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State grant staff briefs applicants on Water Management Act RFR; statewide funding cut to $1 million, Ipswich PFAS RFI expected in September
Summary
State grant administrators answered applicants’ questions about equipment eligibility, interconnections, and application strategy for the Water Management Act (WMA) RFR, announced statewide WMA funds are reduced to $1,000,000, and said an Ipswich River Basin RFI for PFAS interconnection funding (estimated ~$2,300,000) will be posted in September.
Jen Dershow, who said she administers the Water Management Act grant program, opened a webinar Q&A by urging applicants to read the RFR and promising to post any answers not in the RFR to COMMBUYS so all applicants have the same information.
"Just as a note to everybody, we do have less funds this year. Up until this year, we've had $2,000,000. This year, we're down to $1,000,000," Dershow said, warning that competition for funds will be tighter. Staff also encouraged applicants to bundle multiple project tasks in a single application so reviewers can fund the highest-priority tasks if full funding is not available.
State grant staff (Speaker 2) said the agency plans to post an RFI specific to the Ipswich River Basin that will target PFAS-related interconnection projects. "That RFI is specific to the Ipswich River Basin... and so your application is going to be more competitive under that grant program," the staffer said, estimating that program funding is approximately $2,300,000.
On equipment eligibility, participants asked whether inline chemical sensors or internal meters that avoid diverting test water would qualify. Dershow said such equipment could be eligible if applicants clearly tie the purchase to the WMA’s goals—"to minimize and mitigate"—and explain how the equipment reduces wasted or unaccounted-for water.
Staff clarified that residential meter replacement programs are generally not eligible under this WMA grant, but metering or master meters that reduce unaccounted-for water (UAW) or enable metered interconnections are more likely to be considered. Staff suggested applicants describe tasks in line-item budget tables and explain prioritization to facilitate partial funding.
The agency also said it will post Q&A responses to COMMBUYS and the program website, and will hold a "meet the grants" presentation and training at 1:30 p.m. Thursday covering all FY25 grants, COMMBUYS registration, and how grants differ from loans. On procurement topics, staff said they plan to issue a separate RFI for M36 audit funding, targeting a September posting and possibly two rounds to capture applicant interest.
Contact and next steps: staff asked attendees to submit written questions for a Q&A that will be posted on COMMBUYS and the program website, and indicated the Q&A posting will be available roughly one week after the webinar.
