Assistance program
Surveys, Studies, Investigations and Special Purpose Grants within the Office of Research and Development
$8.5 Million committed in FY2018–FY2026
- Agency
- Environmental Protection Agency, Environmental Protection Agency
- Assistance
- Project Grants
- CFDA number
- 66.510
- What it does
- The Office of Research and Development (ORD) supports surveys, studies, and investigations to determine the environmental effects of air quality, drinking water, water quality, hazardous waste, toxic substances, and pesticides. This program also funds program participant support (e.g., fellowships) associated with these areas and supports projects that address a stated problem or opportunity relating to science and public health that inform decision-making at the local, state and industrial levels. The program also provides support for conferences/workshops relating to these topic areas.
- Who benefits
- Public nonprofit institutions/organizations and private nonprofit institutions/organizations; state and local governments; Federally Recognized Indian Tribal Governments; U.S. territories or possessions; anyone/general public; education professionals; health professionals; students/trainees; graduate students; scientists/researchers; hospitals; foreign universities/organizations; and individuals.
- Who applies
- For certain competitive funding opportunities under this assistance listing, the Agency may limit eligibility to compete to a number or subset of eligible applicants consistent with the Agency's Assistance Agreement Competition Policy. Only these types of organizations may apply. Organization types are consistent with definitions at 2 CFR 200.1: • U.S. States. • U.S. territories and possessions. • Federally Recognized Indian Tribal Governments. • Public and private institutions of higher education located in the U.S. and its territories or possessions. • Public and private nonprofit institutions/organizations located in the U.S. and its territories or possessions. • State and local government departments. • Non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities. Note that 2 CFR § 200.1 specifically excludes Institutions of Higher Education from the definition of non-profit organization because they are separately defined in the regulation. While not considered to be a nonprofit organization(s) as defined by 2 CFR § 200.1, public or nonprofit Institutions of Higher Education are, nevertheless, eligible to submit applications under this program. Hospitals operated by state, tribal, or local governments or that meet the definition of nonprofit at 2 CFR § 200.1 are also eligible to apply as nonprofits or as instrumentalities of the unit of government depending on the applicable law. Profit-making firms and individuals are not eligible to receive assistance agreements from the EPA under this program. For-profit colleges, universities, trade schools, and hospitals are ineligible. Nonprofit organizations that are not exempt from taxation under section 501 of the Internal Revenue Code must submit other forms of documentation of nonprofit status; such as certificates of incorporation as nonprofit under state or tribal law. Nonprofit organizations exempt from taxation under section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code that lobby are not eligible for EPA funding as provided in the Lobbying Disclosure Act, 2 U.S.C. 1611. National laboratories funded by Federal Agencies (Federally-Funded Research and Development Centers, "FFRDCs") may not apply. FFRDC employees may cooperate or collaborate with eligible applicants within the limits imposed by applicable legislation and regulations. They may participate in planning, conducting, and analyzing the research directed by the applicant, but may not direct projects on behalf of the applicant organization. An award recipient may provide funds through its assistance agreement from the EPA to an FFRDC for research personnel, supplies, equipment, and other expenses directly related to the research. Federal Agencies may not apply. Federal employees are not eligible to serve in a principal leadership role on an assistance agreement. Federal employees may not receive salaries or augment their Agency’s appropriations through awards made under this program unless authorized by law to receive such funding.
- Authorized by
- 42 U.S.C. § 7403
- 42 U.S.C. § 300j-1
- 15 U.S.C. § 2609
- 7 U.S.C. § 136r
- 33 U.S.C. § 1254
- 42 U.S.C. § 6981
- 42 U.S.C. § 4332
- 16 U.S.C. § 1431
- Program site
- https://www.epa.gov/research-grants ↗
Committed by fiscal year
* FY2026 is year-to-date — the fiscal year is still in progress, so its total is still filling in. The striped band and dashed line mark that provisional stretch.
Top recipients
By dollars committed.
How to read these numbers
- Committed through this program
Money committed under this assistance listing (its CFDA program), counted in the year each action happened.
- How it's paid
Most programs pay out one way — a grant, or a direct payment to individuals; the flow bar only appears when a program genuinely mixes types.
- Some recipients aren't itemized
For entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare, the government reports one aggregate instead of naming tens of millions of people, so the recipient roster isn't part of the public record.
- Awards, counted once
An award count is the number of distinct awards with at least one action that year — each counted once, however many times it was amended.
- The colored bars
Every bar on this page splits by how the money moves:
Direct payments