FY23 Guidelines for Brownfields Revolving Loan Fund Grants

Background
The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) was amended by the Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act in 2002 to include Section 104(k), which provides federal financial assistance authorities for brownfields revitalization, including grants for assessment, cleanup, and revolving loan funds. The Brownfields Utilization, Investment, and Local Development (BUILD) Act (Public Law 115-141) enacted in 2018 reauthorized EPA’s Brownfields Program and made additional amendments to CERCLA that affect EPA’s brownfield grant authorities, and ownership and liability provisions. EPA’s Brownfields Program provides funds to empower states, tribal nations, communities, and nonprofit organizations to prevent, inventory, assess, clean up, and reuse brownfield sites. This guidance provides information on applying for Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) Grants. This program is being funded by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Public Law 117-58, the “Bipartisan Infrastructure Law”).

Grant Details
Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) Grants provide funding to a grant recipient to capitalize an RLF program.

RLF programs provide loans and subgrants to eligible entities to carry out cleanup activities at brownfield sites contaminated with hazardous substances and/or petroleum. Site eligibility will be determined by EPA after grant award and prior to expending grant funds at any site. Only eligible entities who do not have an open cooperative agreement for a Brownfields RLF at the time of application may apply for funding under this solicitation.

An RLF Coalition is comprised of one “lead” eligible entity that partners with one or more non-lead eligible entities. The lead eligible entity is the applicant that submits an application on behalf of the coalition members.

Eligibility Requirements
Entities eligible to apply for an RLF Grant include general purpose unit of local government, land clearance authority or another quasi-governmental entity operating under the supervision of a general purpose unit of local government, government entity created by state legislature, regional council established under governmental authority or group of general purpose units of local government established under federal, state or local law, redevelopment agency chartered or sanctioned by a state, state, Indian tribe other than in Alaska (with exceptions), nonprofit organization described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, limited liability corporation in which all managing members are 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations or limited liability corporations whose sole members are 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations, limited partnership in which all general partners are 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations or limited corporations whose sole members are 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations, qualified community development entity as defined in section 45D(c)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.

Period of Performance
The project period for RLF Grants is up to five years.

Grant Value
EPA anticipates awarding an estimated 10 RLF Grants for an estimated total of $10 million.