updated 19-03.pdf

AGENCY: ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (EPA)

TITLE: FY19 BROWNFIELDS TRAINING, RESEARCH, AND TECHNICAL

ASSISTANCE GRANT

ACTION: Request for Proposals (RFP)

RFP NO: EPA-OLEM-OBLR-19-03

CATALOG OF FEDERAL DOMESTIC ASSISTANCE (CFDA) NO.: 66.814

DATE: The closing date and time for receipt of proposals is October 21, 2019, 11:59 p.m.

Eastern Time (ET). Proposals must be submitted through www.grants.gov. Proposals received after 11:59 p.m. ET on October 21, 2019 will not be considered. Please refer to the Due Date and Submission Instructions in Section IV.B. and Appendix 1 for further instructions.

SUMMARY: This notice announces the availability of funds and solicits proposals from eligible entities to conduct research and provide technical assistance to new, existing, and/or prospective EPA Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training (EWDJT) grantees. In addition to providing on-going technical assistance throughout the project period, the successful applicant will be responsible for developing an annual meeting to facilitate peer-to-peer networking and provide training to the EWDJT grantees.

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.

In addition, prior to naming a contractor or subawardee in your proposal, please carefully review Section IV.G. of these guidelines.

FUNDING/AWARDS: EPA anticipates awarding one Training, Research, and Technical Assistance Grant for an estimated $1,400,000; subject to availability of funds, quality of proposals received, and other applicable considerations. The award is anticipated to be funded incrementally on an annual basis over seven years, at approximately $200,000 per year.

http://www.grants.gov/

CONTENTS BY SECTION

SECTION I. – FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION 3

I.A. Description of Grant 3 I.B. Uses of Grant Funds 5 I.C. EPA Strategic Plan Linkage 6 I.D. Measuring Environmental Results: Anticipated Outputs/Outcomes 6 I.E. Supporting Environmental Justice 7

SECTION II. – AWARD INFORMATION 7

II.A. What is the Amount of Available Funding? 7 II.B. What is the Project Period for Awards Resulting from this Solicitation? 8 II.C. Substantial Involvement 8

SECTION III. – ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION AND THRESHOLD CRITERIA 8

III.A. Who Can Apply? 8 III.B. Voluntary Cost Share/Leveraging 9 III.C Threshold Eligibility Criteria 10

SECTION IV. – PROPOSAL SUBMISSION INFORMATION 11

IV.A. How to Obtain a Proposal Package 11 IV.B. Due Date and Submission Instructions 12 IV.C. Content and Form of Proposal Submission 12 IV.D. Cover Letter 12 IV.E. Narrative Proposal/Ranking Criteria 13 IV.F. Attachments 19 IV.G. Additional Provisions for Applicants Incorporated into the Solicitation 20

SECTION V. – PROPOSAL REVIEW INFORMATION 20

V.A. Evaluation Criteria 20 V.B. Review and Selection Process 24 V.C. Additional Provisions for Applicants Incorporated into the Solicitation 25

SECTION VI. – AWARD ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION 25

VI.A. Award Notices 25 VI.B. Administrative and National Policy Requirements 25 VI.C. Reporting Requirements 26 VI.D. Disputes 26 VI.E. Additional Provisions for Applicants Incorporated into the Solicitation 26

SECTION VII. – EPA CONTACT 26

Appendix 1 Grants.gov Proposal Submission Instructions 27

A. Requirement to Submit Through Grants.gov and Limited Exception Procedures 27 B. Submission Instructions 28 C. Technical Issues with Submission 30

SECTION I. – FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION

The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) was amended by the Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act in 2002 to include Section 104(k), which provides federal financial assistance authorities for brownfields revitalization, including grants for assessment, cleanup, and revolving loan funds. The Brownfields Utilization, Investment, and Local Development (BUILD) Act enacted in 2018 reauthorized EPA’s Brownfields Program and made additional amendments to CERCLA that affect EPA’s brownfield grant authorities, and ownership and liability provisions. (Note:

References to CERCLA in this solicitation refer to CERCLA as amended by the 2002 Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act and the 2018 BUILD Act.)

