USDA-NRCS Missouri Office is Offering Grant for Conservation Partnership, Outreach, and Education

Notice of Funding Opportunity Summary

This Notice of Funding Opportunity (NFO) is being released prior to appropriation and/or apportionment of funds for fiscal year 2024. Enactment of additional continuing resolutions or an appropriations act may affect the availability or level of funding for this program.

NRCS, an agency under the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), is seeking opportunities to partner with and support the efforts of natural resource conservation partners in Missouri to achieve any one of the following objectives:

a.    Conduct Outreach to Increase Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, in Farm Bill Programs through Outreach Workshops and/or Conferences and/or Virtual Learning – Funding is intended to promote awareness,, reach new customers, and increase equity and diversity in participation of NRCS programs. Provide outreach to Historically Underserved (HU) agricultural producers and further the development of NRCS relationships with conservation partners and Historically Underserved (HU) agricultural producers. HU participants include veterans, minority and limited resource landowners and agricultural producers. NRCS’s objective is to increase HU landowner participation in USDA-NRCS conservation programs. Proposals shall be specifically targeted to provide information on current agricultural topics of interest to underserved segments of the agricultural community.

b.    Technical Workshops and/or Field Days with focus on Urban and Small Scale Agriculture Initiatives and Awareness: Provide learning opportunities to educate NRCS and partner conservation planners AND/OR Missouri agricultural producers on urban agriculture production, awareness, and education. Applicant must demonstrate the capability to unite members of the agriculture science and technology communities to share their knowledge with producers and other interested parties. This notice identifies the objectives, eligibility criteria, and application instructions. Proposals will be screened for completeness and compliance with the provisions of this notice. Incomplete and/or noncompliant proposals will be eliminated from competition, and notification of elimination will be sent to the applicant. The Missouri State Conservationist reserves the right not to fund any or all applications. NRCS will accept applications under this notice for single or multiyear applications submitted by eligible entities.

For new users of Grants.gov, see Section D. of the full Notice of Funding Opportunity for information about steps required before submitting an application via Grants.gov.

Key Principles of Equity

NRCS is committed to achieving equity, justice, and equal opportunity to ensure equitable access to NRCS programs and services. The term equity means the consistent and systematic treatment of all individuals in a fair, just, and impartial manner, including individuals who belong to communities that have been denied such treatment, such as Black, Latino, Indigenous and Native American, Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Island persons and other persons of color; members of religious minorities; women and girls; LGBTQI+ persons; persons with disabilities; persons who live in rural areas; persons who live in United States Territories; persons otherwise adversely affected by persistent poverty or inequality; and individuals who belong to multiple such communities.

The term underserved communities refers to those populations, as well as geographic communities, that have been systematically denied the opportunity to participate fully in aspects of economic, social, and civic life, as defined in Executive Orders 13985 and 14020. Four groups are defined by USDA as “Historically Underserved,” including farmers or ranchers who are: Beginning; Socially Disadvantaged; Veterans; and Limited Resource.

The term “Limited Resource Farmer or Rancher” means a participant:

• With direct or indirect gross farm sales not more than the current indexed value in each of the previous two years, and
• Who has a total household income at or below the national poverty level for a family of four, or less than 50 percent of county median household income in each of the previous two years.

The term “Beginning Farmer or Rancher” means a participant who:

Has not operated a farm or ranch, or who has operated a farm or ranch for not more than 10 consecutive years, and who:

• Will materially and substantially participate in the operation of the farm or ranch.
• In the case of a contract with an individual, individually or with the immediate family, material and substantial participation requires that the individual provide substantial day-to-day labor and management of the farm or ranch, consistent with the practices in the county or State where the farm is located.

The term “Socially Disadvantaged” means an:

• Individual or entity who is a member of a socially disadvantaged group. A socially disadvantaged group is a group whose members have been subject to racial or ethnic prejudice because of their identity as members of a group without regard to their individual qualities.
• Socially disadvantaged groups consist of the following:

1. American Indians or Alaskan Natives
2. Asians
3. Blacks or African Americans
4. Native Hawaiians or other Pacific Islanders
5. Hispanics.
6. For an entity, at least 50 percent ownership in the farm business must be held by socially disadvantaged individuals

Note: Gender alone is not a covered group for the purposes of NRCS conservation program authorities. The term entities reflect a broad interpretation to include partnerships, couples, legal entities, etc.

The term “Veteran Farmer or Rancher” means a producer who

• Served in the United States Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, or Coast Guard, including the reserve component thereof; was released from service under conditions other than dishonorable; and:
• Has not operated a farm or ranch, or has operated a farm or ranch for not more than 10 years; or
• Who first obtained status as a veteran during the most recent 10-year period.

Key Dates

Applicants must submit their applications via Grants.gov by 11:59 pm Eastern Time on Tuesday, March 19, 2024. For technical issues with Grants.gov, contact Grants.gov Applicant Support at 1-800-518-4726 or support@grants.gov. Awarding agency staff cannot support applicants regarding Grants.gov accounts.

For inquiries specific to the content of the NFO requirements, contact the federal awarding agency contact (section G of this NFO). Please limit questions to those regarding specific information contained in this NFO (such as dates, page numbers, clarification of discrepancies, etc.). Questions related to eligibility, or the merits of a specific proposal will not be addressed.

The agency anticipates making selections by May 3rd, 2024 and expects to execute awards by July 1st, 2024. These dates are estimates and are subject to change.

A webinar will be conducted at 9:00 a.m. Central Standard Time, on Wednesday, February 15th, 2024. A Microsoft Teams Meeting link to the webinar is shown below:

https://teams.microsoft.com/l/meetup-join/19%3ameeting_ZTAwOWRmYmUtMTljNi00Yjc4LWE3NzItNGQ2ZTBjN2E3NjEy%40thread.v2/0?context=%7b%22Tid%22%3a%22ed5b36e7-01ee-4ebc-867e-e03cfa0d4697%22%2c%22Oid%22%3a%22cd47cf8d-9f96-4309-87f4-c21c3a497296%22%7d

Information on how to participate may be obtained by contacting Jenny Long or Nate Goodrich at (573)876-0901 or Jennifer.Long@usda.gov, or Nate.Goodrich@usda.gov. Webinar information will be posted to the Missouri NRCS website at: https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/nrcs/missouri/grants-and-agreements.

Additional questions should be directed to Jenny Long at Jennifer.Long@usda.gov and if we are able to answer your questions they will be posted under Frequently Asked Questions at https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/nrcs/missouri/grants-and-agreements.