![[logo] US EPA](http://www.epa.gov/epafiles/images/logo_epaseal.gif){kind=logo}
Environmental Finance Center (EFC) Grants Competition
This Competition Is Closed as of 4:30PM Eastern Daylight Time (EDT), July 15th, 2009.
These pages will provide current information for applicants and other parties interested in the EFC Grants competition process. The Center for Environmental Finance provides relevant documents and answers to all written grants competition questions on this Website, so check back often in order to stay informed.
SUMMARY: This notice announces the availability of funds and solicits applications from eligible entities for Environmental Finance Centers (EFCs) that provide multi-media environmental finance expertise and outreach to the regulated communities (e.g., states, tribes, local governments, and the private sector) to help them meet environmental requirements. The objective is to help the states, tribes, local governments, and private entities find effective and innovative ways to help address the growing costs of protecting public health and the environment in a sustainable manner. Under this program, EFC’s will be established across the nation to provide regulated parties with finance-related training, technical assistance, finance studies, and other analytical support (eligible services) to help them develop solutions to the critical "how-to-pay" issues associated with meeting environmental goals. The EFCs will educate regulated parties on lowering costs, increasing investments, improving financial capacity, encouraging full cost pricing, and identifying and evaluating financing options.
DATES: The closing date and time for receipt of applications pursuant to this notice is July 15, 2009 at 4:30 PM, Eastern Daylight Time (EDT). All hard copies of application packages must be received by the EPA contact, Timothy McProuty, by that date and time in order to be considered for funding. All electronic submissions of applications packages must be received via efcgrant@epa.gov by July 15, 2009 at 4:30 PM, Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) to be considered for funding. Applications of any type received after the closing date and time will not be considered for funding. See Section IV of the Request for Applicaton (below) for further submission information.
FUNDING/AWARDS: The total estimated funding available for awards under this competitive opportunity shall not exceed $24 million for the six-year period, FY 2010-2015. In FY 2010, total funding shall not exceed $4 million. EPA may award up to, or fewer than, ten cooperative agreements from this announcement, subject to the availability of funds and the quality of applications received.
The EFC Grant Program Request for Applications (RFA) (PDF) (21 pp, 202K) provides the full grant program notice including a description of the funding opportunity, award details, eligibility criteria, application and submission information, an explanation of the application review process, award administration information, and agency contacts.
EPA staff will not meet with individual applicants, however, EPA will respond to questions in writing from individual applicants regarding threshold eligibility criterion, administrative issues related to the submission of the application, and requests for clarification about the announcement. All questions and answers will be posted on the Questions and Answers page.
For reference purposes, this grants competition is based on the program listing found in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance: CFDA 66.203: Environmental Finance Center Grants.