Hello from the BellTower Team! This month’s newsletter has deadlines that are very soon. It highlights FDEP’s Resilient Florida, Water Quality, and others. Ideally, we want to get those submitted in mid-August, so if you have not discussed final project ideas yet, please schedule a call with us to do so. Also featured are the local cybersecurity grant program, COPS Office opportunities for de-escalation training and initiatives, Housing and Urban Development for home modifications for low-income seniors, brownfield job training, and economic revitalization of cities. Lastly, the U.S. Department of Transportation has come out with its Low-No Emissions and Buses and Bus Facilities as well as an opportunity to improve non-emergency medical transportation services for transportation-disadvantaged populations. Please click the link below to schedule a call with us to discuss your project ideas.
Please note: Due to the uncertainty surrounding the changes to the federal grant landscape, some federal grants may be put on pause at any time at the discretion of the funder per the requirements outlined in the new Executive Order.
COPS Office Safer Outcomes: Enhancing Crisis Response Training for Law Enforcement
Department of Justice
Due Date: Grants.gov: August 27, 2026; JustGrants: September 3, 2026
Match: N/A
Funding: Approximately $8,000,000 total funding available
This program seeks to promote safe outcomes during police encounters through the integration of de-escalation and crisis response training and resources. Supported training programs must address one or more of the following areas of focus:
- De-escalation tactics and alternatives to use of force
- Safely responding to an individual experiencing a mental or behavioral health or suicidal crisis
- Safe encounters with individuals with disabilities
- Successfully participating on a crisis intervention team
- Making referrals to community-based services and support
There are three separate funding opportunities under this program and applicants are encouraged to apply under the opportunity that best fits their eligibility and intent.
- Support for Law Enforcement Agencies
- Curriculum Integration for Law Enforcement Academies and State-Level Training Commissions
- Continuation of Regional De-Escalation Training Centers
Florida Digital Service Local Government Cybersecurity Program
Florida Digital Service
Due Date: August 31, 2026
Match: N/A
Funding: N/A
The purpose of this program is to support eligible local governments in mitigating and defending against cybersecurity threats, including but not limited to ransomware incidents.
Older Adults Home Modification Program (OAHMP)
Department of Housing and Urban Development
Due Date: August 31, 2026
Match: N/A
Funding: $2,000,000-3,000,000 award range
The overall purpose of this program is to assist experienced nonprofit organizations, state and local governments, and public housing authorities in undertaking comprehensive programs that make safety and functional home modifications, repairs and renovations to meet the needs of low-income seniors. The goal of the program is to enable low-income elderly persons to remain in their homes through low-cost, low-barrier, high-impact home modifications to reduce older seniors’ risk of falling, improve general safety, increase accessibility, and to improve their functional abilities in their home, enabling them to “age in place.”
Resilient Florida Implementation Grants
Florida Department of Environmental Protection
Due Date: September 1, 2026
Match: 50%
Funding: TBD
This grant supports infrastructure projects that address risks identified in a local government vulnerability assessment.
Indian River Lagoon and Biscayne Bay Water Quality Improvement Grant Programs
Florida Department of Environmental Protection
Due Date: September 1, 2026
Match: Not required but encouraged
Funding: TBD
The purpose of this program is to address water quality challenges in the Indian River Lagoon and Biscayne Bay through wastewater improvements, including septic to sewer conversions, stormwater management, and other projects aimed at improving water quality in these water bodies.
Alternative Water Supply Grant Program
Florida Department of Environmental Protection
Due Date: September 1, 2026
Match: Not required but encouraged
Funding: TBD
This grant supports communities in planning for and implementing water conservation, reuse, and other water supply and water resource development projects. Priority funding will be given to regional projects in the areas of greatest need and for projects that provide the greatest benefit.
Nonpoint Source Management Grants
Florida Department of Environmental Protection
Due Date: September 1, 2026
Match: 50%
Funding: TBD
This grant supports the implementation of shovel-ready stormwater treatment projects that reduce or eliminate nonpoint source nutrient pollution in verified impaired water bodies. Funding supports nonpoint source pollution best management practices, public education programs to prevent pollution, and septic to sewer conversions.
Beach Management Funding Assistance Program
Florida Department of Environmental Protection
Due Date: September 1, 2026
Match: TBD
Funding: TBD
This program supports planning and implementation of beach and dune nourishment projects for sandy shorelines on the open coast that are designated critically eroded, publicly accessible, and consistent with the State’s Strategic Beach Management Plan. Inlet management/inlet sand bypass projects are also eligible for program funds if they implement an approved strategy in an adopted inlet management plan.
Florida Main Street Program
Florida Department of State
Due Date: September 1, 2026
Match: N/A
Funding: $50,000 per project cycle or $25,000 for newly designated communities
The Florida Main Street Program is a state-administered revitalization framework designed to breathe new life into historic traditional commercial districts.
Innovative Coordinated Access and Mobility (ICAM) Pilot Program
Department of Transportation
Due Date: September 9, 2026
Match: 20%
Funding: $12,000 total available
The ICAM Pilot Program seeks to improve access to publix transportation for transportation disadvantaged individuals by building partnerships among health, transportation, and other service providers. This program provides funding to support innovative projects for transportation disadvantaged populations that will improve the coordination of transportation services and non-emergency medical transportation services.
Low or No Emissions Program
Department of Transportation
Due Date: September 21, 2026
Match: 15%
Funding: $610,000,000 total funding available
The Low or No Emissions competitive program provides funding for the purchase or lease of zero-emission and low-emission transit buses as well as acquisition, construction, and leasing of required supporting facilities.
Eligible projects include:
- Purchasing or leasing low-or no-emission buses
- Acquiring low-or no-emission buses with a leased power source
- Constructing or leasing facilities and related equipment (including technology and software) for low-or no-emission buses
- Constructing new transportation facilities to accommodate low-or no-emission buses
- Rehabilitating or improving existing public transportation facilities to accommodate low-or no-emission buses
- Additionally, 0.5% may be used for workforce development training and an additional 0.5% may be used for training at the National Transit Institute (NTI). Applicants proposing any project related to zero-emission vehicles must also spend 5% of their award on workforce development and training as outlined in their Zero-Emission Transition Plan, unless the applicant certifies that their financial need is less.
Department of Transportation
Due Date: September 21, 2026
Match: 20%
Funding: $610,000,000 total funding available
The Grants for Buses and Bus Facilities competitive program provides funding to replace, rehabilitate, and purchase buses and related equipment and to construct bus-related facilities, including technological changes or innovations to modify low-or no-emission vehicles or facilities. Funding is distributed both competitively and through formula allocations
In addition to the above mentioned eligible projects, 0.5% may be used for workforce development training and an additional 0.5% may be used for training at the National Transit Institute (NTI). Applicants proposing any project related to zero-emission vehicles must also spend 5% of their award on workforce development and training as outlined in their Zero-Emission Transition Plan, unless the applicant certifies that their financial need is less.
Brownfields Job Training Grants Program
Environmental Protection Agency
Due Date: September 23, 2026
Match: N/A
Funding: $300,000 per applicant
The objective of the Brownfields Job Training is to recruit, train, and place unemployed and underemployed residents of hazardous waste-impacted communities. This funding is intended to equip individuals with the skills needed to obtain full-time, sustainable employment. The program promotes the facilitation of activities related to assessment, cleanup or preparation of contaminated sites, including brownfields, for reuse, while simultaneously building a local workforce with the skills needed to perform remediation work that is supportive of environmental protection and environmental health and safety.