Dear [firstname],
I hope this message finds you well as we begin the new year. As we look ahead to 2026, I want to thank you for your continued partnership and dedication to strengthening our communities. I look forward to working together in the year ahead to build on our shared progress.
This past year, our district was awarded over $164 million in federal grant funding. These resources have helped improve our community by funding projects around infrastructure, childcare, scientific research, health care, housing, and more. If you are interested in how federal funding from 2025 is being directed to projects in your community, you can view a new interactive map of grant awards in Colorado’s District 7 on my website here.
I know the Trump Administration’s attempts to freeze federal funding continue to cause us all difficulty and confusion as litigation unfolds in the courts. Please know that I am working hard every day to fight back and continue delivering for our constituents.
Due to the ongoing lack of clarity from the Trump Administration on many federal programs, I highly recommend you follow relevant agency newsletters and the grants.gov webpage for your grants of interest in case they have been canceled, paused, or may have changed eligibility criteria. If any of these changes have affected you or your organization, please feel free to share your perspective with my office here.
There have been many changes to grants.gov recently, so I recommend you follow @grantsdotgov on X, formerly known as Twitter, to help you navigate the federal grant application process. The grants.gov team also sends a regular newsletter designed to help you access grants, which you can find here.
Nonetheless, I remain excited to share upcoming grants and federal funding opportunities for local governments, universities, community organizations, businesses, and individuals.
You can find up-to-date information on open federal grants here. This spreadsheet will be updated throughout the month and includes a wide variety of grants related to agriculture, community development, disaster prevention and relief, food and nutrition, transportation, and much more. The grants can be easily sorted and filtered by category to help find grants related to specific needs.
Additionally, you can find an extensive list of funding opportunities for local governments updated regularly by the Colorado Department of Local Affairs here. This user-friendly dashboard features federal and state funding opportunities, which can be filtered by category, program, award type, awarding agency, and eligible applicants.
In addition to a list of open federal grants below, you can find a section on technical assistance resources for grant applicants, information on grants expected to open in the future, and a tip of the month for grant applicants.
Upcoming Grants:
This month, major federal grants are open for projects related to transportation, rural support, arts and culture, veteran assistance, housing, water, behavioral health, and more. Below are some available federal funding opportunities, listed by category and deadline. The following grants are currently open and accepting applications at the time of this newsletter's publication.
Transportation:
The Department of Transportation's Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) program (formally known as the RAISE grant program) provides funding for local governments and transportation agencies to carry out planning and construction infrastructure projects around transportation. Interested parties should apply by February 24, 2026.
Rural:
The Colorado Department of Local Affairs has opened its Rural Economic Development Initiative, which provides funding for rural local and county governments to carry out projects aimed at boosting job creation and economic resilience. Interested applicants should apply by February 4, 2026.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture is accepting applications for its most recent round of funding for the Rural Economic Development Loan and Grant Program through March 31, 2026. This program provides funding for local utility organizations, nonprofits, and businesses in rural areas to carry out economic development projects.
Housing:
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Choice Neighborhoods Implementation Grants provide funding for improving existing public housing and providing supportive services to residents. The application deadline is March 9, 2026.
Veterans:
The Department of Labor has the open Home Veterans' Reintegration Program which provides funding for programs that support veterans experiencing and at risk of homelessness. Interested applicants should apply by March 6, 2026.
The Department of Veterans Affairs has an open Supportive Services for Veteran Families grant for nonprofit organizations providing services for low-income veterans, with organizations serving rural communities receiving priority status. Interested applicants should apply by February 19, 2026.
Arts and Culture:
The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) has opened its Grants for Arts Projects program, which provides funding for nonprofit organizations and local governments to carry out arts projects. Interested parties should apply by February 12, 2026, and are encouraged to review the agency funding priority areas here. The NEA also has a Research Grants in the Arts category for nonprofit organizations and local governments to carry out research projects related to arts and culture. The deadline for this program is March 23, 2026.
The Institute for Museum and Library Services has recently opened a variety of funding programs, including the National Leadership Grants for Libraries Program, the Museums for America (MFA) program, the National Leadership Grants for Museums program, the Inspire Grants for Small Museums program, the 21st Century Museum Professional (21MP) grant program, and the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian program. All of these programs have an application deadline of March 13, 2026.
