FY24 IIJA/IRA Bureau of Land Management Idaho (ID) Threatened and Endangered Species Program | L24AS00096

Opportunity Information: Apply for L24AS00096

The FY24 IIJA/IRA Bureau of Land Management Idaho (ID) Threatened and Endangered Species Program (Funding Opportunity Number L24AS00096; CFDA 15.246) is a discretionary federal funding opportunity offered by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The program is intended to support work in Idaho that benefits threatened and endangered species, generally through activities that fit within natural resource stewardship such as research, surveys, monitoring, assessments, technical assistance, and related conservation actions. Awards are made as cooperative agreements, which typically means BLM expects to have substantial involvement in the funded project (for example, coordination on methods, data needs, field priorities, reporting, and alignment with BLM management objectives).

Eligibility is broad for public-sector and nonprofit applicants but explicitly excludes certain applicant types. Eligible applicants include 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 Native American tribal governments; Native American tribal organizations (other than federally recognized tribal governments); public housing authorities and Indian housing authorities; and nonprofits both with and without 501(c)(3) status (other than institutions of higher education). Individuals and for-profit organizations are not eligible to apply under this Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), which is an important constraint for consulting firms or private businesses that might otherwise pursue environmental work.

The NOFO also draws a clear boundary around youth hiring and internship-style efforts. It does not support entities hiring interns or crews under the Public Lands Corps Act of 1993 (16 USC, Chapter 37, Subchapter II). BLM notes that the Public Lands Corps Act is the only legislative authority that allows BLM to "hire" interns under that framework, so projects that are essentially youth corps or intern hiring efforts are not appropriate under this opportunity. If an organization is looking to propose Youth Conservation Corps-style projects, BLM directs those applicants to a separate funding avenue: NOFO 15.243, BLM Youth Conservation Opportunities on Public Lands. In practice, that means this threatened and endangered species program is aimed more at conservation deliverables and technical work than at workforce or youth crew programming.

For applicants connected to Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Units (CESUs), the notice highlights additional requirements and an indirect cost limitation. CESUs are described as partnerships designed to promote and provide research, studies, assessments, monitoring, technical assistance, and educational services. If a cooperative agreement is awarded to a CESU partner under a formally negotiated Master CESU agreement and the work is consistent with CESU purposes, then indirect costs are capped at no more than 17.5 percent of the indirect cost base as recognized in the partner's federally approved Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (NICRA). Applicants are also asked to state whether their proposal furthers CESU purposes and, if it does, to identify which CESU Network should be considered the host. This matters for universities and other research partners that commonly work through CESU mechanisms and need to plan budgets accordingly.

From an administrative standpoint, the opportunity was created on October 2, 2023, and listed an original closing date of December 11, 2023. The award ceiling is $100,000 per award, which suggests projects are expected to be focused in scope and achievable with a modest federal investment, such as targeted species surveys, monitoring designs, habitat assessments, small-scale implementation tied to species recovery needs, or specialized technical analyses that inform BLM decision-making. The notice indicates anticipated awards but does not clearly specify the number of awards expected, so applicants generally need to plan for competitive selection and demonstrate strong alignment with BLM Idaho priorities for threatened and endangered species conservation.

• The Bureau of Land Management in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "FY24 IIJA/IRA Bureau of Land Management Idaho (ID) Threatened and Endangered Species Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.246.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2023-10-02.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2023-12-11. (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 $100,000.00 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 L24AS00096

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