NOTICE OF FUNDING OPPORTUNITY

BASIC INFORMATION

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), to the extent permitted by law, will no longer make grants or otherwise fund programs or activities that improperly discriminate on the basis of race or sex, including discrimination in the name of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion policies. Instead, USDA will prioritize merit and efficiency. USDA recognizes programs and initiatives will have the greatest impact when these programs and initiatives put American farmers, ranchers, and foresters first by:

• solving the most pressing challenges they face;
• protecting America’s food, fuel, and fiber supply to enhance national security;
• supporting production of healthy and safe food for consumers;
• expanding and developing domestic markets; 
• training the next generation of agriculturalists; and
• fueling innovation to keep American farmers at the forefront of productivity.

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) is committed to advancing these principles and encourages applicants to actively engage farmers, ranchers, and foresters when applying for funding opportunities to ensure relevancy and adherence to them. NIFA also encourages agricultural leaders to engage in the peer review panel process to ensure American producers are better served through research, education, and extension activities.

Projects submitted under this NOFO should align with USDA Secretary’s Memorandum 1078-020 Directive on Departmental Research and Development Priorities:

1. Increasing Profitability of Farmers and Ranchers
2. Expanding Markets and Creating New Uses of U.S. Agricultural Products
3. Protecting the Integrity of American Agriculture from Invasive Species
4. Promoting Soil Health to Regenerate Long-Term Productivity of Land
5. Improving Human Health through Precision Nutrition and Food Quality

NIFA seeks comments on all Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO)  and uses comments to help meet the requirements of Section 103(c)(2) of the Agricultural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998 (7 U.S.C. 7613(c)(2)). Applicants may submit written comments to Policy@usda.gov.

PART I. FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION

A. Legislative Authority

Section 5A of the Renewable Resources Extension Act (RREA) of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 1674a) provides for an expanded and comprehensive Extension program focused on forest and rangeland renewable resources. RREA-NFF funds are used to support projects that will expand the reach of extension forestry and rangeland programs through better program coordination and delivery, use of innovative technologies, and extension program models that can be easily replicated by other institutions, states, and regions.

B. Purpose and Priorities

The goal of RREA-NFF, Assistance Listing 10.515, is to enhance the longevity of U.S. forest and rangeland resources and enable landowners and managers to achieve their desired goals and objectives by making relevant scientific results available. Forest and rangeland resources provide multiple benefits, including wildlife habitat, water supply, open space, and recreation. Many of these lands are privately owned. RREA-NFF projects must maximize the reach and impact of the Cooperative Extension System to ensure the effective management and conservation of forest and rangeland systems for socioeconomic benefits (e.g., forest products, livestock production, and recreation) and enhance preparedness against a variety of threats including land fragmentation, fire, drought, pests, diseases, and invasive species.

The overall goal of the RREA-NFF for FY 2026 is to support extension projects that promote and increase tree planting and forest establishment and address growing threats posed by highly reproductive invasive animals that aggressively expand their range (e.g., feral pigs). Accordingly, NIFA is soliciting applications under the following program priorities:

1. Tree Planting Establishment/Reforestation: This priority supports extension projects that focus on tree planting/reforestation to ensure forest long-term health and longevity. Severe threats to forested landscapes continue to expand and increase in size, frequency, and intensity. This includes wildfire, insect pest outbreaks, disease, drought, and invasive species that compromise forest health and ecological functions. Areas affected by these disturbances often remain unrestored and lead to conversion into grasslands, shrublands, and land fragmentation and diminish their intended ecological and economic value. Extension projects under this priority area must integrate research results and technology in the deployment of reforestation techniques to address these needs.
2. Animal Invasive Control and Management: This priority area focuses on the development of extension programming that targets highly reproductive animals that aggressively expand their range such as feral pigs, including hybrid populations originating from Canada that have been causing economic damage in northern states, to help landowners prevent, mitigate, and manage the impacts of invasive animal species. 

These program priorities are designed to support extension activities that involve stakeholders in developing and rapidly applying new knowledge or practices. This program supports projects that will:

1. Build on and expand existing extension efforts in forest and rangeland management that advance tree planting and reforestation activities and technologies and practices that advance the control, prevention, and mitigation of invasive animal species. 
2. Apply technological innovations (e.g., artificial intelligence, virtual realities, etc.) to promote the adoption of tree establishment practices among forest and landowners and implement best management practices and emerging technologies to help forest and rangeland owners prevent, mitigate, or minimize the impacts of animal invasive species.
3. Involve extension efforts that, when adopted, provide social and economic benefits, the delivery of services that can be generated from tree planting establishment, and the control and mitigation of impacts of invasive animal species. 

