Training and Technical Assistance to Improve Water Quality and Enable Small Public Water Systems to Provide Safe Drinking Water
On this page:
- Grant Announcement
- Background
- Available Funding
- Eligible Applicants
- How to Apply
- Timeline
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Historical Funding
- Contact Information
Grant Announcement
EPA Announces $30 Million to help Small and Rural Communities Protect Their Water under RealWaterTA Initiative
On April 13, 2026, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the availability of up to $30.7 million in grant funding, as part of the RealWaterTA Initiative, for technical assistance and training to support small drinking water and wastewater systems and to help private well owners improve water quality. This funding will help align technical assistance for drinking water and wastewater systems with tried-and-true services, such as operational support, workforce development, and financial management. This funding will benefit Americans nationwide, especially in rural areas where small systems face challenges operating and maintaining vital water infrastructure.
The purpose of the agreements is to provide training and technical assistance to:
Small public water systems to achieve and maintain compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA);
Small public water systems on a wide range of managerial and/or financial topics to achieve and maintain compliance with the SDWA;
Small publicly owned wastewater systems and communities served by onsite-decentralized wastewater systems to help improve water quality; or
Private well owners to help improve water quality.
This grant is part of the EPA’s larger commitment through the Water Technical Assistance program (RealWaterTA), which aims to provide a range of assistance for communities to identify water challenges, identify solutions, and build capacity. The application period for these competitive grants is now open. The funding opportunity will remain open for 30 days on Grants.gov.
Background
Since 2012, the Training and Technical Assistance to Improve Water Quality and Enable Small PWSs to Provide Safe Drinking Water grant program has provided over $170 million in funding to technical assistance and training providers.
Available Funding
For this grant cycle, the program is making approximately $30.7 million in federal funds available. The following is the expected total of awards in each of the three National Priority Areas:
- Two to three awards are anticipated under National Priority Area 1: Training and Technical Assistance for Small Public Water Systems to Achieve and Maintain Compliance with the SDWA, including Improving Financial and Managerial Capacity, with an estimated total of $26,000,000.
- One award is anticipated under National Priority Area 2: Training and Technical Assistance for Small Publicly-Owned Wastewater Systems and Onsite/Decentralized Wastewater Systems to Help Improve Water Quality and Sustainable Operations, with an estimated total of $1,250,000.
- One award is anticipated under National Priority Area 3: Training and Technical Assistance for Private Drinking Water Well Owners to Help Improve Water Quality, with an estimated total of $3,450,000.
All applicants must demonstrate in their application submission how they will contribute a minimum non-federal cost-share/match of 10 percent of the total amount of federal funding requested for the project.
Eligible Applicants
Eligible applicants for this competitive agreement are nonprofit organizations, nonprofit private universities and colleges, and public institutions of higher education. For-profit organizations are not eligible to apply. States, municipalities, or tribal governments are not eligible to apply. Nonprofit organizations described in Section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code that engage in prohibited lobbying activities as defined in Section 3 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 are not eligible to apply.
How to Apply
The grant program is a competitive program. The solicitation for the grants is posted on Grants.gov.
The Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) is viewable here:
Notice of Funding Opportunity (pdf)
Timeline
The closing date and time for receipt of application submissions is 11:59 p.m. EST on May 13, 2026 in order to be considered for funding.
Frequently Asked Questions
Questions about this Notice of Funding Opportunity must be submitted in writing via e-mail and must be received by the Agency contact identified in the Contacts section of this page. They must be received by 11:59 p.m. EST, April 27, 2026.
Please refer to the following document for responses to frequently asked questions.
FAQ Training & Technical Assistance Grant (pdf)
Historical Funding
Visit here for historical funding information.
Contact information
For additional information contact: SmallSystemsRFA@epa.gov