Funding Opportunities

Purpose:
To help create sustainable urban forests across the state, $30.8 million in funding will be available to support urban and community forestry projects in historically disinvested urban communities throughout California.

Description:
The Inflation Reduction Act supports urban and community forestry investments that foster:

1) Increased and equitable access to urban tree canopy and associated human health, environmental, and economic benefits in disadvantaged communities.

2) Broadened community engagement in local urban forest planning, tree planting, and management activities.

3) Improved community and urban forest resilience to climate change, extreme heat, forest pests and diseases, and storm events through best management and maintenance practices.

There are six grant options available: Urban Forest Expansion and Improvement, Urban Forest Management Activities, Urban Forestry Education and Workforce Development, Urban Forestry Regional or Statewide Impact, Urban Forest Equity Capacity Building, and Green Schoolyards.

Projects must directly serve priority populations within one or more defined disadvantaged and/or low-income community in an urban area. In California, CAL FIRE’s Urban and Community Forestry Program is administering this federal grant funding.

Purpose:
The Impact Projects grant program intends to support collaborative projects that center artists and artistic practice in responding to issues experienced by historically and systemically under-resourced communities in California at this time, including, but not limited to, social, political, and economic inequalities.

Description:
Impact Projects grants support arts organizations for collaborations between local artist(s) and community members to develop and express their own creative and artistic goals and address a community-defined need. Collaborative projects will utilize various creative practices to impact social issues affecting their communities, including but not limited to systemic marginalization, incarceration/justice systems, arts learning, poverty/economic disparity, health disparities, accessibility for people with disabilities, housing insecurity, violence, food insecurity, cultural/social justice, intergenerational/multigenerational learning, veterans’ issues, and environmental sustainability

Purpose:
The State-Local Partners (SLP) program provides general operating support and technical assistance for county-designated local arts agencies. The purpose of the program is to foster cultural development on the local level through a partnership between the State and the counties of California.

Description:
The nature of this partnership includes funding, information exchange, cooperative activities, and leadership. The partnership enables individuals, organizations, and communities to create, present, and preserve the arts of all cultures to enrich the quality of life for all Californians.

In recent years, California has experienced increased electrical system outages caused by climate-related events such as increased wildfires, heat waves, and storms, or through public safety power shutoffs (PSPS). These events, as well as aging infrastructure, threaten grid reliability, public health and safety, economic prosperity, communities, and ecosystems. They also pose disproportionate consequences for the most vulnerable populations in both rural and urban areas.

The intent of this solicitation is to invest in projects that increase the electric reliability and resiliency of communities in California by reducing outage frequency, duration, magnitude, and associated community impacts, while bolstering California’s workforce and promoting equity.

The CERRI Program is designed to prioritize projects that will generate the greatest community benefit by reducing the likelihood and consequences of electrical system outages. As such, projects that are close to shovel-ready, have initiated the environmental review process, or leverage otherwise stranded assets or existing infrastructure will be scored favorably based on criteria listed in Section IV.F. The objectives are oriented around four main themes outlined below. These themes are not listed in rank order.

Energy reliability and resilience: Reduce the frequency, duration, and magnitude of power outages and strengthen communities’ ability to function during power outages by providing day-to-day and emergency services for its constituents.
Community Benefits: Ensure that the benefits of clean, safe, affordable, and reliable energy are shared by all, particularly communities with critical energy reliability and resilience needs.
Advancement of Energy and Climate Goals: Support California’s energy modernization and climate goals.
Workforce Development and Labor: Create high-quality jobs with strong labor standards and protections that attract and train a skilled workforce for lasting careers in the clean energy industry.

The Active Transportation Plan include, but are not limited to, increasing the proportion of trips accomplished by walking and biking, increasing the safety and mobility of non-motorized users, advancing efforts of regional agencies to achieve greenhouse gas reduction goals, enhancing public health, and providing a broad spectrum of projects to benefit many types of users including disadvantaged communities.

The California Tahoe Conservancy (Conservancy) leads California's efforts to restore and enhance the extraordinary natural and recreational resources of the Lake Tahoe Basin. The principal goal of the Conservancy's Science and Lake Improvement Account program (SB 630, 2013) is to support near-shore environmental improvement program activities and projects, particularly projects that manage aquatic invasive species or improve public access to sovereign land in Lake Tahoe.More specifically, such projects manage aquatic invasive species, or improve public access to sovereign land in Lake Tahoe, including planning and site improvement or reconstruction projects on public land, and land acquisitions from willing sellers. SB 630 (2013) allocates the Conservancy approximately $350,000 annually. Please contact staff at robert.larsen@resources.ca.gov and 916.402.7508 for more information.

These projects must be consistent with the State’s climate adaptation strategy (Safeguarding California Plan), contribute to the carbon sequestration goals of AB 32, and support WCB’s Strategic Plan. In addition, projects will be consistent with other statewide plans and priorities, including the California Water Action Plan and California State Wildlife Action Plan 2015 Update.

Program funding is directed toward projects that:

Protect and restore ecosystems on natural and working lands to provide climate change adaptation and resilience for wildlife.
Assist natural and working lands managers in implementing practices that provide climate adaptation and resilience.
Increase carbon sequestration in natural and working lands, and provide additional social, economic, and environmental benefits, or "co-benefits".

This grant provides resources for keeping boater sewage from California waterways.

The Pumpout Facility Grant Program funds the construction of pumpout and dump stations on California's waterways.

Projects selected to receive a BEIF grant are also eligible to receive technical assistance through PDAP to support development activities aimed at facilitating their successful implementation and reinforcing their long-term sustainability and proper operation.

Through this program, NADBank offers grants to support the implementation of critical environmental infrastructure projects for economically distressed communities in the U.S.-Mexico border region. CAP grants may be used for:

- Project construction and related costs
- Project management and supervision
- Equipment purchase
- Other project components
- Emergency repairs