Climate Action Funding and Technical Resources

Overview

The concern about climate change has been widely recognized on a global, national, and regional level. State and local governments are addressing climate change in their plans and policies and taking action to reduce greenhouse gases.

In 2021, MRSC established the Local Climate Response Project to help local governments reduce greenhouse gas emissions, center equity in climate planning efforts, and adapt to and become more resilient to the effects of climate change. Out of this project grew a series of webpages, blogs, and webinars. 

This page focuses on general resources local governments may find helpful regarding climate change and local climate actions, as well as funding resources. 

Funding Resources for Climate Action

Below are funding resources for climate action planning and implementation from Washington State and elsewhere. 

Washington State Funding Resources

• Department of Commerce
  • Climate Planning — Offers an overview of the state’s climate planning requirements and associated grants.
  • Energy Division — Includes information on the Washington State Energy Office's incentives and grants.
• FundHubWA - FundHubWA helps people and organizations find state and federal clean energy and climate funding opportunities. The portal includes links to applications and resources.
• Department of Ecology: Find a Grant or Loan — Includes information on the department's grants and loans related to air, climate, water, and shorelines. 
• Department of Transportation: Funding Programs — Provides information on federal and state funding programs, including carbon reduction; pedestrian and bicycle programs; and safe routes to school programs. 

Additional Funding Resources

• American Cities Climate Challenge: Federal Funding Opportunities for Local Decarbonization (2021) — Online tool that sorts available funding sources and allows users to compare and contrast up to four programs simultaneously.  
• Georgetown Climate Center Adaptation Clearinghouse: Funding Opportunities — Has a vast number of resources and can be filtered by jurisdictional focus, regions affected, and states impacted.
• Puget Sound Energy
  • Fleet Electrification — Assists public and private fleets in their transition to electric vehicles by offering savings on capital expenses, reducing operation and maintenance costs, and supporting sustainability goals.
  • Green Power Solar Grant — Offers funding for Puget Sound-based community-oriented solar projects as well as utility assistance support for low-income individuals.
• Urban Sustainability Directors Network: Funding and Financing Climate Action Plans (2019) — Provides local governments with recommendations on how to construct climate action plans to ensure that the actions identified and prioritized can be implemented through a strong funding/finance component.
• U.S. Climate Resilience Toolkit: Funding Opportunities — Includes links to government entities and private foundations that offer financial and technical resources to advance local adaptation and mitigation efforts. 
• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
  • Clearinghouse for Environmental Finance
  • Funding and technical assistance for climate adaptation — Includes BIL, IRA, and EPA funding programs.
  • Grants — Includes links to regional grants and specific EPA grant programs, including those related to air quality and climate change. Every year, EPA awards more than $4 billion in funding for grants and other assistance agreements.

Inflation Reduction Act

The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act — commonly known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) — have opened up many avenues for competitive federal funding opportunities related to clean energy, infrastructure, and more. Below are several resources specific to these bills and the grants programs released under their programs.

State Agencies

• Association of Washington Cities
  • Inflation Reduction Act 
  • Bipartisan Infrastructure Law 
• Washington State Department of Commerce
  • Climate Pollution Reduction Grant Program - The federal Climate Pollution Reduction Grant Program (EPA.gov) is one of many federal funding opportunities created through the Inflation Reduction Act and run through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). This program provides grants to states, local governments, tribes, and territories to develop and implement plans for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and other harmful air pollution.
  • Federal Clean Energy Tax Assistance Program - Available to those eligible for federal clean energy tax incentives through the IRA. Free resources, including personalized support from clean energy tax attorneys, are available now for tribes, community-based organizations, local governments, ports, and others eligible for these incentives.
  • Federal Funds Grant Writing Assistance Program - Designed for tribes, community-based organizations, local government agencies, and other entities to help prepare and submit federal grant applications. This resource includes services such as grant application planning, writing, and review and guidance for managing federal awards.

Federal Agencies:

• EPA: Funding and Technical Assistance for Climate Adaptation — Includes BIL, IRA, and EPA funding programs
• Department of Energy: Clean Energy Infrastructure Program and Funding Announcements
• Department of Transportation: Key Notices of Funding Opportunity
• Department of the Treasury: IRS Release Guidance on Provisions to Expand Reach of Clean Energy Tax Credits Through President Biden’s Investing in America Agenda (2023)

Climate Action Technical Resources

From the local to the international level, climate impacts like extreme heat, wildfires, and flooding have been the focus of considerable attention by governments in recent years. Below are links to reports, studies, peer networks, and other technical assistance from nonprofits and research institutes in Washington State and beyond. 

