Funding Opportunities by Sustainable Strategies DC

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Low or No Emission (Low-No) Grant program is offering large grants to support the modernization of public transit bus fleets, including the acquisition, construction, and leasing of required supporting facilities such as recharging, refueling, and maintenance facilities.

Eligible activities include:

Purchasing or leasing low- or no-emission buses;

Acquiring low- or no-emission buses with a leased power source;

Constructing or leasing facilities and related equipment (including intelligent technology and software) for low- or no-emission buses;

Constructing new public transportation for facilities to accommodate low- or no-emission buses; and,

Rehabilitating or improving existing public transportation facilities to accommodate low- or no-emission buses.

Although zero-emission projects remain technically eligible, DOT intends to prioritize low-emission projects over zero-emission projects to the maximum extent permitted by law. Interested applicants should focus on low-emission technologies unless a proposed zero-emission project is highly innovative, such as one incorporating automated vehicle technology.

Eligible applicants include designated or direct recipients of FTA funding, states, local governmental authorities, and federally recognized Indian Tribes. Except for projects submitted by Tribes, projects serving rural areas must be submitted through a state, either individually or as part of a consolidated statewide application. A 15% match is required for the leasing or purchasing of a new transit bus. A 10% match is required for leasing or acquiring low- or no-emission bus-related equipment and facilities.

Applications for the Low-No Grant program are due by September 21, 2026.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Brownfields Job Training Grant Program is offering grants of up to $300,000 to help communities recruit, train, and place unemployed and underemployed residents in full-time environmental jobs. Projects should strengthen local workforces while supporting the assessment, cleanup, and revitalization of brownfields and other contaminated properties.

Grant funds must be used for direct programmatic costs associated with implementing a Brownfields Job Training program. Applicants should tailor curricula to the labor-market needs of the targeted community and demonstrate that the proposed training responds to local employer demand. All graduates must receive a OSHA 40-hour Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER) certificate or provide a verification of prior training plus any required refresher. Beyond HAZWOPER, applicants may offer eligible training related to brownfields inventory, assessment, cleanup, community involvement, remediation, or site preparation, including:

Solid and hazardous waste assessment and cleanup;

Chemical risk management;

Stormwater management related to brownfields assessment or cleanup;

Planning and site preparation for low-impact development;

Infrastructure installation, management, and maintenance; and

Environmental mitigation, adaptation, resiliency, and contamination mitigation planning.

Eligible applicants include general-purpose units of local government, quasi-governmental entities, regional councils, redevelopment agencies, states, Tribal entities, institutions of higher education, and nonprofit organizations. No match is required.

Applications for EPA Brownfields Job Training grants are due by September 23, 2026.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is offering three separate funding opportunities to help communities improve housing safety, health, accessibility, and stability for vulnerable residents. Together, these programs support efforts to reduce childhood lead exposure, address housing-related health and safety hazards, and help low-income older adults remain safely and independently in their homes.

Lead Hazard Reduction Grant Program (up to $7 million) supports comprehensive programs that identify and control lead-based paint hazards in eligible privately owned rental and owner-occupied housing, with a particular focus on protecting children under age six from lead poisoning. Eligible activities include lead inspections and risk assessments, testing, abatement, interim controls, rehabilitation, clearance testing, resident relocation, outreach, education, and related healthy homes interventions. Eligible applicants include states, federally recognized Tribes, cities, counties, parishes, special districts, and other eligible units of local government. A 10% match is required.

Healthy Homes Production Grant Program (up to $4 million) supports coordinated approaches to identifying and addressing multiple housing-related health and safety hazards rather than treating a single hazard at a time. Eligible activities include healthy homes assessments, mold and moisture remediation, ventilation improvements, pest control, radon and carbon monoxide mitigation, electrical and fire safety improvements, fall-prevention measures, targeted housing repairs, resident education, and coordination with health, housing, and community-service providers. Eligible applicants include states, counties, cities, federally recognized Tribal governments, and eligible nonprofit organizations. A 10% match is required.

