FOA: WAP Enhancement & Innovation

Description

WAP Enhancement & Innovation Modification 0001: The purposes of this modification are to extend the Concept Paper deadline to Feb. 3, 2022 and the Full Application deadline to March 28, 2022. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) was created in 1976 with the primary purpose to increase the energy efficiency of dwellings owned or occupied by low-income persons, reduce their total residential energy expenditures, and improve their health and safety, especially low-income persons who are particularly vulnerable such as the elderly, the disabled, families with children, high residential energy users and households with a high energy burden.[1] A network of 57 Grantees and 700 local organizations (Subgrantees) working with private contractors delivers WAP services to eligible residents in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Indian lands of the Federally recognized tribes, and five U.S. Territories. Within Public Law 116-260, signed December 27, 2020, Congress directed the DOE to establish a competitive program for “WAP Enhancement and Innovation” (E&I). Financial assistance is available to state, local, tribal and non-profit organizations[2]. A total of $18.6 million is available from the FY 2021 appropriation with a maximum award amount of $2 million. Through partnerships and leveraging of the DOE WAP and other funding sources, these awards will enable deep energy retrofits of low-income housing[3] in four topic areas: 1) place-based initiatives; 2) multifamily housing; 3) single family and manufactured housing; 4) workforce development. Applicants are encouraged to use awarded E&I funds in conjunction with DOE WAP formula awards and other funding sources to deploy demonstration projects that have potential to be scaled nationally, enhance the benefits realized by underserved communities, and ensure an equitable transition to a clean-energy economy.[4] Building a clean-energy economy and addressing the climate crisis is a top priority of the Biden Administration. This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) will advance the Biden Administration’s goals to achieve carbon pollution-free electricity by 2035 and “deliver an equitable, clean energy future, and put the United States on a path to achieve net-zero emissions, economy-wide, by no later than 2050”1 to the benefit of all Americans. DOE is committed to pushing the frontiers of science and engineering, catalyzing clean energy jobs through research, development, demonstration, and deployment (RDD&D), and ensuring environmental justice and inclusion of disadvantaged communities. The activities to be funded under this FOA will support the government-wide approach to the climate crisis by driving the innovation that can lead to the deployment of energy efficiency retrofits and clean energy technologies, which are critical for climate protection. Specifically, this FOA will support the goals of carbon pollution-free electricity by 2035 and net zero GHG emissions by 2050 while also supporting quality jobs and economic growth by: Developing new place-based methods for targeting and delivering deep energy retrofits to benefit communities disproportionally impacted by high energy burden; Increasing the number of homes eligible for energy efficiency retrofits by making homes weatherization and electrification ready, while also ensuring healthy indoor environments; Growing community partnerships and leveraging additional funds to maximize the installation of renewable and new technologies; and, Supporting workforce development and creating pathways to careers in the home performance, energy efficiency, and renewable energy sectors by hiring and retaining individuals underrepresented in these industries. ----------------------------- [1] Executive Order 14008, “Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad,” January 27, 2021. [2] 42 U.S.C. 6864d(b) [3] See 10 CFR 440.3 for the definition of low-income. Each Grantee defines low income for their service territory in the annual Weatherization Grant Application (Master File Section V.1 Eligibility). [4] 42 USC 6864d.(e)(4) ----------------------------- The full FOA is posted on the EERE Exchange website at https://eere-exchange.energy.gov. To apply to this FOA, Applicants must register with and submit application materials through EERE Exchange, EERE’s online application portal. Information on where to submit questions regarding the content of the announcement and where to submit questions regarding submission of applications is found in the full FOA posted on the EERE Exchange website.

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