BWR.NOI.RFP.FY21.WQM.GRANT.12.31.20.docx

APPENDIX A – PROPOSAL TEMPLATE

WATER QUALITY MONITORING GRANTS PROGRAM - STATE FISCAL YEAR 2021

APPENDIX A – PROPOSAL TEMPLATE

WATER QUALITY MONITORING GRANTS PROGRAM - STATE FISCAL YEAR 2021

Water Quality Monitoring Grant Program Request for Grant Proposals State Fiscal Year (SFY) 2021

1.0 GRANT OPPORTUNITY SUMMARY

A. Proposals Sought: Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) is seeking grant proposals from Eligible Entities (Defined as: coalitions of three of more non-profit organizations which can include watershed groups, and/or lake and pond associations; Regional Planning entities on behalf of groups that include coalitions of three or more watershed groups, and/or lake and pond associations; or non-profit organizations on behalf of groups that include coalitions of three or more watershed groups, and/or lake and pond associations) for the purchase of water quality monitoring equipment and supplies that will assist Massachusetts communities in identifying sources of pollution and/or for the monitoring of rivers, lakes, and estuaries.

B. Grant Program Goal: With more than 3,000 lakes and ponds and 12,000 miles of streams and rivers and almost 3,000 square miles of coastal waters in the Commonwealth, MassDEP’s Watershed Planning Program (WPP) can sample just a small fraction of these surface waters in any given year. MassDEP’s goal in presenting this grant opportunity is to support long term monitoring organization networks by facilitating the purchase of water quality monitoring equipment and supplies, to support: (1) the assessment of water quality; (2) the monitoring of progress towards TMDL implementation; (3) the promotion of water quality trend analysis; and (4) the documentation of progress towards remediation of nonpoint source pollution.

MassDEP seeks to facilitate the work of coalitions of three (3) or more watershed-focused associations, encourage the formation of new coalitions, and catalyze collaboration on long term water quality monitoring programs through the current Water Quality Monitoring Grant Program opportunity.

C. Eligible Projects/Plans: Eligible projects/plans will result in the purchase of equipment and supplies that will both assist multiple watershed associations to meet their monitoring and analysis needs, and also provide an ongoing benefit to the Commonwealth to meet its water quality monitoring goals. Eligible plans must also:

a. Provide a shared benefit to multiple watershed associations, including but not limited to the shared use of equipment or supplies to monitor water quality in environmental justice communities. Information on which communities are classified as environmental justice communities can be found at .

b. Purchase equipment and supplies to support water quality monitoring in the Commonwealth. Examples of potentially eligible equipment and supplies, include, but are not limited to:

i. monitoring equipment such as fluorometers, multiprobe(s), conductivity probes, temperature probes, Van Dorn bottles, Secchi disc(s), et cetera; and/or

ii. monitoring/analysis supplies (e.g., enzyme-substrate analytical systems, incubators, reagents, Abraxis strip tests, Abraxis strip test reader, sample containers).

c. All equipment and supplies funded by this grant program must be purchased during the contract period and completed by June 30, 2021.

d. Strong preference will be given to plans that directly assist the greatest number of watershed associations.

e. Preference will also be given to the plans that include proposed or ongoing water quality monitoring in environmental justice communities, as described in a. above.

f. Only purchased, and properly documented, equipment and supplies costs are eligible for reimbursement.

D. Eligible Entities: Eligible Entities for this Grant Opportunity are limited to coalitions of three or more non-profit organizations, and can include watershed groups, lake and pond associations, and other non-profit organizations, as described in more detail in Section 1.0 A. above, which is incorporated by reference.

E. Ineligible Entities and Applications: Entities considering submitting a Grant proposal should note that the following Entities and/or applications are ineligible for this Grant funding:

· Academic institutions are not eligible for funding under this grant program.

· Applications which include less than three watershed associations or other nonprofits.

· Applicants cannot propose the purchase of equipment that would be utilized to comply with local or governmental enforcement actions, such as State or Federal judicial proceedings, and/or State or Federal Agency Administrative Orders or Consent Orders.

· Applicants cannot propose plans to purchase equipment to implement specific requirements of National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) storm water permits.

