National Wetland Program Development Grants and Five-Star Restoration Training Grant

 

To assist state, territory, tribal, and/or local government (S/T/LG) agencies in building programs which protect, manage, and restore wetlands. The primary focus of the grants is to build state, territory, and tribal wetland programs. A secondary focus is to build local (e.g. county or municipal) programs. Funding Priority - Fiscal Year 2023: For the National WPDGs: EPA has identified the following national priorities - National Priority Area 1: Core Elements Framework. National Priority Area 1 is based on the four core elements of a Comprehensive State/Territory/Tribal Wetlands Program: 1) Monitoring and Assessment; 2) Voluntary Wetland Restoration and Protection; 3) Regulatory Approaches Including CWA 401 Certification; and 4) Wetland-Specific Water Quality Standards. Further explanation of all of the elements can be found at the following website address: https://www.epa.gov/wetlands/wetland-program-development-grants. The Wetlands Program Development Grants (WPDG) program strives to develop State/Territory/Tribal/local government programs that will incorporate each of these elements. For the Five-Star Restoration Training Grants, EPA funds an intermediary organization to provide subawards to eligible subawardees to bring together citizen groups, corporations, youth conservation corps, students, landowners, and government agencies to undertake projects that achieve environmental training through voluntary, community/watershed-based wetland restoration projects.

Active 66.462 Environmental Protection Agency B - Project Grants Fiscal Year 2016 In FY 16, funding will continue to support projects that encourage the use of data documenting wetland condition, function, status and trends to support development and implementation of other state wetland program core elements such as wetland regulation, restoration, and development of water quality standards for wetlands; identify best practices for developing wetland restoration and protection programs while leveraging adaptation to climate change; develop a handbook for states, tribes, and local governments on the policy and practice of stream compensatory mitigation; develop and deliver in-lieu fee mitigation training for states, tribes, and local governments; increase understanding of multiple aspects of state and tribal wetland programs, including all four of the EPA core essential elements, resulting in more robust state and tribal programs; and develop and distribute programmatic support documents for identifying and sampling candidate reference wetland sites using consistent wetland condition assessment methods across the nation, piloted through programs in 10 states. EPA anticipates issuing a competition in FY16. In FY 16, funding will continue to support projects that encourage the use of data documenting wetland condition, function, status and trends to support development and implementation of other state wetland program core elements such as wetland regulation, restoration, and development of water quality standards for wetlands; identify best practices for developing wetland restoration and protection programs; develop and deliver in-lieu fee mitigation training for states, tribes, and local governments; and increase understanding of multiple aspects of state and tribal wetland programs, including all four of the EPA core essential elements, resulting in more robust state and tribal programs; and develop. EPA issued a competition in FY16 and made seven (7) awards.
Fiscal Year 2017 In FY 17, funding supported projects that encourage the use of data documenting wetland condition, function, status and trends to support development and implementation of other state wetland program core elements such as wetland regulation, restoration, and development of water quality standards for wetlands; identify best practices for developing wetland restoration and protection programs; develop and deliver in-lieu fee mitigation training for states, tribes, and local governments; and increase understanding of multiple aspects of state and tribal wetland programs, including all four of the EPA core essential elements, resulting in more robust state and tribal programs.
Fiscal Year 2018 In FY 18, funding continued to support projects that encourage the use of data documenting wetland condition, function, status and trends to support development and implementation of other state wetland program core elements such as wetland regulation, restoration, and development of water quality standards for wetlands; identify best practices for developing wetland restoration and protection programs; develop and deliver in-lieu fee mitigation training for states, tribes, and local governments; and increase understanding of multiple aspects of state and tribal wetland programs, including all four of the EPA core essential elements, resulting in more robust state and tribal programs.
Fiscal Year 2019 For FY 2019, funding support ed projects include projects that: produce a series of comprehensive guides and webinars on the most challenging components of in lieu fee (ILF) program implementation; developing stronger cooperative federalism between federal and state agencies in the area of wetland regulation; improve the capacity of states, tribes, and local government agencies to partner with hazard mitigation agencies to integrate wetland restoration priorities into new state and local hazard mitigation plans; providing tools for the development of complete state assumption applications that meet program requirements; increasing the capacity of states, tribes, and local governments to ensure ecologically effective compensatory mitigation; and identifying ways to enhance, protect and restore wetlands within and surrounding urban areas to maximize economic, ecological and social benefits for urban communities.
Fiscal Year 2022 In FY 2022 no competitions were announced for this program. Funding continues to support support activities to build state/tribal/territory/local wetland program building and improvement. Projects were funded in FY 2022 from the previous year's RFA. Funded projects for FY 2022 include: working with tribes to build wetland program capacity; advancing state protection of non-federal waters; developing a policy framework for greater use of remote sensing for wetland regulatory programs; developing approaches to applying wetlands tools for disaster management; improving the success of compensatory mitigation under changing conditions; and promoting the integration of wetland protection and restoration with multiple types of state-level plans.
