PKG00294433.pdf

Notice of Funding Opportunity

Applications Due: December 11, 2026, 11:59 pm ET

Region 1, Southeast New England Program (SNEP)

Innovative Restoration Grants

Funding Opportunity Number: EPA-I-R1-SNEP-2026A i

Contents

1. Basic Information

A. Executive Summary B. Key Information:

C. Key Dates:

D. Funding Details:

E. Agency Contact Information:

2. Eligibility A. Eligible Applicants

Other Eligibility Requirements

B. Cost Sharing

3. Program Description

A. Purpose, Priorities, and Activities B. Program Goals and Objectives C. Statutory Authority D. Funding Type

4. Application Contents and Format A. Application Forms B. Project Narrative Description C. Applicants Using Contractors D. Coalition Coverage E. Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QA/QC)

5. Submission Requirements and Deadlines A. Submission Dates and Times B. Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) and System for Award Management (SAM.gov) C. Submission Instructions D. Technical Issues with Submission E. Intergovernmental Review

6. Application Review Information A. Responsiveness Review B. Review Criteria C. Review and Selection Process

Other Evaluation Factors

D. Risk Review E. After Selection

7. Award Notices

8. Post-Award Requirements and Administration

A. Administrative and National Policy Requirements B. Reporting C. Subaward and Executive Compensation Reporting

9. Other Information A. Additional Provisions for Applicants

1. Basic Information U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 1 Southeast New England Program Innovative Restoration Grants https://www.epa.gov/snep/funding-and-technical-assistance-southeast-new-england-program

A. Executive Summary This announcement requests full proposals from Indian Tribes, State & Local Governments, Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs), Interstate Agencies and Nonprofit organizations to support priorities of the Southeast New England Program (SNEP) for coastal watershed restoration. Priorities of the funding opportunity include advancing coastal and riverine restoration and connectivity across southeast New England, with a focus on developing and applying innovative, science, and technology to support these restoration efforts. The total estimated funding available is $5,312,813. Project periods typically extend up to 5 years. The program anticipates awarding up to 8 projects under this NOFO. Applications may request up to $1,000,000 for large-scale projects, including those involving innovative planning, implementation and coordinated development.

C. Key Dates:

October 20, 2026 Release of Funding Opportunity

November 4, 2026, 1:00 PM Grant Opportunity Information Webinar

December 2, 2026 Deadline to Submit Questions by Email to SECoastalNE@epa.gov

December 11, 2026, 11:59 pm ET Application Submission Deadline

January 2026 Anticipated Notification of Selection

February 2026 Anticipated Award Notification

March 1, 2026 Anticipated Project Start

D. Funding Details:

It is anticipated that up to 8 awards will be made under this announcement. The amount of funding is expected to be $250,000 - $1,000,000, per award, depending on Agency funding levels, the quality of applications received, agency priorities, and other applicable considerations. Awards funded under this opportunity are expected to have an up to a five-year project period. EPA Region 1 anticipates awarding funds equitably among priorities and between Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

E. Agency Contact Information:

Further information, if needed, may be obtained from the EPA at SECoastalNE@epa.gov

B. Key Information:

Opportunity Number:

EPA-I-R1-SNEP-2026A

Assistance Listing:

66.129

Announcement Type:

Initial

Funding Available:

$5,312,813

Number of Awards:

Up to 8 https://www.epa.gov/snep/funding-and-technical-assistance-southeast-new-england-program https://www.epa.gov/snep/funding-and-technical-assistance-southeast-new-england-program mailto:SECoastalNE@epa.gov mailto:SECoastalNE@epa.gov

2. Eligibility A. Eligible Applicants Only these types of organizations may apply:

• Indian Tribes.

• State & Local Governments.

• Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs).

• Interstate Agencies.

• Nonprofit organizations.

Other Eligibility Requirements

Applications must meet the following threshold criteria to be considered eligible:

• Activities proposed in the application must take place within and directly benefit the Southeast New England Program Geographic Area. See this link for a map https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/fa0806bfee1c494eb15df85a33ae1ba2.

• Applications must clearly identify at least one coastal or riverine habitat that the proposed application addresses.

• Applicants may only submit 1 application under this opportunity. Applicants that submit more than 1 application will be contacted to determine which application to evaluate. The remaining application(s) will be deemed ineligible.

Please see Section 6 for additional threshold criteria.

B. Cost Sharing Applicants must provide a non-federal cost share (match) equal to at least 15% of the federal funds requested. The federal request plus the non-federal cost share equals the total project cost.