A brownfield site is defined as real property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of hazardous substances, pollutants, contaminants, controlled substances, petroleum or petroleum products, or is mine-scarred land.

A critical part of EPA’s Brownfields Program is to ensure that residents living in communities historically affected by economic disinvestment, health disparities, and environmental contamination have an opportunity to reap the benefits from brownfields redevelopment. EPA’s Brownfields Program has a rich history rooted in environmental justice and is committed to helping communities revitalize brownfield properties, mitigate potential health risks, and restore economic vitality.

As described in Section V.A. of this announcement, proposals will be evaluated based on the extent to which the applicant demonstrates: a comprehensive and realistic plan for carrying out eligible activities under this funding opportunity; strong community engagement; reasonable and appropriate use of grant funds; and the capacity for managing and successfully implementing the cooperative agreement.

I.A. Description of Grant

The EPA’s Office of Brownfields and Land Revitalization (OBLR) is soliciting applications for funding under Section 104(k)(7) of CERCLA, which authorizes funding to eligible entities to provide training, research, and technical assistance to facilitate the inventory of brownfield sites, site assessments, remediation of brownfield sites, community involvement, or site preparation.

Grants awarded under the “Brownfields Training, Research, and Technical Assistance Program” will help communities, organizations, agencies, businesses, and individuals tackle the challenge of cleaning up and revitalizing brownfield properties. For purposes of this grant, general definitions of research and technical assistance are provided below. These definitions provide guidance for the types of activities the EPA is interested in supporting.

1. Research The term “research” refers to a systematic study directed toward fuller scientific knowledge or understanding of the subject studied that may include both qualitative and quantitative analysis. The term research also includes activities involving the training of individuals in research techniques where such activities utilize the same facilities as other research and development activities and where such activities are not included in the instruction function.

2. Technical Assistance The term “technical assistance” refers to the delivery of direct ongoing advice and support, in the form of specialized knowledge, to a person(s) or organization(s) with the goal of guiding them through a particular process or helping them understand complex brownfields-related subject matter.

The EPA anticipates awarding one grant award in the subject area below. Applicants that propose other training and technical assistance projects will not receive funding consideration.

Applicants may propose additional or similar activities that achieve the objectives outlined below. Applicants may only submit one proposal. Applicants may receive only one award under this competition. Applicants may not submit multiple proposals. Successful applicants will be chosen from the pool of applicants that successfully address the technical areas described below and who meet the threshold and ranking criteria.

Technical Assistance to Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training (EWDJT) grantees:

EPA is seeking to fund a grant that delivers enhanced technical assistance to new, existing, and prospective EWDJT grantees. 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.

The EWDJT Program aims to recruit and train unemployed and underemployed residents of hazardous and solid waste-impacted communities and place them in sustainable jobs. 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.

Technical assistance focus areas may include:

- environmental health and safety;

- recruitment and screening of students;

- partnering with community organizations;

- equitable development;

- producing guidance documents and standardized templates;

- employer involvement;

- environmental curriculum development;

- managing a job training program;

- leveraging funds from multiple sources to provide effective and sustainable training programs;

- delivering life skills training through non-EPA funded avenues;

- providing student support, such as obtaining social services and job placement; and

- program marketing.

In addition to providing on-going technical assistance throughout the project period, the grantee will also develop an annual all grantee meeting that is a peer-to-peer networking and training event for existing and new EWDJT grantees. The successful applicant may also deliver one or two outreach workshops to prospective EWDJT grant applicants over the life of the grant. Other forms of technical assistance may include: delivery of webinars on select topics of shared interest to EWDJT grantees and prospective grant recipients, generating quarterly newsletters to generate knowledge sharing and highlight successful EWDJT programs, operating listservs, and delivering weekly telephonic calls to existing and prospective grantees on a range of environmental job training topics.

I.B. Uses of Grant Funds

Eligible uses of grant funds include direct costs necessary to provide brownfields research and technical assistance identified in the approved workplan. This includes eligible programmatic costs necessary to perform your project, such as: costs for personnel, technical experts, materials, supplies, room rentals, travel, and transportation expenses.

