With unprecedented federal funding heading to Michigan to support environmental projects, Naomi Davis’ mantra to communities across the Midwest is “What will you do with your Biden billion?”

Davis, founder and CEO of the Chicago nonprofit Blacks in Green, is one of many leaders across the country working to help communities understand and take advantage of funding from the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, better known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), and the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). 

Over 10 years, the two laws will invest over $2 trillion nationwide – including billions in Michigan – in various infrastructure projects heavily emphasizing environmental initiatives. Funds for projects focusing on clean energy, transportation, water, climate resilience, and pollution cleanup will be available. 

“Money like this has never come before,” Davis said. “We’re not going to see it again in our lifetime.”

Davis said her strategy is to “get as many of the trillions of dollars that are out there waterfalling right now into frontline organizations and community-level groups that are working, ideally, hyper-locally.” 

Here’s a look at some of the most common questions about the opportunities and challenges associated with BIL and IRA funding and how to find support in applying for it.

Who is this funding for?

The target audience for IRA and BIL funding is broader than you might expect. While much of the money will go to state or local governments, community-based organizations (CBOs) can apply for many funding opportunities established under the acts. 

Ramsay Ritchie is a project manager at Elevate, a Chicago nonprofit helping Midwest communities navigate BIL and IRA funding through a nonprofit-funded Local Infrastructure Hub

He said BIL and IRA funding often feels “inaccessible” to CBOs partly because the most heavily publicized funding programs, such as Solar for All, aren’t necessarily targeted at CBOs. But he said many other smaller funding opportunities are well-suited to grassroots organizations.

“A lot of times, we’re the first person to sort of talk to folks about, ‘Hey, this [funding opportunity] could really apply to you,'” Ritchie said. “And their response is often, ‘Well, great. Let’s go do it.”

Many IRA and BIL funds will also be directed toward disadvantaged communities. The federal Justice40 initiative, established by an executive order President Biden signed shortly after taking office, stipulates that 40% of federal investments in climate change, clean energy, pollution remediation, and other environmental issues flow to communities that are “marginalized, underserved, and overburdened by pollution.” 

While Justice40 applies to all federal investments in certain categories, it’s particularly relevant to BIL and IRA’s environmental focus. 

OK, how can my organization apply?

One of the initial challenges is navigating the tremendous breadth of funding to find the right funding opportunity for your project. The state of Michigan’s website lists 12 BIL and/or IRA programs for which the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy is applying. A document prepared by the University of Michigan Graham Sustainability Institute lists over 150 BIL and IRA programs relevant to Michigan’s sustainability initiatives.

“A lot of them are very specific,” said Kate Madigan, who has been helping local and tribal governments navigate funding opportunities through her firm, Madigan Consulting and Coaching. “So finding something that’s a good fit can be a challenge.”

Once a suitable funding opportunity is identified, Davis said the application process is “labyrinthine.” 

That can be a significant barrier to the CBOs and local governments in the disadvantaged communities BIL and IRA’s environmental programs target. 

Victoria Loong, a policy manager at We the People of Detroit, has been doing outreach to underserved communities about funding opportunities available through Michigan’s State Revolving Fund.

“A lot of underresourced communities don’t have the capacity. They don’t have the technical assistance to .. get engineering consultations, to draft the plans, and to follow up,” she said. “And it’s really not just the project application and design. It’s the whole process. So even if the project gets funded, there needs to be follow-through technical assistance throughout the project to ensure that it’s completed.”

How can I get help applying for funding?

Fortunately, a network of experts has sprung up across the Midwest (and the rest of the country) to provide free technical assistance to those who wish to apply for BIL or IRA funding. Technical assistance can come in various forms, supporting all stages of the application process, from navigating funding opportunities to writing the grant itself. 

One of the most robust sources of technical assistance for underserved communities will be the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Centers Program

The program is establishing 16 Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Centers (TCTACs, commonly pronounced “tick-tacks”) across the country to help underserved and overburdened communities access federal funds, including those from IRA and BIL. 

Each TCTAC will receive at least $10 million from the EPA. The two TCTACs serving Michigan and five other Midwest states will be Blacks in Green, Davis’ Chicago-based nonprofit, and the University of Minnesota. Each of them will also work with numerous academic and nonprofit partners across their region to provide a full complement of services to the communities and CBOs they serve.

Davis said she and her staff hope to create a “frustration-free” experience for grant applicants.

“It’s a lot of landmines out there, and most of us have stepped on many of them,” Davis said. “It can make you a little crispy. So we just want people to feel served and to know that someone is the champion for them.”

Some TCTACs are still in the process of launching their operations. While the University of Minnesota’s TCTAC launched this summer, Blacks in Green’s TCTAC will launch early next year. 

But other technical assistance resources are available now. The Michigan Infrastructure Office (MIO) has launched a Technical Assistance Center (TAC), offering state reimbursement for technical assistance provided by four state-contracted providers: global firm McKinsey and Company, Nevada-based Rawlins Infra Consult, Grand Rapids-based Jetco Solutions, and Massachusetts-based Cambridge Systematics.

Zachary Kolodin, director of MIO and the state’s chief infrastructure officer, said MIO’s “bread and butter” is helping communities apply for federal funding for “fairly mature” infrastructure projects. 

However, he said he also intends for the state TAC to offer support to groups that are in the earlier stages of developing projects that could be funded under BIL or IRA. Kolodin said MIO hopes to point anyone who reaches out to MIO “in a productive direction” no matter their needs.

“There’s a balance that the technical assistance center aims to strike between rapidly deploying technical assistance to projects that are ready for funding so that Michigan can maximize our share of federal infrastructure dollars, and being as responsive to community needs as we can be so that we can build capacity for the future,” he said.