Fiscal Year 2023 In FY 2023 one competition was announced for this program based on available funds and Agency priorities for the National WPDG. The number of applications and the number of awards made is dependent on the competitive announcement issued. The announcements include the number of anticipated awards. Projects support activities to build state/tribal/territory/local wetland program building and improvement. Clean Water Act, Section 104(b)(3), as amended, Public Law 92-500, 33 U.S.C. 1254(b)(3) Non-profit, non-governmental organizations, Interstate agencies, and Intertribal consortia which are capable of undertaking activities that advance wetland programs on a national basis are eligible to compete in this program. The term "interstate agency" is defined in CWA Section 502 as "an agency of two or more States established by or pursuant to an agreement or compact approved by the Congress, or any other agency of two or more States, having substantial powers or duties pertaining to the control of pollution as determined and approved by the Administrator." Intertribal consortia must meet the requirements of 40 CFR Part 35.504. For certain competitive funding opportunities under this assistance listing, the Agency may limit eligibility to compete to a number or subset of eligible applicants consistent with the Agency's Assistance Agreement Competition Policy. State, Territory, Tribal, and local governments involved in administering wetlands protection, restoration, and/or management programs or programs related to or complement wetlands protection programs. Non-profit applicants may be asked to provide documentation that they meet the definition of a non-profit organization. Interstate organizations may be asked to provide a citation to the statutory authority, which establishes their status. Intertribal consortia may be asked to provide documentation that they meet the requirements of 40 CFR Part 35.504. Preapplication coordination is required. This program is eligible for coverage under E.O. 12372, "Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs." An applicant should consult the office or official designated as the single point of contact in his or her State for more information on the process the State requires to be followed in applying for assistance, if the State has selected the program for review. EPA financial assistance programs and activities subject to intergovernmental review that are subject to review under State single point of contact procedures are identified at https://www.epa.gov/grants/epa-financial-assistance-programs-subject-executive-order-12372-and-section-204. Applicants for programs or activities subject to Intergovernmental Review that are not subject to State single point of contact review must provide directly affected State, areawide, regional, and local entities at least 60 days to review their application following notification by EPA that the application has been selected for funding as provided by 40 CFR 29.8(a) and (c). Regarding pre-application assistance with respect to competitive funding opportunities under this assistance listing, EPA will generally specify the nature of the pre-application assistance, if any, that will be available to applicants in the competitive announcement. For additional information, contact the individual(s) listed as "Information Contacts" in the competitive announcement. 2 CFR 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards applies to this program. The EPA Headquarters (HQ) Office will conduct the competitive process for awarding National Wetland Program Development Grants. Interested applicants should review information on the National Wetland Program Development Grants at: https://www.epa.gov/wetlands/wetland-program-development-grants. Submittal instructions can be found in the competitive announcement. The EPA Headquarters (HQ) Office will conduct the competitive process for awarding the Five-Star Restoration Training Grant. Interested applicants should review information on the Five-Star Restoration Training Grant at: https://www.epa.gov/wetlands/wetland-program-development-grants. Submittal instructions can be found in the competitive announcement. All applicants will be notified by the HQ Office on whether or not the applicant has been selected for funding. The notification is not an authorization to begin performance. The Grant Award document signed by the appropriate grant official in the EPA HQ Office is the authorizing document. Applicants, except in limited circumstances approved by the Agency, must submit all initial applications for funding through Grants.gov. For competitive awards, EPA will review and evaluate applications in accordance with the terms, conditions, and criteria stated in the competitive announcement. Competitions will be conducted in accordance with EPA policies/regulations for competing assistance agreements. For competitive awards, deadlines will be specified in the competitive announcement. From 120 to 180 days. Grants are usually approved within 4 months of receipt of completed application. Assistance agreement competition-related disputes will be resolved in accordance with the dispute resolution procedures published in 70 FR (Federal Register) 3629, 3630 (January 26, 2005). Copies of these procedures may also be found at: https://www.epa.gov/grants/grant-competition-dispute-resolution-procedures. Disputes relating to matters other than the competitive selection of recipients will be resolved under 2 CFR 1500 Subpart E, as applicable. Not applicable. The evaluation and selection criteria for competitive awards under this assistance listing will be described in the competitive announcement. The National