Municipal Resources

Municipal Resources

Welcome to the Office of the Municipal Ombudsman's Municipal Resources guide!

Subscribe here to receive a weekly list of federal water resources with a municipal focus.

On this page:

General Resources

Top of Page

Federal Funding

  • USDA's Local Food Promotion Program Fiscal Year 2025. Projects that develop, coordinate, and expand local and regional food business enterprises that engage as intermediaries in indirect producer to consumer marketing to help increase access to and availability of locally and regionally produced agricultural products. Program focus includes: Supporting the processing, aggregation, distribution, and storage of local and regional food products that are marketed locally or regionally, including value-added agricultural products; Encouraging the development of value-added agricultural products; Assisting with business development plans and feasibility studies; Developing marketing strategies for producers of local food and value-added products; Promoting new business opportunities and marketing strategies to reduce on-farm food waste.  Application Deadline: June 27, 2025
  • DOE's Carbon Capture Demonstration Projects Program for integrated carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) projects that demonstrate substantial improvements in the efficiency, effectiveness, cost, and environmental performance of carbon capture technologies for power, industrial, and other commercial applications. Apply by July 1, 2025
  • The Fiscal Year 2025 Notice of Funding Opportunity for DOD's Defense Community Infrastructure Program is now open. Complete proposals must be submitted through Grants.gov by 5 p.m. PDT on July 3, 2025. The full opportunity can be found at Grants.gov. Defense Community Infrastructure Program is a competitive grant program designed to address deficiencies in community infrastructure that can/does support a military installation’s readiness and lethality.
  • DOT's FY 2025 Low or No Emission Grant Program and the Grants for Buses and Bus Facilities Competitive Program. Low or No Emission Grant Program funds will be awarded for the purchase or lease of buses that use low- or no-emission propulsion technologies, including related equipment or facilities. Grants for Buses and Bus Facilities Competitive Program funds will be awarded to purchase, rehabilitate, or lease buses and related equipment, and to construct, purchase, rehabilitate, or lease bus-related facilities. Apply by: July 14, 2025
  • Delta Regional Authority's (DRA) 2025 Strategic Planning Program, a funding opportunity providing communities within DRA’s eight-state service region (Mississippi River and Alabama Black Belt regions) with the necessary resources to develop strategies that identify gaps in infrastructure, workforce development, and small business development and entrepreneurship. Application Deadline: August 1, 2025. 
  • [Gulf Coast States] Department of Treasury's RESTORE Act Direct Component – Construction and Real Property Acquisition Activities. This announcement applies only to the Direct Component and is only for applications for eligible construction and real property acquisition activities, including environmental restoration projects and including projects with or without a non-federal cost-share for another federally funded project or program. To apply for eligible activities that do not involve any construction, land acquisition, or environmental restoration, applicants should use the non-construction funding opportunity announcement (GR-RDC-25-002). All construction and real property acquisition activities, and any activity that requires a permit from a federal or state agency, including natural resource restoration projects, should be submitted under this construction and real property acquisition funding opportunity announcement. Apply on a rolling basis by October 31, 2025
  • [Gulf Coast States] Department of Treasury's RESTORE Act Direct Component - Non-Construction Activities This Direct Component is only for applications for eligible non-construction activities, including projects with or without a non-federal cost-share for another federally funded project or program. This announcement also includes planning assistance needed to prepare the Multiyear Implementation Plan (Multiyear Plan) required by the RESTORE Act. To apply for eligible activities involving construction and/or acquisition of real property or any other activity that requires a permit from a federal or state agency, including natural resource restoration projects, applicants should use the construction and real property acquisition funding opportunity announcement (GR-RDC-25-002). announcement. Apply on a rolling basis by October 31, 2025
  • [Gulf Coast States] Department of Treasury's RESTORE Act Centers of Excellence Research Grants Program. Trust Fund amounts are available to establish one or more Centers of Excellence through competitive subawards to nongovernmental entities and consortia in the Gulf Coast Region, including institutions of higher education. Funds may be used to establish Centers of Excellence, and by those Centers of Excellence for science, technology, and monitoring in one or more of the following disciplines as described in the RESTORE Act and Treasury’s implementing regulations at 31 CFR 34.704: 1) Coastal and deltaic sustainability, restoration, and protection, including solutions and technology that allow citizens to live in a safe and sustainable manner in a coastal delta in the Gulf Coast Region. 2) Coastal fisheries and wildlife ecosystem research and monitoring in the Gulf Coast Region. 3) Offshore energy development, including research and technology to improve the sustainable and safe development of energy resources in the Gulf of Mexico. 4) Sustainable and resilient growth, economic and commercial development in the Gulf Coast Region. 5) Comprehensive observation, monitoring, and mapping of the Gulf of Mexico. Eligible applicants issuing subawards to Center(s) of Excellence must establish and implement a program to monitor compliance with its subaward agreements. Apply on a rolling basis by October 31, 2025
  • USACE's Broad Agency Announcement - Engineer Research and Development Center (12.630). USACE Engineer Research and Development Center requests pre-proposals for research in various areas, including hydraulics, geotechnical engineering, environmental processes, and more. The announcement is continuously open; pre-proposals may be submitted and will be reviewed at any time throughout the year, but funding may limit awards. Application Deadline: December 31, 2025
