Community Service Agency Grant Program

State of Policies

Purpose

The Program is intended to provide funding to agencies providing services that improve the quality of life for residents of the County in at least one of the following ways:

• Providing a unique service that enhances the mental and physical health of residents;
• Providing a unique service that builds an educated and sustainable community; or
• Provides a unique service that demonstrates the ability to assist a segment of population experiencing unemployment, homelessness, and/or other issues to develop skills that will support sustainability.

Agency Eligibility

1. Criteria for an agency to be eligible for funding consideration:
   1. Non-profit agency providing County residents service needs in the County for at least the previous two years;
   2. Have a governing board and operate under a set of bylaws;
   3. Meet at least one element of the Boards adopted Strategic Plan;
   4. At least one member of the agency’s governing board must be a County resident. If the organization has a nationwide or statewide parent organization due to its size which does not have a County resident currently serving on, a local board or committee must be in place for at least the previous two (years), have oversight of County programs, and provide information to the parent organization as needed. The local board then must have a least one member that is a County resident.
   5. Provide a plan for self-sustainability; and
   6. Completed the application for funding accompanied with all required attachments and follow submittal guidelines provided by the Department and these Procedures.
2. Additional Funding Limitations:
   1. Funding requests must be more than one (1%) percent of the total project budget.
   2. Agencies are prohibited from receiving Program funding for more than five (5) consecutive years.
   3. Considering all funding an agency receives from the County within each fiscal year (regardless of the funding source), agencies will receive, in total, no more than fifteen (15%) percent of the Board’s annual budgeted amount for this Program. For example, if the Program annual budget is $1 million (resulting in a per-agency funding cap at $150,000) and an agency received $20,000 from the County from another funding source, the agency may apply for up to $130,000 for Program funds.
   4. Agencies identified as being noncompliant with Program funding provided within previous two (2) years are ineligible.
   5. Agencies that restrict participation in their services based on race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, or national origin are ineligible.

Application Review Black-Out Period

Applicants shall not contact any Board member, the County Manager, or any ARC member during the evaluation process during the Black-Out Period. The black-out period begins once the application process is advertised or announced and ends upon the final execution of the agency agreements by the Board of County Manager. Questions regarding the application or the process may be directed to the Department at 407-742-8400.