Biden Administration to Put $4.6 Billion toward State and Local Climate Plans DEADLINES February 1, 2024 and March 1, 2024

September 25, 2023

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by Rachel Frazin (The Hill) The Biden administration announced Wednesday that it will make $4.6 billion available to help states, localities and tribes implement their climate plans.

The funds represent the bulk of a $5 billion effort under the Inflation Reduction Act to help local and state governments cut their greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution.

The administration has already put an additional $250 million to help them develop the plans.

Biden administration officials told reporters that four states — Florida, Iowa, Kentucky and South Dakota — declined to participate; major metropolitan areas in those states did receive planning grants.

The $4.6 billion will be part of a grant competition. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said it plans to dole out 30 to 115 grants of between $2 million and $50 million in what it described as the “general competition.”

It will also award 25 to 100 grants of between $1 million and $25 million to tribes and territories. READ MORE

Biden-Harris Administration Unveils $4.6 Billion in Grants to Cut Climate Pollution as Part of Investing in America Agenda (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency)

$4.6B for climate action plan implementation available from EPA -- Measures that reduce greenhouse gas emissions the most will get priority in Environmental Protection Agency funding decisions. (Utility Dive)

One Community at a Time: How to Gain Real GHG Benefits Quickly for Least Cost -- Experiences with the Frederick County and City Climate Emergency Mobilization Work Group (Advanced Biofuels USA)

EPA Opens apps for $4.6B in Climate Grants for States, Municipalities, Tribes and Territories (FaegreDrinker/Biofuels Digest)

Excerpt from U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) launched a $4.6 billion competition to fund state, local, and Tribal programs and policies that cut climate pollution, advance environmental justice, and deploy clean energy solutions across the country. As part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, a key pillar of Bidenomics, EPA’s Climate Pollution Reduction Grants (CPRG) competition will enable community-driven solutions to the climate crisis, helping to accelerate America’s clean energy transition. The announcement comes during Climate Week 2023 in New York City – an annual gathering of civil society leaders, business leaders, students, and advocates who are committed to taking bold climate action.

The new competition is the second tranche of funding from EPA’s $5 billion Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program, which was created by President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act – the largest climate investment in history. EPA has already made $250 million available to fund the development of climate action plans, and nearly all states, plus major cities opted in to receive these flexible planning resources. The $4.6 billion implementation grant competition launched today will fund initiatives developed under the first phase of the program.

"These grants will enable states, tribes, and territories in our Pacific Southwest region to take bold new steps to reduce greenhouse gases and local air pollution,” said EPA Pacific Southwest Regional Administrator Martha Guzman. "We are proud to support ongoing efforts to reduce emissions, mitigate climate change impacts, advance environmental justice, and transition to a clean energy economy."

“EPA’s Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program recognizes that to tackle the climate crisis and advance environmental justice, communities need to be in the driver’s seat steering toward their own clean energy future,” said John Podesta, Senior Advisor to the President for Clean Energy Innovation and Implementation. “It’s why these state, local, and Tribal grants are such an important part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda.”

State and local action is vital to deliver on President Biden’s commitment to reduce climate pollution by 50-52% by 2030. The CPRG program will enable states and local and tribal governments to take aggressive action to combat climate change by funding measures that reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, especially measures that would bring economic and health benefits to low-income and disadvantaged communities. This program will reduce emissions of greenhouse gases and other harmful air pollution for the health and wellbeing of everyone, including those most vulnerable to the flooding, heat waves, wildfires, and other destabilizing impacts of climate change on communities.

The CPRG program will also advance President Biden’s Justice40 Initiative, which aims to ensure 40 percent of the overall benefits of certain climate, clean energy, and other Federal investments flow to disadvantaged communities that have been marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution. Justice40 is part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s historic commitment to environmental justice.

The Climate Pollution Reduction Grants Competition

EPA is announcing the availability of $4.6 billion across two implementation grant competitions, one general competition and one specifically for Tribes and territories. Under these competitions, eligible applicants will compete for CPRG implementation grants to fund measures in their state-, municipality-, Tribe-, or territory-specific climate action plans. As part of its evaluation of applications, EPA will prioritize measures that achieve the greatest amount of GHG emissions reductions.

In the grants competitions announced today, EPA describes how the agency intends to score applications and award the competitive funds to implementation grant recipients. EPA anticipates awarding approximately 30 to 115 grants ranging between $2 million and $500 million under the general competition. EPA also anticipates awarding approximately 25 to 100 grants ranging between $1 million and $25 million under the Tribes and territories competition.

The deadline to apply to the general competition is April 1, 2024. The deadline to apply to the Tribes and territories competition is May 1, 2024.

EPA estimates that the implementation grants will be awarded in Fall 2024 for the general competition and in Winter 2024-2025 for the Tribes and territories competition.

EPA has published the two official Notice of Funding Opportunities or NOFOs for these grants competitions on grants.gov.

