Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) - Request for Information on Resilient and Efficient Codes Implementations | DE FOA 0002755

Opportunity Information: Apply for DE FOA 0002755

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) - Request for Information on Resilient and Efficient Codes Implementations (DE-FOA-0002755) is a US Department of Energy (DOE) information-gathering notice, not a grant application opportunity. It was issued by DOE's Building Energy Codes Program on behalf of the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), specifically the Building Technologies Office (BTO), and administered through the DOE Golden Field Office. The purpose is to collect practical feedback from the public to help DOE design a future Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) that would support sustained, cost-effective implementation of building energy codes under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. DOE refers to the potential future funding effort as the Resilient and Efficient Codes Implementation (RECI) FOA.

The RFI is focused on how DOE should structure that future FOA so it effectively strengthens building energy code adoption and enforcement, and also advances resilience outcomes. DOE is asking stakeholders to weigh in on what criteria and requirements should define successful code implementation efforts, including what "good implementation" should look like across key topic areas and how those expectations should be measured. This includes input on practical approaches for improving compliance, training the workforce that supports code enforcement, strengthening verification and inspection practices, and overcoming real-world barriers that states and jurisdictions face when trying to implement and maintain modern energy codes over time.

A major theme is the intersection between advanced energy codes and building resilience. DOE is seeking ideas on how energy codes can be used not just to cut energy waste and lower costs, but also to improve a building's ability to withstand and recover from disruptions like extreme heat, cold snaps, storms, wildfire smoke events, or grid outages. In other words, DOE is looking for feedback on how a codes-focused funding program could encourage measures that improve efficiency while also supporting resilient building performance, such as better thermal envelopes, passive survivability strategies, and other code-related pathways that reduce vulnerability during emergencies.

The RFI also asks for methods that can support sustained implementation at the state level, meaning efforts that last beyond a short pilot period. DOE is looking for input on program models that help states and local jurisdictions maintain long-term capacity, including ongoing training and credentialing for code officials and builders, stable compliance infrastructure, data collection and evaluation methods, and strategies to keep codes updated as standards evolve. This part of the RFI is essentially about durability: what kinds of technical assistance, governance structures, and funding approaches lead to lasting improvements rather than one-time boosts.

Another area DOE is probing is how a future FOA should handle funding design and program mechanics, including partnerships, eligible entities, and evaluation criteria. Although the eligibility field is listed as "unrestricted," meaning any entity type could potentially respond to the RFI and DOE is not limiting participation at this stage, the RFI is intended to inform decisions about who should be eligible for eventual RECI funding and what kinds of partnerships should be encouraged. DOE is also seeking ideas on how proposals should be evaluated in the future FOA, such as what scoring factors or performance indicators should matter most (for example, projected energy savings, compliance gains, resilience benefits, scalability, cost-effectiveness, and ability to reach underserved communities).

Energy and Environmental Justice (EEJ) priorities are explicitly included in the requested feedback. DOE is asking for input on how the future program can better deliver benefits to communities that have historically faced disproportionate pollution burdens, higher energy costs, or underinvestment in safe and efficient housing and infrastructure. This includes thinking through how code implementation and resilience improvements can be structured so they do not leave behind low-income households, renters, rural areas, tribal communities, or other overburdened groups, and how program rules could encourage equitable distribution of benefits like healthier buildings, lower utility bills, and improved safety during extreme weather events.

Administratively, this notice is categorized as discretionary and tied to the Energy funding activity area (CFDA 81.086). It was created on April 12, 2022, with an original closing date of May 20, 2022. Importantly, it is explicitly a Request for Information, meaning DOE is not accepting grant applications under this announcement and no awards are being made (expected awards are listed as zero). The listed award ceiling does not function like a typical grant cap here because the RFI itself is not a funding competition; it is part of DOE's planning process. DOE also notes that information collected through the RFI will be used internally for planning purposes to develop a potential FOA and will not be published.

In practical terms, the opportunity is best understood as a chance for states, local governments, code officials, industry groups, nonprofits, researchers, and other stakeholders to shape the design of a future federal funding program aimed at improving building energy code implementation in a way that is cost-effective, resilient, and aligned with energy and environmental justice goals.

• The Department of Energy, Golden Field Office in the energy sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) - Request for Information on Resilient and Efficient Codes Implementations" 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 Apr 12, 2022.
• Applicants must submit their applications by May 20, 2022 This is a request for information - no applications are due. (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 $2.00 in funding.
• 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.

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