FY25 IIJA/IRA Bureau of Land Management Idaho (ID) Wildlife Program | L25AS00148

Opportunity Information: Apply for L25AS00148

The FY25 IIJA/IRA Bureau of Land Management Idaho (ID) Wildlife Program (Funding Opportunity Number L25AS00148) is a discretionary federal funding opportunity from the Bureau of Land Management that will be issued as a cooperative agreement. The program is designed to advance Department of the Interior priorities that include responding to the climate crisis, restoring balance on public lands and waters, advancing environmental justice, and supporting a clean energy future, while specifically focusing on wildlife and habitat outcomes on BLM-managed lands in Idaho and at broader regional or national scales when relevant.

At its core, the opportunity supports projects that protect and restore wildlife habitat, sustain migration and habitat connectivity, and maintain biodiversity. A major emphasis is building resilience to climate change and leveraging natural climate solutions through habitat work, while also contributing to the national goal of conserving at least 30 percent of lands and waters by 2030. The BLM also highlights alignment with state wildlife population objectives, meaning proposals that help state agencies meet established population or management targets are a good fit. Environmental justice is an explicit priority as well, with encouragement for projects that engage communities of color, low-income families, and rural and Indigenous communities in ways that expand economic opportunities connected to wildlife conservation. Across all activities, the program stresses using the best available science and data to guide decisions.

The types of activities supported span both on-the-ground conservation and the science needed to manage wildlife effectively. On the habitat side, the program funds work that maintains or restores habitat for upland game, waterfowl, big game, pollinators, sensitive species, and watchable wildlife. This can include conserving priority vegetation communities, protecting or improving water resources, enhancing connectivity, and reducing threats to habitats or species. On the monitoring and assessment side, the program supports inventory and monitoring efforts that improve the completeness and accuracy of information about wildlife distribution, abundance, and habitat conditions on BLM lands. It also supports assessing wildlife habitat and measuring progress toward resource management goals and objectives, as well as research that evaluates whether wildlife habitat and land use plan objectives are being achieved at ecosystem and watershed scales.

A notable technical priority is improving how BLM integrates coordinated, large-scale monitoring data, specifically naming frameworks like Integrated Monitoring in Bird Conservation Regions (IMBCR) and the North American Bat Monitoring Program (NaBat). Proposals that strengthen data integration, comparability, and decision-usefulness of monitoring results are clearly aligned with this goal. The opportunity also includes education and outreach components, including citizen science and student-based science projects that build stewardship for species dependent on BLM-managed lands. Relatedly, it supports efforts to increase public awareness of wildlife resources, conservation challenges, and conservation successes, with a targeted focus on reaching communities of color, low-income families, and rural and Indigenous communities.

Eligibility is limited to public and nonprofit sectors and higher education, not private commercial applicants. Eligible applicants include state, county, and city or township governments; special district governments; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Tribal governments; other Tribal organizations; and nonprofits (both 501(c)(3) and non-501(c)(3)). Individuals and for-profit organizations are explicitly ineligible under this notice of funding opportunity (NOFO). The opportunity also clarifies a common misunderstanding about staffing: this NOFO does not support entities hiring interns or crews under the Public Lands Corps Act of 1993. Youth Conservation Corps organizations that want to pursue projects involving that authority are directed instead to NOFO 15.243, BLM Youth Conservation Opportunities on Public Lands.

For applicants working through a Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU), the announcement calls out a specific indirect cost limitation: indirect costs are capped at no more than 17.5 percent for cooperative agreements with CESU partners. Applicants are expected to state whether they will participate in the CESU program and identify which CESU Network would serve as the host, which is an important compliance detail for budgeting and proposal preparation.

Key administrative details include a listed award ceiling of $125,000 and an original closing date of February 3, 2025. The program is categorized under Natural Resources (CFDA 15.247). Overall, the opportunity is aimed at partnerships that can deliver measurable habitat and wildlife conservation benefits on BLM lands in Idaho, backed by strong science and monitoring, and designed to broaden public engagement and equitable participation in wildlife-related stewardship and economic opportunity.

• The Bureau of Land Management in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "FY25 IIJA/IRA Bureau of Land Management Idaho (ID) Wildlife Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.247.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2024-11-21.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2025-02-03. (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 $125,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education.

Apply for L25AS00148

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