Request for Applications: Training and Technical Assistance for Wastewater Treatment Works for the Prevention, Reduction, and Elimination of Pollution - Frequent Questions

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Funding Opportunity Number (FON): EPA-OW-OWM-26-01

The funding opportunity will remain open through August 14, 2026 on Grants.gov (https://simpler.grants.gov/opportunity/825ee53e-5178-4ec1-95ed-d6fabde2dd5a)

In accordance with EPA's Assistance Agreement Competition Policy (EPA Order 5700.5A1), EPA will respond to questions from individual applicants regarding threshold eligibility criteria, administrative issues related to the submission of the proposal, and requests for clarification about the announcement. However, consistent with the provisions in the announcement, EPA staff cannot meet with individual applicants to discuss draft proposals, provide informal comments on draft proposals, or provide advice to applicants on how to respond to ranking criteria.

Applicants are responsible for the contents of their proposals. Please note that applicants should raise any questions they may have about the solicitation language to the contact identified in the announcement as soon as possible so that any questions about the solicitation language may be clarified prior to submitting an application. In addition, if necessary, EPA may clarify threshold eligibility issues with applicants prior to making a final eligibility determination. See also the response to Question A3, below.

A. Applicant Eligibility

A1: Am I eligible to apply for the Notice of Funding Opportunity(NOFO)?

Section 2.A., Eligible Applicants, states: “Assistance under this program is available to public or private nonprofit organizations, subject to CWA 104(w), and the regulations at 2 CFR 200. Nonprofit organization, as defined by 2 CFR Part 200, means any organization that: (1) is operated primarily for scientific, educational, service, charitable, or similar purposes in the public interest; (2) is not organized primarily for profit; and (3) uses net proceeds to maintain, improve, or expand the organization's operations. Note that 2 CFR Part 200 specifically excludes the following types of organizations from the definition of nonprofit organization because they are separately defined in the regulation: (i) institutions of higher education - Institutions of Higher Education are defined at 20 U.S.C. 1001. Nonetheless, institutions of higher education who otherwise qualify as nonprofit organizations are eligible to apply as indicated in the Office of Management and Budget’s July 2017 Frequent Questions on the Uniform Grant Guidance. Nonprofit organizations described in Section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code that engage in prohibited lobbying activities as defined in Section 3 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 are not eligible to apply. For profit organizations and hospitals are not eligible.”

A2: I am a local government employee, my jurisdiction would like to use these funds to fund a technical assistance professional to do a variety of tasks, is that eligible?

See question A.1. in the FAQ for information about eligible applicants. Section 2.A of the NOFO states that eligible entities for this program are nonprofit organizations and institutions of higher education. Municipalities are not eligible applicants. Refer to 2CFR200.1 for a definition of local government.

A3: Can I apply for this funding to fix my septic system?

See question A.1. in the FAQ for information about eligible applicants. Section 2.A of the NOFO states that eligible entities for this program are nonprofit organizations and institutions of higher education. Individuals are not eligible applicants.

A4: How is a nonprofit organization defined in this NOFO?

See Question A1, above.

A5: Will EPA respond to questions regarding this announcement?

Section 1.E., Agency Contact, states: “In accordance with EPA’s Assistance Agreement Competition Policy (EPA Order 5700.5A1) and consistent with the provisions in the announcement, EPA will respond to questions from individual applicants regarding threshold eligibility criteria, administrative issues related to the submission of the application, and requests for clarification about any of the language or provisions in the announcement. In accordance with the Policy, EPA cannot meet with individual applicants to discuss draft applications, provide informal comments on draft applications, or provide advice to applicants on how to respond to ranking criteria. Applicants are responsible for the contents of their applications. Please note that applicants should raise any questions they may have about the solicitation language to the contact identified above as soon as possible so that any questions about the solicitation language may be clarified prior to submitting a proposal. In addition, if necessary, EPA may clarify threshold eligibility issues with applicants prior to making a final eligibility determination.
Questions about this Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) must be submitted in writing via e-mail and must be received by the Agency Contact identified in the NOFO by 11:59 PM Eastern Time, July 31, 2026 and written responses will be posted on EPA’s website. Please note answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs) are available at the same website. EPA strongly recommends interested applicants refer to the FAQs webpage prior to submitting a question.”

