State Orphaned Wells Program

Grants Program Overview

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act appropriated funding to the Department of the Interior for three types of state grant programs:
•    Initial Grants (42 U.S.C. § 15907(c)(3))
•    Formula Grants (42 U.S.C. § 15907(c)(4))
•    Performance Grants (42 U.S.C. § 15907(c)(5))

These grant programs, administered by the Orphaned Wells Program Office, provide approximately $4.2 billion in financial resources to eligible states.  States have broad discretion in how they use awarded funds. Regardless of the type of grant that a state receives, it may use funding, consistent with its priorities, for the purposes stated in 42 U.S.C. § 15907(c)(2), which include: to plug, remediate, and reclaim orphaned wells located on state and private land; to identify and characterize undocumented orphaned wells on state and private land; and to remediate land adjacent to orphaned wells and decommission or remove associated pipelines, facilities and infrastructure.    
 

Archived Content

Pre-Award Resources

Funding Announcements - Grant Solutions

• Apply for a Directed Announcement: How-To
• All recipient training is available through the Grant Solutions Training Site.

• If further assistance is required, the Grants Solutions Help Desk is available to assist with all Grant Solutions products and services.

  Hours of Operation: Monday - Friday 7 a.m. - 8 p.m. ET (closed on federal holidays) Phone: 1 - 866 - 577 - 0771 Email: help@grantsolutions.gov

Post-Award Resources

• Data Reporting Template
• DOI Standard Terms & Conditions
• Davis-Bacon Act: Requires payment of local prevailing wages to construction workers performing work on federally funder construction projects for contracts in excess of $2,000. Learn more.
• Build America Buy America Act: Requires that all of the iron, steel, manufactured products, and construction materials used in infrastructure projects are produced in the United States. Learn more.
• SAM.gov: System for Award Management (SAM) is an official site of the U.S. Government where you can register to do business with the U.S. Government, update/check status of your entity registration, search publicly available award data, search for assistance listings, wage determinations, contract opportunities/reports, etc. Learn more.
• Code of Federal Regulations (CFR 200): Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards.
  1. Subrecipient and Contractor Determinations eCFR :: 2 CFR 200.331 -- Subrecipient and contractor determinations.
  2. Requirements for Pass-through entities eCFR :: 2 CFR 200.332 -- Requirements for pass-through entities.
  3. Remedies for noncompliance eCFR :: 2 CFR 200.339 -- Remedies for noncompliance.
  4. Mandatory Disclosures eCFR :: 2 CFR 200.113 -- Mandatory disclosures. 

More Resources

• SHPO Listening Session - January 7th, 2025
• Tribe/THPO Listening Session - January 7th, 2025