WPDGs are intended to encourage comprehensive, national wetlands program development by promoting the coordination and acceleration of research, investigations, experiments, training, demonstrations, surveys, and studies relating to the causes, effects, extent, prevention, reduction, and elimination of water pollution. Projects build the capacity of States, Territory, Tribes, and local governments programs to effectively protect wetland and riparian resources. Activities must help S/T/LGs develop and refine wetland programs. Projects funded under this program support the initial development of a national wetlands protection, restoration or management program, or support enhancement/refinement of an existing national program. Projects must be broad in scope and include more than one EPA Region or be national in scope and cannot be limited to activities that affect such entities in only one EPA region. For example, projects and tasks can involve advancing science or collecting and making available through publications and other appropriate means, such as training on information about how various wetland programs across the nation protect, manage, and restore their wetland resources and about initiatives to improve S/T/LG wetland programs. Projects that are local or encompass only one EPA Region in scope are not eligible for funding under this program but may be eligible for funding under EPA's Regional Wetland Program Development Grants program (Assistance Listing 66.461). Funds cannot be used for the purchase of land or conservation easements. Funds cannot be used for implementation of individual mitigation projects, mitigation banks, or in-lieu-fee mitigation programs. Assistance agreement awards under this program may involve or relate to geospatial information. Geospatial information is information that identifies the geographic location and characteristics of natural or constructed features or boundaries on the earth, or applications, tools, and hardware associated with the generation, maintenance, or distribution of such information. This information may be derived from, among other things, GPS, remote sensing, mapping, charting, and surveying technologies, or statistical data. Further information regarding geospatial information may be obtained by viewing the following website: Geospatial Resources at EPA ( https://www.epa.gov/geospatial) . EPA's Five Star Restoration Training Grant is anticipated to fund one cooperative agreement to an organization to manage the Five Star Restoration Training Grant subaward process that will award subgrants to achieve environmental training through voluntary, community/watershed-based wetland restoration projects. Projects funded under the subgrant process must be limited to activities that conduct or promote the coordination and acceleration of training relating to the causes, effects, extent, prevention, reduction, and elimination of water pollution. Other activities under section 104(b)(3) will not be considered for funding. Funds cannot be used for the purchase of land or conservation easements. Funds cannot be used for implementation of individual mitigation projects, mitigation banks, or in-lieu-fee mitigation programs. Wetland restoration training projects cannot include wetlands constructed for the purposes of treating wastewater or stormwater only. Performance Reports: Performance monitoring is required under this program. Grants and cooperative agreements are subject to inspections and audits by the Comptroller General of the United States, the EPA Office of Inspector General, other EPA staff, or any authorized representative of the Federal government. Reviews by the EPA Project Officer and the Grants Specialist may occur each year. Recipients must keep financial records, including all documents supporting entries on accounting records and to substantiate changes in grants available to personnel authorized to examine EPA recipients grants and cooperative agreements records. Recipients must maintain all records until 3 years from the date of submission of final expenditure reports as required by 2 CFR 200.334. If questions, such as those raised because of audits remain following the 3-year period, recipients must retain records until the matter is completely resolved. Statutory formula is not applicable to this assistance listing.

Matching is mandatory. 25%. The applicant must provide a minimum of 25 percent of the total cost of the project to the extent allowed by 2 CFR 200 and 1500 as applicable, 40 CFR 35.385, and 35.615. To determine if the minimum match is met, EPA will use the following formula: amount (in dollars) of federal funds requested from EPA divided by 3 = minimum match (in dollars) or Total project amount (in dollars) divided by 4 = minimum match (in dollars). For example, if the applicant requests $75,000 of federal funds or has a total project cost of $100,000 for a three-year project period, it must be able to provide $25,000 in matching funds or services. Applicants can provide a larger share of the project's cost whenever possible (i.e., in excess of the required 25 percent of total project costs). Award recipients can meet the match requirements with in-kind or monetary contributions from entities other than themselves. However, other Federal money cannot be used as the match for this grant program unless authorized by the statute governing the award of the other Federal funds. Matching funds are considered grant funds. They must be used for the reasonable and necessary expenses of carrying out the assistance agreement workplan. Any restrictions on the use of grant funds (i.e., prohibition of land acquisition with grant funds) also apply to the matching funds.

