Federal grant programs / Department of Agriculture

Emergency Watershed Protection Program (10.923)

Also known as EWP

• Awarded, FY 2021 to 2025$1.6 billion
• Grant awards1,092
• Typical award$199,225
• Awarded in FY 2025$433 million
• Size rank196 of 1,823
• Type of assistanceProject grants

Key findings

• Annual funding rose from $137 million in fiscal 2021 to $433 million in fiscal 2025.
• It is the 196th largest of 1,823 federal grant programs by five-year awards.
• The 20 largest recipients received 58% of the money.
• Awards went to recipients in 46 states and territories.

What the program funds

The objective of the EWP Program is to assist sponsors, landowners, and operators in implementing emergency recovery measures for runoff retardation and erosion prevention to relieve imminent hazards to life and property created by a natural disaster that causes a sudden impairment of a watershed.

From the federal Assistance Listing. Read the full listing on SAM.gov.

Open opportunities

No opportunity under this program is open or forecast on Grants.gov right now. Programs often post once a year, so the funding history below shows what to expect.

Rules from the program listing

Who can apply

Public and private landowners are eligible for assistance but must be represented by a project sponsor. Project sponsor means a State government or a State agency or a legal subdivision thereof, local unit of government, or any Native American tribe or tribal organization as defined in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450b), with a legal interest in or responsibility for the values threatened by a watershed emergency; is capable of obtaining necessary land rights, and permits; and is capable of carrying out any operation and maintenance responsibilities that may be required. Sponsors are also responsible for furnishing the local cost share and for accomplishing the installation of work. Work can be done either through Federal or local contracts. Emergency watershed protection is authorized in the 50 States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa.

What the money can and cannot pay for

All EWP work must reduce threats to life and property and must be economically, environmentally, and socially defensible and sound from a technical standpoint. NRCS may bear up to 75 percent (90 percent within limited resource areas as identified by the U.S. Census data) of the construction cost of emergency measures. The remaining 25 percent (10 percent within limited resource areas) must come from local sources as cash or in-kind services. EWP funds have restrictions. EWP cannot solve problems that existed before the disaster or to improve the level of protection above that which existed before a disaster. It cannot fund operation and maintenance work or repair private or public transportation facilities or utilities. The work cannot adversely affect downstream water rights and funds cannot be used to install measures not essential to the reduction of hazards. In addition, funds cannot be used to perform work on measures installed by another federal agency.;

Matching requirements

This program has no statutory formula. NRCS may bear up to 75 percent (90 percent within limited resource areas as identified by the US Census data) of the construction cost of emergency measures. The remaining 25 percent (10 percent within limited resource areas) must come from local sources as cash or in-kind services.MOE requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.

Deadlines

Contact the headquarters or regional location, as appropriate for application deadlines

Quoted from the program's federal Assistance Listing. The notice of funding opportunity is the official source for each competition's rules.

Who usually wins

State and local governments received 98% of the money, tribes 1.4% and nonprofits 0.7%.

By state

37 states have a page for this program: those that received at least $1 million or 10 awards.

Award amounts are federal obligations reported to USAspending.gov for fiscal 2021 to 2025; see how our data works.