Applications sought for grant funds for territories, FAS

The grant application process to apply for grant funding through the Office of Insular Affairs is open.

Funding applications may now be submitted through March 1, 2019, through three Interior programs: technical assistance program, maintenance assistance program, and the brown tree snake program.

“We encourage quality applications that may align with these broad priorities and will provide programs and activities to benefit and help people in these areas,” said Doug Domenech, U.S. Department of the Interior assistant secretary, insular and international affairs.

Those broad priorities are restoring trust and being a good neighbor, ensuring insular areas, and protecting people and the border.

OIA grant programs are intended for the benefit of the U.S. territories of Guam, American Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the CNMI, and the freely associated states of the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau.

Those eligible to apply may generally be non-federal entities such as local government agencies, local hospitals/health centers, local utilities, or institutes of higher education in Guam; however for specific details on eligibility refer to specific program instructions on the OIA website:

• Technical assistance program are short-term projects intended to meet the immediate needs of the insular areas in a wide range of funding priorities including, but not limited to, projects that foster the development of the insular areas in accountability, financial management, economic development, education, energy production, management control initiatives, disaster assistance, natural and cultural resources, capacity building, public safety/emergencies, health initiatives, and invasive species management.

• Maintenance assistance program aims to support, develop, improve and, as much as possible, institutionalize infrastructure maintenance practices in the seven insular areas.

• Brown tree snake control program aims to prevent dispersal of the brown tree snake from Guam to other geographic areas and fund research in support of population suppression with the ultimate goal of eradication.

The deadline to apply for these grants is March 1, 2019.

Most funding will begin to be awarded once OIA receives full year appropriations. OIA reviews grant applications and awards grants each year until funding is exhausted.

Instructions on how to apply and specific information on the various programs funded through the Office of Insular Affairs may be found on the OIA website.

The coral reef and natural resources initiative and the energizing island communities programs are not currently open for applications. Updates and announcements will be made as soon as funding is available and OIA begins to accept applications which is likely to be in early 2019. (PR)