MOE requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing. The terms of the grant shall be determined at time of grant award. The method of fund disbursement will be determined at the time of award. None/Not specified. Myra Price, National Wetland Program Development Grant Coordinator
Environmental Protection Agency, Wetlands Division, Office of Oceans, Wetlands, and Watersheds, Office of Water, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. ( Mail Code: 4502T )
Washington, DC 20460 US
price.myra@epa.gov
Phone: 202-566-1225 https://www.epa.gov/wetlands/wetland-program-development-grants-and-epa-wetlands-grant-coordinators 68-0103-0-1-304 (Cooperative Agreements (Discretionary Grants)) FY 22$1,206,801.00; FY 23 est $709,500.00; FY 24 FY 21$250,000.00; FY 20$0.00; FY 19$751,414.00; FY 18$788,451.00; FY 17$1,437,424.00; FY 16$650,000.00; - National Wetlands Program Development Grants: $75,000 to $200,000/every two years; $160,500/every two years; Five-Star Restoration Training Grant: $1,000,000 every four years 2 CFR 200 and 1500 (EPA Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards); 40 CFR Part 33 (Participation by Disadvantaged Business Enterprises in United States Environmental Protection Agency Programs); 40 CFR Part 35 SubPart A (Environmental Program Grants) or SubPart B (Environmental Program Grants for Tribes). Fiscal Year 2016 The Wetland Program Development Grant database will provide project information for the National WDPGs (http://iaspub.epa.gov/pls/grts/f?p=101:1). Examples of funded projects include projects that: encourage the use of data documenting wetland condition, function, status and trends to support development and implementation of other state wetland program core elements such as wetland regulation, restoration, and development of water quality standards for wetlands; identify best practices for developing wetland restoration and protection programs while leveraging adaptation to climate change; develop a handbook for states, tribes, and local governments on the policy and practice of stream compensatory mitigation; develop and deliver in-lieu fee mitigation training for states, tribes, and local governments; increase understanding of multiple aspects of state and tribal wetland programs, including all four of the EPA core essential elements, resulting in more robust state and tribal programs; and develop and distribute programmatic support documents for identifying and sampling candidate reference wetland sites using consistent wetland condition assessment methods across the nation, piloted through programs in 10 states The Wetland Program Development Grant database will provide project information for the National WDPGs (http://iaspub.epa.gov/pls/grts/f?p=101:1). Examples of funded projects include projects that: improving wetland/aquatic Resource Protection through §401Certification of linear energy transmission project permits; assist states and tribes to effectively integrate their use of compensation for Natural Resource Damages (NRD) for damage to wetlands and aquatic resources with wetland mitigation banks and in-lieu fee (ILF) programs; develop and deliver in-lieu fee mitigation training for states, tribes, and local governments; develop a webinar series on the policy, practice, and science of stream mitigation for states, tribes, and local governments; developing a protocol for gathering and organizing current and historic data on compensatory mitigation and tracking these data into the future; development of Rapid Assessment Tools to Identify opportunities for transgression of coastal wetlands; and to identify ways to integrate state and tribal wetland programs with other federal, state and local water, habitat and floodplain programs in order to leverage the benefits of wetland protection and restoration to improve overall watershed health
Fiscal Year 2018 The Wetland Program Development Grant database will provide project information for the National WDPGs (http://iaspub.epa.gov/pls/grts/f?p=101:1). Examples of continuing funded projects include projects that: improving wetland/aquatic Resource Protection through §401 Certification of linear energy transmission project permits; assist states and tribes to effectively integrate their use of compensation for Natural Resource Damages (NRD) for damage to wetlands and aquatic resources with wetland mitigation banks and in-lieu fee (ILF) programs; develop and deliver in-lieu fee mitigation training for states, tribes, and local governments; develop a webinar series on the policy, practice, and science of stream mitigation for states, tribes, and local governments; developing a protocol for gathering and organizing current and historic data on compensatory mitigation and tracking these data into the future; development of Rapid Assessment Tools to Identify opportunities for transgression of coastal wetlands; and to identify ways to integrate state and tribal wetland programs with other federal, state and local water, habitat and floodplain programs in order to leverage the benefits of wetland protection and restoration to improve overall watershed health.
Fiscal Year 2019 The Wetland Program Development Grant database provides project information for the National WDPGs (http://iaspub.epa.gov/apex/wgd/f?p=101). Examples of continued funded projects include projects that: produce a series of comprehensive guides and webinars on the most challenging components of in lieu fee (ILF) program implementation; developing stronger cooperative federalism between federal and state agencies in the area of wetland regulation; improve the capacity of states, tribes, and local government agencies to partner with hazard mitigation agencies to integrate wetland restoration priorities into new state and local hazard mitigation plans; providing tools for the development of complete state assumption applications that meet program requirements; increasing the capacity of states, tribes, and local governments to ensure ecologically effective compensatory mitigation; and identifying ways to enhance, protect and restore wetlands within and surrounding urban areas to maximize economic, ecological and social benefits for urban communities.
Fiscal Year 2022 The WPDG database provides project information for grants funded through this program since 2005 (http://iaspub.epa.gov/apex/wdg/f?p=101). Examples of funded projects for FY2022 include: working with tribes to build wetland program capacity; advancing state protection of non-federal waters; developing a policy framework for greater use of remote sensing for wetland regulatory programs; developing approaches to applying wetlands tools for disaster management; improving the success of compensatory mitigation under changing conditions; and promoting the integration of wetland protection and restoration with multiple types of state-level plans.
Fiscal Year 2023 The WPDG database provides project information for grants funded through this program since 2005 (http://iaspub.epa.gov/apex/wdg/f?p=101). Examples of funded projects for FY2023 have not been determined.