  • EDA’s FY 2025 Disaster Supplemental Notice of Funding Opportunity to support regions impacted by hurricanes, wildfires, severe storms and flooding, tornadoes, and other natural disasters (2023-2024) is now open. The EDA FY 2025 Disaster Supplemental Grant Program makes approximately $1.45 billion available to support economic recovery activities in areas that received major disaster declarations because of hurricanes, wildfires, severe storms and flooding, tornadoes, and other natural disasters occurring in calendar years 2023 and 2024. Fact Sheet Here. Readiness and Implementation grant applications will be accepted and reviewed on an ongoing(rolling) basis until funds are exhausted, or the Notice of Funding Opportunity is canceled. Industry Transformation grant applications are due on March 3, 2026.
  • Delta Regional Authority's (DRA) Community Infrastructure Fund 2025 Funding.  Providing communities within DRA’s eight-state service region (Mississippi River and Alabama Black Belt regions) funding that complements the States’ Economic Development Assistance Program as a primary investment tool for DRA. Investments support projects that address flood control, basic public infrastructure, and transportation infrastructure improvements. Application Deadline: Rolling. 
  • For FY25, EPA has allotted $25 Million for the Small, Underserved, and Disadvantaged Communities Grant Program - grant to award funding to states, territories, and tribes to assist public water systems in meeting Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) requirements. View the FY25 national allotments:
  • Search EPA’s Clearinghouse for Environmental Finance and Fed FUNDS (Federal Funding for Water and Wastewater Utilities in National Disasters (Fed FUNDS)) for more funding opportunities
  • DOE’s Federal Energy Funding For Rural and Remote Areas: A Guide for Communities
  • EPA/State Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF)
  • EPA’s Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program - a federal credit program administered by EPA for eligible water and wastewater infrastructure projects. 
  • USDA's Emergency Community Water Assistance Grants. USDA Rural Development provides funding in the form of low-interest loans and grants to develop essential community facilities in eligible rural areas, including Federally Recognized Tribal Lands. Guaranteed Loan Options are also available. Application Deadline: Ongoing
  • USDA’s Community Facilities Direct Loan and Grant Program USDA Rural Development provides funding in the form of low-interest loans and grants to develop essential community facilities in eligible rural areas, including Federally Recognized Tribal Lands. Guaranteed Loan Options are also available. Application Deadline: Ongoing
  • USDA's Water and Environmental Programs. Through Rural Utilities Service Water and Environmental Programs (WEP), rural communities obtain the technical assistance and financing necessary to develop drinking water and waste disposal systems. Application Deadline: Ongoing 
  • USDA’s Watershed & Flood Prevention Operations (WFPO) Program. The program provides for cooperation to prevent erosion; floodwater and sediment damage; to further the conservation development, use and disposal of water; and to further the conservation and proper use of land in authorized watersheds. Applications accepted year-round.
  • USDA’s SEARCH - Special Evaluation Assistance for Rural Communities and Households Grant. This program helps very small, financially distressed rural communities with predevelopment feasibility studies, design and technical assistance on proposed water and waste disposal projects. Application Deadline: Ongoing
  • EDA’s Open Funding Opportunities 
  • USACE's Aquatic Ecosystem Restoration Projects (Section 206) - Provides a continuing authority for USACE to restore degraded habitats (aquatic ecosystems) at any location to benefit fish and wildlife resources. Application Deadline: Rolling
  • USACE's Broad Agency Announcement - Engineer Research and Development Center (12.630). USACE Engineer Research and Development Center requests pre-proposals for research in various areas, including hydraulics, geotechnical engineering, environmental processes, and more. The announcement is continuously open; pre-proposals may be submitted and will be reviewed at any time throughout the year, but funding may limit awards. Application Deadline: December 31, 2025
  • EPA Announces Funding for New England States to Reduce Lead in Drinking Water at Schools and Child Care Facilities. EPA will allocate grant funding to states and territories through the Voluntary School and Child Care Lead Testing and Reduction Grant Program. Total allotment amounts for each of the 50 states, DC, and four territories can be found here. Tribal allotments for this program will be released separately. Check in with your state contacts on their timing. 
  • USACE's Continuing Authorities Programs. A group of nine legislative authorities under which USACE can plan, design, and implement certain types of water resources projects without additional project specific congressional authorization. The purpose of the CAP is to plan and implement projects of limited size, cost, scope and complexity. Application Deadline: See website and check with your District Office
  • Delta Regional Authority (DRA) Funding DRA’s eligible entities include those geographically located in 252 counties and parishes in parts of Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, and Tennessee – along the lower Mississippi River region and Alabama Black Belt:
    • Strategic Planning Program Funding, Applications accepted on a rolling basis. This program gives public entities access to strategic planning funds to address long-standing issues and develop a roadmap for economic growth and opportunity. Eligible plans include, but are not limited to, economic development plans, utility rate studies, transportation plans, workforce development plans, and broadband deployment plans.
    • See other DRA programs
  • DOE’s Notice of Intent - DOE Technical Assistance for the Adoption of the Latest and Zero Building Energy Codes or Standards - $1 billion. The Office of State and Community Energy Programs (SCEP) anticipates funding state and local efforts to update building energy codes, or equivalent standards, and to develop effective code workforce, training, compliance and enforcement programs.
  • BOR's WaterSmart grants currently paused and under review until further notice.