Older Adults Home Modification Grant Program (up to $3 million) supports comprehensive programs that provide low-cost, low-barrier, high-impact home modifications for low-income adults age 62 or older. Eligible activities include installing grab bars, handrails, ramps, nonslip flooring, improved lighting, accessible showers, raised toilet seats, lever-style door handles, and other repairs or modifications that reduce fall risks, improve accessibility, increase general safety, and strengthen residents’ ability to perform daily activities. Eligible applicants include experienced nonprofit organizations, states, counties, cities, special districts, and public housing authorities. Applicants must have at least three years of experience serving older adults. No match is required.

Applications for all three programs are due by August 31, 2026.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Innovative Coordinated Access and Mobility Pilot Program is offering $12 million in grant funding to support innovative capital projects that improve the coordination of transportation and non-emergency medical transportation services. The program is designed to help older adults, people with disabilities, and people with low incomes access healthcare, employment, education, groceries, and other essential community services. There is no formal minimum or maximum award amount; however, awards made during the previous competition ranged from approximately $73,600 to $1.82 million.

Funding may support:

Mobility Management and Service Coordination: Capital expenses associated with coordinating transportation providers, healthcare organizations, human-service agencies, and other community partners to help individuals identify and access available transportation services.

Coordination Technology: Development or deployment of scheduling, dispatching, trip-booking, data-sharing, payment, eligibility-verification, and other technology that allows transportation and human-service providers to coordinate trips more efficiently.

One-Call/One-Click Transportation Centers: Creation or expansion of centralized systems through which individuals can obtain information about transportation options, determine eligibility, schedule rides, and connect with multiple transportation providers through a single point of access.

Shared and Coordinated Transportation Vehicles: Purchase of vehicles used to provide shared or coordinated transportation services for transportation-disadvantaged populations.

Projects must be innovative capital projects that improve access to coordinated transportation, reduce unnecessary duplication among transportation providers, or increase the efficiency of federally supported human-service transportation programs. Proposed projects may operate at the local, regional, or statewide level. Planning expenses and ongoing operating expenses such as fuel, driver salaries, insurance, and the general cost of operating transportation services are not eligible.

Eligible applicants include state departments of transportation, designated recipients of FTA Section 5310 funding, local government authorities that operate public transportation, operators of public transportation, private nonprofit organizations, and qualifying private for-profit entities that regularly provide shared-ride, on-demand transportation to the general public. Organizations that are not already direct FTA recipients are strongly encouraged to partner with a state DOT or another existing direct or designated recipient that can receive and administer the funding on their behalf. A 20% match is required.

Applications for the DOT Innovative Coordinated Access and Mobility Pilot Program are due by September 9, 2026.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Microgrants Program is offering grants of up to $200,000 to support innovative or evidence-based demonstration and pilot projects that improve officer and public safety. The COPS Microgrant program is designed to help law enforcement agencies address specific public safety challenges, strengthen crime-fighting and investigative capacity, improve organizational effectiveness, and implement new approaches to community policing.

Funding may support projects within the following priority areas:

Crime Prevention and Investigations: Innovative strategies to prevent, investigate, and respond to violent crime, gang violence, domestic terrorism, human trafficking, child exploitation, cybercrime, and opioid or illegal drug market.

Law Enforcement Operations and Technology: Projects that strengthen intelligence sharing, data analysis, coordinated investigations, unmanned aerial system operations, cross-jurisdictional enforcement, and collaboration with federal, state, Tribal, territorial, and local law enforcement partners.

Agency and Community Safety Initiatives: Strategies addressing officer recruitment, hiring, and retention; immigration and border security coordination; vagrancy and illegal squatting; community engagement; problem-solving; and organizational changes that improve agency effectiveness and public safety.

Projects must address one of the program’s 11 designated priority areas and clearly demonstrate a specific public safety need, organizational challenge, or gap in existing services. Applicants are encouraged to incorporate formal partnerships with other law enforcement agencies and relevant community stakeholders and to include an evaluation component that measures the project’s effectiveness and impact.