A6: Can an eligible applicant submit more than one application?

Section 2.A.(1) of the NOFO states: “Under this competition, only one application may be submitted for each Priority Area per applicant. If an applicant submits more than one application for a single Priority Area, EPA will contact them before the review process begins to determine which application(s) will be withdrawn. If the applicant is not able to communicate a decision within two business days of being contacted by the EPA, the EPA will accept the application received by Grants.gov first.” However, eligible organizations may submit more than one application under this competition if each application is separately submitted and addresses only one Priority Area.

A7: Our organization is planning to apply for this grant, and we are a branch, within a division, of a state Health and Human Services Department. We are planning to partner with local health departments and universities to provide trainings and to educate homeowners with septic (decentralized) systems in the rural, small economically distressed communities in our state. Is our branch eligible to apply for this grant?

See Question A1, above, for information about eligible applicants. States are not eligible to apply.

A8: Could you please provide a summary of the eligible project costs for the grant solicitation? Specifically, if a non-profit is the lead, however contracts with a consulting firm to bring in the technical expertise for training/education etc. would the consultant be an eligible cost and the proposed implementation structure (Non-profit with specialty consultants) for support be eligible?

Section 4.C of the NOFO states:
- Applicants must compete contracts for services and products, including consultant contracts, and conduct cost and price analyses, to the extent required by the procurement provisions of the regulations at 2 CFR Part 200.
- Do not name a procurement contractor (including a consultant) as a “partner” or otherwise in your application unless the contractor has been selected in compliance with competitive procurement requirements. If an applicant selected for award has named a specific subrecipient, contractor, or consultant in the application, it does not relieve the applicant of its obligations to comply with subaward and/or competitive procurement requirements.
- EPA will not consider the qualifications, experience, and expertise of named subrecipients and/or named contractor(s) during the application evaluation process unless the applicant provides documentation that it has complied with these requirements.
- For additional guidance, applicants should review EPA’s Best Practice Guide for Procuring Services, Supplies, and Equipment Under EPA Assistance Agreements, EPA’s Subaward Policy, and EPA’s Subaward Policy Frequent Questions. EPA expects recipients of funding to comply with competitive procurement contracting requirements in 2 CFR Parts 200 and 1500, as well as the requirements in 2 CFR Part 200.321 and 40 CFR Part 33 Subpart C.
Section 4.B of the NOFO states:
- “Provide a detailed budget and estimated funding amounts for each project component/task. This section provides an opportunity for a narrative description of the budget or aspects of the budget found in the SF-424A such as “other” and “contractual.”
- Applicants must itemize costs related to personnel, fringe benefits, contractual costs, travel, equipment, supplies, other direct costs, indirect costs and total costs. All subawardee funding should be in the “other” cost category. Describe itemized costs in enough detail for EPA to determine the allowability of costs for each project component/task, as well as the cost-effectiveness and reasonableness of all costs. Please see EPA’s Budget Development Guidance for additional information on preparing budget narratives, including a sample budget (Appendix 2), and the Indirect Cost Guidance. Please also reference EPA’s training modules on how to develop a budget.”

A9: How do you obtain a SAM ID?

Section 5.B of the NOFO states: “You must have an active account with SAM.gov. SAM.gov will provide a UEI for your organization, which is required to apply for grants using Grants.gov. To register, go to SAM.gov Entity Registration and click Get Started. From the same page, you can also click on the Entity Registration Checklist for the information you will need to register. Make sure you are current with SAM.gov and UEI requirements before applying for the award.
SAM.gov registration can take several weeks. Begin that process today.

A10. My organization is being organized as a new nonprofit to provide independent technical assistance, operator training, project review, funding assistance, and emerging-contaminant support to rural, small, underserved, and Tribal water and wastewater systems. Must a newly formed organization already have an IRS 501(c)(3) determination letter by the August 14 deadline, or can it qualify as a nonprofit under the 2 CFR Part 200 definition using its state incorporation documents, bylaws, and nonprofit purpose?

