Community Forest and Open Space Conservation Program

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Forest Service, State, Private & Tribal Forestry, is requesting applications for the Community Forest and Open Space Conservation Program (Community Forest Program or CFP). CFP is a competitive grant program that provides financial assistance to Indian Tribes, local governments, and qualified conservation non-profit organizations to establish community forests through the fee simple acquisition of private forest land. The purpose of the program is to establish community forests by protecting forestland from conversion to non-forest uses and provide community benefits including public recreation, environmental and economic benefits, and forest-based educational programs. Public access is required for all projects. Applications are not submitted electronically via Grants.gov. The full Notice of Funding Opportunity and supporting documents (including scoring guidance and FAQs) are available under the 'Related Documents' tab of this listing and can be downloaded. To apply, interested local government and nonprofit applicants must submit applications to the State Forester where the property is located. Tribal applicants must submit applications to equivalent Tribal government officials. All applications must be received by State Foresters or Tribal governments by 11:59 PM Eastern Time on Tuesday, October 13, 2026. All applicants must also send an e-mail to SM.FS.CFP@usda.gov to confirm that an application has been submitted. State Foresters or Tribal government officials must forward applications to the appropriate Forest Service Regional office or International Institute of Tropical Forestry by 11:59 PM Eastern Time on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. Projects must conform to laws and authorities in Section 7A of the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act ([16 U.S.C. 2103d] Community Forest and Open Space Conservation Program) as amended.

Eligible local governments are any municipal government, county government, or other local government with jurisdiction over local land use decisions. Eligible Indian Tribes are federally recognized Indian tribes and Alaska Native Corporations. Qualified nonprofit organizations eligible for this opportunity are organizations that are consistent with Section 170(h)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and operates in accordance with one or more of the conservation purposes.

The Forest Service will give priority to an application that maximizes the delivery of community benefits through a high degree of public participation including underserved communities; and (1) Type and extent of community benefits provided. Community benefits include: (i) Economic benefits such as timber and non-timber products resulting from sustainable forest management and tourism (ii) Environmental benefits, including clean air and water, stormwater management, and wildlife habitat (iii) Benefits from forest-based experiential learning, including K-12 conservation education programs; vocational education programs in disciplines such as forestry and environmental biology; and environmental education through individual study or voluntary participation in programs offered by organizations such as 4-H, Boy or Girl Scouts, Master Gardeners, etc.(iv) Benefits from serving as replicable models of effective forest stewardship for private landowners (v) Recreational benefits secured through public access, such as hiking, hunting and fishing (2) Extent and nature of community engagement in the establishment and long-term management of the community forest including from underserved communities (3) Amount of cost share leveraged (4) Extent to which the community forest contributes to a landscape conservation initiative (5) Extent of due diligence completed on the project, including cost share committed and status of appraisal (6) Likelihood that, unprotected, the property...

Funds reimbursed by the Federal Government may not exceed 50 percent of the total project budget expended by the grantee. The non-Federal share of the match may be in the form of cash, services, or in-kind contribution. This program may use up to 10% of its funds for each fiscal year to provide technical assistance grants. Technical assistance funds do not have a matching requirement and are available to state foresters or equivalent officials of Indian tribes with a funded project in their jurisdiction.

Fiscal year 2025: This award will facilitate the acquisition of the Mosher Hill Falls Community Forest; a forested property selected for funding through a competitive process based on the public benefits this acquisition will have on the surrounding community. The property will be acquired and subsequently managed as a community forest under an approved community forest plan.