Grant funds cannot be used for the payment of:

1. Conducting site assessments or actual cleanups;

2. construction and land acquisition;

3. foreign travel;

4. direct costs for proposal preparation;

5. a penalty or fine;

6. a federal cost share requirement (for example, a cost share required by other federal funds);

7. 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);

8. a cost of compliance with any federal law, excluding the cost of compliance with laws applicable to the cleanup; or

9. unallowable costs (e.g., lobbying) under 2 CFR Part 200, Subpart E.

I.C. EPA Strategic Plan Linkage

The activities to be funded under this announcement support EPA’s FY 2018-2022 Strategic Plan1. Awards made under this announcement will support Goal 1 – Core Mission, Objective 3 – Revitalize Land and Prevent Contamination of EPA’s Strategic Plan. All proposals must be for projects that support the goal and objective.

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

EPA requires that applicants adequately describe environmental outputs and outcomes to be achieved under assistance agreements2. Applicants must include specific statements describing the environmental results of the proposed project in terms of well-defined outputs and, to the maximum extent practicable, well-defined outcomes that will demonstrate how the project will contribute to the goal and objective described above in Section I.C.

Applicants are required to describe how funding will help EPA achieve environmental outputs and outcomes in their responses to the ranking criteria in Section IV.E. Outputs and outcomes specific to each project will be identified as deliverables in the negotiated workplan if the proposal is selected for award. Recipients will be expected to report progress toward the attainment of expected project outputs and outcomes during the project performance period.

Outputs and outcomes are defined as follows:

1. Outputs

The term “outputs” 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, development of information, materials and the delivery of technical assistance to brownfields stakeholders; production, publication, and dissemination of research reports and studies on brownfields topics; increased number of individuals hired full-time in environmental jobs; increased number of communities and projects receiving technical assistance; and increased number of communities applying for brownfields grant opportunities as a result of receiving technical assistance.

2. Outcomes

The term “outcomes” 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. The expected outcomes for the grants awarded under these guidelines may include, but are not limited to, an increase in the assessment, cleanup, and reuse of brownfields; increase in individuals pursuing an environmental career;

1 EPA’s Strategic Plan is available at https://www.epa.gov/planandbudget/fy-2018-2022-epa-strategic-plan.

2 EPA Order 5700.7, EPA’s Policy for Environmental Results under EPA Assistance Agreements is available at https://www.epa.gov/grants/epa-order-57007a1-epas-policy-environmental-results-under-epa-assistance-agreements.

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/grants/epa-order-57007a1-epas-policy-environmental-results-under-epa-assistance-agreements improved capacity of brownfields stakeholders to effectively address, be involved in, and integrate environmental justice and equitable development principles into brownfields activities; increased attention on the protection of human health and the environment, economic development, and equitable development issues, particularly in low-income and communities of color, with a disproportionate number of brownfields; improved community involvement, communication, and the development of partnerships among differing stakeholders; increased knowledge about the environmental and economic benefits of revitalizing brownfields; and enabling brownfields stakeholders to stimulate economic and other beneficial reuses of brownfields properties and to leverage resources in order to improve environmental conditions and human health.

I.E. Supporting Environmental Justice

EPA defines environmental justice as the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies. EPA has this goal for all communities and persons across the nation. Environmental justice will be achieved when everyone enjoys the same degree of protection from environmental and health hazards and equal access to the decision-making process to have a healthy environment in which to live, learn, and work.3

Environmental justice can be supported through equitable development approaches and intentional strategies to ensure that low-income and minority communities not only participate in but also benefit from decisions that shape their neighborhoods and regions. There are many different approaches that promote equitable development, such as ensuring a mix of housing types across a range of incomes; access to fresh food; access to jobs; and access to local capital.

Programs or policies can be put in place to help ensure creation or integration of affordable housing; local or first-source hiring; minority contracting; inclusionary zoning (where a percentage of new housing is designated as affordable housing); healthy food retailers in places where they do not exist (e.g. food deserts); co-operative ownership models where local residents come together to run a community-owned, jointly owned business enterprise; rent control or community land trusts (to help keep property affordable for residents); supportive local entrepreneurial activities; and adherence to equal lending opportunities.

Applicants should discuss and provide specific examples of how the proposed Brownfields Training, Research, and Technical Assistance Grant project will address environmental justice challenges in Section IV.E.

