FS-1500-0045 Project Narrative

FS-1500-0045 (REV. 09/2025)

OMB No: 0596-0253

EXP Date: 05/31/2027

Community Wildfire Defense Grant

Project Narrative Form

Project Title: Provide a uniquely descriptive title for this project. Use this full title consistently on all submission communications and documents, including letters of support.

Project Applicant: Enter the name of organization applying for Federal funding.

Program Contact: Name and contact information for lead project contact, i.e., for implementing the project if funded.

Name:

Email:

Phone:

Brief Project Overview and Purpose: Provide a brief overview and purpose statement for the project, addressing the overall intent of this program to assist communities with planning and mitigating their risk against wildfire.

Grant Component Type: (please select only one per application):

Creating or Updating a Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) that is more than five (5) years old.

Implementation Project described in a CWPP that is less than 10 years old

Is your community considered “at-risk” (please refer to the definition within the NOFO): Yes No

Link to verification source:

Roofing Code/Ordinance: Do you currently have, or will you adopt prior to grant award, an ordinance or regulation that requires that roofs for new building construction, as well as the reroofing or replacement of a roof on existing buildings, adheres to standards that are similar to, or more stringent than, the roof construction standards established by the National Fire Protect/ion Association or applicable model building code established by the International Code Council (this is not a requirement for eligibility but determines source of funds). Yes No

Link to verification source:

GIS Coordinates:

Ref. Point Name:
Lat/Long:
Description:
Area Name:
Boundary Lat/Longs:
Description:

Please include enough coordinates/description to be able to represent the general area of the impact of the project for which you are applying, including reference to state and county in the description. For point-based projects, please include a reference point and description. For fuel treatments, please include enough coordinates to ascertain a general boundary of the area being treated. If unsure of boundaries, please include a reference point and the planned acreage to be treated under the description. For CWPP development, please include a description of the planning area and type (e.g. municipality boundary, fire response district, township, etc.).

Clearly and concisely respond to each section of the following pages. For the longer sections we encourage you to include sub-headings, line spacing, and/or other formatting for ease of reading (rather than fill every line with words). You may format text in MS Word and then copy and paste it into this Form. Some text formatting is available in the PDF form, e.g., bold, underline, and italic. To format text in the Form: Highlight the text, right click, and select “Text Style.”

Project Description (20 Points)

Provide a comprehensive but succinct overview of the proposed project that includes basic details of who is doing what, where, and why this is important. Explain how the project is described in a CWPP (if applicable). Provide linkages to the tenets of the Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy and the State Forest Action Plan.

Project Budget Explanation (10 Points)

The budget narrative should describe how the grant funds will be spent with specific details for each grant expenditure. This includes clearly explaining how the budget will be spent by line item, sources of match (if applicable), and how expenditures are applicable and relevant to the goals and objectives of the project. A project proposal must also show how the applicant will meet matching requirements or qualify for a waiver. If qualified for a waiver, you do not need to show funding in the match column. Information regarding matching funds will not impact scoring. Any program income generated during the award period must be accounted for by either: 1) reducing the federal share of the award, 2) using as program match, or 3) using as additive funds to do more work. Program income means gross income earned by the recipient or subrecipient that is directly generated by a supported activity or earned because of the federal award during the period of performance.

Measurable Outcomes

Provide the output amount for at least one of the quantitative accomplishment measures listed below.

You may also list additional specific measurable results that show how the Federal investment will lead to outcomes on the landscape. In the narrative section on the next page, describe less quantifiable return on investments.

	Number of Activities		Cost
	Planned		Planned
CWPP
Development of New CWPPs
Updates of CWPPs
Planning
Training in mitigation practices
Tabletop or functional exercises, testing or evaluating plan effectiveness
Planning development, including building codes, zoning ordinances, land use planning, public health and safety, mitigation, prescribed fire and smoke ready efforts
Creating local/regional mitigation partnership or collaborative groups
Wildfire Prevention and Mitigation Education/Outreach
Firewise or similar programs outreach to communities and property owners
Fire education presentations
Property inspections and/or assessments
Training to conduct property inspections and/or assessments
Reduce Hazardous Fuels / Restore Fire-adapted Ecosystems
Hazardous Fuels Reduction or Mitigation Projects, including maintenance
Total # of acres treated to reduce hazardous fuels (direct grant only)
Monitoring components of projects for effectiveness
Prescribed fire training, including smoke management
Design and installation of dry hydrants and cisterns
Purchase and maintenance of equipment

Accomplishments (10 Points)

Clearly define how the project will be accomplished, timelines and milestones (i.e. how the selected objectives will lead to measurable outcomes for community wildfire risk reduction, how the applicant will measure progress towards those outcomes (such as, acres treated to reduce hazardous fuels, change in fire regime, etc.). The proposed metrics for measuring progress must be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely.

Collaboration (10 Points)

The application should clearly define collaborative elements including support from partners, agencies, landowners, and communities. A project proposal must identify partners that will be actively engaged in carrying out the project and add value to project planning and implementation, with a description of each partner’s role. Collaboration may be qualitative in nature, and the contribution of the partners may be more important than the number of partners involved.

a

Landscape Impacts (10 Points)

Clearly define the scale of the project, including relationships with past, present, or future projects that, when combined, offer more benefits than when taken individually. The overall landscape that the project influences, in addition to the defined project area, should be clearly described, as well as the land ownership within the area. Specify areas targeted for planning or mitigation. Clearly describe each proposed activity and include details about where they will be occurring. Include the approximate number of structures that will benefit from the proposed action.

Project Sustainability (10 Points)

Clearly define how, or if, the project will sustain itself after the grant period is over. Describe any plans or steps that will be taken to continue the project benefits beyond the life of the grant, as well as who or what organizations will be responsible.

Does this project benefit a low-income community as defined in the NOFO? (10 Points)

Yes No Link to verification source:

Has this community been impacted by a severe disaster, as defined in the NOFO, within the previous 10 years? (10 Points)

Yes No Link to verification source and explanation of how the Severe Disaster impacts future wildfire risk or hazard to the community:

Is this project located within an area identified as having high or very high wildfire hazard potential as defined by a state, regional, tribal, territorial or national wildfire hazard potential assessment? (10 Points)

Yes No Link to verification source:

PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT STATEMENT

According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, a Federal agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, an information collection request unless it displays a valid Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection request is 0596-0253. Response to this information collection request is required to obtain or retain benefits. The authority for this information collection request is the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (23 USC 101). The time required to complete this information collection request is estimated to average 75 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, collecting and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the information collection request. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this information collection request, including suggestions for reducing the burden, to the USDA Forest Service email address SM.FS.InfoCollect@usda.gov, with OMB control number 0596-0253 in the subject line.

File Type	application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document
File Title	USDA Forest Service Eastern Region State and Private Forestry Fiscal Year 2022 Landscape Scale Restoration Competitive Process R
Author	U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Eastern Region,
File Modified	0000-00-00
File Created	2025-12-16