Simple Ways Nonprofits Can Identify Grant Opportunities and Stay Current on Legislation and Public Policy Changes

Very often my colleagues and I hear nonprofits struggling to find or unsure on where to begin looking for federal, state, and local granting opportunities that may benefit their organization. In this post, we provide a few tips that nonprofits could deploy to identify these opportunities and stay current on potential legislation and policy changes.

• Leverage websites like Grants.gov to find competitive grant opportunities from the various federal grant-making agencies and federal grant programs.
• Contact the offices and follow the websites of your state and local governments for various state and local grant opportunities.
• Follow federal agencies and grant-making organizations on social media or their websites to stay current on their initiatives, new program rollouts, and funding announcements.
• Subscribe to email alerts or notifications from grant-related websites or the federal, state, and local agencies you are looking to collaborate with.
• Attend networking events hosted by other nonprofit organizations, grant writers, and professional service firms who have knowledge of or experience working with or applying for similar grant opportunities. Community foundations, clubs, and associations are great ways to get connected with organizations with similar needs and desires.

With all said, find a regular routine that works for you to monitor and research grant opportunities. This is important as many federal and state grant opportunities are highly competitive and require time and effort to apply. Larger organizations may have more dedicated resources for this work; however, smaller organizations could consider engaging those charged with governance (i.e., the Board) by creating a grant and legislative task force or committee, leveraging passionate volunteers and constituents, working with other local nonprofit organizations (i.e., local foundations, chambers, and associations), or contracting with a professional service firm. Additionally, while these opportunities may provide a large amount of funding to your programs and initiatives, they can come with strict eligibility criteria or compliance requirements (i.e., single audit requirements). Such requirements can create additional hours and effort needed from your employees to achieve compliance.

On a related note, it is important for nonprofits to remain current on potential legislative and policy changes that may broadly impact the sector or specifically impact their segment or niche. There are a lot of organizations and websites that provide free, current content on legislation and public policy as it relates to the nonprofit industry. Understanding these potential changes allow nonprofits to plan for what may come. Nonprofits can benefit from public policies by taking advantage of tax deductions, granting opportunities, and regulations that can help achieve or support their mission, while also avoiding or mitigating the risks of public policies that restrict programs, initiatives, funding, or harm relationships cultivated with members, constituents, and beneficiaries. 

How can CLA help?

CLA offers grant application and compliance services that can help organizations identify and maintain compliance with granting opportunities. Additionally, feel free to subscribe to CLA’s nonprofit thought leadership to stay informed on new legislation and policy updates that impact the industry. 

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