Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund

Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund grants provide Federal financial assistance to States and Territories (hereafter, �States�) that have entered into a cooperative agreement pursuant to section 6(c) of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) for species and habitat conservation actions on non-Federal lands, including habitat acquisition, conservation planning, habitat restoration, status surveys, captive propagation, research, and education. Traditional Conservation Grants: The principal objective of the Traditional Conservation Grant Program is to support the development and implementation of State programs to conserve and recover threated and endangered species under the FWS jurisdiction and to monitor candidate, at-risk, and recently delisted species. Conservation Planning Assistance Grants: The Conservation Planning Assistance Grant program provides funding to States to support the development of new habitat conservation plans (HCP), the renewal or amendment of existing HCPs, as well as the development of new conservation benefit agreements (CBA).? Funding may support the administration of approved and permitted CBAs (formerly Candidate Conservation Agreements with Assurances/Safe Harbor Agreements) as well.?Funding supports development and planning activities such as document preparation, public outreach, baseline species surveys, habitat assessments, and inventories. Preparation?of environmental review documents that may be needed under the National Environmental Policy Act and National Historic Preservation Act is also an eligible use of funds. Recovery...

All States and Territories that have entered into a cooperative agreement with FWS pursuant to section 6(c) of the ESA are eligible to apply to the annual Funding Opportunity Announcement.

Applications are scored and ranked based on criteria, subfactors, and priorities published annually in the Funding Opportunity Announcement.

This program�s matching requirements are mandatory. In accordance with section 6(d) of the ESA, the minimum non-Federal cost share is 25 percent of the total project cost. If an application involves the collaboration of two or more States, the minimum non-Federal cost share decreases to 10 percent of the total project cost.

Fiscal year 2025: Program has selected but not yet funded over 150 projects to assist States and Territories in the implementation of their respective programs for the conservation of resident threatened and endangered species of fish, wildlife, and plants. Selected projects include species and habitat conservation actions on non-Federal lands, including habitat acquisition, conservation planning, habitat restoration, status surveys, captive propagation, research, and public education and outreach. Fiscal year 2026: Program has not yet selected projects for funding. Program anticipates funding an estimated 150 projects to assist States and Territories in the implementation of their respective programs for the conservation of resident threatened and endangered species of fish, wildlife, and plants. Program expects to fund species and habitat conservation actions on non-Federal lands, including habitat acquisition, conservation planning, habitat restoration, status surveys, captive propagation, research, public education and outreach.