Landowner Incentive Program Fiscal Year 2005 Request for Proposals

The summary for the Landowner Incentive Program Fiscal Year 2005 Request for Proposals grant is detailed below. This summary states who is eligible for the grant, how much grant money will be awarded, current and past deadlines, Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) numbers, and a sampling of similar government grants. Verify the accuracy of the data FederalGrants.com provides by visiting the webpage noted in the Link to Full Announcement section or by contacting the appropriate person listed as the Grant Announcement Contact. If any section is incomplete, please visit the website for the Fish and Wildlife Service, which is the U.S. government agency offering this grant.

Landowner Incentive Program Fiscal Year 2005 Request for Proposals: The Landowner Incentive Program (LIP) is a grant program first authorized in the FY 2002 Interior Appropriations Bill. It provides competitive matching grants to States, Territories, the District of Columbia, and Tribes. Tribes are allocated funding through a separate competitive program. The grants establish or supplement landowner incentive programs that provide technical and financial assistance to private landowners for projects that protect and restore habitats of Federally listed species or species determined to be at-risk. Private lands play a pivotal role in linking or providing important habitats for fish, wildlife, and plant species. As such, habitat provided by private lands represents an important tool for natural resource managers. LIP provides States with the funds needed to expand habitat protection and restoration programs onto private lands, enabling States to do species restoration planning on a more comprehensive statewide basis. LIP projects involve activities such as the restoration of marginal farmlands to wetlands, the removal of exotic plants to restore natural prairies, a change in grazing practices and fencing to enhance important riparian habitats, instream structural improvements to benefit aquatic species, road closures to protect habitats and reduce harassment of wildlife, and conservation easements. The State agency with primary responsibility for fish and wildlife submits proposals to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service). The Service uses a two-tiered award system. Tier-1 grants are awarded if they meet minimum eligibility requirements. The Service ranks Tier-2 proposals and awards grants after a national competition. This year, the funding available for LIP Tier-2 grants is reduced to from $27 million in FY 2004 to $20 million in FY 2005 and it may therefore be necessary to consider partial funding of some proposals. Applicants are encouraged to draft proposals with this possibility in mind, to ensure that viable conservation programs can be conducted if less than full funding is available. Eligibility Information 1. Eligible Applicants The State agency with primary responsibility for fish and wildlife resources submits proposals to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. State fish and wildlife agencies are the primary recipients of LIP grants. However, all other governmental entities, individuals, and organizations, including Tribes, may partner with or serve as a subgrantee to a State fish and wildlife agency. 2. Cost-Sharing and Matching The Service requires a minimum of 25% non-Federal match for LIP grants (i.e. at least 25 percent of the total costs must come from sources other than LIP or other federal funds). The U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands are exempt from matching requirements for this program (based on 48 U.S.C. 1469a. (d)).