20-03.pdf

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COVID-19 Update: EPA is providing flexibilities to applicants experiencing challenges related to COVID-19. Please see the Flexibilities Available to Organizations Impacted by COVID-19 clause in Section IV of EPA’s Solicitation Clauses available at https://www.epa.gov/grants/epa-solicitation-clauses.

OVERVIEW

AGENCY: ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (EPA)

TITLE: FY21 ENVIRONMENTAL WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT AND JOB

TRAINING (EWDJT) GRANTS

ACTION: Request for Applications (RFA)

RFA NO: EPA-OLEM-OBLR-20-03

CATALOG OF FEDERAL DOMESTIC ASSISTANCE (CFDA) NO.: 66.815

DATES: The closing date and time for receipt of applications is SEPTEMBER 22, 2020, 11:59 p.m. ET. Applications must be submitted electronically through www.grants.gov by 11:59 p.m.

ET on SEPTEMBER 22, 2020 to receive consideration. Applications received after 11:59 p.m.

ET on SEPTEMBER 22, 2020, will not be considered.

SUMMARY: This notice announces the availability of funds and solicits applications from eligible entities, including nonprofit organizations, to deliver Environmental Workforce

Development and Job Training programs that recruit, train, and place local, unemployed and under-employed residents with the skills needed to secure full-time employment in the environmental field.

While Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training Grants require training in brownfield assessment and/or cleanup activities, these grants also require that Hazardous Waste

Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER) training be provided to all individuals being trained. EPA encourages applicants to develop their curricula based on local labor market assessments and employers’ hiring needs, while also delivering comprehensive training that results in graduates securing multiple certifications.

For the purposes of these guidelines, the term “grant” refers to the cooperative agreement that

EPA will award to a successful applicant. Please refer to Section II.C for a description of EPA’s anticipated substantial involvement in the financial assistance agreements awarded under these guidelines.

NOTE: In addition, prior to naming a contractor or subrecipient in your proposal, please carefully review the “Contracts and Subawards” solicitation clause which can be found by following the link in Section VI.D of these guidelines. EPA also urges applicants to review the

Frequently Asked Questions, which can be found at https://www.epa.gov/brownfields/frequently-asked-questions-about-environmental-workforce-development-and-job-training.

https://www.epa.gov/grants/epa-solicitation-clauses https://www.epa.gov/grants/epa-solicitation-clauses https://www.grants.gov/ https://www.epa.gov/brownfields/frequently-asked-questions-about-environmental-workforce-development-and-job-training https://www.epa.gov/brownfields/frequently-asked-questions-about-environmental-workforce-development-and-job-training ii

FUNDING/AWARDS: The total funding available under this competitive opportunity for FY

21 is approximately $3,000,000, subject to availability of funds, quality of applications received, and other applicable considerations. EPA anticipates awarding approximately 15 Environmental

Workforce Development and Job Training grants at amounts up to $200,000 per award. Please note, applicants cannot submit multiple applications under this solicitation.

CONTENTS BY SECTION

SECTION I – FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION page 1

I.A. Description of Grant

I.B. Use of Grant Funds

I.C. Eligible Uses of Grant Funds

I.D. Ineligible Uses of Grant Funds

I.E. EPA Strategic Plan Linkage

I.F. Measuring Environmental Results: Anticipated Outputs/Outcomes

I.G. Supplementary Information

SECTION II – AWARD INFORMATION page 9

II.A. What is the Amount of Available Funding?

II.B. What is the Project Period for Award(s) Resulting from this Solicitation?

II.C. Substantial Involvement

SECTION III – APPLICANT ELIGIBILITY & THRESHOLD CRITERIA page 11

III.A. Who Can Apply?

III.B. Voluntary Cost Share/Leveraging

III.C. Threshold Eligibility Criteria

1. Applicant Eligibility

2. Demonstration that Proposed Project Does Not Duplicate Other

Federally Funded Environmental Job Training Programs

3. Required HAZWOPER Training

4. Federal Funds Requested/Funding Amount

5. Substantial Conformity with Instructions and Format Requirements

6. Training Curriculum Chart Indicating the Cost of Each Course

7. Plans for Delivering Trainings

8. Target Area

9. Previous Funding Requirement

SECTION IV – APPLICATION SUBMISSION INFORMATION page 15

IV.A. How to Obtain an Application Package

IV.B. Due Date and Submission Instructions

IV.C. Content and Form of Application Submission

1. Application Content

2. Cover Letter

3. Narrative/Ranking Criteria

1.Community Need

2.Training Program Description

3. Budget

4. Program Structure, Anticipated Outputs and Outcomes iii

5.Community and Employer Partnerships

6. Leveraging

7.Programmatic Capability

4. Attachments

IV.D. Additional Provisions for Applicants Incorporated into the Solicitation

SECTION V – APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION page 27

V.A. Evaluation Criteria

V.B. Other Factors

V.C. Review and Selection Process

V.D. Additional Provisions for Applicants Incorporated into the Solicitation

SECTION VI – AWARD ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION page 35

