MDEQ Nonpoint Source RFP FY 2010 - NOIs Due Thursday!

Nonpoint Source RFP FY 2010

The Nonpoint Source Program follows a two-step process requiring all applicants interested in funding through this request for proposals (RFP) to electronically submit a Notice of Intent (NOI) form for each proposed project. Full proposals will only be accepted from invited entities identified through the NOI process. The deadline for submittal of a NOI is September 24, 2009.

The deadline for submittal of full applications is October 28, 2009.
Grant awards are contingent upon the sale of Clean Michigan Initiative (CMI) general obligation bonds and the enactment of sufficient funding in the FY 2010 DEQ budget to support these grant programs and any other necessary approvals.

This RFP is for water quality grants offered by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality utilizing funding from Section 319(h) and 205(j)/604(b) of the federal Clean Water Act, and from the Clean Michigan Initiative Nonpoint Source Pollution Control Grants. Approximately $3.0 million from federal funding and approximately $2.0 million of CMI funding will be available this grant cycle.

2010 Nonpoint Source Request for Proposals (RFP)
2010 Nonpoint Source RFP Priority Watersheds
Notice of Intent (NOI) Information
Notice of Intent Instructions
Notice of Intent Form: Planning Projects
Notice of Intent Form: Implementation Projects

Mentor Michigan Mini-Grants, Deadline October 23

Mentor Michigan is awarding $15,000 in mini-grants to Michigan mentoring organizations to host mentor recognition or recruitment events or activities during Michigan Mentoring Month January 2010. These funds were raised during the Meijer Gift Card Promotion that was held June 20, 2009. Meijer donated $2 to Mentor Michigan for every $25 or more Meijer gift card that was purchased.

All proposed events or activities must occur during Michigan Mentoring Month January 2010.

GRANT AMOUNTS
Grants from $100 - $1,000 are available.

PURPOSE
Mentor recognition or recruitment events or activities.

ELIGIBLE APPLICANTSAll mentoring organizations registered with Mentor Michigan that complete the Wave VII Census are eligible. The deadline to complete the Wave VII Census is October 9, 2009.

APPLICATION
Complete the Application and Budget Worksheet in the format requested. Applications will be accepted by mail, email, or fax. (See attached Application and Budget Worksheet)

APPLICATION DEADLINE
Friday, October 23, 2009 by 5:00 p.m.

REPORTING REQUIREMENTS
Grant recipients must provide Mentor Michigan with a completed Final Report by February 19, 2010. (See attached Final Report)

SELECTION PRIORITIES
Priority will be given to:
Ø Applicants that completed the Mentor Michigan Wave VII Census
Ø Applicants that raise match funds or in-kind donations for this event or activity
Ø New events or activities
Ø Events or activities involving multiple mentoring organizations
Ø Events or activities involving mentors and mentees

NOTIFICATION
All applicants will be notified electronically by Wednesday, November 4, 2009.

QUESTIONS?
Kathie Vasilion Robinson ● Phone: (517) 373-4200 ● Email: vasilionk@michigan.gov

MSHDA Funding Window Open, Sept 14-25

MSHDA’s Office of Community Development (OCD) has released its 2009 Housing Resource Fund (HRF) Summary in support of Michigan’s local housing initiatives. The HRF Summary discusses the objectives of the Housing Resource Fund, applicant eligibility and program offerings.

As a reminder, the funding windows for Housing Resource Fund applications are:
Window 1 March 23 – April 3, 2009
Window 2 September 14 – 25, 2009

Revisions and deletions are set forth in the 2009 HRF Summary. Briefly, the significant changes are:
• OCD Staff lists and map
• Homebuyer Quickfinder
• Homebuyer – Closing Costs and Other Fee Chart
• Homeowner section
• Small Scale Rental Development – the moratorium has been removed. Review this section with regard to projects of 1 to 24 units of affordable multifamily rental housing to be owned, developed or sponsored by community based nonprofit organizations.
• Rental Rehabilitation section and Quickfinder
• Administration section
• Income Limits
• HOME Program Rent Limits
• Section 203B Loans, Maximum Mortgage Limits
• Complementary Revitalization Programs and Targeted Areas


For the complete guidance document:
http://www.michigan.gov/documents/mshda_2005_HRF_Master_114626_7.pdf

Migratory Bird Habitat Grants, Due Nov 2

The US Fish and Wildlife Service has opened its grant application process for migratory bird habitat conservation. Applications should be geared toward habitat for neotropical migratory birds. These birds include herons, egrets, hawks, plovers, sandpipers, and more. http://www.fws.gov/birdhabitat/Grants/NMBCA/BirdList.shtm

What is a neotropical migratory bird?
For the purposes of this program, a neotropical migratory bird is one that breeds in or migrates through the United States, at least to some extent, and spends the non-breeding season in Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, or South America. Birds from all taxa are included, so that proposals may benefit land birds, waterbirds, shorebirds, waterfowl, raptors, and others.

