The Catalyst Program is designed to stimulate economic growth and inspire partnerships that improve rural economic vitality across the four-state Northern Border Regional Commission (NBRC) region.
Donor Name: Northern Border Regional Commission (NBRC)
State: Maine, New Hampshire, New York, Vermont
County: Selected Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 03/07/2025
Size of the Grant: More than $1 million
Grant Duration: 3 Years
Details:
Northern Border Regional Commission (NBRC) encourages projects that take a creative approach to addressing an economic need or opportunity in the region, alleviate economic distress, and contribute to economic growth.
Successful projects support a broad range of economic development initiatives such as, but not limited to, projects that modernize and expand access to public water and wastewater services, revitalize transportation infrastructure, establish workforce development programs and facilities, grow the outdoor recreation economy, and provide access to new childcare and healthcare facilities.
Funding Information
- Infrastructure Projects: Projects classified as construction in support of infrastructure are eligible for awards of up to $1,000,000. Infrastructure projects may be eligible for up to an additional $2,000,000 in funding, for a total maximum award of $3,000,000, if the project meets one of the following criteria:
- Construction takes place in two or more eligible communities/counties/states; or
- Construction involves two or more infrastructure categories (basic public, transportation, or telecommunications).
- Non-infrastructure Projects: Projects classified as non-infrastructure projects are eligible for awards of up to $500,000. Feasibility projects have a maximum award size of $100,000.
Grant Period
Proposals that demonstrate the proposed work can be completed within the 3-year performance period and begin to draw down NBRC funds within 12 months of the award date will receive a higher score.
Eligible Activities
- Non-Infrastructure Project Type
- Feasibility Projects (Maximum award size of $100,000)
- Planning, design and/or feasibility projects that:
- Align with an NBRC infrastructure category.
- Demonstrate community support and engagement.
- Result in deliverables that support the implementation of an infrastructure project.
- Business and Workforce Development
- Systems, services, programs, and facilities that support:
- Job training and employment-related education.
- Workforce attraction and retention.
- Meeting the current and future needs of the region’s employers.
- Creating, retaining, or expanding businesses.
- Cultivating partnerships and opportunities for long-term growth and development of businesses.
- Accelerating the successful development of start-up and early-stage companies.
- Basic Healthcare
- Systems, services, programs, and facilities that support:
- Well-being with a focus on the needs of medically underserved communities.
- Solving community health problems.
- Providing accessible, cost-effective, and efficient approaches to enhance physical and mental health.
- Resource Conservation, Tourism, Recreation
- Systems, services, programs, facilities, easement, and land purchases that:
- Promote resource conservation, tourism, or recreation as part of an asset-based economic development approach.
- Improve the overall quality of life for individuals who live, work, and recreate in the region.
- Are consistent with local, state, or regional economic development goals.
- Infrastructure Project Type
- Transportation
- Construction, alteration, or repair of physical transport facilities, systems, and structures, including fixed installations and rights of way necessary for transporting from one point to another, that:
- Are open to the general public for use.
- Facilitate reliable movement of people and goods.
- Influence local and regional economies.
- Basic Public Infrastructure
- Construction, alteration, or repair of assets, facilities, systems, and structures that:
- Are open to the general public for use.
- Are crucial to the functioning of an economy.
- Provide the foundation for economic growth in the community and region.
- Water and Wastewater
- Construction, alteration, or repair of drinking water and wastewater assets, facilities, systems, and structures that collect, treat, and deliver drinking water and wastewater.
- Solid Waste
- Construction, alteration, or repair of solid waste assets, facilities, systems, and structures that include recycling, composting, disposal, and waste-to-energy via incineration.
- Heat Generation Systems
- Construction, alteration, or repair of heat generation assets, facilities, systems, and structures that include cogeneration, biomass, geothermal heating, and heat pumps.
- Outdoor Recreation
- Construction, alteration, or repair of outdoor recreation trails and facilities that:
- Demonstrate increased health and social benefits.
- Support resident attraction and retention goals.
- Increase sustainable outdoor recreation tourism as part of a coordinated effort.
- Public Meeting Spaces
- Construction, alteration, or repair of public meeting spaces such as town halls or community centers that focus on increasing community connectedness and meet the general basic public infrastructure requirements.
- Childcare or Basic Healthcare Facilities
- Construction, alteration, or repair of childcare or basic healthcare facilities that meet the general basic public infrastructure requirements.
- Telecommunications Infrastructure
- Construction, alteration, or repair of telecommunications infrastructure, cyber infrastructure, and network infrastructure that:
- Aid in the transmission of information or signals.
- Are crucial to running a modern, industrialized economy.
- Provide the foundation for communication services.
Eligibility Criteria
- State governments of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and New York
- Local governments and secondary and career technical centers (village, town, city and county)
- Other political subdivisions of states (regional planning commissions, authorities of the state)
- Non-profit entities: Designated 501(c) and exempt from taxation under 501(a). Nonprofit entities must be able to demonstrate they have established operations in a member state, and they have federal grant experience related to economic development.
- Federally recognized Indian Tribes; § 200.54 Indian tribe.
- Only projects within the NBRC’s service area are eligible for funding. For 2025, the NBRC service area is:
- Maine: Androscoggin, Aroostook, Franklin, Hancock, Kennebec, Knox, Lincoln, Oxford, Penobscot, Piscataquis, Somerset, Waldo, and Washington counties.
- New Hampshire: Belknap, Carroll, Cheshire, Coös, Grafton, Merrimack and Sullivan counties.
- New York: Cayuga, Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Genesee, Greene, Hamilton, Herkimer, Jefferson, Lewis, Livingston, Madison, Montgomery, Niagara, Oneida, Orleans, Oswego, Rensselaer, St. Lawrence, Saratoga, Schenectady, Schoharie, Seneca, Sullivan, Warren, Washington, Wayne, Wyoming and Yates counties.
- Vermont: all counties within the State.
For more information, visit NBRC.
