Federal Grants

Since 1997, Colorado Grants has drafted 50+ successful proposals to units of local, state and federal government. While government funding can be burdensome, the process for awarding state and federal grants is usually democratic and fair. Federal funding can be the engine to help meet goals and grow your organization. Unfortunately, federal grant-making is frequently misunderstood and intimidating. Below, Colorado Grants presents questions and answers to several common questions about federal grant proposals. In addition a successful sample proposal is included on this website (Lightsville Public Schools proposal)

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I find out about federal grant opportunities?

Grants.gov is becoming the primary hub for federal grant funding. Most federal agencies announce funding opportunities online. Please go to Government Funding for selected links to federal grant programs and opportunities.

What types of grants does the government make?

Beginners and experienced managers alike sometimes believe that competitive federal grants are available for unrestricted purposes—to support existing program initiatives already offered by their organizations. Most government grants are for specific purposes based on federal legislation. Usually, applying for federal grant funding will mean that your organization will develop a plan outside of your normal program to deliver a service requested by the government.

The federal government establishes priorities and an outline for the delivery of a specific service. Different cabinet-level agencies distribute monies for programs related to their purpose and mission. Each cabinet-level agency has a myriad of sub-agencies under its jurisdiction. For instance, the Department of Health and Human Services oversees sub-agencies as diverse as the Administration on Aging, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Food and Drug Administration. Each of these sub-agencies is charged with issuing requests for proposals that fulfill legislative purposes.

Some programs such as Head Start, the Legal Services Corporation, AmeriCorps, Welfare to Work and Ryan White (HIV/AIDS) have become household names. There are hundreds of listings in the Federal Domestic Assistance Catalog. Federal funding—ever dependent on the politics of the U.S. Congress budget process—can disappear quickly.

How much money is available?

Most federal grants are multi-year awards. Grant amounts range from tens of thousands of dollars to millions of dollars. Each grant announcement includes a listing on the funding amount and the number of years for the award. Knowing how much money is available for a grant program can help determine whether or not it is worth your time to develop a complete grant proposal. Sometimes only four or five grants are available for a competition, and hundreds of organizations are applying for that limited pool of funding. If only a handful of grants are available, you will need to evaluate whether or not your organization has the experience and history of providing the requested service at an elite level and will generate outcomes that are extremely competitive.

What factors might put my organization at a competitive disadvantage in applying for a federal grant?

Preparing a federal grant application can be time-consuming and draining. Applying for a federal grant in most cases is a major commitment that will consume many hours of time from your director, program staff, financial staff, and grant writer. It will be frustrating if you devote those resources to a grant that is poorly matched to the mission and qualifications of your organization.

Consider whether or not your agency has the management experience to carry out a federal grant program. Keep in mind that the worst nightmare of a federal agency is distributing grants to an organization that does not have the capacity to carry out grant activities and account for the funding received through the grant. A tax-exempt organization’s mismanagement of a federal grant can end up on the front page of the daily newspaper or lead story on the evening news. Bad media exposure puts federal grant programs under a microscope, and damages chances for future congressional funding appropriations. For those reasons and others, the federal government is extremely cautious about making funding awards to organizations without experience in managing and administering larger grants.

Consider several key questions before applying for federal funding. Does your organization have the capacity to carry out program activities? Do you have management-level staff, facilities, and other resources to carry out a federal grant? Can your organization fulfill federal regulations associated with the grant application? A careful review of the application kit may help you determine that your organization is not eligible to apply for a particular grant program. You may also find that the required services to be delivered do not match up well with your organization’s capabilities. Do not try to force a round peg into a square hole!

Also consider that federal grants require an audit that specifically meets standards established by the government. Some grants do not support your costs for an audit or administrative expenses. Your organization’s audit costs will increase if you receive a federal grant, but you may not have funding to support those costs.

If your organization is new to the federal grants arena, you are competing against organizations, institutions, hospitals, colleges and school districts that are experienced in implementing and managing grants. Your proposed program may be much more innovative and better designed than the more experienced competitors, but you may not receive funding if you cannot assure federal administrators that your staff can handle burdensome financial and grant reporting requirements. In some instances, your organization can overcome this problem by collaborating with an organization that is experienced in administering federal grants. This joint effort will strengthen your application, and help your organization build experience.

Do we need to hire a grant writer to develop a federal proposal?

