Training and Technical Assistance for Small Systems Historical Funding

Historical Funding

• Fiscal Year 2023 Grant Recipients
• Fiscal Year 2023 Grant Announcement
• Fiscal Year 2022 Grant Recipients
• Fiscal Year 2022 Grant Announcement
• Fiscal Year 2021 Grant Recipients
• Fiscal Year 2021 Grant Announcement
• Fiscal Year 2020 Grant Recipients
• Fiscal year 2020 Grant Announcement
• Fiscal Year 2019 Grant Recipients
• Fiscal Year 2019 Grant Announcement

Fiscal Year 2023 Grant Recipients

On May 21, 2024, EPA announced the selection of $30.7 million in grant funding to provide training and technical assistance to small drinking water and wastewater systems that often serve small communities and rural America. This funding will improve public health and environmental protection by helping to ensure that drinking water in these communities is safe and that wastewater is treated before being responsibly returned to the environment.

This technical assistance may include circuit-rider and multi-state regional technical assistance programs, training and site visits, and training or technical assistance to diagnose and trouble-shoot system operational and compliance-related problems and identify solutions. Please see here for the press release.

The selected recipients are:

Rural Community Assistance Partnership              

• $13 million to provide training and technical assistance for small public water systems to achieve and maintain compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act, including assisting communities in conducting lead service line inventories and providing training on cyber-security.
• $3.4 million to work with private well owners to help improve water quality including testing for PFAS contamination.

University of New Mexico

• $5,000,000 to provide training and technical assistance for small public water systems to achieve and maintain compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act, including improving financial and managerial capacity. 
• $1,250,000  to work with small publicly owned wastewater and on-site/decentralized wastewater systems to improve water quality.

National Rural Water Association

• $7.9 million to provide training and technical assistance for small public water systems to achieve and maintain compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act, including improving financial and managerial capacity and assisting systems in identifying and responding to potential cybersecurity threats. 

Fiscal year 2023 Grant Announcement

On December 4, 2023, EPA announced the availability of up to $30.7 million in grant funding for technical assistance and training to support small drinking water and wastewater systems, including those in rural communities. This grant provides funding to organizations that work side-by-side with water systems by giving them the necessary tools and training to ensure communities have safe drinking water and effective wastewater treatment systems.

“Many small drinking water systems face challenges when working to provide reliable and safe drinking water to their communities,” said EPA Assistant Administrator for Water Radhika Fox. “Funding to support upgrading water infrastructure is central to President Biden’s Investing in America Agenda. With this grant funding, the EPA is building on our technical assistance efforts by providing another resource for disadvantaged and often rural, communities to gain access to their fair share of federal investment through training and technical assistance.”

Additionally, this grant will help expand on the Agency’s water technical assistance (WaterTA) commitment, which aims to provide a range of assistance to help communities identify solutions for water challenges — from capacity building to helping navigate the federal funding application process, and strategically invest in reliable infrastructure solutions.

Click here for additional information

FY23 Training and Technical Assistance RFA (pdf) (492.6 KB)

Fiscal year 2022 Grant Recipients

On May 18, 2023, EPA announced the selection of $25.7 million in grant funding to provide training and technical assistance to small drinking water and wastewater systems that often serve small communities and rural America. This funding will improve public health and environmental protection by helping to ensure that drinking water in these communities is safe and that wastewater is treated before being responsibly returned to the environment.

This technical assistance may include circuit-rider and multi-state regional technical assistance programs, training and site visits, and training or technical assistance to diagnose and trouble-shoot system operational and compliance-related problems and identify solutions. The selected recipients are:

Rural Community Assistance Partnership

• $14 million to provide training and technical assistance for small public water systems to achieve and maintain compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act, including improving financial and managerial capacity.  
• $1 million to work with small publicly owned wastewater and on-site/decentralized wastewater systems to improve water quality.
• $2.7 million to work with private well owners to help improve water quality.

National Rural Water Association 

• $8 million to provide training and technical assistance for small public water systems to achieve and maintain compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act, including improving financial and managerial capacity.  

