Federal grant programs / Environmental Protection Agency

Brownfields Multipurpose, Assessment, Revolving Loan Fund, and Cleanup Cooperative Agreements (66.818)

Also known as Brownfields MARC Grants

• Awarded, FY 2021 to 2025$1.1 billion
• Grant awards1,118
• Typical award$500,000
• Awarded in FY 2025$276 million
• Size rank244 of 1824
• Type of assistanceCooperative agreements

Key findings

• Annual funding rose from $77.4 million in fiscal 2021 to $276 million in fiscal 2025.
• It is the 244th largest of 1,824 federal grant programs by five-year awards.
• The 20 largest recipients received 17% of the money.
• Awards went to recipients in 53 states and territories.

What the program funds

66.818 Related Federal Assistance 66.817 , 66.815 , 66.814 Overview Objectives Brownfield sites are real property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant. The objectives of the Brownfield Multipurpose, Assessment, Revolving Loan Fund, and Cleanup cooperative agreements (project grants) are to provide funding to: (1) inventory, characterize, assess, and conduct planning and community involvement related to brownfield sites; (2) capitalize a revolving loan fund (RLF) which provide loans and subgrants to carry out cleanup activities at brownfield sites; (3) carry out cleanup activities at brownfield sites that are owned by the grant recipient; and (4) inventory, characterize, assess, plan or remediate one or more brownfield sites in an area proposed for Multipurpose cooperative agreements. Funding Priorities - Fiscal Year 2026: Funding will support at least 39 Assessment cooperative agreements (estimated $58.7 million) that recipients may use to inventory, assess, engage the community, and plan reuse at brownfield sites, as authorized under CERCLA Section 104(k)(2). Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) funds will be used for approximately 88 Assessment cooperative agreements (estimated $70 million). IIJA funds will support at least 36 direct Cleanup cooperative agreements (estimated $107 million) to enable eligible entities to clean up properties that the recipient owns, as authorized under CERCLA Section 104(k)(3). IIJA funds will support at least 20 Multipurpose cooperative agreements (estimated at $20 million) to assess and cleanup properties the recipient owns in a defined target area, as authorized under CERCLA Section (104)(k)(4). Funding will not be available for competitive RLF cooperative agreements, but approximately 25 RLF supplemental awards (estimated at $14 million) will be made non-competitively to current RLF cooperative agreement recipients who meet supplemental funding criteria, in order to re-capitalize their RLF for additional loans and subgrants. IIJA funds will be used for FY26 RLF supplemental funding awards. Consistent with the direction on cost sharing in IIJA, cost sharing and matching funds are not required for Cleanup cooperative agreements. Recipients will be required to report site-specific accomplishments for IIJA-funded activities in the Assessment, Cleanup and Redevelopment, Exchange System (ACRES) and collected data will be used to demonstrate successful implementation of the program. Certain projects (i.e., primarily cleanup projects) are subject to the Buy America Sourcing requirements under the Build America, Buy America (BABA) provisions IIJA (P.L. 117-58, §§ 70911-70917) when using funds for the purchase of goods, products, and materials on any form of construction, alteration, maintenance, or repair of infrastructure in the United States. The Buy America preference requirement applies to all of the iron and steel, manufactured products, and construction materials used for an infrastructure project under an award identified in EPA’s financial assistance funding programs subject to BABA report.

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

Eligibility for Multipurpose, Assessment, Revolving Loan Fund, and Cleanup Grants: a general purpose unit of local government; a land clearance authority or other quasi-governmental entity that operates under the supervision and control of, or as an agent of, a general purpose unit of local government; a government entity created by a State legislature; a regional council or group of general purpose units of local government; a redevelopment agency that is chartered or otherwise sanctioned by a State; a State; a Federally recognized Indian Tribe other than in Alaska; an Alaska Native Regional Corporation, Alaska Native Village Corporation and the Metlakatla Indian Community. Intertribal consortia, except consortia comprised of ineligible Alaskan tribes; an organization described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of that Code; a limited liability corporation in which all managing members are organizations or limited liability corporations whose sole members are organizations described in subparagraph organization described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of that Code; a limited partnership in which all general partners are organizations described in subparagraph (I) or limited liability corporations whose sole members are organizations described in subparagraph organization described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of...

