Grant Terms and Conditions: EPA RAIN

Apr 18, 2025 | Grants and Funding, Home

On April 10, EPA’s Office of Grants and Debarment (OGD) issued RAIN-2025-G02. This Recipient/Applicant Information Notice (RAIN) informs EPA assistance agreement recipients of a class exception to the EPA’s Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) regulations at 40 CFR Part 33. Effective immediately, OGD is suspending: 1) fair share objective requirements in 40 CFR Part 33, Subpart D; 2) recipient reporting requirements under 40 CFR 33.502; and 3) the compliance and enforcement provisions under 40 CFR 33.105. This class exception applies to all EPA awards. 

OGD has revised the existing Fiscal Year 2025 General Term and Condition, “Utilization of Disadvantaged Business Enterprises” to reflect RAIN-2025-G02. See T&C #27, provisions 5, 6, and 7. 

In addition, OGD has updated the Fiscal Year 2025 General Terms and Conditions, effective April 3, 2025. The April 3 changes are summarized below. These are the same changes that were communicated on March 25; however, the effective date has been updated to April 3. 

  • Added a new “Federal Anti-Discrimination Laws” T&C (See T&C #54) in accordance with Executive Order Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity. This new T&C only applies to new awards and funding amendments made on or after 4/3. 
  • Added a new termination provision to the “Termination” T&C (See T&C #3, provision (e)) in accordance with 2 CFR 200.340(a)(4). This new provision only applies to new awards and funding amendments made on or after 4/3. 
  • Updated the following T&Cs to revise the description of the requirements. Please refer to the regulatory citation to understand the full scope of the requirement.
    • “Establishing and Managing Subawards” T&C (See T&C #8, provision 5.a),  
    • “Civil Rights Obligations” T&C (See T&C #42, provision b.4), and 
    • “Resource Conservation and Recovery Act” T&C (See T&C #47, removed provision b that referred to a rescinded Executive Order)  

Please save a copy of the terms and conditions for your records when you receive your grant agreement.