Top of Page

Technical Assistance

  • EPA's Closing America’s Wastewater Access Gap Initiative – Seeking New Communities. EPA’s free technical assistance initiative, Closing America’s Wastewater Access Gap, is seeking communities in need of help with failing septic systems or total lack of wastewater infrastructure (i.e. straight pipes). This is an opportunity for no-cost assistance to address longstanding wastewater infrastructure failures in small and rural communities across the country and connect those communities to an unprecedented amount of funding still available through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. If your community, or one you know of, needs assistance – please complete this short form to request assistance to see if you qualify.
    • Does your community have septic system or decentralized wastewater challenges?
      • Do septic systems back up into homes or cause sewage to pool in yards?
      • Does the town or county struggle to provide adequate sanitation services to its residents?
      • Does the community struggle to rebuild damaged or non-functioning wastewater and septic systems?
    • What does the assistance include? This assistance includes community engagement, development of preliminary engineering reports, alternatives analyses, and ultimately submittal of funding applications to help communities address their wastewater needs.
  • The EPA’s Office of the Municipal Ombudsman provides a unique service specifically for utilities/municipalities in identifying technical assistance opportunities, brainstorming federal funding options (BIL and more!), clean water act flexibilities, integrated planning assistance, and more.  Please reach out to municipalombudsman@epa.gov to discuss your projects, permits, or other clean water concerns today - Happy to schedule a time to connect and discuss how my office might assist!
  • EPA’s Water Technical Assistance Page includes a one-stop-shop EPA water technical assistance request form where communities can request no-cost direct water technical assistance to evaluate their drinking water, wastewater, stormwater infrastructure, and water quality improvement needs. See also: Water Technical Assistance Fact Sheet and list of Water Technical Assistance programs Have questions about WaterTA? E-mail: WaterTA@epa.gov
  •  WaterTA Through Engineering Support. The WaterTA Engineering Support Team will work with local engineers where available to ensure adequate local expertise and to build relationships and trust. Engineering Planning Support Services may include:
    • Development of Preliminary Engineering Reports
    • Quick turnaround preliminary cost estimates for SRF pre-applications and applications
    • Additional engineering support may be available on a case-by-case basis
  • EPA’s Environmental Finance Centers offer free, customized support services to water and wastewater systems, decentralized systems, local governments, and others seeking technical, managerial, and financial (TMF) solutions to environmental infrastructure challenges. Our team of experts work hand-in-hand with operators, elected officials, utility directors, and other utility staff to identify barriers and address challenges head on. Request Assistance here [external with funding from EPA]
  • HHS’ RCD Grant Recipient Contacts for Assistance | The Administration for Children and Families (hhs.gov). If you need water or wastewater assistance for your community, you can contact the Rural Community Development (RCD) grant recipient that covers your state or region. RCD grant recipients provide training and technical assistance. Please see the contact information and links to use as resources to contact RCD grant recipients. If you have additional questions, contact OCSRegistrar@icf.com
  • EPA's Technical Assistance to Brownfields Communities Program
  • EPA’s Cybersecurity Helpdesk for the Water Sector: Need help from a subject-matter expert? Submit your questions for free Cybersecurity Technical Assistance Program for the Water Sector. Water systems, primacy agencies, and technical assistance providers can submit questions and request direct consultation to help address your cybersecurity questions. Request Technical Assistance Here
  • EPA’s Water Sector Cybersecurity Evaluation Program: Water Sector Cybersecurity Evaluation is a free program that provides direct access to a cybersecurity professional who can conduct a virtual cybersecurity assessment. Staff can guide you through the assessment process and answer any questions you may have. Request a Cybersecurity Assessment Here
  • Water and Wastewater Sector Incident Response Guide. Use this guide, co-sealed by CISA, EPA, and FBI, to gain a better understanding on how water and wastewater utility operators can expect to work with federal partners to prepare for, respond to, and mitigate the impact of a cyber incident
  • Top Cyber Actions for Securing Water Systems Fact Sheet
  • EPA’s Water Sector Cybersecurity Case Study
  • EPA Cybersecurity Assessments and Technical Assistance:  Interested water and wastewater utilities can sign up for free, confidential cybersecurity assessments and technical assistance services provided virtually - Register here
  • DOT’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) published a collection of technical assistance resources available from various entities or programs to support disadvantaged communities, biking, multiuse paths, and active transportation. The list includes short descriptions of the programs, website links, and primary contacts to reach out to for more information. Organizations featured include government departments and agencies, the Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center, and the Safe Routes Partnership.
