FY2014 Clean Water Act Section 319 - Nonpoint Source Pollut

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The FY2014 Clean Water Act (CWA) Section 319 - Tribal Nonpoint Source (NPS) Pollution Control grant program solicitation for competitive-funded proposals has been posted. The purpose of the CWA Section 319 program is to implement EPA-approved Nonpoint Source Management Program plans to control polluted runoff. All submission materials for competitive funding are due Monday, December 16, 2013.

For your convenience, this email includes some of the essential NPS grant program information, including a couple major changes, for competitive funding requests only. Please note the contact information and submission times identified in this email is applicable to Tribes located within the EPA Region 9 Pacific Southwest Region only.

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS (RFP) INFORMATION:
Refer to the FY2014 RFP under Clean Water Act Section 319 for the competitive proposal requirements, required submission materials, and submission information. Please do not refer to RFPs from past years for CWA Section 319 competitive funding information (ie., FY2013 and older) as changes were made to the RFP this year.

The FY2014 RFP can be accessed via the following links:
• EPA Tribal NPS Webpage: http://water.epa.gov/polwaste/nps/tribal/funding14.cfm
• Grants.gov: http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-o ... pId=246593

If you are unable to access either websites, please contact me or your CWA grants project officer for assistance.
CHANGES TO THE RFP:
Changes were made to the RFP this year including:
• Maximum Funding Request Reduced: Per Section II(A), pages 6-7 of the RFP, eligible tribes and intertribal consortia may submit a proposal for a maximum of $100,000 of federal Clean Water Act Section 319 funding (plus the additional required match of the total project cost).
• Page Limit: Per Section IV(B)(II), pages 14-15 of the RFP, the proposal work plan must be limited to no more than twelve (12) typewritten single spaced 8.5 x 11 inch pages (supporting materials are not included in the page limit).

SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS:
For specific information on application and submission instructions, refer to Section IV of the RFP (pages 14-22). Submission materials for competitive funding requests can be submitted in one of the following two methods:
1. Electronically through the grants.gov website by 8:59pm PST on December 16, 2013.
2. By hard copy (with optional CD or thumb/jump drive) by express delivery service, hand delivery, or courier service to the EPA Region 9 Tribal NPS Program Coordinator by 5:00pm (PST) December 16, 2013. The mailing address for express delivery for eligible applicants in the Pacific Southwest Region (EPA Region 9) is:
Tiffany Eastman
US EPA Region 9 Tribal NPS Program Coordinator
US EPA Region 9
75 Hawthorne Street, MC: WTR-10
San Francisco, CA 94105
ATTN: FY14 Tribal CWA 319 RFP

COMPETITIVE PROPOSAL CONTENT:
• Regional Threshold Evaluation Criteria: All nine regional threshold evaluation criteria must be met in order for a tribe's proposal to be evaluated under the ranking criteria in Section V of this announcement and be considered for award. The information on the Threshold Evaluation Criteria is found in Section III(C), pages 10-12 of the RFP.
• Proposal Ranking Criteria: The National Review Committee will evaluate all proposals that met the Regional Threshold Evaluation Criteria based on the nine ranking factors found in Section V, pages 22-27 of the RFP.

QUESTIONS:
Per the RFP, all questions must be submitted in writing and received by December 9, 2013. Please submit your questions to Tiffany Eastman, EPA Region 9 Tribal NPS Coordinator, at eastman.tiffany@epa.gov.

INFORMATION SESSION WEBINARS
Per the RFP (page 31), EPA will host two national Information Sessions regarding this announcement via webinar. The dates/times for the two webinars are to be determined and will be posted on http://www.epa.gov/nps/tribal. I will send out a courtesy notification via mass email with the dates/times once they are determined.

DUE DATE FOR REQUIRED SUBMISSION MATERIALS:
December 16, 2013 by 5:00pm (PST) for hard copy and by 8:59pm (PST) via grants.gov.

Please be aware that the due date and submission materials for base funding is separate from competitive funding and is not discussed in this email. A separate announcement will be sent out regarding base funding shortly and is also posted online at http://water.epa.gov/polwaste/nps/tribal/funding14.cfm.

Thank you-
Tiffany

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Tiffany Eastman Stone
Grants Project Officer
US EPA Region 9 Tribal CWA Section 319 - NPS Program Coordinator
The Tribal Office, WTR-10
Water Division
US EPA, Region 9

CONTACT INFO:
eastman.tiffany@epa.gov
Phone: (415) 795-2435
Fax: (415) 947-3537

http://www.epa.gov/region09/water/tribal/