What is the most important aspect of a grant application? The budget. Since grant funding is all about money, it should come as no surprise that the single most important aspect of any grant application is the budget. The budget drives nearly every other section of the application. A thoughtful and well-crafted budget is essential to your proposal’s ultimate success and should be the starting point of any grant application.

Reviewers will look at the budget before anything else. A reviewer should be able to understand your entire project just from reading your budget. An incomplete, confusing or overinflated budget can ruin an otherwise quality application.

Taking the time to think through and calculate all of your projected expenses will help to clarify your project’s scope. Determining detailed and accurate cost projections will demonstrate to a potential funder that you have a realistic understanding of your project’s cost.

Budgeting is often seen as a daunting task, but there is no reason to put it off. If you start with the budget, it allows you to craft a better narrative that justifies your request.

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President Joe Biden has signed the Fiscal 2023 National Defense Authorization Act into law, which has allotted $816.7 billion to the Defense Department. This act has authorized $40.4 billion for national security programs in the DOE and $378 million for other defense-related activities.

While this act allocates funds for things such as Navy shipbuilding and pays for Navy aircraft, these funds will also trickle down opportunities for infrastructure to be built to accommodate this new construction.

Military construction will be significantly boosted by this authorization, and subsequently American infrastructure will see similar support. Congratulations to those organizations that can move their projects forward with these new funds.

This information was sourced from www.defense.gov/News/.

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Does it feel overwhelming to consider what you need to emphasize in your grant applications? The first thing you need to consider is what your project and organization are already doing that you can highlight for funders. If your project has an element that may appeal to a funder, make that connection explicit in your proposal.

Capital infrastructure projects can create jobs, both short-term and long-term. Furthermore, capital projects are often part of larger development and revitalization efforts. Think about how your project contributes to economic stimulus and then highlight those contributions in your proposal.

Funders are interested in supporting underserved communities, such as tribal, rural, and low-income communities. If your project already directly and obviously serves one of these populations, demonstrating that connection in your application is a straightforward process. If your project is not in an obviously urban area, it is worth checking how the funder defines rural. You may be surprised to find that your project or service area qualifies as rural according to the funder’s guidelines. Finally, if your project does not directly serve a disadvantaged population, consider ways that it may indirectly serve on these populations.

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A total of $84.7 million dollars was awarded last month to 36 communities as a part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. These funds will help to bring clean drinking water in drought-riddled areas in the western United States.

Projects awarded include plans for groundwater storage, aquifer recharge, ion exchange treatment, rainwater harvesting, water reuse, and more. “Drought resilience is more important now than ever as the West is experiencing more severe and longer droughts,” says Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Camille Calimlim Touton.

This funding announcement is part of the $1 billion as provided by the WaterSMART program, supporting states, tribes, and local entities to plan for extended drought, modernize aging infrastructure, and minimize the potential for future water conflicts.

To read more and learn which projects were selected in this funding announcement, go to www.usbr.gov/drought

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One of the most important parts of your grant application process is building partnerships. Funders are interested in supporting projects that have the support and participation of the community. The more support that you can demonstrate, the stronger your grant application will be.

Formalize existing connections. It is likely that your organization has relationships with other organizations that are directly working on the project or have an interest in the project’s outcome. Make the effort to formalize these existing relationships by asking for a letter of support, letter of commitment, or memorandum of understanding. Once the connection is formalized, the document can be included to strengthen your application.

Make strategic new connections. Reach out to other organizations that might be positively impacted by the project or might be interested in participating in the project at some level. The more connections and support your project has, the more fundable it will be. Of particular interest are partnerships between regional entities and nonprofit organizations. If there is a way to include a partner from another sector, it is often worth the effort.

Be sure to make formalized connections for the best chance at success with your grant applications.

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“Much of the water infrastructure investments enacted through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) will be provided to local governments in the form of principal forgiveness funds. Ultimately, the bottom-line effect is a huge reduction in the overall cost of a project that is financially equivalent to receiving a grant from the government but is tied to a low-interest loan administered by the state,” says Cavender. This is helping the rollout of funds to avoid delays, meaning projects get funded more efficiently.

“The BIL funding will vary from state to state, because all states manage their own SRF programs…For example, principal forgiveness for wastewater projects in Colorado is capped at $1.5 million per project, regardless of how much the project costs,” says Cavender, “By contrast, a $10 million drinking water project might be eligible for $4.9 million in principal forgiveness.” Do your research into your state SRF programs to see what the cap is per project type for BIL funds to aid your project.