SECTION II. – AWARD INFORMATION

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

The estimated total funding available for Training, Research, and Technical Assistance Grants is approximately $1.4 million and EPA anticipates awarding one Training, Research, and Technical

3 For more information please visit www.epa.gov/environmentaljustice.

http://www.epa.gov/environmentaljustice

Assistance Grant, subject to the availability of funds, quality of proposals, and other applicable considerations.

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

II.B. What is the Project Period for Awards Resulting from this Solicitation?

The project period for Brownfields Training, Research, and Technical Assistance Grants is up to seven years.

II.C. Substantial Involvement

The Brownfield Training, Research, and Technical Assistance Grant will be awarded in the form of a cooperative agreement. Cooperative agreements permit the EPA Project Officer 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 include:

• close monitoring of the recipient’s performance to verify the results;

• collaborating during the performance of the scope of work;

• reviewing substantive terms of proposed contracts, in accordance with 2 CFR 200.317 and 2 CFR 200.318, as appropriate;

• reviewing qualifications of key personnel (EPA will not select employees, consultants, 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); and

• reviewing sites to verify they meet applicable site eligibility criteria.

SECTION III. – ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION AND THRESHOLD

CRITERIA

III.A. Who Can Apply?

The following information indicates which entities are eligible to apply for a Training, Research, and Technical Assistance Grant.

• General Purpose Unit of Local Government. [For purposes of the EPA Brownfields Grant Program, a “local government” is defined as stated under 2 CFR § 200.64.: Local government means a county, municipality, city, town, township, local public authority (including any public and Indian housing agency under the United States Housing Act of 1937), school district, special district, intrastate district, council of governments (whether or not incorporated as a nonprofit corporation under state law), any other regional or interstate government entity, or any agency or instrumentality of a local government.]

• Land Clearance Authority or another 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 Brownfields

Grant eligibility is statutory at CERCLA § 104(k)(1)). Intertribal Consortia, comprised of eligible Indian tribes, 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 Regional Brownfields Contact listed in Section VII.)

• Alaska Native Regional Corporation, Alaska Native Village Corporation, and Metlakatla Indian Community. (Alaska Native Regional Corporations and Alaska Native Village Corporations are defined in the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 and following. For more information, please refer to the FY19 FAQs.)

• Nonprofit organization exempt from taxation under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

• Limited liability corporation in which all managing members are 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations or limited liability corporations whose sole members are 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations.

• Limited liability partnership in which all general partners are 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations or limited liability corporations whose sole members are 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations.

• Other nonprofit organizations. (For the purposes of the Brownfields 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 and is not organized primarily for profit; and uses net proceeds to maintain, improve, or expand the operation of the organization. The term includes nonprofit colleges, universities, and other educational institutions.)

• Qualified community development entity as defined in section 45D(c)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.

III.B. Voluntary Cost Share/Leveraging

Matching funds are not required under this competition. Although cost-sharing or matching is not required as a condition of eligibility under this competition of this announcement, EPA will evaluate responses to the Leveraging criterion (Section IV.E.5.). 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 the EPA grant funds awarded. Any leveraged funds/resources, and their source, must be identified in the proposal. 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 https://www.epa.gov/brownfields/frequently-asked-questions-about-multipurpose-assessment-rlf-and-cleanup-grants 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 proposal 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 work plan 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 proposal. If applicants propose to provide this form of leveraging, EPA expects them to make the effort to secure the leveraged resources described in their proposals. 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 Training, Research, and Technical Assistance grants. Threshold criteria are evaluated on a pass or fail basis. Only those proposals that specifically address and pass each of the threshold criteria listed below will be evaluated against the ranking criteria in Section IV.E.

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 proposals. The applicant’s responses to the threshold criteria must be included in the cover letter submitted to EPA or the proposal will be rejected.

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

Applicants must propose an acceptable technical assistance project, per the parameters described in Section I.A of this announcement.

3. Substantial Conformity Proposals must substantially conform to the outline and content detailed in Section IV.C Content and Form of Proposal Submission of this announcement or they will be rejected.

Pages in excess of the page limitations expressed in Section IV.C Content and Form of Proposal Submission will not be reviewed.

