There is always more to learn about how to research and find the best grant opportunities and funders for your organization. But what happens when it’s time to talk to that potential funder? What do you say? How do you get their attention and fuel their curiosity? How can you talk about your nonprofit without overwhelming them with details?

With the passage of the CARES Act and other COVID-19 response funding packages there has been a surge in stimulus-sourced grant opportunities, the likes of which have not been seen since 2008-2009 and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). Out of the nearly $2 trillion CARES Act package came a number of direct allocations or entitlements, as well as competitive grant opportunities totaling approximately $234 billion and acting as a means for local and state governments, healthcare and education providers, and other organizations to prepare for- respond to- and maintain continued operations during the global coronavirus pandemic. Of this amount, the US Department of Education alone was granted $30.75 billion in funding to support continued K-12 and higher education efforts. 

While not a new notion, the desire to avoid hasty generalizations within one’s grant proposal is ever present. We are all guilty of it. Facing character or page limits, we often try to distill complex ideas down to as few of words as possible while still making our message clear. We make broad-based statements such as, “surveillance cameras can help our police department reduce crime”, “video conferencing equipment will empower our hospital fight the opioid epidemic”, or “1:1 classroom technology is necessary for successful education in this digital age”. However, there is a huge problem with these kinds of statements. They are weak arguments that do not tell the funder anything of actual substance.

The 2020 grant landscape contains dozens of education, workforce development, and public safety programs offering priority consideration for projects deployed inside a Qualified Opportunity Zone (QOZ). This classification originates with the US Department of Treasury and - at its core - has absolutely nothing to do with grants. Zones are selected by individual State Governors as a way to bring private financial investment into distressed communities. So you might find yourself wondering, “why does language about QOZ tax breaks and capital gains continue to pop up in our grants world?”

The federal government has passed four phases of stimulus packages to address the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic. The four laws appropriate over $2.7 trillion in federal funds, with the CARES Act doing most of the heavy lifting at $2.2 million. The stimulus programs are pumping hundreds of billions of dollars into existing grant programs and new funding streams to compensate for the incredible financial losses providers are experiencing with the cancellation of non-elective procedures and lower patient volume as people steer clear of health facilities during the pandemic. The following is a brief summary of the grants and funding currently available and coming down the pipeline for health care entities.

Back by popular demand – another answer to a recent Grantscast question! This Grantscast was focused on the funding landscape for K-12 education in the year ahead. One attendee asked:
When it comes to competitive grant funding for districts to apply for, why do some states have more opportunities than others?

The 2020 budget includes almost $185 billion in domestic discretionary spending. Over half of these discretionary dollars ($94.9 billion) have been appropriated to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS), making it the largest federal grantmaker. This represents a $4.4 billion increase over 2019 funding levels for HHS and a staggering $16.8 billion more than requested in the President’s Budget. The following is a brief primer on the appropriations included in the 2020 HHS budget and its impact on grant programming.

The 2020 federal fiscal year started on October 1 and once again we are operating under a continuing resolution instead of a budget. Fortunately, federal agencies (as well as experienced grant professionals) can look to the recent past to navigate the situation. Take a deep breath and relax because the grants landscape is much more predictable than it seems, even in the absence of a federal budget. The following Q&A is intended to help grant-seekers “read the tea leaves” when it comes to grant programming in 2020.

Sadly, many unwitting citizens as well as organizations are not as fortunate and end up losing their hard-earned funds as a result. It’s for this reason, that we want to dedicate a few pages out of this issue to offer a few simple reminders and tips related to grants and grant scammers.

n reality, nearly 95% of all law enforcement agencies in the US have less than 100 full-time officers on staff (Reaves 2015). Three quarters serve communities of less than 10,000 residents. These small, usually rural, jurisdictions face the same crime problems as their counterparts in urban locations, but they must do so with lower budgets, less staff, and insufficient equipment 

Not surprisingly, demand for the pilot round of SVPP funding in Summer 2018 far exceeded the available supply of grant dollars. Only 45% of the 200+ submitted applications were funded, and competition for the 2019 grant cycle (applications due May 31st) is anticipated to be even more fierce. These steep odds have districts across the US asking – What is the Department of Justice looking for? How can we stand out from the pack? In searching for answers to these questions, it is beneficial to review previous awards.

