Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) Alternative Funding Arrangements (AFA) for Federal fiscal year (FY) 2024 | USDA NRCS NHQ RCPPAFA 24 NOFO0001355

Opportunity Information: Apply for USDA NRCS NHQ RCPPAFA 24 NOFO0001355

The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), working with the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC), is offering FY 2024 funding through the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) Alternative Funding Arrangements (AFA) notice of funding opportunity (NOFO). This opportunity is listed under Assistance Listing 10.932 and is intended to support conservation projects that tackle on-farm, watershed, and broader regional natural resource concerns by pairing NRCS resources with strong partner-led contributions. The core idea is co-investment: NRCS and partners jointly design and carry out projects that lead to measurable improvements in targeted resource concerns on agricultural land and nonindustrial private forest land. The AFA track is being offered at the same time as the FY 2024 RCPP Classic competition (a separate NOFO), and applicants should choose the track that best fits their project design.

Proposals must be received by 4:59 p.m. Eastern Time on July 2, 2024, and they must be submitted through the RCPP portal rather than through Grants.gov. Access to the portal requires either a Level 2 eAuthentication credential or a Login.gov account, and the notice emphasizes that setting up these credentials can take several days, so applicants are expected to plan ahead. NRCS also expects applicants to talk with the appropriate State Conservationist and state RCPP coordinator before submitting. NRCS records these conversations using a state conservation questionnaire, and proposals submitted without a completed questionnaire may be scored and ranked lower. Applicants can direct questions to rcpp@usda.gov and are encouraged to use NRCS outreach resources, including applicant webinars (with sessions scheduled on April 23, 2024, and May 30, 2024, and additional webinars planned on easements and outreach to tribal applicants).

Funding availability across the FY 2024 RCPP AFA and FY 2024 RCPP Classic announcements totals up to $1.5 billion. This combined amount includes $300 million from the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (the 2018 Farm Bill) and $1.2 billion from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). NRCS indicates it will prioritize use of IRA funds for projects that implement climate-smart agriculture and forestry conservation activities, consistent with the IRA focus. Proposals may come from anywhere in all 50 states, the Caribbean Area (Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands), and the U.S. territories in the Pacific Island Areas (Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands). The opportunity includes a notable set-aside: up to $100 million is reserved for NRCS to enter into programmatic partnership agreements with Indian tribes, and that set-aside is shared across the AFA and Classic competitions; if not fully used, remaining funds may be redirected to other partnership agreements.

RCPP projects under this program are meant to be collaborative and partner-driven, with NRCS and partners working together to design, promote, and implement conservation activities. Partners propose projects focused on specific natural resource concerns within a state or multistate area, or focused on priority resource concerns within an NRCS-designated Critical Conservation Area (CCA). NRCS support can include both financial assistance (FA) and technical assistance (TA), depending on the project structure. Proposals are competitively evaluated using three main criteria: impact, partner contributions, and partnership and management. In other words, NRCS is looking for projects that can clearly deliver conservation outcomes, bring meaningful non-federal value to the table, and demonstrate that the partnership has the capacity and plan to execute effectively.

The AFA pathway is specifically meant for project structures that do not fit as well under the RCPP Classic model. Applicants pursuing AFA are expected to explain what is innovative about their approach and why AFA is the better fit. The notice flags that AFA awards come with additional administrative and technical assistance responsibilities for partners, so applicants should be prepared for a more hands-on role in implementation and program delivery than might be typical in Classic projects. The 2018 Farm Bill highlights examples of the kinds of approaches that can be a good match for AFA, including pay-for-performance conservation models (where payment is tied to outcomes or verified performance) and projects involving large-scale infrastructure investments that generate conservation benefits for producers and nonindustrial private forest owners. Even with these added flexibilities, the emphasis remains on engaging producers and landowners and implementing conservation practices, systems, and approaches that benefit eligible working lands.

On award volume and size, the listing shows an award ceiling of $25,000,000. NRCS also notes a limit tied to Farm Bill funding: NRCS can make up to 15 awards through this AFA funding opportunity using Farm Bill funds, though that cap does not apply to projects funded through the Inflation Reduction Act. This is important for applicants to understand because it suggests the competitive landscape and award count may differ depending on whether proposals align with IRA priorities (including climate-smart outcomes) versus relying on Farm Bill dollars.

Eligible applicants are broadly defined and include many types of public, private, and nonprofit entities, reflecting RCPPs partnership-based design. The NOFO states that eligible RCPP partners can include producer associations or groups, state and local governments, Indian tribes, farmer cooperatives, water and irrigation districts (including acequias and other entities with agricultural water delivery authority), municipal water or wastewater treatment entities, institutions of higher education, and organizations or businesses with an established track record of working cooperatively with producers on local conservation priorities or watershed-scale resource issues. It also includes entities that operate farmland or grassland protection programs that purchase agricultural land easements (as defined in regulation) and conservation districts. The source eligibility list also includes state governments, local governments (including counties, cities/townships, special districts, and independent school districts), public and private universities, federally recognized tribal governments and certain tribal organizations, public housing/Indian housing authorities, nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status, for-profit organizations (including small businesses and other for-profits).

• The Natural Resources Conservation Service in the agriculture, environment, natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) Alternative Funding Arrangements (AFA) for Federal fiscal year (FY) 2024" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 10.932.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2024-04-03.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-07-02. (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 $25,000,000.00 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, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses.

Apply for USDA NRCS NHQ RCPPAFA 24 NOFO0001355

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