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What Works Plus Bulletin:June Edition
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A digest of news and funding opportunities. The What Works Plus (WW+) funder collaborative is a partnership coordination hub across philanthropy, government, and nonprofits to advance equity and climate resilience through thoughtful implementation of historic federal infrastructure, climate, and economic development funding. WW+ is a project of Freedman Consulting, LLC, which provides strategic consulting services to foundations and nonprofit organizations.
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June Spotlight: News from Members & Friends
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Have a notable investment, partnership, or event coming up? Let Max Shipman know at shipman@tfreedmanconsulting.com and we’ll feature it next month.
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Jobs to Move America (JMA) is holding an event – hosted by Deborah Philbrick at the Macarthur Foundation – in Chicago, IL on July 17 from 4 to 6 PM CT to present on their work to maximize federal funding in service of advancing good jobs as part of an inclusive clean economy. All interested parties are invited to attend and can RSVP here. Bloomberg published a piece discussing the need for grant writers to help smaller municipalities and frontline organizations access funds from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), and the CHIPS and Science Act (CHIPS) for new climate and clean energy projects. The authors highlight several organizations and initiatives assisting local officials with the grant application process including the Local Infrastructure Hub, the Climate Change and Environmental Justice Program for Lawyers for Good Government, the Environmental Protection Network, and the Justice40 Accelerator. Accelerator for America published a piece with recommendations for how local and state leaders can maximize BIL’s workforce funding potential, which is currently being underutilized. Drawing on case studies from around the country, the piece highlights that: 1) governors can use executive orders to allocate BIL funding to workforce programs, 2) states can work alongside transportation and energy offices to use BIL formula funding to enhance workforce opportunities, and 3) cities can include workforce development components in their applications for grants to make their applications more competitive. The Brookings Institution published a piece discussing how large cities and counties have used funds from the American Rescue Plan (ARPA) to address housing affordability. The authors found that approximately 10% of funding from ARPA’s Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF) Program has been committed for housing projects, with two-thirds of that focused on homelessness services and affordable housing development. However, localities have been relatively slow to expend funds committed for affordable housing development compared to other project types. Volts released a podcast featuring the efforts of Undauntedk12 to educate schools about opportunities in the IRA. Undauntedk12 founders Sara Ross and Jonathan Klein discussed gaps in education infrastructure, particularly in response to climate change and extreme weather, and how IRA tax credits can help fund improvements including upgraded machinery, ventilation, and more.
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NeighborWorks America is supporting a cohort of 10 community lenders through its Green Home Improvement Lending course designed to help them evaluate market needs and build loan products and business plans to grow green home lending businesses. Participating lenders have access to technical assistance and readiness coaching for IRA funds from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund’s Clean Communities Investment Accelerator and EPA’s Community Change program, and explore replicable models such as NeighborWorks’ HEAT Squad. NeighborWorks seeks additional funding to support a second cohort of 10-12 community lenders through this comprehensive capacity building course to launch new green home lending products. The second cohort would tentatively launch in the Fall. Organizations from both cohorts would participate in facilitated peer to peer sessions to advance lessons learned and build on already developed tools and templates. Please contact Lee Anne Adams for more information about this funding opportunity.
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A snapshot of this month’s key news.
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The Department of Energy (DOE) announced New York as the first state to launch its Home Energy Rebates Program, an IRA program that helps consumers save money on home efficiency and clean energy upgrades. Other states will launch their Home Energy Rebates Programs throughout 2024. The program’s website tracks the status of states’ applications for the program. The White House announced the Federal-State Modern Grid Deployment Initiative, which aims to connect participating states with federal entities and power sector stakeholders to drive grid adaptation. With 21 inaugural states, the Initiative will focus on adapting grids to a rapidly changing energy landscape and deploying innovative grid technologies while delivering reliable, clean, and affordable energy to consumers. The U.S. Climate Alliance announced the availability of policy, technical, and analytical assistance to help participating members carry out these commitments. Evergreen Action published an analysis of 47 Climate Plans from 45 states, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia. State and local governments submitted the Climate Plans to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as a part of the IRA’s Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program, which will release $4.6 billion in competitive funding for governments to implement plans’ projects. The analysis includes findings on how plans are: 1) tackling key pollution sources, 2) leveraging big investments for big community benefits, 3) combining funding mechanisms, and 4) going above and beyond EPA requirements. The White House released updated 2024-2027 Climate Adaptation Plans developed by more than 20 federal agencies. The plans assess the projected exposure of agency assets to climate-related risks, expand operational focus on managing climate risk to include federal employees and federal lands and waters, and broaden mission focus to describe the mainstream adoption of climate goals into agency policies. The EPA and the DOE opened applications for $850 million of IRA grant funding for projects that will help monitor, measure, quantify, and reduce methane emissions from the oil and gas sectors. Eligible applicants include industry, academia, non-governmental organizations, and tribal, state, and local governments. Applications are due August 26, 2024.
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The Brookings Institution released a podcast episode detailing the response of rural communities to Intel Corporation’s $20 billion semiconductor plant announcement in Licking County, Ohio. Incentivized by CHIPS, the project is the largest private-sector investment in Ohio’s history. In the episode, local leaders share how county residents’ responded by engaging in a collective planning effort, hoping to promote equitable development and protect the integrity of their towns.
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Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released final rules on prevailing wage and registered apprenticeship requirements in the IRA. The rules specify that determinations of prevailing wage rates will be made by the Department of Labor (DOL), incentivize practices that will encourage compliance, implement strong record-keeping requirements, and more. The EPA opened applications for the Brownfields Job Training Grants Program, which will provide more than $14 million in total funding to nonprofits, governments, and Tribal entities to recruit, train, and retain a skilled workforce in communities impacted by solid and hazardous waste. Applications for the program are due on August 1, 2024.
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The White House opened a $1.3 billion funding opportunity for electric vehicle (EV) charging on highways, interstates, and roadways – the largest single grant funding opportunity for EV charging in U.S. history. Funds are available for states, local and tribal governments, metropolitan planning organizations, and port authorities. Applications are due August 28, 2024. Treasury and the IRS announced consumers have saved over $1 billion in upfront costs on the purchase of over 150,000 clean vehicles in 2024. These savings were enabled by an IRA mechanism that makes clean vehicle tax credits available at the point of sale (e.g. from car dealers), giving consumers an upfront discount.
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The Department of Transportation (DOT) released a toolkit to help rural communities apply for competitive federal transportation funding. The toolkit includes application and eligibility instructions, descriptions of DOT and non-DOT grant opportunities (including a searchable database), and other resources to maximize the potential for award success (such as application considerations). The National Governors Association launched a resource webpage to promote the work of states and territories expanding electric and alternative fuel vehicle infrastructure under BIL. The webpage highlights state EV initiatives funded by the BIL’s National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Program, promotes convenings of experts in the EV space, and tracks partnerships and developments across the public and private sector. The Natural Resources Defense Council published recommendations for key stakeholder groups, including philanthropy, to maximize impact of the EPA’s Solar for All (SFA) program, part of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund. The organization recommends stakeholders take immediate actions – such as layering in SFA dollars with pre-existing programs – and long-term actions – such as reducing barriers to project deployment.
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WW+ Bulletin: June Edition
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