4. Submission of Proposals Proposals must be submitted and successfully received through www.grants.gov by the deadline of October 21, 2019. Proposals submitted after the submission deadline of October 21, 2019 will be considered late and deemed ineligible without further consideration unless the applicant can clearly demonstrate that it was late due to EPA mishandling or because of technical problems associated with www.grants.gov or relevant www.sam.gov system issues.

An applicant’s failure to timely submit their proposal through www.grants.gov because they did not timely or properly register in www.sam.gov or www.grants.gov will not be considered an acceptable reason to consider a late submission. Applicants are responsible for ensuring their proposal is submitted and accepted by www.grants.gov by the deadline.

Additional instructions for submitting your proposal can be found in Appendix 2. Applicants should confirm receipt of their proposal with Rachel Congdon at EPA at (202) 566-1564, or via email at congdon.rachel@epa.gov, as soon as possible after the submission deadline if the applicant has concerns regarding www.grants.gov submission —failure to do so may result in your proposal not being reviewed.

SECTION IV. – PROPOSAL SUBMISSION INFORMATION

IV.A. How to Obtain a Proposal Package

A copy of these guidelines can be obtained from the EPA Brownfields Program website4 or through www.grants.gov.

4 EPA Brownfields Program website is available at http://www.epa.gov/brownfields.

https://www.grants.gov/ https://www.grants.gov/ https://www.sam.gov/ https://www.grants.gov/ https://www.sam.gov/ https://www.grants.gov/ https://www.grants.gov/ mailto:congdon.rachel@epa.gov https://www.grants.gov/ http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/apply-brownfields-grant-funding http://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. Proposals5 must be received no later than 11:59 p.m. ET on October 21, 2019. 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.

Proposals received after 11:59 p.m. ET on October 21, 2019, will not be considered for funding.

In order to submit a proposal through www.grants.gov, you must:

• Have an active DUNS number;

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

• Be registered in www.grants.gov; and

• Be designated as your organization’s AOR.

The registration process for all 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 1 for specific instructions on how to apply through www.grants.gov

If you do not have the technical capability to apply electronically through www.grants.gov because of limited or no Internet access which prevents you from being able to upload the required application materials to www.grants.gov, please refer to the procedures in Appendix 1.

IV.C. Content and Form of Proposal Submission

The proposal must stand on its own merits based on the responses to the relevant ranking criteria in Section IV.E.

All proposal materials must be in English. The Cover Letter and Narrative Proposal must be typed, single-spaced, on letter-sized (8.5 x 11-inch) paper, and use standard Times New Roman, Arial, or Calibri fonts with a 12-point font size and 1-inch margins.

IV.D. Cover Letter

The cover letter shall only address the information below and shall not exceed two, single-spaced pages. Any pages submitted over the page limit will not be considered. EPA does not consider information in the cover letter to be responses to the ranking criteria. Each cover letter must be on the applicant’s official letterhead and should be addressed to the EPA Contact listed in Section VII.

5 Note that the terms “proposal” and “application” mean the same thing for the purposes of this competition. The files that you submit through www.grants.gov as your Brownfields Grant proposal are what is known as an application package in www.grants.gov.

http://www.grants.gov/ http://www.grants.gov/ http://www.grants.gov/ http://www.grants.gov/ https://www.grants.gov/ https://www.grants.gov/ https://www.grants.gov/

1. Applicant Identification: Provide the name and full address of the entity applying for funds.

This is the agency or organization that will receive the grant and be accountable to EPA for the proper expenditure of funds.

2. Grant Type: Indicate “Brownfields Training, Research, and Technical Assistance Grant.”

3. Reponses to Threshold Criteria:

a. Applicant Eligibility

b. Project Eligibility

c. Substantial Conformity

d. Submission of Proposals

4. Location: Provide your city, county, and state or reservation.

5. Contacts:

a. Project Director: Provide the name, phone number, email address, and mailing address of the Project Director assigned to this proposed project. This person should be the main point of contact for the project and should be the person responsible for the project’s day-to-day operations. The Project Director may be contacted if other information is needed.

b. Chief Executive/Highest Ranking Elected Official: Provide the name, phone number, email address, and mailing address of the applicant’s Chief Executive or highest-ranking elected official. For example, if your organization is a municipal form of government, provide this information for the Mayor or County Commissioner. Otherwise, provide this information for your organization’s Executive Director or President. These individuals may be contacted if other information is needed.

