Coastal Management Program

Support for administration, coastal planning, coordination, federal consistency with federal activities, coastal hazards, habitat protection and management, education and outreach programs and pass though grants.

This funding opportunity is administered by the Coastal Management Program (CMP), part of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR). Federal funding for CMP originates through a cooperative agreement between IDNR and the National Atmospheric and Oceanic Administration (NOAA)’s Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management.

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The Illinois Lake Michigan Coastal Area stretches from the Wisconsin border to the Indiana border and includes portions of 24 communities with over 117,000 households, 52 beaches, more than 50 forest preserves and local parks, as well as two state parks. The region is economically diverse and includes portions of some of the poorest and richest communities in the state. It is also ecologically diverse; it occupies a transitional zone between the forests of the upper Midwest and the downstate prairies and contains valuable remnant wetlands. Effective coastal resource management reflects the reality on the ground and prioritizes coastal problem solving at a local to regional scale. In Illinois, coastal management tackles local coastal issues ranging from invasive species to coastal erosion to inequities in coastal recreational access. The goals of this funding opportunity include enhancing and protecting coastal habitats and species; improving coastal public access, recreation, and coastal dependent economic development; and supporting coastal community resilience. We encourage applicants to review existing plans and to think through how your proposed project aligns with previous and ongoing work in the region.

Yes

IDNR Coastal Management Program Grants protect, conserve, and restore the natural and cultural resources along the Illinois Lake Michigan shoreline. Funding is available for projects that 1) improve the health of the coast and Lake Michigan, 2) enhance coastal public access, recreation, and coastal-dependent economic development, and 3) advance coastal community resilience. This funding opportunity is administered by the Coastal Management Program (CMP), part of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR). Federal funding for CMP originates through a cooperative agreement between IDNR and the National Atmospheric and Oceanic Administration (NOAA)’s Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management. Eligible applicants include units of local government (e.g., municipalities, park districts, school districts, forest preserve districts), universities, and non-profit organizations. Private individuals, for-profit organizations, and organizations that cannot be pre-qualified through the State of Illinois grantee portal (https://grants.illinois.gov/portal/) are not eligible to receive grant funds. Public landowners and long-term lease holders are the only eligible applicants for on-the-ground projects such as low-cost construction or habitat restoration. For planning projects, we require a letter of commitment from the landowner if the applicant does not own the land. All applicants submitting an application must be pre-qualified on the Grant Accountability and Transparency Act (GATA) Website (https://grants.illinois.gov/portal/) to receive funding. This is a reimbursement grant. Full documentation of all grant and match expenses is required for reimbursement. Total funding available in past rounds has ranged from $550,000 to $975,000 per funding year.

Government Organizations; Nonprofit Organizations; Education Organizations;

Eligible applicants include units of local government (e.g., municipalities, park districts, school districts, forest preserve districts), universities, and non-profit organizations. Private individuals, for-profit organizations, and organizations that cannot be pre-qualified through the State of Illinois grantee portal (https://grants.illinois.gov/portal/) are not eligible to receive grant funds. Public landowners and long-term lease holders are the only eligible applicants for on-the-ground projects such as low-cost construction or habitat restoration. For planning projects, we require a letter of commitment from the landowner if the applicant does not own the land. All applicants submitting an application must be pre-qualified on the Grant Accountability and Transparency Act (GATA) Website (https://grants.illinois.gov/portal/) to receive funding. This is a reimbursement grant. Full documentation of all grant and match expenses is required for reimbursement. Total funding available in past rounds has ranged from $550,000 to $975,000 per funding year.

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Project Grants

Quality of Natural, Cultural, and Environmental Resources

All applicants submitting applications must be pre-qualified on the Grant Accountability and Transparency Act (GATA) Website (https://grants.illinois.gov/portal/) in order to receive funding.

Please contact the Coastal Management Program for preapplication coordination.

Applications are now being accepted for IDNR Coastal Management Program Grants through September 9, 2022. All application materials and additional resources are available at: https://www2.illinois.gov/dnr/cmp/Pages/Grants.aspx

Applications will be reviewed by IDNR Coastal Management Program Staff and Technical Advisory Committee. Projects with the highest point totals will be recommended for funding. To ensure regional disbursement of funding the highest ranked project may be funded from each region (North, Central, South). Full Application Scoring Criteria • Focus Area Alignment (10 points) • Need (12 points) • Anticipated Impact (12 points) • Feasibility and Timeline (6 points) • Under-Served Communities and Populations (6 points) • Partnerships and Local Support (6 points) • Capacity and Qualifications (4 points) • Cost Effectiveness (4 points) • Past Performance (-3 to 0 Points) • TOTAL POSSIBLE POINTS: 60 Projects selected for funding at the full-application stage are subject to the State of Illinois Comprehensive Environmental Review Process (CERP) and National Environment Policy Act Review (NEPA) as well as approval by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the IDNR Director.

