Surveys, Studies, Investigations, Demonstrations, and Training Grants and Cooperative Agreements - Section 104(b)(3) of the Clean Water Act (66.436)
Surveys, Studies, Investigations, Demonstrations, and Training Grants and Cooperative Agreements - Section 104(b)(3) of the Clean Water Act (Assistance Listing 66.436) is run by the Environmental Protection Agency. It awarded $29.3 million in 74 grants from fiscal 2021 to 2025, about $396,316 per award on average. No funding opportunity is open on Grants.gov right now.
The typical award was $170,550. Half of the 74 awards fell between $50,000 and $324,995, and they ranged from $3,507 to $3.5 million.
- Awarded, FY 2021 to 2025$29.3 million
- Grant awards74
- Typical award$170,550
- Awarded in FY 2025$8.5 million
- Size rank1191 of 1824
- Type of assistanceProject grants
Key findings
- Annual funding rose from $5.3 million in fiscal 2021 to $8.5 million in fiscal 2025.
- It is the 1191st largest of 1,824 federal grant programs by five-year awards.
- The 20 largest recipients received 91% of the money.
- Awards went to recipients in 23 states and territories.
What the program funds
To support the coordination and acceleration of research, investigations, experiments, training, demonstrations, surveys, and studies relating to the causes, effects (including health and welfare effects), extent, prevention, reduction, and elimination of water pollution. Funding priorities include, but are not limited to training, surveys, studies, investigations, and demonstration projects to support water quality improvement, watershed planning and management, nonpoint source planning, wetlands protection, coastal and estuarine planning, treatment technologies, water efficiency, and environmental management systems.
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
Assistance under this program is generally available to States, local governments, territories, Indian Tribes, and possessions of the U.S. (including the District of Columbia); public and private universities and colleges; public or private nonprofit institutions; and intertribal consortia. Nonprofit organizations described in Section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code that engage in lobbying activities as defined in Section 3 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 are not eligible to apply. An intertribal consortium must meet the definition of eligibility in the Environmental Program Grants for Tribes Final Rule, at 40 CFR 35.504 (66 FR 3782. January 16, 2001) (FRL-6929-5) and be a non-profit organization within the meaning of 2 CFR 200. For certain competitive funding opportunities under this assistance listing, the Agency may limit eligibility to compete to a number or subset of eligible applicants consistent with the Agency’s Assistance Agreement Competition Policy. For certain competitive funding opportunities under this assistance listing, the Agency may limit eligibility to compete to a number or subset of eligible applicants consistent with the Agency’s Assistance Agreement Competition Policy.
What the money can and cannot pay for
The funds will support conducting and promoting the coordination and acceleration of research, investigations, experiments, training, demonstrations, surveys, and studies relating to the causes, effects (including health and welfare effects), extent, prevention, reduction, and elimination of water pollution. Implementation activities are generally not eligible. Specific uses and restrictions on funds will be described in detail in the competitive announcements. Assistance agreement awards under this program may involve or relate to geospatial information. Further information regarding geospatial information may be obtained by viewing the following website: Geospatial Resources at EPA. This program makes Federal awards on a discretionary basis. A discretionary award means an award in which the Federal awarding agency, in keeping with specific statutory authority that enables the agency to exercise judgement (“discretion”), selects the recipient and/or the amount of Federal funding awarded through a competitive process or based on merit of proposals. A discretionary award may be selected on a non-competitive basis, as appropriate. For further information, please contact the Headquarters or regional office.
Matching requirements
This program has no statutory formula. Matching requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing. MOE requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.
Deadlines
Specific information regarding deadlines is provided in the NOFO.
Award range and average, in the agency's words
Range: $75,000 to $2,000,000/fiscal year; Average: $300,000/fiscal year.
Examples of funded projects
Fiscal Year2025: Development of innovative watershed education tools, development of water quality protection guides for local communities, development of sustainable approaches to water quality management, training for small wastewater systems and onsite/decentralized systems, and training on environmental management systems.
Funding history and past recipients
From fiscal 2021 to 2025, Surveys, Studies, Investigations, Demonstrations, and Training Grants and Cooperative Agreements - Section 104(b)(3) of the Clean Water Act (66.436) awarded$29.3 million across 74 grant awards, an average of $396,316 per award.
Who usually wins
Nonprofits received 66% of the money, colleges and universities 19% and tribes 6.9%.
| Recipient type | Awards | Amount | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nonprofits | 29 | $19.4 million | 66% |
| Colleges and universities | 16 | $5.4 million | 19% |
| Tribal governments and organizations | 7 | $2.0 million | 6.9% |
| State and local governments | 15 | $1.7 million | 5.9% |
| Other | 7 | $736,116 | 2.5% |
By state
4 states have a page for this program: those that received at least $1 million or 10 awards. They are District of Columbia, Florida, New Mexico and Maine.
| State | Awards | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | 14 | $15.3 million |
| Florida | 15 | $3.4 million |
| New Mexico | 2 | $2.3 million |
| Maine | 5 | $2.0 million |
| Arizona | 2 | $964,200 |
| Alaska | 3 | $936,096 |
| Montana | 2 | $679,193 |
| Maryland | 3 | $635,000 |
| Massachusetts | 6 | $611,116 |
| Idaho | 2 | $504,155 |
| Washington | 1 | $428,412 |
| Pennsylvania | 1 | $357,946 |
| Georgia | 1 | $322,383 |
| Nevada | 3 | $265,788 |
| Colorado | 1 | $233,323 |
| Minnesota | 1 | $122,059 |
| Wisconsin | 5 | $114,085 |
| Michigan | 2 | $55,000 |
| New York | 1 | $40,000 |
| Iowa | 1 | $30,000 |
| California | 1 | $25,000 |
| Illinois | 1 | $25,000 |
| Virginia | 1 | $24,994 |