FY2022 NOAA's Transformational Habitat Restoration and Coastal Resilience Grants Under the IIJA | NOAA NMFS HCPO 2022 2007195

Opportunity Information: Apply for NOAA NMFS HCPO 2022 2007195

FY2022 NOAA's Transformational Habitat Restoration and Coastal Resilience Grants Under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) is a competitive, discretionary funding opportunity run by the Department of Commerce through NOAA's Restoration Center. The program is designed to back large, high-impact habitat restoration projects in marine, estuarine, coastal, and Great Lakes environments, with an emphasis on projects that do more than incremental improvements. The core idea is to fund restoration that is "transformational" at a regional scale and that measurably boosts both ecosystem health and the ability of communities to withstand and recover from climate-driven hazards.

The solicitation is centered on coastal resilience, meaning practical, on-the-ground improvements that help coastal places prepare for and bounce back after hurricanes, coastal storms, flooding, and sea level rise. NOAA frames habitat restoration and natural or nature-based infrastructure as key resilience tools because they can protect lives and property while also supporting fisheries, wildlife, and local economies. In this context, restoration is not just an environmental goal; it is also a risk-reduction strategy and an economic strategy, especially in places where working waterfronts, tourism, and subsistence or recreational fishing are tied directly to healthy coastal ecosystems.

NOAA states that it will prioritize projects that demonstrate significant, tangible impacts. Competitive projects are expected to rebuild productive and sustainable fisheries, contribute to the recovery and conservation of threatened and endangered species, and promote climate-resilient ecosystems. A clear priority is ensuring that these benefits reach tribal and underserved communities, both through where projects are located and through who meaningfully participates in planning and implementation. The opportunity also highlights economic vitality, including local job creation, as part of what strong proposals should support.

Applicants are asked to align proposals with four named program priorities. First is sustaining productive fisheries and strengthening ecosystem resilience, which can include restoration actions that improve habitat function in ways that support fish populations and broader food webs. Second is fostering regionally important habitat restoration, meaning work that matters at the scale of a watershed, coastline, estuary, or Great Lakes system rather than isolated, small sites without broader connectivity. Third is enhancing community resilience to climate hazards while producing co-benefits, such as improved water quality, flood storage, shoreline stabilization, recreational access, or reduced impacts to infrastructure. Fourth is delivering benefits to underserved communities, including through partnerships with tribes, and demonstrating equity-focused approaches in how projects are developed and carried out.

In terms of what can be funded, NOAA allows proposals to cover many stages of a restoration project. This includes planning and assessments, feasibility studies, engineering design and permitting, on-the-ground implementation, and pre- and post-implementation monitoring, as well as combinations of these phases. Capacity-building and stakeholder engagement may also be included when they directly support the proposed restoration. That said, NOAA makes a clear distinction between planning-only work and implementation: proposals that include on-the-ground implementation are prioritized over proposals that only cover pre-implementation activities. If an applicant proposes early-phase work, NOAA expects a credible explanation of how that work will directly support or catalyze subsequent construction or restoration actions rather than remain a stand-alone planning effort.

For projects that span multiple sites, the solicitation expects a unifying rationale. Applicants need to show how the collection of sites advances the same priorities within a shared geographic area or watershed, and they must demonstrate the staffing, governance, and technical capacity to manage multiple restoration efforts at the same time across multiple years. This reflects NOAA's interest in funding projects with a scale and coordination level that can produce visible, lasting outcomes rather than fragmented activities.

Equity is a prominent thread throughout the opportunity. NOAA emphasizes diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility in project development and encourages proactive, meaningful, and equitable community engagement in identifying needs, shaping project design, and participating in implementation. Applicants are expected to indicate whether a project is located in tribal or underserved communities and to explain whether, and how, resilience benefits will flow to those communities. This can include direct risk reduction, ecosystem benefits that support livelihoods, improved access to restored resources, or partnerships that build local capacity and decision-making power.

Awards under this solicitation are made as cooperative agreements, which typically implies substantial federal involvement compared to a standard grant, such as collaboration on technical aspects, oversight, or coordination. NOAA encourages a period of performance of up to three years, with the option to extend up to five years when justified. Awards may be structured as multi-year agreements, where year two and year three funding are estimated up front but finalized later based on future appropriations and progress toward milestones.

On funding size, NOAA anticipates most awards will fall in the range of $3 million to $8 million in federal funding over three years. Proposals must request at least $1 million and cannot exceed $15 million in total federal funding for the full award. NOAA expected to make about 20 awards under this opportunity. The funding opportunity number is NOAA NMFS HCPO 2022 2007195, the CFDA number is 11.463, the posting date was June 28, 2022, and the original closing date was September 6, 2022.

Eligibility is broad and includes state, county, and city or township governments; public and private institutions of higher education; federally recognized tribal governments and other tribal organizations; nonprofit organizations (both 501(c)(3) and non-501(c)(3)); for-profit organizations (other than small businesses); and small businesses. This wide applicant pool is intended to support strong regional partnerships that combine technical expertise, community relationships, and implementation capacity, which NOAA views as essential for delivering restoration projects at a transformational scale.

• The Department of Commerce in the infrastructure investment and jobs act (iija) sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "FY2022 NOAA's Transformational Habitat Restoration and Coastal Resilience Grants Under the IIJA" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 11.463.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jun 28, 2022.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Sep 06, 2022. (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 $15,000,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 20 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), 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 NOAA NMFS HCPO 2022 2007195

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