Who may apply?
An individual, corporation, partnership, trust, association, or other private entity;
An officer, employee, agent, department, or instrumentality of the Federal Government, state, municipality, or political subdivision of a state, or of any foreign government;
A state, municipality, or political subdivision of a state;
Any other entity subject to the jurisdiction of the United States or of any foreign country; or
An international organization.

Where may a project be located?
Project activities may be carried out in the USA, in Canada, or in any country or territory in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Should projects with activities in the USA coordinate with a Joint Venture?
For projects with activities in the USA, we strongly encourage applicants to contact the Migratory Bird Joint Venture (JV) where the project activities are planned. Proposals with activities that are coordinated with a JV will be more competitive.

Upper Mississippi River/Great Lakes Joint Venture
States: Eastern MN and IA, counties in KS, NE, and IA bordering the Missouri River, all of MI, IL, IN, OH, WI, and northern MO
Barbara Pardo, Joint Venture Coordinator
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
One Federal Drive
Fort Snelling, MN 55111-4056

Paul Richert, Assistant Joint Venture Coordinator
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
One Federal Drive
Fort Snelling, MN 55111-4056

Greg Soulliere, Science Coordinator
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
2651 Coolidge Rd., Suite 101
East Lansing, MI 48837

Bradly Potter, GIS Technician
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
2651 Coolidge Rd., Suite 101
East Lansing, MI 48837

What kinds of projects are eligible?
Protection and management of neotropical migratory bird populations;
Maintenance, management, protection, and restoration of neotropical migratory bird habitat;
Research and monitoring;
Law enforcement; and
Community outreach and education.

Can project funds be used for environmental mitigation?
While eligible, a proposal for such work would be considered lower priority. NMBCA is interested in funding new conservation work that results in a net gain for conservation.

What is the duration of a grant?
The funding period is typically two years. A grant project period starts on the date on which the grant is awarded, which typically occurs within 3 months after the selected grants are announced.

What are the match requirements?
Federal funds (i.e., fund from the USA government) requested under the Act must be matched 3:1 by non-Federal funds. That is, for every Federal dollar, a minimum of three non-Federal dollars are required

Agriculture Marketing Grants, Due Nov 30

Value Added Producer Program

Rural Development has issued their Value Added Producer Grant program for the next fiscal year. Applicants must be an independent producer, agriculture producer group, farmer or rancher cooperative, or majority-controlled producer-based business venture as defined in 7 CFR 4284, subpart A.

The primary objective of this grant program is to help eligible independent producers of agricultural commodities, agricultural producer groups, farmer and rancher cooperatives, and majority-controlled producer-based business ventures develop strategies to create marketing opportunities and to help develop business plans for viable marketing opportunities. Eligible agricultural producer groups, farmer and rancher cooperatives, and majority controlled producer-based business ventures must limit their proposals to emerging markets. These grants will facilitate greater participation in emerging markets and new markets for value-added products. Grants will only be awarded if projects or ventures are determined to be economically viable and sustainable. No more than 10 percent of the program funds can go to applicants that are majority controlled producer-based business ventures.

Expected Number of Awards: 130
Estimated Total Program Funding: $1,840,000
Award Ceiling: $300,000

Applicants must certify that Matching Funds will be available at the same time grant funds are anticipated to be spent and that Matching Funds will be spent in advance of grant funding, such that for every dollar of grant funds advanced, not less than an equal amount of Matching Funds will have been expended prior to submitting the request for reimbursement. Please note that this certification is a separate requirement from the Verification of Matching Funds requirement. A separate signature is not required.

Watershed-Based Grants Available

Applications Sought for $5 Million in Water Quality Improvements Grants

The Department of Environmental Quality has announced the availability of approximately $5 million of state and federal funding for watershed-based projects. The DEQ is accepting proposals from local units of government, nonprofit organizations, and universities for planning and implementation projects to restore and protect Michigan’s wetlands, lakes, and streams.

