OpenOpportunity NOAA-NMFS-FHQ-2027-33398

National Bycatch Reduction Engineering Program (BREP) - FY2026/27

DOC NOAA - ERA Production · Department of Commerce

At a glance

National Bycatch Reduction Engineering Program (BREP) - FY2026/27 is an open federal cooperative agreement opportunity from DOC NOAA - ERA Production (Department of Commerce). Applications are due January 22, 2027. Individual awards are listed as $50K – $400K, with about 30 awards expected and $4.6M in total estimated funding. Applicant types listed as eligible include state governments, county governments, city or township governments, special district governments, public colleges & universities and 9 more. Cost sharing is not required. It is funded under Assistance Listing 11.452 (Bycatch Reduction Engineering Program).

Summary assembled from the official notice's fields. The official notice governs.

Key facts

Aug 24, 2026Posted
Jan 22, 2027Application deadlinenext date
Feb 21, 2027Archived

Posted: Aug 24, 2026
Close date: Jan 22, 2027
Archive date: Feb 21, 2027
Award floor: $50,000
Award ceiling: $400,000
Est. total funding: $4,600,000
Expected awards: 30
Cost sharing: Not required
Funding instrument: Cooperative Agreement
Opportunity category: Discretionary

Who can apply

State governments
County governments
City or township governments
Special district governments
Public colleges & universities
Federally recognized tribal governments
Native American tribal organizations
501(c)(3) nonprofits
Nonprofits without 501(c)(3) status
Private colleges & universities
Individuals
For-profit organizations (not small businesses)
Small businesses
Others (see notice)

Additional information on eligibility (from the notice)

Eligible applicants are individuals, institutions of higher education, other nonprofits, for-profit organizations, and state, local, U.S. territorial, Alaska Native, and Indian tribal governments. Federal agencies or instrumentalities are not eligible to receive Federal assistance under this notice. If an eligible applicant has questions regarding this funding opportunity, they should contact: Justin Pearce Office of Sustainable Fisheries 1315 East-West Highway Silver Spring, MD 20910 301-427-8521 NMFS.HQ.BREP@noaa.gov

Can your organization apply?

A quick check against the listed applicant types — other requirements in the notice still apply.

Based on the published notice. Review the official notice for complete eligibility requirements.

What it funds

Official synopsis as published by the agency, formatted for readability.

This grant program provides competitive grants to non-Federal researchers working to benefit U.S. fishermen and fisheries, including aquaculture, through the development of improved fishing practices and innovative gear technologies. The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, as amended (MSA), 16 U.S.C. 1865, requires that NOAA’s conservation and management measures minimize bycatch to the extent practicable and established the Bycatch Reduction Engineering Program (BREP) to support the development of technological devices and other conservation engineering changes to minimize bycatch and reduce post-release mortality of non-target species in our nation’s fisheries. Bycatch reduction is a priority for the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), as outlined in the NMFS National Bycatch Reduction Strategy (https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/bycatch/national-bycatchreduction-strategy). Fisheries bycatch can contribute to overfishing, population declines for threatened and endangered species, and can result in commercial fishery closures. This Program seeks to support the development and testing of fishing gears and approaches that can be applied in commercial and recreational fisheries to reduce bycatch and post-release mortality and address the MSA requirements to minimize bycatch and habitat impacts.

Full announcement & documents

The full announcement has the complete rules — page limits, required attachments, evaluation criteria and any letter-of-intent dates. Files download directly from Grants.gov.

NOAA-NMFS-FHQ-2027-33398 FullFull Announcement · Foa_Content_of_NOAA-NMFS-FHQ-2027-33398 (2).pdfPDF · 165 KB

How to apply

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Read the full announcement (NOFO)Eligibility, evaluation criteria, page limits and required attachments are in the full notice on Grants.gov. Open ↗
Confirm eligibility and fitCheck your organization type above; no cost sharing is required.
Register (or renew) in SAM.gov and get a UEIFree. New registrations can take several weeks; registrations must be renewed every year. Open ↗
Set up Grants.gov accessCreate a Grants.gov account and make sure someone has the Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) role. Open ↗
Open the application packageUse opportunity number NOAA-NMFS-FHQ-2027-33398 on Grants.gov (Grants.gov Workspace). Open ↗
Prepare narrative, budget and attachmentsFollow the notice's format exactly — page limits and required forms are common reasons applications are rejected.
Ask the agency contact any questions earlyKeisha Trent Grantor · NMFS.HQ.BREP@noaa.gov Open ↗
Submit before January 22, 2027Submit a few days early and keep your Grants.gov confirmation and validation emails.

Assistance Listing

What is an ALN?

11.452Bycatch Reduction Engineering ProgramProgram →

Reported obligations under ALN 11.452

Historical data · not a prediction

FY24

$123K

FY25

$383K

FY26

$402K est.

Source: SAM.gov Assistance Listing 11.452. Program-wide totals, not awards from this specific opportunity.

Agency contact (as published)

Keisha Trent Grantor
NMFS.HQ.BREP@noaa.gov
3016281449

Quick answers

When is the deadline for “National Bycatch Reduction Engineering Program (BREP) - FY2026/27”?

According to the official notice, applications are due January 22, 2027. Confirm the deadline and submission time on Grants.gov before applying.

Who is eligible to apply for “National Bycatch Reduction Engineering Program (BREP) - FY2026/27”?

The official notice lists these applicant types as eligible: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Public colleges & universities, Federally recognized tribal governments, Native American tribal organizations, 501(c)(3) nonprofits, Nonprofits without 501(c)(3) status, Private colleges & universities, Individuals, For-profit organizations (not small businesses) and 2 more. Additional restrictions may apply; review the full notice.

How much funding is available through “National Bycatch Reduction Engineering Program (BREP) - FY2026/27”?

Per the notice, individual awards are listed as $50k – $400k, total estimated program funding is $4,600,000 and the agency expects to make about 30 awards.

How do I apply for “National Bycatch Reduction Engineering Program (BREP) - FY2026/27”?

Applications are submitted through the official source, not through GrantsJunction. Open the official notice on Grants.gov (opportunity NOAA-NMFS-FHQ-2027-33398), and review the full announcement and application package. Organizations applying through Grants.gov generally need an active SAM.gov registration and a Grants.gov account, which can take several weeks to set up.

Matched on shared Assistance Listings, agency, categories and eligible applicant types.

OpenALN 11.061