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DRAFT Proposal Guidelines for Brownfields
Assessment, Revolving Loan Fund, and Cleanup Grants - Final Proposal Guidelines
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5. Final Proposal Guidelines 30 Final Proposals will be requested at the invitation of EPA, after review of Initial Proposals. An invitation to submit a Final Proposal for one grant program is not indicative of an invitation to submit a proposal for all grant programs. Applicants must submit separate proposals for each grant program for which they receive an invitation. Applicants should not resubmit their Initial Proposals. Generally, Final Proposals should be between 7 and 10 pages in length, not including attachments. Final Proposal attachments should be kept to a minimum. You should not resubmit attachments provided in the Initial Proposal. EPA will not review or evaluate attachments such as strategies or plans developed for other programs, newspaper articles, and videotapes. Information in these types of attachments should be distilled and incorporated into the responses to criteria. The final proposal for each type of grant funding should consist of the following:
Assessment Grant Proposal Budget (a maximum of 15 points may be received for this criterion) Provide the proposed budget(s) for your proposal. Note that you must provide separate budgets for funds intended for use on petroleum-contaminated sites and funds intended for use on sites contaminated by hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants (including hazardous substances co-mingled with petroleum). The budgets should show the distribution of funds, including cost estimates for each of the proposed activities. A local government may use up to 10 percent of its grant funds for monitoring the health of populations exposed to one or more hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants from a brownfield site and monitoring and enforcement of any institutional control used to prevent human exposure to any hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant from a brownfield site. To effectively oversee assessments and cleanups, local governments may use grant funds (subject to the 10 percent limit) for other related program development and implementation activities. Typical tasks might include "Phase I Assessments," "Community Outreach," and "Cleanup Planning." Provide footnotes to the budget table describing each task. Sample Format for Budget Description
1 EPA defines equipment as items that cost $5,000 or more
with a useful life of more than one year. Items costing less than $5,000
are considered supplies. Assessment Grant Criteria Provide responses to the following assessment ranking criteria: Note: Many of the criteria are common to all three types of grants. Applicants may copy responses to common criteria and provide these responses in the appropriate place for each type of grant requested. Final proposals will be submitted separately for each type of grant and will be reviewed independently, so each proposal must stand on its own merits. A. Sustainable Reuse of Brownfields/Development Potential (a maximum
of 15 points may be received for this criterion) 2. Describe the redevelopment plans for the sites or targeted areas, and how those plans fit into your community's master plan, economic development plan, or economic development activities. 3. Describe how this project will stimulate economic development, including the creation of jobs, capital investment, and increases to the local tax base. B. Reduction of Threats to Human Health and the Environment (a maximum of 20 points may be received for this criterion) 1. Describe how the funds will be used to address/facilitate the identification and/or reduction of threats to human health and the environment within the target area (including cancer, asthma, or birth defects) that may be associated with exposure to hazardous substances, pollutants, contaminants, or petroleum. 2. Describe how, by conducting the activities mentioned in B.1. above, your actions could affect the environment. If your actions could affect the environment, describe the alternatives you would use to mitigate the environmental impacts of your actions. 3. Describe sensitive populations (e.g., children, pregnant women, minority or low-income communities, etc.) in the community surrounding the target area or site(s) and how you derived this information. 4. Describe how the funds provided by this grant will be used to address/facilitate the identification and/or reduction of threats to the health and welfare of these sensitive populations. 5. Describe whether you are working with your local public health department to ensure that public health issues are considered during the redevelopment process. C. Reuse of Existing Infrastructure (a maximum of 15 points may be received for this criterion) 1. Describe whether the project will use existing infrastructure (e.g., public transportation, utilities, buildings) or require its expansion. 2. Describe whether the project will encourage the development or redevelopment of properties with existing infrastructure and describe the infrastructure that may be reused. D. Greenspace/Open Space (a maximum of 15 points may be received for this criterion) 1. Describe the extent to which a grant would facilitate the creation, preservation, or addition to a park, greenway, undeveloped property, recreational property, or other property used for nonprofit purposes. 2. Explain how this project integrates other efforts to improve/redevelop brownfields, including ongoing project(s) proposed under this grant. E. Community Involvement (a maximum of 20 points may be received for this criterion) 1. Describe how you involved the local community in the development of this proposal. Provide a list of the community-based organizations involved and a contact person, phone number, and a brief description of the organization's activities and representation (these organizations may include, but are not limited to, local citizen groups, environmental organizations, civic organizations, local business groups and institutions, educational institutions, and local labor organizations). Note: EPA may conduct reference checks to ensure that organizations identified are supportive and involved with the brownfields project. 2. Describe your efforts and/or plans to develop partnerships at the local, state, and/or tribal level with other stakeholders to ensure appropriate and sustainable cleanup and redevelopment of brownfields. 