IV.E. Narrative Proposal/Ranking Criteria

The narrative proposal includes response to all five ranking criteria. The narrative proposal (including citations) shall not exceed 12 single-spaced pages. Any pages submitted over the page limit will not be evaluated.

Any pages over the page limit will not be evaluated. The narrative proposal must be clear, concise, and specifically address all of the applicable ranking criteria. Responses to the criteria should include the criteria number and title but need not restate the entire text of the criteria. Proposals must provide sufficient detail to allow for an evaluation of the merits of the proposal. Any criterion left unanswered may result in zero points given for that criterion.

Factual information about your proposed project and community must be provided. Do not include discussions of broad principles that are not specific to the proposed work or project covered by your proposal. Do not provide photos or extraneous materials.

1. PROJECT DESCRIPTION

This section of your proposal provides a description of the proposed project and how it is comprehensive and realistic.

a. Project Description Describe how the proposed project specifically addresses the subject area presented in Section I.A. Describe the proposed project goals, activities, and project milestones. A milestone chart should be included in the attachments section of the proposal but can be referenced here within the narrative.

b. Project Impact

Describe the number and range of brownfields stakeholders who will be supported nationally, including how you will ensure the fair distribution of assistance between urban and non-urban areas, as well as current and prospective EWDJT grantees; describe the new and innovative aspects of the proposed project; and, clearly describe how the results of the project will be practically and meaningfully applied by or for brownfield stakeholders, particularly EWDJT grantees. Describe how the proposed project will be delivered and how it will ensure the target audience will be reached and meet their needs.

c. Project Sustainability

Describe how the execution of your program will incorporate sustainable practices, such as the recycling and reuse of training materials, use of existing infrastructure, purchasing or leasing more sustainable equipment, supplies, and services, or other practices that directly reduce water, materials, energy, or air impacts.

2. COMMUNITY NEED

This section of your proposal provides the context for your project. The needs defined in this section should provide the foundation of for your discussion of the proposed Training, Research, and Technical Assistance program, planned community engagement and partnerships, and the ways the program will ultimately benefit your community and program participants.

a. Community Description

This section of your narrative should describe how the proposed project will benefit communities with demographic indicators of need and how these needs relate to current brownfield and other environmental challenges. Discuss how the project will facilitate the identification and reduction of threats to public health, or address environmental justice concerns, such as the disproportionate siting of polluting facilities or number of brownfield sites in low-income and/or minority communities, including environmental, social, public health, and economic issues

b. Community Engagement Demonstrate how you have, or will, involve stakeholders, including brownfields grant recipients, governmental, and nongovernmental organizations, in the development and support of the proposed project (as referenced in any support letters included as attachments). Discuss the frequency and by what method(s) you will communicate project progress to the local community and how input will be solicited, considered, and responded to.

3. TASK DESCRIPTIONS, COST ESTIMATES, AND MEASURING PROGRESS

Please note that administrative costs (direct costs and indirect costs) may not exceed 5% of the total requested EPA funds. Costs must be classified as direct or indirect consistently and applicants may not classify the same cost in both categories.

a. Description of Tasks and Activities

Provide a list of tasks/activities required to implement the proposed project. For each task/activity, identify the lead entity(ies) overseeing the various activities.

b. Anticipated Outputs and Outcomes

Provide detailed information on how the project will lead to measurable long-term outcomes and short-term outputs, including qualitative, quantitative, environmental, social, or economic measures. Discuss how you plan to track, measure, and evaluate your progress in achieving these project outputs, overall project results, and eventual project outcomes to ensure the grant funds are expended in a timely and efficient manner.

Definitions of outputs and outcomes are provided in Section I.D. Explain how your proposed timeline for achieving deliverables of the project, as reflected in the attached milestones schedule, is clearly identified, detailed, and realistic.

c. Budget/Cost Estimates

This section of your proposal provides a description of the proposed program’s budget and planned usage of EPA funds. Use the table format below to identify specific tasks for which EPA funding will be used. Specify the costs by budget category associated with each task. Tasks shown in the table format are examples and can be changed as needed to be tailored to the applicant’s program. Add columns for additional tasks if necessary.

