Funding Opportunity Announcement: Programa de Comunidades Resilientes

What is a Topic Area? 
Topic Areas are distinct opportunities to apply for funding within this FOA. That is, this FOA has two interrelated Topic Areas but each one has a unique sector focus.  Apart from the facilities eligible for solar and battery storage installations under each topic area, both Topic Areas have the same submission requirements and evaluation criteria.
 

What is the timeline for the application and review period? 
Application submissions are due no later than 5 PM EST on October 22nd, 2024. Notifications of selections are expected to be made before the end of 2024.
 

Are there templates for the required application documents: Cover Page, 1-Page Summary, or Technical Volume?    
There are no standard templates for the Cover Page, 1-Page Summary, or Technical Volume. However, the sections must contain the mandatory information contained in Section IV. ii Content and Form of the Full Application of the FOA.
 

Does the Davis-Bacon Act apply? 
No, Davis-Bacon labor requirements do not apply to resulting awards.
 

Do Build America Buy American Requirements (BABA) Apply?
Yes, BABA requirements apply to resulting awards.
 

Are operations and maintenance (O&M) costs an eligible expense under resulting awards under this FOA?
Yes, DOE will consider covering up to 5 years’ worth of O&M costs as part of a resulting award.  All costs must be allowable under 2 CFR Parts 200 and 910/Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) (if applicable), as determined by the DOE Contracting Officer.
 

Can applications include solar and battery installations for individual residential units within multi-family housing?
No. Applications for installations that do not serve a community center or a common area within a public housing property or privately-owned subsidized multi-family project are not eligible.
 

What “common areas” or “community centers” in multi-family housing are eligible?
All areas and facilities within a public housing property or privately-owned subsidized multi-family properties, not specifically reserved for one occupant's exclusive use.
 

What types of healthcare facilities are eligible?
A Healthcare Center (330), Diagnostic & Treatment Center (CDT), or dialysis center.
 

What housing facilities are eligible?
Public housing properties: Housing assisted under the provisions of the U.S. Housing Act of 1937 to provide decent and safe rental housing for eligible low-income families, the elderly, and persons with disabilities.

Privately-Owned Subsidized Multi-Family Properties: Privately-owned subsidized properties in Puerto Rico with a project-based rental assistance contract issued under the Office of Multifamily Housing Programs, which includes 198 properties, supporting over 20,700 households. These multi-family properties contain more than 4 rental units per property and participate in HUD’s Section 8 Project Based Rental Assistance (PBRA) program under a Housing Assistance Payments (HAP) Contract, Section 202 Project Rental Assistance Contracts (PRAC), and Section 811 PRAC. The Section 202 PRAC are for elderly persons, the Section 811 PRAC are for persons with disabilities, and the Section 8 PBRA program covers all household types: families, elderly and disabled. Each property is identified by a unique HUD Property ID number, also known as an iREMS number. In addition, privately-owned USDA financed properties in Puerto Rico which includes 83 properties supporting 4,464 households of family, elderly, and disabled household types; specifically, the Section 514, 515, and 516 financed properties, along with any properties that have been restructured under USDA’s Multifamily Housing Preservation and Revitalization pilot program. These multi-family properties also participate in the Section 521 Project-Based Rental Assistance Program which currently provides rental subsidy for 3,773.
 

What type of teaming arrangement is DOE interested in for this FOA?
Teams should include entities that have an existing, physical presence in Puerto Rico and are in financial and regulatory good standing. Multi-stakeholder teams will be best positioned to ensure efforts and objectives supported by the FOA have the necessary support from relevant partners, community members and stakeholders to be successful both during and after the project period. 

Partnerships in the form of multi-stakeholder teams should include: 

• Lead organization to represent the team;
• Representative that has official decision-making authority for the target facility or facilities, if different from the lead organization;
• Expert local consultant with a demonstrated track record in the development, design, and/or engineering of solar and storage systems in Puerto Rico or, preferably, in the target community;
• All other entities and organizations that together have sufficient authority and influence to ensure overall success in applying the Federal funding within the community toward achieving the FOA’s objectives of energy resilience.
• Teaming partnerships should include Puerto Rican-based entities, which may include but not limited to, the following types of organizations: non-profit organizations, community-based organizations and grassroots organizations, solar installations companies, design and engineering firms, an energy service company (ESCO), consultants, corporations or similar organizations contributing to the economic development of the community, in particular: the community’s small- to mid-size businesses that are majority owned or controlled by underrepresented persons or groups of underrepresented persons.
   

