In past years, we have issued a request for pre-proposals for Watershed Assistance Grants in the summer, with interviews and full proposals in the fall. Since EPA is currently revising the national Section 319 program guidelines, we decided to delay issuing our 2013 RFP until we know the content of the new guidelines, a draft of which is expected in September.
Our tentative plan is to issue a request for full proposals in September/October with submittals due in November/December, eliminating the pre-proposal stage due to a compressed timeframe.
The new national Section 319 program guidelines are likely to include some flexibility regarding watershed-based plans and increased emphasis on protecting high quality watersheds and on measurable results. We also expect to have more clarity on the issue of doing 319 work in MS4 watersheds.
Stay tuned, and thanks for your patience.