Opportunity Information: Apply for EPA I OLEM OBLR 25 06
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), through its Office of Brownfields and Land Revitalization (OBLR), is offering funding under the FY26 Guidelines for Brownfield Assessment Grants focused on Community-wide Assessment Grants for States and Tribes. This opportunity is meant to help eligible state and tribal entities take a structured, community-wide approach to identifying and evaluating brownfield sites so communities can plan for redevelopment and revitalization. The funding is provided through a discretionary cooperative agreement, which generally means recipients should expect substantial involvement or oversight from EPA during the project period, along with standard federal reporting and compliance requirements.
EPA expects to make approximately 18 awards totaling about 35 million dollars under this competition. The maximum award amount (award ceiling) is 2,000,000 dollars per grant, signaling that the program is designed to support fairly robust assessment pipelines rather than small, single-site efforts. The funding aligns with environmental and community investment priorities (listed under Environment and IIJ) and is associated with CFDA number 66.818.
The core purpose of these community-wide assessment grants is to fund the front-end work needed to move brownfield properties toward reuse. Allowable activities include developing or expanding inventories of brownfield sites, establishing ways to prioritize which sites should be addressed first, and carrying out community involvement activities to ensure local residents and stakeholders have a real voice in the process. Grant funds can also support planning activities, environmental site assessments (such as Phase I and Phase II work), and the development of site-specific cleanup plans. In addition, recipients can use the funding to create reuse plans that map out practical redevelopment paths once sites are better understood, which can be essential for attracting future cleanup dollars and private or public investment.
A key limitation is that these grants are strictly for assessment and planning work, not for conducting cleanup. In other words, the program supports the investigation, prioritization, and pre-cleanup planning steps, but it does not pay for remediation or removal activities. That distinction matters for project design: applicants need to frame their work around building the information and plans required to qualify sites for cleanup funding later, reduce uncertainty for developers, and help communities make informed decisions about reuse.
Eligibility is described as applying to States and Tribes under the community-wide assessment category, but the announcement specifically directs applicants to Section 2 of the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for the detailed eligibility rules and definitions. The official funding opportunity title is FY26 Guidelines for Brownfield Assessment Grants (Community-wide Assessment Grants for States and Tribes), and the opportunity number is EPA I OLEM OBLR 25 06. The original application closing date is January 28, 2026, and the opportunity was created on November 20, 2025.Apply for EPA I OLEM OBLR 25 06
- The Environmental Protection Agency in the environment, iij sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "FY26 Guidelines for Brownfield Assessment Grants (Community-wide Assessment Grants for States and Tribes)" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 66.818.
- This funding opportunity was created on 2025-11-20.
- Applicants must submit their applications by 2026-01-28. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $2,000,000.00 in funding.
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 18 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: Others.
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FAQs: FY26 EPA Brownfields Assessment Grants (Community-wide Assessment Grants for States and Tribes)
1) What is this funding opportunity?
This is a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) funding opportunity offered through the Office of Brownfields and Land Revitalization (OBLR) under the FY26 Guidelines for Brownfield Assessment Grants. The specific focus is Community-wide Assessment Grants for States and Tribes, supporting a structured approach to identifying and evaluating brownfield sites so communities can plan for redevelopment and revitalization.
2) What is the official title of the opportunity?
The official title is FY26 Guidelines for Brownfield Assessment Grants (Community-wide Assessment Grants for States and Tribes).
3) What is the opportunity number?
The opportunity number is EPA I OLEM OBLR 25 06.
4) Which EPA office is offering the grant?
The grant is offered by EPA through its Office of Brownfields and Land Revitalization (OBLR).
5) What is the purpose of a community-wide assessment grant?
The purpose is to fund the early-stage, front-end work needed to move brownfield properties toward reuse. This includes identifying potential brownfield sites, evaluating them, prioritizing where to focus first, and preparing plans that support later cleanup and redevelopment.
6) Who is eligible to apply?
Eligibility is described as applying to States and Tribes under the community-wide assessment category. The announcement directs applicants to Section 2 of the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for detailed eligibility rules and definitions.
7) What type of funding mechanism is this?
The funding is provided through a discretionary cooperative agreement. This generally means recipients should expect substantial involvement or oversight from EPA during the project period, along with standard federal reporting and compliance requirements.
