Grants

Funding Sources

American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA)

All towns and incorporated villages in the TRORC region are “non-entitlement units of government” (NEUs). Based on their populations, each will be getting their share of ARPA funding in four allotments. Local funding amounts can be found lower down or through a link on this VLCT page.

All TRORC towns and villages selected the standard revenue loss allowance so with this selection, they can spend the entirety of their awards on the provision of government services, excluding uses prohibited under the Final Rule. Towns will have to report to Treasury in a narrative or another form about the use of the ARPA funds annually, and recipients are encouraged to report based on their existing budget processes and to minimize administrative burden. Excerpted VLCT guidance follows below.

For recipients using Fiscal Recovery Funds to provide government services to the extent of reduction in revenue, the description of government services reported to Treasury may be narrative or in another form, and recipients are encouraged to report based on their existing budget processes and to minimize administrative burden. For example, a recipient with $100 in revenue replacement funds available could indicate that $50 were used for personnel costs and $50 were used for pay-go building of sidewalk infrastructure.

In addition to describing the government services provided to the extent of reduction in revenue, all recipients will also be required to indicate that Fiscal Recovery Funds are not used directly to make an extraordinary deposit in a pension fund.

(FAQ – Project and Expenditure Report User Guide – Appendix F , 1.4, page 80)

TRORC staff are available to help with eligibility questions and facilitating community dialogues about how to spend ARPA funding. You can email Sarah Wraight at [email protected] for assistance.

Example Project Ranking Criteria

LATEST VLCT GUIDANCE PDF, JUNE 2022 – Non-Federal Match is now allowed, explicitly for IIJA/BIL (Infrastructure Bill) programs, but also generally as it is included under Section G., page 368 of the final rule, up to the amount of the recipient’s reduction in revenue; there is a new Expenditure Category for it – 6.2 Non-Federal Match for Other Federal Programs. 

Funds must be obligated (promised through subgrant or contract) by December 31, 2024 and actually spent by December 31, 2026. That is a lot of time, but if you are going to do a large project that does not have engineering and permits yet, you will likely need it.

January 6, 2022, Treasury Final Rule (overview found HERE) which guides the use of ARPA funds.  It contains many changes, among them the treatment of revenue loss.

Should my town/city/village include ARPA funds in our annual filing of the Subrecipient Annual Report to the State of Vermont?

Yes.  When you are completing the Subrecipient Annual Report (found HERE), you must include only the  ARPA* funds that were expended during your fiscal year for which you are reporting.  Here is what you should include for your local ARPA funds:

In Section III – Subrecipient Schedule of Federal Expenditure:

  • CFDA Number (Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance) CFDA numbers have been replaced with ALN (Assistance Listing Number).  The ALN for ARPA is 21.027.
  • Granting Agency/Department – U.S. Dept. of the Treasury
  • Grant Number – Use your assigned “Town ID” number which can be found HERE.
  • Expenditures – enter your total ARPA expenditures  for the fiscal year on which you are reporting.  (DO NOT enter the total amount of your award or the total amount of cash you’ve received – you report APRA expenditures only.)

* If you expended any ARPA funds as a “subrecipient” of a grant from an entity other than the U.S. Department of the Treasury (ex. a grant from an Agency or Department of the State of Vermont), then you must also report these funds in the Subrecipient Annual Report and do so separately from your local ARPA funds.  They will have the same CFDA/ALN Number but the Granting Agency and Grant Number will be different.  If you received any ARPA funds as a “beneficiary,” then you do not need to include these funds in this report.  If you are unsure whether you are “subrecipient” or a “beneficiary,” please read this FAQ: What is the difference between a “beneficiary” and a “subrecipient”? and if you are still unsure, then reach out to the Agency, Department or entity that awarded the funds to your town/city/village.

ARPA AMOUNTS

Barnard Town Windsor County $277,104.43
Bethel Town Windsor County $583,204.68
Bradford Town Orange County $807,399.18
Braintree Town Orange County $357,216.59
Bridgewater Town Windsor County $287,865.77
Brookfield Town Orange County $400,859.79
Chelsea Town Orange County $385,913.49
Corinth Town Orange County $425,969.58
Fairlee Town Orange County $292,947.50
Granville Town Addison County $91,471.36
Hancock Town Addison County $99,542.37
Hartford Town Windsor County $2,856,537.14
Hartland Town Windsor County $1,048,333.59
Newbury Town Orange County $422,382.47
Newbury Village Orange County $106,118.74
Norwich Town Windsor County $1,019,038.83
Pittsfield Town Rutland County $165,306.10
Plymouth Town Windsor County $179,355.62
Pomfret Town Windsor County $254,983.90
Randolph Town Orange County $1,370,276.87
Rochester Town Windsor County $325,231.52
Royalton Town Windsor County $858,216.63
Sharon Town Windsor County $457,356.83
Stockbridge Town Windsor County $211,340.70
Strafford Town Orange County $318,655.14
Thetford Town Orange County $756,581.75
Topsham Town Orange County $362,896.19
Tunbridge Town Orange County $398,767.31
Vershire Town Orange County $222,998.81
Wells River Village Orange County $114,488.67
West Fairlee Town Orange County $203,269.69
Woodstock Town Windsor County $616,385.47
Woodstock Village Windsor County $256,478.53

Brownfields

TRORC has funding to assess sites, but the state of Vermont has its own program.  There may also be federal cleanup grants available to towns. 

