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F27AS00008-NAWCA 2027-1 US Standard Grants

Fish and Wildlife Service

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Posted
Jul 24, 2026
Amount
$250,001 to $3 million per award
Application deadline
Sep 25, 2026 (in 17 days)

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Classification and identifiers

Solicitation number
F27AS00008
Assistance listing (CFDA)
15.623

FundingLandscape analysis

NAWCA U.S. Standard Grants, Cycle 1

Nonfederal applicants submit through GrantSolutions, not through the Grants.gov workspace. The Fish and Wildlife Service recommends contacting the appropriate Migratory Bird Joint Venture coordinator early because the proposal must connect conservation actions, acreage, partners, match, and technical-assessment evidence. The official instructions say a proposal submitted after the September Cycle 1 cutoff may be considered in Cycle 2, but applicants should not rely on that provision as an extension.

Primary sources verified 2026-08-08.

Why it matters

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service lists approximately $46 million for this competition. That is the combined program funding, not one award. Individual requests must be more than $250,000 and no more than $3 million.

The North American Wetlands Conservation Act program funds long-term protection, restoration, enhancement, or establishment of wetland and associated upland habitat for migratory birds and other wetland-dependent wildlife. A project must translate both federal grant and matching contributions, except indirect costs, into eligible conservation acreage.

The statutory minimum is one dollar of eligible nonfederal match for each federal dollar. The technical assessment separately awards its maximum partnership points at a two-to-one match ratio, so the eligibility threshold and scoring incentive are not the same rule.

The application is a conservation and finance package rather than a general organizational narrative. The proposal summary, work plan, financial plan, tract table, technical-assessment responses, partner commitments, maps, and spatial files must describe the same project.

Program pool versus individual award

Total program funding
Approximately $46 million
Individual award range
$250,001 to $3 million
Minimum eligible nonfederal match
At least 1:1 against the federal request
Match level for maximum partnership points
2:1 under Technical Assessment Question 7

Who can actually apply

  • The public listing includes state, county, city, township, and special-district governments; federally recognized and other Tribal organizations; nonprofit organizations; and small businesses. Every applicant still must satisfy the NAWCA project, match, acreage, and documentation rules.
  • A project must conserve wetland ecosystems and associated habitats for migratory birds and other wetland-dependent wildlife in the United States. General environmental work without eligible habitat activities and documented acreage is not enough.
  • At least one dollar of eligible nonfederal matching contribution is required for every federal dollar requested. Federal funds generally cannot serve as match, and the applicant must document the source, value, eligibility, and commitment of each contribution.
  • Grant and match activities, except indirect costs, must be linked to acres acquired, restored, enhanced, or established. A decrease in match or acreage after award can require an approved amendment and can reduce the award.
  • For a proposal submitted in 2026, most matching contributions must have occurred on or after January 1, 2024. The governing rule is no earlier than two years before the proposal year, not two years before the application deadline. The limited Matching Contributions Plan exception applies only to approved excess old match from a single acquired real-property tract and carries its own five-year conditions.
  • Projects involving real property need the ownership, legal protection, appraisal, title, and documentation required by the official eligibility criteria and proposal instructions. A partner promise or map alone does not establish an eligible acquisition value.

Deadline, forms, and submission sequence

  1. Contact the appropriate Migratory Bird Joint Venture coordinator and confirm the current U.S. Standard eligibility criteria, proposal instructions, timeline, and regional review process.
  2. Maintain an active SAM.gov registration and Unique Entity Identifier. Nonfederal applicants register for and submit through GrantSolutions; allow time for account roles and access rather than beginning on the deadline day.
  3. Prepare the two-page Proposal Summary, Work Plan, Financial Plan, Tract Table, maps, and project documents using the current Fish and Wildlife Service templates and instructions.
  4. Answer all seven Technical Assessment Questions within the combined 14-page limit. Reconcile claimed species benefits, habitat priorities, wetlands status, long-term conservation, and partnership evidence to the work plan and tract data.
  5. Build a contribution ledger that distinguishes federal request, eligible nonfederal match, other federal funds, and nonmatching resources. Link each grant and match activity, except indirect costs, to the acres it will acquire, restore, enhance, or establish.
  6. Obtain partner contribution documentation and the real-property, appraisal, title, or protection documents required for the proposed activities. Do not count a contribution until its amount, timing, source, eligibility, and project use are supportable.
  7. Complete the required federal forms, including SF-424, SF-424A, and SF-LLL when applicable. Send the required geospatial files by the method in the current instructions and make sure tract names and acreages match the proposal.
  8. Submit through GrantSolutions by September 25, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. Eastern. Recheck the program page, instructions, eligibility criteria, and GrantSolutions package for updates before submission.

