Visit TechWerx to apply for the BUILT Nonprofits funding opportunity.
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) launched the $50 million Renew America’s Nonprofits Program – referred to in President Biden's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law as the Energy Efficiency Materials Pilot Program – to reduce carbon emissions, improve health and safety, and lower utilities costs at buildings owned and operated by 501(c)(3) nonprofits.
In 2023 DOE announced the Renew America’s Nonprofits Grant which is providing $45 million in awards to support energy improvements in approximately 300 facilities across 28 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Learn more about the nonprofit organizations leading this work.
A new funding opportunity is now open for nonprofits! Apply for the newest funding opportunity from the Renew America’s Nonprofits Program: Building Upgrades Inspiring Local Transformation (BUILT Nonprofits). This opportunity will fund energy efficient equipment and installation in nonprofit buildings to reduce energy use, lower carbon emissions, and generate long-term energy cost savings.
Visit the TechWerx Opportunity Page to find more information about eligibility, register for upcoming webinars and office hours, and start your application today! Submissions are due by November 12 at 11:59PM ET.
Subscribe to the Renew America's Nonprofits Newsletter to learn about upcoming webinars, events, and funding opportunities.
Read the most recent Newsletter!
Hey Teaming List members!
Join the Distribution List now to stay informed and get involved.
The DOE’s Teaming List for the Renew America’s Nonprofits program was established to facilitate engagement and collaboration between nonprofits and potential partners. Participation has been at an all-time high from community members, nonprofits, local businesses, funders and more! To align with the evolution of the Renew America’s Nonprofits Program, to better accommodate participants, and to allow for more direct communication about opportunities specifically for nonprofits, we will be closing the Teaming List and redirecting stakeholders to the Distribution List. We are asking all current Teaming List members to sign up for the Distribution List to gain access to tools, resources, webinars, and more.
Please note that previous participation in the Teaming List does not automatically add you to the Distribution List. Click this link to join today!
Are you a nonprofit looking for energy efficiency upgrades and wondering how to get involved in the Renew America’s Nonprofits?
Here’s how:
- Sign up for Distribution List to stay in the know on upcoming technical assistance and funding resources in 2024.
- Find tools and resources for nonprofits now in the Related Resources section below.
- Collaborate with us on the clean energy future. DOE's Renew America's Nonprofits team wants to hear from you! Let us know how we can better serve the nonprofits sector in achieving your clean energy goals.
- Stay tuned!
Technical Assistance for Nonprofits is Now Underway
DOE’s Renew America's Nonprofits Program will be offering technical assistance (TA), open to all nonprofits, nationwide, to share resources and information about building energy improvements, solar tools, and tax credits financing opportunities and more!
Check out our previous webinars:
On February 27, 2024, the Renew America's Nonprofits program hosted an informational webinar about the importance of energy efficiency as a first step in preparing for solar. This webinar focused on tools for benchmarking, identifying low-cost improvements, and identifying the right financing option. Experts from the DOE, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Environmental and Energy Study Institute provided information tailored to the nonprofits sector.
The Renew America’s Nonprofits Program hosted a webinar on Tuesday, April 30 to provide information for nonprofits considering investing in solar energy. This webinar highlighted free tools and resources to assist in identifying solar possibilities and understanding how to assemble your project team. Nonprofits spoke to their experience with successful solar projects and the energy saved, and an expert from the National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) demonstrated the use of two solar assessment tools.
The Renew America’s Nonprofits Program hosted a webinar Tuesday, May 21 highlighting a new funding opportunity: Elective Pay (also called “direct pay”). As a result of the Inflation Reduction Act, nonprofits are now eligible to receive direct cash payments equal to the full value of tax credits for qualifying clean energy or transportation projects.
This webinar was hosted in partnership with the DOE Office of Policy. Hospitals, housing providers, religious institutions, and other community-based organizations were invited to learn more about eligible technologies and how tax-exempt entities can take advantage of tax credits worth up to 70% of the project cost.
This was the third part of a webinar series about current opportunities for nonprofits to improve and invest in their buildings. DOE encourages nonprofits to check out the previous webinars in this series below
The DOE Office of State and Community Energy Program (SCEP) and Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) held an informational webinar on July 9th about community solar opportunities for nonprofits. This included nonprofit success stories for how to leverage the National Community Solar Partnership and the Community Power Accelerator.
On August 28, 2024, the Renew America's Nonprofits program hosted "Funding Strategies for Nonprofits: Making the Case for Energy Investments," the first webinar in a series designed to help nonprofits make the case to funders for energy efficiency upgrades and clean energy improvements. This webinar provided strategies to present a compelling case for energy and infrastructure upgrades to a Board of Directors, funders, and other stakeholders. Leaders in the funding community spoke about the current philanthropic climate, fellow nonprofits covered creative approaches to translating building upgrades to impact, and panelists shared tools to help quantify efficiency and tell your story.
View the webinar and read the slides
To support organizations with energy upgrades which boost efficiency and save money, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) hosted a webinar in an ongoing series called, “Funding Strategies for Nonprofits.”
