Opportunity Information: Apply for DE FOA 0002520
The Department of Energy (DOE), through its Golden Field Office, released a competitive grant opportunity called "WAP Enhancement and Innovation" (FOA number DE-FOA-0002520) to strengthen and modernize the long-running Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP). WAP has existed since 1976 and is designed to help low-income households lower their energy bills by improving home energy efficiency, while also addressing basic health and safety issues in the home. The program particularly focuses on households that tend to face higher risks and higher energy burdens, including older adults, people with disabilities, families with children, high energy users, and households where utility costs take up an unusually large share of income. WAP services are delivered through a nationwide network of 57 grantees and roughly 700 local subgrantees, operating across every state, Washington, DC, tribal lands, and several US territories.
This funding was directed by Congress under Public Law 116-260, signed in late 2020, which instructed DOE to create a competitive "Enhancement and Innovation" (E&I) initiative alongside the traditional formula-funded WAP structure. The goal is to fund projects that push beyond routine weatherization by demonstrating approaches that can be replicated and scaled nationally, especially when combined with standard WAP formula funds and other public or private resources. In practical terms, DOE is looking for demonstration projects that can deliver deeper energy retrofits to low-income housing, increase the overall impact of WAP dollars, and improve outcomes for communities that have historically been underserved.
The FOA makes a total of $18.6 million available from the FY 2021 appropriation. Individual awards can be as large as $2,000,000, and DOE anticipated making about 16 awards. The assistance instrument is a discretionary grant, and the activity category is energy (CFDA 81.042). Eligibility is aimed at state, local, tribal, and nonprofit organizations, consistent with the statutory authority cited in the notice. Applicants are expected to submit through DOE's EERE Exchange portal, which is also where the full FOA text and submission guidance are posted.
DOE organized the competition around four main topic areas, each meant to address a specific barrier to scaling high-impact home energy upgrades for low-income households. The first area, place-based initiatives, emphasizes targeting and delivering deep retrofits through community-centered strategies that can reach neighborhoods or communities with high energy burdens. The second area focuses on multifamily housing, where technical, ownership, financing, and tenant-related complexities often make it harder to weatherize at scale. The third area covers single-family and manufactured housing, supporting innovation for common housing types served by WAP, including approaches that improve readiness for more comprehensive upgrades. The fourth area is workforce development, reflecting the need to expand and diversify the labor pipeline required to deliver energy efficiency, home performance, and renewable energy work at greater scale.
A central theme across all four areas is leveraging: DOE encourages applicants to braid E&I funds with existing WAP formula funds and other funding sources to expand project scope, test new delivery models, and support technologies or measures that help households reach deeper savings. The FOA also highlights "weatherization and electrification readiness" as an important objective, meaning projects should help increase the number of homes that can successfully receive energy upgrades by addressing barriers like deferred maintenance needs, safety issues, and conditions necessary for healthy indoor environments. Another emphasis is building partnerships that can bring in additional capital and capabilities, including collaborations that maximize the installation of renewable energy and other emerging technologies where appropriate.
The opportunity is framed as part of the broader federal climate and equity agenda, aligned with Biden Administration goals such as achieving carbon pollution-free electricity by 2035 and moving toward net-zero greenhouse gas emissions economy-wide by 2050. DOE positions this FOA as a way to drive innovation that speeds deployment of energy efficiency retrofits and clean energy technologies while advancing environmental justice. In addition to emissions benefits, the FOA stresses quality jobs and economic growth, particularly by supporting training, hiring, and retention strategies that create pathways for people who are underrepresented in energy efficiency and renewable energy industries.
Key administrative details include an original posting date in mid-December 2021, with an original closing date of February 28, 2022, and the requirement that applications be submitted via EERE Exchange. The FOA text also points applicants to federal definitions and references that govern eligibility and low-income definitions, including the WAP regulations and the way each WAP grantee defines low income within its service territory through its annual WAP grant application materials.Apply for DE FOA 0002520
- The Department of Energy, Golden Field Office in the energy sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "FOA: WAP Enhancement & Innovation" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 81.042.
- This funding opportunity was created on Dec 14, 2021.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Feb 28, 2022. (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 $2,000,000.00 in funding.
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 16 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).
