Grants

Grants and Federal Domestic Assistance

My office is proud to provide you with assistance on a variety of issues, including Grants Services. The Federal Grants process can be confusing to navigate. This page should help answer your questions and serve as a resource in the application process.

Please use the links below for navigation.

• How Best to Find Information
• Key Federal Funding Sources
• Related Federal Sources
• Private and Corporate Funding
• Tracking Federal Funds

How Best to Find Information

    TOP

1. Find out Who is Eligible for a Grant? Other government websites may be more suitable for personal needs, student loans, small business assistance , or other business opportunities such as government contracting. The website Government Benefits, Grants, and Financial Aid may also be of help. Visit Grants.gov to find out if you are eligible to apply for grants and watch this helpful animated eligibility tutorial.
2. If eligible, search  for program informaion in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA). Includes grants, loans, business and nonfinancial help.
3. Contact Federal office given in CFDA program description: if state or local office is indicated, check Regional Agency Offices at top of CFDA website for addresses.
4. Go to federal websites given in each CFDA program description for more information and for state administering agencies responsible for managing these programs.
5. Check current federal grants opportunities at Grants.gov, obtain a Dun and Bradstreet a DUNS number, register with Central Contractor Registration a CCR number, and apply online (links and instructions given at the website).
6. Search foundations for project funding: use the Foundation Center Web site or Foundation Center Cooperating Collections in libraries to identify national, state, and community foundations.
7. Learn how to write grant proposals: follow CFDA’s Developing and Writing Grant Proposals, or take the free online Foundation Center Proposal Writing Short Course.

Key Federal Funding Sources

    TOP

• Grants.gov
• Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance
• State 'Single Points of Contact'
• CDFA in Local Libraries

Grants.gov (managed by Dept. of Health and Human Services)

Federal website that allows eligible grantseekers (see Who is Eligible for a Grant?) to find and apply for current competitive grant opportunities from ALL federal agencies. Grantseekers can check on notices of funding availability (NOFA) posted in the last 7 days; access an RSS feed of grant opportunities; and apply for federal grants through a unified process by downloading the application and submitting online. The website guides grantseekers in obtaining a Dun and Bradstreet (DUNS) number and registering with Central Contractor Registration (CCR) and registering with Grants.gov to apply and to track applications. For full federal program descriptions, see CFDA below.

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (General Services Administration)

The Catalog (CFDA), issued annually and updated continuously on the Web, describes some 1600 Federal grants and nonfinancial assistance programs. Grantseekers can identify programs that might support their projects and can learn the program's objectives, requirements, application procedures and contacts. For current notices of funding availability, see Grants.gov.

State 'Single Points of Contact' (Office of Management and Budget)

Under Executive Order 12372, some states require federal grants applicants to submit a copy of their application for state government level review and comment. The state offices listed here coordinate federal financial assistance and may direct federal development. For help in identifying state-level grants, other state government agencies websites may be found at: State and Local Agencies by Topic.

CDFA in Local Libraries

Although the Catalog is available full-