Opportunity Information: Apply for USDA NRCS IL CTA 20 GEN0010748
The NRCS-IL Conservation Technical Assistance - Surveying Aides opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number USDA-NRCS-IL-CTA-20-GEN0010748; CFDA 10.902) is a discretionary cooperative agreement offered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Illinois. It is rooted in the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act authorities (16 U.S.C. 590 a-f, 590q) and is aimed at strengthening on-the-ground conservation technical assistance capacity for private landowners and conservation districts across Illinois.
The central goal of the program is to partner with non-federal governmental entities so they can hire technically skilled, professional surveying aides who will support NRCS field operations. A major requirement is that proposals must clearly show they are adding new conservation capacity rather than shifting or re-labeling existing staff or resources. Applications that do not demonstrate an actual increase in available conservation resources are not eligible for consideration. In practice, this means the funding is intended to expand the workforce available to do conservation surveying and related technical support, not to backfill existing positions or simply move personnel costs from one funding source to another.
Eligibility is limited to governmental entities, specifically city or township governments, county governments, state governments, and special district governments. The intent is for these eligible entities to serve as the hiring organization for the surveying aides, while coordinating closely with NRCS-Illinois to place and deploy those staff in support of NRCS conservation planning and implementation needs. The hired employee is expected to be mobile: the announcement specifies the new employee must be able to travel about 50 percent of the time and work across multiple counties in alignment with NRCS guidance and its Illinois organizational structure (referenced as 34 District Groups).
NRCS-Illinois commits significant in-kind operational support to make these positions effective in the field. According to the announcement, NRCS will provide the workspace and basic operating environment, including office space, utilities, GPS survey equipment, a computer, a vehicle, and network access. This arrangement signals that the cooperative agreement is designed to quickly operationalize added staffing by removing common barriers like equipment costs and office logistics, allowing the partner entity to focus primarily on hiring and maintaining qualified personnel.
The surveying aides supported through this program are expected to perform hands-on technical duties that directly enable conservation practice planning, design, and follow-through. Their work includes assisting landowners in applying and maintaining conservation practices and helping with reviews tied to financial assistance requests under federal and state agricultural programs. They will gather preliminary resource inventory information and document physical site features on agricultural and other natural resource locations, which is foundational for conservation planning and practice layout. They are also expected to support conservation planners using survey tools and planning software, assist with data collection, compute and plot engineering notes, and prepare field sketches and drawings. In addition, they may select standard designs and make limited site-specific adjustments within established engineering review and approval limits, and they will help with implementation steps such as layout, checkout, and certification of conservation practices.
Key dates for the opportunity reflect a 2020 application cycle. The posting date is listed as March 23, 2020 (with a creation date of March 24, 2020), and applications were due by June 1, 2020 at 4:30 PM Central Standard Time. NRCS anticipated making awards around July 30, 2020, with an estimated project start date of August 1, 2020. The funding listing indicates an award ceiling of $2,000,000 and an expectation of about 12 awards, indicating NRCS intended to fund multiple partner entities to distribute surveying aide capacity across the state rather than concentrating it in a single award.Apply for USDA NRCS IL CTA 20 GEN0010748
- The Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service in the agriculture, natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "NRCS-IL Conservation Technical Assistance-Surveying Aides" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 10.902.
- This funding opportunity was created on Mar 24, 2020.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Jun 01, 2020 Applications must be received by June 01, 2020 at 430pm Central Standard Time (CST).. (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 $2,000,000.00 in funding.
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 12 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments.
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FAQs: NRCS-IL Conservation Technical Assistance - Surveying Aides (USDA-NRCS-IL-CTA-20-GEN0010748)
What is the NRCS-IL Conservation Technical Assistance - Surveying Aides opportunity?
This is a discretionary cooperative agreement offered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Illinois. The opportunity is identified by Funding Opportunity Number USDA-NRCS-IL-CTA-20-GEN0010748 and CFDA 10.902.
What is the main purpose of this funding?
The central goal is to strengthen on-the-ground conservation technical assistance capacity for private landowners and conservation districts across Illinois by partnering with eligible non-federal governmental entities that can hire technically skilled, professional surveying aides to support NRCS field operations.
