WaterSMART: Applied Science Grants for Fiscal Year 2025 and Fiscal Year 2026 | R25AS00038

Opportunity Information: Apply for R25AS00038

The WaterSMART: Applied Science Grants for Fiscal Year 2025 and Fiscal Year 2026 opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number R25AS00038) is a discretionary grant program from the Bureau of Reclamation (CFDA 15.557) focused on practical, manager-ready applied science. The core goal is to help non-federal water entities stretch their own dollars by cost sharing with Reclamation to produce tools, datasets, and decision support that can be put to work quickly in real-world water management. Projects are expected to improve access to and use of hydrologic data, advance water management tools, and strengthen modeling and forecasting capabilities, with the clear expectation that results will be used by water managers rather than remain purely academic or exploratory.

This program is aimed at outcomes that directly support water supply reliability and day-to-day operational decision-making. The solicitation emphasizes that project deliverables must be readily applicable, meaning they should translate into usable information, workflows, or tools that agencies and districts can adopt for operational needs. Examples of the types of management objectives the program is intended to support include improving water delivery management and operational flexibility, supporting water marketing activities, strengthening drought management, enabling conjunctive management of groundwater and surface water, assisting with water rights administration, improving the ability to meet endangered species requirements, supporting watershed health, and advancing conservation and efficiency efforts. The program also explicitly calls out nature-based solutions as a priority area, signaling interest in work that helps integrate natural infrastructure and ecosystem-based approaches into planning and operations.

Eligibility is organized into two applicant categories. Category A includes entities that directly deliver or manage water or power, such as states, Indian Tribes, irrigation districts, and water districts, as well as state, regional, or local authorities made up of one or more organizations with water or power delivery authority, and other organizations with similar delivery authority. Category A applicants must be located in eligible U.S. states and territories, which include: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming, plus American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico.

Category B is designed for research and nonprofit organizations that can contribute technical capacity, provided they are working in an active partnership with a Category A entity. Eligible Category B applicants include universities, nonprofit research institutions, federally funded research and development centers (FFRDCs), and nonprofit entities such as 501(c)(3) organizations, as long as they are acting in partnership with and with the agreement of an eligible Category A organization. A key requirement for Category B applications is documentation of that partnership: the application should include a letter from the Category A partner stating that the partner is participating, agrees with the submission and its contents, and intends to be involved in the project (for example by giving input, reviewing and providing feedback, or otherwise supporting the work). Notably, the partner does not have to provide cost share funding, which leaves flexibility for partnerships where the Category A entity contributes participation, data, operational insight, pilot testing, or implementation support instead of cash.

From a funding standpoint, this is a grant program with an award ceiling of up to $400,000 per award and an anticipated total of about 40 awards. The opportunity is structured to promote cost sharing and leveraging of non-federal resources, consistent with the program purpose of stretching limited funds to produce operationally valuable results. The original closing date listed for this notice is February 10, 2026. Overall, the opportunity is a strong fit for projects that bridge the gap between hydrologic science and water operations by turning data and analysis into practical forecasting, modeling, and decision tools that water managers can adopt to improve reliability, resilience, and environmental performance.

• The Bureau of Reclamation in the regional development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "WaterSMART: Applied Science Grants for Fiscal Year 2025 and Fiscal Year 2026" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.557.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2024-11-19.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2026-02-10. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $400,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 40 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for R25AS00038

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