8) How many awards does EPA expect to make?
EPA expects to make approximately 18 awards under this competition.
9) What is the total estimated amount of funding available?
EPA expects total awards of about $35 million under this competition.
10) What is the maximum award amount?
The maximum award amount (award ceiling) is $2,000,000 per grant.
11) What does the $2,000,000 award ceiling suggest about project scope?
The award ceiling suggests the program is designed to support a fairly robust, community-wide assessment pipeline rather than small, single-site efforts. Applicants can structure a program that covers multiple sites and builds community-wide assessment capacity.
12) What activities can the grant fund?
Allowable activities described include:
- Developing or expanding inventories of brownfield sites
- Establishing site prioritization approaches (deciding which sites should be addressed first)
- Community involvement activities to ensure residents and stakeholders have a real voice in the process
- Planning activities related to future reuse and redevelopment
- Environmental site assessments, including Phase I and Phase II work
- Development of site-specific cleanup plans (planning, not performing cleanup)
- Reuse plans that lay out practical redevelopment paths after site conditions are better understood
13) Are Phase I and Phase II Environmental Site Assessments (ESAs) allowed?
Yes. The description explicitly notes that funding can support environmental site assessments, including Phase I and Phase II work.
14) Can the grant pay for cleanup or remediation?
No. A key limitation is that these grants are strictly for assessment and planning work and do not pay for cleanup. The program supports investigation, prioritization, and pre-cleanup planning steps, but not remediation or removal activities.
15) What does it mean that the grant supports "front-end work"?
It means the grant funds activities that help communities understand what they have, what risks or conditions may exist, and what should happen next. This includes building inventories, conducting assessments, involving the community, and preparing cleanup and reuse plans that can position sites for later cleanup funding and redevelopment.
16) What is meant by taking a "community-wide approach"?
A community-wide approach emphasizes evaluating and planning across multiple brownfield sites within a broader community context, rather than focusing on a single property. The grant is aimed at building a structured process to identify, evaluate, prioritize, and plan for reuse across a community.
17) Why is community involvement included as an allowable activity?
The opportunity highlights community involvement to ensure local residents and stakeholders have a real voice in the process. Community involvement activities are part of the core program design for community-wide assessment and planning.
18) What are reuse plans and why might they matter?
Reuse plans map out practical redevelopment paths once sites are better understood. The announcement notes these plans can be essential for attracting future cleanup dollars and private or public investment by reducing uncertainty and clarifying redevelopment direction.
19) What are "site-specific cleanup plans" if the grant cannot pay for cleanup?
Site-specific cleanup plans are planning documents that outline how cleanup could be approached based on assessment results. The grant can support developing these plans as part of pre-cleanup preparation, but it does not fund actually conducting the cleanup work.
20) What federal program identifier is associated with this opportunity?
This opportunity is associated with CFDA number 66.818.
21) What priorities or categories does the funding align with?
The funding aligns with environmental and community investment priorities listed under Environment and IIJ (as stated in the opportunity description).
22) When is the application due?
The original application closing date is January 28, 2026.
23) When was this opportunity created?
The opportunity was created on November 20, 2025.
24) Where should applicants look for detailed eligibility rules?
The announcement specifically directs applicants to Section 2 of the NOFO for detailed eligibility rules and definitions.
25) What should applicants keep in mind when designing a project for this grant?
Based on the description, applicants should design projects around assessment and planning activities (inventories, prioritization, community engagement, Phase I/II assessments, cleanup planning, and reuse planning) and avoid proposing remediation/removal work, since cleanup is outside the scope of this funding.
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Applicants also applied for:
Applicants who have applied for this opportunity (EPA I OLEM OBLR 25 06) also looked into and applied for these:
| Funding Opportunity |
|---|
| FY26 Guidelines for Brownfield Assessment Grants (Community-wide Assessment Grants) Apply for EPA I OLEM OBLR 25 04 Funding Number: EPA I OLEM OBLR 25 04 Agency: Environmental Protection Agency Category: Environment, IIJ Funding Amount: $500,000 |
| 2025 South Florida Program Apply for EPA I R4 SFL 2025 01 Funding Number: EPA I R4 SFL 2025 01 Agency: Environmental Protection Agency Category: Environment, IIJ Funding Amount: $1,000,000 |
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