Contact Sarah Wraight at [email protected].

Conservation and Environment

Grants to improve waters, conserve habitat, recycle, conserve farm or forest land, or to provide outreach and education in these areas have a variety of grants.

State funding for service provider grants and business grants. These funds are to support the development of Vermont-based agriculture and forest products businesses. Service provider grants range from $5,000-$20,000 for projects including business planning, pilot programs, market development, etc. Business grants can range from $5,000-$150,000 depending on the grant category, for projects including research and development, infrastructure improvements, enhancing production, etc.

Contact Pete Fellows at [email protected]

Designated Downtowns and Villages

This seven-page document is a list of grant programs in Vermont that are available to Designated Downtowns and Villages: CPR Funding Directory

Economic Development

Some Community Development Block Grants can provide business expansion loans from the Vermont Community Development Program.  These are granted to the town that applies and then loaned to the business, who in turn repays the town.  These funds then stay in the town and must be used for similar purposes.  Other types of loans and grants exist.  Please contact the Small Business Development Center

– Small Grants for Smart Growth: A program run by the Vermont Natural Resources Council that offers between $500-$1500 per smart growth project. It provides seed money for community-based, local initiatives related to smart growth. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis and require a two page proposal. To learn more and apply contact Kate McCarthy [email protected]

–Community Facilities Direct Loan & Grant Program USDA Rural Development provides funding to build and modernize educational, health care, food system, municipal, child care, public safety, and many more types of essential community facilities in qualified rural areas. Application Deadline: Ongoing

–Working Cities Challenge Grant– Do you have a vision for your community? This is a grant competition designed to support cross-sector teams working collaboratively to build strong, healthy economies and communities in Vermont’s rural towns, regions, and small cities. Six cross-sector teams that each represent a group of rural towns, a region, or a small city in Vermont will be awarded a 4-5 month grant of $10,000-$15,000 to participate in the Planning Phase.  Three teams will be selected for implementation grants of $300K over a three year period and supported with technical assistance.

Emergency Grants

There are a variety of grants and other assistance that can help local response agencies and communities better avoid, prepare, plan for, and equip themselves to deal with the variety of emergencies they will face. Since many grants involve applications for federal funds and many local officials are volunteers who may be unfamiliar with the administrative requirements of such grants, TRORC staff are available to help communities apply for and administer grants. 

Vermont Emergency Management hazard mitigation funding programs

Contact Kevin Geiger at [email protected]

Energy

Contact Kevin Geiger at [email protected]

Handicapped Access

Towns can access grants to install ramps and elevators, or planning grants to ready themselves for such applications through the Vermont Community Development Program.

Contact Kevin Geiger at [email protected]

Health

RiseVT Amplify Grants: For towns in Orange or Windsor County that have established RiseVT programs, grants are available for community partners with projects that “make the healthy choice the easy choice where we live, work, learn, and play.” Rolling applications.

Housing

The best source of funding to actually produce affordable housing is through a Community Development Block Grant from the Vermont Community Development Program.

Contact Kevin Geiger at [email protected]

Planning

The main source of grants for writing town plans, zoning and subdivision bylaws, and capital budgets is the Municipal Planning Grant program.  These are usually announced in the summer and due in September.

Contact Kevin Geiger at [email protected]

Sole Proprietor Stabilization Grants

TRORC is currently accepting applications from sole proprietors to  work with technical assistance providers in three key areas:

  • Website Development / Enhancement
  • Financial Management (Bookkeeping) and Record-Keeping
  • Branding and Marketing (digital, print, audio)

More information available here.

Contact Connor Rigney at [email protected] or Sarah Wraight at [email protected]

Transportation

Quick Transportation Guide to Funding for Towns

There are both state and federal grants for highway, pedestrian, transit, and bicycling transportation projects that can fund studying a need and developing a project scope, as well as actually building projects.

–Transportation Alternatives Program– State funding for projects that support transportation alternatives: routes for non-drivers, conversion of abandoned railroad, construction of viewing area, community improvement activities, environmental mitigation activities, and more. Requires a minimum of 20% match, and 50% match of total project cost for scoping studies.

Contact Rita Seto at [email protected]

Utilities and Services

Contact Kevin Geiger at [email protected]