Successful applicants must accept a Notice of State Award on the GATA Grantee Portal and will be required to enter into a grant agreement with the IDNR that includes standard terms and conditions that are not subject to modification. Failure of a successful applicant to complete all required steps will result in cancellation of the grant award.

Applications need to be received by September 9, 2022.

120-180 days

Please contact the Coastal Management Program for appeals.

Please contact the Coastal Management Program for renewals.

Grants under 12 months For grants under 12 months, the match requirement is waived. The grant funds 100% of the project cost. The match waiver is tied to Covid impacts and applicants have to answer a question about organizational impacts of Covid and how that has affected their ability to provide match. Grants over 12 months For grants over 12 months, most applicants are required to provide a 1:1 match, meaning the grant funds 50% of the total project cost. The only exception is local governmental applicants from Economically Challenged Communities, which qualify for a 1:3 match requirement (which means the grant funds 75% of the total project cost). • Economically Challenged Communities for this round of grants are defined as communities partially or completely within the Illinois coastal area having a 2019 per capita equalized assessed valuation (EAV) below $15,000 and more than 15% of the population below the national poverty level according to the US. Census Bureau. • For this round of grants, local governmental entities in the following municipalities qualify: Blue Island, Burnham, Calumet City, Calumet Park, Dolton, North Chicago, Riverdale, Waukegan, and Zion. • The criteria for Economically Challenged Communities are specific to this funding opportunity. It may be modified in subsequent grant rounds for this program to better assist such communities within the coastal area in accessing this funding program.

One of the priorities of the Illinois Coastal Management Program is to ensure that all communities in the Illinois coastal zone have equitable access to our shared coastal resources. Through our competitive grants, we hope to expand the reach of federal funds to prioritize communities that have been historically underinvested in. We thus encourage applicants to advance the principles of diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion in their work and the projects they submit for funding. Restrictions Grant and match funds cannot be used for: • Food and beverage • On-the-ground or site-specific planning projects outside of the Coastal Area (see Figure 1) • Land acquisition • Academic research • Any costs that are not allowed under section 306A of the Coastal Zone Management Act. This includes large-scale construction, improvements that result in private or commercial gain, hardened shoreline structures, beach re-nourishment, dredging, gray infrastructure, transportation projects, and general recreational facilities such as playground equipment. • Any costs that are not allowed under Federal Grant Cost Principles (2 CFR 200, Subpart E, https://coast.noaa.gov/czm/act/sections/#306A See our FAQ or contact CMP for more details.

Periodic Performance Reports and Periodic Financial Reports are required quarterly for all projects. Final narrative reports are required after project completion. As a grantee, you will submit two forms of paperwork each quarter, a Periodic Performance Report and a Periodic Financial Report. This documentation must be submitted to our office no later than 30 days after each quarter, unless otherwise specified in your grant agreement. If a listed due date falls on a state holiday, federal holiday, or weekend, the report due date moves to the first business day after the listed due date. The performance report and financial report should be submitted together. Please ensure that signatories for all forms and reports are authorized to sign on behalf of your organization, and have sufficient knowledge of completed work to certify the accuracy of the report. All paperwork should be signed with blue ink. Project Activity Quarter: January 1 - March 31 Due: April 30 Project Activity Quarter: April 1 - June 30 Due: July 30 Project Activity Quarter: July 1 - September 30 Due:October 30 Project Activity Quarter: October 1 - December 31 Due: January 30 Grant End Date: Final Reports are due no later than 60 days after project end date specified in your Grant Agreement

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Illinois Coastal Area

IDNR, One Natural Resources Way, Springfield, IL 62702

https://www.dnr.illinois.gov/cmp/Pages/grants.aspx.

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FY 2015 : $1,992,000
FY 2016 : $1,996,000
FY 2017 : $2,555,671
FY 2018 : $2,332,000
FY 2019 : $2,725,960
FY 2021 : $850,000
FY 2022 : $800,000