City Of New Bedford

City of New Bedford, Massachusetts, operating through the New Bedford Port Authority and subsidiary entities, is a U.S. local government recipient of federal grants and sub-grants across homelessness intervention, affordable housing, airport infrastructure, drinking water and wastewater systems, public safety, education, and environmental remediation. The city acts exclusively as a recipient or sub-recipient; it does not hold federal contracts or prime contract vehicles.

The city's federal award footprint is heavily concentrated in homelessness and housing programs. The Department of Housing and Urban Development's Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development dominates the award count, funding 194 awards under the Continuum of Care (CoC) Program (CFDA 14.267), the Emergency Solutions Grant Program (CFDA 14.231), and the Home Investment Partnerships Program (CFDA 14.239). Representative CoC awards include a $763,114 project grant (September 2025–August 2026) supporting permanent supportive housing through sub-awards to Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Fall River; a $510,210 CoC grant (September 2025–August 2026) with a sub-award to Semcoa Inc. for supportive housing services; and a $876,179 HOME formula grant (December 2025–September 2034) for affordable housing rehabilitation, homebuyer assistance, and rental assistance. The city deploys CoC funds through partnerships with local nonprofits including Catholic Charities, Positive Action Against Chemical Addiction Inc. (PAACA), Community Counseling of Bristol County, Stepping Stone Inc., and People Acting In Community Endeavors Inc. (PACE). Across the active CoC and homelessness portfolio, the city demonstrates sustained grant recipient status as a municipal administrator of federal funds to local nonprofit sub-recipients.

Beyond homelessness, New Bedford receives education formula grants from the Department of Education Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (29 awards documented) covering school nutrition programs, special education, literacy development, career and technical education, and English learner support, with sub-awards flowing to the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. The Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service funds 42 awards for child nutrition programs, including the National School Lunch Program and Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program. The Federal Aviation Administration (New England Region) has awarded 21 grants for airport infrastructure, including a $1,346,100 project grant (August 2024–August 2028) for service road improvements and a $240,000 award (May 2025–May 2029) for airport master plan updates. The Environmental Protection Agency Region 1 has awarded cooperative agreements totaling $1,959,752 for brownfield remediation and community air monitoring. The city received $3.55 million under HUD's Lead Hazard Reduction Demonstration Grant Program (CFDA 14.905, March 2025–March 2029) to address lead-based paint hazards in privately-owned housing. FEMA has awarded multiple Assistance to Firefighters Grants and American Rescue Plan Act relief funding for airport operations. The city also acts as sub-recipient of state pass-through grants from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Department of Public Health, Massachusetts Clean Water Trust) for water infrastructure, lead service line replacement, wastewater collection improvements, and public health services.

Activity peaked in 2024 with 94 awards; recent years show 47 awards in 2023, 16 in 2022, 34 in 2025, and 2 through March 2026. Twenty-one awards reach ultimate completion within the next twenty-four months, carrying combined potential value of $44 thousand, representing recompete exposure in the CoC and other formula-grant programs. Combined obligated dollars ($357.3 million) far exceed combined potential value ($50 thousand), indicating the portfolio reflects primarily sub-award and pass-through distributions rather than direct contract receipts. The city's 69% prime award share and 31% sub-award share reflect its dual role as both direct federal grant recipient and administrator of funds to community-based nonprofit sub-recipients. The city serves as the fiscal agent and Unified Funding Agency (UFA) for the New Bedford Continuum of Care, housing and homeless service initiatives, and municipal infrastructure programs across water, wastewater, airport, and education sectors.