Federal Funding Opportunities and Guidance – May 22, 2025

May 22, 2025

Please share widely, especially with organizations who have federal funding! And please sign up to receive these updates in your inbox every 2 weeks or so.

We wanted to share the latest state of play for federal grants and what you as a federal grantee or partner can be doing right now. 

1. We notched another important legal victory this week!

Thanks to a lawsuit brought by The Sustainability Institute, a federal judge in South Carolina ordered that EPA, USDA, DOE, and DOT immediately restore access to funding to the 32 grants that were parties to the case. Furthermore, the agencies are prevented from freezing, terminating, or otherwise interfering with the funding for those grants without written authorization from the court. Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG) submitted an amicus brief in this case, the Environmental Protection Network (EPN) submitted a written declaration, and many of you lent your voices and insight. While this particular ruling only applies to these 32 grants, it is a strong validation of our collective work to hold the executive branch accountable to their legal obligations. 

  • If you haven’t already, please reach out to us at FPC@L4GG.org to join potential future litigation that would apply to hundreds more. 

2. The House of Representatives just passed an incredibly dangerous budget reconciliation bill.

As proposed this bill would directly threaten the viability of many EPA and DOE grants by removing the underlying authority for them to be implemented and by zeroing out the money remaining at the agencies to fund staff working on implementation and oversight. The bill also proposes to rescind EPA standards on pollution from light-duty and medium-duty vehicles, an action that would dramatically impair climate action and the improvement of air quality for communities near highways. However, everyone who watched School House Rock knows that for a bill to become a law it also has to pass the Senate where we hope significant changes can be made. 

3. Join us for a national town hall next Wednesday, May 28, to demand the release of frozen, withheld, and terminated climate, environmental, and energy justice federal grant resources.

Release the Funds: A National Conversation about Putting America’s Future Back in the Hands of Communities Town Hall will take place virtually from 3-5pm EST. We promise a powerful and engaging discussion with leaders from communities across the country. 

4. Please re-register and join our bimonthly webinar next Wednesday, May 28, 12:30-2pm EST, for the latest updates, technical assistance, and grant-specific conversations.

Our agenda will include the latest legal developments, a training session on post-termination priorities, and breakout groups organized by grant program. 

  • Even if you have attended these before, we recommend you re-register and make sure you now have a meeting entitled, “​​Federal Grantee Webinar/Office Hour Series with EPN/L4GG/NRDC.”
  • If you have questions or need assistance, please reach out to Kathy Pope as soon as possible.

5. Continue to implement the important guidance from prior communications.