Puget Sound Action Agenda Outreach, Education and Stewardship Support Program

 

Puget Sound has been designated as one of 28 estuaries of National Significance under section 320 of the Clean Water Act. The goal of the National Estuary Program is to attain and maintain water quality in designated estuaries that will assure protection of public water supplies and the protection and propagation of a balanced, indigenous population of shellfish, fish and wildlife and allows recreational activities in and on the water. The Puget Sound National Estuary Program's approved Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP), the Action Agenda, has a goal to restore and maintain the Puget Sound Estuary's environment by meeting 2020 ecosystem targets.

The EPA is committed to protecting and improving water quality and minimizing the adverse impacts of rapid development in the Puget Sound Basin. These commitments include protecting the watersheds and waters of Puget Sound by protecting the fundamental watershed processes that provide and create aquatic habitats and by reducing the generation and release of toxic, nutrient and pathogen pollution.

An essential element of a successful estuary conservation and management program is a well-informed citizenry that is willing and able to take individual and community action to protect and enhance the estuary. This program is aimed at building and sustaining coordinated efforts for outreach and education to increase public awareness and encourage individual stewardship to protect both local and basin-wide ecosystems.

No funding will be added to the agreement in FY14. This grant has been fully funded - $6M.

Deleted 04/02/2020 (Archived.) 66.122 Agency: Environmental Protection Agency
Office: Region 10 Cooperative Agreements Fiscal Year 2013: 38 Puget Sound school districts have adopted the Puget Sound K-12 curricula that the Pacific Education Institute has created through funds from the Partnership. This curriculum highlights the use of the Puget Sound as a science laboratory. 120 teachers implemented action projects in 200 classrooms with 5,611 students involved. Students have spent nearly 40,000 hours total on Puget Sound projects.


The Puget Sound Partnership has successfully reinstituted the Citizen Action Training School. This program will train and enable residents to effectively engage in public processes and to affect the system in productive ways. Over 100 citizens around Puget Sound will have a deeper understanding of the issues facing water quality and skills to tackle those issues at the local and regional level.


The Puget Sound Partnership has partnered with the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife to leverage additional funds for the Targeted Awareness grants, using lead organization funding for a project related to the Shoreline Management Program updates in Mason County and augment a project in San Juan County. The San Juan County project developed build-out maps to be used in their local Shoreline Management Program updates, and disseminated guides to this process.


Puget Sound Partnership Stewardship staff participated in the update of the State of the Sound report by providing some additional material, adaptive management models and updates specifically related to stewardship activities.


Evaluation strategies are used for the development of specific activity outcomes and indicators. Fiscal Year 2014: The Puget Sound Starts Here campaign Phase II has been implemented. The website for the campaign has been updated with different stories, videos, audio and pictures each month. Tribal perspectives have been integrated into the website material. Each year the month of May is designated as Puget Sound Starts Here month. An outreach toolkit for the partners is provided which includes overviews of the materials and how to use them. Multiple events are held throughout the region with the support of the local EcoNets.


The Network Analysis has been completed, which continues to inform the coalition development with with partners across the region.


A subawardee continues to grow its relationships with city and county jurisdictions and small businesses to reduce spills and implement prevention practices.


The Citizen Action Training School has been implemented in two sites. This program educates citizens about the public process as it relates to water quality, habitat, shoreline management, storm water, and other watershed and shoreline related issues. The participants are given tools to be effectively engaged by representatives, and online resources.


The Social Science Sub-Committee elevates the role of social science research in Puget Sound recovery. Spending priorities now include the social sciences. At the Salish Sea Conference, social science represented a larger portion of the workshops and sessions. Fiscal Year 2015: No Current Data Available Omnibus Appropriations Act, 2010, Public Law 111-88; Omnibus Appropriations Act, 2009, Public Law 111-8; Clean Water Act, Title 3, Section 320, Public Law 106-457, 33 U.S.C 1330; Clean Water Act, Title 3, Section 320, Public Law 94-117, 33 Stat. 1330; Continuing Appropriations Act, 2012, Public Law 112-74; Continuing Appropriations Act, 2011, Public Law 111-242; Continuing Appropriations Act 2013, Public Law 113-6. Eligible applicants for this program include:

Washington State agencies; public and private institutions of higher education; units of local government in the greater Puget Sound Basin and Nongovernmental Organizations (NGOs) specifically including NGOs that are nonprofits within the meaning of §501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

Also eligible to apply under this program are all Federally-recognized Indian Tribal governments located within the greater Puget Sound basin and any consortium of these eligible Tribes.