The webinar covered the value of utility rebates and incentives and how they can be part of an organization’s capital stack for infrastructure projects. Speakers highlighted resources available to identify local rebate and incentive programs and demonstrated the tangible first step to accessing this funding.
Congratulations to the Prime Selectees of the Renew America’s Nonprofits Grant!
Selectees were announced on October 25, 2023. Nine nonprofit organizations will share $45 million in awards, and collaborate with 38 partners, to deliver energy improvements in approximately 300 nonprofit buildings across the country – including 28 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Prime Selectees now enter the award phase, and will submit portfolios identifying subrecipients, efficiency projects, and a complete picture of their impacts by approximately June 2024. To date, Prime Selectees have already indicated plans to support nonprofits with diverse missions including emergency response services, support for unhoused populations, support for refugees, protection against domestic violence, protection against food insecurity, housing, religious services, health services, and more. To stay up to date on the progress of the Renew America’s Nonprofits program, sign up for our distribution list below.
Spotlighted Questions
The Teaming List is a tool intended to help organizations with complementary goals connect and explore partnerships - including prospective Prime selectees and subrecipients. It is not a source of news/updates from the DOE. If you would like to receive updates about program and Prime selectees, tools, resources, and additional opportunities from the Renew America's Nonprofits program, join our mailing list. If you would like to explore a partnership with another organization on this list, please reach out to them directly using the contact information provided.
DOE is not responsible for the formation of partnerships between prospective Prime and prospective subrecipients. However, we have provided the Renew America's Nonprofits Teaming List to help connect organizations that may wish to partner with each other. We recommend reviewing the current teaming list for potential candidates, researching their backgrounds, and contacting them using the contact information provided. As a best practice, we recommend exploring relationships with multiple candidates to promote best fit and normalize expectations.
Related Resources
Federal Funding Opportunities for Nonprofits
EPA Climate Change Grants Program View and apply for the open Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for Environmental and Climate Justice Change Grants by November 21, 2024.
EERE Funding Programs View open funding opportunities from the DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.
Grants.gov (List of Federal Grants) Search by eligibility for “Nonprofits”, then filter by the category “Energy” and “Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA)” to find relevant federal funding opportunities for energy improvements.
Tax Credits for Nonprofits
Database of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency Find tax credits, rebates and savings available in your state.
Direct Pay for Tax Credits White House factsheet explaining how nonprofits can now access tax credits for clean energy through direct pay, following guidance from the Treasury.
Tools & Resources
Better Buildings Initiative Solution Center Resource center of building solutions by building type, sector, technology, or barrier.
DOE Building Efficiency Targeting Tool for Energy Retrofits (BETTER) This tool quickly and easily identifies the most cost-saving energy efficiency measures in buildings using readily available building and energy data.
DOE Buildings Asset Score Audit This tool allows users to generate energy retrofit measure recommendations and energy savings estimates. Create a login then score the building and review the associated Energy Asset Score Report.
Justice40 Initiative Learn about the whole-of-government initiative to ensure 40 percent of the overall benefits of certain Federal investments flow to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized, underserved, and overburdened by pollution.
National Community Solar Partnership Ecosystem which enables organizations to interact with each other, funders, and solar providers. NCSP also provides technical assistance, including credit-ready guidance.
Renew America's Nonprofits Grant Information
Read the Press Release
Read the Fact Sheet
Read the 2023 Funding Opportunity Announcement
Read the Q&A
Review the Renew America's Nonprofit's Webinar
- Renew America's Nonprofits Informational Webinar Presentation Slides
- Renew America's Nonprofits Webinar Recording (Starts at 16:53)
Review the Renew America's Nonprofit's Virtual Office Hours 1
- Renew America's Nonprofit's Office Hours 1 Presentation Slides
- Renew America's Nonprofit's Office Hours 1 Recording (Starts at 16:15)
Review the Renew America's Nonprofits Virtual Office Hours 2
- Review our Digital Engagement Toolkit for ways to engage with, and amplify the news of, the Renew America’s Nonprofits grant and its Selectees.
Grant funds will support the installation of materials to reduce energy or fuel use in buildings owned and operated by 501(c)(3) nonprofits.
The Office of State and Community Energy Programs (SCEP) intends to use an aggregation model to implement the Renew America’s Nonprofits program. In this model, successful nonprofit applicants would be “prime” recipients of the awards, characterized by their ability to curate a portfolio of “subrecipients”— nonprofits seeking to implement energy efficiency upgrades in buildings they own and operate—and to provide technical assistance, program, and project management for these organizations.
To expand their capabilities, potential prime recipients may plan to work with partner organizations which are not required to be 501(c)(3) nonprofits.
Prime Selectees will submit portfolios identifying subrecipients, efficiency projects, and a complete picture of impacts by approximately June 2024.
The Department of Energy announced selections for the Renew America's Nonprofits grant on October 25, 2023.
BIL Provision 40542
Office:State and Community Energy Programs |
New Program:Yes |
Funding amount:$50,000,000 |
Funding Mechanism:Competitive Grant |
Recipients:Nonprofit Organizations |
Period of Availability:Available until expended |
News from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law
Learn More About the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law
Read the Fact Sheet.
Read the FAQs.