For additional information, please go to the Press Release. 

Fiscal year 2022 Grant Announcement

On December 12, 2022, EPA announced the availability of $25.7 million in grant funding for organizations to provide technical assistance and training to support small drinking water and wastewater systems that are often located in rural communities. EPA’s funding will help ensure that drinking water in these communities is safe and that wastewater is treated before it is responsibly returned to the environment.

Small water systems often face unique financial and operational challenges, including aging infrastructure, workforce shortages, increasing costs, and declining rate bases. EPA’s grant funding will be used by nonprofit organizations to provide training and technical assistance to small public water systems, small wastewater systems, and private well owners across the country.

Click here for additional information:

FY22 Training and Technical Assistance RFA (pdf) (639.58 KB, Dec 2022)

Fiscal year 2021 Grant Recipients

On May 18, 2022, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the selection of $21.7 million in grant funding to provide training and technical assistance to small drinking water and wastewater systems that often serve small communities and rural America. This funding will improve public health and environmental protection by helping to ensure that drinking water in these communities is safe and that wastewater is treated before being responsibly returned to the environment.

This technical assistance may include circuit-rider and multi-state regional technical assistance programs, training and site visits, and training or technical assistance to diagnose and trouble-shoot system operational and compliance-related problems and identify solutions. The selected recipients are:

Rural Community Assistance Partnership

• $11.2 million to provide training and technical assistance for small public water systems to achieve and maintain compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act, including improving financial and managerial capacity.  
• $1 million to work with small publicly owned wastewater and on-site/decentralized wastewater systems to improve water quality.
• $850,000 to work with private well owners to help improve water quality.

National Rural Water Association 

• $7.8 million to provide training and technical assistance for small public water systems to achieve and maintain compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act, including improving financial and managerial capacity.  
• $850,000 to work with private well owners to help improve water quality.

To read the selection announcement, please go to the Press Release.

Fiscal year 2021 Grant Announcement

On October 15, 2021, EPA opened the competition of the FY2021 Training and Technical Assistance available grant funding of $21.7 million. EPA is soliciting applications to provide training and technical assistance for small public water systems, small publicly owned wastewater systems, communities served by onsite/decentralized wastewater systems, and private drinking water well owners.

Training and technical assistance activities should be made available nationally in rural and urban communities and to personnel of Tribally-owned and -operated systems. Assisting small systems with their technical, managerial, and financial capacity to achieve long-term sustainability and resiliency is a key priority for the Agency.

The funding will help provide water and wastewater system staff and private well owners with training and tools to enhance system operations and management practices, and support EPA’s continuing efforts to protect public health and promote sustainability in small communities.

EPA expects to award three to nine cooperative agreements totaling up to $21.7 million in federal funds. The purpose of the agreements is to provide training and technical assistance to:

• Small public water systems to achieve and maintain compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA);
• Small public water systems on a wide range of managerial and/or financial topics to achieve and maintain compliance with the SDWA; 
• Small publicly-owned wastewater systems, communities served by onsite-decentralized wastewater systems to help improve water quality; or
• Private well owners to help improve water quality.

Click here for additional information:

FY21 Training and Technical Assistance RFA (pdf) (590.68 KB, October 15, 2021)

Please refer to the following document for responses to frequently asked questions:

FY21 FAQ for Training and Technical Assistance Grant (pdf) (196.34 KB, 2021)

Fiscal Year 2020 Grant Recipients

On May 12, 2021, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the selection of over $17 million in grant funding to provide training and technical assistance to small drinking water and wastewater systems that often serve small communities and rural America. This funding will improve public health and environmental protection by helping to ensure that drinking water in these communities is safe and that wastewater is treated before being responsibly returned to the environment.

This technical assistance may include circuit-rider and multi-state regional technical assistance programs, training and site visits, and training or technical assistance to diagnose and trouble-shoot system operational and compliance-related problems and identify solutions. The selected recipients are:

Rural Community Assistance Partnership

• $6.15 million: Provide training and technical assistance for small public water systems to achieve and maintain compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act, including improving financial and managerial capacity.  
• $1.7 million: Work with private well owners to help improve water quality

National Rural Water Association

• $6.15 million: Provide training and technical assistance for small public water systems to achieve and maintain compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act, including improving financial and managerial capacity.  