Other sources of technical assistance are available outside of the TCTACs and the state TAC, and most of their services are free through partnerships with nonprofits or state agencies. 

For a list of technical assistance providers and their contact information, see “So where do I get started?” below.

“Even if you don’t know of a project, if you have a project or even if you don’t, just starting to have the conversation is a good first step,” Madigan said. 

Madigan and Ritchie stress that more open-ended technical assistance providers will be needed to serve communities at all stages of the funding application process as BIL and IRA funding continue to roll out. 

“We have this five- to 10-year window where there’s so much opportunity to bring this funding into Michigan for projects that are really going to transform our state, especially in disadvantaged and under-invested communities,” Madigan said. 

What else can I do to improve my chances?

Technical assistance providers recommend starting with a specific initiative in mind to fund, rather than choosing a funding opportunity first and then trying to mold a project around that program.

“If you know that school bus pollution is a major problem in your community, start with that, versus ‘Let’s look at all of the funding available,'” said Michelle Roos, executive director of the Washington, D.C.-based Environmental Protection Network, which provides pro bono technical assistance nationwide. “Apply for funding to do the work you already intended, but didn’t have the money to do it.”

Collaboration is also a good strategy to keep in mind. Ritchie said coalition-based applications “tend to be strongest.” 

Madigan notes that some IRA and BIL programs, like the IRA Community Change Grants Program, specifically require applications from partnerships between CBOs, local or tribal governments, or educational institutions.

“Find out who’s working on this at the municipal level in your community, and have a sit-down with them and see if there are ways to partner or to make sure your priorities are included,” Madigan said.

For white allies, particularly those in well-resourced CBOs or communities, Davis said an important form of collaboration is stepping back and serving others. 

“Rather than accept that money and re-grant it, call your friend on the front line and say, ‘Look, I heard about an opportunity. … I’m gonna support you in filing that grant on your own steam,'” she said. “[That] removes that paternalistic, hierarchical, sort of race-centric concept that these small Black and Brown organizations just can’t handle the money. It’s just a matter of having a chance to get the experience.”

So, where do I get started?

For your first steps:

  • Register your organization at SAM.gov to make doing business with the federal government easier.
  • Invest.gov provides an overview of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, including BIL and IRA. 
  • Build.gov provides an overview of BIL. 
  • Cleanenergy.gov provides an overview of IRA.

To peruse funding opportunities for Michigan organizations and communities:

To learn more about organizations and agencies that can help, peruse our Planet Detroit Technical Assistance Directory:

Planet Detroit Technical Assistance Directory

Prepared by Stacey Grant, Path Consulting. Planet Detroit does not endorse any service provider. If you believe any information is inaccurate, outdated, or misleading, please email us at connect@planetdetroit.org.

More resources:

TRACK STATE OF MI FUNDING

The State of Michigan is applying for BIL and IRA funding to access Michigan local governments, Tribes, institutions, and nonprofits.

MI Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE)

Other grants managed by EGLE

MI Department of Agriculture & Rural Development (MDARD)

MI Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO)

MI High Speed Internet Office (MIHI)

MI Department of Natural Resources

MI Department of Transportation (MDOT)

MI Economic Development Corporation (MEDC)

MI State Housing Development Authority

Energy & Weatherization Assistance

Recycling Grants

TRACK FEDERAL FUNDING

There are federal funding opportunities beyond IRA and BIL, which can be found on agency and other websites:

U.S. Dept. of Agriculture (USDA) 

Food Loss and Waste

Rural Development Programs in Michigan

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) 

Hazard Mitigation Assistance Programs

Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) 

Fiscal Year 2023 Funding Opportunities 

Green and Resilient Retrofit Programs

Dept. of Interior (DOI)  

Tribal Resilience Federal Funding Resources

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 

EPA Grant Programs and Other Funding Opportunities

EPA Environmental Justice Grants, Funding, and Technical Assistance

Dept. of Energy (DOE) 

Funding and Financing

Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) grants 

Dept. of Transportation (DOT)

Key Notices of Funding Opportunities  

DOT Discretionary Grants Dashboard

EV Funding Finder – by Electrification Coalition

Federal Funding for Building Upgrades / Decarbonization – (explainer sheet)

Find Federal Funding Specific to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law or Inflation Reduction Act

IIJA & IRA Funding Tracker – Tool created by University of Michigan researchers to track IRA and IIJA federal funding programs relevant to Michigan and sustainability – including tax incentives.

Federal Funding Technical Assistance – List of open grants relevant to MI local and Tribal governments and sustainability.

Mi Water Navigator – MML Foundation’s grants & funding database for water infrastructure funding. 

Climate Program Portal – search tools and resources available to governments and nonprofits. 

MIO Community Navigator is a search tool for BIL grant programs. 

MIO Investment Tracker – Tracks BIL Investments in Michigan to date.

Guidebook to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law – List of all BIL funding programs. 

Guidebook to the Inflation Reduction Act – List of all IRA funding programs.

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Patrick started writing for a startup newspaper in his hometown of Monroe, Michigan when he was still in high school. That paper is now dead, but Patrick's career in journalism somehow managed to take off over the ensuing decade. Patrick has written for national publications including The A.V. Club and Paste, as well as a slew of Michigan-based publications including the Detroit News, the Ann Arbor Observer, Hour Detroit, Pulp, MLive, and Real Detroit Weekly. He started writing for Concentrate in 2012 and has since become a regular contributor to its sister publications, Model D and Metromode.

Patrick graduated from Wayne State University in 2011 with a bachelor's degree in journalism. He lives in Ann Arbor. When he's not pitching, editing, or writing stories, he can usually be found at the movies or in the woods.