with the exception of tribal governments and intertribal consortia which are exempt from matching requirements under this grant.

This grant program is administered by EPA’s Local Climate and Energy Program, an initiative to assist local and tribal governments to identify, implement, and track policies and programs that reduce greenhouse gas emissions within their operations and surrounding communities. Over the course of the grant program, EPA will offer training and technical support to grant recipients, and share lessons learned with communities across the nation.

Proposals are due by July 22, 2009, at 4:00 p.m. EDT. Grants are expected to be awarded in January 2010.

Visit this Web site for additional grant information.

Ohio EPA Clean Diesel School Bus Fund Retrofit Grant Program

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, also known as the federal stimulus bill, provides for approximately $300 million nationwide in additional funding to implement the National Clean Diesel Campaign. (This funding is divided into four programs, three of which are competitive grants that many different kinds of entities may apply directly to USEPA for. The other three programs are available at http://www.epa.gov/ otaq/eparecovery/index.htm. Ohio public school districts may apply to Ohio EPA for funds from the fourth program, described here.)

The State Clean Diesel Program allocates 88 million in funding for all of the states. Ohio EPA applied to USEPA and received $1.73 million to add to the existing Ohio Clean Diesel School Bus Fund grant program. Public School Districts in Ohio may apply to Ohio EPA for grants from this Fund, in install pollution control equipment onto their buses. This program has application deadlines March 1 and September 1 each year, with approximately $900,000 available annually in funding from other state and federal sources, in addition to these new stimulus dollars.

Ohio EPA awarded approximately $754,000 of the stimulus funds to applicants who applied to Ohio EPA on March 2, 2009. The remainder will be available to applicants who apply to Ohio EPA by September 1, 2009.

Grants are funded from civil penalties Ohio EPA collects from environmental violations. Since the program began, Ohio EPA has awarded $1.6 million to 33 school districts to retrofit 652 school buses. These grants have resulted in the removal of nine and a half tons of pollutants from the air. For additional questions about the grant program, please contact Carolyn Watkins at carolyn.watkins@epa.state.oh.us, or 614-644-3768. For questions about diesel bus retrofitting, particle standards, or program rules, contact John Paulian at john.paulian@epa.state.oh.us, or 614-644-4832.

Visit this Web site to access the application and information. This grant opportunity is available as a PDF file.

TIGER Discretionary Grants

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, also known as the federal stimulus bill, provides for approximately $300 million nationwide in additional funding to implement the National Clean Diesel Campaign. (This funding is divided into four programs, three of which are competitive grants that many different kinds of entities may apply directly to USEPA for. The other three programs are available at http://www.epa.gov/ otaq/eparecovery/index.htm. Ohio public school districts may apply to Ohio EPA for funds from the fourth program, described here.)

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood recently announced the availability of $1.5 billion in TIGER (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery) Discretionary Grants for capital investment in surface transportation projects. Grants will be awarded on a competitive basis to projects that have a significant impact on the nation, a region or metropolitan area and can create jobs and benefit economically distressed areas.

The grants can range from $20 million up to $300 million to support high impact transportation projects. Secretary LaHood can waive the minimum grant requirement for beneficial projects in smaller cities, regions or states. The U.S. Department of Transportation will require rigorous economic justifications for projects over $100 million. To ensure responsible spending, the department will require all fund recipients to report on their activities on a routine basis.

Primary selection criteria include contributing to the medium- to long-term economic competitiveness of the nation, improving the condition of existing transportation facilities and systems, improving the quality of living and working environments through livable communities, improving energy efficiency and reducing greenhouse gas emissions and improving the safety of U.S. transportation facilities.

The Department will also give priority to projects that are expected to quickly create and preserve jobs and stimulate rapid increases in economic activity, especially projects that will benefit economically distressed areas. Applications for TIGER discretionary grants must be submitted by September 15, 2009, from state and local governments, including U.S. territories, tribal governments, transit agencies, port authorities and others. Comments on the criteria must be received by June 1, 2009.

Visit this Web site for additional information.

EDA American Recovery Program

Pursuant to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, also known as the federal stimulus bill, EDA announces general policies and application procedures for grant-based investments under the auspices of the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965, as amended, that will promote comprehensive, entrepreneurial and innovation-based economic development efforts to enhance the competitiveness of regions, resulting in increased private investment and higher-skill, higher-wage jobs in regions that have experienced sudden and severe economic dislocation and job loss due to corporate restructuring.

Under this competitive solicitation, EDA will give priority consideration to those applications that will significantly benefit regions “that have experienced sudden and severe economic dislocation and job loss due to corporate restructuring,” as stipulated under the Recovery Act. EDA provides financial assistance to distressed communities in both urban and rural regions. Such distress may exist in a variety of forms, including high levels of unemployment, low income levels, large concentrations of low-income families, significant declines in per capita income, large numbers (or high rates) of business failures, sudden major layoffs or plant closures, trade impacts, military base closures, natural or other major disasters, depletion of natural resources, reduced tax bases, or substantial loss of population because of the lack of employment opportunities. EDA’s experience has shown that regional economic development to help alleviate these conditions is effected primarily through investments and decisions made by the private sector. EDA will give preference to applications that include cash contributions (over in-kind contributions) as the matching share. See section III.C. below for more information. Under the EDA American Recovery Program, EDA will help restore, replace and expand economic activity in regions that have experienced sudden and severe economic dislocation and job loss due to corporate restructuring, and prioritize projects that will diversify the economic base and lead to a stronger, more globally competitive and resilient regional economy. EDA’s economic development activities help create jobs by encouraging business inception and growth.

Applications are accepted on a continuing basis and processed as received. Applications may be submitted electronically in accordance with the instructions provided at www.grants.gov or mailed to the applicable EDA regional office.

EDA will evaluate and select applications according to the investment policy guidelines and funding priorities set forth in section V. of this announcement. View the full announcement available in PDF.