C. Program Key Information

The following key program information only pertains to the funding year for FY 2026.

PART II. AWARD INFORMATION

A. Available Funding

The amount available for RREA-NFF in FY2026 is approximately $300,000. USDA is not committed to funding any particular application or making a specific number of awards.

The Automated Standard Application for Payments, operated by the Department of Treasury, Bureau of Fiscal Service, is the designated payment system for awards resulting from this NOFO.

B. Application Restrictions

NIFA will evaluate applications using the criteria described in Part V of this NOFO. Application for FY 2026 is limited to the following application types: 

New Application: New applications will be evaluated using the criteria described in Part V of this NOFO and are subject to the due dates herein (see Appendix III for definition).

Resubmitted Application: Resubmitted applications must include the response to the previous review panel summary and are subject to the same criteria and due dates herein. Resubmitted applicants must enter the NIFA-assigned proposal number of the previously submitted application in the Federal Field (Field 4) on the application form (see Appendix III for definition).  

C. Project and Grant Types

Standard grants that focus on Extension projects are eligible for funding under the RREA-NFF. These projects must: 1) strengthen education, training, and technical assistance to forest and rangeland owners and managers; 2) promote conservation, protection, and market development through effective extension educational design; 3) support new and better markets for forestry and rangelands products and services; and 4) be easily replicated by other institutions, states, and regions.

Proposed projects must include a detailed plan on how data and information will be collected during the execution of the project that will allow for outputs, outcomes, and impacts to be measured. This plan must outline how the following will be documented and measured:

a) The extent to which tree planting (reforestation and afforestation) best practices and practices that minimize the impacts of invasion of animal species have been adopted by forest and rangeland practitioners, owners, and managers; and

b) The results of these behavior changes include economic benefits during and beyond the conclusion of the project.

D. Ethical Conduct of Funded Projects

In accordance with sections 2, 3, and 8 of 2 CFR Part 422, institutions that conduct USDA-funded extramural research must foster an atmosphere conducive to research integrity, bear primary responsibility for prevention and detection of research misconduct, and maintain and effectively communicate and train their staff regarding policies and procedures. In the event an application to NIFA results in an award, the Authorized Representative (AR) assures, through acceptance of the award, that the institution will comply with the above requirements. Award recipients must, upon request, make available to NIFA the policies, procedures, and documentation to support the conduct of the training. See Responsible and Ethical Conduct of Research for further information.

PART III. ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION

A. Eligibility Requirements

Applicants must meet all the requirements discussed in this NOFO. Failure to meet the eligibility criteria by the application deadline may result in exclusion from consideration or preclude NIFA from making an award. For those new to Federal financial assistance, NIFA's About Grants provides highly recommended information about grants and other resources to help understand the Federal awards process.

The following entity(ies) may apply to this NOFO: Organizations.

Applications may be submitted by 1862 Land-grant Universities (7 U.S.C. 301 et seq.) including the District of Columbia and the U.S. Insular Areas, 1890 Land-grant Universities (7 U.S.C. 321 et seq.) including Tuskegee University, 1994 Institutions (7 U.S.C. 301 note) that offer an associate's degree or a baccalaureate degree in forestry, and in cooperation with State Cooperative Extension Services, other State-supported colleges and universities offering graduate training in the sciences basic to forestry and having a forestry school. Project Directors must have an extension appointment authorized by an institution's Extension Director/Administrator. Failure to meet the eligibility criteria by the application deadline may result in exclusion from consideration or preclude NIFA from making an award. 

For those new to Federal financial assistance, NIFA’s About Grants provides highly recommended information about grants and other resources to help understand the Federal awards process.

USDA will not accept applications for grants and cooperative agreements submitted for dangerous gain-of-function research, as defined in Section 8 of E.O. 14292.

Duplicate submissions or multiple applications by the same PD are not allowed. NIFA will disqualify both applications if an applicant submits duplicate or multiple submissions from the same PD. Multiple submissions from the same institution, however, are allowed.

B. Cost Sharing or Matching

This funding opportunity announcement has no matching requirement. NIFA will not factor matching resources into the review process as an evaluation criterion.

PART IV. APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION

A. Method of Application

Applicants must apply to this NOFO electronically; no other method or response is accepted. The electronic application for this NOFO and additional resources are available on Grants.gov and Grants 101. Steps to Obtain Application Materials provides instructions on how to obtain an electronic application. Part III of the NIFA Grants Application Guide contains detailed information regarding the Grants.gov registration process. The NIFA Grants Application Guide is contained in the specific funding opportunity package or a sample of the guide can be found here. When applying for a NIFA award, it is important to reference the version of the guide that is included in the specific funding opportunity application package.