• Minimum non-federal cost share = 0.15 × federal funds requested

• Total project cost = federal funds requested + minimum cost share = 1.15 × federal funds requested

For example, if an applicant is requesting $1,000,000 in federal funds, they would need to provide $150,000 in cost share, for a total project cost of $1,150,000.

Cost shares can be in the form of cash or in-kind contributions, such as the use of volunteers and/or donated time, equipment, expertise, salaries, or other verifiable costs and must be carefully documented. Involvement from foundations, watershed groups, private sector, eligible governmental, as well as non-conventional partners can help with cost share. The cost share must be for allowable project costs under the SNEP funding authority described in Section 3.A, and any restrictions on the use of grant funds also apply to the use of cost share funds. In the case of salaries, applicants may use either minimum wage or fair market value. All funds are subject to federal audit. Applicants that do not describe how they will meet the minimum cost share requirements in their submission will not be considered for funding. Other federal grants may not be used as cost share for this solicitation without specific statutory authority. Regulations governing cost share requirements are found in 2 CFR 200.306.

https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/part-200/section-200.1#p-200.1(Indian%20Tribe) https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/part-200/section-200.1#p-200.1(State) https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/part-200/section-200.1#p-200.1(Local%20government) https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/part-200/section-200.1#p-200.1(Institution%20of%20Higher%20Education%20(IHE)) https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/part-200/section-200.1#p-200.1(Nonprofit%20organization) https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/fa0806bfee1c494eb15df85a33ae1ba2 https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/section-200.306

3. Program Description A. Purpose, Priorities, and Activities Purposes and Priorities The Southeast New England Program is charged with protecting, enhancing, and restoring the coastal watersheds of southern New England by establishing and implementing regional goals that prioritize water quality and habitat restoration, and by developing and deploying innovative technologies to meet these challenges and create jobs.1

This Notice of Funding Opportunity The general purpose of this funding opportunity is to fund projects to restore coastal and riverine habitat and promote innovation to help others further restore habitats in the Southeast New England Program region. Proposals may focus on a variety of project types or stages so long as the project improves coastal or riverine habitat or enables future restoration projects. Per the program direction from Congress above, projects must also support the promotion of innovative technologies or approaches.

The coastal and riverine watersheds of the region often have fragmented habitats2 and increased nutrient loading into embayments of southeast New England. 3 Projects reconnecting and restoring these habitats may improve wildlife biodiversity and passage, enhance ecosystem function like nutrient processing, or provide recreational access to aquatic resources among other environmental benefits. For this Notice of Funding Opportunity coastal or riverine habitats include but are not limited to: salt marshes, mudflats, eelgrass beds, oyster reefs, floodplains, streams, rivers, tidally-influenced brackish or freshwater wetlands, bogs/cranberry bogs that have been historically placed within or disconnected from a river, etc.

Innovation, for the purpose of this document, refers to changes in practices, or technologies that are new or not widely adopted in the region compared to their potential utility. For example, an idea would still be considered innovative if it is commonly used elsewhere in the country but has seen little exploration in the SNEP region or if it has only recently been introduced. Innovation can also include ideas that are completely novel.

Innovative projects may have different risk-reward calculations than conventional projects. It is important that applicants understand reasonable risks to the completion of their proposed project and the potential consequences of a failed or partially completed project. Additionally, applicants should consider how best to anticipate and mitigate those risks in their application.

1 CONFERENCE REPORT ON H.R. 2055, CONSOLIDATED APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2012--(continued); Congressional Record Vol. 157, No. 193 (House - December 15, 2011) Page H9598 and Page H9599 2 Weiskel, P.K., Brandt, S.L., DeSimone, L.A., Ostiguy, L.J., and Archfield, S.A., 2010, Indicators of streamflow alteration, habitat fragmentation, impervious cover, and water quality for Massachusetts stream basins (Ver 1.8, July 2, 2013): U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2009–5272, 70 p., plus CD–ROM.

3 Latimer, J.S., and Charpentier, M.A. 2010, Nitrogen inputs to seventy-four southern New England estuaries:

Application of a watershed loading model. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 89: 125-136.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2010.06.006.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2010.06.006

All applications will explicitly answer the following questions, which support the evaluation criteria listed in Section 6.B. Applicants should carefully read the evaluation criteria when preparing their application to make sure their answers to the below questions fully address the criteria in Section 6.B.

Project Basics and Overview At the beginning of the application Project Narrative, include the project title, applicant, the total funds requested in dollars, the total applicant cost share in dollars, the project period, and a brief project description.