3. Discuss your plan for involving the local community (e.g., neighborhood organizations, citizens' groups, borrowers, redevelopers, and other stakeholders) in cleanup decisions or reuse planning. 4. Describe the means by which you will communicate the progress of your project to citizens, including plans for communicating in languages indigenous to the community. 5.2. Revolving Loan Fund Grants Provide the proposed budget(s) for your proposal. It must reflect your cost share. Note that you must provide separate budgets for funds intended for use on petroleum-contaminated sites and funds intended for use on sites contaminated by hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants (including hazardous substances co-mingled with petroleum). The budget(s) should show the distribution of funds, including cost estimates for each of the proposed activities. A local government may use up to 10 percent of its grant funds for monitoring the health of populations exposed to one or more hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants from a brownfield site and monitoring and enforcement of any institutional control used to prevent human exposure to any hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant from a brownfield site. To effectively oversee assessments and cleanups, local governments may use grant funds (subject to the 10 percent limit) for other related program development and implementation activities. Typical tasks would include "Establishing the Revolving Fund," "Marketing the Revolving Fund," "Operating the Revolving Fund," "Cleanup Planning," and "Overseeing Site Cleanup." Provide footnotes to the budget table describing each task. Sample Format for Budget Description Project Tasks for Loans (at least 60 percent of amount requested) 1 EPA defines equipment as items that cost $5,000 or more with a useful
life of more than one year. Items costing less than $5,000 are considered
supplies. Revolving Loan Fund Grant Criteria Provide responses to the following Revolving Loan Fund ranking criteria: Note: Many of the criteria are common to all three types of grants. Applicants may copy responses to common criteria and provide these responses in the appropriate place for each type of grant requested. Final proposals will be submitted separately for each type of grant and will be reviewed independently, so each proposal must stand on its own merits. A. Business Plan (a maximum of 20 points may be received for this criterion) 1. Describe your anticipated loan structure (amount, interest, time frame for repayment). 2. Describe your advertising plan and any other redevelopment incentives (for example, TIFs, tax incentives, tax credits, state funding programs) that may be offered as part of a package to assist with promoting the RLF program. 3. Describe how your proposal will promote the long-term availability of funds from a revolving loan fund. If you are planning to provide cleanup subgrants using your RLF grant, describe how this will affect the long-term availability of your revolving loan fund. 4. Describe how you will make full and effective use of the RLF within the grant period. Include in your discussion an implementation schedule and time line for your use of the RLF funds. B. Sustainable Reuse of Brownfields/Development Potential (a maximum
of 15 points may be received for this criterion) 2. Describe the redevelopment plans for the sites or targeted areas, and how those plans fit into your community's master plan, economic development plan, or economic development activities. 3. Describe how this project will stimulate economic development, including the creation of jobs, capital investment, and increases to the local tax base. C. Reduction of Threats to Human Health and the Environment (a maximum of 20 points may be received for this criterion) 1. Describe how the funds will be used to address/facilitate the identification and/or reduction of threats to human health and the environment within the target area (including cancer, asthma, or birth defects) that may be associated with exposure to hazardous substances, pollutants, contaminants, or petroleum. 2. Describe how, by conducting the activities mentioned in C.1. above, your actions could affect the environment. If your actions could affect the environment, describe the alternatives you would use to mitigate the environmental impacts of your actions. 3. Describe sensitive populations (e.g., children, pregnant women, minority or low-income communities, etc.) in the community surrounding the target area or site(s) and how you derived this information. 4. Describe how the funds provided by this grant will be used to address/facilitate the identification and/or reduction of threats to the health and welfare of these sensitive populations. 5. Describe whether you are working with your local public health department to ensure that public health issues are considered during the redevelopment process. D. Reuse of Existing Infrastructure (a maximum of 15 points may be received for this criterion) 1. Describe whether the project will use existing infrastructure (e.g., public transportation, utilities, buildings) or require its expansion. 2. Describe whether the project will encourage the development or redevelopment of properties with existing infrastructure and describe the infrastructure that may be reused. E. Greenspace/Open Space (a maximum of 15 points may be received for this criterion) 1. Describe the extent to which a grant would facilitate the creation, preservation, or addition to a park, greenway, undeveloped property, recreational property, or other property used for nonprofit purposes. 2. Explain how this project integrates other efforts to improve/redevelop brownfields, including ongoing project(s) proposed under this grant. F. Community Involvement (a maximum of 20 points may be received for this criterion) 1. Describe how you involved the local community in the development of this proposal. Provide a list of the community-based organizations involved and a contact person, phone number, and a brief description of the organization's activities and representation (these organizations may include, but are not limited to, local citizen groups, environmental organizations, civic organizations, local business groups and institutions, education institutions, and local labor organizations). Note: EPA may conduct reference checks to ensure that organizations identified are supportive and involved with the brownfields project. 2. Describe your efforts and/or plans to develop partnerships at the local, state, and/or tribal level with other stakeholders to ensure appropriate and sustainable cleanup and redevelopment of brownfields. 