The complete USDA Rural Development grant calendar for business, rural development, infrastructure, processing, energy, broadband/telehealth, and predevelopment work — FIELDS, MPPEP, RBDG, VAPG, DLT, SEARCH, REAP and more. Which windows are still open in 2026, what to plan for in 2027, and exactly which programs require or fund a feasibility study.
As of July 7, 2026, two major USDA Rural Development competitive windows are still open — FIELDS (fertilizer production, due August 17, 2026) and MPPEP Phase 4 (meat and poultry processing expansion, due August 7, 2026). Several other FY 2026 windows have already closed (VAPG, RBDG, DLT, the water/wastewater revolving-fund competition), which makes the second half of 2026 the planning season for their expected 2027 rounds.
An important status note: most FY 2027 application windows are not yet posted. USDA’s Rural Development funding page lists many programs as “open,” but exact annual competitive deadlines are released by NOFO/NOSA, Grants.gov, or state RD offices. USDA publishes Rural Development funding opportunities, NOSAs, and NOFAs in the Federal Register and maintains them on its federal funding page — verify every date against the active notice before budgeting.
For applicants whose projects need an independent feasibility study, the calendar has a second dimension: some programs require a study with the application (FIELDS), some fund the study itself as an eligible planning activity (VAPG, RBDG, SEARCH, SDGG), and at least one prohibits spending grant dollars on it (MPPEP). Knowing which is which prevents both a rejected application and a disallowed budget line.
| Program | Type | 2026 deadline / window | 2027 status |
|---|---|---|---|
| FIELDS — Fertilizer Investment & Expansion for Long-term Domestic Supply | Competitive grant | Aug. 17, 2026 via Grants.gov — still open | Awards anticipated Dec. 2026–Jan. 2027; no separate 2027 round posted |
| MPPEP Phase 4 — Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program | Competitive grant | Aug. 7, 2026, 11:59 p.m. ET — still open | No 2027 round posted |
| RBDG — Rural Business Development Grants | Competitive grant | June 15, 2026 (SECD); June 30, 2026 (all others) — closed | Likely annual; 2027 dates not posted |
| VAPG — Value-Added Producer Grants | Competitive grant | April 22, 2026, 1 p.m. ET — closed | Likely annual; 2027 dates not posted |
| DLT — Distance Learning & Telemedicine Grants | Competitive grant | June 30, 2026 via Grants.gov — closed | Likely annual/cyclical; 2027 date not posted |
| Revolving Funds for Financing Water and Wastewater Projects | Competitive grant to nonprofits | July 3, 2026, midnight ET — closed | No 2027 date posted |
| SEARCH — Special Evaluation Assistance for Rural Communities and Households | Grant / predevelopment assistance | Open/rolling on the USDA page; confirm locally | Usually rolling/open; verify with the state RD office |
| REAP — Rural Energy for America Program RES/EEI | Energy grants / guaranteed loans | FY 2026 grant awards paused pending new regulations; guaranteed loans still accepted | 2027 grant timing not posted |
| REAP Energy Audit & Renewable Energy Development Assistance | Grant to assisting entities | Open status varies; verify current NOFO / state office | 2027 dates not posted |
| RCDI — Rural Community Development Initiative | Capacity-building grant | No FY 2026 deadline found; most recent materials were FY 2025 | 2027 not posted |
| RCDG — Rural Cooperative Development Grants | Cooperative development center grant | Prior deadline Sept. 15, 2025; no FY 2026 deadline found | 2027 not posted |
| SDGG — Socially Disadvantaged Groups Grant | Technical-assistance grant | Page still references the prior cycle; no 2026 deadline found | 2027 not posted |
| HBIIP — Higher Blends Infrastructure Incentive Program | Biofuel infrastructure grant | No active funding — funds exhausted absent future appropriation | No 2027 round posted |
The Fertilizer Investment & Expansion for Long-term Domestic Supply program makes at least $500 million available for new or expanded independent domestic fertilizer production capacity, in awards of $15 million to $100 million. It also carries the most explicit feasibility study requirement on this calendar: a project-specific study, signed by a qualified independent consultant, dated no more than three years before submission, covering economic, market, technical, financial, and management feasibility, and concluding with the consultant’s opinion and recommendation. We cover the program in depth — eligibility, the application package, scoring, and all seven required study components — in our USDA FIELDS Feasibility Study Guide.
Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program Phase 4 offers $60 million for eligible meat and poultry processors, with a focus on beef/cattle primary processors. Processing expansion awards run $50,000 to $2 million; simplified equipment-only awards run $10,000 to $250,000. Note the budgeting trap below: a business plan is required for processing expansion projects, but feasibility-study and project-planning costs are not allowable uses of MPPEP grant funds — plan to fund that work outside the grant budget.
| Program | Feasibility study treatment |
|---|---|
| FIELDS | Required with the application. Project-specific, signed by a qualified consultant, dated within 3 years, covering all five feasibility determinations plus recommendation and consultant qualifications. |
| VAPG | Fundable. Planning grants can pay for feasibility studies — USDA identifies feasibility studies, business plans, and marketing strategies as supported planning activities. |
| RBDG | Eligible activity under both business opportunity and business enterprise categories — but the applicant must be an eligible public body, nonprofit, Tribe, or similar intermediary, not a private business directly. |
| SEARCH | The program’s core purpose. Predevelopment feasibility studies, design, and technical assistance for water/waste projects in very small, financially distressed rural communities. |
| Water/Wastewater Revolving Funds | Indirectly eligible. Recipients may use funds to cover predevelopment costs for water and wastewater treatment projects. |
| SDGG | Eligible technical-assistance use. Feasibility studies and business plans are eligible uses through cooperatives and Cooperative Development Centers. |
| RCDG | Feasibility/business planning may be part of a center’s technical assistance — confirm in the active NOFO when posted. |
| REAP | Technical reports and project-level analysis support applications; grant awards are paused until new regulations are in effect, so verify before commissioning work against a 2026 deadline. |
| MPPEP Phase 4 | Do not budget grant dollars for it. The NOFO lists project planning — business plans and feasibility studies — as unallowable uses, even though a business plan is required for processing expansion applications. |
| DLT | No feasibility study requirement found in the FY 2026 NOFO; the application is equipment/project-need driven. |
USDA has not posted most FY 2027 competitive deadlines. For planning purposes, use the timing assumptions below — based on where each program’s FY 2026 window fell — but verify against the active NOFO before committing budget:
| Program | Likely 2027 planning window | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| VAPG | Winter–spring 2027 | FY 2026 deadline was April 22, 2026 |
| RBDG | Late spring–early summer 2027 | FY 2026 deadlines were June 15 / June 30 |
| DLT | Spring–early summer 2027 | FY 2026 deadline was June 30 |
| MPPEP | Unknown | Phase-based program; not guaranteed annually |
| FIELDS | Unknown | Newly announced FY 2026 program; no renewal or supplemental awards in the FY 2026 NOFO |
| SEARCH / water predevelopment | Often open/rolling or state-managed | Confirm with the USDA Rural Development state office |
| REAP grants | Uncertain | USDA paused further grant awards until new regulations are in effect |
The practical consequence: if a 2027 application will need a feasibility study — VAPG working-capital applications built on a completed study, an RBDG-funded study for a supported business, or the study underpinning any large capital project — the second half of 2026 is when that work should be scoped and scheduled, so the study is complete before the window opens rather than commissioned against a 30–60 day application clock.
The 2026–2027 USDA Rural Development calendar rewards applicants who work backward from the deadline. FIELDS and MPPEP close in August 2026; the annual programs that closed this spring will likely reopen in winter–spring 2027; and the predevelopment programs run on rolling, state-managed windows. In nearly every track, the feasibility study is either the gating document, the fundable deliverable, or the item you must budget outside the grant — so the study decision belongs at the front of the application plan, not the end.
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