Tempering expectations is of the utmost importance when going through the grant application process. While having BIL pass is exciting, those funds cannot possibly meet all the need that exists in the landscape of capital infrastructure projects. “For example, one of the grants available right now from the Federal Emergency Management Agency is the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities Grant…It was funded in the amount of $1 billion in 2022, but unless you’re at the top 2 percent of the most competitive projects in the entire country, you’re probably not going to get funded,” says Cavender. That is why it’s valuable to do your research, prepare diligently, and seek out assistance from a consultant like Dig Deep to better navigate the funding landscape.

Read the rest of Dig Deep CEO Tia Cavender’s interview with Municipal Water Leader on page 32.

https://municipalwaterleader.com/volume-9-issue-10-nov-dec/

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The narrative is one of the most important aspects to your grant application but it can also be the most time-consuming. Even if you are on schedule to make the application deadline, too much back and forth on the narrative could cause you to miss it. We have some simple tips to help you efficiently and effectively draft your narrative that will yield better chances at securing funding.

There are two narratives required for most grant applications: the budget narrative and application narrative. The budget narrative lists dollar amounts for every expense category and describes every line item in the budget. The application narrative addresses major expenses and puts it in context of the project’s goals and objectives, highlighting their role in the project’s success.

Structuring your narrative around your budget will demonstrate to the reviewers that your project is well planned. Be sure to explain every expense concisely. When writing your application narrative, tie in community benefits as much as possible. If you polled the community or gained official support from local organizations, emphasize that.

Before writing your application narrative, try to determine what the word count for each section is. When you receive feedback from the program officer, incorporate every suggested edit. The program officer knows what the agency is looking for. Lastly, have multiple people read, review, and edit the narrative for grammar and flow. It’s easy to lose sight of small errors in the text after working on it for a long time. This narrative should read smoothly and in lay-mans terms. Avoid over-complicating the narrative. The funding agency reviewers should have zero questions after reading your narrative.

Good luck with your applications!

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Last month, representatives from the City of Newport, including Mayor Dean Sawyer, council members, and city administrators traveled to Washington, D.C. to advocate for federal funding to advance the Big Creek Dam Replacement Project. This trip allowed local leaders in Newport to come face-to-face with legislators and ask that the $60 million authorization for the Big Creek Dam replacement project be included in the final negotiated Water Resources Development Act bill.

Replacement costs to the dam were estimated to be at least $80 million before the pandemic, but now costs are rising. The city of Newport has invested $6 million to the project and Rep. Gomberg secured $14 million in lottery bonding from the Oregon Legislature. Combined with the authorization from Congress, these funds could help the Newport community move forward with replacing the failing dam.

After concluding the trip, Mayor Dean Sawyer said, “I was impressed that our congressional delegation had such a depth of knowledge about our dam replacement project in Newport, Oregon. They were very receptive…We appreciate Senators Wyden and Merkley and Congressmen Schrader and Defazio for their work to include our authorization in the final bill.

Rep. Gomberg stated that, “this [trip] was meaningful, well-organized, and critically timed…We met with the committees that are making the decisions…We, and they, are encouraged that there is momentum to bring home much-needed federal funding to replace Newport’s failing dams.”

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The recent Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, passed by Congress in 2021, has garnered excitement across the infrastructure industries. Although it is a significant investment in United States infrastructure, over $110 billion to be exact, there are a few limitations to this funding. Dig Deep CEO, Tia Cavender spoke with Municipal Water Leader on what to expect from the recent BIL.

The BIL funds will be distributed over a 5-year period. For pre-existing programs, those funds will be available more quickly, but developing new grant or loan programs takes time and resources. If your project meets the criteria for a disadvantaged community, you will be more competitive in the search for federal funding than projects in affluent communities.

When it comes to how the funds will be distributed, Tia Cavender states, “much of the water infrastructure investments enacted through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) will be provided to local governments in the form of principal forgiveness funds. Ultimately, the bottom-line effect is a huge reduction in the overall cost of a project that is financially equivalent to receiving a grant from the government but is tied to a low-interest loan administered by the state.”

“One of the most important things public officials can do is to temper their expectations. Yes, the total amount of grant funds sounds substantial, but when you break it down by state and then into individual projects, it’s still not enough money to address what needs to be addressed.” Tia Cavender says. It’s a start towards more funding opportunities, but there’s always more work to be done.

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Almost universally, funders want to see that your project has stakeholder support. To have a truly competitive project proposal, it is imperative that you identify and involve project stakeholders. Additionally, by involving stakeholders, you are able to get a more varied perspective on your project. This will help you to anticipate potential problems and develop creative ways to address them proactively.

It is natural to be nervous about involving stakeholders in a project. There is often a fear that by bringing more people to the table, the process will become more complicated. However, it is better to think of project stakeholders as potential allies that can help your project to succeed. Through the involvement of stakeholders, you have the opportunity to build your project’s credibility and ultimately strengthen your proposed project.

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