An applicant must meet the eligibility requirements in Section 2 of this announcement at the time of application submission. Section 2, Eligibility, states “Only these types of organizations may apply:
- Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs).
- Nonprofit organizations.
Assistance under this program is available to public or private nonprofit organizations, subject to CWA 104(w), and the regulations at 2 CFR 200. Nonprofit organization, as defined by 2 CFR Part 200, means any organization that: (1) is operated primarily for scientific, educational, service, charitable, or similar purposes in the public interest; (2) is not organized primarily for profit; and (3) uses net proceeds to maintain, improve, or expand the organization's operations.” Documentation that the organization qualifies as a nonprofit can be submitted via an IRS determination or affirmation letter or state nonprofit documentation.

A11. Is it allowed to list state EPA or DNR as a subcontractor?

Please review section 4.C. Applicants Using Contractors in the NOFO:
Applicants must compete contracts for services and products, including consultant contracts, and conduct cost and price analyses, to the extent required by the procurement provisions of the regulations at 2 CFR Part 200.
Do not name a procurement contractor (including a consultant) as a “partner” or otherwise in your application unless the contractor has been selected in compliance with competitive procurement requirements. If an applicant selected for award has named a specific subrecipient, contractor, or consultant in the application, it does not relieve the applicant of its obligations to comply with subaward and/or competitive procurement requirements.
EPA will not consider the qualifications, experience, and expertise of named subrecipients and/or named contractor(s) during the application evaluation process unless the applicant provides documentation that it has complied with these requirements.
For additional guidance, applicants should review EPA’s Best Practice Guide for Procuring Services, Supplies, and Equipment Under EPA Assistance Agreements, EPA’s Subaward Policy, and EPA’s Subaward Policy Frequent Questions. EPA expects recipients of funding to comply with competitive procurement contracting requirements in 2 CFR Parts 200 and 1500, as well as the requirements in 2 CFR Part 200.321 and 40 CFR Part 33 Subpart C.

A12. Can we identify a contractor or subawardee as a partner to provide technical assistance to homeowners on maintaining decentralized wastewater systems? Asking for them to receive funding to pay staff and travel to rural communities.

There is a distinction between listing an organization as a partner versus a subawardee or subcontractor. Please review EPA’s subaward policy and 2CFR200.331 for definitions regarding subrecipients and subcontractors.
Please review section 4.C. Applicants Using Contractors: Applicants must compete contracts for services and products, including consultant contracts, and conduct cost and price analyses, to the extent required by the procurement provisions of the regulations at 2 CFR Part 200.
Do not name a procurement contractor (including a consultant) as a “partner” or otherwise in your application unless the contractor has been selected in compliance with competitive procurement requirements. If an applicant selected for award has named a specific subrecipient, contractor, or consultant in the application, it does not relieve the applicant of its obligations to comply with subaward and/or competitive procurement requirements.
EPA will not consider the qualifications, experience, and expertise of named subrecipients and/or named contractor(s) during the application evaluation process unless the applicant provides documentation that it has complied with these requirements.

A13: Can we add a letter of intent to the optional attachments? Will you accept letters of commitment?

Letters of intent are not required documents under this announcement and are not considered in the evaluation of eligible applications.

B. Threshold Eligibility

B1: If charts and exhibits are included in the application Project Narrative can they be a smaller font than the 12-point font that is required of the body of the proposal?

The NOFO does not establish a required minimum 12-point font for the Project Narrative or any charts and/or exhibits; however, the NOFO does indicate that readability is of paramount importance. EPA recommends that all text in the Project Narrative, including any charts and/or exhibits is in a 12-point font. Note that Section 4.A, Application Forms, establishes a page limitation for the Project Narrative: “The Project Narrative is limited to no more than twenty (20) typewritten, single spaced 8.5x11-inch pages (a page is one side of a piece of paper) including the cover page and executive summary.”

B2: Is there a minimum or maximum amount of federal funding that can be requested in the application?

No. Section 1.F in the NOFO describes the anticipated range of funding for each Priority Area. For Priority Areas 1 and 2, the anticipated range of awards is between $1,000,000 and $3,000,000 in federal funds, and for Priority Areas 3 and 4 the anticipated range is between $1,000,000 and $2,000,000 in federal funds.

B3: Can an application address only one component identified in Section I.C, Project Components?

