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EFC Grant Program
66.203
N/A
The Environmental Finance Center Grant Program provides funding to support Regional and National Environmental Finance Centers (EFCs) in the following categories: 1) Regional Multi-Environmental Media EFCs, 2) Regional Water Infrastructure EFCs with Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) appropriations, and 3) National Water Infrastructure EFCs with IIJA appropriations. The EFCs work with state and tribal governments, local governments, and the private sector to address the growing costs of environmental protection. The EFCs provide finance-related training, education, and analytical studies to help these regulated parties develop solutions to the difficult "how-to-pay" issues associated with meeting environmental standards. The EFCs educate state, tribal, and local governments and businesses on lowering environmental costs, increasing environmental investments, improving financial capacity, identifying appropriate revenue generating mechanisms, and evaluating environmental financing options. A central goal of the EFCs is to create sustainable systems. Sustainable systems have the financial, technical, and institutional resources and capabilities to operate in compliance with environmental requirements and in conformance with accepted environmental practices over the long term. EFCs focus on helping smaller parties find ways to obtain financing for their environmental protection responsibilities. In FY 2025, the EFCs will continue providing education, training, technical assistance, and analytic support and outreach to state, tribal and local governments and businesses (with a focus on smaller governments and businesses) on: (1) supporting cleaner/greener business through source reduction, pollution prevention, conservation, resource recovery, reuse, and recycling (sustainable materials management); (2) promoting environmentally sustainable development, redevelopment, smart growth and land use planning; green infrastructure approaches; and green building efforts by state and local governments and the private sector; (3) supporting wetlands programs and protection; (4) improving drinking water and wastewater utility water conservation, energy efficiency, management, and capital planning; (5) encouraging green jobs and green business products and services; (6) promoting innovative ways to finance and otherwise support interstate, state, regional, and local air pollution reduction efforts; (7) assisting the owners and operators of small, medium, and disadvantaged environmental systems in planning, developing, and obtaining financing for infrastructure projects; (8) developing fiscal sustainability plans for utilities that include inventories of critical assets, evaluations asset performance, energy conservation efforts, operations, maintenance and repair needs and activities, and any required certifications; (9) reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and developing decision tools and financial strategies for adaptation to adverse weather events and/or climate change.; (10) identifying, supporting and advancing environmental equity and justice concerns, where appropriate, in all training, outreach, projects, programs, and activities; and, (11) encouraging the development and use of public-private partnerships, where appropriate in providing environmental services, infrastructure, projects, and activities.
This chart shows obligations for the program by fiscal year. All data for this chart was provided by the
administering agency and sourced from SAM.gov, USASpending.gov, and Treasury.gov.
For more information on each of these data sources, please see the
About the data page.
In FY 2016, EPA anticipates awarding nine university-based Environmental Finance Centers (EFCs) to work with state, tribal, and local governments and the private sector to develop and implement a wide range of creative, responsible, and sustainable solutions to existing and new environmental challenges. Each participating university will operate an EFC or EFCs that will provide technical assistance and outreach services to the regulated communities (States, tribal, local governments and businesses). The EFCs will provide finance-related training, education, and analytical studies to help these regulated parties develop solutions to the difficult “how-to-pay” issues associated with meeting environmental standards. The EFCs will educate state, tribal, and local governments and businesses on lowering environmental costs, increasing environmental investments, improving financial capacity, encouraging full cost pricing, and identifying and evaluating environmental financing options. n FY 2016, nine (eight university-base and one nonprofit-based) Environmental Finance Centers (EFCs) worked with state, tribal, and local governments as well as the private sector in developing and implementing a range of creative, responsible, and sustainable solutions to existing and new environmental challenges. In this first year of the new EFC grant award period, five of the eight grantees operating EFCs under the previous grant award were awarded funding and four new grantees were awarded funding and began operating as EFCs. EFC accomplishments in FY 2016 included: (1) University of Southern Maine EFC - (1) facilitating a series of three workshops on implementing a stormwater financing program in the Narragansett Bay that presented the components of a good stormwater feasibility study, examined ways to gain community acceptance and build political support, looked at options for reducing costs and leveraging innovative financing, and shared ways to build successful partnerships; (2) Syracuse University EFC - building stakeholder partnerships in New York, New Jersey and Puerto Rico to strengthen and develop regional marine debris protection (trash free waters) and providing climate resiliency training on issues including watershed management, strengthening infrastructure for flood protection, financing resiliency, and storm water asset management planning; (3) University of Maryland EFC – implementing and expanding the Sustainable Maryland Certified program that helps Maryland municipalities to find cost-effective and strategic ways to protect their natural assets and revitalize their communities, and developing a Municipal Online Stormwater Training (MOST) Center that provides communities with access to needed storm water management technical and financial resources through a comprehensive and interactive online training program; (4) University of North Carolina EFC - comparing the financial structures and outcomes of alternative water service delivery models (including public-private partnerships) in nine communities across the country, and assisting EPA WaterCARE communities in developing sustainable financing strategies to address the challenges of aging water infrastructure; (5) Michigan Technological University EFC - staffing and standing up a new center that will focus on providing financial technical assistance on water, wastewater, and storm water infrastructure issues especially for small and rural communities; (6) University of New Mexico EFC - delivering technical, managerial, and financial capacity building training for small water systems covering important topics such as water loss control, asset management, and operator certifications and providing needed financial planning support to EPA WaterCARE communities; (7) Wichita State University EFC - performing energy assessments for small to medium sized wastewater treatment plants across the state of Kansas identifying substantial energy reduction opportunities and significant cost savings, and implementing an educational and training program designed to stimulate the interest of high school students in the career opportunities in the water and wastewater industry; (8) California State University at Sacramento (Sacramento State) - staffing and standing up a new EFC that looks to provide cost-effective solutions to protecting public health and the environment focusing on stormwater management, sustainable utility operations, solid and hazardous waste management and tribal communities; and (9) Rural Community Assistance Corporation - Standing up a new EFC that will focus on providing infrastructure financial education to tribal communities, creating map-based tools for asset management, and developing financial analysis that incorporates cultural concerns when comparing adapt-in-place costs to relocation costs for infrastructure.