VI.A. Award Notices

VI.B. Administrative and National Policy Requirements

VI.C. Reporting Requirements

VI.D. Additional Provisions for Applicants Incorporated into the Solicitation

VI.E. Programmatic Requirements

VI.F. Disputes

SECTION VII – AGENCY CONTACTS page 37

APPENDIX 1 – Prohibitions on Use of Funds page 39

APPENDIX 2 – Grants.gov Application Submission Instructions page 41

APPENDIX 3 – Other Factors Checklist page 46

SECTION I – FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION

This funding opportunity is made available through EPA’s Office of Brownfields and Land

Revitalization (OBLR), and supported by other program offices including the Office of Resource

Conservation and Recovery (ORCR), Office of Superfund Remediation and Technology

Innovation (OSRTI), Office of Communications, Policy, and Analysis (OCPA), Office of Water

(OW), Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP), and the Office of

Emergency Management (OEM). As a result, the Environmental Workforce Development and

Job Training (EWDJT) Program allows applicants to deliver an array of training in the environmental field, in addition to the traditional brownfields hazardous substance and petroleum cleanup training historically provided.

Through the EWDJT Program, graduates develop skill sets that improve their ability to secure full-time, sustainable employment in various aspects of hazardous and solid waste management and within the larger environmental field, including sustainable cleanup and reuse, water quality improvement, and chemical safety.

I.A. Description of Grant

A critical part of EPA’s EWDJT program is to further environmental justice by ensuring that residents living in communities historically affected by economic disinvestment, health disparities, and environmental contamination, including low-income, minority, and tribal communities, have an opportunity to reap the benefits of revitalization and environmental cleanup. Through the link to on-the-ground assessment and cleanup activities, Environmental

Workforce Development and Job Training Grants provide funding to train unemployed and under-employed residents of communities impacted by a variety of waste facilities, blighted properties, contaminated sites. Training programs funded by the EWDJT program provide program graduates with the opportunity to seek and obtain environmental jobs that contractors may otherwise fill from outside the affected community.

EWDJT Grants help residents take advantage of the jobs across a spectrum of environmental management activities, including the assessment, cleanup, and revitalization of brownfields;

management and cleanup of solid and hazardous waste management sites; chemical risk management; water quality improvement; stormwater management; low impact development activities; green infrastructure installation and maintenance; vulnerability assessment and mitigation planning; disaster recovery and debris management; and renewable energy installation and maintenance. Applications for grants under the EWDJT program may be reviewed more favorably under the Section V evaluation criteria if they target unemployed individuals, dislocated workers, individuals laid off as a result of recent manufacturing plant closures, and severely under-employed individuals, or unemployed individuals. Applications may also be reviewed more favorably under the criteria if they target low-income and minority residents of environmentally impacted communities, veterans, and individuals with little to no advanced education. Applicants must identify the target area that they intend to serve. A target area can be any area (e.g., county, city, neighborhood, watershed, etc.) that is impacted by the presence of one or more brownfield sites. EPA will consider applications that propose to serve large geographical areas, especially rural communities that include a number of towns, as well as applicants able to serve sister-cities.

As part of the training program description section of applications as discussed in Section IV.C, applicants must include 2 separate plans with their application: 1. how you propose to deliver

EWDJT trainings in person under normal circumstances and 2. how you propose to deliver the

EWDJT trainings if in-person training (as proposed under plan 1) is not possible due to impacts related to COVID-19 (e.g., under quarantine situations, if social distancing is required in your locale). Plan 2 training may include implementing training techniques such as switching class format to online only or reducing the number of students in each cohort to allow students to be located six feet apart from each other. Note: THESE PLANS ARE IN ADDITION TO THE

TRAINING PROGRAM TABLE described in Section IV.C. Both training plans should include information such as: how you will structure your training program, what classroom format(s) you propose to use (e.g., reducing class sizes, switching to online format such as Zoom, Skype, another online format); how students will have access to the classroom format; how long you are proposing to use the classroom format(s) (e.g., the entire duration of the cohort, or only a brief time until in-person meetings can resume again); and what advisories you will be following regarding opening/closings of in-person meetings (e.g., state, county or city government advisories, university/college established procedures, etc.) If both of your plans contain similar items or one plan can be used for both situations, you must still provide a separate description of each plan outlining how the trainings will be held under both a COVID-19 situation and a non-pandemic situation. For example, if during normal times the proposed class size is 8, and during a social distancing period the class size also will be 8, you must still provide two separate plans, even though they contain the same information. A statement that the plan will apply to both normal times and under social distancing will NOT be accepted.

Applicants will be evaluated, among other factors as listed in Section V, on the extent to which they partner with, and secure hiring commitments from local contractors and other stakeholders where EPA-funded projects are located. Such projects may include brownfields, Superfund sites, solid and hazardous waste management facilities, landfills, oil spill sites, recent disaster areas, wastewater treatment facilities, or EPA-funded state or tribal corrective actions, closures at solid or hazardous waste facilities, or landfills are located. Applicants should make efforts to link graduates of EWDJT programs with environmental employment that involves preventing, assessing, managing, and cleaning up contaminated sites or working in environmental areas in the graduates’ respective communities. Proposed training should be directly linked to ongoing environmental employment opportunities taking place in the respective community.

