WASHINGTON – The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will make up to $4 million available for technical assistance providers with program evaluation expertise that will help support and enhance the data, reporting, and evidence-building capacity of EPA grant recipients representing small, underserved, and/or Tribal communities. The Promoting Readiness and Enhancing Proficiency to Advance Reporting and Data (PREPARED) program will provide awards for technical assistance that helps enhance EPA grant recipients’ ability to generate the data and information necessary to evaluate program outcomes and improve impacts for communities. EPA intends to make awards over three years to as many as eight recipients.
Data, reporting, and evidence-building are vitally important responsibilities for EPA grant programs. However, many EPA grant recipients face capacity challenges in engaging in these activities. Small, underserved, and/or Tribal communities that are eligible for EPA grants sometimes choose to pass on funding opportunities in part because of these capacity challenges. With this Cooperative Agreement, EPA seeks to fund technical assistance providers to equip communities with strategies, tools, and training that enhance their capacity for data, reporting, and evidence-building.
Applications are due Nov. 30, 2023, by 11:59 PM Eastern Time (ET), and the Request for Application notice is now posted on www.grants.gov under Funding Opportunity Announcement EPA-I-R-OCFO-01.
EPA is committed to implementing strategies designed to help small and underserved communities address data and reporting requirements for EPA grants. Also, consistent with principles defined under the EPA Policy for the Administration of Environmental Programs on Indian Reservations, the EPA is committed to working with federally recognized tribes in enhancing capacity to carry out program responsibilities affecting tribal communities and the health and welfare of the populace, including capacity for data, reporting, and evidence-building.
EPA will host two informational webinars for potential applicants, currently scheduled for Wednesday, October 11, 2023, 3:00 p.m.-4:30 p.m. ET and Thursday, October 26, 2023, 6:00 p.m.-7:30 p.m. ET. Registration instructions and more information on the funding opportunity are available on EPA’s PREPARED webpage.
from EPA News Releases https://ift.tt/qPuFikX