Opportunity Information: Apply for P24AS00498
Round 7 of the Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership (ORLP) Program is a competitive National Park Service (NPS) grant opportunity run under the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) State and Local Assistance Program. The LWCF program was established by Congress in 1964 to help preserve, develop, and ensure public access to outdoor recreation resources for current and future generations. In practical terms, it supports projects that expand or improve public outdoor recreation by funding the acquisition of land and water for parks and recreation areas, as well as the development of new facilities or the renovation of existing ones. ORLP is the LWCF competitive set-aside focused specifically on bringing new or significantly improved recreation opportunities to disadvantaged communities in larger urbanized areas.
The LWCF State and Local Assistance Program operates as a federal-state partnership. Congress appropriates LWCF funding, NPS oversees the program nationally, and each state or territory works through a designated State Lead Agency that implements LWCF locally. To remain eligible for LWCF assistance, each state must maintain an approved Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan (SCORP) and update it at least every five years. SCORPs are used to identify statewide recreation needs, evaluate supply and demand for outdoor recreation resources, and guide priorities for using LWCF funds. ORLP differs from the standard LWCF formula program in that ORLP awards are chosen through an NPS-led national competition after states solicit and nominate projects, and these competitive ORLP awards do not count against a state’s normal LWCF formula apportionment.
Eligibility is tightly structured. Only the State Lead Agency in each state or territory may submit an ORLP application to NPS, because federal law (54 U.S.C. 200305(a)) limits LWCF applicants to the state’s officially designated lead agency. This means cities, counties, tribes, and special districts cannot apply directly to NPS; if they do, their applications are removed from consideration. Instead, those entities participate as subrecipients (also called project sponsors) and must work through their State Lead Agency, which submits the application on their behalf.
Eligible subrecipients include state agencies, local units of government, special purpose districts, and federally recognized Indian Tribes. Special purpose districts must be created by a legislative authority and have a mission that includes acquiring, developing, owning, and managing recreation areas, and they must be able to meet the LWCF program’s perpetual protection requirement (the long-term protection of the assisted recreation site for public outdoor recreation use). There is also an urban population threshold tied to the 2020 Census. The subrecipient must be associated with an incorporated city or town of at least 30,000 people, or an unincorporated area with at least 30,000 people. If the sponsor is a county or special purpose district, the project must serve an incorporated city or town (or qualifying unincorporated area) of at least 30,000 people. Additionally, the park or recreation area and the disadvantaged community or communities benefiting from the investment must all be located within the city or town, reinforcing ORLP’s intent to target improvements directly within urban communities facing inequities in park access and quality.
The opportunity includes notable project-site restrictions intended to prevent repeated funding of the same locations in close succession. Parks or sites are not eligible if they are currently receiving an LWCF formula grant, or if they received an LWCF formula grant that closed within the past seven years, even when the proposed ORLP work would be different. Sites that have received more than one prior ORLP award are also not eligible. These limits are designed to broaden the geographic spread of awards and steer funds toward new sites and communities rather than repeatedly funding the same parks.
For Round 7 administrative details, the opportunity is a discretionary grant administered by the National Park Service under CFDA 15.916. The funding opportunity number is P24AS00498. Eligible applicants at the federal submission level are state governments (meaning the State Lead Agencies). The posting indicates an award ceiling of $15,000,000, and the original closing date listed is April 30, 2024.Apply for P24AS00498
- The National Park Service in the other sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Round 7 Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.916.
- This funding opportunity was created on 2023-11-07.
- Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-04-30. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $15,000,000.00 in funding.
- Eligible applicants include: State governments.
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Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership (ORLP) Program - Round 7 FAQs
1) What is Round 7 of the Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership (ORLP) Program?
Round 7 is a competitive National Park Service (NPS) grant opportunity offered under the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) State and Local Assistance Program. ORLP is the LWCF competitive set-aside focused on bringing new or significantly improved public outdoor recreation opportunities to disadvantaged communities in larger urbanized areas.
2) How does ORLP relate to the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF)?
ORLP is part of LWCF. LWCF was established by Congress in 1964 to help preserve, develop, and ensure public access to outdoor recreation resources for current and future generations. ORLP operates as the LWCF competitive set-aside specifically targeted to disadvantaged communities in larger urbanized areas.
3) What kinds of activities does LWCF generally support?
In practical terms, LWCF supports projects that expand or improve public outdoor recreation by funding (1) acquisition of land and water for parks and recreation areas, and (2) development of new recreation facilities or renovation of existing ones.
4) What is the main purpose of ORLP compared with standard LWCF grants?
ORLP differs from the standard LWCF formula program by focusing on disadvantaged communities in larger urbanized areas and by using an NPS-led national competition process. States solicit and nominate projects, and NPS selects awards through this national competition.
5) Is ORLP a formula grant to states like the regular LWCF program?