Keep in mind that while you may have someone internally who is qualified to develop a federal proposal, the time commitment can be extraordinary. Developing a 35-page grant proposal may zap the life out of your staff and agency – and bring tremendous disappointment if it is not funded! Developing a document of that length is hardly intimidating to an experienced grant proposal writer.

An outside grant writer with experience in developing federal proposals can reduce the burden on your staff and efficiently create a strong proposal. Be sure that you hire someone with strong writing skills, good listening skills, strong understanding of budgeting and finance, and an attention to detail. Ask for sample proposals, a list of funded federal proposals and references. Make sure that this individual can block out adequate time to develop the proposal.

If you decide to develop the grant proposal internally, you may still want to hire an outside expert to review your proposal before it is submitted. That process will help you identify any weaknesses, and provide an opportunity to see if your plan makes sense to someone who is an outsider and has a fresh perspective.

How much time do we need to assemble a federal grant application?

It is usually wise to begin developing a grant proposal four to eight weeks prior to the deadline, depending upon the size of the proposal. While it is possible to assemble the full application in a two week period or less, you are more likely to make serious mistakes and not submit a polished proposal. Federal grant deadlines are not negotiable. If your proposal arrives late, more than likely it will be returned to your agency unopened. With the grants.gov system, proposals can be submitted online, but technology glitches and the complexity of the submission process can make you miss a deadline.

Once we have decided to apply for a grant, how do we begin developing the proposal?

Some experts state that writing a grant proposal is two-thirds planning and one-third writing. It is very important to drive the grant proposal process through internal planning, rather than being driven by a grant proposal through federal requirements and priorities.

To begin responding to a request for proposals, identify a team of staff members who will develop this grant. When I am hired to develop a federal grant proposal, I usually work with the organization’s executive director or chief administrator, and one or two program staff members. In addition, I consult with the lead financial administrator to develop budget information.

Some federal grants require collaboration from other organizations in planning the grant proposal and/or implementing your program. Applicants are frequently required to include letters of commitment from partnering agencies. You may want to invite representatives from outside organizations to be a part of the planning group. That extra effort will strengthen your proposal substantially, and make it much easier to establish commitments and legitimate (not “paper tiger”) partnerships.

Federal agencies sometimes host bidders conferences to explain the grant application packet and answer questions (often these meetings are held via telephone or internet). You can also contact the program officer and grant administration officials to ask additional questions.

What are some reasons that federal grant proposals are turned down?

Government agencies always score the proposal based on a points system, with criteria for scoring including in proposal packets. You will be required to attain a certain number of scoring points to be considered for a grant award. Applications lose points in many different ways, such as:

• Quality of application: According to reviewers and federal staff, common mistakes include omission of requested information, poor understanding of the grant program’s goals, unrealistic goals and objectives, and weak evaluation models.
• Omissions and Guidelines: While it seems incomprehensible, I have been told by federal officials that many applicants fail to follow critical proposal guidelines. These omissions can automatically eliminate your application from consideration. Sometimes applicants build activities into their program model that violate federal regulations explicitly listed in the application packet.
• Geographic considerations: Sometimes grants are awarded strategically to different geographic regions. For example, some grant programs will balance their giving to rural and urban areas. In other instances, a federal agency may only be willing to fund one grant for your region. If another local organization receives a slightly higher score on the grant application, it will receive the funding.
• Political considerations: Occasionally, politics come into play over the distribution of grant funding. In my opinion, the federal grantmaking process is far more democratic and objective than foundation and corporate giving. But to say that influence never plays a role in decision-making is not accurate. In any case, you should stay away from ever “politicking” for a federal grant because it will more often hurt your cause than help it.
• Internal factors: Sometimes mysterious things happen within an agency, and the process is manipulated.
• Limited funds: You can be approved or recommended to receive a grant, but then be told that there is no more funding available. In the end, federal agencies have some discretionary powers to make final decisions.

Who reviews a federal grant proposal?

Federal grant proposals are typically reviewed by agency staff and/or outside reviewers. The proposal guidance frequently describes the application review process. In some cases, the federal government is desperate to find outside reviewers, and some are limited in their understanding of the service process. For those reasons, write in simple language, avoid jargon and never assume that a reviewer will understand the complexities of your area of expertise. Also keep in mind that since readers are scrutinizing several proposals, make their job easier by keeping the proposal simple, easy to follow, and closely matched with proposal guidelines. Be sure that key components of your program are stated clearly, and they will not accidentally be overlooked.