The Bureau of Reclamation recently announced a funding opportunity for WaterSMART: Drought Resiliency Projects. This program provides federal cost-share funds for entities to take a proactive approach to drought through building projects that increase water supply reliability and improve water management.  

Eligible applicants include:

• States, Tribes, irrigation districts and water districts.
• State, regional or local authorities, the members of which include one or more organizations with water or power delivery authority.
• Other organizations with water or power delivery authority.
• Nonprofit conservation organizations that are acting in partnership with an entity listed.

Applicants must be in one of the following states or territories: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, the Virgin Islands or Puerto Rico. 

Applicants are invited to submit proposals under the following funding groups: 

Funding Group I: Up to $500,000 in federal funds will be available for projects that generally should be completed in two years. 

Funding Group II: Up to $2,000,000 in federal funds will be available for larger projects that may take up to three years to complete. Projects in this group may be funded on an annual basis, and if so, funding for the second and third years of the project is contingent upon future appropriations. 

Funding Group III: Up to $5,000,000 in federal funds will be available for larger projects that may take up to three years to complete.

Applications are due June 15. For more information on this funding opportunity, visit www.grants.gov and search funding opportunity number R23AS00005.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law contains $400 million over five years for WaterSMART grants, including drought resiliency projects. In 2022, the Bureau of Reclamation is making $160 million available and will release other funding opportunities this spring. To learn more about how the bureau is implementing the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, visit www.usbr.gov/bil.

For more information, visit Reclamation's WaterSMART program webpage.