Assessment Grants provide funding for a grant recipient to inventory, characterize, assess, conduct a range of planning activities, develop site-specific cleanup plans, and conduct community involvement related to brownfield sites. The performance period for these grants is three years.

Current EPA Brownfields Assessment Grant recipients must demonstrate that payment has been received from EPA (also known as ‘drawn down’) for at least 70% of each Assessment cooperative agreement they have with EPA by October 1, 2020 in order to apply for an FY 2021 Assessment Grant.

Community-wide Assessment Grants

• A Community-wide Assessment Grant is appropriate when a specific site is not identified and the applicant plans to spend grant funds on more than one brownfield site in its community.
• An applicant may request up to $300,000 to assess sites contaminated by hazardous substances, pollutants, contaminants (including hazardous substances co-mingled with petroleum), and/or petroleum.

Site-specific Assessment Grants

• A Site-specific Assessment Grant is appropriate when a specific site is identified and the applicant plans to spend grant funds on this one site only.
• An applicant may request up to $200,000 to assess a site contaminated by hazardous substances, pollutants, contaminants (including hazardous substances co-mingled with petroleum), and/or petroleum.
• An applicant may seek a waiver of the $200,000 limit and request up to $350,000 for a site contaminated by hazardous substances, pollutants, contaminants, and/or petroleum. Waiver requests must be based on the anticipated level of contamination, size, or status of ownership of the site.

Assessment Coalition Grants

• Assessment Coalitions are designed for one "lead" eligible entity to partner with two or more eligible entities that have limited capacity to manage their own EPA cooperative agreement.
• The lead coalition member may submit one grant proposal under the name of one of the coalition members and will perform assessment grant activities in each coalition member’s community.
• An applicant may request up to $600,000 to assess sites contaminated by hazardous substances, pollutants, contaminants (including hazardous substances co-mingled with petroleum) and/or petroleum.

Grant Application Resources

• List of Entities Eligible to Apply for Assessment Grants
• FY 2021 Assessment Grant Application Resources
• Grant Application Resources from Prior Years
• Interested in applying for Funding? (Assessment Grant Fact Sheet)
• Renewable Energy or Energy-Efficient Approaches in Brownfields Redevelopment
• Socially Distant Engagement Ideas

Assessment Grant Recipient Resources

• Frequently Asked Questions
• Programmatic Requirements
• Information on Sites Eligible for Brownfields Funding under CERCLA§ 104(k)
• Information on Defenses to CERCLA Liability
• Information on Eligible Planning Activities
• Brownfields Grant Reporting/Assessment, Cleanup and Redevelopment Exchange System (ACRES)

General Resources

• Brownfield Grant Recipients
• All Appropriate Inquiries
• Assessment Coalition Memorandum of Agreement
• Assessment Coalition Fact Sheet