Section 2.A.1 states: “Applications must address the requirements in the Priority Area for which they are applying, and all five project narrative components listed in Section 3.B.” Applicants must address the following five components:
1. Geographic Area and Targeted Municipalities and Systems
2. Technical Assistance and Training Experience and Approach
3. Consultation and Coordination with State, Territorial and/or Tribal Governments
4. Partnership

C. Application Evaluation

C1: How will the application be evaluated?

All eligible applications, based on Section 2.A, Eligibility, and 2.A.1 Other Eligibility Requirements, will be evaluated based on the evaluation criteria provided in Section 6.B, Review Criteria.

C2: Can the application focus on just one state or does this have to be a multi-state application?

Section 3.A of the NOFO states in part, “2. Geographic Area and Targeted Municipalities and Systems: Applications should clearly describe the specific geographic scope of the proposed work (e.g., whether it will be regional, state-wide, multi-state, national or other as appropriate) and the rural, small and/or Tribal municipalities and treatment systems being targeted for technical assistance and training. The EPA seeks applications that provide both national and regional support to effectively address the program's objectives. Applicants should provide a rationale for the targeted geographic area and why they are well qualified and positioned to support municipalities and systems in this area. Applicants should describe factors to identify municipalities and/or systems that are in the greatest need of receiving information (e.g., permit violations, future permit limits, wastewater or decentralized infrastructure needs, etc.). The description should include the applicant’s qualifications for working with such systems and any prior relevant experience.”
There is no requirement for a multi-state focus area, it is up to the applicant to propose a project and identify the geographic area.

C3: Is an application ineligible if it touches on other priority areas, even if it is not the focus?

Section 2.A.1 of the NOFO states “Under this competition, only one application may be submitted for each Priority Area per applicant. If an applicant submits more than one application for a single Priority Area, EPA will contact them before the review process begins to determine which application(s) will be withdrawn. If the applicant is unable to communicate a decision within two business days of being contacted by the EPA, the EPA will accept the application received by Grants.gov first. Additional information regarding the one application per applicant requirement may be found in the FAQ document.
Applications must address the requirements in the Priority Area for which they are applying, and all five project narrative components listed in Section 3.B.”
Please review section 2, Section 3A of the NOFO for details on priority areas, Section 4.B, and Section 6.B for the evaluation criteria including 1) Priority Area Technical Assistance and Training Approach.

C4: Does the cover page count towards the 20-page limit for the project narrative?

Yes, Section 4A of the NOFO states, “The Project Narrative must include the sections described in Section 4B of this announcement. The Project Narrative is limited to no more than twenty (20) typewritten, single spaced 8.5x11-inch pages (a page is one side of a piece of paper) including the cover page and executive summary.”

C5: Is there any publicly shareable information from the prior competition regarding common application weaknesses, common responsiveness issues, or general areas where applicants could better align with the NOFO?

Applicants should carefully review the eligibility criteria in Section 2 and Section 6, the Priority Areas in Section 3.A, Section4.B, Project Narrative Description and the evaluation criteria described in Section 6B, Evaluation Criteria.

C6: Are there common misunderstandings about this funding opportunity that EPA would like applicants to avoid, or are there any areas of the NOFO that EPA would encourage applicants to pay particularly close attention to when preparing a responsive application?

Please review your chosen priority area carefully and ensure you address all points listed in Section 6B Evaluation Criteria in your application.

C7: Can EPA clarify expectations for documenting community need, such as decentralized wastewater system challenges, maintenance gaps, affordability issues, infrastructure needs, or other indicators?

Section 3A(1) Priority Area 4 for provides examples of issues faced by decentralized communities.

C8: Can EPA clarify what documentation is appropriate to demonstrate that an applicant is well-positioned to serve the proposed geographic area?”

Please review Section 3A for a description of the geographic area requirements.

D. Budget

D1: Is there a non-federal cost share requirement for these funds?

