Need Help Advancing Local Climate Action? Try Community Project Funding.

The guide explains that Community Project Funding (CPF), a form of discretionary spending available to U.S. senators and representatives, provides a flexible alternative to competitive federal grants for local climate action. It highlights the case of Cohoes, New York, which used $3 million in CPF to build a 3.2 MW floating solar array, and provides strategic advice for communities to secure similar funding by engaging representatives early and focusing on shovel-ready, community-supported projects.

• Community Project Funding (CPF) is a flexible discretionary spending mechanism available to members of Congress for local projects, valued at up to one percent of total discretionary spending, which is approximately $15 billion.
• CPF allows communities to prioritize unique local needs and innovative projects without having to conform to the rigid priorities of federal agencies, making it particularly useful for capacity-constrained communities that cannot provide matching funds for competitive grants.
• The town of Cohoes, New York, secured $3 million in CPF to implement a 3.2 MW floating solar array that is expected to power all municipal facilities and save an estimated $500,000 in annual electricity costs.
• To successfully secure CPF, communities should identify shovel-ready projects with strong community support, engage Congressional representatives early to align with their priorities, and recognize that the process is primarily a district-level competition.
• CPF eligibility is broad, supporting a variety of climate-related initiatives including low-income solar installations, community resilience hubs, all-electric new construction, and electric bus transit hub upgrades.

APA

RMI (2022). Need Help Advancing Local Climate Action? Try Community Project Funding. https://rmi.org/resources/need-help-advancing-local-climate-action/

Chicago

RMI. Need Help Advancing Local Climate Action? Try Community Project Funding. 2022. https://rmi.org/resources/need-help-advancing-local-climate-action/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=RMI |title=Need Help Advancing Local Climate Action? Try Community Project Funding. |date=31 March 2022 |url=https://rmi.org/resources/need-help-advancing-local-climate-action/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{rmi2022need, author = {{RMI}}, title = {{Need Help Advancing Local Climate Action? Try Community Project Funding.}}, institution = {RMI}, year = {2022}, month = mar, url = {https://rmi.org/resources/need-help-advancing-local-climate-action/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }