U.S. Government Grants

The U.S. Government provides a wide variety of grants to government, education, public housing, non-profit and for-profit organizations, and small businesses. There are very few grants available to individuals and none of the grants are for personal financial assistance. If you are seeking governmental financial assistance, you need to check the US Gov Benefits page.

Be aware of "Free Government Money" and other government grant schemes. The only official source of information for government grants is the Grants.gov website. There are several tips and suggestions that can help you identify fraudulent grant schemes. First, the government will not contact you to offer you a grant. Second, there are no fees associated with applying for a government grant. Third, all government grants involve an application process. Fourth, government grants are awarded for specific opportunities. Finally, government grant information and applications are free. The Better Business Bureau (BBB) provides these tips and suggestions.

The organizations that apply for government grants can be divided into several different groups. Typical government organizations include state, local and city governments, special districts, and Native American Tribal Governments.

Education Organizations that are eligible include independent school districts, public and state controlled higher education institutions, and private institutions of higher education.

Grants are also available to public housing authorities and Indian housing authorities.

Non-Profit organizations that have a 501(c) 3 status with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and nonprofits that do not have the 501(c) 3 tax status.

Small businesses may receive small business loans and grants if they meet the size standards that the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has established for most industries in the economy.

There are very few government grants available to individuals. Individuals submit a grant on their own behalf, and not on behalf of a company, organization, institution, or government. Individuals sign the grant application and its associated certifications and assurances that are necessary to fulfill the requirements of the application process. Therefore, if you register as an Individual, you will only be able to apply to grant opportunities that are open to individuals. An individual cannot submit a grant application to a grant opportunity that is just open to organizations.

In summary, the official government website Grants.gov simplified the grants management process and created a centralized, online process to find and apply for over 900 grant programs from the 26 federal grant-making agencies. The website streamlined the process of awarding over $360 billion annually to state and local governments, academia, not-for-profits and other organizations. The program is one of the 24 federal cross-agency E-Government initiatives that focused on improving access to U.S. Government services through the Internet. The mission of Grants.gov is to be a simple, unified source that allows you to electronically find, apply and manage grant opportunities.