No. Section 2.B of the NOFO states: “Any cost share proposed by an applicant is voluntary. Applicants will not be scored or evaluated solely on the inclusion of voluntary committed cost share if they choose to propose it.
Voluntary committed cost sharing is a binding requirement of Federal award. Applicants who propose voluntary cost share must include the costs/contributions on the SF-424, SF-424A Budget Information form, and Budget Detail.
If an applicant proposes voluntary cost share the following apply:
1. A voluntary committed cost share is subject to the match provisions in the grant regulations (2 CFR 200.306).
2. A voluntary committed cost share may only be met with eligible and allowable costs.
3. The recipient may not use other sources of federal funds to meet a voluntary cost share unless the statute authorizing the other federal funding provides that the federal funds may be used to meet a cost share requirement on a federal grant.
4. The recipient is legally obligated to meet any proposed voluntary cost share that is included in the approved budget.”

D2: If the applicant develops curriculum for training, can that curriculum be used for systems not targeted by the grant? For example: municipalities larger than the target group.

Yes. In accordance with 2 CFR 200.315(b): “To the extent permitted by law, the recipient or subrecipient may copyright any work that is subject to copyright and was developed, or for which ownership was acquired, under a Federal award. The Federal agency reserves a royalty-free, nonexclusive, and irrevocable right to reproduce, publish, or otherwise use the work for Federal purposes and to authorize others to do so. This includes the right to require recipients and subrecipients to make such works available through agency-designated public access repositories.”

D3: Does EPA have a limit on indirect costs that can be charged?

Indirect cost rates must be negotiated with the cognizant federal funding agency in accordance with the procedures in 2 CFR 200.414(e) Appendices. Requirements for development and submission of indirect cost rate proposals and cost allocation plans. Negotiated indirect cost rates must be accepted by all Federal agencies (2 CFR § 200.414(c)(1)).
For more information, please review EPA’s Indirect Cost Guidance for Recipients of EPA Assistance Agreements.

E. Miscellaneous

E1: Will EPA seek external reviewers for the Technical Assistance and Training for Rural, Small and Tribal Municipalities and Wastewater Treatment Systems NOFO?

No. Section 6.C of the NOFO states: “Panels comprised of EPA staff will review the eligible applications by each Priority Area based on the evaluation criteria listed in Section 6.B.”

E2: At what point will technical assistance be available to communities?

The technical assistance will be available to communities once the grants are awarded.

E3. Can you please confirm whether we should use our Federally Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate or the de minimis rate in our application?

Applicants with a current approved Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (IDC) should submit an application reflecting the current approved IDC. As the IDC guidance notes (see excerpt below), IHEs are required to use the approved rate(s) on the rate agreement in place at the time of award throughout the life of the award. For those without a negotiated IDC, they would use the de minimis rate of 15 percent: current regulations at 2 CFR 200.414(f) state in part “(f) De minimis rate. Recipients and subrecipients that do not have a current Federal negotiated indirect cost rate (including provisional rate) may elect to charge a de minimis rate of up to 15 percent of modified total direct costs (MTDC).”
Per the current IDC policy, a negotiated rate is “….an approved IDC rate that an applicant or recipient has negotiated with its cognizant agency, including provisional, final, fixed rate with carry-forward, and predetermined rate types. Proposed rates are not considered negotiated rates.” Per the current regulations at 2 CFR 200.414: “Negotiated indirect cost rates must be accepted by all Federal agencies. A Federal agency may use a rate different from the negotiated rate for either a class of Federal awards or a single Federal award only when required by Federal statute or regulation, or when approved by the awarding Federal agency in accordance with paragraph (c)(3) of this section.”
From the IDC Guidance:
“Approved Rates are the Correct Rates to Use (Aside from When Receiving a Grant under a Program with a Statutory Administrative Cap)
Recipients may request to use a lower rate than their approved rate, however they cannot request to use a rate that is higher than the approved rate. In addition, EPA cannot force a recipient to use a rate lower than their approved rate. Usually, recipients will budget using their full approved rate, which EPA must honor (with the exception of IHEs, which are required to use the approved rate(s) on the rate agreement in place at the time of award throughout the life of the grant, even if a higher rate is negotiated after award).”

E4. The anticipated award notification is February 2027. Does that mean the program expects executed grant agreements as of February 2027?

Section 1.C of the NOFO identifies key dates and anticipated timeframes, including EPA’s anticipated date for making the awards. The anticipated timeframe for awards is subject to change.

