EDA clarifies commitments vs. match and the rate-of-return calculation for Path 3 applicants

During the Feb. 3, 2026 webinar, Grace Klein of the Economic Development Administration explained the core distinction applicants must reflect in Path 3 applications: match is a monetary cost share within the eligible project scope, while commitments are actions or investments by stakeholders that further coalition goals but need not be covered by the NOFO’s eligible activities.

Klein said, “Match is monetary cost share for the specific project scope of work,” clarifying that federal funding typically covers 80% of an eligible project with match covering 20%. She contrasted that with commitments, which can be financial, policy, or partnership actions “not necessarily covered within the scope of work” and whose activities can be creative and broader than NOFO-eligible costs.

On who can provide each, the presenters said match can come from any public or private sources except contractors where procurement rules would be affected; commitments likewise can come from private sector, local government, nonprofit or philanthropic entities and are not limited to budgeted, eligible costs.

Klein emphasized the reviewers’ preference for quality over quantity in commitments: strong commitments are new (would not have happened otherwise), timely (with start dates and milestones), targeted and specific, measurable with clear outputs, and meaningful in their contribution to coalition goals.

Applicants must submit three formatted elements for commitments: a summary table pasted into the 10‑page overarching narrative, individual commitment letters (either the NOFO template or the ED-900B form) uploaded as PDFs into Edge folders, and a single sentence in the narrative that reports the rate-of-return calculation. Justin (EDA presenter) summarized the calculation as the monetized sum of commitments divided by the EDA funding requested and said reviewers expect a reasonable, context-specific effort to monetize commitments but do not require perfect precision.

The presenters said only match is directly monitored by EDA during the grant period; commitments will be considered by reviewers and discussed during performance but are not subject to the same monitoring regime as match. Klein pointed applicants to specific NOFO guidance (pages cited in the webinar) and to the disaster website where decks and FAQs will be posted, and she reminded applicants that an Edge-focused webinar on application submission would follow the next week.

Next procedural steps announced included posting the webinar deck and FAQs to the disaster website and directing applicants to contact their EDA economic-development representative via eda.gov/contact for follow-up questions.