Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Program - Fiscal Year 2016 Great Lakes Competition

The purpose of this notice is to solicit grant proposals from eligible Great Lakes states for coastal and estuarine land conservation (land acquisition) projects under the Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Program (CELCP). Applications selected for funding through this solicitation will be implemented through a grant, with awards dependent upon the amount of funds made available to NOAA for this purpose. Proposals submitted in response to this announcement shall protect important coastal and estuarine areas that have significant conservation, recreation, ecological, historical, or aesthetic...

Eligible applicants for this competition are the designated lead agency for implementing CELCP in each participating State (lead agency), as described below. The lead agency is presumed to be the agency designated as lead for implementing the State’s coastal management program, as approved under the CZMA, unless otherwise designated by the Governor. A list of lead contacts for each State and Territory, including eligible Great Lakes States, is available on the CELCP website at http://www.coast.noaa.gov/czm/landconservation/media/celcpstateleadcontacts.pdf For this competition, Great Lakes States with Coastal Zone Management Programs or NERRS approved under the CZMA that have submitted a CELCP plan to NOAA on or before December 11, 2015 are eligible to apply. The status of each State’s CELCP plan (draft or approved) can be found at www.coast.noaa.gov/czm/landconservation/state/ and will be updated as of as of December15, 2015. Great Lakes States with a status of approved or draft are eligible to participate. States considered eligible as of September 10, 2015, are: Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania (Lake Erie coast), New York (Lake Erie and Lake Ontario coasts), and Wisconsin. The States of Illinois and Minnesota will be eligible if they submit a CELCP plan to NOAA by December 11, 2015. CELCP plans may be submitted in hard copy by mail, or electronically by e-mail, to Elaine Vaudreuil, CELCP competition manager, at the address listed in section VII. Agency Contacts. Each eligible State’s designated CELCP lead agency may select and submit no more than four applications for this competition, including subsequent phases of projects previously funded by CELCP. These may include proposals from additional eligible State, local or other agencies as described in section III.C. of this notice. Applicants may include multiple parcels in a project application if the parcels are related; however, please note that NOAA will evaluate project readiness and feasibility for completion within an 18-month timeframe. The designated lead agency may solicit, and include in their application, project proposals from additional eligible state agencies, local governments as defined at 2 C.F.R § 200.64 (Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards as adopted by the Department of Commerce through 2 C.F.R. 1327.101, or entities eligible for assistance under section 306A(e) of the CZMA (16 U.S.C. § 1455a(e)) (sub-applicants), provided that each has the authority to acquire and manage land for conservation purposes. As defined at 2 C.F.R. § 200.64, “local government” means any unit of government within a state, including a: county; borough; municipality; city; town; township; parish; local public authority, including any public housing agency under the United States Housing Act of 1937; special district; school district; intrastate district; council of governments, whether or not incorporated as a nonprofit corporation under State law; any other agency or instrumentality of a multi-, regional, or intra-state or local government. Under section 306A(e) of the CZMA, an eligible entity may be a local government, an area-wide agency designated under Chapter 41, Subchapter II, Section 3334 of Title 42, a regional agency, or an interstate agency. The public agencies/entities, or types of entities, considered to be eligible within each State may be identified within the State’s CELCP plan. Links to contact information for each State’s CELCP lead contact, State CELCP plan, and State CELCP website (if applicable), is available at www.coast.noaa.gov/czm/landconservation/state/. Interested parties should contact the appropriate CELCP lead agency in each State for additional information on the State’s project solicitation process.

For administrative or technical questions regarding this announcement, contact the competition manager Elaine Vaudreuil, CELCP Program Manager, by phone at (301) 563-7103 or via email at: Elaine.Vaudreuil@noaa.gov, or Elizabeth Mountz, by phone at (301) 563-1148 or via email at: Elizabeth.Mountz@noaa.gov.