The funding opportunities include approximately $2 million in Clean Michigan Initiative – Nonpoint Source Pollution Control Grants that are anticipated to be available to implement elements of watershed management plans that have been approved by the DEQ as meeting the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) criteria. Proposals must include a minimum of 25 percent local match.

Additionally, approximately $3 million in Federal Clean Water Act funding is anticipated to be available to develop watershed management plans meeting the DEQ and the U.S. EPA criteria, or to implement elements of watershed management plans previously approved as meeting the U.S. EPA criteria. Proposals must include a minimum of 15 percent local match for planning or 25 percent local match for implementation.

Watershed management plans must be approved by the DEQ on or before October 29, 2009, to be eligible for implementation funds. Notices of Intent are due September 24, 2009. Full applications from invited entities are due October 29, 2009.

Grant awards are contingent upon the sale of Clean Michigan Initiative general obligation bonds to support these projects and the appropriation of funding by the Michigan Legislature.

Contact us for more information!

Museum and Nature Center Grants, Deadline Nov 2

The Museums for America program has released its 2010 funding application.

All types of museums, large and small, are eligible for funding. Eligible museums include aquariums, arboretums and botanical gardens, art museums, youth museums, general museums, historic houses and sites, history museums, nature centers, natural history and anthropology museums, planetariums, science and technology centers, specialized museums, and zoological parks. Federally operated and for-profit museums may not apply for IMLS funds.

An eligible applicant must be: either a unit of state or local government or a private not-for-profit organization that has tax-exempt status under the Internal Revenue Code; located in one of the fifty states of the United States of America, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Federated states of Micronesia, or the Republic of Palau; and a museum that, using a professional staff, (1) is organized on a permanent basis for essentially educational or aesthetic purposes; (2) owns or uses tangible objects, either animate or inanimate; (3) cares for these objects; and (4) exhibits these objects to the general public on a regular basis through facilities which it owns or operates. An organization uses a professional staff if it employs at least one professional staff member, or the fulltime equivalent, whether paid or unpaid primarily engaged in the acquisition, care, or exhibition to the public of objects owned or used by the institution. An organization “exhibits objects to the general public” if such exhibition is a primary purpose of the institution. Further, an organization which exhibits objects to the general public for at least 120 days a year shall be deemed to exhibit objects to the general public on a regular basis. An organization which exhibits objects by appointment may meet the requirement to exhibit objects to the general public on a regular basis, if it can establish, in light of the facts under all the relevant circumstances, that this method of exhibition does not unreasonably restrict the accessibility of the institution's exhibits to the general public. Please note that an organization which does not have as a primary purpose the exhibition of objects to the general public. but which can demonstrate that it exhibits objects to the general public on a regular basis as a significant, separate, distinct, and continuing portion of its activities, and that it otherwise meets the museum eligibility requirements, may be determined to be eligible as a museum under these guidelines. A museum located within a parent organization that is a state or local government or multipurpose non-profit entity, such as a municipality, university, historical society, foundation, or a cultural center, may apply on its own behalf, if the museum: (1) is able to independently fulfill all the eligibility requirements listed above; (2) functions as a discrete unit within the parent organization; (3) has its own fully segregated and itemized operating budget; and (4) has the authority to make the application on its own. When any of the last three conditions cannot be met, a museum may apply through its parent organization. Prospective applicants that cannot fulfill all of these requirements should contact IMLS to discuss their eligibility before applying. IMLS may require additional supporting documentation from the applicant to determine the museum’s autonomy. Each eligible applicant within a single parent organization should clearly delineate its own programs and operations in the application narrative. A parent organization that controls multiple museums that are not autonomous but which are otherwise eligible may submit only one application per grant program; the application may be submitted by the parent organization on behalf of one or more of the eligible museums.

Grants are awarded in the following categories:
Engaging Communities (Education, Exhibitions, and Interpretation)
Building Institutional Capacity (Management, Policy, and Training)
Collections Stewardship

The application deadline is November 2. Two conference calls are scheduled to answer questions:
Thursday, September 17 at 3:00pm ET
Call-in Number: (800) 603–9527
Conference ID: 27057606

Thursday, October 1 at 3:00pm ET
Call-in Number: (800) 603-9527
Conference ID: 27060256