Steps to Obtain Application Materials:

Help and Resources:

B. Content and Form of Application

The NIFA Grants Application Guide is part of the corresponding application package for this NOFO. The NOFO overrides the NIFA Grants Application Guide if there is a discrepancy between the two documents. Applicants that do not meet the application requirements, to include partial applications, risk being excluded from NIFA’s review. NIFA will assign a proposal number to all applications that meet the requirements of this NOFO. Applicants must refer to the proposal number when corresponding with NIFA. Key Application Instructions outlines key instructions for applicants.  

Key Application Instructions:

C. Funding Restrictions

No Indirect Costs (IDC)

Indirect Cost (IDC) is not authorized for this NOFO.

Pursuant to Section 1473 of the National Agriculture Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977, as amended (7 USC 3319), indirect costs and tuition remission are not allowable costs under RREA-NFF projects, and no funds will be approved for this purpose. Further, costs that are part of an institution’s indirect cost pool (e.g., administrative or clerical salaries) may not be reclassified as direct costs for the purpose of making them allowable.

PART V. APPLICATION REVIEW REQUIREMENTS

A. NIFA's Evaluation Process

NIFA evaluates each application in a two-part process. First, we screen each application to ensure that it meets the administrative requirements set forth in this NOFO. All administrative requirements must be met in order for the application to proceed to the next level of review. Second, a scientific peer-review process will be used to technically evaluate applications that have met the administrative requirements using a review panel (see NIFA Peer Review Process).

NIFA selects reviewers for the review panel based upon their training and experience in relevant scientific, extension, or education fields, taking into account the following factors:

1. The level of relevant formal scientific, technical education, or extension experience of the individual, as well as the extent to which an individual is engaged in relevant research, education, or extension activities.
2. The need to include experts from various areas of specialization within relevant scientific, education, or extension fields.
3. The need to include other experts (e.g., agricultural producers, range or forest managers/operators, researchers, educators, evaluators, and consumers) who can assess relevance of the applications to targeted audiences and to program needs.
4. The need to include experts from a variety of organizational types (e.g., colleges, universities, industry, state and Federal agencies, and private profit and non-profit organizations) and geographic locations.
5. The need to maintain a balanced composition with regard to the reviewer's area of expertise, geographic area, and entity type, as appropriate.
6. The need to include reviewers who can judge the effective usefulness of each application to producers and the general public.

After each peer review panel has completed its deliberations, the responsible program staff of NIFA will recommend that your project is either approved for support from currently available funds or declined due to insufficient funds or unfavorable review.

NIFA reserves the right to negotiate with the PD/PI and/or the submitting organization or institution regarding project revisions (e.g., reductions in the scope of work, funding level, period, or method of support) prior to recommending any project for funding.

After the review process has been completed, NIFA sends copies of reviews, not including the identity of reviewers, and a summary (if applicable) of the review panel comments to the PD.
 

NIFA takes extreme care to prevent any actual or perceived conflicts of interest that may influence the review or evaluation (see NIFA Peer Review Process for Competitive Grant Applications).

B. Evaluation Criteria

NIFA will use the following criteria to evaluate and score applications to this funding opportunity.

C. Organizational Management Information

Applicants must submit specific management information prior to an award and update the information as needed. Applicants may only need to provide an update if there was a change in previously provided information under this or another NIFA program. NIFA provides the requisite forms during the pre-award process. Although an applicant may be eligible for award under this program, there are factors that may exclude an applicant from receiving Federal financial and nonfinancial assistance and benefits under this program (e.g., debarment or suspension of an individual, or a determination that an applicant is not responsible).

D. Application Disposition

Applicants may withdraw at any time before NIFA makes a final funding decision. NIFA will retain all applications, including withdrawn applications and unfunded applications.

PART VI. AWARD ADMINISTRATION

A. General

Within the limit of funds authorized, the NIFA awarding official will make grants to responsible and eligible applicants whose applications are judged most meritorious under the procedures set forth in this NOFO. The date specified by the NIFA awarding official as the effective date of the grant must be no later than September 30 of the federal fiscal year in which the project is approved for support and funds are appropriated for such purpose, unless otherwise permitted by law. The project need not be initiated on the grant effective date, but as soon thereafter as practical so that project goals may be attained within the funded project period. All funds granted by NIFA under this NOFO may be used only for the purpose for which they are granted in accordance with the approved application and budget, regulations, terms and conditions of the award, applicable federal cost principles, USDA assistance regulations, and NIFA General Awards Administration Provisions, 7 CFR Part 3430, subparts A through E.

The award document will provide pertinent instructions and information as described in 2 CFR 200.211 (see NIFA’s Terms and Conditions).