F. MassDEP Priority Data Needs: Eligible entities should be aware that MassDEP has identified waters with Priority Data Needs (described below). Eligible entities may identify such waters in their geographic area as targets for monitoring activities, and proposed plans to purchase equipment to monitor/analyze water quality in the following areas will be viewed by the MassDEP grant team as a higher priority for funding:

· Waters assessed as impaired for harmful algal blooms, in Category 5 of the Final 2016 Massachusetts Integrated List of Waters (available at https://www.mass.gov/media/1638446/ ).

· Waters in which MA DPH issued a beach closure advisory due to harmful algal blooms within the last 5 years.

· Waterbodies in the following National Water Quality Initiative (NWQI) HUC12 watersheds: Unkety Brook-Nashua River Watershed (HUCID: 010700040402) Upper Manhan River (HUCID: 010802010608), South River (010802030501), Westport River Watershed (HUCID: 010900020501 and 010900020502)

· Any waters assessed as impaired i.e., in Category 5 of the Final 2016 Massachusetts Integrated List of Waters (available at https://www.mass.gov/media/1638446/ ).

G. Application Deadline: Applications are due by 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, February 3, 2021.

H. Page Limit: Grant applications must not exceed twelve (12) single-sided pages in length.

I. Funding Availability: MassDEP currently estimates that up to $100,000 in total grant funding may be available for water quality monitoring grants in SFY21, which ends on June 30, 2021. Grant awards may range from $25,000 to $100,000 per applicant (i.e., per multi-watershed coalition), although the MassDEP grant review team reserves the right, in its discretion, to grant smaller awards to proposals of exceptional merit. MassDEP currently anticipates that one to four grants will be awarded through this program.

The estimated start date for all grant projects is May 1, 2021 (the formal start date will be identified on the fully executed grant contract following the award). The funding available for this grant program is available only for equipment and supply expenses incurred between the project start date and June 30, 2021.

Eligible Entities should also note that the SFY21 grant funding awarded through this Program is on a reimbursement basis, and Eligible Entities must provide documentation indicating that all costs for equipment/supplies were incurred by or before June 30, 2021. It is anticipated that the applicant will coordinate the invoicing and payment of all watersheds association or other nonprofits included in its application into a single request for reimbursement. MassDEP will not reimburse invoices from a coalition of watershed associations on an individual watershed association basis.

J. Question and Answer Period: Written questions can be submitted to the Grant Program Manager, Therese Beaudoin, at therese.beaudoin@mass.gov through Tuesday, January 12, 2021 at 12:00 p.m. A complete question and answer document will be posted on the MassDEP Website (https://www.mass.gov/info-details/grants-financial-assistance-watersheds-water-quality) by Monday, January 25, 2021. (See Estimated Procurement Calendar below).

K. Total Anticipated Duration of Grant(s): The contract duration will be from the time of contract award date (estimated to be May 1, 2021) through June 30, 2021.

L. Close Out Memo: By no later than July 15, 2021, all applicants shall submit a (maximum) 1-page summary confirming that the proposed equipment/supply purchases have been made. Successful completion of purchases will be considered in the evaluation of the good standing of applicants for receiving (potential) future water quality monitoring grants.

M. Applicable Procurement Law: Grants-- MGL c. 7A, § 7; St. 1986 c. 206, § 17; 815 CMR 2.00

2.0 INSTRUCTIONS FOR APPLICATION SUBMISSION:

A. Evaluation Criteria (general): Eligible Entities must submit a completed application that includes all the required supporting materials, agreement to the program conditions, and the ability to meet the stated eligibility requirements in order to be considered for a grant award. A MassDEP review committee will evaluate proposed projects based upon the criteria listed below. The review committee reserves the right to reject any or all proposals.

Evaluation Criteria Components: The review committee will evaluate and score the grant applications from Eligible Entities (as defined previously in this Grant Opportunity), based upon the following criteria:

1. Administrative Summary Completed (5 points) Applicants will provide an administrative summary of their proposal including:

· Applicant’s and partners’ mailing addresses, phone numbers and email contact information;

· Project title;

· Watershed(s) served by proposed project;

· Brief project summary;

· Principal contact information (name, title, email, and phone number); and

· The signature of an authorized signatory.

The administrative summary must use the format provided in Appendix A: Proposal Template – Administrative Summary.

2. Organizational Capacity (20 points) Applicants must demonstrate the capacity to organize and coordinate multiple eligible grant entities. The review committee’ will focus will on the following:

· What is your legal organization’s (i.e., coalition) name, and the names of your coalition partners?