E5. We have staff that are currently external contractors, would there be restrictions on bringing them on as direct hire? Also, we are fiscally sponsored by a local nonprofit to get our 501(c) status. Can we apply for this while being fiscally sponsored?

An applicant must meet the eligibility requirements in Section 2 of this announcement at the time of application submission. Only Institutions of Higher Education and Nonprofit Organizations are eligible to apply to the NOFO (see also FAQ A1 and A10) For profit organizations and hospitals are not eligible. See also Section 3.D, Funding Type. It is anticipated that cooperative agreements will be funded under this funding opportunity. Cooperative agreements provide for substantial involvement between the EPA Project Officer and the selected applicant(s) in the performance of the work supported. Although EPA will negotiate precise terms and conditions relating to substantial involvement as part of the award process, the anticipated substantial federal involvement for these projects may include:
- close monitoring of the successful applicant’s performance to verify the results proposed by the applicant;
- collaboration during performance of the scope of work;
- in accordance with 2 CFR 200.317 and 2 CFR 200.318, review of proposed procurement;
- approving qualifications of key personnel (EPA will not select employees or contractors employed by the award recipient); and
- review and comment on reports prepared under the cooperative agreement (the final decision on the content of reports rests with the recipient).
EPA does not have the authority to select employees or contractors employed by the recipient. The final decision on the content of reports rests with the recipient.

E6. Can you point us to the project narrative form in Grants.gov?

The Project Narrative Attachment Form is the mechanism to attach the Project Narrative. The Project Narrative is a mandatory document (see Section 4.A). Section 4A of the NOFO describes requirements for the Project Narrative. For questions about electronic submission contact Grants.gov Support (support@grants.gov); 1-800-518-4726. Grants.gov Applicant Support is available 24/7 (except federal holidays). Be sure to include supporting details when you call or email.

F. Definitions

For the purposes of this announcements:

The term “municipality” is defined in Section 502(4) of the Clean Water Act and means “a city, town, borough, county, parish, district, association, or other public body created by or pursuant to State law and having jurisdiction over disposal of sewage, industrial wastes, or other wastes, or an Indian Tribe or an authorized Indian Tribal organization, or a designated and approved management agency under 33 U.S.C. § 1288.
Rural and small wastewater treatment systems are defined as systems that treat up to 1 million gallons per day (MGD) of wastewater or serve a population of less than 10,000 persons and may also serve operations such as, but not limited to hospitals, schools, and restaurants. Most wastewater systems in the nation serve populations less than 10,000.
Tribal systems are defined as systems that serve populations of federally recognized Tribes, Alaska Native Villages, and Tribes on former reservations in Oklahoma (as defined by the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs).
“[S]mall publicly owned treatment works” are defined as wastewater systems or treatment facilities that are owned by a public entity (such as a municipality) or not-for-profit entity (such as regional sewer districts), and/or serve Tribal communities (except for systems that are owned by U.S. federal entities).
“Decentralized systems” are defined as: septic or onsite or clustered systems used to collect, treat, and disperse or reclaim wastewater from a small community, Tribe, or service area that are publicly or privately-owned and/or serve Tribal communities (except for systems that are owned by U.S. federal entities). For further details regarding decentralized systems refer to the decentralized chapter of EPA's Overview of Clean Water State Revolving Fund Eligibilities.
Cultural competence means effectively demonstrating the skills and experience to operate in the different cultural contexts found in the identified geographic area and means having the capacity to function effectively as an organization within the context of the cultural beliefs, behaviors, and needs presented by the municipalities and systems targeted to receive technical assistance and training. Cultural competence includes demonstrating linguistic competence that enables effective work in cross-cultural situations.
Technical capacity refers to the physical infrastructure of the wastewater system, including, but not limited to the adequacy of the system’s infrastructure and the ability of system personnel to adequately operate and maintain the system and to apply necessary technical knowledge.
Financial capacity refers to the financial resources of the wastewater system, including, but not limited to, revenue sufficiency, user rate-setting, rate collection, creditworthiness, fiscal controls, operational budgeting, and planning.
Managerial capacity refers to the management structure and practices of the wastewater system, including, but not limited to, ownership accountability, staffing and organization, and effective linkages and communication with customers and regulatory agencies.