University of New Mexico

• $2.7 million: Provide training and technical assistance for small public water systems to achieve and maintain compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act, including improving financial and managerial capacity.  
• $1 million: Work with small publicly-owned wastewater and on-site/decentralized wastewater systems to improve water quality

To read the announcement, please go to the Press Release.

Fiscal year 2020 Grant Announcement

EPA’s Fiscal Year 2020 appropriation directs the Agency to competitively award over $17 million to nonprofit organizations, nonprofit private universities and colleges, and public institutions of higher education to provide training and technical assistance to small public water systems, small wastewater systems and private well owners, located in urban and rural communities throughout the U.S. and its territories.

The funding will help provide training and technical assistance to small public water systems so that they can operate and maintain their systems to achieve and maintain compliance with the SDWA; to build their financial and managerial capacity to provide safe drinking water over the long term; to improve water quality and sustainable operations; and to improve water quality.  The emphasis of the training and tools assist towards enhancing system operations and management practices, while supporting EPA’s continuing efforts to protect public health and promote sustainability in small communities.

On December 10, 2020, EPA announced the following Request for Applications (RFA). The period for submitting applications will end on February 12, 2021.

EPA expects to award three to nine cooperative agreements totaling up to $17 million in federal funds.  The purpose of the agreements is to provide training and technical assistance to:

• Small public water systems to achieve and maintain compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), including managerial and/or financial capacity; 
• Small publicly-owned wastewater systems, communities served by onsite-decentralized wastewater systems to help improve water quality; or
• Private well owners to help improve water quality.

Click here for additional information:

FY20 Training and Technical Assistance RFA (pdf) (435.66 KB)

Fiscal Year 2019 Grant Recipients

In March 2020, selected grantees were announced for the FY2019 competitive award of $15 million in Training and Technical Assistance for Small Systems cooperative agreements.

Recipients of these grant awards offer technical assistance to small public water systems to achieve and maintain compliance with drinking water and wastewater regulations. EPA is awarding grant funding to the Rural Community Assistance Partnership (RCAP) in the amount of:

• $5.9 million to provide training and technical assistance for small public water systems to achieve and maintain compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act.
• $2.1 million to help small drinking water systems improve financial and managerial capacity to provide safe drinking water.
• $1.7 million to help private well owners improve water quality.
• $1 million to work with small publicly-owned wastewater and on-site/decentralized wastewater systems to improve water quality.

The agency is also awarding $4.3 million in grant funding to the National Rural Water Association (NRWA) to provide training and technical assistance for small public water systems to achieve and maintain compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act.

Fiscal Year 2019 Grant Announcement

EPA’s Fiscal Year 2019 appropriation directs the Agency to competitively award $15 million to non-profit organizations to provide training and technical assistance to small public water systems, small wastewater systems and private well owners, located in urban and rural communities throughout the U.S. and its territories.

The funding will help provide water and wastewater system staff and private well owners with training and tools to enhance system operations and management practices, and support EPA’s continuing efforts to protect public health and promote sustainability in small communities.

On September 30, 2019, EPA announced the following Request for Applications (RFA). The period for submitting applications will end on November 14, 2019.

EPA expects to award four to nine cooperative agreements totaling up to $15 million in federal funds.  The purpose of the agreements is to provide training and technical assistance to:

• Small public water systems to achieve and maintain compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA);
• Small public water systems on a wide range of managerial and/or financial topics to achieve and maintain compliance with the SDWA; 
• Small publicly-owned wastewater systems, communities served by onsite-decentralized wastewater systems to help improve water quality; or
• Private well owners to help improve water quality.

Click here for additional information:

FY19 Training and Technical Assistance RFA (pdf) (402.76 KB)

For additional information contact: SmallSystemsRFA@epa.gov

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