Regional: Washington, Oregon, and California

• California State Natural Resources Agency: Building Climate Resilience — Includes resources on climate action, including California’s climate adaptation strategy and climate programs and partnerships.
• Climate Solutions — Based in Oregon and Washington, this nonprofit organization spearheads a regional approach to clean energy solutions. Includes a web broadcast series, research, and reports. 
• GEOS Institute — Based in Oregon, this organization uses its technical and process expertise to help local leaders build climate resilience in their communities. Its Climate Ready Communities program helps small to medium-sized communities create climate resilience plans with an assisted do-it-yourself approach. The website offers a free guide to building climate resilience. 
• Northwest Clean Energy Atlas — Explores the region's energy data use and provides detailed, up-to-date, and transparent system data to help inform decisions and track the progress of the clean energy transition.
• Oregon State Department of Land Conservation and Development: Climate Change Resources —Includes climate change resources such as climate action plans, natural hazard mitigation plans, and regional scenario planning.
• Puget Sound Climate Preparedness Collaborative — A regional network of local and tribal governments, regional agencies, and organizations is focused on peer learning and exchange of information, ideas, and opportunities related to climate preparedness. 
• University of Washington
  • Carbon Leadership Forum — Focused on eliminating embodied carbon in buildings and infrastructure by inspiring innovation and spurring change through collective action.
  • Climate Impacts Group — This research group is widely recognized for scientific discovery, as an experienced developer of impartial and actionable science, and as a catalyst for building regional climate resilience. 
• Washington State
  • Department of Commerce: Climate — Includes information on Commerce’s multi-year project to develop guidance for counties and cities to address mitigation, resilience, and disproportionately impacted communities within their comprehensive plans. 
  • Department of Ecology: Climate — Includes information on climate change, its causes, greenhouse gases, and other resources. 
  • Department of Health: Climate — Includes information on climate change impacts to health in terms of air quality, water, extreme heat, shellfish safety, and agriculture, as well as additional resources. 
  • Department of Natural Resources: Climate — Discusses assessing species vulnerability and natural areas resiliency. 
  • Department of Transportation: Climate Resilience — Includes WSDOT's climate-related studies.

National and International

• American Planning Association: Climate Change Policy Guide — Includes policies that can be used to help formulate position statements, legislative recommendations, and other policy-based actions. 
• Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES) — Offers a comprehensive collection of scientific and public policy information regarding climate change to encourage innovative programs and solutions.
• Rocky Mountain Institute: The Carbon-Free City Handbook (2019) — Includes 22 actions and associated resources for cities interested in moving toward climate-neutrality. 
• United Nations (UN)
  • Climate Action — Portal for all UN climate change-related programs, actions, and knowledge.
  • Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change — Seen as the definitive source of mainstream scientific consensus on climate science and projections of climate change impacts.
  • Sustainable Development Solutions Network — Mobilizes global scientific and technological expertise to promote practical solutions for sustainable development. Its 2020 America’s Zero Carbon Action Plan offers suggestions for building an economy that achieves net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
• United States
  • EPA: State and Local Climate and Energy Program — Offers free tools, data, and technical expertise about energy strategies (including energy efficiency, renewable energy, and other emerging technologies) to help state, local, and tribal governments achieve their environmental, energy, and economic objectives.
  • Global Change Research Program — Coordinates research and cooperation across its 13 federal member agencies to advance understanding of the changing Earth system and maximize efficiencies in federal global change research. It conducts a regular National Climate Assessment to analyze the impacts of global climate change in the U.S.

Peer Networks for Climate Action

• C40 Knowledge Hub — Provides a wealth of climate-related information from climate experts. Registered users gain the ability to track topics of interest and receive personalized recommendations based on their interests.
• CivicWell — Works to build livable communities and local leadership via innovative programs and networking opportunities. Its climate change resources include community engagement tools, case studies, and local climate change adaptation reports. Also see CivicSpark.
• Climate Mayors — A bipartisan peer-to-peer network of U.S. mayors demonstrating climate leadership through actions in their communities. Includes an electric vehicle collaborative and climate action compendium, a detailed inventory of municipal actions on climate change and other sustainability issues. Partnered with the C40 Knowledge Hub to produce Climate action and the Inflation Reduction Act: A guide for local government leaders (2022). 
• Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy — The largest global alliance for city climate leadership, built upon the commitment of over 10,000 cities and local governments.
• ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability — A global network of more than 2,500 local and regional governments committed to advancing climate protection and sustainable development. 
• Mayors Climate Protection Center — Facilitates the Mayors’ Climate Protection Agreement.
• MRSC: Climate Action Peer Network — MRSC convenes local government staff quarterly via Zoom to share best practices and information on local and state climate efforts. For more information and to be added to the email list for these meetings, please contact MRSC staff at climateresources@mrsc.org.
• Urban Sustainability Directors Network — A network of local government professionals across the U.S. and Canada who share best practices focused on climate change mitigation, preparedness, and social equity.