Can you explain the difference between the lead applicant’s role and a team member role?
Once there is an award, the lead applicant would be considered a “prime” recipient. Prime recipients are the party ultimately responsible for the performance of all work under the award and management of the project budget, regardless of what entity (prime, subrecipient, or contractor) performs work as part of the prime recipient’s team. Being a prime recipient establishes privity of contract with the Government. This legal relationship distinguishes the prime recipient in their direct engagement with the federal agency. Prime recipients direct and control all engagements and communications with the Government client.  For this FOA, only the prime applicant would be responsible for submitting the necessary application documents.  Prime applicants should create and communicate a clear and streamlined process to any interested team members to ensure the development of a timely application submission meeting the FOA requirements.  The prime applicant should clearly delineate roles in this process and establish a timeline for potential team members to provide relevant information needed to complete teaming arrangements necessary to inform the application submission process. 

Prime recipients routinely collaborate with other entities to enhance the team’s capabilities. The prime recipient subawards or contracts with these entities, to provide a portion of the product and/or service required under the prime recipient’s award.  These entities may be classified as subrecipient, contractor, or subcontractor, depending on their relationship with the recipient and their roles/responsibilities. See 2 CFR 200.331.

Subrecipients and contractors must remember that in this role they:

• Have no privity of contract with the Government, only with the prime recipient (or subrecipient/contractor, if applicable). Prime recipients communicate and negotiate with the Government, while subrecipients/contractors communicate and negotiate with prime recipient (or subrecipient/contractor, if applicable).
• Take their sole direction from the prime recipient, not the Government.
   

Does every member of a team need to fill out an application to this FOA?
No. Only one application is submitted by the prime applicant, for the team. The prime applicant is solely responsible for submitting the necessary application documents.  Prime applicants should create and communicate a clear and streamlined process to any interested team members to ensure the development of a timely application submission meeting the FOA requirements.  The prime applicant should clearly delineate roles in this process and establish a timeline for potential team members to provide relevant information needed to complete teaming arrangements necessary to inform the application submission process.
 

What is the Teaming Partner List and how can that be accessed for this Funding Opportunity?
DOE’s Teaming Partner List allows organizations that may wish to participate on a project to express their interest to other applicants, explore potential partnerships, and facilitate the formation of project teams. On the Infrastructure eXCHANGE webpage, an interested party can enter general contact information, along with the type of entity they are, areas of expertise, and the specific role they are interested in on a potential team.  A teaming arrangement represents a common way to combine complementary capabilities and resources to compete effectively for this competitive FOA that a single entity could not perform on its own.
 

Are there instructions on how to fill out the Teaming Partner List?
To submit an entry to DOE’s Teaming Partner List, click on the “Submit Entry to Teaming Partner List” button at the top or visit the Teaming Partner List Applicant Profile. In the Teaming Partner List dropdown menu, select the list corresponding to this FOA: Number TPL-0000010, Title TPL-0000010 for FOA DE-FOA-0003348: Puerto Rico Energy Resilience Fund.  Enter the following information into the required fields: Organization Name, Investigator Name, Investigator Title, Organization Type, Area of Expertise, Topic Area, Role, Background and Capabilities, and Contact Information. For those organizations located in Puerto Rico, “PR” is a selectable option in the “State” column.
 

Can I access the Teaming Partner List or Infrastructure eXCHANGE in Spanish?
While Infrastructure eXCHANGE is an English language platform, teams may submit to the Teaming Partner List in either English or Spanish. Please consult a Spanish how-to guide on how to navigate Infrastructure eXCHANGE, provided by DOE, which includes a list of translated terms used on the webpage in the Teaming Partner List.
 

Can I apply in Spanish? 
A translated version of the FOA will be available in Spanish, but applications must be submitted in English. Applicants requiring translation assistance to submit applications in English under this FOA must contact DOE at puertoricogdo@hq.doe.gov no later than two weeks prior to the application due date. Translation services will be made available at no cost to the applicant.
 

What Federal language assistance will be provided in the application process? 
While FOA applications must be submitted in English, DOE is providing various resources for language assistance. On the Clean Energy Infrastructure Funding Opportunity eXCHANGE there is a full translation of the FOA. DOE also plans to publish a pre-recorded FOA Overview and How to Apply videos in English and Spanish.

Applicants requiring translation assistance to submit applications in English under this FOA should contact DOE at puertoricogdo@hq.doe.gov no later than two weeks prior to the application due date. Translation services will be made available at no cost to the applicant.