F25AS00332 Highlands Conservation Act – Competitive Funding Round

The Highlands Conservation Act Program (HCA) is administered by the US Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) to assist Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania in the protection of land and natural resources in the Highlands Region. HCA grants support land conservation projects in which a State, County, or Municipal entity acquires land or an interest in land from a willing seller to conserve resources of high conservation value.Governors of the four Highlands States may submit proposals for up to 50% of the total cost of land conservation projects in the Highlands Region.Funding appropriated under the HCA is typically divided into two separate categories – Base and Competitive. Eligible applicants may submit requests for the Competitive Funding Round in response to this Notice of Funding Opportunity. A separate Notice of Funding Opportunity will be posted for Base Funds. A project may not be proposed for funding in both funding opportunities.More information on the HCA program is available at www.fws.gov/program/highlands-conservation-act-grant Eligibility: Only the Lead State Agency (or Agencies) as determined by the Governor of each Highlands State may be the applicant for funding under the Highlands Conservation Act Grant Program. If the Governor assigns multiple Lead Agencies, those Agencies must coordinate on funding requests prior to submission and ensure no more than the maximum allowable amount is requested through this funding opportunity. All or part of the funds received by the Lead State Agency may be subawarded to a County or Municipality within the Highlands Region, or to another State Conservation Agency.The current Lead State Agencies are:Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. Contact Matt Starr: [contact details removed] York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation. Contact Lynn Kovach: [contact details removed] Jersey Highlands Water Protection and Planning Council. Contact Liz Ward: [contact details removed] Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Contact Dan Pierce: [contact details removed]

Estimated total programme funding: USD 3850000

Award range: USD 25000 – 3850000

Expected number of awards: 4

CFDA number(s): 15.667

Federal funding opportunity published on Grants.gov. Applications are submitted through Grants.gov — see the official listing.