To date, EPA has funded 335 job training grants totaling approximately $72 million through the

EWDJT Program. As of May 2020, approximately 18,700 individuals have completed training, and over 13,500 of those graduates obtained employment in the environmental field, earning average starting wages of over $14 per hour. This equates to a cumulative placement rate of approximately 74% since the program was created in 1998.

I.B. Use of Grant Funds

In addition to brownfields assessment and cleanup training, as well as training in the areas of sustainability and equitable development, applicants may choose to deliver a variety of other environmental training activities as listed below. Applicants may tailor curricula to the labor market needs of their targeted community. The only required training is OSHA 29 CFR

1910.120 40-hour HAZWOPER. Beyond this, the applicant can design a curriculum of eligible courses that meets the training needs identified by a local labor market assessment and/or employer survey.

Applicants have the option to deliver any of the training listed below, in addition to the brownfields assessment and cleanup training as described in Section I.C, at awareness, intermediate, or advanced levels. The funding levels for these subject areas vary. Applicants are encouraged to review the available funding amounts, in Section II.A, when developing their curriculum. While advanced courses can be funded, please keep in mind that if those advanced courses fall within a category with limited funds, EPA may not be able to fund the course in its entirety, depending upon the amount of funding EPA has for particular types of training activities.

• Solid waste management or cleanup training, such as integrated solid waste management, including, but not limited to, household and industrial recycling management and operations; collection; operators of material recovery facility and/or recycling centers;

electronics and household hazardous waste collection and recycling program operators;

construction and demolition debris, collection and recycling management; recycling center operators; training associated with solid and hazardous waste facility corrective action, landfill closures and capping activities; and waste minimization efforts.

• Superfund site cleanup and innovative and alternative treatment technologies training, “green remediation” technologies, such as phytoremediation, bioremediation, or soil amendments; advanced sampling instrument operator training; or training in the reuse of biosolids and other industry residuals.

• Wastewater treatment training, such as wastewater treatment facility operations (treatment, collection, storage, and disposal) training, decentralized wastewater treatment systems maintenance, or other related wastewater management topics. Please note that EPA will use brownfields (CERCLA 104(k)(7)) funds on grant awards where applicants propose to deliver stormwater management; green infrastructure installation, management, and maintenance; or low impact development (LID) training.

• Emergency planning, preparedness, and response training, such as training for conducting hazards analysis on the chemical facility risks in the community; developing local emergency response plans; organizing and implementing exercises; outreach to the public;

spill response and cleanup, including industrial and environmental (e.g., oil spills, natural disasters, etc.); first responder, disaster site worker certification, and National Incident

Management System (NIMS) training; Disaster Recovery.

• Enhanced environmental health and safety training, such as promoting chemical

(substance, mixture, or article) safety awareness and stewardship; safe work practices

(including an overview of the content of material safety datasheets (MSDS), information on exposure guideline limits (Occupational Exposure Limits and Recommended Exposure

Limits), information contained within the NIOSH pocket guide to chemical hazards, or the

OSHA/EPA Occupational Chemical Database); chemical inventories; inspection and proper chemical storage; engineering controls, such as well-designed ventilation to promote air exchange; use of correct personal protective equipment, including respiratory protection, gloves, goggles, or coveralls; isolation of work areas; safe storage and handling of chemicals; promoting sanitation and hygiene; prevention of spills; universal hazard communication; green chemistry; medical waste handling and disposal; and training in an overview of any existing chemical-specific worker training and certification programs, including but not limited to: lead abatement; lead renovation, repair, and painting (RRP);

asbestos; diisocyanates (auto-refinishing and spray polyurethane foam); pesticide worker protection standards; PFCs; PBDEs/HBCD; and others.

• Energy efficiency, and alternative energy technologies, such as training in energy efficient new buildings and retrofitting technologies, energy assessment and insulation and sealing the installation of solar, wind, or geothermal power systems or alternative fuels (e.g., biofuels), including preparing sites for renewable energy installation

I.C. Eligible Uses of Grant Funds

Grant funds must be used for direct programmatic costs associated with implementing an

EWDJT program. Examples of eligible uses of grant funds are listed below. Please note that this list is intended to be illustrative and applicants may apply for funding for other types of related environmental training consistent with the statutory authority for this RFA (see Section I.G.).

Applicants must indicate the types of training they propose to deliver in their training program description.

• Personnel costs for instructors to conduct training, fringe benefits, and/or personnel costs for tasks associated with programmatic reporting requirements.

• Costs for screening and placement of individuals in the training program.

• Costs for training materials and work gear associated with the training curriculum.

• Development and refinement of existing curricula for training.

