DE-FOA-0003132 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) 40513: Career Skills Training | DE FOA 0003132

Opportunity Information: Apply for DE FOA 0003132

DE-FOA-0003132, titled "Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) 40513: Career Skills Training," is a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) funding opportunity administered through the Golden Field Office to expand hands-on workforce training tied directly to energy-efficient building upgrades. The program was created by Section 40513 of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law) and is meant to help build a pipeline of workers who can actually deliver building energy technology installations in the real world, not just learn them in a classroom. The core concept is a "career skills training program" where students receive classroom instruction at the same time as on-the-job training, with the clear end goal of earning an industry-recognized certification related to installing energy-efficient building technologies.

At a practical level, the opportunity is designed to fund training models that combine instruction and paid or structured work-based learning so participants gain both technical knowledge and jobsite experience. DOE frames the outcome as producing a workforce that is skilled, credentialed, and ready to install energy technologies in buildings, which aligns with broader national goals around energy efficiency, building decarbonization, and upgrading the existing building stock. A key emphasis is collaboration between labor organizations and industry partners, with the intent that training is aligned with employer demand, job standards, and pathways to employment rather than being disconnected from the labor market. The FOA also highlights strengthening existing programs so they can be replicated, suggesting DOE is looking for approaches that can be scaled or copied in other locations, and it explicitly calls out the goal of creating a diverse workforce.

This is a discretionary grant opportunity using a cooperative agreement as the funding instrument. In DOE terms, that typically means the agency expects to have substantial involvement during the project period (for example, approving key plans, milestones, or deliverables and working closely with recipients), rather than operating as a hands-off pass-through funder. The funding activity categories listed include Employment, Labor and Training as well as Energy, and the associated CFDA/Assistance Listing number is 81.086.

Eligibility is described as unrestricted (open to any type of entity), although applicants are still expected to follow any additional eligibility clarifications contained in the full FOA text. In other words, a wide range of potential applicants may be able to apply, but the detailed requirements, partner expectations, and any constraints would be spelled out in the full announcement on DOE's Infrastructure eXCHANGE portal.

In terms of funding scale and competitiveness, DOE anticipated making about 8 awards under this opportunity, with an award ceiling of $1,081,250 per award. The original posting shows a creation date of September 20, 2023, and an original closing date of November 27, 2023. While those dates indicate the initial application window, the authoritative details, any amendments, and the full set of application requirements are available through Infrastructure eXCHANGE at https://infrastructure-exchange.energy.gov/Default.aspx, which is where applicants would find the complete FOA document, submission instructions, and any required forms or templates.

Overall, the program is aimed at strengthening the workforce side of building energy improvements by paying the federal share of training programs that blend classroom and jobsite learning, lead to recognized credentials, and are built in partnership with labor and industry so graduates move into real jobs installing energy-efficient technologies in buildings.

• The Department of Energy, Golden Field Office in the employment, labor and training, energy sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "DE-FOA-0003132 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) 40513: Career Skills Training" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 81.086.
• This funding opportunity was created on Sep 20, 2023.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Nov 27, 2023. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $1,081,250.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 8 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility.

Apply for DE FOA 0003132

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