Chesapeake Bay Program (66.466)
Program
66.466 Chesapeake Bay Program
Federal Agency
OFFICE OF WATER, CHESAPEAKE BAY PROGRAM OFFICE (CBPO), REGION III, ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
Authorization
Clean Water Act, Section 117.
Program Number
66.466
Last Known Status
Active
Objectives
To expand and strengthen cooperative efforts to restore and protect the Chesapeake Bay. EPA's funding priority is to achieve the goals and commitments established in the Chesapeake 2000 agreement. As a means to achieve the goals and commitments of the historic 1983 Chesapeake Bay Agreement to the current Chesapeake 2000 Agreement, assistance agreements are awarded to: Nonprofit organizations, State and local governments, colleges, universities, and interstate agencies. The type of projects that are awarded range from monitoring of bay toxins to environmental education. Funding Priority: To expand and strengthen cooperative efforts to restore and protect the Chesapeake Bay. EPA's funding priority is to achieve the goals and commitments established in the Chesapeake 2000 agreement, such as: (1) activities to support living resources, vital habitat, water quality and sound land use protection and restoration and stewardship community engagement; (2) Signatory jurisdictions of the Chesapeake Bay Agreement for purposes of implementing the management mechanisms established under the Chesapeake Bay Agreement and/or for the purpose of monitoring the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem, as authorized under and in accordance with Section 117(e); and (3) Local governments and nonprofit organizations and individuals in support of the Small Watershed Grants Program. The Small Watershed Grants Program provides small grants to organizations working on a local level to protect and improve watersheds in the Chesapeake Bay basin while building citizen based resource stewardship, as authorized and in accordance with Section 117(g)(2).
Types of Assistance
Project Grants.
Uses and Use Restrictions
Section 117 authorizes the Agency to award grants or Cooperative Agreements to: (l) Nonprofit organizations, State and local governments, colleges, universities, and interstate agencies as authorized under and in accordance with Section 117(d); to implement the goals of the Chesapeake Bay Agreement; such as, activities to support living resources, vital habitat, water quality and sound land use protection and restoration and stewardship community engagement; (2) Signatory jurisdictions of the Chesapeake Bay Agreement for purposes of implementing the management mechanisms established under the Chesapeake Bay Agreement and/or for the purpose of monitoring the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem, as authorized under and in accordance with Section 117(e). This section requires a non-federal matching funds of at least fifty percent; (3) Local governments and nonprofit organizations and individuals in support of the Small Watershed Grants Program. The Small Watershed Grants Program provides small grants to organizations working on a local level to protect and improve watersheds in the Chesapeake Bay basin while building citizen based resource stewardship, as authorized and in accordance with Section 117(g)(2). This section requires a non-federal matching funds of twenty-five percent.
Eligibility Requirements
Applicant Eligibility
Funds are available to nonprofit organizations, State and local governments, colleges, universities, interstate agencies, individuals and signatory jurisdictions of the Chesapeake Bay Agreement.
Beneficiary Eligibility
State and local governments, interstate agencies, nonprofit organizations, colleges and universities, individuals, and signatory jurisdictions of the Chesapeake Bay Agreement.
Credentials/Documentation
Compliance with 40 CFR Parts 30 and 31, and with Program Grant Guidance to matching funds. Costs will be determined in accordance with OMB Circular No. A-87 for State, Local and Indian Tribal Governments, OMB Circular No. A-122 for nonprofit organizations and OMB Circular No. A-21 for educational institutions.
Application and Award Process
Preapplication Coordination
Preapplication assistance is recommended and should be obtained from the EPA Region III Grants Management Office. All proposals or work statements should be consistent with CBPO's Grant Guidance. This program is eligible for coverage under E.O. 12372, "Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs." An applicant should consult the office or official designated as the single point of contact in his or her State for more information on the process the State requires to be followed in applying for assistance if the State has selected the program for review.
Application Procedure
Application kits may be requested from EPA Chesapeake Bay Program Office (CBPO), 410 Severn Avenue, Suite 109, Annapolis, MD 21403. The completed application including the final proposal should be submitted to EPA Region III Grants Management Office, 1650 Arch Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103 with a copy to CBPO in Annapolis for processing. The standard application forms as furnished by the Federal agency and required by OMB Circular No. A-102 must be used for this program.
Award Procedure
Each application and final proposal shall be evaluated by the Chesapeake Bay Program Office to determine the adequacy of the application under CBP objectives, including technical merit and relevance of the project. Each application will also be subject to an administrative review by the Region III Grants Management Office to determine whether all administrative requirements have been met. Funds are awarded by the Region III Office.
Deadlines
Proposals are received when an RFP is issued, usually in the spring time frame. Interested parties should submit their name, address, phone number and email to the Environmental Protection Agency's Chesapeake Bay Program Office, for the purpose of establishing a database to receive Request for Initial Proposals (RFIPs) in order to apply for grants/cooperative agreements. RFIPs will be announced to request initial proposals to implement specific outcomes that will further goals of the Chesapeake 2000 Agreement. Clearly print or type your name, organization, address, phone number and email and what "Theme(s) Toxics, Nutrients, Living Resources/Habitat Restoration Land, Growth & Stewardship, Monitoring, Air, Communication/Outeach, Modeling, and Data Management" you would be interested in receiving. Mail this information to Environmental Protection Agency, CBPO, Grants Office, 410 Severn Ave., Suite 109, Annapolis, MD 21403. EPA will only accept addresses provided in writing, no phone calls. Interested parties applying for a grant under the Small Watershed Grants Program should submit their name and address to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation 1120 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Suite 900, Washington, DC 20026, for purpose of establishing a database to receive Request for Proposals (RFPs). National Fish and Wildlife Foundation will list the RFP on their website: www.NFWF.org.
