For this opportunity funds must benefit communities that are located within Historically Impoverished communities, as defined within this notice. For technical assistance efforts, funds may be used to 1) Identify and evaluate solutions to water problems of associations in rural areas relating to source, storage, treatment, and/or distribution; 2) Identify and evaluate solutions to waste problems of associations in rural areas relating to collection, treatment, and/or disposal; 3) Prepare water and/or waste disposal loan/grant applications; 4) Provide technical assistance/training to association personnel that will improve the management, operation, and maintenance of water and waste facilities; 5) Identify options to enhance the long-term sustainability of rural water and waste systems, including operational practices, revenue enhancements, partnerships, consolidation, regionalization, or contract services; 6) Address the contamination of drinking water and surface water supplies by emerging contaminants, including per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances; and 7) Pay the expenses associated with providing the technical assistance and/or training authorized in this section. Funding may also be used to pay for construction costs, including constructing, enlarging, extending, or otherwise improving wastewater facilities. When a necessary part of the construction project, funding may be used to pay for: (a) Reasonable fees and costs such as: legal, engineering, administrative services, fiscal advisory, recording, environmental analyses and surveys, possible salvage or other mitigation measures, planning, establishing or acquiring rights; (b) Costs of acquiring interest in land; rights, leases, permits, rights-of-way; and other evidence of land or protection necessary for development of the facility; (c) Purchasing or renting equipment necessary to install, operate, maintain, extend, or protect facilities; (d) Cost of additional applicant labor and other expenses necessary to install and extend service; (e) The cost for connecting the user to the main service line; and (f) Initial operating expenses, for a period ordinarily not exceeding one year when the applicant is unable to pay such expenses and adequate documentation is provided related to long-term sustainability.

An organization is eligible to receive a TAC-RWTS grant if it: 1) is a consortium (regional institutions of higher education, academic health and research institutes, or economic development entities, or combination thereof, located in the region identified to be served that have experience in addressing these issues in the region); 2) is legally established (prior to submission of the application) and located within one of the following: a) A state within the United States; b) The District of Columbia; c) The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; or d) A United States territory; 3) has the legal capacity and authority to carry out the grant purpose; 4) has no delinquent debt to the federal government or no outstanding judgments to repay a Federal debt; 5) demonstrates that it possesses the financial, technical, and managerial capability to comply with federal and state laws and requirements. For construction projects where ownership is retained by the applicant or consortium, the applicant must demonstrate within the application that the facility owner has the capacity to own, operate, and maintain the facility; 6) has no delinquent debt to the federal government or no outstanding judgments to repay a federal debt; and 7) is not a corporation that has been convicted of a felony (or had an officer or agent acting on behalf of the corporation convicted of a felony) within the past 24 months. Any corporation that has any unpaid federal tax liability that has been assessed for which all judicial and administrative remedies have been exhausted or have lapsed, and that is not being paid in a timely manner pursuant to an agreement with the authority responsible for collecting the tax liability is not eligible.