  • Clean School Bus Technical Assistance: In partnership with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Joint Office is offering technical assistance on a wide range of clean school bus deployment topics, including electric bus basics, charging equipment, utility connections, bus performance, and operational considerations like routing and maintenance. Request technical assistance here
  • DOE’s Electric Bus Video Technical Assistance Series | Clean School Bus Program Webinars – to provide potential applicants with an overview of the program, relevant information and available resources. Register here| BIL Funding available for Clean School Buses -BIL provides $5 billion over 5 years for clean school buses, including electric and alternative fuel buses. Each year, $500 million will be provided exclusively for EV buses and $500 million for EV and other cleaner alternative fuel buses. Applications for assistance are open on a rolling basis through Sept. 30, 2024, giving fleets an opportunity to fully understand their needs before applying for support. This new program will reduce the burden of electrification by helping fleet managers create a step-by-step plan to transition their bus fleet. Learn more.
  • The Joint Office of Energy and Transportation (Joint Office), in partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Clean Energy to Communities (C2C) program, has launched the Public Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Infrastructure Playbook.
  • The Joint Office of Energy and Transportation’s Utility Finder (U-Finder) Tool. U-Finder is a web-based tool that provides a list of local utility providers, contacts, and available incentives that support transportation electrification
  • The Joint Office of Energy and Transportation (DOE/DOT) provides technical assistance on planning and implementation of a national network of EV chargers and zero-emission fueling infrastructure as well as zero-emission transit and school buses. Find resources and learn more about technical assistance for states and communities.
  • DOE’s Clean Cities Coalition Network Technical Assistance to assist with alternative fuels, fuel economy improvements, and emerging transportation technologies
  • U.S. Housing and Urban Development Technical Assistance Resources:
  • FEMA: Center for Domestic Preparedness The Center for Domestic Preparedness (CDP) enhances the resiliency of U.S. communities by teaching responders to prepare for and safely respond to a wide range of natural and manmade disasters. The advanced, all-hazards training is free and delivered on the CDP campus in Alabama, at sites around the nation, and online
  • U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Technical Assistance Page. USACE primarily provides technical assistance through its Floodplain Management Services (FPMS) program and Planning Assistance to States and Tribal Nations (PAS) program, under which USACE staff are funded to conduct technical analysis and services.
  • USDA/ Natural Resources Conservation Service Technical Service Providers (TSP) offer technical assistance at no cost. TSP can help producers plan, design and implement conservation practices or develop conservation activity plans to improve their agricultural operations.
  • USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service Conservation Technical Assistance (CTA) Program. If a producer chooses to take the next step towards improving their operations, we can work with them to develop a conservation plan, with suggested conservation practices that can help them reach their production and conservation goals. A conservation plan identifies a customer’s conservation objectives and assesses and analyzes the natural resources issues on that customer’s land. 
  • USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service Conservation  Stewardship Program (CSP). Through CSP, NRCS provides financial and technical assistance to eligible producers to conserve and enhance soil, water, air, and related natural resources on their land. Eligible lands include cropland, grassland, prairie land, pastureland, rangeland, nonindustrial private forest lands, agricultural land under the jurisdiction of an Indian tribe, and other private agricultural land (including cropped woodland, marshes, and agricultural land used for the production of livestock) on which resource concerns related to agricultural production could be addressed.
  • DOT Navigator’s Technical Assistance Resource Database
  • DOT/ FHWA provides comprehensive transportation training and technical assistance to Tribal communities through its Tribal Technical Assistance Program (TTAP), See brochure on Tribal Funding: Transportation Funding Opportunities for Tribal Nation

Top of Page

Webcasts, Workshops, and Meetings

On Demand EPA Webcasts:

Top of Page 

White House Resources

Top of Page

Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) Resources

Top of Page

Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act Resources 

Top of Page

Explore Email Newsletters

The information on this page is curated from many resources, including:

Top of Page

Congressional and Intergovernmental Relations

Contact Us About Congressional and Intergovernmental Relations
Contact Us About Congressional and Intergovernmental Relations to ask a question, provide feedback, or report a problem.
Last updated on June 26, 2025