Are applicants required to provide a cost-share or matching funds for these grants?
No. There is no cost-share requirement for these grants. However, applicants may offer to contribute toward the total project budget. Although the lack of a contribution will not count against any applicant, those applicants who state in their applications that they will contribute funds to the budget will receive higher consideration than those who do not; the higher the contribution, the higher the level of consideration. Any applicant who commits to making a financial contribution in their application will be required to provide that cost-share at the same level of financial commitment as a condition of receiving their award. Furthermore, if the grantee fails to make the financial contribution as promised in their application, the grantee may be required to repay any grant funds received. Applicants should also be aware that the costs associated with the ineligible portions of their construction projects—such as the costs related to a ballroom or law enforcement annex—will NOT be accepted as part of their financial contribution.
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Can applicants use the cost of non-operational space as their cost-share?
No. Only eligible costs can be charged to the grant and non-operational space is not eligible. When an applicant is pledging to provide funds in the form of a cost-share, those costs will be applied toward the eligible/operational space and must be a hard cash match.
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Our local governing body will match whatever funding we receive, but we are unsure of the exact amount of our cost-share contribution at the time of application? How do we provide that information for our application?
A cost-share is not required for the Station Construction Grants. However, in the Request Details section of the application, question 23 asks you to provide your proposed cost-share amount. If you do not know how much your cost-share will be at the time of application, do not enter a proposed amount. Please make the panelists aware in the narrative of your application by explaining that your community is willing to contribute, and if awarded, at the time of award, you can negotiate the amount of you cost-share contribution with the Grants Management Office.
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Will additional consideration be given for departments who are unable to provide a cost-share but who can contribute man-hours toward finishing a project?
Other than in the narrative, there is no opportunity to relate that you have members who would be willing to donate time to complete the project. You are encouraged to relay this information as it may add to the cost-benefit of the project. However, as good intentions are often unfulfilled, it is impossible to know how the panelists would view such a pledge.
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