Announcement for Program Funding for NRCS’ Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) for Federal fiscal year (FY) 2022 | USDA NRCS TX CIG 22 NOFO0001180

Opportunity Information: Apply for USDA NRCS TX CIG 22 NOFO0001180

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is offering Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) funding for federal fiscal year 2022 through a Texas state competition. The purpose of this opportunity is to encourage the development, testing, and broader adoption of new and innovative conservation approaches and technologies. In practical terms, NRCS is looking to help move promising conservation ideas from concept or pilot stage into real-world use, with projects specifically carried out in the state of Texas. The funding falls under the Agriculture, Environment, and Natural Resources category (CFDA 10.912) and is being offered as a discretionary grant program.

For this Texas CIG competition, NRCS has up to $1,000,000 available in total and expects to make about five awards. Individual awards are intended to range from $50,000 to $200,000 in federal share, with $50,000 serving as the estimated minimum (funding floor) and $200,000 as the maximum (funding ceiling). The stated ceiling also represents the maximum award amount for a single project under this FY 2022 announcement. Applicants can propose projects lasting from one to three years, giving organizations flexibility to design shorter pilot efforts or longer demonstrations and implementation-focused projects, as long as the work occurs in Texas.

Eligibility is broad and is open to nearly all non-federal entities and individuals, with federal agencies being the only entities explicitly excluded. Eligible applicants include state, county, and local governments; special districts; independent school districts; public and private institutions of higher education; federally recognized tribal governments and other tribal organizations; public housing authorities; nonprofits (both 501(c)(3) and non-501(c)(3)); for-profit organizations (including small businesses and other for-profits); and individual applicants. This wide eligibility is meant to attract innovative proposals from many sectors, including producers, researchers, technology developers, local governments, and conservation-focused organizations.

Applications had to be submitted through Grants.gov no later than 11:59 pm Eastern Time on May 20, 2022. The notice emphasizes that applicants should be prepared for the administrative steps required to use Grants.gov, particularly first-time users, and it directs those applicants to the relevant section of the full funding notice for setup guidance. If applicants experienced technical problems with Grants.gov itself, they were instructed to contact Grants.gov Applicant Support (1-800-518-4726 or support@grants.gov). NRCS staff noted that they cannot help troubleshoot Grants.gov accounts or technical submission issues, and that applicant questions should be limited to clarifying information contained in the notice of funding opportunity (for example, dates, page references, or resolving inconsistencies). They also state that they will not address questions about eligibility interpretations beyond what is written, or provide feedback on whether a particular proposal is a good idea or likely to be competitive.

NRCS provided an estimated timeline for the competition, indicating that selections were anticipated by July 1, 2022, with awards expected to be executed by September 30, 2022, though both dates were described as estimates subject to change. Applicants were also encouraged to review the Texas State CIG website for additional program context and state-specific information about the CIG program and priorities.

Finally, NRCS highlights that this opportunity is federal financial assistance and recommends applicants complete free "Grants 101" training offered through CFO.gov. The training covers the key building blocks of managing federal awards, including laws and guidance governing assistance programs, different federal assistance mechanisms, Uniform Guidance administrative requirements, federal cost principles, and risk management and single audit expectations. This is included as a reminder that beyond developing a strong technical proposal, awardees are expected to comply with standard federal grant management rules and accountability requirements.

• The Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service in the agriculture, environment, natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Announcement for Program Funding for NRCS’ Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) for Federal fiscal year (FY) 2022" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 10.912.
• This funding opportunity was created on Mar 21, 2022.
• Applicants must submit their applications by May 20, 2022 Applications must be received by 1159 pm Eastern Time.. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $200,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 5 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, Individuals, For profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses.

Apply for USDA NRCS TX CIG 22 NOFO0001180

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