MassDEP previews FY25 water grants and RFR timelines at online “Meet the Grants” workshop

Courtney Starling, a grant administrator with the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, opened an online “Meet the Grants” workshop to brief applicants on how to apply for FY25 water‑related grants and to preview upcoming request‑for‑response (RFR) timelines.

MassDEP staff advised that organizations must register in the state procurement portal COMMBUYS to execute state contracts and listed standard application requirements — legal business name, legal address, email, PACS ID and, for federal grants, a SAM.gov Unique Entity ID. Starling emphasized following RFR instructions exactly, observing page limits and using the agency’s budget templates to improve reviewers’ ability to score proposals.

Judy Rondeau, outreach coordinator for MassDEP’s nonpoint source program, described three nonpoint grants. The state‑funded Water Quality Monitoring grant (coordinated by Dr. Bob Smith) has roughly $200,000 available, no match requirement and typical awards of $20,000–$70,000; Rondeau said the RFR should be published by the end of the summer. The federally funded Clean Water Act 604(b) planning grant (coordinated by Megan Selby) supports monitoring, pollutant‑load analysis and EPA nine‑element watershed plans; MassDEP closed a round in May with about $900,000 and expects the next round in spring 2025. The Section 319…