Behavioral Health:
The Centers for Disease Control has an open Drug-Free Communities Support Program which provides funding for nonprofit organizations and local governments to carry out projects combating youth substance use. Applications are due by February 12, 2026.
Education:
The National Science Foundation has opened up its Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program for universities, colleges, and nonprofit organizations to carry out programs to recruit, train, and retain K-12 STEM teachers. The application deadline is August 25, 2026.
Energy:
The Colorado Department of Local Affairs has reopened its Energy/Mineral Impact Assistance Fund grant to assist local governments of communities impacted by mineral mining and drilling. Interested parties should apply by February 13, 2026.
Water:
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment has two open water grant programs for local governments, special districts, and nonprofit organizations to address contaminants in water systems. Interested parties should look into the Emerging Contaminants in Small or Disadvantaged Communities grant program (application deadline is February 4, 2026) and the PFAS grant program (application deadline is March 13, 2026).
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Emergency Community Water Assistance Grants provides funding to rural local governments and nonprofit organizations looking to prepare for or recover from an emergency threatening the availability of safe drinking water. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis.
Environmental:
Colorado Parks and Wildlife has the Wetlands for Wildlife Program for nonprofit organizations and local governments looking to restore wetland and riparian areas. Interested applicants should apply by February 24, 2026.
Technical Assistance:
Something I often hear when meeting with local governments and organizations is that they are interested in taking advantage of federal funding opportunities but do not have the capacity to submit a competitive application. Thankfully, you don't have to go through this process alone. My office has compiled a list of resources provided by state and federal government agencies designed to help grant applicants here.
I often hear from groups that find a grant that interests them, but they aren’t sure when the grant application will reopen, or they feel the deadline is too soon for them to write a competitive application. To help groups plan for upcoming grants, my office has compiled a list of past opening and closing dates for major grants here.
The Colorado Department of Local Governments hosts a Best and Brightest Management Internship and Fellowship program that connects students interested in public service with local and county governments to assist in a project addressing a need in that municipality. Governments interested in hosting an intern or fellow should reach out to their Department Regional Manager (listed here) and submit additional materials by February 2, 2026.
Grants on the Horizon:
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration is set to open its Assisted Outpatient Treatment (AOT) program to support organizations helping adults with serious mental illness on January 30, 2025.
In the coming months, the Colorado Department of Local Affairs plans to open several grants focused around supporting housing efforts by local governments, including the Local Planning Capacity Grant Program (deadline of February 26, 2026), and Accessory Dwelling Unit Grant Program (deadline of February 27, 2026), and Housing Planning Grant Program (deadline of March 30, 2026).
The Colorado Department of Local Affairs plans to open its Community Schoolyards Grant Program on March 2, 2026, for local governments and school districts to plan and implement capital construction projects in schoolyards. The application deadline is set for April 1, 2026.
Several Department of Health and Human Services grants around rural health care and opioid response are set to open next month. Interested parties can find more information on the Rural Communities Opioid Response Program (expected deadline of April 22, 2026) and the Rural Residency Planning and Development Program (expected deadline of May 15, 2026)
Application Tip of the Month:
Notice Of Funding Opportunities (NOFO’s) and grant program webpages often have email contact information for an agency staff member who helps review applications and answer questions about the program. They can be a great resource for getting guidance for your eligibility for a program, on when a program is expected to open its next round of funding, and more. Reaching out to them with any questions you have as an applicant can help your organization make more informed planning decisions on whether to apply for a certain grant.
Reminders from last month's newsletter:
You can always find a full list of the resources and grants (some of which are still open) from previous grant newsletters on my website here.
If you know someone who would like to be added to my monthly grants newsletter, they can sign up for the newsletter here.
If you would like to request a letter of support from my office, please fill out a letter request form here and email any questions to co07grants@mail.house.gov. Please allow at least one week of processing time. Letter of support requests received within a week of the deadline may not be processed in time.
Please reach out with any questions, requests for letters of support, or if you would like my office to keep an eye out for federal funding in specific areas.
Thanks for reading,