What the official technical assessment measures

  • The seven Technical Assessment Questions total 100 points and address benefits to waterfowl, benefits to other wetland-associated migratory birds, geographic priorities, wetlands and habitat status, long-term conservation, threatened or endangered species and species of greatest conservation need, and partnerships.
  • Reviewers use the species, habitat, location, acreage, threat, conservation-term, and partner evidence supplied in the proposal. The questions and scoring guidance, not a generic statement about environmental importance, define the record to support.
  • Partnership scoring distinguishes the minimum 1:1 eligibility match from the two-to-one ratio that receives maximum points under Technical Assessment Question 7.
  • Migratory Bird Joint Venture review and ranking can inform the national selection process. Applicants should verify the coordinator, regional priorities, and review schedule for the project geography.

Readiness checklist

  • Define each tract, activity, conservation method, acreage, and long-term protection term.
  • Map every federal and matching dollar, except indirect costs, to eligible conservation work and acreage.
  • Confirm at least 1:1 eligible nonfederal match and calculate the separate scoring effect of any match above that floor.
  • Validate that ordinary matching contributions occurred on or after January 1, 2024, and isolate any older tract contribution that would require an approved Matching Contributions Plan.
  • Secure partner commitments, landowner documents, appraisals, title evidence, and protection instruments required for the activities.
  • Reconcile the Proposal Summary, Work Plan, Financial Plan, Tract Table, maps, and spatial files.
  • Draft direct, evidence-backed answers to all seven Technical Assessment Questions within the 14-page combined limit.
  • Confirm active SAM.gov, UEI, GrantSolutions access, federal forms, file formats, and submission roles.
  • Run the current proposal against the Fish and Wildlife Service eligibility criteria and formatting rules before upload.
  • Check the official program page and application package again before the September 25 cutoff.

Related opportunities and the next search

Analysis change log
  • 2026-08-08: Initial analysis verified against the current Grants.gov listing, Fish and Wildlife Service program hub, July 2026 proposal instructions and eligibility criteria, and GrantSolutions guidance. It separates the $46 million program pool, $250,001 to $3 million individual range, 1:1 eligibility match, and 2:1 maximum partnership-score threshold, and applies the January 1, 2024 ordinary-match cutoff for a 2026 proposal.

Amount

$250,001 to $3 million per award

Who can apply

State/local governmentsTribal governments/organiz…Nonprofit organizationsSmall business

Small businesses can apply here. Check the eligibility details below to see if your organization fits.

Eligible applicants include state and local governments, Tribal governments and organizations, nonprofit organizations, and small businesses, subject to the NAWCA conservation, acreage, and match requirements.

About this opportunity

The North American Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA) U.S. Standard grants are competitive, matching grants that support public-private partnerships carrying out projects in the U.S. that involve long-term protection, restoration, and/or enhancement of wetlands and associated uplands habitats for the benefit of all wetlands-associated migratory birds. A 1 to 1 match to grant ratio is a requirement. For US Standard scoring criteria (page 33 of US Standard Instructions) and US Eligibility criteria, visit: https://www.fws.gov/service/north-american-wetlands-conservation-act-nawca-us-standard-grantsTo view previously successful awarded NAWCA US Standard Projects, visit NAWCA's external facing database to query for your viewing: https://www.fws.gov/grantsum/

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