Funding availability for Puget Sound Action Agenda - Strategic Implementation Leads
- About this funding opportunity
- Important dates
- How to apply
- Applicant webinar
- Frequent questions
- Contacts
About this funding opportunity
The goal of this funding opportunity is to support a funding model that allows the EPA Puget Sound Recovery National Program to provide a predictable, transparent, collaborative local/regional funding system with a strategic focus of investments.
We anticipate awarding one cooperative agreement for each of the three Strategic Implementation Lead areas of focus for a total up to $120 million divided among the three awards:
- Habitat/Marine
- Shellfish
- Stormwater
Funding for each award is expected to be provided incrementally over a five-year period.
The successful applicant will manage the EPA cooperative agreement, award and manage sub-awards to support the implementation of the Action Agenda, serve as Implementation Strategy Leads, and participate in Puget Sound Partnership and National Estuary Program Management Conference processes and work groups.
Important dates
- March 24, 2026 - application preparation assistance webinar (recording available, see below).
- May 11, 2026 - application submission deadline (11:59pm Eastern/8:59pm Pacific).
- May 2026 - anticipated notification of selection.
- June 2026 - anticipated award notification.
How to apply
Application packages must be submitted electronically to EPA through Grants.gov no later than Monday, May 11, 2026, at 11:59pm Eastern (8:59pm Pacific) in order to be considered for funding.
Visit Grants.gov Funding Opportunity Number: EPA-R10-PS-2025-01 to read the full Notice of Funding Opportunity and learn how to apply.
Applicant webinar
EPA hosted an informational webinar on March 24 for applicants to learn more about the funding opportunity and the grant application process. Copies of the presentation and a recording of the webinar are available upon request by emailing Greg Eide (eide.greg@epa.gov).
Frequent questions
Last updated 4/1/2026 (future additions will be marked as “new” or “revised”).
Questions related to project eligibility
Are Regional Fisheries Enhancement Groups and coalitions that include the Puget Sound area and other jurisdictions eligible?
Answer: Regional Fisheries Enhancement Groups are eligible for this grant if they are located within or their jurisdictions include waters and/or lands within the Puget Sound area. The greater Puget Sound basin is defined as all watersheds draining to the U.S. waters of Puget Sound, southern Georgia Basin, and the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Applications must include activities taking place within the greater Puget Sound Basin.
Are current recipients/subrecipients of EPA grants eligible?
Answer: Yes.
Can another federal agency be included as a subawardee?
Answer: Yes, an EPA grant recipient can enter into an agreement with a federal agency to perform services that will be paid for with grant funds provided the federal agency has statutory authority to retain and use the funds. Please reference Section 7.0 (b) of EPA Subaward Policy for further clarification.
Questions related to budget
Is an applicant’s state match restricted by the effective and end dates of the Strategic Implementation Lead 3.0 EPA dates, or is there flexibility to use funds from projects implemented over the past few years? If there is flexibility, how far back would be acceptable?
Answer: Cost sharing expenses must be incurred during the period of performance/project period. An expense for a project that started outside the Strategic Implementation Lead 3.0 period of performance/project period could be used for cost sharing so long as the expense for that portion of the project was incurred during the Strategic Implementation Lead 3.0 period of performance/project period. Selected recipients must comply with 2 CFR 200.306 when meeting a cost share requirement.
If the total project cost for a habitat/marine proposal is $48 million, the true amount awarded would be 50% ($28 million)? So applicants need to already have $28 million to contribute to the proposed work (ie, 50% cost sharing)?
Answer: EPA will fund a maximum of 50% of the total project cost, which is essentially an equal cost share of the total project cost with the applicant. The total project cost includes both federal funds and the funds to be used as the cost sharing requirement. Applicants must demonstrate in their proposal how they will meet the cost share requirement within the period of performance and before the end of the project period to be considered eligible. For this example, EPA would fund $24 million of the total project cost. For Habitat/Marine, applicants may not request more the $48 million of federal funds. See Sections A.1 and B for more information on threshold criteria and cost sharing.
Do applicants need to already have $28 million to contribute to the proposed work (ie, 50% cost sharing)?
Answer: Applicants must demonstrate in their proposal how they will meet the cost share requirement to be considered eligible. Selected recipients must comply with 2 CFR 200.306 when meeting a cost share requirement.
Questions related to grant management
Are the awardees publicly listed after the determination is made?
Answer: EPA will provide notifications, as appropriate.
How often does EPA reimburse awarded grantees?
Answer: Grantees will have access to a system called Automated Standard Application for Payments, where they will drawdown as needed. As required by 2 CFR 200.305(b), recipients must only draw funds for the minimum amounts needed for actual and immediate cash requirements to pay employees, contractors, subrecipients, or to satisfy other obligations for allowable costs under the assistance agreement. The timing and amounts of the drawdowns must be as close as administratively feasible to actual disbursement of EPA funds. The payment policy states that any funds drawn must be expended within 5 business days.
General questions
Will the review panel be comprised of specialists within the technical areas (habitat/marine, shellfish, stormwater)?
Answer: The review panel will consist of EPA personnel who are knowledgeable in the field of endeavor for which awards are being competed and who do not have any conflicts of interest with respect to the competing proposals/applications or applicants.
What does “incremental funding” mean?
Answer: Incremental funding is different from full or partial funding. An application, if selected for award, may be either fully or partially funded. This refers to the total federal amount of the final award and may be either the full amount requested by the applicant or some amount less, i.e., partial. How the funds are disbursed to the grantee may be either in one installment or in increments. Incremental funding is a financial mechanism used in government contracting where budgetary resources are allocated to a grant over time rather than providing the full grant amount upfront. Assuming future funding is made available, EPA will provide funding for multi-year projects in increments awarded each year until the recipient receives the total award amount,. See Section 1.F of the Notice of Funding Opportunity for more information. Please note that EPA cannot provide more funding than what the recipient requests in their application.
The Notice of Funding Opportunity’s evaluation review criteria include past performance in successfully completing and managing assistance agreements. Should we provide information about the individual applicant’s federal grants, or a list of the federal grants from the entire entity (ideally EPA grants)?
Answer: The past performance section of the project narrative is used by EPA to evaluate an applicant’s ability to successfully manage their proposed project based on their past grant performance. Prior EPA grants are preferred; however, any federally funded assistance agreements, grants, and/or cooperative agreements will fulfill the requirement. We are looking for both staff and organizational experience. The applicant is the organization submitting the application. To see how EPA will evaluate past performance, please see Section 6 of the Notice of Funding Opportunity.
Contacts
For technical questions, please contact Haley Lewis (lewis.haley@epa.gov), 206-553-2987.
For eligibility questions, please contact Greg Eide (eide.greg@epa.gov), 360-753-9475.
For more information about how EPA distributes money from Congress to help protect and restore Puget Sound, visit Funding and Grants for Puget Sound.