An Intertribal consortium must have adequate documentation of the existence of the partnership and the authorization of the member Tribes to apply for and receive assistance. Documentation that demonstrates the existence of the partnership of Indian Tribal governments may consist of Tribal council resolutions, Intertribal consortia resolutions in conjunction with a Tribal council resolution from each member Tribe, or other written certification from a duly authorized representative of each Tribal government that clearly demonstrates that a partnership of Indian Tribal governments exists. Documentation that demonstrates that member Tribes authorize the consortium to apply for and receive assistance may consist of a Tribal council resolution from each Tribe or other written certification from a duly authorized representative of each Tribal government that clearly demonstrates that the Tribe authorizes the consortium to apply for and receive the grant on behalf of the Tribe. An Intertribal consortium resolution is not adequate documentation of the member Tribes authorization of the consortium unless it includes a written certification from a duly authorized representative of each Tribal government.

The greater Puget Sound basin is defined as all watersheds draining into the U.S. waters of Puget Sound, the southern Georgia Basin and the Strait of Juan de Fuca.

For certain competitive funding opportunities under this CFDA description, the Agency may limit eligibility to compete to a number or subset of eligible applicants consistent with the Agency's Assistance Agreement Competition Policy. The direct beneficiary will be the entities that receive financial assistance under this program. Due to the fact that the program is designed and intended to assist in the restoration and protection of the Puget Sound estuary, the ultimate beneficiaries will be the residents of the greater Puget Sound region. OMB Circular A-87 has been codified at 2 C.F.R. Part 225. OMB Circular No. A-87 applies to this program. Regarding pre-application/pre-proposal assistance with respect to competitive funding opportunities under this program description, EPA will generally specify the nature of the pre-application/pre-proposal assistance, if any, that will be available to applicants in the competitive announcement. For additional information, contact the individual(s) listed as "Information Contacts" or see Appendix IV of the Catalog. Environmental impact information is not required for this program. This program is excluded from coverage under E.O. 12372. OMB Circular No. A-102 applies to this program. OMB Circular No. A-110 applies to this program. Applicants will be required to submit application materials as described in the Request for Proposals that will be issued under this program. The Request for Proposals will also specify the submission methods which generally include an electronic and hard copy submission option. The standard application forms as furnished by the EPA and required by OMB Circulars No. A-110 and A-102 must be used for this program. EPA requires final applications to be made on Standard Form 424. Requests for application kits must be submitted to the Environmental Protection Agency, Grants and Interagency Agreement Management Division, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Mail Code 3903R, Washington, DC 20460 or though the EPA Region 10 Grants Administration web site at: http://www.epa.gov/pugetsound/index.html. Applicants may be able to use http://www.grants.gov to electronically apply for certain grant opportunities under this CFDA. For competitive awards, EPA will review and evaluate applications, proposals, and/or submissions 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. Contact the headquarters or regional office, as appropriate, for application deadlines. The Region expects that its review of the applications received will be completed within 120 to 150 calendar days following the deadline for the submission of applications for each Request for Proposals issued under this program. 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 requested by contacting the individual(s) listed as "Information Contacts." Disputes relating to matters other than the competitive selection of recipients will be resolved under 40 CFR 30.63 or 40 CFR 31.70, as applicable. Not Applicable. The evaluation and selection criteria for competitive awards under this program description will be published in the announcement of the competitive funding opportunity (e.g., the Request for Proposals or RFP). The Puget Sound restoration funds were appropriated by Congress in conjunction with the Clean Water Act for development and implementation of programs that will improve water quality, air quality, and minimize the adverse impacts of rapid development in the Puget Sound Basin, including activities linked to nonpoint pollution sources and habitat restoration work. Any public education, outreach or stewardship project receiving assistance under this program must contribute to or support the general implementation of the 2020 Action Agenda for Puget Sound.

Additional information on use restrictions, if any, for the Puget Sound Action Agenda Education, Outreach, and Stewardship Support Program, will be provided in each Request for Proposals issued under this program.

Assistance agreement awards under this program may involve or relate to geospatial information. Further information regarding geospatial information may be obtained by viewing the following website: http://geodata.epa.gov.

