Who is a member?
Our members are the local governments of Massachusetts and their elected and appointed leadership.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced the second stage of federal funding for the Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program.
The program was established by the Inflation Reduction Act in 2022 to help develop plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and implement corresponding actions. The EPA, which administers the program, has announced details on the implementation phase of funding that follows the $250 million for planning grants announced earlier this year.
The notice of funding opportunity is for approximately $4.3 billion for programs, policies, projects and measures that will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Priority Climate Action Plans, a vital component of the planning grant program, will help to identify projects for implementation.
Examples of greenhouse gas reduction measures in sectors ranging from transportation to agriculture can be found within the general competition notice of funding opportunity.
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts successfully applied for the planning grant program and is eligible for implementation funding, as are municipalities within two Massachusetts-based metropolitan areas: the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH MSA, which covers 188 municipalities, and the Worcester, MA-CT MSA, which covers 48.
The EPA expects to award between 30 and 115 Climate Pollution Reduction implementation grants, ranging from $2 million to $500 million. Additional rounds of funding are not anticipated, so all available implementation grant funds will be awarded next year.
Applicants are asked to submit an optional, informal, non-binding notice of intent by Feb. 1 to CPRG@epa.gov for this grant opportunity, to allow the EPA to gauge the level of interest and capacity across the country. The funding amount requested, and a brief description of the scope and sector of emission reduction measures likely to be included in the formal application, are requested for this notice of intent.
The deadline to submit questions to CPRG@epa.gov regarding this opportunity is March 15.
A questions and answers document regarding the CPRG implementation grants program, as well as program guidance, is available on the EPA’s website.
Applications must be submitted to Grants.gov by 11:59 p.m. on April 1, 2024. Award notification is expected in July of 2024, with awards anticipated in October of 2024.
The EPA provides tools and technical assistance, including links to helpful webinars on the grant program, on its website.