Problem Description/Site Selection (20 Points)

1. What coastal or riverine habitat(s) will this project help to restore or reconnect? Note: Projects do not necessarily have to directly restore the habitat themselves, only improve the region’s ability to restore these habitats. (2 Points)

2. Where is the project located and what are current conditions of the project area and broader watershed? What is the problem that needs to be solved in the project area? (4 Points)

Note: While projects may include non-physical activities, either wholly or in-part, such as planning, coordination, or prioritization, projects that directly achieve in-ground restoration may be preferentially reviewed.

3. What are the innovative aspects of this project and how will they help solve a problem? What are the potential beneficial outcomes of the innovative aspects of this project if it is successful and are these benefits reasonable when compared to the risks of failure and any risk mitigation? Please clearly state the benefits, risks, and any potential mitigation. Both the project area and the greater region should be considered. (8 Points)

4. How does this project fit into the larger picture of restoration work going on in the region and how does this project build on prior work? (6 Points)

Project Outputs and Outcomes (20 Points)

5. What are the goals of the project and how will they be achieved through this project? (10 Points)

6. How will this project address connectivity and restoration problems for habitat(s) from questions 1 and 2? What will this project’s impact be for coastal or riverine habitats in the region as a whole? (8 Points)

7. How does the proposal contribute to the advancement of SNEP’s long-term goals of Resilient Ecosystem of Safe and Healthy Water, Thriving Watersheds and Natural Lands, and/or Sustainable Communities? (2 Points)

Monitoring/Tracking of Environmental Results (14 Points)

8. How is success defined for this project? What will be the metrics used to determine project success and how do the selected metrics indicate success? (6 Points)

9. What is the plan to track the outcomes, outputs, and metrics related to the proposed project over time? How do these outcomes, outputs, and metrics contribute to transferability of results? (8 Points)

Transferability of Results (14 Points)

10. How will this project directly help to enable or enhance future efforts to address environmental issues in the watershed or in the greater SNEP region? (8 Points)

11. How will the outcomes and lessons learned from the proposed activities be shared with communities and stakeholders? (6 Points)

Cost Effectiveness (13 Points)

12. How is this a cost-effective method to address environmental problems? Please include information on organizational overhead, indirect cost, and prudent cost allocation over the life of the award (6 Points)

Note: Applicants will be evaluated based on the adequacy of the information provided in the detailed budget and whether the proposed costs are cost effective, reasonable, and allowable, including consideration of indirect/administrative costs.

13. Are costs reasonable for the expected amount of work required to complete the project and are they consistent with the budget detail? (5 Points)

14. Is the project leveraging and coordinating with other federal or non-federal funds? If the project does not leverage other work, explain why it is not needed and how the project can be successfully completed without it. (2 Points)

Partnerships and Stakeholders (13 Points)

15. Who are the potential partners for this project, what role does each partner have in the project, and how will they contribute, and how will you ensure their contribution will materialize during the project? If there are no partners, explain why they are not needed and how the project can be successfully completed without them. (6 Points)

Note: Please include letters of commitment from each of the partners contributing to this project as part of the application.

16. How will this project engage the local or broader community and relate to the broader watershed scope described earlier? (7 Points)

Programmatic Capability and Past Performance (12 Points)

17. What experience does your organization have in managing federal assistance agreements or other projects of similar scope and funding? Provide a list of federally and/or non-federally funded assistance agreements (this does not include contracts) that your organization has performed within the last three years. Provide any examples of previous work and including the organization’s financial stability, management systems, and history of performance. (2 Points)

18. What is your history of meeting the reporting requirements under the assistance agreements identified, including whether acceptable final technical reports were submitted and whether your organization adequately and timely reported on their progress (and if not, explain why)? (4 Points)

19. Does your organization or partner organization(s) have the staff expertise/qualifications and resources or the ability to obtain them, to achieve the goals of the proposed project? Please include resumes or qualifications of staff expected to work on this project. (4 Points)

20. What is your organizational experience and plan for timely and successfully achieving the objectives your proposed project? (2 Points)

Note: If you do not have any relevant or available past performance or past reporting information, please indicate this in the application and you will receive a neutral score for these subfactors (a neutral score is half of the total points available in a subset of possible points). If you do not provide any response for these items, you may receive a score of 0 on this criterion.

