The USGS Earthquake Hazards Program External Research Support Announcement for Fiscal Year 2027 (Funding Opportunity Number G27AS00075) invites proposals for external research partnerships that advance the understanding of earthquake hazards, earthquake physics, earthquake occurrence, and earthquake safety policy. This competitive grants solicitation supports the mission of the Earthquake Hazards Program to reduce deaths, injuries, and economic losses from earthquakes and improve public safety and resilience nationwide.

Overview

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) issues this Notice of Funding Opportunity under the authority of the Earthquake Hazards Reduction Act of 1977, as amended by the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program Reauthorization Act of 2018. The program supports external research that cannot be conducted within the USGS due to a lack of sufficient in-house expertise. Partnerships with universities, state, regional, and local government agencies, and private industry are essential to generating scientific information and situational awareness products.

Funding and Benefits

An estimated total of $6,000,000 in program funding is available for Fiscal Year 2027, with a maximum total of $7,000,000. Approximately 50 to 70 new awards are expected. There is no maximum award amount, but the majority of grants range between $30,000 and $120,000. These estimates are not binding on the USGS. Cost sharing or matching is not required. The funding instrument type is a grant, and the opportunity category is discretionary.

Eligibility

Eligible applicants include:

• Educational institutions: Private institutions of higher education, public and state institutions of higher education, independent school districts.
• Miscellaneous: Individuals, unrestricted entities.
• Nonprofit organizations: Nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status, including Native American tribal organizations.
• Government entities: City or township governments, county governments, state governments, public and Indian housing authorities, federally recognized Native American tribal governments, special district governments.
• Businesses: Small businesses.

Ineligible proposals include: proposals for regional seismic monitoring or establishing data centers; proposals for long-term operation of geodetic networks or instruments; proposals from U.S. Government agencies or employees; proposals from Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs); proposals with a real or apparent conflict of interest; proposals principally involving direct procurement of a product, equipment, or service; and proposals having subcontracts for 50% or greater of total direct costs. USGS will review the SAM.gov Exclusions database for applicant entities and key personnel prior to award. Federal employees, including USGS employees, are prohibited from serving in any capacity on any application or assisting in proposal development.

Research Areas

Proposals should address earthquake hazards, the physics of earthquakes, earthquake occurrence, or earthquake safety policy. Detailed external research priorities for Fiscal Year 2027 are provided in Attachment A, available on the opportunity page. Collaborative proposals with USGS scientists are permitted after a grant or cooperative agreement is in place, but federal employees may not participate in proposal development.

Application Process

All proposals must be submitted electronically through Grants.gov. Applicants are strongly advised not to wait until the last minute to submit. Proposals received after the closing date and time will not be considered. A revised or corrected proposal may be submitted during the application period by including a cover letter stating that the previous submission is to be withdrawn. Such submissions must be completed by the deadline. The Project Narrative instructions are found in the “Prepare Your Application” section of the full Notice of Funding Opportunity. Attachments are available for download, including a Proposal Information Summary Template, Budget Summary Template, and USGS Scientist Letter of Collaboration Template.

Deadline and Timeline

Closing date: June 4, 2026, at 6:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time.

Anticipated award date: January 1, 2027. All projects must propose start dates between January 1, 2027, and September 1, 2027. The requested start date is considered official and may not be changed by the applicant. If funding delays occur, the award will be issued when funds become available, and the applicant will be notified of the new start date by the USGS Contracting Officer.

Contact Information

Margaret Eastman
Email: margaret_eastman@ios.doi.gov

Program website: https://www.usgs.gov/programs/earthquake-hazards/science/external-grants

Applicants are urged to sign up for Grants.gov subscription service using CFDA number 15.807 to receive updates during the application period.