Getting Started Preparing Your ARC Proposal Early - Step 5: READ/Understand RANKING Criteria (Part 1)

Every year, the Office of Brownfields and Land Revitalization (OBLR) receives numerous inquiries regarding preparation of proposals for the Assessment, Revolving Loan Fund, and Cleanup (ARC) grant competitions. Many potential applicants find that it is difficult to prepare their proposals in only 60 days, the typical amount of time the Request for Proposals (RFP) allows from publication until the proposals are due. While the RFP is on schedule to be available in early fall, there are still many activities that applicants can perform in advance of the RFP (commonly referred to as the ARC Guidelines) being made publicly available. We have listed many of these activities below. We hope that using this list to get started preparing your ARC proposal early will facilitate your efforts in the preparation of a thorough, thoughtful, timely, and most importantly, successful proposal.

RANKING CRITERIA

Review the Ranking Criteria. Applicants are encouraged to use the FY13 Guidelines found at
http://epa.gov/brownfields/applicat.htm as a guide to begin gathering information and drafting
their proposal. When the FY14 Guidelines are posted, the applicant can then use the time prior to
the submission deadline to organize the information into the required format, fill in any missing
details, and further strengthen their proposal.

• Grant Proposal Framework/Outline. Applicants should begin by developing a framework or outline of their grant proposal. Think about the story your community wants to tell, and begin gathering the data you need in order to tell that story.
• Community Need. While the actual language in the FY14 Guidelines may vary slightly, EPA will be interested in seeing how brownfields have impacted your community, particularly sensitive or at risk populations. EPA will also want to hear about the community’s financial needs and their ability/inability to draw upon other resources to handle the brownfields in their community. Applicants should be thinking about these issues and begin gathering specific data and information on brownfield sites in their community so that they can speak to this topic with some specificity.
• Project Description. Start working with your brownfield partners to identify and develop the program/project that will be the subject of the grant. For assessment grants, you should begin discussions early with key partners about your project area and how you envision your program operating. Decide the focus of your grant and what sites you want to prioritize or the process you will use to prioritize sites if that will be done after the project starts. Start thinking about how many and what type of sites you plan to address with the grant funding and other key aspects of your program. As more details of your program are developed, you should be able to start drafting a budget of how much it will cost to perform the work described. In addition, applicants should start looking for ways they can leverage additional project funding. Begin capturing this data so that it can be added to the grant proposal.  If you have already leveraged funding for the project, begin gathering documentation (letters, emails, etc…) that document the leveraged funding. Ask partner organizations that plan to provide in-kind support for letters that document the specific in kind support they plan to provide. Gathering these documents now will save time later, and ensure you have the necessary attachments to document your firm leveraged commitments.
• Community Engagement and Partnerships. SEE TOMORROW'S BLOG ENTRY.
• Project Benefits. SEE TOMORROW'S BLOG ENTRY..
• Programmatic Capability/Past Performance. SEE TOMORROW'S BLOG ENTRY.