3. Discuss your plan for involving the local community (e.g., neighborhood organizations, citizens' groups, borrowers, redevelopers, and other stakeholders) in cleanup decisions or reuse planning. 4. Describe the means by which you will communicate the progress of your project to citizens, including plans for communicating in languages indigenous to the community. Cleanup Grant Budget (a maximum of 15 points may be received for this criterion) Provide the proposed budget(s) for your proposal. It must reflect your cost share. Note that you must provide separate budgets for funds intended for use on petroleum-contaminated sites and funds intended for use on sites contaminated by hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants (including hazardous substances co-mingled with petroleum). The budget(s) should show the distribution of funds, including cost estimates for each of the proposed activities A local government may use up to 10 percent of its grant funds for monitoring the health of populations exposed to one or more hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants from a brownfield site and monitoring and enforcement of any institutional control used to prevent human exposure to any hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant from a brownfield site. To effectively oversee assessments and cleanups, local governments may use grant funds (subject to the 10 percent limit) for other related program development and implementation activities. Typical tasks would include "Site Cleanup" and "Cleanup Planning." Provide footnotes to the budget table describing each task. Sample Format for Budget Description Project Tasks 1 EPA defines equipment as items that cost $5,000 or more with a useful
life of more than one year. Items costing less than $5,000 are considered
supplies. Provide responses to the following cleanup grant ranking criteria: Note: Many of the criteria are common to all three types of grants. Applicants may copy responses to common criteria and provide these responses in the appropriate place for each type of grant requested. Final proposals will be submitted separately for each type of grant and will be reviewed independently, so each proposal must stand on its own merits. A. Sustainable Reuse of Brownfields/Development Potential (a maximum
of 15 points may be received for this criterion) 2. Describe the redevelopment plans for the sites or targeted areas, and how those plans fit into your community's master plan, economic development plan, or economic development activities. 3. Describe how this project will stimulate economic development, including the creation of jobs, capital investment, and increases to the local tax base. B. Reduction of Threats to Human Health and the Environment (a maximum of 20 points may be received for this criterion) 1. Describe how the funds will be used to address/facilitate the identification and/or reduction of threats to human health and the environment within the target area (including cancer, asthma, or birth defects) that may be associated with exposure to hazardous substances, pollutants, contaminants, or petroleum. 2. Describe how, by conducting the activities mentioned in B.1. above, your actions could affect the environment. If your actions could affect the environment, describe the alternatives you would use to mitigate the environmental impacts of your actions. 3. Describe sensitive populations (e.g., children, pregnant women, minority or low-income communities, etc.) in the community surrounding the target area or site(s) and how you derived this information. 4. Describe how the funds provided by this grant will be used to address/facilitate the identification and/or reduction of threats to the health and welfare of these sensitive populations. 5. Describe whether you are working with your local public health department to ensure that public health issues are considered during the redevelopment process. C. Reuse of Existing Infrastructure (a maximum of 15 points may be received for this criterion) 1. Describe whether the project will use existing infrastructure (e.g., public transportation, utilities, buildings) or require its expansion. 2. Describe whether the project will encourage the development or redevelopment of properties with existing infrastructure and describe the infrastructure that may be reused. D. Greenspace/Open Space (a maximum of 15 points may be received for this criterion) 1. Describe the extent to which a grant would facilitate the creation, preservation, or addition to a park, greenway, undeveloped property, recreational property, or other property used for nonprofit purposes. 2. Explain how this project integrates other efforts to improve/redevelop brownfields, including ongoing project(s) proposed under this grant. E. Community Involvement (a maximum of 20 points may be received for this criterion) 1. Describe how you involved the local community in the development of this proposal. Provide a list of the community-based organizations involved and a contact person, phone number, and a brief description of the organization's activities and representation (these organizations may include, but are not limited to, local citizen groups, environmental organizations, civic organizations, local business groups and institutions, education institutions, and local labor organizations). Note: EPA may conduct reference checks to ensure that organizations identified are supportive and involved with the brownfields project. 2. Describe your efforts and/or plans to develop partnerships at the local, state, and/or tribal level with other stakeholders to ensure appropriate and sustainable cleanup and redevelopment of brownfields. 3. Discuss your plan for involving the local community (e.g., neighborhood organizations, citizens' groups, borrowers, redevelopers, and other stakeholders) in cleanup decisions or reuse planning. 4. Describe the means by which you will communicate the progress of your project to citizens, including plans for communicating in languages indigenous to the community. Table of Contents 1. The National Brownfields Program and the
New Brownfields Law 1 2. Summary of Brownfields Grant Programs 4 3. Proposal Submission and Selection Process
Overview 8 4. Initial Proposal Guidelines 12 5. Final Proposal Guidelines 30 Appendix 1. EPA Regional and Headquarters Contacts 41 Appendix 2. Prohibitions on Use of Funds 43 Appendix 3. Guidance on Sites Eligible for Brownfields Funding Under CERCLA §104(k) 45 Appendix 4. Guidance for Requests for Property-Specific Determinations for Funding 57 |
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