General Competition NOFO

Tribes and Territories Competition NOFO

Webinars

EPA will hold two informational webinars about the general competition on September 21 at 2:30 pm and October 3 at 3:00 pm (same content for both), and two informational webinars about the Tribes and territories competition on September 27 at 2:00 pm and October 5 at 1:00 pm (same content for both). All times are Eastern Time. These 1-hour webinars will provide more detailed information on the implementation grants competitions. Recordings of the webinars will be posted to the Climate Pollution Reduction Grants webpage. READ MORE

Excerpt from FraegreDrinker/Biofuels Digest: Planning Grant Phase

EPA has provided — or is potentially providing — grants to:

46 states, [2] the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico; 79 metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs or municipalities); and 94 tribes and territories (together as coalition applicants and as individual applicants). [3]

Previously awarded planning grants are being used to develop Primary Climate Action Plans (PCAP) and Comprehensive Climate Action Plans (CCAP). The PCAP and CCAP are used to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in six key sectors of the economy:

1. Electricity generation;

2. Industry;

3. Transportation;

4. Buildings;

5. Agriculture/natural and working lands; and

6. Waste management.

PCAPs are due March 1, 2024, for states and MSAs, and April 1, 2024, for tribes and territories. CCAPs are due in mid-2025. Due to the timing of the PCAP and CCAP, only the PCAP will be used for developing applications for implementation grants, and only elements included in the PCAP will be funded as part of an implementation award.

Implementation Grant Phase

The implementation grant planning phase provides $4.6 billion divided between two different grant applications. The general grant competition is providing $4.3 billion and is available to all applicants. The tribes and territories grant competition provides $300 million to tribes and territories, although tribes and territories may apply to both grants. Unlike other grant programs, there are no cost-sharing or matching funds required for these grants.t

In addition, applicants can pair these grants with other available grant funds (e.g., Diesel Emission Reduction Act grants).

What Are the Key Dates?

Grant Competition

Notification of intent to apply (optional) February 1, 2024 March 1, 2024

Applications due April 1, 2024 May 1, 2024

Selection announcement (anticipated) July 2024 September 2024

Awards (anticipated) October 2024 December 2024

Who Can Apply?

The implementation grant phase is open to states (or MSAs within states that are applicants), municipalities, tribes and territories. However, Florida, Iowa, Kentucky and South Dakota did not participate in the PCAP phase and, as such, are ineligible for implementation grants, as are municipalities located within those states, unless they are within an MSA that did receive a PCAP grant. [4]

Applicants may apply individually and/or in a combined coalition. Applicants may receive multiple grants, but no grants may overlap the same geographical area. Therefore, if an applicant chooses to submit multiple implementation grant applications, they should ensure that they do not overlap geographically.

EPA has states for which this is intended to be the only round of funding, with no additional rounds. EPA does not plan on issuing more than two grants to applicants at the same level of government within a single jurisdiction (e.g., single state, municipality, tribal area or territory).

How Will Grants Be Evaluated?

For the general competition, EPA is providing grants from $2 million to $500 million, has divided the grant review into five tiers, and plans to select awardees within each of these tiers:

Tier A $200,000,000–$500,000,000, $2 billion 4–10 expected awards

Tier B $100,000,000–$199,999,999, $1.3 billion 6–13 expected awards

Tier C $50,000,000–$99,999,999, $0.6 billion 6–12 expected awards

Tier D $10,000,000–$49,999,999, $0.3 billion 6–30 expected awards

Tier E $2,000,000–$9,999,999 $0.1 billion 10–50 expected awards

For the tribes and territories competition, EPA is providing grants from $1 million to $25 million and divided the grant review as follows:

Tier Grant Ranges/ Funds Targeted for Each Tier / Anticipated Number of

Grants to Be Awarded

Tier A $15,000,000–$25,000,000, $125 million, 5–8

Tier B $5,000,000–$14,999,999, $100 million, 7–20

Tier C $1,000,000–$4,999,999, $75 million, 15–75

What Are the Requirements for Awardees?

Those applicants who win awards from EPA will be required to provide semi-annual progress reports and a detailed final report within 120 calendar days of completion of the period of performance.

Construction activities will be subject to prevailing wage requirements as determined by the U.S. Department of Labor under the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts authority. Additionally, CPRG implementation grants may be subject to the Build America, Buy America provisions of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.

F O O T N O T E S

1. 42 U.S.C. § 7437.

Florida, Iowa, Kentucky and South Dakota declined to participate in the planning grant phase; however,

municipalities within those states did participate in the planning grant phase.

2. All states, MSAs, tribes and territories who received an EPA planning grant can be found at cprg_planning_grant_award_status.pdf (epa.gov).

3. This also includes state agencies, departments or other executive branch–level offices in these states.

In addition, no MSAs are allowed to apply that are not covered by PCAPs developed by MSAs in the state.

4. The material contained in this communication is informational, general in nature and does not constitute legal advice. The material contained in this communication should not be relied upon or used without consulting a lawyer to consider your specific circumstances.

This communication was published on the date specified and may not include any changes in the topics, laws, rules or regulations covered. Receipt of this communication does not establish an attorney-client relationship. In some jurisdictions, this communication may be considered attorney advertising. READ MORE