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| Funding Opportunity |
|---|
| Clean Hydrogen Production, Storage, Transport and Utilization to Enable a Net Zero Carbon Economy Apply for DE FOA 0002663 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002663 Agency: Department of Energy, National Energy Technology Laboratory Category: Energy Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Silicon Carbide Cladding Development Apply for DE FOA 0002662 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002662 Agency: Department of Energy, Idaho Field Office Category: Energy Funding Amount: $45,000,000 |
| Bioenergy Technologies Office Overcoming Barriers to Renewable Fuel Scale-up and Demonstration Request for Information (RFI) DE-FOA-0002615 Apply for DE FOA 0002615 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002615 Agency: Department of Energy, Golden Field Office Category: Energy Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| DE-FOA-0002573: Technical Partnerships FOA Apply for DE FOA 0002573 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002573 Agency: Department of Energy, Golden Field Office Category: Energy Funding Amount: $4,000,000 |
| DE-FOA-0002687: Request for Information on Industrial Decarbonization Priorities Apply for DE FOA 0002687 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002687 Agency: Department of Energy, Golden Field Office Category: Energy Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| DE-FOA-0002657 Apply for DE FOA 0002657 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002657 Agency: Department of Energy, Golden Field Office Category: Energy Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Bioenergy Technologies Office Request for Information (RFI) on Community-scale Resource and Energy Recovery from Waste Solutions - DE-FOA-0002682 Apply for DE FOA 0002682 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002682 Agency: Department of Energy, Golden Field Office Category: Energy Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Geothermal Drilling Technology Demonstration Campaign (GDTDC) Apply for DE FOA 0002656 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002656 Agency: Department of Energy, Golden Field Office Category: Energy Funding Amount: $9,000,000 |
| Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Battery Materials Processing and Battery Manufacturing Funding Opportunity Announcement Apply for DE FOA 0002677 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002677 Agency: Department of Energy, National Energy Technology Laboratory Category: Energy Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Bipartisan Infrastructure Law - Electric Drive Vehicle Battery Recycling and Second-Life Applications Apply for DE FOA 0002679 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002679 Agency: Department of Energy, National Energy Technology Laboratory Category: Energy Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| FY22 Carbon Utilization Technology: Improving Efficient Systems for Algae Apply for DE FOA 0002654 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002654 Agency: Department of Energy, Golden Field Office Category: Energy Funding Amount: $3,000,000 |
| Bipartisan Infrastructure Law - Rare Earth Element Demonstration Facility Apply for DE FOA 0002686 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002686 Agency: Department of Energy, National Energy Technology Laboratory Category: Energy Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) - RFI on Clean Hydrogen Manufacturing, Recycling, and Electrolysis Apply for DE FOA 0002698 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002698 Agency: Department of Energy, Golden Field Office Category: Energy Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) - 2022 Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs Implementation Strategy RFI Apply for DE FOA 0002664 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002664 Agency: Department of Energy, Golden Field Office Category: Energy Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| DE-FOA-0002684 is a Notice of Intent to Issue DE-FOA-0002614 entitled Carbon Management. Apply for DE FOA 0002684 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002684 Agency: Department of Energy, National Energy Technology Laboratory Category: Energy Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Challenges and Opportunities for Building-Integrated Photovoltaics Apply for DE FOA 0002685 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002685 Agency: Department of Energy, Golden Field Office Category: Energy Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| FY22 BETO Waste Feedstocks and Conversion R&D Apply for DE FOA 0002636 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002636 Agency: Department of Energy, Golden Field Office Category: Energy Funding Amount: $2,500,000 |
| Request for Information (RFI): Designing Equitable, Sustainable, and Effective Revolving Loan Fund Programs Apply for DE FOA 0002716 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002716 Agency: Department of Energy, Golden Field Office Category: Energy Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Clean Technology and Trade Partnership Initiative’s Accelerating Clean Energy Transitions Technology Needs Assessment Apply for SFOP0008761 Funding Number: SFOP0008761 Agency: Department of State, Office of Acquisitions Management Category: Energy Funding Amount: $684,000 |
| Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) - Request for Information on Energy Improvements at Public School Facilities Apply for DE FOA 0002715 Funding Number: DE FOA 0002715 Agency: Department of Energy, Golden Field Office Category: Energy Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
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