FY24 IIJA/IRA Bureau of Land Management Oregon/Washington (ORWA) Rangeland Resource Management | L24AS00048

Opportunity Information: Apply for L24AS00048

The FY24 IIJA/IRA Bureau of Land Management Oregon/Washington (ORWA) Rangeland Resource Management opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number L24AS00048; CFDA 15.237) is a discretionary federal funding opportunity from the Bureau of Land Management that will be awarded as a cooperative agreement. It supports work in the natural resources arena, specifically focused on rangeland resource management needs within BLM-managed lands and programs in Oregon and Washington. Because the instrument is a cooperative agreement, applicants should expect BLM to have substantial involvement in the funded project, such as collaborating on project planning, coordination, technical direction, and/or oversight, rather than simply issuing a pass-through grant with minimal agency engagement.

Eligibility is limited to public and nonprofit entities and certain educational and tribal organizations. Eligible applicants include state, county, and city/township governments; special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Native American tribal governments; tribal organizations that are not federally recognized tribal governments; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; and nonprofits both with and without 501(c)(3) status. Individuals and for-profit organizations are explicitly ineligible, which is an important screening criterion for potential applicants and partners when assembling a project team or applicant/recipient structure.

A key restriction in this notice is that it does not support entities that are trying to hire interns or crews under the Public Lands Corps Act of 1993. The notice emphasizes that the Public Lands Corps Act (16 USC, Chapter 37, Subchapter II) is the only legislative authority that allows BLM to "hire" interns under that specific authority. As a result, even if an organization is otherwise eligible for this rangeland management NOFO, it should not propose projects centered on internship or conservation crew hiring under the Public Lands Corps framework. Youth-focused conservation corps efforts must instead be pursued through the separate BLM youth program notice identified as NOFO 15.243, BLM Youth Conservation Opportunities on Public Lands. In practical terms, applicants should keep proposals squarely focused on rangeland resource management deliverables and avoid structuring budgets and workplans around intern/crew hiring mechanisms that this NOFO does not allow.

The notice also addresses Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Units (CESUs), which are partnership networks designed to promote and provide research, studies, assessments, monitoring, technical assistance, and educational services that align with CESU purposes. If an applicant is a CESU partner and the award is issued under a formally negotiated Master CESU agreement consistent with CESU goals, indirect costs are capped. Specifically, indirect costs may not exceed 17.5 percent of the indirect cost base recognized in the partner's federally approved Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (NICRA). Applicants are instructed to state whether their proposal furthers the CESU program purpose and, if it does, to identify which CESU Network should be considered as the host. This matters for universities and research-oriented organizations in particular, since it can affect both how the agreement is administered and what indirect cost recovery is allowable.

From the basic funding parameters provided, the award ceiling is listed as $300,000. The original closing date was February 29, 2024, and the opportunity record was created on October 11, 2023. While the summary data does not spell out the exact number of expected awards, the ceiling indicates the typical maximum size of an individual project under this announcement. Overall, this opportunity is best suited for government agencies, tribes, nonprofits, and higher education institutions that can partner effectively with BLM on Oregon/Washington rangeland management activities and that can comply with the specific limitations around youth hiring pathways and, where relevant, CESU indirect cost caps and network designation.

• The Bureau of Land Management in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "FY24 IIJA/IRA Bureau of Land Management Oregon/Washington (ORWA) Rangeland Resource Management" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.237.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2023-10-11.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-02-29. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $300,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education.

Apply for L24AS00048

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