• Implementing job development outreach activities directed toward engaging prospective employers to be involved in the job training program and to hire graduates.

• Training in the assessment, inventory, analysis, and remediation of sites or facilities at which hazardous substances, pollutants, contaminants, and petroleum products are located, transported, or disposed, including training for jobs in environmental sampling, demolition, underground storage tank removal, groundwater extraction, site remediation, and equitable development associated with brownfields.

• Training participants in the use of techniques and methods for cleanup of hazardous substances, petroleum, and pollutants, such as asbestos abatement; lead abatement; lead renovation, repair, and painting (RRP); mold remediation; and cleaning up sites contaminated by the manufacturing of illegal drugs (e.g., methamphetamine labs), abandoned gas stations, or mine-scarred lands.

• Training in confined space entry.

• Training in first-aid, cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), and blood-borne pathogens.

• Training in chemistry, toxicology, and geology to the extent necessary to inventory, assess, remediate, and clean up contaminated sites.

• Training in the requirements and implementation of the All Appropriate Inquiries (AAI)

Final Rule, as required in CERCLA Section 101(35)(B), and due diligence.1

• Training in radiation safety and the cleanup of uranium mine tailings.

• Training in HAZMAT, commercial driver’s license (CDL), forklift, and machine operations associated with the transportation of hazardous waste.

• Training in Freon removal or the removal of hazardous substances from white goods.

• Training in weatherization; Building Performance Institute (BPI) training; energy efficiency retrofitting; heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC); and energy auditing.

• Training in the use of compost and soil amendments and associated sampling, testing, and design considerations, and management techniques to support the assessment and cleanup of sites for urban agriculture and horticulture.

• Training participants in planning and conducting ecological restoration of contaminated land, including general botanical classes or introductory horticultural classes related to land and stream restoration or indigenous species and native plant re-vegetation; landscaping;

and soil science.

• Training in adaptation or resiliency,

• Training in the various certifications of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design

(LEED), and Green Infrastructure and Stormwater Management; and Erosion and

Sediment Control.

• Training in building trades related to constructing berms, caps, synthetic barriers, pumping facilities, bioretention systems, and similar structures to remediate contamination or stormwater pollution.

• Training in national historic preservation and tribal historic preservation regulations associated with cleanup projects.

• Training in vapor intrusion testing and mitigation.

• Training in site surveying, mapping, blueprint reading, computer-aided design and drafting

(CADD), and geographic information systems (GIS).

• On-the-job training insurance for trainees.

1 Due diligence is the process for evaluating a property for the potential presence of environmental contamination, and for assessing potential liability for any contamination present at the property.

• Costs associated with health exams (e.g., pulmonary function tests), drug testing, or licensing fees directly related to the training and/or the placement of graduates in environmental work.

• Costs used to cover rental fees associated with training facilities or minor alteration of existing facilities. (Construction costs are not allowable.)

• Costs associated with eligible participant support costs, including transportation for trainees for site visits during training or to transport trainees to and from class.

I.D. Ineligible Uses of Grant Funds

Examples of ineligible uses of grant funds are listed below. Please note that this list is intended to be illustrative and is not all inclusive. Grant funds may not be used for the following activities:

• Training in general construction skills and trades (e.g., carpentry, plumbing, electricity, etc.).

• Training in natural resource extraction or related processes, such as hydraulic fracturing, oil refinery, or mining operations.

• Conducting actual site assessments or cleanups, except within the context of on-the-job training.

• Conducting response activities often associated with cleanups (e.g., landscaping, demolition, and groundwater extraction), except within the context of on-the-job training assignments. Assessment, cleanup, and associated activity costs must be funded through other means.

• General or life skills education activities, such as remedial classes in math and reading;

job readiness training, such as developing resumes and acquiring interview skills; GED costs; website development; vehicle or medical insurance; or childcare and daycare costs.

• Stipends for students, including on-the-job training costs, or scholarship funds to support students’ enrollment in college courses. As noted above, stipends for student transportation expenses are eligible.

• Membership fees, such as fees required to join placement service organizations or environmental organizations.

• Providing food or light refreshments to employees, instructors, and trainees - except at graduation ceremonies.

• Training that seeks to test a product or is intended to expand a business, including training that seeks to expand construction and demolition debris recycling businesses for example, or training that is intended to only serve staff of an existing business who are already employed with that business.

• Training in firefighting, including wildfire firefighting, unless the training is a component of environmental disaster response training.

• Costs that are unallowable (e.g., lobbying and alcoholic beverages) under Cost Principals

2 CFR 200 and 1500, as applicable.

• Matching any other federal funds (unless there is specific statutory authority for the match). None of the statutory authorities listed above provide this authority. Grant funds may be used to match state or local funds, if authorized by the relevant state statute or local ordinance.

• Construction or substantial rehabilitation of buildings or other facilities to house training.

• Foreign travel.

• Application preparation costs.

• Administrative costs, including all indirect costs and direct costs for grant administration in excess of five (5) percent of the total amount of EPA grant funding, with the exception of financial and performance reporting costs (which are considered allowable programmatic costs and not subject to the 5% limitation). (Refer to Appendix 1:

Prohibitions on Use of Funds.)