Timely Expenditure of Funds (4 Points)

21. What is your plan for ensuring you draw down funds quarterly during your project period? What approaches, procedures, and controls are in place for ensuring that awarded grant funds will be expended in a timely and efficient manner? (4 Points)

Applications must fully describe the proposed project scope, budget, and expected environmental results with a focus on outcome-based endpoints. The questions listed above form the basis for criteria described in Section 6.B to evaluate eligible applications. Applications must include all the documentation necessary to serve as a grant application and to respond fully to evaluation criteria described in this RFA.

Note to Applicants: If your proposal names subawardees/sub-grantees and/or contractors to assist with the proposed project, pay careful attention to the information in the “Coalitions, Contracts, and Subawards” provision found at www.epa.gov/grants/epa-solicitation-clauses in Section 4.E of the linked

PDF.

B. Program Goals and Objectives The activities to be funded under this funding announcement support Pillar 1: Clean Air, Land, and Water for Every American and Pillar 3: Permitting Reform, Cooperative Federalism, and Cross-Agency Partnership of Administrator Zeldin's Five Pillars.

Habitat restoration and connectivity projects directly support Pillar 1: Clean Air, Land and Water for Every American by improving water quality, providing more recreation options in nearby waters, and lowering risk from flooding. These projects also typically require permitting approval from multiple levels of government and often require approval from more than one agency at each level. This creates situations where cooperation between all involved parties and permitters is required for projects to be completed in a timely manner.

Successful applicants may:

• Directly improve water quality, recreation opportunity, and habitat through restoration of riverine and coastal ecosystems (Pillar 1).

• Reconnect and/or restore coastal or riverine habitat (Pillar 1).

• Identify cost and/or time saving methods to aid in future restoration projects (Pillar 1).

• Improve the availability of resources for the success of other restoration projects (Pillar 1).

• Promote/adopt innovative restoration and protection approaches (Pillar 1).

• Work with state governments, local governments, Tribes, and/or non-profits to prioritize and permit restoration projects (Pillar 1 and Pillar 3).

http://www.epa.gov/grants/epa-solicitation-clauses https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-administrator-lee-zeldin-announces-epas-powering-great-american-comeback

• Work with stakeholders to develop innovative resources and practices that would enable more effective restoration and management of ecosystems (Pillar 1 and Pillar 3).

C. Statutory Authority The SNEP program is authorized by the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026 (Public Law 119-75). This authority allows EPA to award grants and cooperative agreements to carry out the SNEP, including planning, research, monitoring, outreach, and implementation projects within the SNEP geographic area.

Funding for this award will come from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021, Public Law 117-58.

D. Funding Type It is anticipated that grants and cooperative agreements may be funded under this funding opportunity.

Cooperative agreements provide for substantial involvement between the EPA Project Officer and the selected applicant(s) in the performance of the work supported. Although the EPA will negotiate precise terms and conditions relating to substantial involvement as part of the award process, the anticipated substantial federal involvement for these projects may include:

1. Close monitoring of the successful applicant’s performance to verify the results proposed by the applicant.

2. Collaboration during performance of the scope of work.

3. In accordance with 2 CFR 200.317 and 2 CFR 200.318, review of proposed procurement;

4. Approving qualifications of key personnel (the EPA will not select employees or contractors employed by the award recipient); and

5. Review and comment on reports prepared under the cooperative agreement (the final decision on the content of reports rests with the recipient).

The EPA does not have the authority to select employees or contractors employed by the recipient. The final decision on the content of reports rests with the recipient.

4. Application Contents and Format A. Application Forms The following forms and documents are required under this announcement:

Mandatory Documents:

1. Application for Federal Assistance (SF-424)

2. Budget Information for Non-Construction Programs (SF-424A)

3. EPA Key Contacts Form 5700-54

4. EPA Form 4700-4 Preaward Compliance Review Report

5. Project Narrative Attachment Form: Use this to submit your Project Narrative

6. Budget Narrative Attachment Form

7. Supporting Documents (use Other Attachments Form)

a. Resumes or curriculum vitae of staff who will be working on the grant or additional expertise to be sought if the funding is awarded.

b. Letters of commitment from any partners identified in the proposal in order to confirm their partnership. If no partners are identified, letters of commitment are not required.

c. List documenting past three years of or ongoing federal and/or non-federally funded assistance agreements administered by the applicant, including documentation supporting grant performance and meeting of reporting requirements.

d. Documents of non-profit status if appropriate.

Applicants are advised that readability is of paramount importance and should take precedence in application format, including selecting a legible font type and size for use in the application. The narrative application cannot exceed a maximum of 12 single-spaced single sided, typed pages and should use 12-point font. Excess pages will not be reviewed. Supporting materials such as resumes and letters of support can be submitted as attachments and are not included in the above noted 12-page limit.