Curious to know how “grant-seeker friendly” your state is and how your SEA stacks up compared to others? We’ve grouped each of the 50 SEAs into one of four categories based on the characteristics find most helpful when setting out to uncover grant funding opportunities. Most important is whether the SEA offers competitive grant opportunities in the first place.

Curious to know how “grant-seeker friendly” your state is and how your SEA stacks up compared to others? We’ve grouped each of the 50 SEAs into one of four categories based on the characteristics find most helpful when setting out to uncover grant funding opportunities. Most important is whether the SEA offers competitive grant opportunities in the first place.

It is true that a vast majority of private foundations skip over government agencies when creating their criteria for giving. This decision is not necessarily because the board disagrees with a Mayor’s politics, or because they don’t appreciate the local fire department. More often than not, the choice to not distribute to government groups is due to some complex tax argument offered by the foundation’s accountant. But there are numerous exceptions to this rule – and finding that needle in a haystack funder can be worthwhile for a small government initiative, particularly if there are no viable state or federal funding sources available.

It is true that a vast majority of private foundations skip over government agencies when creating their criteria for giving. This decision is not necessarily because the board disagrees with a Mayor’s politics, or because they don’t appreciate the local fire department. More often than not, the choice to not distribute to government groups is due to some complex tax argument offered by the foundation’s accountant. But there are numerous exceptions to this rule – and finding that needle in a haystack funder can be worthwhile for a small government initiative, particularly if there are no viable state or federal funding sources available.

There are three areas of pre-award impact from a shutdown. The first two pertain to the application process itself, when funding opportunities are announced, and the application process. The final item is related to what happens to those who have already submitted grant proposals.

HHS appropriations were packaged together in a minibus with three other primary federal agencies: the Department of Defense (DoD), the Department of Labor (DOL) and the Department of Education (Ed). Following, is a breakdown of key HHS funding lines that specifically target addressing the opioid epidemic, as well as implications for potential grant programs. Information was gathered directly from the minibus agreement (H.R. 6157), the accompanying conference report (115-952), and historical information about the funding sources and the grant programs that they fund.

Recognizing the potential implications of large scale data breaches at the federal government, Congress began allocating funds to improve the antiquated systems of its 76 agencies in 2016. The most recent budget included more than $14 billion for these cybersecurity-related investments

Congress ultimately decided to bump the department’s budget by a full $100 million more than they had appropriated in 2018! Following, we break down ED’s budget for FY19 with a specific eye towards grant funding; we’ll tell you what programs received funding increases, as well as which ones are funded at the same level as last year.

Congress ultimately decided to bump the department’s budget by a full $100 million more than they had appropriated in 2018! Following, we break down ED’s budget for FY19 with a specific eye towards grant funding; we’ll tell you what programs received funding increases, as well as which ones are funded at the same level as last year.

Congress ultimately decided to bump the department’s budget by a full $100 million more than they had appropriated in 2018! Following, we break down ED’s budget for FY19 with a specific eye towards grant funding; we’ll tell you what programs received funding increases, as well as which ones are funded at the same level as last year.

On July 31st President Trump signed into law the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act. This bill effectively reauthorizes the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006. Perkins funds are commonly known for being the federal government’s primary vehicle for supporting Career and Technical Education (CTE) at high schools and community/technical colleges across the country. This is a win for career education advocates who have spent the last 6 years arguing for updates to Perkins law in effort to make it more consistent with previous changes to the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (made in 2013).

With the fiscal year 18 budget recently approved, the Department of Education has released funding for a slew of highly-anticipated grant programs. Many of these newly-opened grant opportunities also happen to align with the current administration’s push for more STEM education. So now that “grant season” is upon us, how did our predictions turn out? Read on to find out about programs open now!

