Process for FFY 2011 projects

The Grants Clearinghouse FFY 2011 is now open!

Overview:

Through the clearinghouse, organizations working in California and parts of Nevada can apply online for some National Fire Plan grants for eligible projects by writing one grant proposal that is then routed to the appropriate grant program(s). The grant proposal form can be found on the Fire Safe California Grants Clearinghouse, www.grants.firesafecouncil.org.

The grants clearinghouse is made possible by California Fire Alliance member agencies. Grant funding is provided by the USDA Forest Service (FS), USDI Bureau of Land Management (BLM), USDI National Park Service (NPS) and USDI U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS). For a list of eligible projects, funding priorities ad estimated funding levels, please visit here (link to the Resource Center/Program Descriptions)

2011 Timeline:

Call for Grant Applications: Dec. 14, 2009
Application deadline: Feb 26, 2010 MIDNIGHT
Letters of Commitment and Fiscal Sponsor Agreement deadline is POSTMARKED by Feb 26, 2010
Notification of funding decisions June 14, 2010

Letters of Commitment:

  • Submit letters of commitment from all organizations providing matching funds to the project. Each letter of commitment must be on the organization's letterhead providing the match and signed by the organization's official representative.
  • The applicant organization must also provide a letter indicating the amount of match and a description of the personnel and/or services to be provided.
  • Fiscal sponsors must submit a letter on their letterhead certifying they have agreed to serve as the fiscal sponsor for the applicant.
  • For identification purposes, each letter must include the project's name and the name of the applicant organization as they appear in the grant proposal. Each letter of commitment must describe what the organization will provide and the value of what they will provide.
  • Send all of your letters of commitment, including a summary sheet listing all of the organizations and their match amounts, in one packet to: California Fire Safe Council, 502 W. Route 66, Suite 17, Glendora, CA 91740.
  • The letters must be POSTMARKED by the grant application deadline of February 26, 2010 for your project to be considered for funding.
  • If you would like confirmation that your letters were received by the California Fire Safe Council, please use a Return Receipt/Delivery Confirmation from the U.S. Postal Service or send your letters via UPS or FedEx with a delivery tracking number. The California Fire Safe Council will not notify you that your letters were received.
  • YOU MAY NOT SUBMIT THE LETTERS VIA E-MAIL OR FAX.

Re-Submitting Grant Proposals from last cycle:

If you have submitted grant proposals in the past and they weren't funded, you will be able to access those grant proposals on your home page and resubmit them for consideration in the new grant proposal format. You need to resubmit them for funding consideration by the deadline noted above because, on the clearinghouse end, some grant proposal questions have changed. In addition, on your end, you may find that your budget needs updating or you'd like to update the scope of your project.

To resubmit in the new format, transfer the information from your old grant proposal into the new grant proposal format by clicking in the status box where it says, "Click here to copy this grant proposal to the current cycle." Since questions have changed, you will likely have to do some editing of the information in the new format.

Grant Writing Workshops:

Don't forget to register to attend a grant writing workshop at one of twelve (12) locations throughout California this year. You can find the link for registration here. At the workshop you'll learn how to write and submit a grant proposal, to navigate the Clearinghouse and details on the grant programs for FFY 2011. Attendance at the workshops is highly recommended for previous grantees and mandatory if you have never received grant funds through the California Fire Safe Council.

How to submit a grant proposal

  1. If you are new to our program, please create a new User ID and Password and setup a new account. We highly recommend each organization that will submit a grant to our program, maintain one account to submit proposals. Make sure and keep your account current as we send out emails periodically to the contact information listed in your account.
  2. Get to know the grant program. Review the deadlines, grant program descriptions, scoring criteria and grant proposal form. Call a grant manager and discuss your project ideas.
  3. Attend a free grant writing workshop. There are 12 locations throughout California this year. If you are new to the grant program, attendance at one of these workshops is mandatory.
  4. Write and submit grant proposal online by the Feb 26, 2010 deadline. Please note the instructions for submitting Letters of Commitment.
  5. Funding decisions will be announced by June 14, 2010.

For more help, please contact a grant manager. A full staff listing is available at http://www.firesafecouncil.org/about/staff_roster.cfm