B. Project Narrative Description Ensure that your project narrative addresses all the questions listed in Section 3 and meets the evaluation criteria in Section 6.

C. Applicants Using Contractors Applicants must compete contracts for services and products, including consultant contracts, and conduct cost and price analyses, to the extent required by the procurement provisions of the regulations at 2 CFR Part 200.

Do not name a procurement contractor (including a consultant) as a “partner” or otherwise in your application unless the contractor has been selected in compliance with competitive procurement requirements. If an applicant selected for award has named a specific subrecipient, contractor, or consultant in the application, it does not relieve the applicant of its obligations to comply with subaward and/or competitive procurement requirements.

The EPA will not consider the qualifications, experience, and expertise of named subrecipients and/or named contractor(s) during the application evaluation process unless the applicant provides documentation that it has complied with these requirements.

For additional guidance, applicants should review EPA’s Best Practice Guide for Procuring Services, Supplies, and Equipment Under EPA Assistance Agreements, EPA’s Subaward Policy, and EPA’s Subaward Policy Frequent Questions. The EPA expects recipients of funding to comply with competitive procurement contracting requirements in 2 CFR Parts 200 and 1500, as well as the requirements in 2 CFR Part 200.321 and 40 CFR Part 33 Subpart C.

D. Coalition Coverage A coalition is formed when two or more eligible applicants coordinate to submit a single application.

Coalitions must identify which single eligible organization will be the recipient of the grant and which eligible organization(s) will receive subawards from the recipient (the “pass-through entity”). The pass-through entity that administers the grant and subawards will be accountable to the EPA for proper expenditure of the funds and reporting and will be the point of contact for the coalition. Subawards must be consistent with the definition of that term in 2 CFR 200.1 and comply with the EPA’s Subaward Policy. Identify all overhead and indirect costs as a part of the project for the “pass-through entity” and eligible applicants.

https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/part-200/subject-group-ECFR45ddd4419ad436d https://www.epa.gov/grants/best-practice-guide-procuring-services-supplies-and-equipment-under-epa-assistance-agreements https://www.epa.gov/grants/best-practice-guide-procuring-services-supplies-and-equipment-under-epa-assistance-agreements https://www.epa.gov/grants/grants-policy-issuance-gpi-16-01-epa-subaward-policy-epa-assistance-agreement-recipients https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2023-04/epa_subaward_policy_frequent_questions.pdf https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2023-04/epa_subaward_policy_frequent_questions.pdf https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/part-200#p-200.1(Subaward) https://www.epa.gov/grants/grants-policy-issuance-gpi-16-01-epa-subaward-policy-epa-assistance-agreement-recipients https://www.epa.gov/grants/grants-policy-issuance-gpi-16-01-epa-subaward-policy-epa-assistance-agreement-recipients

E. Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QA/QC) In accordance with 2 C.F.R. § 1500.12, projects that include the generation or use of environmental data are required to submit a Quality Management Plan (QMP) or Quality Assurance Project Plan (QAPP).

The QMP must document quality assurance policies and practices that are sufficient to produce data of adequate quality to meet program objectives. The QMP should be prepared in accordance with EPA IT/IM Directive: Quality Management Plan Standard, Directive #CIO 2105-S-01.1 (refer to https://www.epa.gov/irmpoli8/environmental-information-policy-procedures-and-standards). The recipient's QMP should be reviewed and updated annually as needed. The QMP must be submitted to the EPA project officer at least 45 days prior to the initiation of data collection or data compilation.

The recipient must develop and implement quality assurance and quality control procedures, specifications and documentation that are sufficient to produce data of adequate quality to meet project objectives. The QAPP is the document that provides comprehensive details about the quality assurance/quality control requirements and technical activities that must be implemented to ensure that project objectives are met. The QAPP should be prepared in accordance with EPA IT/IM Directive: Quality Assurance Project Plan Standard, Directive #CIO 2105-S-02.1. The QAPP must be submitted to the EPA project officer at least 60 days prior to the initiation of data collection or data compilation. Requirements for QAPPs can be found at https://www.epa.gov/irmpoli8/environmental-information-policy-procedures-and-standards.

5. Submission Requirements and Deadlines

A. Submission Dates and Times December 11, 2026, 11:59 pm ET Application Submission Deadline

Grants.gov creates a date and time record when it receives the application. If you submit the same application more than once, we will accept the last on-time submission.

B. Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) and System for Award Management (SAM.gov)

SAM.gov You must have an active account with SAM.gov. SAM.gov will provide a UEI for your organization, which is required to apply for grants using Grants.gov. To register, go to SAM.gov Entity Registration and click Get Started. From the same page, you can also click on the Entity Registration Checklist for the information you will need to register. Make sure you are current with SAM.gov and UEI requirements before applying for the award.

SAM.gov registration can take several weeks. Begin that process today.

Grants.gov You must also have an active account with Grants.gov. You can see step-by-step instructions at the Grants.gov Quick Start Guide for Applicants.

Please visit How to Register to Apply for Grants for additional information.

https://www.epa.gov/irmpoli8/environmental-information-policy-procedures-and-standards https://www.epa.gov/irmpoli8/environmental-information-policy-procedures-and-standards https://www.epa.gov/irmpoli8/environmental-information-policy-procedures-and-standards https://sam.gov/content/entity-registration https://sam.gov/sites/default/files/2024-11/entity-checklist.pdf https://sam.gov/content/entity-registration https://www.grants.gov/ https://www.grants.gov/quick-start-guide/applicants https://www.epa.gov/grants/how-register-apply-grants

C. Submission Instructions You must submit your application through Grants.gov. See Section 5.B. above for information on getting registered.

Important tips:

• To begin the application process under this grant announcement, go to Grants.gov and click the red “Apply” button at the top of the view grant opportunity page associated with this opportunity.

• See the Quick Start Guide for Applicants for instructions on how to submit.

• Make sure your application passes the Grants.gov validation checks.

• Do not encrypt, zip, or password protect any files.

• Your application must be submitted by an official representative of your organization who is registered with Grants.gov and is authorized to sign applications for Federal financial assistance.

• If you receive an error or the button is grayed out, it may be because you do not have the appropriate role to submit in your organization. Contact your organization’s EBiz point of contact or contact Grants.gov for assistance at 1-800-518-4726 or support@grants.gov.

• See Grants.gov Errors for information on other Grants.gov errors.

• The UEI listed on the application must be registered to the applicant organization's SAM.gov account. If not, the application may be deemed ineligible.

D. Technical Issues with Submission If you experience technical issues during the submission of an application that you are unable to resolve, follow these procedures before the application deadline date:

• Contact Grants.gov Support Center before the application deadline date.

• Document the Grants.gov ticket/case number.

• Send an email with Funding Opportunity Number (FON): Insert EPA-I-R1-SNEP-2026A in the subject line to SECoastalNE@epa.gov before the application deadline time and date and must include the following:

o Grants.gov ticket/case number(s) o Description of the issue o The entire application package in PDF format.

Without this information, the EPA may not be able to consider applications submitted outside of Grants.gov. Any application submitted after the application deadline time and date deadline will be deemed ineligible and not be considered.

Please note that successful submission through Grants.gov or email does not necessarily mean your application is eligible for award.

Applicants with limited or no access to the internet may request an exception by following the procedures outlined here. The request must be received at least 15 calendar days before the application due date to allow enough time to negotiate alternative submission methods.

E. Intergovernmental Review Intergovernmental review is applicable to this assistance listing when proposed Federal financial assistance involves land use planning or construction associated with demonstration projects.

mailto:support@grants.gov mailto:SECoastalNE@epa.gov https://www.epa.gov/grants/exceptions-grantsgov-submission-requirement https://www.epa.gov/grants/rain-2021-g02

If your proposal includes land use planning or construction, you will need to submit application information for Intergovernmental Review. Some states have adopted Single Points of Contact (SPOC) for coordinating the review.

Contact the applicable grants office for further instruction.

This requirement does not apply to American Indian and Alaska Native Tribes or Tribal organizations.

6. Application Review Information

A. Responsiveness Review Applications must meet the eligibility requirements described in Section 2 to be evaluated. Applicants not meeting these requirements will be deemed ineligible and will be notified within 15 calendar days of the determination.

• Applications must adhere to the page limit requirements. Any pages over the limit(s) in Section 4 will not be reviewed.

• Initial applications must be submitted on or before the application deadline through Grants.gov or through limited circumstances as expressed in Section 5. The EPA will not evaluate applications that are not submitted on time.

• Technical difficulties applying: Applicants having technical difficulties applying must contact the Grants.gov hotline at 1-800-518-4726 and then must email a PDF of the full application to the EPA contact listed in Section 1. The submission must be received prior to the application deadline for consideration.

B. Review Criteria All proposed projects will be evaluated on the extent and quality to which they address the following criteria.