· Examples (two or more) of similar prior work projects coordinating multiple partners on a tight deadline.

· Are all watershed associations included in the grant application in good standing with MassDEP (if applicable)? Good standing is defined as fulfilling all requirements and conditions under the prior SFY2019 and SFY2020 water quality monitoring grants program including but not limited to prompt on-time submittal of applicable invoices and deliverables, if these entities have received a prior grant award from MassDEP.

· How well does the applicant describe a timeline for the proposed purchases?

· Can the project for the purchase of equipment and/or supplies be feasibly completed (i.e., purchased) in accordance with the proposed timeline and the grant deadline of June 30, 2021?

· A description of your entity’s ability to enter into a contract with MassDEP by the date specified in the Estimated Procurement Calendar. If awarded a Water Quality Monitoring Grant, the awardee must be able to enter into a contract with MassDEP within 15-30 days of award. Please discuss your entity’s ability to enter into the contract and perform the project, including specific steps that must be taken to accept a state grant. Please identify any potential constraints.

3. Proposal Description (20 points) How well does the applicant describe the proposed equipment/supplies to be purchased with this funding? Does the project description identify the equipment/supplies to be purchased, and the specific water quality monitoring needs that will be met, for each of the coalition members, for the grant? The review committee’s focus will be upon the following:

· How well does the applicant describe the proposed equipment and supply purchases to be covered by this funding?

· Did the applicant provide a list of waters to be monitored with the purchased equipment, including identification of any priority waters as described above? If the equipment/supplies purchased will be used to support ongoing monitoring efforts, are sampling locations, frequency of sampling, and number of samples per site described?

· If applicable, is a locus map of the project area(s) provided?

This section must use the format provided in Appendix A: Proposal Template – Scope of Services and must include the following for each task: a narrative summary, identify personnel, and identify desired deliverables, and an overall estimated cost.

4. Promote Collaboration (15 points) How well does the applicant articulate the multiple eligible entities who will be helped by the proposal? Are letters of support included in the application which explicitly detail the estimated dollar value of equipment and supplies each entity is seeking, or will be shared among coalition members?

5. Priority Data Needs (10 points) Applicants must provide a narrative description of how they will be using the equipment/supplies purchased with this grant to monitor waters in support of MassDEP’s priority data needs. The review committee’s focus will be upon the following:

· How well does the applicant understand how their purchases can be used to assist MassDEP in collecting water quality data to meet the needs of the agency’s Clean Water Act programs?

· Does the applicant’s project contribute to long term monitoring networks in impaired waterbodies? Are all impaired waterbodies targeted in the project enumerated?

6. Project Budget and Cash Flow Schedule (20 points) Applicants must present a project budget for the expenditure of the grant funds. Applicants must include firm estimates of any equipment/supplies cost by including a formal quote or a screen capture documenting the cost of each item. The review committee’s focus will be upon the following:

· How well does the applicant estimate and describe the costs of equipment and supplies to be purchased with grant funds?

· Are firm estimates for equipment and supplies included in the application, clearly identifying the cost, purpose and intended end-user(s)?

This section shall include a project budget which is summarized in the format found in Appendix A: Proposal Template – Project Budget.

7. Environmental Justice (10 points) Does a proposal outline how environmental justice communities would benefit from and be involved in the proposed project? Does the applicant plan to use the purchased equipment/supplies to support water quality monitoring in environmental justice communities? Does the proposal outline specifically which environmental justice communities or organizations are included in the proposed project? Are new partnerships being formed to benefit environmental justice communities? How does the proposed project promote collaboration and inclusive information sharing among multiple communities, including maximizing knowledge of water quality issues relevant in environmental justice communities (information on which communities are classified as environmental justice communities can be found at https://www.mass.gov/info-details/environmental-justice-communities-in-massachusetts).

B. Application Completion and Submission Instructions:

Complete proposals will not exceed twelve pages, and will consist of:

· A concise application documenting compliance with all the evaluation criteria listed below (12-page limit includes both narrative and template documents, price/quote support documentation and letters of commitment; see Appendix A for format and see the Evaluation Criteria section descriptions above for more detail):

· 1. Administrative Summary (Appendix A format);

· 2. Organizational Capacity (narrative description);

· 3. Project Description (Appendix A format);

· 4. Partnership Collaboration (narrative description);

· 5. Priority Data Needs (narrative description);

· 6. Project Budget and Cash Flow Schedule (Appendix A format);

· 7. Environmental Justice (narrative description).