In FY 2017, EPA funded (eight university-based and two non-profit based) Environmental Finance Centers (EFCs) covering ten EPA Regions located across the nation. Each participating EFCs provided technical assistance and outreach services to the regulated communities (States, tribal, local governments and businesses). The EFCs provided finance-related training, education, and analytical studies to help these regulated parties develop solutions to the difficult “how-to-pay” issues associated with meeting environmental standards. The EFCs educated state, tribal, and local governments and businesses on lowering environmental costs, increasing environmental investments, improving financial capacity, encouraging full cost pricing, and identifying and evaluating environmental financing options.
In FY 2018, EPA continued to fund eight university-based and two non-profit based Environmental Finance Centers (EFCs) covering ten EPA Regions located across the nation. Each participating EFCs will provide technical assistance and outreach services to the regulated communities (States, tribal, local governments and businesses). The EFCs will provide finance-related training, education, and analytical studies to help these regulated parties develop solutions to the difficult “how-to-pay” issues associated with meeting environmental standards. The EFCs educate state, tribal, and local governments and businesses on lowering environmental costs, increasing environmental investments, improving financial capacity, encouraging full cost pricing, and identifying and evaluating environmental financing options.
In FY 2022, EPA funded eight university-based and two non-profit based Environmental Finance Centers (EFCs) covering ten EPA Regions located across the nation. Each participating EFCs provided technical assistance and outreach services to the regulated communities (States, tribal, local governments and businesses). The EFCs provided finance-related training, education, and analytical studies to help these regulated parties develop solutions to the difficult “how-to-pay” issues associated with meeting environmental standards. The EFCs educate state, tribal, and local governments and businesses on lowering environmental costs, increasing environmental investments, improving financial capacity, encouraging full cost pricing, and identifying and evaluating environmental financing options.
In FY 2023, EPA funded 29 cooperative agreements with university-based and non-profit based Environmental Finance Centers (EFCs) covering ten EPA Regions located across the nation, 12 of which are the Regional Multi-Environmental Media EFCs, 13 of which are the Regional Water Infrastructure EFCs with IIJA appropriations, and 4 of which are the National Water Infrastructure EFCs with IIJA appropriations. Each participating EFCs provided technical assistance and outreach services to the regulated communities (States, tribal, local governments and businesses). The EFCs provided finance-related training, education, and analytical studies to help these regulated parties develop solutions to the difficult “how-to-pay” issues associated with meeting environmental standards. The EFCs educated state, tribal, and local governments and businesses on lowering environmental costs, increasing environmental investments, improving financial capacity, encouraging full cost pricing, and identifying and evaluating environmental financing options.
In FY 2024, EPA continued to fund the 29 cooperative agreements with university-based and non-profit based Environmental Finance Centers (EFCs) covering ten EPA Regions located across the nation, 12 of which are the Regional Multi-Environmental Media EFCs, 13 of which are the Regional Water Infrastructure EFCs with IIJA appropriations, and 4 of which are the National Water Infrastructure EFCs with IIJA appropriations. Each participating EFCs provides technical assistance and outreach services to the regulated communities (States, tribal, local governments and businesses). The EFCs provided finance-related training, education, and analytical studies to help these regulated parties develop solutions to the difficult “how-to-pay” issues associated with meeting environmental standards. The EFCs educated state, tribal, and local governments and businesses on lowering environmental costs, increasing environmental investments, improving financial capacity, encouraging full cost pricing, and identifying and evaluating environmental financing options. The EFC’s also developed and/ or attended trainings and convenings that fostered peer-learning and coordination among one another.
Single Audit Applies (2 CFR Part 200 Subpart F):
For additional information on single audit requirements for this program, review the current Compliance Supplement.
OMB is working with the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) and agency offices of inspectors general to include links to relevant oversight reports. This section will be updated once this information is made available.