See https://www.epa.gov/brownfields for additional information on ineligible grant activities.

I.E. EPA Strategic Plan Linkage

EPA’s Strategic Plan is available at https://www.epa.gov/planandbudget/fy-2018-2022-epa-strategic-plan. The activities to be funded under this announcement support EPA’s FY 2018-

2022 Strategic Plan and EPAs current priorities for cleaning up brownfields and other contaminated sites and returning land back to communities. Awards made under this announcement will support Goal 1 – A Cleaner, Healthier Environment, Objective 3 – Revitalize

Land and Prevent Contamination of EPA’s Strategic Plan. All applications must be for projects that support the goal and objective. Applicants must explain in their application how their project will further these current priorities.

I.F. Measuring Environmental Results: Anticipated Outputs/Outcomes

Pursuant to EPA Order 5700.7A1, “Environmental Results under EPA Assistance Agreements,”

EPA requires that all grant applicants and recipients adequately address environmental outputs and outcomes.

EPA must report on the success of its Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training

Program through measurable outputs and outcomes, such as the number of individuals recruited, trained, certified, and placed directly in environmental careers, as well as average hourly starting wage. Applicants must discuss in their applications how funding will achieve environmental outputs and outcomes. Outputs specific to each project will be identified as deliverables in the https://www.epa.gov/brownfields https://www.epa.gov/planandbudget/fy-2018-2022-epa-strategic-plan https://www.epa.gov/planandbudget/fy-2018-2022-epa-strategic-plan https://www.epa.gov/planandbudget/fy-2018-2022-epa-strategic-plan https://www.epa.gov/planandbudget/fy-2018-2022-epa-strategic-plan https://www.epa.gov/planandbudget/fy-2018-2022-epa-strategic-plan https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2015-03/documents/epa_order_5700_7a1.pdf workplan negotiated if the application is selected for award. Recipients will be expected to report progress toward the attainment of project outputs during the project performance period.

Outputs and outcomes are defined as follows:

1. Outputs: The term “output” refers to an environmental activity, effort, and/or associated work product related to an environmental goal or objective that will be produced or provided over a period of time or by a specified date. Outputs may be quantitative or qualitative but must be measurable during the project period. The expected outputs for the grants awarded under these guidelines may include but are not limited to:

▪ Number of individuals recruited, trained, certified, and placed in environmental careers in communities impacted by solid and hazardous waste sites and facilities. Each grant award is anticipated to result in at least 50 individuals completing training, with a minimum job placement rate of 70%. These target numbers are approximations and will vary by recipient depending on the comprehensiveness of a curriculum and where the recipient is located (urban versus rural locations where a larger number of individuals may be more easily recruited than locations where recruitment may be more challenging as a result of smaller populations).

▪ Number of classroom style trainings, practical trainings, and curricula modules.

▪ Number of appropriate certifications in environmental sampling and site cleanup methods.

▪ Number of certifications in OSHA 29 CFR 1910.120 40-hour HAZWOPER training.

2. Outcomes: The term “outcome” refers to the result, effect, or consequence that will occur from carrying out the activities under the grant Outcomes may be environmental, behavioral, health-related, or programmatic; must be qualitative or quantitative; and may not necessarily be achievable during the project period. EPA anticipates the outcomes from the projects awarded under this announcement may be an increase in the capacity of governmental entities and nonprofit organizations to:

▪ Help residents of communities take advantage of jobs created by the assessment and cleanup of brownfields and the assessment, cleanup, and management of solid and hazardous waste sites and facilities while addressing environmental justice concerns.

▪ Provide training that leads to sustainable employment in the environmental field.

▪ Improve community involvement and stimulate the development of constructive partnerships.

▪ Reduce chemical exposures and improve the health of workers, occupants, and residents.

▪ Foster self-sufficiency and enhance the skills and availability of labor for environmental remediation in environmental justice and other communities impacted by environmental contamination.

▪ Enable residents to participate in the promotion of environmental health and occupational safety, both on the job and in their communities.

I.G. Supplementary Information

The statutory authorities for assistance agreements expected to be awarded by EPA under this announcement are listed below.

1. Section 104(k)(7) of CERCLA-State and Tribal Assistance Grants (STAG) appropriations

(hazardous substances and petroleum)

2. Section 311(b)(3) of CERCLA-Superfund appropriations

3. Section 104(b) of the Clean Water Act

4. Section 8001 of the Solid Waste Disposal Act-Environmental Programs and Management

(EPM) appropriations

5. Section 10 of Toxic Substances Control Act-Environmental Programs and Management

(EPM) appropriations

SECTION II – AWARD INFORMATION

II.A. What is the Amount of Available Funding?

The total funding available under this competitive opportunity is approximately $3,000,000, subject to availability of funds, quality of applications received, and other applicable considerations for FY21. EPA anticipates awarding approximately 15 environmental workforce development and job training grants. Applicants may apply for up to $200,000 of EPA funds.