Eligible applicants include state, local, Tribal, and territorial law enforcement agencies with primary law enforcement authority over their jurisdictions. No match is required.

Applications for the COPS Microgrant Program are due by August 17, 2026.

The United States Conference of Mayors’ Healthy and Sustainable Communities program is offering grants of up to $275,000 to support city-led projects that improve community health, advance environmental sustainability, strengthen resilience, and enhance residents’ overall quality of life. The program will provide mayors with flexible funding to implement practical, high-impact solutions addressing local health and sustainability needs.

Funding is available through three city population categories:

Large Cities—More Than 250,000 Residents: First-place award of $275,000, second-place award of $100,000, and third-place award of $75,000.

Medium Cities—75,000 to 250,000 Residents: First-place award of $200,000, second-place award of $75,000, and third-place award of $50,000.

Small Cities—Fewer Than 75,000 Residents: First-place award of $150,000, second-place award of $50,000, and third-place award of $25,000.

Projects may support community health and wellness initiatives; environmental, sustainability, and resilience efforts; or other locally driven programs that improve community conditions and quality of life.

Eligible applicants include member cities of the United States Conference of Mayors, including service cities. Each application must include a current letter of support from the city’s mayor that is specifically tied to the proposed grant activity. No match is required.

Applications for the 2027 Healthy and Sustainable Communities Grant Awards are due by August 14, 2026.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) Mental Health Awareness Training Grant Program is offering grants of up to $200,000 per year to support the implementation of evidence-based mental health awareness, literacy, crisis response, and de-escalation training. The program is designed to help educators, first responders, healthcare professionals, caregivers, trusted community leaders, and other community members recognize signs of mental illness, respond effectively to individuals experiencing a mental health crisis, and connect individuals with appropriate behavioral health services and community resources.

Funding may support activities including:

Mental Health Awareness and Literacy Training: Evidence-based or evidence-informed training that equips participants to recognize the signs and symptoms of mental illness, understand mental health conditions, and appropriately assist individuals experiencing or at risk of a mental health crisis.

Crisis Response and De-escalation Training: Training for educators, first responders, healthcare providers, caregivers, and other community members on responding safely and effectively to crisis situations involving individuals with mental health challenges.

Referral and Service Coordination: Development of partnerships and referral processes that connect individuals experiencing mental illness or a mental health crisis with behavioral health treatment, crisis intervention services, and other appropriate community supports.

Projects must demonstrate a need for mental health awareness training within the proposed service area and use evidence-based models to address gaps in existing training, crisis response capacity, behavioral health services, and access to community resources.

Eligible applicants include states, political subdivisions of states, Indian Tribes, Tribal organizations, and private nonprofit organizations. No match is required.

Applications for the 2026 SAMHSA Mental Health Awareness Training Grant Program are due by July 27, 2026.

Smart Growth America’s Community Connectors grant program is offering up to $25,000 to help small- and mid-sized communities advance locally driven projects that reconnect neighborhoods separated or harmed by transportation infrastructure. The program will support three community teams through a year-long cohort focused on training, technical assistance, project design, and implementation of a temporary street safety pilot project that can help test permanent changes to improve safety and reconnect divided communities.

Eligible projects include, but are not limited to:

Temporary street safety demonstration projects that test future permanent improvements

Projects focused on divisive or dangerous arterial roads or streets

Community-led efforts to improve safety for people walking, biking, rolling, taking transit, or accessing daily needs

Project planning, design, training, engagement, and implementation activities that support safer, more connected streets

Projects should be designed to repair the damage of divisive infrastructure, improve street safety, build local capacity, and create momentum for long-term transportation and community reconnection improvements.

Eligible applicants must apply as joint teams that include a local government and a community-based organization. Only small to mid-sized cities, with populations between approximately 50,000 and 500,000, are considered eligible.

Applications for the Smart Growth America Community Connectors Program are due by July 17, 2026.

