IIJA/IRA Bureau of Land Management National Operations Center (NOC) Forest and Woodlands Resource Management | L24AS00440

Opportunity Information: Apply for L24AS00440

The IIJA/IRA Bureau of Land Management (BLM) National Operations Center (NOC) Forest and Woodlands Resource Management funding opportunity (NOFO) is a discretionary federal grant program administered by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management. Awards are expected to be made as cooperative agreements, which generally means BLM anticipates having substantial involvement in the funded work (for example, collaboration on planning, methods, deliverables, or oversight). The program is focused on natural resources work tied to forest and woodland resource management, and it is associated with CFDA number 15.233. The NOFO is identified as Funding Opportunity Number L24AS00440, with an application closing date listed as 2024-09-30, and it sets an award ceiling of $500,000 per award.

A key takeaway is who can and cannot apply. Individuals and for-profit organizations are explicitly ineligible under this NOFO. Eligible applicants include a broad set of public and nonprofit entities: state, county, and city/township governments; special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Native American tribal governments; tribal organizations that are not federally recognized governments; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; and nonprofits both with and without 501(c)(3) status (as long as they are not institutions of higher education). In practical terms, this makes the opportunity accessible to many government partners, universities/colleges, tribes and tribal organizations, and nonprofit organizations that can carry out forestry, woodland, or related natural resource management activities in partnership with BLM.

The notice also draws a firm boundary around youth hiring and internship-style projects. This NOFO does not support entities that want to hire interns or crews under the Public Lands Corps Act of 1993. The language explains that the Public Lands Corps Act is the only legislative authority that allows BLM to "hire" interns under that framework, and therefore youth-focused conservation corps efforts should not be proposed under this opportunity. Instead, eligible Youth Conservation Corps organizations are directed to pursue projects through a different program announcement: NOFO 15.243, titled BLM Youth Conservation Opportunities on Public Lands. If an applicant is considering a project that depends on conservation corps staffing, internships, or similar youth workforce components, that restriction is important because it affects project design, staffing plans, and allowability.

Another major feature of the NOFO is its connection to Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Units (CESUs). CESUs are described as partnerships established to promote and provide research, studies, assessments, monitoring, technical assistance, and educational services. If a cooperative agreement is awarded to a CESU partner under an existing, formally negotiated Master CESU agreement, and the proposed work aligns with the CESU purpose, then indirect costs are capped. Specifically, indirect costs are limited to no more than 17.5 percent of the indirect cost base recognized in the partner's federally approved Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (NICRA). Applicants are also instructed to state whether their proposal advances the purpose of the CESU program and, if it does, to identify which CESU Network should serve as the host. For CESU-affiliated applicants, this is not just a technicality; it affects budgeting (especially overhead recovery) and how the agreement is routed and administered.

Overall, this opportunity is structured to fund collaborative forest and woodland resource management work led by public entities, tribal partners, educational institutions, and nonprofits, using cooperative agreements that involve BLM engagement. It is not intended for private companies or individual applicants, and it is not the right vehicle for projects centered on youth corps hiring under the Public Lands Corps Act. Applicants who are part of, or working through, a CESU should pay close attention to the CESU-specific requirements, especially the indirect cost limitation and the need to identify the appropriate CESU Network host in the proposal.

• The Bureau of Land Management in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "IIJA/IRA Bureau of Land Management National Operations Center (NOC) Forest and Woodlands Resource Management" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.233.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2024-08-23.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-09-30. (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 $500,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education.

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