Q: How, where, and when can I apply for this funding?
The application window closed on October 6, 2023.
The final guidance is available on the Maintaining and Enhancing Hydroelectricity Incentives webpage or through the Clean Energy Infrastructure Funding Opportunity eXCHANGE.
Q: How much funding is available in Year 1?
Through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (commonly known as BIL), DOE received $553.6 million for the Maintaining and Enhancing Hydroelectricity Incentives. Please refer to the guidance for application requirements.
Q: What are the next steps for the Maintaining and Enhancing Hydroelectricity Incentives?
DOE is now in the process of reviewing applications and anticipates announcing those selected for negotiations in the spring of 2024.
Q: Where can I access the latest guidance?
The latest guidance is available on the Maintaining and Enhancing Hydroelectricity Incentives webpage or through the Clean Energy Infrastructure Funding Opportunity eXCHANGE.
Q: Do I need to submit a Letter of Intent (LOI) in order to be eligible to submit a full application?
Yes. Only projects that submit LOIs within the designated LOI period, will be eligible to submit a full application.
Q: Will DOE determine my application's eligibility based on my Letter of Intent (LOI)?
No. Eligibility will be determined by review of a full application. DOE will not respond to submitted LOIs.
Q: Will there be an appeal process for denied applications?
Yes. An appeal process is available for applications deemed ineligible (see Section XIV of the guidance).
Q: Can I apply for incentive funds under both Section 243 and Section 247?
Yes. However, the statutory limitations of 30% of project costs up to $5 million apply for each incentive payment under either Section 243 or Section 247.
Q: Can I apply for the Section 247 funds for a project that is also electing to take an Investment Tax Credit (ITC), Production Tax Credit (PTC), or other form of federal funding?
— added May 26, 2023
The statute does not restrict an applicant from applying for incentive payments under Section 247 while also seeking or accepting other forms of federal funding or tax credits for the same project. It is recommended that applicants consult with other federal agencies, such as the Department of Treasury, to confirm that a Section 247 incentive payment from DOE will not violate the terms or requirements for tax credits or non-DOE federal funding an applicant may seek for the project.
Q: What types of hydroelectric facilities are eligible?
In order to be eligible, a facility must meet the definition of a “qualified hydroelectric facility,” which means the facility:
(a) Is licensed by FERC or is a hydroelectric project constructed, operated, or maintained pursuant to a permit or valid existing right-of-way granted prior to June 10, 1920, or a license granted pursuant to the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 791a et seq.), or has a FERC-issued exemption.
(b) Was placed into service before November 15, 2021.
(c) Is in compliance with all applicable Federal, State, and Tribal requirements, or would be brought into compliance with all applicable Federal, State, and Tribal requirements as a result of the capital improvements carried out using an incentive payment under this section.
Q: I have already started making modifications that I think would qualify under this Guidance. Are capital improvements made prior to November 15, 2021, eligible?
No. Only materials procured or other costs incurred after November 15, 2021, are eligible for incentive payments.
Q: In a case where materials were purchased prior to November 15, 2021, can an applicant apply for an incentive payment to cover the labor related to the installation of the materials already purchased?
— added May 26, 2023
Yes. However, eligible labor costs must have been incurred after November 15, 2021. The applicant must submit documentation showing the purchase of materials prior to November 15, 2021, and labor costs incurred after November 15, 2021.
Q: Are multiple developments within a single FERC-licensed hydroelectric project treated as individual hydroelectric facilities and each eligible for an incentive payment of 30% of project costs up to $5 million per fiscal year?
Developments within an individual FERC-licensed hydroelectric project will be treated as a single hydroelectric facility and only one incentive payment may be made to each hydroelectric facility per fiscal year.
Q: Where should I enter the required LOI project information within the Clean Energy Infrastructure Funding Opportunity eXCHANGE?
— added June 16, 2023
An applicant must provide the required responses regarding the project information in the “Abstract” field of the LOI page within Exchange. See the red arrow below.
Q: Should I submit a separate LOI for each capital improvement project I plan to submit a full application for, or should I include all the capital improvement projects I plan to submit a full application for under one LOI?
— added June 16, 2023
An applicant must submit a separate LOI for each full application for a capital improvement project you plan to submit. Please note that you must select a single category (i.e., grid resiliency, dam safety, or environmental improvements) for each LOI and full application.
Q: My company owns multiple hydroelectric facilities. Is there a limit on how many applications I can file? Can I file one for each facility?
There is no limit to the number of facilities for which applications can be filed by a single owner. Applications for capital improvements across different categories (i.e., grid resiliency, dam safety, and environmental improvements) must be filed in separate applications. However, developments within an individual FERC-licensed hydroelectric project will be treated as a single hydroelectric facility and only one incentive payment may be made to each hydroelectric facility per fiscal year.