The Healthy Food Financing Initiative (HFFI) Food Access and Retail Expansion (FARE) Fund is offering grants of up to $250,000 and technical assistance of up to $75,000 to support food retail and food retail supply chain projects that improve access to fresh, healthy, and affordable food in underserved communities. The program is administered by Reinvestment Fund on behalf of USDA Rural Development and is designed to help eligible food retailers and food enterprises overcome barriers to entry, strengthen food supply chain resiliency, create and preserve quality jobs, and support low-income community revitalization.

Funding is available through two pathways:

Implementation Grants (up to $250,000): One-time capital investments to support shovel-ready food retail and food enterprise projects, including grocery stores, mobile markets, food hubs, delivery services, and produce distributors. Eligible uses include construction, renovation, equipment, and soft costs such as training, consulting, and marketing.

Technical Assistance (up to $75,000): Early-stage support for planning, feasibility studies, business model development, and predevelopment activities. TA is available either through direct financial assistance or services delivered by contracted providers.

Projects must demonstrate how they will increase the availability of staple and perishable foods for retail sale through SNAP-authorized retailers in eligible underserved areas.

Eligible applicants include for-profit businesses, nonprofit organizations, cooperatively owned businesses, institutions of higher education, state and local governments, and Tribal governments. Applicants must be food retailers.

Funding inquiries for the 2026 HFFI FARE Fund are due by July 31, 2026. Applicants determined eligible will be invited to submit a full application, which is due by October 30, 2026.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) recently released several new grant opportunities to support behavioral health, crisis response, substance use treatment, and emergency medical services capacity nationwide. Highlighted opportunities include:

Behavioral Health Mobile Crisis Team Partnerships (up to $750,000): This program will support the establishment of new, or enhancement of existing, mobile crisis teams that serve children, youth, and adults experiencing mental health or substance use crises. Competitive applications will focus on expanding behavioral health crisis response capacity and building structured partnerships that reduce reliance on law enforcement and emergency departments for behavioral health emergencies. Eligible applicants include states, political subdivisions of states, territories, Indian Tribes, and Tribal organizations. No match is required. Applications are due by July 15, 2026.

Rural Emergency Medical Services Training (up to $300,000): This program will support efforts to improve emergency medical services in rural areas or for residents of rural areas. Competitive applications will recruit and train EMS workers who provide immediate emergency care, with a specific focus on serving individuals with substance use disorders and mental health conditions. Eligible applicants include EMS agencies operated by local or Tribal governments, including fire-based and non-fire-based agencies, or EMS agencies that are 501(c) organizations and tax-exempt under section 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code. No match is required. Applications are due by July 16, 2026.

To view other available SAMHSA grant opportunities, click here.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Community Food Projects Grant Program is offering funding up to $400,000 to support community-driven projects that strengthen local food systems and reduce food insecurity. Competitive applications will help communities meet immediate food needs while building long-term, self-reliant solutions to hunger and nutrition insecurity.

Eligible projects include, but are not limited to:

Community food projects that improve access to nutritious, affordable food

Local food system initiatives that connect food providers, producers, and community partners

Food distribution, service coordination, and access improvement efforts

Job training, business development, or market-building activities related to community food systems

Projects should be designed as a one-time infusion of Federal funding that helps communities achieve both short-term and long-term food security goals.

Eligible applicants include public food program service providers, Tribal organizations, and private nonprofit entities, including gleaners. Applicants must demonstrate relevant experience in community food work, food access, food distribution, or related food system activities. A 1:1 match is required.

Full applications for the Community Food Projects Competitive Grants Program are due by July 16, 2026.

The U.S. Department of the Interior’s (DOI) National Park Service (NPS) Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership (ORLP) grant program is offering funding to support projects that expand access to outdoor recreation opportunities in communities. Competitive applications will create new outdoor recreation spaces, reinvigorate existing parks, and strengthen connections between people and the outdoors.

Eligible projects include, but are not limited to:

Land acquisition for parks and other outdoors recreation areas

Site development for new outdoor recreation spaces

Renovation of existing outdoor recreation facilities, including projects such as sports fields, playgrounds, walking trails, community gardens, and other recreation amenities.

