September 16, 2004
Grants.gov Reaches 1,OOO Applications
Mark
Washington, D.C. - Grants.gov,
the single secure website to find and apply for U.S. Government
grants, has received its 1,000th electronic grant application,
a milestone indicating the shift from a slower, paper-based
grant application process is well underway.
Managed by the Department of Health and
Human Services (HHS), Grants.gov is one of 24 E-government
initiatives operating under the governance of the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB), and is one of only two E-government
initiatives to successfully meet OMB’s operational goals
earlier this year.
“Grants.gov has significantly enhanced
the ability to find and apply for Federal grants. It's a solid
example of agencies working together to bring efficiencies
to government and citizens with the use of the Internet,”
said Dr. Ed Sontag, HHS Assistant Secretary for Administration
and Management. “This milestone indicates the cross-government
model for grants management is catching on with grant community
applicants.”
Less than one year after launching the
website, Grants.gov is drawing millions of page viewers, distributing
more than 550,000 grant opportunity notices weekly via email,
registering thousands of users, and nearing its initial goal
for application submissions from grant-applicant organizations.
The award-winning, free website centralizes grant information
and electronic applications for more than 900 grant programs
from all 26 Federal grant-making agencies, making it easier
to find and apply for over $360 billion in annual grant funds
available across the Federal government.
User satisfaction is driving the site’s
growth. More than 1,000 grant applicants chose Grants.gov
over a paper-based grant application process. With hundreds
of grant opportunities across multiple agencies in one convenient
location, users are able to electronically locate various
grant funding opportunities. Grant applicants, including local
government offices, are experiencing the benefits of Grants.gov.
“We became aware of funding opportunities
that might have been missed or we didn’t think of. This
helped us expand more rapidly to meet the growing need for
services without having to raise taxes,” stated Daniel
P. Breazeale Sr., Mayor of Lexington, South Carolina.
Increasing site awareness across the larger
grant community is the next step for Grants.gov.
“We have proven the concept and the
value Grants.gov delivers. Now we are ready to focus on growing
usage,” said Rebecca Spitzgo, Grants.gov Program Manager.
Grants.gov is preparing to accelerate its
grass-roots momentum by launching an integrated marketing
campaign to spread the word and build usage. Among the Program’s
goals is the receipt of more than 15,000 electronic applications
from across all grant community segments. Along with the marketing
campaign to key stakeholders, Grants.gov will continue ramping-up
Federal grant-making agencies and integrating their grant
programs into the Grants.gov system.
As a cross-government program, Grants.gov
has created a collaborative environment to streamline grants
management for the Federal grant community. Federal agencies
are currently posting nearly 1,400 active grant opportunities,
which are accessible through the Grants.gov “Find Grant
Opportunities” feature. More than 60 percent of the
agencies are accepting electronic applications through the
site’s “Apply for Grants” feature. The remaining
agencies plan to add this capability by the end of the year.
Grants.gov is the single website unifying
Federal grants. Through Grants.gov, state, local, and tribal
governments, colleges and universities, non-profits, research
institutions, and other organizations can access, find, and
apply for grants from more than 900 grant programs representing
over $360 billion in annual grant funds offered by the 26
Federal grant-making agencies.
Grants.gov is a collaborative effort led
by HHS. Collaborative partners include the Departments of
Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Education, Homeland Security,
Housing and Urban Development, Justice, Labor and Transportation,
Environmental Protection Agency, National Endowment for the
Humanities, and the National Science Foundation.
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