· Supporting documents:

· Letters of commitment from partner organizations in the coalition applying for funding (mandatory)

· Prices/quotes for equipment/supplies to be purchased with grant funding (mandatory)

Submission Instructions: All grant applicants must include the attached application form in their packet and submit the packet electronically as a portable document format (.pdf) file by 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, February 3, 2021 to:

Therese Beaudoin, WQMG Program Coordinator

Submit applications to therese.beaudoin@mass.gov with the applicant name AND “MassDEP SFY2021 Water Quality Monitoring Grant” in the subject line (i.e. “Applicant’s Name – MassDEP SFY2021 Water Quality Monitoring Grant”). Documents must be submitted in portable document format (.pdf).

All application materials will be available for download at https://www.mass.gov/info-details/grants-financial-assistance-watersheds-water-quality

Applications received after the deadline will be rejected automatically. MassDEP reserves the right to reject any and all proposals or request additional information if needed.

Additional Required Documentation:

If selected for a grant award, the applicant will be required to submit the following forms to complete the contracting process. Forms with an asterisk (*) need not be submitted, if they have been completed previously and are already on file with the Commonwealth:

· Commonwealth Standard Contract Form, filled out and signed by the applicant http://www.macomptroller.info/comptroller/docs/forms/contracts/StandardContractForm-.docx

· Commonwealth Terms and Conditions http://www.macomptroller.info/comptroller/docs/forms/contracts/CommonwealthTermsAndConditions.pdf. These Terms and Conditions are incorporated by reference into the Standard Contract Form, and do not need to be executed separately.

· Commonwealth W‐9 tax information form filled out and signed by the applicant with DUNS number and Federal Tax ID(*) http://www.macomptroller.info/comptroller/docs/forms/vendorcustomer/newmass-w9.pdf

· Completed Contractor Authorized Signatory Listing Form https://www.macomptroller.org/forms

· Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) form(*) https://massfinance.state.ma.us/VendorWeb/eftRegisterfrm.asp

Applicants are encouraged to review these forms prior to submission of an application.

ESTIMATED PROCUREMENT CALENDAR FOR GRANT APPLICATION/AWARD:

Notice of Grant Opportunity – Posted on COMMBUYS AND MASSDEP WEBSITE January 6, 2021

(NOON)

Notification of Grant Award(s) (Estimated) –

POSTED ON COMMBUYS AND MASSDEP WEBSITE

April 2021

Charles D. Baker Governor

Karyn E. Polito Lieutenant Governor

Kathleen A. Theoharides Secretary

Martin Suuberg Commissioner

Address:

Telephone:

eMail:

CONTRIBUTING PARTNERS:

Address:

Telephone:

eMail:

PROJECT TITLE:

WATERSHED(S) SERVED BY THIS PROJECT:

AMOUNT OF FUNDING REQUESTED:

PROJECT SUMMARY/OBJECTIVES:

PRINCIPAL CONTACT:

Name and Title eMail Telephone

AUTHORIZED SIGNATORY:

Signature and Title required Date

By checking this box □ the applicant confirms that they are authorized to submit this grant application on behalf of the specified organization and participating organizations.

SCOPE OF SERVICES

Please provide a brief descriptive summary for each objective or task/activity, followed by the personnel, deliverable product(s) or outcomes(s) to be complete, and cost. Tasks are to be content-specific which result in discrete deliverable products:

OBJECTIVE / TASK #1:

SUMMARY:

PERSONNEL:

DESIRED OUTCOME(S):

A)

COST:

OBJECTIVE / TASK #2:

SUMMARY:

PERSONNEL:

DESIRED OUTCOME(S):

A)

COST:

(Repeat as necessary.)

PROJECT BUDGET

(This budget is for proposal evaluation purposes. Use whole dollar method.)

Total Amount

Water Quality Monitoring Equipment

Water Quality Monitoring Supplies

Total Amounts:

TOTAL REQUEST FOR GRANT: $_________ (State Funds via MassDEP through June 30th)

TOTAL BUDGET AMOUNT: $_________

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