The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2018 includes modest to significant increases across the board, increasing defense allocations by $26 billion and non-defense domestic appropriations by $33 billion. In total, Congress passed a budget that essentially rolls back the draconian cuts that were instituted in 2013 - known as sequestration - surpassing the administration’s request by $143 billion.

Applicants are always striving to make their proposals compelling in an increasingly competitive environment. One of the most important tasks that is recommended during the due diligence phase is to familiarize yourself with the funder. A key information source for this activity are the four-year strategic plans that federal agencies are required to make publicly available to comply with the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) of 1993. Unfortunately, the current strategic plan for...

Whether you’re just starting out as a grantseeker or have been working in the field for years, and whether you work in education, government, or healthcare, you should find some useful information and insights in this issue of FUNDED – our biggest issue yet!You can download the issue directly at http://grantsoffice.com/Portals/0/funded/issues/FUNDEDNov2017.pdfHigher education takes the lead with highlights of two NSF grant programs that support research infrastructure-building initiatives across...

Curious to know where we are in this process and how this may impact future education grant funding? Read on!

    If the rumors hold true, 2016 could be a banner year for federal spending and funding levels for popular grant programs.       Remember the budget sequestration process in 2013 (See May 2013 “A Look at How the 2014 Budget Battle Impacts Grants”)?  Congress and President Obama agreed to institute 5% across-the-board cuts across all government spending, including defense.       The sequestration directly reduced funding levels for almost all federal grant programs.  Furthermore, these spending...

 “Last night I started thinking about this, and I woke up. I said my prayers as I always do, and I decided, you know, today’s the day I’m going to do this. As simple as that,” John Boehner, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives     On September 25, 2015, Congressman John Boehner announced he would be vacating the Speakership and retiring from Congress.  With those thirty-six mostly innocuous words, John Boehner set in motion a chain of events that shocked political pundits and the...

It’s the beginning of autumn and the leaves are starting to turn colors.   Election-season is in full gear, accompanied by harsh rhetoric across the political spectrum and intrusive television ads interrupting your local news broadcast.     

September 30th marks the end of another federal fiscal year and a government shutdown looms unless both chambers of Congress and the President can come to a budget agreement.

Stop me if this sounds familiar… because it could be any year in the last half-decade that this was written.  February 2nd is still months away, but we have reached Groundhog Day (or would season be more appropriate?) once again in America when it comes to funding the federal government....

Some will argue that they would rather err on the side of providing too much information rather than the alternative, but in the context of a grant proposal, the key to success is to find the sweet spot, or the bottom of the pendulum swing.  Since most people understand the perils of providing too little information, the focus of this month’s column is on avoiding the pitfalls of doing the opposite.

At this time in 2012, it was pretty clear that CMS was not thrilled with the process of, or response to, the Health Care Innovation Challenge, and it would ultimately be a one-and-done funding opportunity.  However, if you were paying close attention during the first round, the messaging from CMS has been anything but consistent.

May the finger-pointing and intense partisan rhetoric commence!  Shortly after finally passing a continuing resolution to fund the government through the rest of fiscal year 2013 (which ends September 30^th), both chambers of Congress went to work on a budget for 2014.   Recent history suggests that having a federal budget in place by the start of the fiscal year is a long shot.  The truth is that the federal government has not passed an actual budget bill, nevermind an on-time one, since April 2009.  Instead, we have seen a long line of continuing resolutions, or temporary stopgap measures that extend funding in an effort to avoid government shutdowns.  While these resolutions keep funds flowing, they wreak havoc on the ability of federal agencies to effectively plan their grant programming and financial obligations for the year.  That uncertainty amongst federal agencies trickles all the way down to public and non-profit organizations that rely on federal grant funds to fund their programs and initiatives.

As predicted, the federal government was able to bypass a complete catastrophe and avoided taking the United States down the fiscal cliff.  Unfortunately, when it comes to planning for grant programs likely to be available over the remainder of Fiscal Year 2013, we are left with the status quo of continued uncertainty.  In fact, besides extending and making permanent the Bush Era tax cuts for the majority of Americans, the fiscal cliff deal essentially punted every other major impending decision to March 2013.  Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell alludes to three major impending financial crises that converge in March...