Grant recipients and sub-recipients are encouraged to adopt and enforce policies that ban text messaging while driving company-owned or -rented vehicles or government-owned vehicles, or while driving privately-owned vehicles when on official Government business or when performing any work for or on behalf of the Government. Grant recipients and sub-recipients are encouraged to conduct initiatives of the type described in section 3(a) of the Federal Leadership on Reducing Text Messaging While Driving Executive Order that was signed on October 1, 2009. No program reports are required. No cash reports are required. Progress report requirements will be a part of each assistance agreement. A schedule showing interim milestones and the outputs that will be completed by the end of the project period will also be included. Typical progress reports will discuss the progress that the assistance recipient has made on each major task and interim milestone identified in the approved statement of work. Progress reports will also discuss any difficulties or problems that the assistance recipient has encountered and how they have been or are being resolved. Other specific reporting requirements will be defined in the assistance agreement based on the statement of work described in the application. Expenditure reports will typically be required at the same intervals as progress reports. The expenditure reports will document expenditures to date, including expenditures of any matching funds, in a manner that allows the reader to confirm that matching requirements are being met and that all assistance payments (disbursements to the assistance recipient) are for costs that have been incurred in compliance with applicable cost principles. Recipients of this funding will be required to use EPA's Puget Sound Financial and Ecosystem Accounting Tracking System (FEATS), which is the primary mechanism for performance monitoring. Key grant outputs will be tracked on a semi-annual basis through FEATS, as well as progress towards project milestones and deliverables. FEATS provides linkages to EPA Puget Sound performance measures and Dashboard Indicators. FEATS allows award recipients to share challenges, solutions, lessons learned, and reflections associated with their work. In accordance with the provisions of OMB Circular No. A-133 (Revised, June 27, 2003), "Audits of States, Local Governments, and Non-Profit Organizations," nonfederal entities that expend financial assistance of $500,000 or more in Federal awards will have a single or a program-specific audit conducted for that year. Nonfederal entities that expend less than $500,000 a year in Federal awards are exempt from Federal audit requirements for that year, except as noted in Circular No. A-133. 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. Financial records, including all documents to support entries on accounting records and to substantiate charges to each grant must be kept available to personnel authorized to examine EPA grant accounts. All records must be maintained until the expiration of three years from the date of submission of the final expenditure report. If questions still remain, such as those raised by an audit, related records should be retained until the matter is completely resolved. This program has no statutory formula.
Matching Requirements: The Puget Sound Action Agenda Education, Outreach and Stewardship program has no statutory formula for allocating the funds. All of the grants will be for implementation projects under the Puget Sound Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP) under CWA §320(g)(2) and §320(g)(3)(ii). There is a statutory match of 50% of the total project costs for implementation project grants under CWA §320(g)(3)(ii) and CWA Section 320 allows for an aggregate match.

For the awards to be made under the competition conducted under this program, the Puget Sound Management Conference, represented by the Puget Sound Partnership, agreed to provide 67% of the 50% required non-federal match for successful project proposals for FFY 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013 under a cooperative agreement with EPA. Accordingly, in order to meet the match requirement for the competitive solicitations issued under this program, EPA Region 10 will require that all selected recipients provide a match amount that is equal to 33% of the 50% required match. Thus, for each proposal funded under this program, the required 50% match will be met. The match may be cash or in-kind consistent with the regulation governing match requirements (40 C.F.R. §31.24 or 40 C.F.R. §30.23, as applicable). The example below illustrates how this will work.

Match Example:

For an applicant requesting $600,000 in federal funds under a competition, the total match required would be $600,000. Under the competition, the applicant will be required to provide a match of $198,000, or 33% of the required 50% match. The remaining $402,000 ($600,000 - $198,000) of the required 50% match will be met at the aggregate level by the Puget Sound Partnership.

Contact the Puget Sound Partnership office or EPA Regional Office contact identified in this program description for more information.