Q: I plan to submit multiple applications for a single facility (grid resilience, dam safety, and environmental improvements). Is there a potential for more than one to be selected?
— added May 26, 2023
Each application submitted for a facility will go through the review process in accordance with its respective category. In the case of oversubscription, the application will go through the oversubscription process outlined within the guidance.
The statute states, “Not more than 1 incentive payment may be made under this section with respect to capital improvements at a single qualified hydroelectric facility in any 1 fiscal year, the amount of which shall not exceed $5,000,000.”
Therefore, while multiple applications for a single qualified hydroelectric facility may be selected, the total incentive payment for that facility may not exceed $5,000,000.
Q: Is there any formatting guidance on page/word limits, font size, or font type for the sections in the full application?
— added September 19, 2023
A: Yes. As indicated in Section VIII(b)(13) of the Application Guidance, the Community Benefits Plan should be no more than 12 pages. In addition, Section XV of the Application Guidance provides documentation naming convention along with suggested file formats.
Q: My application may include proprietary information, will this information be protected from public disclosure?
— added June 16, 2023
Applicants should not include trade secrets or commercial or financial information that is privileged or confidential in their application unless such information is necessary to convey an understanding of the proposed project or to comply with a requirement in the guidance. Applicants are advised to not include any critically sensitive proprietary detail.
If an application includes trade secrets or information that is commercial or financial, or information that is confidential or privileged, it is furnished to the Government in confidence with the understanding that the information shall be used or disclosed only for evaluation of the application. Such information will be withheld from public disclosure to the extent permitted by law, including the Freedom of Information Act.
Without assuming any liability for inadvertent disclosure, DOE will seek to limit disclosure of such information to its employees and to outside reviewers when necessary for review of the application or as otherwise authorized by law. This restriction does not limit the Government’s right to use the information if it is obtained from another source.
Q: If information that is necessary for submittal as part of an application is covered under Critical Energy Infrastructure Information (CEII) disclosure regulations, is it appropriate to note that information would be regulated as CEII?
— added September 19, 2023
A: Pursuant to the provisions of 10 CFR 1004.13(g), applicants submitting information in their application that they believe to be Critical Energy Infrastructure Information (CEII), must clearly mark the information in bold, capital lettering, indicating that it contains CEII, as appropriate: “CEII—CRITICAL ELECTRIC INFRASTRUCTURE INFORMATION—DO NOT RELEASE.” Applicants must segregate those portions of the information that contain CEII (or information that reasonably could be expected to lead to the disclosure of the CEII) wherever feasible. DOE will process the request for CEII treatment in accordance with 10 CFR 1004.13.
Q: Can other enterprise plans or investments be used to meet the Community Benefits Plan requirements listed in the general application requirements, in section VIII within the guidance?
Applicants may reference or include existing plans or investments as part of an application. However, applicants will likely need to bolster their existing plans or investments to meet the objectives of the Community Benefits Plan. The application must describe how the proposed project will meet the four goals detailed in Section XIII(b)(13) of the guidance, which include: (1) community and labor engagement; (2) investing in the American workforce; (3) advancing diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility; and (4) contributing to the Justice40 Initiative.
Q: What type of substantive feedback on an applicant’s approach to community benefits should be reflected within a letter of commitment? If an applicant chooses to seek letters of commitment, are there any per letter page length or other limitations? Do the letters of commitment count against the 12-page limitation for the community benefits plan or are they considered separately?
Letters of commitment must state the specific nature of the partnership and state the specific element of the Community Benefits Plan the agreement supports. It may not be a general letter of support. The letter of commitment could be in the form of a letter on the partner’s letterhead outlining the planned partnership signed by an officer of the entity, a Memorandum of Understanding, or other similar agreement. Each letter of commitment must not exceed 2 pages. Each Workforce and Community Agreement must not exceed 10 pages. Letters of commitment and Workforce and Community Agreements will not count against the 12-page limit attributed to the Community Benefits Plan.
Q: What are direct costs versus indirect costs?
— updated August 23, 2023
The EPAct 2005 Section 247 statute states that, “The Secretary shall make incentive payments to owners or operators of qualified hydroelectric facilities for capital improvements directly related to improving grid resiliency…improving dam safety to ensure acceptable performance under all loading conditions (including static, hydrologic, and seismic conditions) [and]…environmental improvements.” Direct costs are those costs that can be identified as necessary to make the capital improvement in the facility or that can be assigned to a capital improvement in the facility relatively easily with a high degree of accuracy. This includes Community Benefits Plan related costs that can be identified as direct costs. Applicants will be expected to demonstrate that all costs associated with the eligible capital improvement are direct costs. DOE will evaluate these costs during the application review to determine whether costs are directly related to the capital improvement.