The President proposes $1.6 billion in new tax revenue, extending payroll tax cut, $50 billion of spending on infrastructure projects and complete executive control of the debt ceiling borrowing limit.  In addition, the President's proposal called for $400-600 billion in spending cuts that are not completely delineated.

Much has been made about the impending doom associated with the automatic spending cuts (sequestration) and expiration of the tax rates established during the George W. Bush Presidency.  All the pundits point to the likelihood of a second recession if politicians in Washington allow the country to go "off the cliff".  Sequestration alone will initiate $1.2 trillion in automatic cuts across the entire budget, which means every sector from education and healthcare to defense spending will be effected.  The measure was put in place because it is not palatable to any politician, Democrat or Republican, to see such blanket cuts in discretionary spending.  The idea was to give Congress and the President time to come to a long-term agreement on deficit reduction.

Two years after the onset of the Great Recession, states are still facing monumental fiscal challenges. Brought on by an unfortunate combination of poor budgetary management skills, the worst recession in decades, and growing demand for services and entitlements, it seems most of the states are united by only one thing - red ink.

The United States currently faces twin economic challenges - growing the national economy (more specifically, lowering the unemployment rate) and shrinking the national debt. However, if you were to listen solely to the rhetoric and heated exchanges taking place in Washington, you could be forgiven for thinking our only problem is debt, debt, and more debt. The over 14 million individuals who remain without a job have become a tangential issue to the ongoing debate over debt.

Ever since last November, when Republicans retook the majority in the U.S. House of Representatives, the G.O.P. has successfully focused the national policy agenda almost entirely on debt and deficits.

The "Arab Spring" of revolutions and demonstrations across the Middle East began December 17, 2010 when street vendor Mohamed Bouazizi lit himself on fire in protest of political oppression. Since Bouazizi's self-immolation, two long-standing dictators, Zine El Abidine Ben Ali of Tunsia, and Hosni Mubarak of Egypt have been ousted, a civil war compelling international involvement has erupted in Libya, and brutal crackdowns continue across the increasingly volatile region.

At the heart of the debates in Washington and in state capitals across the country is the ongoing crisis in public finance as politicians, unions, lobbyists, policy wonks, and others debate just what it will take to align revenues to outlays. With the 111^th Congress having left Fiscal Year (FY) 2011 appropriations unfinished, it remains up to the 112^th Congress not only to finish the FY2011 spending bills but also begin work on the budget for FY2012.

Many grantseeking organizations can attest all too well to former Speaker of the House Tip O'Neil's famous quote that "all politics is local." For many public agencies, nonprofit organizations, schools, and other organizations, the decisions made at the state and federal levels extend far beyond their immediate influence or control, yet ultimately impact them the most. The annual budget and appropriations processes at the Federal level exemplify O'Neil's point, as the work conducted with respect to each significantly affects the opportunities, challenges, and prospects for local grantseekers.

Earmark spending, the direct appropriation of federal funds to a specified recipient, is paradoxically one of the most beloved and abhorred traditions in American politics. After all, one legislator's definition of pork barrel spending is another's much-needed job-saving investment - opposing views shared just as often among constituents as well.

With many state budgets in the red, funding is not always easy to find. Program funding has been cut drastically, and in many instances, funding is not even being directed toward new grant recipients but towards continuation grants. There doesn't seem to be much to look forward too, but there are still programs at the state level that grantseekers may find helpful, if not as fruitful, as they have been in the past.

It has been two years of high price-tag legislation, including the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), and the upcoming debate over the extension of the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts. Given these kinds of historic legislation, Americans are experiencing something of a national sticker shock and demands for deficit reduction continue to grow. All of this is hardly auspicious news from the vantage point of grantseekers.

For grantseekers, writers, and experts, the closest thing to a "Coming Attractions" notification any of us enjoys is the congressional calendar, as the life of any federal grant program begins with a bill. The same "I'm Just a Bill" from the popular School House Rock cartoons isn't just a lesson in U.S. civics, it's the starting point for some of the most anticipated funding of the year.