Utah Department of Public Safety

Introduction

The Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP) is a competitive grant program appropriated annually through the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). It is intended to help nonprofit organizations increase their physical security posture against acts of terrorism as defined by law.

Who can apply?

Eligible organizations are registered 501(c)(3) nonprofits or otherwise organizations as described under 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) and tax-exempt under section 501(a). Find more information on tax-exempt organizations at IRS.gov.

What is needed to apply?

Potential applicants must have a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) obtained through SAM.gov. A UEI is not required at the time of application but is required to receive a subaward. Nonprofit organizations must register on SAM.gov to obtain the UEI but are not required to maintain an active registration. Guidance on obtaining a UEI in SAM.gov can be found at GSA UEI Update.

Potential applicants must also complete a vulnerability assessment to identify and validate physical security deficiencies. The vulnerability assessment is the foundation of an NSGP application. Vulnerability assessments can be provided in the form of a Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Self-Assessment (Facility Security Self-Assessment | CISA), state or local law enforcement assessment, contractor assessment, or other valid method of assessment. Assessments are considered valid when the report provides an overview of the entire facility and its organization’s security deficiencies. Projects and activities requested through the NSGP should align to mitigate items identified in the vulnerability assessment. For assistance with this process, please contact Matt Beaudry (matthew.beaudry@cisa.dhs.gov).

To apply for NSGP funds, interested nonprofit organizations must fill out an Investment Justification and email it to the identified grant manager within their State Administrative Agency (SAA), in this case, the Utah Division of Emergency Management (DEM). The State of Utah requires a copy of the Vulnerability Assessment, Mission Statement, and Investment Justification. This is consistent with the requirements as stated on FEMA’s NSGP Website.  Supplemental documents are not required and will not be accepted.

What is an Investment Justification and how much can we apply for? An Investment Justification (IJ) is an application packet. This document can only be viewed by downloading it to a computer, it is not viewable in the browser. Nonprofits may submit up to three (3) Investment Justifications per organization for up to three (3) unique physical locations/addresses. Each Investment Justification can request up to $150,000 per location for a total of $450,000 across three (3) Investment Justifications. The amount of funding requested, and number of submissions, may not exceed these limits. An application is considered successful when all sections are filled out with the most critically important, impactful, and salient information.

What is the application/award timeline?

FEMA will open the application period by releasing the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) in the Spring. DEM will set a submission deadline before the official deadline to give us time to compile and score the applications before the federal deadline. Once the applications are submitted, we wait for FEMA to notify us of which were awarded and provide us with an award letter. Once the award is accepted by the state, you will be notified within 45 days if your nonprofit organization received an award from the relevant grant year. This typically happens sometime in late September to early October. Nonprofit organizations will then have three years to carry out their projects.

When do we receive the money?

NSGP through DEM is a reimbursement-based grant program. This means that as your organization incurs costs for carrying out its approved projects,you must submit for reimbursement via DEM’s reimbursement request document (85-21 form).

Where can we find more information?

FEMA’s NSGP website has many useful links for learning more about this program. These are updated each year, so be sure to check in on this website for the most up-to-date guidance.

NSGP E-mail List

Please go to this link and complete the survey to receive emails regarding NSGP opportunities.