Q: Do I need a Federal System for Award Management (SAM) account and Unique Entity ID (UEI)?
Yes, a tax identification number of the hydroelectric generation facility, the creation or update of a Federal SAM account is required and confirmed with the assignment of a UEI number created in SAM.gov. Additional information can be found below.
- Tax Identification number for the qualified hydroelectric generation facility.
- Applying for a Tax Identification Number is a free service offered by the Internal Revenue Service. The online application process is available for all entities whose principal business, office or agency, or legal residence (in the case of an individual), located in the United States or U.S. Territories https://www.irs.gov/businesses
- Create or update your Federal System for Award Management (SAM) account.
- Entities registering in SAM.gov are assigned a Unique Entity ID (UEI). The Unique Entity ID is the official identifier for doing business with the U.S. Government as of April 4, 2022. Register to get started doing business with the federal government at https://sam.gov
Q: Can DOE provide more detail about what will happen in the event of oversubscription?
If the Small projects are oversubscribed but funding is available for projects that do not meet the Small project criteria, the eligible Small projects that were not awarded an incentive payment will be reviewed for funding along with the eligible applications that do not meet the Small project criteria.
If oversubscription occurs for projects that do not meet the Small project criteria, any unused funding remaining for Small projects will be used to fund those projects.
Q: If it takes longer than expected to complete the capital improvement would a time extension be granted? What if NEPA review takes longer than expected?
— updated June 16, 2023
Projects should be started and completed within 3 years after projects are selected for an incentive payment, unless DOE makes a written determination and finding that a longer project period is necessary for the success of the project. Applicants may request time extensions to any milestones set by DOE. DOE will review requests for time extensions and may approve or deny requests for time extensions at their sole discretion.
Q: Do for-profit entities, such as investor-owned utilities, have to comply with the Buy America requirements detailed in Section XIII of the guidance?
No. The requirements of Buy America only apply to state, local government, territory, Indian Tribe, institutions of higher education, and nonprofit organizations.
Q: Must projects that were completed prior to the application period have to comply with Buy America and Davis-Bacon Act requirements discussed in Section XIII of the guidance?
— updated July 7, 2023
Yes. However, applicants may request a waiver from Buy America requirements (See Section XIII of the guidance). Additional information on DOE Buy America Requirement Waiver Requests can be accessed at DOE Buy America Requirement Waiver Requests. Waivers are not available for Davis-Bacon Act requirements.
Q: With respect to Davis Bacon Act weekly reporting requirements, will a selectee that uses a bi-weekly payroll have any flexibility regarding the timing (weekly or bi-weekly) of the Davis-Bacon reports?
The Davis-Bacon Act (DBA) applies to laborers and mechanics performing physical or manual work at the site of construction work. Payment of wages every two weeks is not consistent with DBA which requires payment to employees “no less frequently than weekly.”
Q: I have already started work on a capital improvement project where costs were incurred after November 15, 2021, but a wage determination has not been made for some of the construction costs already underway. Would these costs be eligible under the capital improvement? Furthermore, if it is determined that the initial costs associated with a capital improvement project do not comply with Davis Bacon Act requirements and I modify my subcontracting agreements to comply with Davis Bacon Act requirements, could I apply for an incentive payment for the remaining eligible costs?
— added May 26, 2023
To be eligible for an incentive payment, applicants must fully comply with all requirements of the Davis-Bacon Act. It is incumbent on the applicant to demonstrate to DOE that it has complied with these requirements.
Q: Can a waiver be sought for Davis Bacon Act requirements?
As stated in the guidance, there are no waivers with respect to compliance with the Davis Bacon Act. However, Section XIII(b) P. 33 of the guidance references a waiver request with respect to a third-party electronic payroll compliance software application DOE anticipates contracting with in the future. DOE will only entertain waiver requests regarding use of a third-party electronic payroll compliance software.
Q: What documentation may be requested during potential periodic progress reports?
Periodic progress reports may be requested or required of applicants. Documentation or reporting requests could include but are not limited to:
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Summaries of work or completed tasks.
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Summaries of expenditures (labor and materials) with invoices.
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Documentation related to previous, current, and/or potential delays.
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Photos.
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Metrics or other data related to funding from IIJA.
Q: If it takes longer than expected to complete the capital improvements would a time extension be granted? For example, if National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 review takes longer than expected?
Applicants may request time extensions to any milestones set by DOE. DOE will review requests for time extensions and may approve or deny requests for time extensions at their sole discretion (refer to section X of the guidance).