96231000

Description:
The agreement provides funding to Syracuse University to implement its project to provide direct technical assistance to help under-resourced and under-represented municipalities, native nations, and water utilities access federal and state funding, including Bi-Partisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) funding, for projects that address clean and safe water resources. Syracuse University and its partner's capacity building and training will increase technical, managerial, and financial competencies of community leaders, and utility staff to provide clean and safe water. The EFCs provide finance-related training, education, and analytical studies to help regulated parties develop solutions to the difficult 'how-to-pay' issues associated with meeting environmental standards. The EFCs educate state, tribal, and local governments and businesses on lowering environmental costs, increasing environmental investments, improving financial capacity, identifying appropriate revenue generating mechanisms, and evaluating environmental financing options.

Activities:
The activities to be performed are:
- Identifying and engaging communities in Region 2 to receive technical assistance with a focus on underserved populations.
- Delivering direct technical assistance to help underserved communities access funding to implement water infrastructure improvements.
- Sharing feedback with state financing program managers to improve access to their programs, especially for disadvantaged communities.
- Developing and delivering broad-reaching capacity development, training, tools, and resources to help communities access funding for water infrastructure improvements.
- Forming an advisory committee to guide the team's equitable approach to identifying and assisting hundreds of communities in Region 2.

Subrecipient:
The subaward recipients and the activities they will be implementing through the subawards are listed below.

Cornell University will work across all project tasks, engage and leverage students in technical assistance and training activities, including Aguaclara Reach, develop new and/or synthesize existing resources specific to water infrastructure investment, translating for appropriate audiences, and support development of tools, training, and publications.

RCAP Solutions Northeast/RSOL will provide technical assistance directly to communities in Region 2. As the Northeast affiliate of RCAP Solutions, RSOL's team will help identify and initiate projects, provide assistance across TA categories, and work with SU-EFC to coordinate trainings and deploy tools.

Moonshot Missions will serve as in-house engineering advisor and project manager to communities receiving direct TA, and provide technical oversight and value engineering support.

New Jersey Future (NJF) will act as liaison to NJ communities for assistance services, provide support and coordination for training events, and forums.

Outcomes:
The anticipated deliverables are customized technical assistance, training events to address knowledge and technical gaps in order to access water infrastructure funding, and development of guides, publications, and case studies that will also facilitate the exchange of best practices and successful models between communities, agencies, and practitioners. These deliverables are expected to lead to providing direct engagement with communities so they can meet funding requirements and submit clear, well-developed applications which will increase the number of regulated communities applying for infrastructure funding, completing or updating requisite plans, environmental reviews, engineering reports, and lead inventories; and complying with clean and safe water regulations for underserved municipalities, native nations, and water systems access federal and state funding for projects that address clean and safe water while preparing them for climate-related hazards. The expected outcome is to allow more communities to get on.

Syracuse University

3 - PILLAR 3: PERMITTING REFORM, COOPERATIVE FEDERALISM, AND CROSS-AGENCY PARTNERSHIP 3.1 - TBD 2 - TAKE DECISIVE ACTION TO ADVANCE ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE AND CIVIL RIGHTS 2.1 - PROMOTE ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE AND CIVIL RIGHTS AT THE FEDERAL, TRIBAL, STATE, AND LOCAL LEVELS 1 - TACKLE THE CLIMATE CRISIS 1.1 - REDUCE EMISSIONS THAT CAUSE CLIMATE CHANGE 6 - SAFEGUARD AND REVITALIZE COMMUNITIES 6.1 - CLEAN UP AND RESTORE LAND FOR PRODUCTIVE USES AND HEALTHY COMMUNITIES 5 - ENSURE CLEAN AND SAFE WATER FOR ALL COMMUNITIES 5.1 - ENSURE SAFE DRINKING WATER AND RELIABLE WATER INFRASTRUCTURE 6 - SAFEGUARD AND REVITALIZE COMMUNITIES 6.1 - CLEAN UP AND RESTORE LAND FOR PRODUCTIVE USES AND HEALTHY COMMUNITIES S - CROSS AGENCY STRATEGY S.1 - ENSURE SCIENTIFIC INTEGRITY AND SCIENCE-BASED DECISION MAKING 6 - SAFEGUARD AND REVITALIZE COMMUNITIES 6.1 - CLEAN UP AND RESTORE LAND FOR PRODUCTIVE USES AND HEALTHY COMMUNITIES 2 - TAKE DECISIVE ACTION TO ADVANCE ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE AND CIVIL RIGHTS 2.1 - PROMOTE ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE AND CIVIL RIGHTS AT THE FEDERAL, TRIBAL, STATE, AND LOCAL LEVELS 5 - ENSURE CLEAN AND SAFE WATER FOR ALL COMMUNITIES 5.2 - PROTECT AND RESTORE WATERBODIES AND WATERSHEDS 6 - SAFEGUARD AND REVITALIZE COMMUNITIES 6.1 - CLEAN UP AND RESTORE LAND FOR PRODUCTIVE USES AND HEALTHY COMMUNITIES 2 - TAKE DECISIVE ACTION TO ADVANCE ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE AND CIVIL RIGHTS 2.1 - PROMOTE ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE AND CIVIL RIGHTS AT THE FEDERAL, TRIBAL, STATE, AND LOCAL LEVELS 5 - ENSURE CLEAN AND SAFE WATER FOR ALL COMMUNITIES 5.2 - PROTECT AND RESTORE WATERBODIES AND WATERSHEDS 6 - SAFEGUARD AND REVITALIZE COMMUNITIES 6.1 - CLEAN UP AND RESTORE LAND FOR PRODUCTIVE USES AND HEALTHY COMMUNITIES 1 - A CLEANER, HEALTHIER ENVIRONMENT 1.2 - PROVIDE FOR CLEAN AND SAFE WATER 1 - A C

66.203 - Environmental Finance Center Grants

EPA Region 2: New York City [EPA - RO]

Syracuse, New York 13244-1270 United States

Single Zip Code

ENVIRONMENTAL FINANCE CENTER GRANT PROGRAM (EPA-I-OW-OWM-22-01)

Infrastructure $1,799,936 (40%) percent this Cooperative Agreement was funded by the 2021 Infrastructure Act.
Amendment Since initial award the total obligations have increased 149% from $1,799,936 to $4,486,210.