Agency or authority

About the Fisheries Restoration Grant Program (FRGP)

The Fisheries Restoration Grant Program (FRGP), managed by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), was established in 1981 in response to rapidly declining populations of wild salmon and steelhead trout and deteriorating fish habitat in California. FRGP administers a competitive grant program that has invested millions of dollars to support various projects throughout coastal California that lead to process-based restoration, enhancement, or protection of anadromous salmonid habitat. For more information on FRGP grants, please visit the FRGP Grant Process page.

Who is Eligible for FRGP Funds

Eligible applicants include state and local government agencies, public entities, Native American Tribes, and nonprofit organizations. Private individuals and for-profit enterprises are not eligible for funding. Private entities with quality restoration projects are encouraged to partner with an eligible applicant to apply.

Environmental Permitting – what this program covers

Uniquely, FRGP provides the following coverages for all eligible funded projects:

  1. California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) compliance,
  2. Clean Water Act (CWA) Section 401 certification, State Water Resources Control Board, and
  3. CWA Section 404, Army Corps of Engineers permit.
  4. California Coastal Commission, Master Coastal Development Permit
CA Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) 

Traditionally, implementation and non-implementation projects funded by FRGP received CEQA coverage under a Mitigated Negative Declaration (MND), which is written each year for a batch of projects. For reference, this web page has the 2022 MND and previous MNDs. Starting in 2023, FRGP utilized the Water Board Statewide Restoration General Order’s Programmatic Environmental Impact Report for CEQA compliance.

State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB)

The FRGP program provides coverage under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act through a 401 Water Quality Certification for a batch of projects annually. The CEQA compliance and 401 certification are exclusive together. Therefore, projects obtaining their own CEQA compliance will also need to obtain their own 401 certification.

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) 

Projects in the FRGP program can receive Section 404 coverage under an Army Corps Regional General Permit (12, 16, or 78) depending on what Corps district your project is in.

RGP 12 is under the San Francisco Corps District.

For projects that would be constructed within the coastal zone, FRGP has an efficient process for eligible FRGP funded projects that obtained CEQA compliance through FRGP.  The Coastal Commission will assess the eligibility of FRGP coastal zone projects annually. Coastal Commission staff will help determine the appropriate jurisdictional authority (i.e., whether the project requires a Coastal Development Permit (CDP) from the Coastal Commission, a local government, or both) and to consolidate the permit (request the local government and the Coastal Commission to issue one CDP).

Projects that obtained their own CEQA compliance outside of FRGP may find the North and Central Coast Federal Consistency Determination (CD) with the NOAA Restoration Center as an alternative approach to obtaining the CDP.

Projects occurring in the coastal zone in the San Francisco Bay region must be permitted by the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC).

 

Regional General Permit 16 – Anadromous Salmonid Fisheries Restoration is under the Sacramento Corps District.

 

RGP 78 is under the Los Angeles Corps District.

For projects that would be constructed within the coastal zone, FRGP has an efficient process for eligible FRGP funded projects.  The Coastal Commission will assess the eligibility of FRGP coastal zone projects annually. Coastal Commission staff will help determine the appropriate jurisdictional authority (i.e., whether the project requires a Coastal Development Permit (CDP) from the Coastal Commission, a local government, or both) and to consolidate the permit (request the local government and the Coastal Commission to issue one CDP).

Applicable locations

See the Proposal Solicitation Notice page for more FRGP Watershed Focus Maps to help you find your project within the correct watershed.

How to apply

FRGP opens its Proposal Solicitation Notice (PSN) in January each year. All applications are accepted online through CDFW’s WebGrants. FRGP also offers technical support workshops to assist applicants in understanding the PSN and Guidelines requirements, reviewing the grant process, and highlighting key updates. For information regarding the PSN and Guidelines, please visit the FRGP Solicitation Notice page.

May be used with:

Example projects

See the CDFW site for a full list of projects funded under this grant

Activities covered

FRGP funds a wide range of projects that focus on, or lead to, restoring, enhancing, or protecting salmonid habitat in anadromous watersheds of California. For information on projects funded in previous years, please visit the FRGP Funded Project Summaries page.

Application Tips and Resources

Contact CDFW very early in the FRGP grant process if you would like to have your project covered under the programmatics below or have Region-specific questions. CDFW staff can discuss your project with you to make sure it fits within the permit requirements. Projects can be funded through the FRGP process, even if they don’t fit under the programmatic permits below, but only projects funded under FRGP can use these programmatics.

FRGP Contacts page:  https://wildlife.ca.gov/Grants/FRGP/Contact