Discuss in narrative format how costs for each task were developed and, where appropriate, present costs per unit and the anticipated outputs/deliverables. (Refer to Section I.D. for an explanation of outputs.) Describe your approach, procedures, and controls for ensuring that grant funds will be expended in a timely and effective manner.

Only include EPA grant funds in this table. Leveraged resources should not be included in the budget table.

Sample Format for Budget Table

Budget Categories

Project Tasks ($)

(Task 1) (Task 2) (Task 3) (Task 4) Total

D ir ec t C ot s

Personnel Fringe Benefits Travel1 Equipment2 Supplies Contractual Other (include subawards) (specify)

Total Direct Costs3 Indirect Costs3 Total Federal Funding (not to exceed $800,000)

Total Budget (Total Direct Costs + Indirect Costs + Cost Share)

1 Travel to brownfields-related training conferences is an acceptable use of these grant funds.

2 EPA defines equipment as items that cost $5,000 or more with a useful life of more than one year.

Items costing less than $5,000 are considered supplies. Generally, equipment is not required for Brownfield Grants.

3 Administrative costs (direct and/or indirect) cannot exceed 5% of the total EPA-requested funds.

4. PROGRAMMATIC CAPABILITY AND PAST PERFORMANCE

Provide responses for the organization that is applying for funding (i.e., the applicant).

a. Programmatic Capability

Describe the organizational structure you will utilize to ensure the timely and successful expenditure of funds and completion of all technical, administrative and financial requirements of the project and grant. Include a brief discussion of the key staff including their roles, expertise, qualifications, and experience. Describe the system(s) you have in place to appropriately acquire any additional expertise and resources (e.g. contractors or subawardees) required per grant requirements to successfully complete the project. (Refer to Section IV.G. regarding contractors and subawards.)

Describe your organization’s experience in working with brownfield stakeholders, including both governmental and non-governmental stakeholders, and the applicant’s ability to form key relationships and partnerships to successfully complete the proposed project (as referenced in any support letters included as attachments).

b. Past Performance and Accomplishments

If you have ever received an EPA Brownfields Training, Research, and Technical Assistance Grant, please respond to item i. below.

If you have never received an EPA Brownfields Training, Research, and Technical Assistance Grant, but have received other federal or non-federal assistance agreements (such as a grant or cooperative agreement), please respond to item ii. below.

If you have never received any type of federal or non-federal assistance agreements, please indicate this in response to item iii. below.

i. Currently Has or Previously Received an EPA Brownfields Grant

Identify and provide information regarding each of your current and most recent EPA Brownfields Training, Research, and Technical Assistance Grant(s) (no more than three). Demonstrate how you successfully managed the grant(s), and successfully performed all phases of work under each grant by providing information on the items listed below.

(1) Accomplishments

Describe the accomplishments (including specific outputs and outcomes) of your grant-funded program. Discuss whether these outputs and outcomes were accurately reflected in quarterly reports; and if not, please explain why.

(2) Compliance with Grant Requirements

Discuss your compliance with the workplan, schedule, and terms and conditions.

Include whether you have made, or are making, progress towards achieving the expected results of the grant in a timely manner. If not, discuss what corrective measures you took, or are taking, and how the corrective measures were effective, documented and communicated.

Discuss your history of timely and acceptable quarterly performance and grant deliverables.

For all open EPA Brownfields Grant(s) indicate the grant period (start and end date), if there are funds remaining, and the plan to expend funds by the end of the grant period.

For all closed EPA Brownfields Grant(s), indicate if there were funds remaining when the grant closed, the amount of remaining funds, and a brief explanation of why the funds were not expended.

– OR –

ii. Has Not Received an EPA Brownfields Grant but has Received Other Federal or

Non-Federal Assistance Agreements Identify and describe each of your current and/or most recent federally and non-federally funded grants (no more than three) that are most similar in size, scope, and relevance to the proposed project. Demonstrate how you successfully managed the grant(s), and successfully performed all phases of work under each grant by providing the following information.