Criteria Description Points

Problem Description/Site

Selection

Applications will be evaluated on how the proposed project:

1. clearly states what eligible habitat(s) the project is going to focus on. 2

2. understands the project location, what are current conditions of the project area and broader watershed are, and the problem that needs to be solved in the project area.

Note: While projects may include non-physical activities, either wholly or in-part, such as planning, coordination, or prioritization, projects that directly achieve in-ground restoration may be preferentially reviewed.

https://www.epa.gov/grants/regional-grants-information

3. addresses environmental needs through innovative aspects of the project, taking into consideration the potential benefits compared to the risks and any risk mitigation with respect to both any specific site location and the larger region. Benefits are reasonable compared to risks.

4. demonstrates an understanding of how the project fits into the larger picture of restoration work going on in the region and how this project builds on prior work.

Project Outputs and Outcomes

Applications will be evaluated on the project’s:

5. the goals of the project are reasonable and beneficial to the identified habitats. The project outlines a clear and reasonable path for them to be achieved through this project.

6. this project addresses connectivity and restoration problems for habitat(s) from questions 1 and 2. This project will have a positive impact on coastal or riverine habitats in the region as a whole?

7. the proposal contributes to the advancement of SNEP’s long terms goals of Resilient Ecosystem of Safe and Healthy Water, Thriving Watersheds and Natural Lands, and or Sustainable Communities.

Monitoring /Tracking of Results

The application will be evaluated on the proposed project’s:

8. success is defined for this project, and the selected metrics are reasonable relative to the project described in the application.

9. the plan to track the outcomes, outputs, and metrics related to the proposed project over time is sufficient for the project described and contributes to transferability of results.

Transferability of Results

Applications will be evaluated on transferability of results, including how the project:

10. directly helps to enable or enhance future efforts to address identified environmental issues. 8

11. collects, develops, and communicates lessons learned from the proposed activities. 6

Cost Effectiveness

Applications will be evaluated on the cost-effectiveness of the proposed project’s method to address environmental problems, including:

12. how the proposed budget relates to and supports project activities, taking into consideration organizational overhead, indirect cost, and prudent cost allocation over the life of the award Note: Applicants will be evaluated based on the adequacy of the information provided in the detailed budget and whether the proposed costs are cost effective, reasonable, and allowable, including consideration of indirect/administrative costs.

13. the extent to which the budget includes reasonable and allocable costs for the expected amount and complexity of work required to complete the project and are consistent with the budget detail.

14. the project is leveraging and/or coordinating with other federal or non-federal funds. If the project does not leverage other work, the proposal has a reasonable explanation why it is not needed and how the project can be successfully completed without it.

Partnerships and Stakeholders

The application will be evaluated on the how the proposed project incorporates partnership and stakeholders through:

15. collaboration with partners, including planned roles for each partner, their resource contributions, their commitment to working in the partnership, and any letters of commitment from partners in the application package. If there are no partners, the proposed project will be evaluated on the plan to effectively carry out the project without such collaboration or partnership.

16. engagement with project stakeholders and/or local communities impacted by the project, including requesting and incorporating input and relating to the broader watershed scope.

Programmatic Capability and Past

Performance

Applicants will be evaluated based on their ability to successfully manage and complete the proposed project, including:

17. past performance in successfully managing and completing assistance agreements or other federal or non-federal funding awards, including the organization’s financial stability, management systems, and history of performance.

18. history of meeting reporting requirements and award terms and conditions under the assistance agreements identified in response to Section 3.A., including whether acceptable final technical reports were submitted and the extent to which the applicant adequately and timely reported on their progress towards achieving the expected outputs and outcomes under those agreements and if such progress was not being made whether the applicant adequately reported why not.

19. staff expertise/qualifications and resources, or the ability to obtain them, to carry out the proposed project and achieve its goals.

20. organizational experience and plan for timely and successfully achieving the objectives of the proposed project

Note: In evaluating applicants under items a. and b. of this I criterion, the Agency will consider the information you provide and may also consider relevant information from other sources including agency files and prior/current grantors (e.g., to verify and/or supplement the information you supplied). If you do not have any relevant or available past performance or past reporting information, please indicate this in the application and you will receive a neutral score for these subfactors (a neutral score is half of the total points available in a subset of possible points). If you do not provide any response for these items, you will receive a score of 0 on this criterion.

Timely Expenditure of Funds

21. The proposed project will be evaluated on the approach, procedures, and controls for ensuring that funds will be expended in a timely and efficient manner, taking into consideration the reasonableness of the proposed project period for the proposed work and the applicant’s plan for ensuring funds are drawn down at least on a quarterly basis.