Special Note: The EPA anticipates funding the award made under this program incrementally. Match requirements, and how they will be met, for the out-year increments (FFY 2011 and beyond) will be determined prior to awarding those increments. For a further description of incremental funding, please see the later sections on "Total Allocations", "Obligations" and "Range and Average of Financial Assistance.".
This program does not have MOE requirements. Region 10 has allocated approximately $2,000,000 for this program from the Agency's Federal Fiscal Year 2009 appropriations for award during Federal Fiscal Year 2010. Region 10 allocated an additional $1,000,000 from the Federal Fiscal Year 2010, 2011, 2012 appropriations and $989,215 from the 2013 appropriations for Puget Sound to this program to fully fund the program. Funds will be disbursed to the assistance recipient in accordance with the terms specified in the assistance agreement. See the following for information on how assistance is awarded/released: Assistance will be disbursed in accordance with the terms of the assistance agreement. Typically, assistance recipients draw funds at either monthly or quarterly intervals based on their incurred costs. See Regional Agency Offices. Angela Bonifaci, Team Leader
Puget Sound Team
Office of Ecosystems, Tribal and Public Affairs
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 10
1200 Sixth Avenue, Suite 900, ETPA-086
Seattle, WA 98101
(206) 553-0332
1-800 424-4EPA, extension 3-0332
E-mail: bonifaci.angela@epa.gov. Angela Bonifaci Puget Sound Team
Office of Ecosystems, Tribal and Public Affairs
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 10
1200 Sixth Avenue, Suite 900, ETPA-086
, Seattle, Washington 98101 Email: bonifaci.angela@epa.gov Phone: (206) 553-0332 http://www.epa.gov/pugetsound/funding/index.html 68-0108-0-1-304. (Cooperative Agreements) FY 13 $989,215; FY 14 est $0; and FY 15 est $0 - FFY2012 obligation was $1,000,000, and the obligation for FFY2013 was $989,215. The grant has been fully funded and no additional funds will be obligated. The EPA made an initial award of $2,000,000 under this program. The resulting assistance agreement included incremental funding of $1,000,000 per year for up to four additional years beyond the initial funding period. This agreement has been fully funded, and the end of the agreement is June 30, 2015. For grants and cooperative agreements with state agencies, Tribal governments and intertribal consortia, the recipient must comply with 40 C.F.R. Part 31 "Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Cooperative Agreements to State and Local Governments;" 40 C.F.R. Part 35 "Environmental Program Grants-State, Interstate and Local Government Agencies," and OMB Circular A-87 "Cost Principles for State and Local Governments" and A-102 "Grants and Cooperative Agreements for States and Local Governments."

OMB Circular A-87 has been codified at 2 C.F.R. Part 225. EPA's requirements under OMB Circular A-102 are codified at 40 C.F.R. Part 31.

For grants and cooperative agreements with institutions of higher education and non-profit organizations, the assistance recipient must comply with 40 C.F.R. Part 30, "Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Cooperative Agreements with Institutions of Higher Education, Hospitals and other Non-Profit Organizations," 40 C.F.R. Part 30 and OMB Circular No. A-110, "Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Other Agreements with Institutions of Higher Education, Hospitals and Other Non-Profit Organizations." OMB Circular A-110 is codified at 2 C.F.R. Part 215.

For grants and cooperative agreements with institutions of higher education, the assistance recipient must comply with OMB Circular A-21, codified at 2 C.F.R. 220, "Cost Principles for Educational Institutions."

For grants and cooperative agreements with non-profit organizations, the assistance recipient must comply with OMB Circular A-122, codified as 2 C.F.R. Part 230, "Cost Principles for Non-Profit Organizations."
Fiscal Year 2013: 38 Puget Sound school districts have adopted the Puget Sound K-12 curricula that the Pacific Education Institute has created through funds from the Partnership. This curriculum highlights the use of the Puget Sound as a science laboratory. 120 teachers implemented action projects in 200 classrooms with 5,611 students involved. Students have spent nearly 40,000 hours total on Puget Sound projects.


The Puget Sound Partnership has successfully reinstituted the Citizen Action Training School. This program will train and enable residents to effectively engage in public processes and to affect the system in productive ways. Over 100 citizens around Puget Sound will have a deeper understanding of the issues facing water quality and skills to tackle those issues at the local and regional level.


The Puget Sound Partnership has partnered with the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife to leverage additional for the Targeted Awareness grants, using lead organization funding for a project related to the Shoreline Management Program updates in Mason County and augment a project in San Juan County. The San Juan County project developed build-out maps to be used in their local Shoreline Management Program updates, and disseminated guides to this process.


Puget Sound Partnership Stewardship staff participated in the update of the State of the Sound report by providing some additional material, adaptive management models and updates specifically related to stewardship activities.


Evaluation strategies are used for the development of specific activity outcomes and indicators. Fiscal Year 2014: The Puget Sound Starts Here campaign Phase II has been implemented. The website for the campaign has been updated with different stories, videos, audio and pictures each month. Tribal perspectives have been integrated into the website material. Each year the month of May is designated as Puget Sound Starts Here month. An outreach toolkit for the partners is provided which includes overviews of the materials and how to use them. Multiple events are held throughout the region with the support of the local EcoNets.


The Network Analysis has been completed, which continues to inform the coalition development with with partners across the region.


A subawardee continues to grow its relationships with city and county jurisdictions and small businesses to reduce spills and implement prevention practices.


The Citizen Action Training School has been implemented in two sites. This program educates citizens about the public process as it relates to water quality, habitat, shoreline management, storm water, and other watershed and shoreline related issues. The participants are given tools to be effectively engaged by representatives, and online resources.


The Social Science Sub-Committee elevates the role of social science research in Puget Sound recovery. Spending priorities now include the social sciences. At the Salish Sea Conference, social science represented a larger portion of the workshops and sessions. Fiscal Year 2015: No Current Data Available