Range of Approval/Disapproval Time
Appeals
Appeals are subject to the provisions described in 40 CFR Part 31, Subpart F and Part 30.63.
Renewals
Renewals are subject to approval of EPA.
Assistance Considerations
Formula and Matching Requirements
State agencies applying for implementation and monitoring grants must identify a 50 percent cost share of total project costs (equal match/dollar for dollar). Applicant applying for small watershed grants must commit to a cost share of 25 percent of the total project cost. All other applicants applying for grants under Section 117 must commit to a cost share of 5 percent of the total project cost. State and local governments receiving assistance under any of the provisions of Section 117 must comply with 40 CFR 3l.24 and all other applicants must comply with 40 CFR 30.23. In addition to the cost share requirement, applicants must adhere to the requirement in the Clean Water Act, Section 117 - "Administrative Costs". This section requires a 10 percent cap for administrative costs. The cost of salaries and fringe benefits incurred in administering the grant cannot exceed 10 percent of the Federal grant amount.
Length and Time Phasing of Assistance
Grants are normally funded on a 12-month basis.
Post Assistance Requirements
Reports
Quarterly, semi-annual and final progress and expenditure reports; program evaluation and other reports as required by the specific terms of the Agreement. Financial Status Reports must be submitted.
Audits
Grants are subject to inspections and audit by representatives of the Comptroller General of the United States and EPA or any authorized representative. Periodic audits should be made to determine if the recipient's systems of financial management and internal control to meet terms and conditions of grants and other agreements. The provisions of OMB Circular No. A-133, "Audits of States, Local Governments, and Non-Profit Organizations," must be complied with as applicable. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular No. A-133, "Audits of States, Local Government, and Non-Profit Organizations," was published in the Federal Register on June 30, 1997. The Circular implements the Single Audit Act Amendments of 1996. The Circular requires nonfederal entities that expend more than $300,000 in Federal award dollars, to have an audit conducted in accordance with Circular's provisions. With the revised Circular, the previous OMB Circular No. A-128 for single audits of State and Local governments was rescinded and the single audit requirements for these entities were incorporated among the provisions of OMB Circular No. A-133.
Records
Financial records, including all documents to support entries on accounting records and to substantiate changes to each grant must be kept available to personnel authorized to examine EPA grant accounts. All records must be maintained for three years from the date of submission of the final expenditure report. If questions still remain, such as those raised as a result of audit, related records should be retained until the matter is completely resolved.
Program Accomplishments
In Fiscal Year 2003, 42 grants were awarded for: nonpoint source implementation programs, including best management practice in urban and rural areas, and biological nutrient removal, point source activity, living resources restoration including oyster recovery studies and submerged aquatic vegetation surveys; environmental education, mainstem monitoring of Chesapeake Bay and other studies in support of the restoration of the Chesapeake Bay. In Fiscal Year 2004, grants will continue to focus on supporting projects to achieve the goals and objectives of the Chesapeake 2000 Agreement.
Financial Information
Account Identification
68-0108-0-1-304.
Obligations
(Grants/Cooperative Agreements) FY 02 $16,040,000; FY 03 est $17,000,000; and FY 04 est $16,000,000.
Range and Average of Financial Assistance
$8,200 to $2,800,000.
Regulations, Guidelines and Literature
Chesapeake Bay Program Office's Annual Grant Guidance and general regulations (40 CFR Parts 30 and 31) for assistance programs available from EPA.
Related Programs
66.419, Water Pollution Control_State and Interstate Program Support; 66.454, Water Quality Management Planning; 66.460, Nonpoint Source Implementation Grants.
Information Contacts
Regional or Local Office
EPA Chesapeake Bay Program Office, 410 Severn Avenue, Suite 109, Annapolis, MD 21403. Attn: Veronica Kuczynski. Telephone: (410) 267-5743.
Headquarters Office
Office of Water, Mail Code 4101, EPA, Washington, DC, 20460. Telephone: (202) 260-5700.
Web Site Address
Examples of Funded Projects
Grants and cooperative agreements awarded to States and local governments, colleges, universities interstate agencies and nonprofit organizations are for nonpoint source implementation, water quality monitoring, education and outreach, living resources and habitat restoration and program support. Examples are listed as follows: (1) Toxics: Implement critical elements of the Toxics 2000 Strategy in order to ensure a Bay free of toxics; (2) Nutrients: Sustain and accelerate efforts to meet the nutrient reduction goals in order to attain water quality conditions necessary to support the living resources of the Chesapeake Bay; (3) Living Resources/Habitat Restoration: Restore and protect living resources, their habitats and ecological relationships; (4) Land, Growth and Stewardship: Encourage sustainable development patterns that integrate economic health, resource protection, and community participation; (5) Monitoring: Coordinated water quality and living resources monitoring and data interpretation in the tidal Chesapeake Bay. Implementation of the Basin wide Monitoring Strategy will integrate living resource, water quality, air and toxic monitoring throughout the entire Chesapeake Bay watershed; (6) Air: Link atmospheric deposition and loadings of nutrients and chemical contaminants to effects on living resources and water quality in the Chesapeake Bay, its tributaries and watershed; (7) Communication/Outreach: Provide communication, outreach and education components of the Bay Program partnership; (8) Modeling: Continue to develop, calibrate, and manage the application of linked airshed-watershed-estuarine hydrodynamic-water quality-living resources models to support the Bay Program's nutrient cap and for understanding the nutrient and sediment affects in the Chesapeake Bay system; and (9) Data Management: Implement distributed data and information servers networked to provide direct public access to synthesized Bay restoration and protection related data and information.
Criteria for Selecting Proposals
Proposals are approved by EPA according to technical merit and relevance to the Chesapeake 2000 Agreement, and the directives of the Chesapeake Executive Council.