Of the total $3,000,000 available, EPA estimates, based on previous grant cycles, that the following funding amounts will be available to support the various types of training either at the awareness or advanced level, with the overwhelming majority of funding being used to support brownfields assessment, cleanup, and hazardous substance related training. Applicants must take these estimates into account when preparing their applications and deciding what type of training to propose.

• Brownfields hazardous substance assessment and cleanup training, including petroleum cleanup training: $2,880,000

• Solid Waste Management or Cleanup training: $15,000

• Superfund site cleanup and innovative and alternative treatment technologies training:

$25,000

• Wastewater treatment training: $10,000

• Emergency planning, preparedness, and response training: $20,000

• Enhanced environmental health and safety training: $15,000

• Alternative energy technologies (e.g., solar installation training, training in the preparation of formerly contaminated sites for renewable energy purposes, etc.): $15,000

• Underground Storage Tanks: $20,000

Please note that applicants are required to provide cost estimates for each training course identified in their proposed training curriculum. Applicants must also indicate what percentage of their total grant funds are being designated to support each training course. Based on the funding amounts listed above, EPA may only be able to fund a limited amount of advanced level courses in subject areas beyond brownfields hazardous substance assessment and cleanup training. Depending on the quality of applications received and what level of training is proposed, EPA may be able to fund multiple applications that seek to deliver awareness and/or intermediate level training in the categories listed above. Based on the limited amounts of funding to support certain types of training, EPA may not be able to fund all training courses proposed by an applicant. Applicants should take this into consideration when they decide what types of training they propose to offer and at what level it will be delivered.

Applicants will not have the ability to materially revise their application, and will not be permitted to substitute, or alter their training curricula if the application is selected for funding and certain types of training are unable to be funded.

EPA reserves the right to make additional awards under this competition, consistent with Agency policy, if additional funding becomes available. Any additional selections for awards will be made no later than six months from the date of the original selection decision. EPA reserves the right to reject all applications and make no awards under this announcement or make fewer awards than anticipated.

In appropriate circumstances, EPA reserves the right to partially fund applications by funding discrete portions, types of training, or phases of proposed projects. To maintain the integrity of the competition and selection process, EPA, if it decides to partially fund an application, will do so in a manner that does not prejudice any applicants or affect the basis upon which the application, or portion thereof, was evaluated and selected for award.

Awards may be fully or incrementally funded, as appropriate, based on funding availability, satisfactory performance, and other applicable considerations.

II.B. What is the Project Period for Award(s) Resulting from this Solicitation?

The project period for Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training Grants is three

(3) years. Training is anticipated to conclude by the end of the second year, with the third year of the project period devoted to the placement of remaining graduates in employment and reporting accomplishments data to EPA.

II.C. Substantial Involvement

The Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training Grant will be awarded in the form of a cooperative agreement. Cooperative agreements permit EPA’s Project Officers to be substantially involved in overseeing the work performed by the selected recipients. Although

EPA will negotiate precise terms and conditions relating to substantial involvement as part of the award process, the anticipated substantial federal involvement for this project may include:

• Close monitoring of the recipient’s performance to verify the results.

• Collaborating during performance of the scope of work.

• In accordance with 2 CFR 200.317 and 2 CFR 200.318, as appropriate, review of proposed procurements.

• Reviewing qualifications of key personnel. (EPA will not select employees or contractors employed by the award recipient).

• Reviewing and commenting on reports prepared under the cooperative agreement. (The final decision on the content of reports rests with the recipient.)

• Reviewing outputs and outcomes to ensure substantial progress is made in accordance with the cooperative agreement terms and conditions.

• Approval of project phases, such as curriculum development, prior to the implementation of training.

SECTION III – APPLICANT ELIGIBILITY & THRESHOLD CRITERIA

III.A. Who Can Apply?

In accordance with CFDA 66.815, the following entities are eligible to apply for an

Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training Grant:

• General Purpose Unit of Local Government (as defined under 2 CFR 200.64).

• Land Clearance Authority or other quasi-governmental entity that operates under the supervision and control of, or as an agent of, a general purpose unit of local government.

• Government entity created by State Legislature.

• Regional Council or group of General Purpose Units of Local Government.

• Redevelopment Agency that is chartered or otherwise sanctioned by a State.

• State.

• Indian Tribe other than in Alaska. (The exclusion of Alaskan tribes from grant eligibility is statutory at CERCLA §104(k)(1)). Intertribal Consortia are eligible for funding in accordance with EPA’s policy for funding intertribal consortia published in the Federal

Register on November 4, 2002, at 67 Fed. Reg. 67181. (This policy also may be obtained from your EPA Regional Job Training Coordinator listed)

• Alaskan Native Regional Corporation, Alaska Native Village Corporation and the

Metlakatla Indian Community. (Alaskan Native Regional Corporation and Alaska Native

Village Corporation as those terms are defined in the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act

(43 U.S.C. 1601 and following).)

