Since 2002, U.S. EPA has supported implementation of the Exchange Network through the Exchange Network Grant Program, which provides funding for states, tribes, and territories. For complete official information, visit EPA’s Exchange Network Grants website. The purpose of the Exchange Network (EN) grant program is to foster better environmental management and decision-making through increased access to timely, high quality, environmental information.
CRITICAL UPDATE: Revised Due Date for FY25 EN Grants and Updates to Project Strategic Alignment (More Details to Come)
March 19, 2025
The Exchange Network Grant Program has been informed that the current Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 Exchange Network (EN) Grant Program Solicitation Notice (SN) must be revised in accordance with updated Agency priorities. As such, the application due date will be extended until at least Monday, April 28, 2025. An updated Solicitation Notice is not yet available but will be posted to the grants.gov listing (and linked on the EPA EN website) as soon as possible.
Please note that we are anticipating updates to Section 3B, Program Goals and Objectives, which will further impact evaluation criterion 1A (see SN page 17) and the project description section of the project narrative (see SN page 67). If additional changes are reflected in the new Solicitation Notice, the EN Grant Program will clearly state these edits on the EPA’s EN website at:
https://www.epa.gov/exchangenetwork/exchange-network-grant-program#solicitation.
Applicants who have already submitted an application for the FY25 cycle will be able to resubmit their application, with the updated requirements, following the publication of the revised FY25 EN Solicitation Notice.
The EN Grant Program will release an updated optional project narrative template to reflect SN changes; other EN resources on the EN website will be reviewed and updated as necessary. Please note that the new FY25 EN Solicitation Notice, once published to Grants.gov, will be the official Notice, with the most up-to-date information and applicant instructions.
EPA only accepts project proposals for EN grants submitted electronically through Grants.gov, unless applicants have a waiver. Please allow for enough time to successfully submit your application and allow for unexpected errors requiring you to resubmit. EPA anticipates that it will announce selection decisions in Summer 2025 and tentatively plans to issue awards by Fall 2025.
For more information, please contact:
Erin McGown
EN Grants Program Manager
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Email: [email protected]
FY 2025 Exchange Network Grant Solicitation Notice
Please see the update notice above for critical information about a pending adjustment to the FY25 EN Grant Due Date and Project Strategic Alignment.
U.S. EPA has published the Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 Exchange Network (EN) Grant Program Solicitation Notice (SN) to Grants.gov at: EPA-OMS-25-01, Fiscal Year 2025 National Environmental Information Exchange Network Grant Program Solicitation Notice. Applications are due in grants.gov by 11:59 PM Eastern Time, Monday, March 24th, 2025. Additional guidance tools, including optional fillable templates for the cover letter, project narrative (work plan), and budget narrative attachment form, plus a budget calculation tool, are also available through the grants.gov listing and on EPA’s EN website.
Applicants are encouraged to carefully review the new FY25 SN, as updates have been made since the FY24 version. Applicants can view a general summary of these changes on the EPA website under the ‘Solicitation Notice’ section. EPA plans to hold applicant webinars in the upcoming weeks; more information will be provided shortly and posted to the EPA website in the ‘Webinar Series’ section.
The purpose of the Exchange Network (EN) grant program is to foster better environmental management and decision-making through increased access to timely, high quality, environmental information. An applicant’s proposed project goals and outputs should align with one or more EN Funding Areas as described in Section 3A of the SN and EPA’s FY 2022-2026 Strategic Plan:
https://www.epa.gov/planandbudget/strategicplan. Applicants are encouraged to read the Solicitation Notice carefully for further information on applicant requirements.
EPA expects to award 30-35 grants of up to $600,000 each, totaling approximately $9,500,000 in FY25. The exact number of grants awarded will depend on the number of applications submitted to EPA by the application deadline, the amounts of proposed project budgets, and the quality of proposals. Please be aware: award funding thresholds have increased from prior years by $100,000. Individual applicants can now request up to $400,000 and eligible EN partnerships can request up to $600,000.
EPA only accepts project proposals for EN grants submitted electronically through Grants.gov, unless applicants have a waiver. Please allow for enough time to successfully submit your application and allow for unexpected errors requiring you to resubmit. EPA anticipates that it will announce selection decisions around July 2025, and tentatively plans to issue awards by October 2025.
EN Grant Applicant Webinars
In support of the FY 2025 Exchange Network (EN) Grant cycle, the EPA will host two general informational webinars (from 3:00-4:30 pm ET on February 27 and March 6) and one Tribal informational webinar (from 3:00-4:30 pm ET on March 4) to help potential applicants better understand the EN grant program and the requirements for applying for an EN assistance agreement. For information on joining the webinars, visit the EPA website.
Previous Grant Recipients
Information on previous Exchange Network grant awards is available at http://www.epa.gov/exchangenetwork/previous-exchange-network-grant-projects.
Contact
Erin McGown
Exchange Network Grants Program Manager
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Email: ENGrantProgram [at] epa.gov