(1) Purpose and Accomplishments

Describe the awarding agency/organization, amount of funding, and purpose of the grant(s) you have received.

Discuss the accomplishments (including specific outputs and outcomes) of the project supported by these grants, including specific measures of success for the project supported by each type of grant received.

(2) Compliance with Grant Requirements

Describe your compliance with the workplan, schedule, and terms and conditions.

Include whether you made, or are making, progress towards achieving the expected results of the grant in a timely manner. If not, discuss what corrective measures you took, or are taking, and how the corrective measures were effective, documented and communicated.

Discuss your history of timely and acceptable reporting, as required by the awarding agency/organization.

iii. Never Received Any Type of Federal or Non-Federal Assistance Agreements

Affirm that your organization never received any type of federal or non-federal assistance agreement (grant). (Failure to indicate anything in response may result in zero points for this factor.)

5. LEVERAGING

Demonstrate how you will leverage additional funds/resources beyond the grant funds awarded to support the proposed project activities and how these funds/resources will be used to contribute to the performance and success of the proposed project. Describe the extent to which in-kind and/or partner commitments to providing services/resources to the proposed project are available, and whether these commitments have already been made; if not, describe the likelihood that these commitments will materialize during the project.

Describe the amount(s) and type(s) of leveraged resources and for which tasks they may be used. Consider using the optional table format below to illustrate the tasks for which leveraged funds will be used and how much leveraged funding you plan to use for each task.

Please modify task categories and add rows as necessary. For each source of funding, list whether it is an anticipated source of funding or a confirmed source of funding.

Selected applicants are expected to abide by their proposed leveraging commitments during grant performance and the failure to do so may affect the legitimacy of the award.

Leveraged Funding Table (Optional)

IV.F. Attachments

The following documents should be included as attachments to the “Narrative Proposal.” Items 2-3 of the attachments to the narrative proposal must not exceed fifteen (15) pages. Only one

(1) scanned image per page will be reviewed.

1. Documentation of Applicant Eligibility: For entities other than cities, counties, tribes, or states, please attach documentation of your eligibility, such as non-profit status, resolutions, or statutes. Note: This documentation will not count against page limitations.

2. Milestones Schedule: This should indicate start times and completion dates of significant tasks under your program (e.g., outreach, procurement of a contractor, recruitment, frequency of classes to be offered and length, instruction, placement, and tracking).

3. General Support Letters: Letters of support may only impact scoring of the subcriteria that directly cite and request support letters and references. Support letters and references will not impact scoring for other ranking criteria. Support letters must be received with your proposal; letters received separately or after the due date for proposal submission will not be considered.

Project Funding

Status of Funds:

Anticipated/ Confirmed

Project Tasks

Outreach Instruction/ Training

Program Management Research Total

[Funding Source 1] [Funding Source 2] [Funding Source 3] Total Non-EPA Funds Leveraged:

Before you submit your, please ensure the following documents are included in your package submitted to EPA via www.grants.gov (please note – do not submit this checklist with your proposal):

Cover Letter (2-page limit, single-spaced) ☐ Responses to all threshold eligibility criteria in Section III.C The Narrative Proposal (12-page limit, single-spaced) ☐ Responses to all five ranking criteria Attachments (15-page limit) ☐ Documentation of applicant eligibility if other than city, county, state, or tribe Note: This documentation will not count against page limitations.

☐ Milestones Schedule ☐ General letters of support from partners and employers identified in your proposal

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

Additional provisions that apply to this solicitation and/or awards made under this solicitation, including but not limited to those related to confidential business information, contracts and subawards under grants, and proposal assistance and communications, can be found in the EPA Solicitation Clauses6. These and the other provisions in EPA’s Solicitation Clauses are important and applicants must review them when preparing proposals for this solicitation. If you are unable to access these provisions electronically, please contact the Regional Brownfields Contact listed in Section VII. to obtain the provisions.

SECTION V. – PROPOSAL REVIEW INFORMATION

V.A. Evaluation Criteria

If your proposal passes the threshold eligibility review (see Section III.B.), the information you provide in response to Section IV.E. (Narrative Proposal/Ranking Criteria) will be evaluated per the criteria below and scored by a national evaluation panel.