ORLP-assisted sites must be maintained and accessible exclusively for public outdoor recreation use in perpetuity.

Eligible applicants include communities with populations of 25,000 or more. Federally recognized Tribes, Alaska Native organizations, and Native Hawaiian community organizations are eligible regardless of population. A 50% match is required.

Full applications for NPS ORLP grants are due by November 1, 2026. Please note that local governments and other eligible subrecipients must coordinate with and apply through their State or Territorial Lead Agency, which submits ORLP applications to NPS. State deadlines may vary.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is offering grant funding to support law enforcement agencies across the nation. The Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) is offering several grant programs to expand support and strengthen capacity of local law enforcement, including:

COPS Hiring Program (up to $6,250,000): To provide funding directly to law enforcement agencies to hire and/or rehire additional career law enforcement officers/deputies in an effort to increase their community policing capacity and crime prevention efforts. The maximum federal share per officer/deputy position is $125,000 over the three-year period. Eligible applicants include established and operational local, state, territorial, and tribal law enforcement agencies that have primary law enforcement authority for the jurisdiction served. A 25% match is required.

COPS Law Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Act Program (up to $250,000): To fund the delivery of and access to mental health and wellness services for law enforcement officers and their families through the implementation of peer support, training, family resources, suicide prevention, stress reduction, clinical support, and other promising practices for wellness programs. Eligible applicants include local, state, tribal, and territorial law enforcement agencies that have primary law enforcement authority for their jurisdiction. No match is required.

COPS School Violence Prevention Program (up to $500,000): To improve security at schools and on school grounds in the recipient’s jurisdiction through evidence-based school safety programs. Eligible activities include, but are not limited to, funding civilian personnel to serve as coordinators with local law enforcement, training for local law enforcement officers, and purchase and installation of equipment and technology that improves school security. Eligible applicants include states, units of local government, Tribes, and their public agencies, including school districts, school boards, and law enforcement agencies. No match is required.

COPS Hiring Program grants are due by July 23, 2026.

COPS Law Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Act Program grants are due by July 30, 2026.

COPS School Violence Prevention Program grants are due by August 4, 2026.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Continuum of Care Program Competition and Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program is offering up to $25 million to support community-wide commitments to end homelessness. The new Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), which was updated after the prior December 2025 NOFO was challenged in a lawsuit by the National Alliance to End Homelessness, does not include the mandatory cap of 30% of funding for permanent supportive housing. However, it does reduce emphasis on Housing First approaches and sets aside $1.3 billion for transitional housing and supportive services programs.  

In prior years, 90%+ of the funding for Continuums of Care was automatically renewed, and more than 80% went to permanent supportive housing programs. Under the new NOFO, 40% of the package will be newly competitive, using a points system that incentivizes programs that promote self-sufficiency. The NOFO includes $104 million for programs that address domestic violence and sexual assault. The NOFO also includes the Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program, which funds community-wide approaches to preventing and ending youth homelessness.  

Eligible applicants include cities or township governments, federally recognized Native American tribes, state governments, public and Native housing authorities, special district governments, county governments, nonprofits, and public and state institutions of higher education. A 25% match is required.

Applications for the HUD Continuum of Care Program and Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program are due by August 26, 2026.

The National Park Service (NPS) is offering several grant opportunities to celebrate America’s premier cultural resources, foster the economic development of rural communities through the rehabilitation of historic properties, and honor the 250th anniversary of the United States:

Save America’s Treasures Grants (up to $750,000) will support preservation and/or conservation for nationally historic properties and collections. Competitive projects should substantially mitigate or eliminate the threat, danger, or damage to a historic collection or property. Eligible applicants include U.S.-based nonprofits, units of State or local government, tribes, educational institutions, and other federal agencies. A 1:1 match is required. Applicants may apply for preservation or collections projects:

Eligible activities for Preservation grants include, but are not limited to, the rehabilitation of properties, easement or covenant costs for the property, production of a project sign, and other preservation activities. Eligible historic properties must be listed on the National Register of Historic Places for national significance or listed as a National Historic Landmark. Sites listed for state or local significance or not eligible.

