The USDA Forest Service awarded six million dollars to our program with funding from the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. Eighty-percent of these dollars will go out as pass-through grants to disadvantaged communities, while the remaining 20% will go toward unmet needs within the program. Applicants will be eligible to receive a 100% match waiver as required by the federal government—that’s right, no match!

In addition, our program is receiving an additional six million dollars from the Washington State Legislature. These dollars are funded out of the new Climate Commitment Fund and must be spent in the ’23-’25 biennium which starts on July 1. It is very likely that some of these dollars will be available for grants to constituents outside of those disadvantaged communities, and some matching funds will be required. Pass-through grants funded by both state and federal dollars will be announced in the fall of 2023. Applications will likely be due in January, though final decisions on timelines, funding amounts, and match requirements among other details, have not yet been made. 

The USDA Forest Service is also still accepting applications for grant awards up to one billion dollars nationally. The deadline of June 1 is fast approaching. The reasons to apply directly to the Forest Service are: 1.) you can apply for more money than our program may be able to offer in our next grant cycle; 2.) you will have more time to spend the money that we can afford you (five years vs three years); and, 3.) the dollars are available right now (no waiting until summer of 2024 for a grant award.)

Our program hosted and recorded a webinar on Wednesday, May 3rd to outline these funding opportunities. View the recorded webinar as well as a document of essential web links here to help you navigate and better understand the process.