Total Available Points 110

Applicants will be evaluated based on the extent and quality to which they demonstrate that they have the capability to successfully perform the project as described in Section 3 of this funding opportunity.

Only eligible entities whose applications meet the threshold criteria in Section 2 of this announcement will be evaluated. Applicants should explicitly address these criteria in the project narrative as part of their application package submittal. Each application will be rated using a point system. Applications will be evaluated based on a total of 110 possible points.

C. Review and Selection Process Applications determined to be eligible based on Section 2 will be evaluated using the criteria listed in Section 6.B by an EPA evaluation team. The evaluation team will include relevant subject matter experts.

Each eligible application will be given a numerical score and will be ranked according to the score.

Other Evaluation Factors

Under this competition, the EPA reserves the right to fund the top ranked proposals contingent on the quality of the proposals and funding availability. Final funding decisions will be made by the selection official. In making the final funding decisions, the selection official may also consider the following factors:

1. Geographic distribution of funds between Massachusetts and Rhode Island

2. Availability of funds

D. Risk Review The EPA will consider any comments by the applicant, along with information available in the responsibility/qualification records in SAM.gov., when doing the risk review as required by 2 CFR 200.206.

E. After Selection EPA reserves the right to negotiate and/or adjust the final grant amount and workplan/narrative prior to award, as appropriate and consistent with Agency policy, including EPA’s Competition Policy (EPA Order 5700.5A1). An approvable final narrative/workplan must include:

1. Project components to be funded under the assistance agreement.

2. Estimated work years and the estimated funding amounts for each component.

3. Commitments for each component and a timeframe for their accomplishment.

4. Performance evaluation process and reporting schedule in accordance with 2 CFR §200.329

5. Grant recipients will be expected to provide project location information to EPA for any EPA grant-funded project. The type of locational information will be determined by consultation with EPA and will be determined based on the geographic scale and intent of the project.

7. Award Notices The EPA anticipates notification to successful applicants will be made by EPA Region 1. The notification will be sent to the original signer of the application or the project contact listed in the application. This notification is not an authorization to begin work. The official notification of an award will be made by https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/section-200.206 https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/section-200.206 https://www.epa.gov/grants/epa-order-57005a1-epas-policy-competition-assistance-agreements https://www.epa.gov/grants/epa-order-57005a1-epas-policy-competition-assistance-agreements https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-40/chapter-I/subchapter-B/part-35/subpart-A/subject-group-ECFR17330fa613b4fdd/section-35.115 the EPA Region 1 Grants Management Branch. Selection does not guarantee an award will be made.

Statutory authorization, funding, or other issues during the award process may affect the ability of the EPA to make an award. The award notice, signed by an EPA grants officer, is the authorizing document and will be provided through electronic or postal mail. The successful applicant may need to prepare and submit additional documents and forms, which must be approved by the EPA, before the grant can officially be awarded. The time between notification of selection and award of a grant can take up to 90 days or longer.

8. Post-Award Requirements and Administration

A. Administrative and National Policy Requirements The recipient and any sub-recipient must comply with the applicable General Terms and Conditions.

These terms and conditions are in addition to the assurances and certifications made as part of the award, terms and conditions, and restrictions reflected on the official assistance award document.

Awards issued as a result of this funding opportunity are subject to the requirements of the Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards; Title 2 CFR Part 200 and 2 CFR Part 1500.

B. Reporting EPA’s General Terms and Conditions in the Notice of Award will have information on performance and financial reports, including:

• How often you will report.

• Any required form or formatting.

• How to submit them.

C. Subaward and Executive Compensation Reporting The Federal Financial Accountability and Transparency Act (FFATA) requires:

• Data entry at SAM.gov for all subawards and subcontracts issued for $30,000 or more.

• Reporting executive compensation for both recipient and subaward organizations.

9. Other Information A. Additional Provisions for Applicants Additional provisions that apply this funding opportunity and/or awards made under this funding opportunity, can be found at EPA NOFO Clauses. If you are unable to access these provisions electronically at the website above, please contact the EPA point of contact to obtain the provisions.

https://www.epa.gov/grants/grant-terms-and-conditions#general https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/subtitle-A/chapter-II/part-200 https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/subtitle-A/chapter-II/part-200 https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/subtitle-B/chapter-XV/part-1500 https://www.epa.gov/grants/grant-terms-and-conditions#general https://www.epa.gov/grants/epa-solicitation-clauses

B. Cost Sharing