B. Administrative and National Policy Requirements 

Several federal statutes and regulations apply to grant applications and the projects outlined in this NOFO (some are listed here: Federal Regulations). Unless specifically noted by statute or award-specific requirements, NIFA Federal Assistance Policy Guide applies to all NIFA awards.

C. Expected Program Outputs and Reporting Requirements

Output and reporting requirements are included in the award terms and conditions. If there are any program or award-specific award terms, they will be identified in the Award Notice.

PART VII. OTHER INFORMATION

A. Use of Funds and Changes in Budget

Unless the terms and conditions of the award state otherwise, awardees may not in whole or in part delegate or transfer to another person, institution, or organization the responsibility for use or expenditure of award funds.

In accordance with 2 CFR 200.308, awardees must request prior approval from NIFA for the following program or budget-related reasons (the awardee is subject to the terms and conditions identified in the award):

1. Change in the scope or the objective of the project or program without prior written approval (even if there is no associated budget revision required);
2. Change in a key person specified in the application or the federal award;
3. Disengagement from the project for more than three months, or a 25 percent reduction in time devoted to the project;
4. Inclusion of costs that require prior approval in accordance with 2 CFR 200 Subpart E (Cost Principles), or 2 CFR Part 300 Appendix IX, or 48 CFR, unless waived by the Federal awarding agency, 48 CFR Part 31, Contract Cost Principles and Procedures;
5. Transfer of funds budgeted for participant support costs to other categories of expense (2 CFR 200.456 Participant support costs);
6. Subawarding, transferring or contracting out of any work under a federal award, including fixed amount subawards (see 2 CFR 200.333, Fixed Amount Subawards), unless described in the application and funded in the approved federal awards. This provision does not apply to the acquisition of supplies, material, equipment, or general support services;
7. Changes in the approved cost-sharing or matching provided by the non-federal entity;
8. The need for additional federal funds to complete the project;
9. Salary rates of pay exceeding an Executive Level IV salary range (see “Rates of Pay for the Executive Schedule” under the “Executive & Senior Level Employee Pay Tables” header at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/salaries-wages/) require prior NIFA approval. This rate does not include any fringe benefits, general and administrative (G&A), overhead, or other expenses. Requests for approval must include the salary rate of pay and a justification for the rate and be sent to the Authorized Departmental Officer (ADO) to awards@usda.gov;
10. No more than 50 percent of the total dollars of this award may be subcontracted to another party(ies) without prior written approval of the ADO, except subcontracts to Federal agencies.
11. Transferring funds between the construction and non-construction work under a Federal award; and
12. A no-cost extension (meaning, an extension of time that does not require the obligation of additional Federal funds) of the period of performance, other than any one-time extension authorized by the Federal agency in accordance with paragraph 2 CFR 200.308(g)(2). All requests for no-cost extensions should be submitted at least 10 calendar days before the conclusion of the period of performance. The Federal agency may approve multiple no-cost extensions under a Federal award if not prohibited by Federal statute or regulation.

B. Confidential Aspects of Applications and Awards

When an application results in an award, it becomes a part of NIFA transaction records, which are available to the public. Information that the Secretary of Agriculture determines to be confidential, privileged, or proprietary in nature will be held in confidence to the extent permitted by law. Therefore, applicants should clearly mark any information within the application they wish to have considered as confidential, privileged, or proprietary. NIFA will retain a copy of an application that does not result in an award for three years. Such an application will be released only with the consent of the applicant or to the extent required by law. An applicant may withdraw at any time prior to the final action thereon.

C. Regulatory Information

This program is not subject to the provisions of Executive Order 12372, which requires intergovernmental consultation with state and local officials. Under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35), the collection of information requirements contained in this notice have been approved under OMB Document No. 0524- 0039.

D. Language Access Services

NIFA offers language access services, such as interpretation and translation of vital information, free of charge. If you need interpretation or translation services, please visit NIFA Language Access Services.

APPENDIX I: AGENCY CONTACT

APPENDIX II: GLOSSARY OF TERMS

• Assistance Listing Number – ALN
• Authorized Departmental Officer – ADO
• Authorized Representative – AR
• Data Management Plan – DMP
• National Institute of Food and Agriculture – NIFA
• Notice of Funding Opportunity - NOFO
• United States Department of Agriculture – USDA

APPENDIX III: DEFINITIONS

(Refer to 7 CFR 3430 Competitive and Noncompetitive Non-formula Federal Assistance Programs – General Award Administrative Provisions for additional definitions) 

• Matching: The process through which a grant recipient match awarded USDA funds with cash and in-kind contributions on a dollar-for-dollar basis. The matching funds must derive from non-Federal sources.
• New Application: An application not previously submitted to a program.
• Resubmitted Application: A project application that was previously submitted to a program, but the application was not funded.