Berkshire Regional Planning Commission

Berkshire Regional Planning Commission, a tax-exempt nonprofit based in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, operates as a federal grant recipient and sub-recipient focused on community development, environmental remediation, public health, and regional economic planning across Berkshire County and the surrounding region. The organization holds 29 prime federal grants (60% of recent awards) and participates as a sub-recipient on 19 federal grants (40%), with no federal contracts in its footprint.

BRPC's customer concentration is heavily weighted to health and environmental agencies. The Department of Health and Human Services Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) anchors the portfolio with 13 awards, reflecting BRPC's substantial work in opioid use disorder prevention, treatment, and recovery services. Environmental Protection Agency Region 1 accounts for 7 awards, and the Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration for 5 awards. Together, these three agencies represent 67% of recent awards. BRPC's grant program footprint spans 19 distinct federal grantor agencies, with HHS, EPA, EDA, and USDA Agricultural Marketing Service driving the largest share of activity.

Core capability work centers on three domains. BRPC receives and manages EPA brownfields assessment and remediation grants, including a $28.021 million cooperative agreement awarded in October 2022 (running through September 2027) to capitalize a revolving loan fund for brownfield cleanup in Berkshire County, and a companion EPA assessment agreement (October 2022 through September 2026) for Phase I and Phase II environmental site assessments and cleanup planning. BRPC holds a competitive opioid use disorder expansion grant from HHS SAMHSA (awarded October 2023, completing September 2026) to extend the Berkshire Post Overdose Program, providing field medical outreach, harm reduction, treatment linkage, and recovery support services across three regions of the county. BRPC also acts as the regional planning organization for comprehensive economic development strategies, receiving EDA planning grants (most recently July 2023 through June 2026) to facilitate CEDS development, coordinate regional development committees, and conduct economic indicator analysis. Additional work includes EPA air quality monitoring under the American Rescue Plan (April 2023 through September 2026), FHWA Safe Streets and Roads for All comprehensive safety planning (August 2023 through August 2025), USDA mobile farmers market development (September 2022 through December 2025), HHS healthy and efficient homes pilots, and National Endowment for the Arts collective impact support.

As a sub-recipient, BRPC draws federal funding from Massachusetts state agencies and regional partners, including sub-awards from the Commonwealth for substance use disorder services (recurring since 2022), Massachusetts Department of Public Health for COVID-19 case investigation support and SUD services, Boston Medical Center for community health coalition coordination, and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation for stormwater infiltration projects. Activity has remained steady, with seven awards in 2022, six in 2023, three in 2024, and ten in 2025. Five awards face ultimate completion within the next twenty-four months, presenting recompete opportunity for BRPC and potential for competitive challenges from other regional planning organizations. The organization obligated $25.5 million across all federal awards to date, with recent grant values ranging from under $30,000 (health pilot projects) to multi-million-dollar brownfields and OUD program agreements.