If you ever spent time online searching for city, county, or state government grants, you know this can be a time-consuming endeavor. Some grants are administered by your county’s community development agency, public health agency, or arts and culture department. There may also be grants administered by your state’s departments of education, economic development, natural resources, or community affairs.
The key to finding these grants is to determine which city, county, or state agencies are aligned with the services your organization provides to the community.
For example, if your organization provides emergency or transitional shelter and housing-related services, you may want to visit the grants division of your city or county government’s office of housing, human services, or community development.
Sources of local or state government grants
Many local and state government grants are federally funded. These are formula or competitive grants that are awarded to state and local governments and then sub-awarded to local organizations.
According to the Tax Policy Center, the federal government awarded approximately $721 billion in funding to state and local governments in fiscal year 2019. The $721 billion funded healthcare programs, income security, transportation, education, job training, community development, environmental protection, and social services.
Another source of local government grants is levy funds. Levies are short-term, local property taxes passed by voters of a locality to fund certain programs in the community. One example of this is the Veterans, Seniors, and Human Services Levy which provides funding to community organizations, nonprofits, tribes and tribal organizations, and public agencies in King County, Washington.
Private foundations are a third source of grants to some local governments to augment existing funding of their public-facing programs and services.
Grants Works’ illustration of the sources of local government grants
Examples of local or state government arts education grants
If you operate an arts education program, here are a few examples of state and local grants being offered by ArtsWA in Washington state, Georgia’s Fulton County Arts Council, the City of Dallas Office of Arts and Culture, and the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs.
Examples of local or state government outdoor recreation grants
Looking for local or state government grants to fund an outdoor recreation program for youth or a water conservation program? The Georgia Department of Natural Resources Grants page or the Maryland Department of Natural Resources Grants and Loans Center are just two examples of available funding.
Government grants are taxpayer-funded so there are stringent compliance and reporting requirements and the application process can be very tedious.
If you need assistance identifying, applying for, or managing a local or state government grant, schedule a free consultation with Grants Works. Our staff has over 13 years of experience identifying, managing, and complying with the complexities of government grants. We also provide customized government grant management training.
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