Overview

This action involves the identification and evaluation of potential funding sources such as appropriations, performance contracting, and grant funding that could be used to implement the projects identified for each solution in the prior action. It also leads users through identification of procurement support contacts and presents considerations for choosing among funding sources for projects. The completed action will result in a table with the list of projects, their recommended funding source(s), if funding is required, and a summary of why the source(s) were chosen.

In-Depth

In this action, the resilience planning team will evaluate and summarize funding sources to find those that are best suited for each of the identified projects. Funding sources can be evaluated at a high level for applicability to an organization and projects to screen out obviously ineligible options. The remaining funding sources can then be evaluated at a more detailed level for their applicability to each project. The completed action will result in a table with the list of projects, their recommended funding source(s), and a summary of why the source(s) were chosen.

Evaluate Funding Sources

Funding sources and bundling opportunities should be screened for economic viability. For federal projects, the resilience planning team should engage their Federal Project Executive and reach out to FEMP via the Technical Assistance Request Portal to understand which of the funding sources are available to their specific organization. Federal agencies can also meet with their contracting officer to get input on funding sources. For example, an organization may not have a long-term PPA contracting authority, excluding that funding source from consideration. Location-specific information for projects should also be assembled as well to understand key insights related to potential funding sources. For example, a site cannot pursue a PPA if the site is located in a state where PPAs are prohibited (see DSIRE Detailed Summary Map of Third-Party Solar Power Purchase Agreement Policies for more detail on this exclusion).

Certain funding sources such as performance contracts may require a minimum project size to obtain project financing. Additional details to help the resilience planning team evaluate options are included in the TRN Resource: Identify and Evaluate Potential Funding Sources.

Identify Potential Bundling Opportunities

It is a best practice to bundle as many projects as possible under one funding source to minimize contracting effort and cost. This is particularly true in the case of funding sources such as ESPCs or UESCs, where projects can be included as energy conservation measures as part of a comprehensive performance contract. In other cases, a combination of funding sources may best serve a site’s resilience goals. For example, appropriations could be used to provide capital contributions to an ESPC or UESC that may not generate enough savings on its own to cover the costs of a resilience project within its scope. Grant funds and/or incentives may also be used with other funding sources to increase the scale of proposed projects. Bundled projects can be considered in the provided worksheet. Individual solutions that do not belong in a procurement bundle will be grouped by their funding source in this step.

Summarize Funding Sources

In this step, the resilience planning team will consolidate all projects and their chosen funding source (if available and required) and identify bundling opportunities. Projects without a viable funding source will be set aside, and the solutions those affect will be noted. This is important because these projects have been identified as part of a comprehensive solution, and if they are not executed, the risk reduction potential or other contributions of the solution may not be realized. Defining and executing projects, just like the resilience planning process, is an iterative exercise. The impacts of not executing a project on risk drivers, gaps, and critical loads should be analyzed to determine alternate pathways.

Instructions for Data Entry

For those working offline, consolidate all projects and their chosen funding source (if available and required) and identify bundling opportunities in Tab 3 of the Roadmap to Action Action 3 worksheet. Projects without a viable funding source will be set aside, and the solutions they affect will be noted. Projects without funding can be documented in Tab 4 of the Roadmap to Action Action 3 worksheet.