EPA’s new Environmental and Climate Justice Community Change Grants program (CCG) has announced a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for approximately $2 billion dollars in Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) funds in environmental and climate justice activities to benefit disadvantaged communities through projects that reduce pollution, increase community climate resilience, and build community capacity to address environmental and climate justice challenges. These place-based investments will be focused on community-driven initiatives to be responsive to community and stakeholder input. They are designed to deliver on the transformative potential of the IRA for communities most adversely and disproportionately impacted by climate change, legacy pollution, and historical disinvestments.
Resources
- Summary: EPA Community Change Grants Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) - PowerPoint Presentation put together by TCTAC staff
- Suggested 6-Step Community Change Grant Track I and II Application Process - Environmental Protection Network
- EPA Community Change Grants Technical Assistance
- Federal Grant Readiness Assessment: EPA CCG - Complete this assessment to determine if your organization meets the basic requirements and practices to apply for the EPA Community Change grant
- EPA CCG Decision Tree - This form will help you determine if your organization’s project meets the grant's criteria for funding
- CCG Outputs and Outcomes Checklist - This spreadsheet will help you track what project outputs and outcomes your application meets in regard to grant requirements.
Eligible Organizations
The eligible entities include:
- A partnership between two community-based non-profit organizations (CBOs).
- A partnership between a CBO and one of the following:
- a Federally-Recognized Tribe
- a local government
- an institution of higher education.
Other organizations and entities may be able to participate and be involved in the Community Change Grants projects as collaborating subrecipients and/or procurement contractors selected in compliance with competition requirements.
Deadlines
Applications packages must be submitted on or before November 21, 2024 at 11:59 PM (Eastern Time).
Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, and the Agency began review of initial applications in March 2024. EPA encourages applicants to submit applications as soon as they completely meet the NOFO requirements to ensure adequate time to resubmit it if needed per the NOFO instructions. EPA will continue to accept applications through November 21, 2024.
EPA Technical Assistance
Technical Assistance (TA) for the Community Change Grants Program is no longer accepting new applications for TA. If you submitted a TA application prior to August 16, 2024, you may still receive individualized TA services. Public TA resources are still available to all applicants on the CommunityChangeTA.org website provided by EPA through its technical assistance contractor, EnDyna.
TA Resources
EnDyna, with EPA input, has created a robust Resource Library to assist eligible applicants. The Resource Library includes information on the requirements of the CCG NOFO, worksheets for each part of the CCG grant application, and links to helpful tools. There are also links to materials and recordings from past events, a Project Area Map how-to video, the latest modification of the NOFO, and EPA’s FAQs available on the CommunityChangeTA.org website.