Stimulus
Idaho has received funds for energy projects from two ARRA grant programs offered by the U.S. Department of Energy. Those programs are the Energy Efficiency Conservation Block Grant program, and the State Energy Program grant program. The links at the right describe these programs.
Background
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) established funding opportunities for Idaho cities and counties under the provisions of the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant program (EECBG). This program provides direct grants to Idaho’s 10 largest cities and 10 largest counties ( 76KB PDF). The remaining local units of government are eligible to apply for competitive subgrants through a program administered by the Idaho Office of Energy Resources (OER).
Idaho’s share of the EECBG subgrant program is $9,593,500. The ARRA requires that at least 60 percent of this money be allocated to units of local government that are not eligible for direct grants. Up to 10 percent of the funds may be expended by OER for reasonable administrative, planning, and reporting costs. The remaining amount can be utilized within the subgrant program or as part of the ARRA State Energy Program.
Energy Efficiency and Conservation Strategy Requirements
The EECBG program requires the OER, the direct grant cities and counties, and the local units of government applying for subgrants to submit an Energy Efficiency and Conservation Strategy (EECS). The OER and the direct grant cities and counties must submit their EECS to the Department of Energy (DOE) for approval. Subgrant applicants must submit their EECS documents for approval by the OER. For purposes of uniformity and efficiency all applicants will use existing DOE forms to submit their respective EECS.
Partnership with Associations Representing Local Units of Government
The competitive subgrant program involves a cooperative partnership with the OER, the Idaho Association of Counties (IAC), and the Association of Idaho Cities (AIC). This relationship is designed to reduce duplication of effort and insure an expeditious deployment of the grant program. The IAC and AIC will assist in developing the criteria for the competitive grant program and assist in reviewing applications. All inquiries from city and county applicants regarding the program and eligibility requirements must be directed to the respective association (IAC or AIC). All necessary grant application material related to the subgrant program will be submitted to the IAC or AIC.
Davis-Bacon Wage Rates
Proposals shall provide written assurance that all laborers and mechanics on projects funded are paid wages under the Davis-Bacon Act. This Act requires that each contract over $2,000 for the construction, alteration, or repair of public buildings or public works shall contain a clause setting forth the minimum wages to be paid to various classes of laborers and mechanics employed under the contract. Under the provisions of the Act, contractors or their subcontractors are to pay workers employed directly upon the site of the work no less than the locally prevailing wages and fringe benefits paid on projects of a similar character. The Davis-Bacon Act directs the Secretary of Labor to determine such local prevailing wage rates.
Compliance with National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA):
All projects receiving financial assistance from Department of Energy (DOE) must be reviewed under NEPA. The first step in DOE’s NEPA review process requires financial assistance recipients to submit information to DOE regarding the potential environmental impacts of the project receiving DOE funds.
Based on DOE’s review of the list of activities that funds can be utilized for under the EECBG Program, DOE has determined that projects in support of activities not in bold will likely be classified as categorical exclusions. Applicants proposing activities in bold may also qualify for categorical exclusion status but determination cannot be made without NEPA review. Therefore, all applicants proposing projects in support of activities 4, 5, 7D, 11, 13, and 14 must supply the environmental information contained in NETL F 451.1-1/3-EECBG contained in Attachment B3.
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