Funding Guidelines for Agencies that Administer California Climate Investments
What are the Funding Guidelines?
The California Air Resources Board (CARB) developed the Funding Guidelines to provide direction for agencies that administer California Climate Investments so they design and implement their programs in a way that:
- Facilitates greenhouse gas emission reductions;
- Meets statutory requirements;
- Maximizes and benefits to disadvantaged communities;
- Targets investments to disadvantaged communities, low-income communities, and low-income households to help ensure statutory investment minimums are met or exceeded;
- Provides accountability and transparency; and
- Supports consistency across programs.
The Funding Guidelines assist administering agencies in program implementation including guidance on preparing an Expenditure Record, developing guidelines and solicitation materials, and reporting outcomes from funded projects.
Related resources: Priority Population Investment Targets for Administering Agencies
Funding Guidelines Update
CARB is currently in the process of updating the Funding Guidelines and associated materials to clarify existing language, help California Climate Investments programs achieve their goals, and respond to new legislative requirements. With this update, CARB seeks input from the public in identifying areas for potential improvement and ideas for tools and resources to help stakeholders achieve the objectives and principles of California Climate Investments.
In fall 2022, CARB released a public survey to solicit ideas for designing California Climate Investments’ upcoming work. This survey was one step in the process to update the Funding Guidelines. CARB will continue to engage in discussions with stakeholders throughout the public process.
If you have questions or would like to set up a meeting with CARB to discuss the update to the Funding Guidelines, please contact GGRFprogram@arb.ca.gov
Tentative Update Process Timeline
Public Workshops
Past workgroup
CARB hosted a public workgroup to discuss the workforce standards that will be included in the update to the Funding Guidelines pursuant to Assembly Bill 680 on October 24, 2023.
Workgroup materials:
- Workgroup Notice (Aviso del Taller)
- Workgroup Presentation (Presentación del Taller)
- Workgroup Recording (Grabación del Taller)
Past workshop
CARB hosted an initial public workshop to receive early input on updates to the Funding Guidelines on May 8, 2023.
Topics included:
- Supplemental guidance on natural and working lands projects pursuant to Senate Bill 27 (Skinner, Chapter 237, Statutes of 2021). The Draft Funding Guidelines Supplement for California Carbon Sequestration and Climate Resiliency Project Registry is available for public comment until June 2, 2023.
- Workforce standards pursuant to Assembly Bill 680 (Burke, Chapter 746, Statutes of 2021).
- Additional potential Funding Guidelines updates.
- Workshop materials:
2023 Draft Funding Guidelines Supplement for California Carbon Sequestration and Climate Resiliency Project Registry
Senate Bill 27 directs the California Natural Resources Agency (CNRA) to establish the California Carbon Sequestration and Climate Resiliency Project Registry (Registry) by July 1, 2023 for investments in natural and working lands. Projects that applied for California Climate Investments or other State funded programs that did not receive funding due to lack of available funds but otherwise meet CARB’s minimum program requirements are eligible to be listed on the Registry. This document, the Draft Funding Guidelines Supplement for California Carbon Sequestration and Climate Resiliency Project Registry (Supplement), establishes those minimum program requirements to ensure carbon removal benefits. This Draft Supplement is available for public comment until June 2, 2023. Comments can be sent to GGRFProgram@arb.ca.gov. CARB staff expects to release the Final Supplement in advance of CNRA’s regulation to establish the Registry in the coming year. A beta version of the California Carbon Sequestration and Climate Resiliency Project Registry can be found on CNRA’s website.
Current Funding Guidelines
CARB released the "Funding Guidelines for Agencies that Administer California Climate Investments" (Funding Guidelines) on August 30, 2018. The 2018 Funding Guidelines provide flexibility in implementing a diverse set of investments while maintaining transparency of outcomes and ensuring meaningful community benefits from these investments.
- 2018 Funding Guidelines
- Funding Guidelines companion materials: Benefit Criteria Tables and Reporting Templates
- Board Resolution
2018 Funding Guidelines Public Process Materials
Some of these materials are available in Spanish, please send an e-mail to GGRFProgram@arb.ca.gov to request a copy. (Algunos de estos materiales están disponibles en español, envíe un correo electrónico a GGRFProgram@arb.ca.gov para solicitar una copia).
Board Hearing Materials
- Notice
- Proposed 2018 Funding Guidelines
- Proposed 2018 Funding Guidelines including tracked changes from
the Draft Revised 2018 Funding Guidelines - Response to Comments on the Draft Revised 2018 Funding Guidelines
- Presentation
- View Comments (Comment period 7/2-7/23 is closed )
Public Workshop Materials
- Community Meeting Notice and Location
- Community Meeting Presentation Materials
- Funding Guidelines Discussion Document
- View Comments (Comment period 4/17-5/16)
2022 Update to Funding Guidelines Section VII.B on Priority Population Definitions
Providing benefits to priority populations, which include disadvantaged communities and low-income communities and households, is a core component of the California Climate Investments portfolio. Senate Bill (SB) 535 (De León, Chapter 830, Statutes of 2012) tasks the California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA) with identifying disadvantaged communities. Assembly Bill (AB) 1550 (Gomez, Chapter 369, Statutes of 2016) provides thresholds for low-income communities and households. SB 535 and AB 1550 together require that a minimum percentage of California Climate Investments funding benefit these priority populations.
In October 2021, the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment released CalEnviroScreen 4.0, an updated version of the screening tool that CalEPA uses to identify disadvantaged communities. CalEPA released updated disadvantaged community designations in May 2022. Consistent with the Funding Guidelines, CARB has updated the reference years used to identify low-income communities and households in response to CalEPA’s updated disadvantaged community designation. CARB and administering agencies are transitioning to full implementation of these updated designations.
These updates have necessitated some modifications to the project selection and reporting requirements for California Climate Investment programs. On May 3, 2022, CARB released the 2022 Update to Section VII.B on Priority Population Definitions, which provides guidance for administering agencies transitioning to the updated definitions. This limited update is to be used in conjunction with the 2018 Funding Guidelines.