No. ORLP awards are chosen through an NPS-led national competition after states solicit and nominate projects. These competitive ORLP awards do not count against a state’s normal LWCF formula apportionment.
6) Who runs and oversees the ORLP opportunity?
ORLP is administered by the National Park Service (NPS) under the LWCF State and Local Assistance Program. NPS oversees the program nationally, while each state or territory implements LWCF locally through its designated State Lead Agency.
7) Who is allowed to submit an ORLP application to NPS?
Only the State Lead Agency in each state or territory may submit an ORLP application to NPS. Federal law (54 U.S.C. 200305(a)) limits LWCF applicants to the state’s officially designated lead agency.
8) Can a city, county, Tribe, or special district apply directly to NPS for ORLP?
No. Cities, counties, Tribes, and special districts cannot apply directly to NPS for ORLP. If they submit applications directly to NPS, those applications are removed from consideration. These entities must work through their State Lead Agency, which submits the application on their behalf.
9) If local governments and other entities cannot apply directly, how do they participate?
They participate as subrecipients (also called project sponsors). The project sponsor works through the State Lead Agency, which submits the ORLP application to NPS on the sponsor’s behalf.
10) Who can be an eligible ORLP subrecipient (project sponsor)?
Eligible subrecipients include state agencies, local units of government, special purpose districts, and federally recognized Indian Tribes.
11) What qualifies as an eligible special purpose district for ORLP?
A special purpose district must be created by a legislative authority and have a mission that includes acquiring, developing, owning, and managing recreation areas. It must also be able to meet the LWCF program’s perpetual protection requirement (long-term protection of the assisted recreation site for public outdoor recreation use).
12) What is the "perpetual protection requirement" mentioned for LWCF/ORLP?
It refers to the long-term protection of the assisted recreation site for public outdoor recreation use. For example, an eligible sponsor must be able to meet this requirement for the site that receives LWCF/ORLP assistance.
13) Is there a minimum population threshold for ORLP eligibility?
Yes. Based on the 2020 Census, the subrecipient must be associated with an incorporated city or town of at least 30,000 people, or an unincorporated area with at least 30,000 people.
14) How does the 30,000 population rule apply to counties or special purpose districts?
If the sponsor is a county or a special purpose district, the project must serve an incorporated city or town (or a qualifying unincorporated area) of at least 30,000 people.
15) Where must the park or recreation area be located for an ORLP project?
The park or recreation area and the disadvantaged community or communities benefiting from the investment must all be located within the city or town. This reinforces ORLP’s intent to target improvements directly within urban communities facing inequities in park access and quality.
16) What does ORLP mean by focusing on disadvantaged communities?
ORLP is described as targeting disadvantaged communities in larger urbanized areas, with an intent to address inequities in park access and quality by bringing new or significantly improved recreation opportunities directly within those communities.
17) What is a State Lead Agency and why does it matter?
The State Lead Agency is the designated agency in each state or territory that implements LWCF locally and is the only entity permitted to submit LWCF/ORLP applications to NPS at the federal level. Subrecipients must work through this agency to participate.
18) What is a SCORP and how does it relate to LWCF eligibility?
A Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan (SCORP) is a statewide plan used to identify recreation needs, evaluate supply and demand for outdoor recreation resources, and guide priorities for using LWCF funds. To remain eligible for LWCF assistance, each state must maintain an approved SCORP and update it at least every five years.
19) Are there restrictions on applying if a park/site recently received LWCF funding?
Yes. Parks or sites are not eligible if they are currently receiving an LWCF formula grant, or if they received an LWCF formula grant that closed within the past seven years, even if the proposed ORLP work would be different.
20) Are there restrictions based on prior ORLP awards to the same site?
Yes. Sites that have received more than one prior ORLP award are not eligible.
21) Why does ORLP limit funding to sites with recent or multiple prior awards?
These limits are intended to broaden the geographic spread of awards and steer funds toward new sites and communities rather than repeatedly funding the same parks.
22) Is Round 7 considered a discretionary or non-discretionary grant?
Round 7 is described as a discretionary grant administered by the National Park Service.
23) What is the CFDA number for this ORLP opportunity?
The opportunity is administered under CFDA 15.916.
24) What is the funding opportunity number for ORLP Round 7?
The funding opportunity number is P24AS00498.
25) Who is the eligible applicant at the federal submission level?
Eligible applicants at the federal submission level are state governments, meaning the State Lead Agencies.
26) What is the maximum award amount listed for Round 7?
The posting indicates an award ceiling of $15,000,000.
27) What deadline is listed for this Round 7 posting?
The original closing date listed is April 30, 2024.
Browse more opportunities from the same category: Other
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Previous opportunity: FY24 IIJA/IRA Bureau of Land Management Eastern States (ES) Recreation and Visitor Services Program
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