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What the money can and cannot pay for

For site-specific projects, the site must meet the definition of a brownfields site found at CERCLA 101(39). As part of the application process, EPA provides guidance to assist grant applicants in determining whether sites meet this definition. (1) The Brownfield Grants may be used to address sites contaminated by petroleum and hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants (including hazardous substances co-mingled with petroleum). (2) Brownfields Assessment Grant funds may be used to inventory, characterize, assess, and conduct planning and community involvement related to brownfield sites. (3) An RLF project grant recipient must use at least 50 percent of the awarded funds for cleanup loans to capitalize and implement a revolving loan fund; an RLF Grant recipient may use no more than 50 percent of the awarded funds on non-loan related activities, such as for cleanup subgrants. The recipient may not subgrant to itself. Revolving Loan Fund Grants generally are used to provide no-interest or low-interest loans for brownfields cleanups. (4) An RLF project grant recipient may use its funds to award subgrants to other eligible entities, including nonprofit organizations, for brownfield cleanups on sites owned by the subgrantee; (5) Brownfields Cleanup Grant funds must be used to carry out cleanup activities at brownfield sites that are owned by the grant recipient.

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Matching requirements

This program has no statutory formula. Under CERCLA Section 104(k)(10)(B)(iii) Revolving Loan Fund and Cleanup Grants require a 20 percent cost share (i.e., match requirement), which may be in the form of a contribution of money, labor, material, or services, and must be for eligible and allowable costs. Cost sharing and matching funds will not be required for Revolving Loan Fund and Cleanup Grants funded with Infrastructure Investment and Job Act (IIJA) funds. The Multipurpose Grants may include a cost share as designated by the Brownfields Program will not be required. Assessment Grants do not have a cost share requirement.MOE requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.

Deadlines

For competitive awards, deadlines will be specified in the competitive announcement. Existing RLF recipients seeking supplemental funding: Generally, in February, the Brownfields Office of Brownfields and Land Revitalization issues an annual Funding Guidance that provides the due date and information that should be submitted to request for supplemental funding. Interested RLF Grant recipient can also consult the Brownfields website for grant solicitation information at https://www.epa.gov/brownfields/brownfields-revolving-loan-fund-rlf-grants.

Award range and average, in the agency's words

Note, EPA may limit eligibility to a particular subset of eligible applicants. All grant types are not offered during every competition cycle. (1) Assessment Grants: For Community-wide Assessment Grants, an eligible entity may apply for up to $500,000 to address sites contaminated by hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants (including hazardous substances co-mingled with petroleum), and sites contaminated by petroleum provided the recipient does not expend more than $200,000 in regular appropriated EPA funds on any individual site. • The number of awards ranges between 61 and 110 per year. • Award amounts range between $300,000 and $500,000 per award. Cooperative agreements are awarded on a single-year basis. An Assessment Coalition of eligible entities may apply for up to $1,200,000 to address sites contaminated by hazardous substances or petroleum on a community-wide basis provided the recipient does not expend more than $200,000 in regular appropriated EPA funds on any individual site. • The number of awards ranges between 19 and 30 per year. • Award amounts range between $500,000 and $1,500,000 per award. • Cooperative agreements are awarded on a single-year basis. For Community-wide Assessment Grants for States and Tribes, an eligible entity may apply for up to $2,000,000 to address at least 10 sites contaminated by hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants (including hazardous substances co-mingled with petroleum), and sites contaminated by petro

Examples of funded projects

Fiscal Year2016: No content available. (1) 145 assessment grants were selected to complete brownfield site inventories, Phase I & II environmental site assessments and community engagement activities. (2) 59 cleanup grants were selected to cleanup contaminated properties. End uses include neighborhood development, commercial development, arts center, business park, wellness center/clinic, community health center, theater, and office space. These period of performance for these cooperative agreements are anticipated to be from 10/01/16 to 9/30/19. (3) 14 revolving loan fund grants were selected for recipients to establish a loan program that will capitalize and provide loans to eligible subrecipients to cleanup contaminated properties. These period of performance for these cooperative agreements are anticipated to be from 10/01/16 to 9/30/21. Fiscal Year2018: Funding supported 169 assessment cooperative agreements (estimated $37.5 million) that recipients may use to inventory, assess, cleanup and plan reuse at brownfield sites. Funding support 41 direct cleanup cooperative agreements (estimated $8 million) to enable eligible entities to clean up properties that the recipient owns.

Continue reading on SAM.gov

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 80% of the money, nonprofits 14% and tribes 2.6%.

By state

52 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.