Climate Smart Farm Equipment Grant

The Climate Smart Farm Equipment Grant helps Washington producers cut greenhouse gas emissions, improve soil health, and build resilience into their operations by covering part of the cost of qualifying on-farm equipment. The program is funded through Washington's Climate Commitment Act, which directs cap-and-invest revenue toward reducing climate pollution, creating jobs, and improving public health. WSDA reimburses commercial agriculture and aquaculture operations for a portion of the cost of eligible equipment used in on-farm production. This is a reimbursement program: awardees purchase the equipment first and then submit documentation to receive payment. Awards are made on a first come, first served basis rather than through a competitive scoring round, so timing of submission matters more than in a typical competition. The standard reimbursement rate is 75 percent of eligible equipment and delivery costs up to a maximum of $200,000 per farm per year. An enhanced rate of 85 percent, also capped at $200,000, is available to applicants who self-certify that they meet at least one of four conditions: gross cash farm income below $350,000 annually, citizenship or business entity status with a federally recognized tribe, veteran status, or an operation located primarily within a census tract ranked 9 or 10 for environmental exposures on the state Environmental Health Disparities Map. Eligible equipment includes items that directly reduce greenhouse gas emissions during production or increase soil or vegetative carbon storage, including equipment with reduction estimates already recognized by USDA. Named examples include no-till drills, electric tractors, compost spreaders, electric pumps, and GPS precision agriculture equipment. Equipment supporting innovative or emerging practices can also qualify where scientific evidence of emissions reduction potential exists, and those applications are more competitive when supporting citations are provided. Delivery costs tied to eligible equipment are covered. Ineligible costs include equipment used exclusively for post-harvest processing, packing, or transportation; electric or hybrid trucks; professional services and labor; site development such as engineering and permitting; installation; subscription-based services; soil amendments; and small hand tools or parts secondary to the primary equipment. WSDA also uses data gathered through the program to better understand how equipment choices affect emissions across Washington agriculture.

First come, first served is the whole game. Applications open 9/4/2026 at 8 a.m. PST and $4.3M will not last. Have the equipment quote, delivery cost, and enhanced-rate documentation assembled before the window opens. Check the enhanced rate carefully: at $200,000 the difference between 75% and 85% is $20,000, and all four qualifying conditions are self-certified. If requesting equipment for an emerging practice not already in USDA models, attach supporting citations and literature - the funder states those applications are more competitive with them. Do not include installation, site development, labor, or post-harvest-only equipment; those are explicitly ineligible and will cost you time in review.