What legal authority is this program based on?
The opportunity is rooted in the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act authorities (16 U.S.C. 590 a-f, 590q).
Who is eligible to apply?
Eligibility is limited to governmental entities, specifically:
- City or township governments
- County governments
- State governments
- Special district governments
Are non-governmental organizations eligible to apply?
No. Based on the announcement, eligibility is limited to governmental entities only (city/township, county, state, and special district governments).
What is NRCS looking for in the partnership arrangement?
The intent is for an eligible governmental entity to serve as the hiring organization for the surveying aides while coordinating closely with NRCS-Illinois to place and deploy those staff in support of NRCS conservation planning and implementation needs.
Does the proposal need to show the project will add new capacity?
Yes. A major requirement is that proposals must clearly demonstrate they are adding new conservation capacity rather than shifting, backfilling, or re-labeling existing staff or resources.
What happens if an application does not show an actual increase in conservation resources?
Applications that do not demonstrate an actual increase in available conservation resources are not eligible for consideration.
Can the funding be used to backfill an existing position or replace current funding for existing staff?
No. The funding is intended to expand the workforce available to do conservation surveying and related technical support, not to backfill existing positions or simply move personnel costs from one funding source to another.
What types of work will the surveying aides perform?
The surveying aides are expected to perform hands-on technical duties that support conservation practice planning, design, and implementation. Duties described in the announcement include assisting with:
- Helping landowners apply and maintain conservation practices
- Reviews tied to financial assistance requests under federal and state agricultural programs
- Gathering preliminary resource inventory information
- Documenting physical site features on agricultural and other natural resource locations
- Supporting conservation planners using survey tools and planning software
- Data collection, computing and plotting engineering notes
- Preparing field sketches and drawings
- Selecting standard designs and making limited site-specific adjustments within established engineering review and approval limits
- Implementation support such as layout, checkout, and certification of conservation practices
Who benefits from the surveying aides supported by this program?
The program is aimed at increasing conservation technical assistance capacity for private landowners and conservation districts across Illinois, by expanding NRCS field support capacity.
What are the expected travel requirements for the hired employee(s)?
The announcement specifies that the new employee must be able to travel about 50 percent of the time.
Will the surveying aides work in one county or multiple counties?
The surveying aides are expected to work across multiple counties, aligned with NRCS guidance and the Illinois organizational structure referenced as 34 District Groups.
What in-kind support will NRCS-Illinois provide to support these positions?
NRCS-Illinois commits significant in-kind operational support. According to the announcement, NRCS will provide:
- Office space
- Utilities
- GPS survey equipment
- A computer
- A vehicle
- Network access
What does the partner entity primarily need to provide?
Based on the description, the partner entity serves as the hiring organization and is responsible for hiring and maintaining qualified surveying aide personnel, while NRCS provides the workspace and core field/office operating resources listed in the announcement.
Is this opportunity a grant or a cooperative agreement?
The opportunity is described as a discretionary cooperative agreement.
What is the Funding Opportunity Number (FON) for this program?
The Funding Opportunity Number is USDA-NRCS-IL-CTA-20-GEN0010748.
What is the CFDA number for this opportunity?
The CFDA number listed is 10.902.
When was the opportunity posted?
The posting date is listed as March 23, 2020, with a creation date of March 24, 2020.
What was the application deadline?
Applications were due by June 1, 2020 at 4:30 PM Central Standard Time.
When did NRCS anticipate making awards?
NRCS anticipated making awards around July 30, 2020.
What was the estimated project start date?
The estimated project start date was August 1, 2020.
How much funding was available per award (maximum)?
The funding listing indicates an award ceiling of $2,000,000.
How many awards did NRCS expect to make?
The announcement indicates an expectation of about 12 awards.
What does the expected number of awards suggest about how NRCS planned to distribute support?
With an indicated expectation of about 12 awards, NRCS intended to fund multiple partner entities to distribute surveying aide capacity across Illinois rather than concentrating the capacity in a single award.
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