IIJA/IRA Bureau of Land Management California Fuels Management and Community Fire Assistance Program | L24AS00161

Opportunity Information: Apply for L24AS00161

The IIJA/IRA Bureau of Land Management (BLM) California Fuels Management and Community Fire Assistance Program (Funding Opportunity Number L24AS00161) is a discretionary federal funding opportunity that supports work tied to wildfire risk reduction and community fire assistance efforts in California. Funding is provided through cooperative agreements, which usually means BLM expects to have substantial involvement during the life of the project (for example, coordination on planning, implementation, reporting, or technical oversight), rather than simply issuing a grant and stepping back. The program falls under the Natural Resources activity category and is associated with CFDA 15.228.

A key point up front is who can and cannot apply. Individuals and for-profit organizations are explicitly ineligible. Eligible applicants include a wide range of public and nonprofit entities: state, county, and city or township governments; special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized tribal governments; other tribal organizations; 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 those nonprofit categories). In other words, the program is oriented toward governmental, tribal, educational, and nonprofit partners that can deliver fuels management and community fire-related outcomes, rather than private commercial operators.

The opportunity also draws a firm boundary around youth hiring and internship arrangements. This NOFO does not support entities hiring interns or crews under the Public Lands Corps Act of 1993. The notice emphasizes that the Public Lands Corps Act is the only legislative authority that allows BLM to "hire" interns under that specific authority. As a result, Youth Conservation Corps organizations that want to pursue BLM youth-focused work are directed to a different funding path: projects must be developed under NOFO 15.243, titled BLM Youth Conservation Opportunities on Public Lands, rather than through this fuels management and community fire assistance program. Practically speaking, applicants should not build proposals for this opportunity around internship hiring models that depend on Public Lands Corps mechanisms, because that approach is outside what this NOFO will fund.

Another important element involves Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Units (CESUs). CESUs are formal partnerships designed to promote and provide research, studies, assessments, monitoring, technical assistance, and educational services that align with agency needs. If an award is made to a CESU partner under a formally negotiated Master CESU agreement, and the project is consistent with CESU purposes, 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 expected to state clearly whether their proposal advances the CESU program purpose, and if it does, they should indicate which CESU Network should serve as the host. This matters for budgeting and compliance, because CESU indirect cost treatment can differ from standard indirect cost arrangements.

From a funding standpoint, the listed award ceiling is $5,000,000, indicating the program can support large, multi-partner, or multi-year efforts depending on BLM priorities and available appropriations tied to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and/or the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). The opportunity was created on December 4, 2023, and the original closing date is February 2, 2024. The administering agency is the Bureau of Land Management. Overall, this NOFO is structured for public, tribal, academic, and nonprofit entities to partner with BLM on California-focused fuels management and community fire assistance activities, while being careful about restrictions on for-profit participation, individual applicants, and youth hiring models under the Public Lands Corps framework, and with special indirect cost rules for projects executed through CESU partnerships.

• The Bureau of Land Management in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "IIJA/IRA Bureau of Land Management California Fuels Management and Community Fire Assistance Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.228.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2023-12-04.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-02-02. (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 $5,000,000.00 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.

Apply for L24AS00161

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