• Nonprofit organizations. For purposes of this grant program, the term “nonprofit organization” means any corporation, trust, association, cooperative, or other organization that is operated mainly for scientific, educational, service, charitable, or similar purpose in the public interest; is not organized primarily for profit; and uses net proceeds to maintain, improve, or expand the operation of the organization. Workforce Investment Boards and organized Labor Unions that meet these criteria may be eligible nonprofit organizations.

Public and nonprofit private educational institutions are eligible to apply. However, nonprofit organizations described in Section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code that engage in lobbying activities as defined in Section 3 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of

1995 are not eligible to apply. For-profit or proprietary training organizations or trade schools are not eligible to apply.

III.B. Voluntary Cost Share/Leveraging

Cost sharing and matching funds are not required under this competition. Although cost-sharing or matching is not required as a condition of eligibility under this competition , EPA will evaluate responses to the Leveraging criterion (Section IV.C.3.7.). Leveraging is when an applicant proposes to provide its own additional funds/resources or those from third-party sources to support or complement the project awarded under the competition that are above and beyond EPA grant funds awarded. Any leveraged funds/resources, and their source, must be identified in the application. Leveraged funds and resources may take various forms as noted below.

Voluntary cost share is a form of leveraging. Voluntary cost sharing is when an applicant voluntarily proposes to legally commit to provide costs or contributions to support the project when a cost share is not required. Applicants who propose to use a voluntary cost share must include the costs or contributions for the voluntary cost share in the project budget on the SF-

424. If an applicant proposes a voluntary cost share, the following apply:

• A voluntary cost share is subject to the match provisions in the grant regulations (2 CFR

200.306, as applicable).

• A voluntary cost share may only be met with eligible and allowable costs.

• The recipient may not use other sources of federal funds to meet a voluntary cost share unless the statute authorizing the other federal funding provides that the federal funds may be used to meet a cost share requirement on a federal grant.

• The recipient is legally obligated to meet any proposed voluntary cost share that is included in the approved project budget. If the proposed voluntary cost share does not materialize during grant performance, then EPA may reconsider the legitimacy of the award and/or take other appropriate action as authorized by 2 CFR 200.338.

Other leveraged funding/resources that are not identified as a voluntary cost share. This form of leveraging may be met by funding from another federal grant, from an applicant's own resources, or resources from other third-party sources. This form of leveraging should be discussed in the application but should not be included in the budget narrative or table. Costs covered by this form of leveraging need not be eligible and allowable project costs under the

EPA cooperative agreement. While this form of leveraging should not be included in the budget, if selected, the grant workplan should include a statement indicating that the applicant is expected to produce the proposed leveraging consistent with the terms of the announcement and the applicant's application. If applicants propose to provide this form of leveraging, EPA expects them to make the effort to secure the leveraged resources described in their applications. If the proposed leveraging does not materialize during grant performance, then EPA may reconsider the legitimacy of the award and/or take other appropriate action as authorized by 2 CFR Parts

200 or 1500.

III.C. Threshold Eligibility Criteria

This section contains the threshold eligibility criteria that ensure applicants are eligible to receive EWDJT Grants. Threshold criteria are evaluated on a pass or fail basis. Only those applications that specifically address and pass each of the nine threshold criteria listed below will be evaluated against the ranking criteria in Section V.A. of this announcement.

Applicants deemed ineligible for funding consideration as a result of failing threshold eligibility review will be notified within 15 calendar days of the ineligibility determination.

For purposes of the threshold eligibility review, EPA may seek clarification of applicant information. Applicants that simply fail to address a threshold criterion may not be provided an opportunity to respond or submit clarifying information so as not to provide an applicant an unfair competitive advantage or to provide the appearance of an unfair competitive advantage over applicants who submit complete applications. The applicant’s responses to the threshold criteria must be included in the cover letter submitted to EPA or the application will be rejected.

Ineligible costs/activities: If an application is submitted that includes any ineligible tasks or activities, that portion of the application will be ineligible for funding and may, depending on the extent to which it affects the application, render the entire application ineligible for funding.

1. Applicant Eligibility

Describe how you are an eligible applicant as described in Section III.A. For entities other than cities, counties, tribes, or states, please attach documentation of your eligibility, such as nonprofit status, resolutions, or statutes.

2. Demonstration that Proposed Project Does Not Duplicate Other Federally Funded

Environmental Job Training Programs

Demonstrate that the proposed training project does not duplicate other federally funded programs for environmental job training in your target community, including training provided through EPA’s Superfund Job Training Initiative (SuperJTI); EPA’s

Environmental Justice Small Grants Program CFDA 66.604; and EPA’s Surveys, Studies, Investigations, Training, and Special Purpose Activities Relating to Environmental Justice

Grants Program CFDA 66.309. Applicants must demonstrate that the proposed training project does not duplicate National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)

Hazardous Waste Worker Training programs in their target community or Department of

Labor (DOL) grant funds that include brownfields remediation, renewable energy, HVAC, or other energy-related training or wastewater treatment technology operator training.