Eligible activities for Collections grants include, but are not limited to, conservation of collections, audits or financial requests, and required training or reporting. Nationally significant collections must possess exceptional value or quality in illustrating or interpreting the intellectual heritage of the U.S. and be associated with events that have made a significant contribution to, or that outstandingly represent, U.S. culture and history.

Paul Bruhn Historic Revitalization Grants (up to $750,000) will support subgrant programs that foster the economic development of rural communities through the rehabilitation of historic properties. The intent of this program is to provide funds that can be regranted to projects that have been selected through a locally administered competitive process. Eligible subgrant properties must be listed in the National Register of Historic Places or determined eligible for listing at the National, State, or local level of significance and located within rural communities with populations less than 50,000. Eligible costs for this program include architectural/engineering services and physical preservation projects. Eligible applicants include State Historic Preservation Offices, Tribal Historic Preservation Offices, Certified Local Governments, and non-profits. No match is required.

Semiquincentennial Grants (up to $750,000) will support the physical preservation of a broad variety of cultural resources associated with the founding of America as a nation (pre-1815) in commemoration of the country’s 250th anniversary. This includes the physical preservation of properties listed in the National Register of Historic Places, including buildings, sites, structures, objects or historic districts. Eligible applicants include local governments, nonprofits, public and nonprofit institutions of higher education, and tribes. No match is required, however match may be considered as a competitive factor.

Applications for Save America’s Treasures grants are due by June 16, 2026.

Applications for Paul Bruhn Historic Revitalization grants are due by June 23, 2026.

Applications for Semiquincentennial grants are due by June 30, 2026.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG), Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER), and Fire Prevention & Safety (FP&S) programs are offering a combined $648 million to support fire departments and first responders nationwide. Together, these three programs fund equipment and protective gear purchases, firefighter staffing and retention, community fire prevention efforts, and firefighter health and safety research. Award amounts vary by program and community size.

AFG provides $291.6 million directly to fire departments and EMS agencies for personal protective equipment, emergency response vehicles, and health and wellness initiatives.

SAFER provides $324 million to help fire departments increase or maintain the number of trained frontline firefighters available in their communities, including funding for recruitment and retention programs and compliance with NFPA staffing standards.

FP&S offers $32.4 million to fire departments, nonprofits, and research-oriented institutions for community fire prevention programs targeting high-risk populations and clinical research focused on firefighter health and well-being.

Eligible applicants vary by program but include fire departments, volunteer firefighter organizations, non-affiliated EMS organizations, nonprofit organizations, and academic institutions. A non-federal cash match of 5% to 15% may be required depending on the size of the community served.

Applications for FY 2025 AFG, SAFER, and FP&S grants are due by June 22, 2026.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Distance Learning and Telemedicine (DLT)  Program is offering grants of up to $750,000 to expand access to education and health care services in rural communities. DLT grants support the acquisition of telecommunications equipment, audio and video technology, and other advanced tools that connect rural students, teachers, and medical professionals to resources that are otherwise unavailable or limited in their communities. Eligible applicants can apply for two types of project activities:

Distance learning projects to equip schools and educational hubs with interactive technology to deliver expanded coursework, dual-credit programs, and professional development to rural students and teachers.

Telemedicine projects to link rural residents and local providers to medical specialists at distant sites and support services ranging from primary care consultations to behavioral health and substance use disorder treatment.

Broadband facility installation is also an eligible cost, up to 20% of the grant amount, where it directly enables distance learning or telemedicine delivery. Eligible applicants include states, local governments, federally recognized tribes, institutions of higher education, hospitals, and nonprofit entities. Projects must serve rural areas with populations of 20,000 or fewer, and applicants must provide a cash or in-kind match of at least 15% of the grant amount requested.

Applications for USDA DLT grants are due by June 30, 2026.