OIA Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) Funding | OIA BIL 2024

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): OIA Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) Funding Opportunity (FY 2024)

1) What is the OIA BIL Funding Opportunity (FY 2024)?

This is a discretionary grant program administered by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Office of Insular Affairs (OIA). It requests project proposals that address environmental priorities in U.S. insular areas, emphasizing practical, on-the-ground work that improves ecosystem health, supports restoration, and strengthens protection of natural and community assets.

2) What is the opportunity number and CFDA listing for this program?

The opportunity number is OIA BIL 2024. It is listed as an environment funding activity under CFDA 15.875.

3) What is the application deadline listed for this opportunity?

The original closing date shown is October 30, 2024.

4) Who is eligible to apply?

Eligibility is restricted to non-federal entities operating in, or directly benefiting, the U.S. territories named in the announcement: Guam, American Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI).

5) What types of organizations are examples of eligible applicants?

Examples listed include local government agencies (explicitly noted as potentially including local hospitals/health centers and utilities), institutions of higher education, and nonprofit organizations whose mission directly benefits the listed insular areas.

6) Are federal entities eligible to apply?

No. The eligibility description limits applicants to non-federal entities operating in, or directly benefiting, Guam, American Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and CNMI.

7) What kinds of projects are eligible (what themes can be funded)?

Eligible project themes are limited to four specific activities. Applicants should propose work that fits squarely within one of these activities, such as preventing and managing harmful invasive species, restoring disturbed or mined landscapes, building native seed capacity for restoration, or improving early detection surveillance for invasive threats.

8) What are the four specific eligible activities?

The eligible activities are:

• (A) Invasive Species (Activity 6)
• (B) Revegetate Mined Lands (Activity 8)
• (C) Native Seed Strategy for Rehabilitation and Restoration (Activity 9)
• (D) Advancing the National Early Detection and Rapid Response (EDRR) Framework through early detection surveillance for asset protection

9) What does the program mean by "practical, on-the-ground work"?

Based on the description, the program is looking for work that produces real-world environmental outcomes, such as improving ecosystem health, supporting restoration activities, strengthening protection of natural and community assets, and implementing prevention/management or surveillance systems related to invasive species and restoration priorities.

10) Do projects have to be located within the listed U.S. territories?

The eligibility language focuses on non-federal entities operating in, or directly benefiting, Guam, American Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and CNMI. This indicates projects should occur in, or clearly deliver direct benefits to, those territories.

11) What federal rules and standards must applicants be ready to follow?

Applicants must be prepared to comply with federal grant administration requirements under 2 CFR 200 (Uniform Guidance). The notice highlights areas such as financial management, procurement, subawards, and audit requirements.

12) What is 2 CFR 200 (Uniform Guidance) in the context of this grant?

2 CFR 200 is the federal framework governing how non-federal entities manage federal awards. The opportunity notes it covers requirements and standards related to financial management, procurement practices, subawards, and audit requirements, among other grant administration responsibilities.

13) Is information about disadvantaged community status required?

Yes. A key application requirement is that all applicants must provide specific information related to disadvantaged community status when applicable. If the project targets or meaningfully involves communities or areas that may be considered disadvantaged, the application should include documentation showing that status and describing the burdens experienced locally.

14) When does disadvantaged community documentation apply?

It applies when the project targets or meaningfully involves communities or areas that may be considered disadvantaged. In those cases, the application should document disadvantaged status, describe local burdens, cite the data source, and explain whether and how the project is expected to deliver benefits to disadvantaged communities in the U.S. territories.

15) What types of "burdens" can be used to describe disadvantaged community conditions?

The opportunity provides examples of burden categories that may be relevant, including climate change, energy, health, housing, legacy pollution, transportation, water, and workforce development.

16) What does the application need to include about burdens and data sources?

The application should identify which burdens apply, cite the data source used to support those claims, and explain whether and how the proposed project is expected to deliver benefits to disadvantaged communities in the U.S. territories.

17) What tool can applicants use to document that a community is disadvantaged?

For purposes of this funding, any census tract identified as disadvantaged by the Climate and Economic Justice Screening Tool (CEJST) will be accepted as disadvantaged.

18) Is CEJST the only acceptable way to document disadvantaged status?

No. The notice clarifies that CEJST is not the only acceptable basis for documentation. Applicants may use other credible datasets and indicators, including national sources and locally sourced information, as supporting evidence.

19) What other datasets are named as acceptable supporting evidence?

Examples named include the U.S. Census Bureau Island Area Census, the FEMA National Risk Index, and relevant indicators or underlying variables from EPA EJScreen (particularly where they help quantify environmental, climate, health, and economic burdens).

20) Can locally sourced territorial information be used to support the documentation?

Yes. The program recognizes that territory-specific conditions are not always captured well in national datasets and allows locally sourced information as supporting evidence. Examples include data from territorial governments, federal regional offices such as the USGS Pacific Islands Water Science Center, or other state, territorial, local governmental, or research organizations (including public health and environmental organizations maintaining local burden or risk metrics).

21) How can an application be strengthened regarding disadvantaged community documentation?

The notice indicates an application can be strengthened by combining a recognized national screening tool with local data that better reflects on-the-ground conditions and demonstrates who benefits from the work.

22) What does the public listing say about maximum award size and number of awards?

The public listing shows an award ceiling of 0 and does not specify the number of expected awards. This typically means applicants may need to rely on the full announcement for funding levels, or that award amounts may vary by activity and available appropriations.

23) What should applicants do if funding levels are unclear in the listing?

Based on the listing details provided, applicants should consult the full announcement for funding levels or additional details, since the public listing shows an award ceiling of 0 and does not list the expected number of awards.

24) What is the overall best fit for this program?

The program is best suited for territorial and local entities that can clearly align a project with one of the four named activities, demonstrate readiness to manage a federal grant under 2 CFR 200, and, where relevant, document disadvantaged status and articulate concrete, measurable benefits to disadvantaged communities in the insular areas.