Federal agencies maintain lists of these grant programs at the following websites:

EPA: www.epa.gov/superfund/superfund-job-training-initiative www.epa.gov/environmentaljustice

NIEHS: www.niehs.nih.gov/careers/hazmat/about_wetp/ecwtp/index.cfm

DOL: www.dol.gov/ocia/grants.htm

If you are listed on any of these websites as a recipient, you must demonstrate how services under this proposed project will complement, but not duplicate, the existing federal environmental job training activities (i.e., different target audience, such as a different age group, differing types of certification training).

If you are not listed on the above websites but are the recipient of other federally funded environmental or “green job” training programs serving your area or community(ies), you must similarly demonstrate how services under this proposed project will complement, but not duplicate, the existing federal environmental job training activities. These other programs may include funding provided by Housing and Urban Development (HUD), https://www.epa.gov/superfund/superfund-job-training-initiative https://www.epa.gov/environmentaljustice/environmental-justice-grants-and-resources https://www.niehs.nih.gov/careers/hazmat/about_wetp/ecwtp/index.cfm https://www.dol.gov/ocia/grants.htm

Department of Energy (DOE), Health and Human Services (HHS), and other federal agencies. EPA may also conduct internal screening to ensure demonstration of non-duplication and will coordinate duplication screening with federal partners.

If your proposed target community is not a recipient of any federally funded environmental or “green job” training programs, a statement to this effect must be included in the threshold criteria section of your cover letter.

3. Required HAZWOPER Training

Your application must include OSHA 29 CFR 1910.120 40-hour Hazardous Waste

Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER) training and be provided to all trainees in the proposed program. Applications that do not include 40-hour HAZWOPER in their training curriculum will be rejected.

4. Federal Funds Requested/Funding Amount

Applications with project periods exceeding three (3) years or requesting more than

$200,000 in federal funds for the entire project period will not be reviewed. Please indicate your requested funding amount and estimated project period.

5. Substantial Conformity with Instructions and Format Requirements

Applications must substantially conform to the application submission instructions and format requirements set forth in Section IV of this announcement or they will be rejected.

Pages in excess of stated page limitations stated in Section IV will not be reviewed.

6. Training Curriculum Chart Indicating the Cost of Each Course

As part of the application, applicants must submit a detailed training curriculum chart with associated costs for each training course as referenced in Section IV.C.3. Applicants must calculate and indicate what percentage of the grant budget will be allocated for each training course within this chart. The training curriculum chart with associated costs for each training course is not considered an attachment and must be included with responses to the ranking criteria as part of the Narrative. When addressing this threshold criterion in your cover letter, indicate on which page of the application your training curriculum chart can be found.

7. Plans for Delivering Training

Your application must include the 2 separate plans for delivering training as referenced in

Section I.A. Applications that do not include the two plans will be rejected. When addressing this threshold criterion in your cover letter, indicate on which page of the application your training delivery plans can be found.

8. Target Area

You must identify the target area (as defined in Section I.A.) you propose to serve, including the town or city, as well as the neighborhood(s). Applicants cannot propose to serve multiple target areas. However, EPA will consider applications that propose to serve large areas, especially in rural communities, that may include a number of towns, as well as applications seeking to serve sister-cities.

Please note that applicants who received an EWDJT Grant from EPA in Fiscal Year 2020

(FY20) are not eligible to apply under this competition. Grantees who received EWDJT funding in FY20 may not apply under this competition under any circumstance, even if the applicant proposes to serve a different city or target area. Applicants who received an

EWDJT grant in, or before, Fiscal Year 2018, and who did not receive funding in FY20 as described above, are eligible to apply for funding under this competition. Please list the most recent year you received an EWDJT Grant from EPA, or if you have not received an

EWDJT Grant in the past, in your cover letter.

SECTION IV – APPLICATION SUBMISSION INFORMATION

IV.A. How to Obtain an Application Package

Electronic copies of this RFA can be obtained at www.grants.gov or through EPA’s

Brownfields Program website at www.epa.gov/brownfields.

IV.B. Due Date and Submission Instructions

Your organization’s Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) must submit your complete application package electronically to EPA through www.grants.gov. Applications must be submitted no later than 11:59 p.m. ET on SEPTEMBER 22, 2020. Please allow enough time to successfully submit your application package and allow for unexpected errors that may require you to resubmit. Occasionally, technical and other issues arise when using www.grants.gov.

Applications submitted after 11:59 p.m. ET SEPTEMBER 22, 2020, will not be considered for funding.

In order to submit an application through www.grants.gov, you must:

1. Have a unique entity identifier (e.g., active DUNS number),

2. Have an active System for Award Management (SAM) account in www.sam.gov,

3. Be registered in www.grants.gov, and

4. Be designated as your organization’s AOR.

The registration process for all of the above items may take a month or more to complete.

The electronic submission of your application must be made by the AOR of your institution who is registered with www.grants.gov and is authorized to sign applications for federal assistance.

Refer to Appendix 2 for…