Читать книгу Grant Writing For Dummies - Stan Hutton, Beverly A. Browning - Страница 72

Pass-through grants have two advantages:

 When you apply for pass-through grant funds at the state level, you compete against other grant applicants in your state only. As a result, you encounter considerably less competition than at the federal, direct grantseeking level.

 When you’re making an appearance before the state agency program staff, you can get info on previously funded grants. Under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), all government agencies must provide requested public information to the requestor (you, the public), so don’t feel like you’re being a bother. Make sure the list contains the grant recipients and award amounts. And ask for a copy of a successful grant application from a previous competition. Knowing how winners write can boost your chances. You can use the FOIA to obtain information about all types of grants funded by any government agency.

The only disadvantage to applying for pass-through grants is that the grant awards are often smaller than those for a direct grant. The legislation determines the award allocation. So, it’s a trade-off: Pass-through awards are smaller, but they’re also easier to win.

Pass-through grant awards can be significantly smaller than direct grant awards because the state takes money off the top of each federal grant to cover administrative costs. Then the amount that’s left must be divided geographically and politically. For example, grants may go to certain areas of a state or territory because those areas haven’t won many grant awards recently. The money may go to other areas because that district’s state senator or representative has a lot of power and influence with a state agency. Like it or not, politics can have a major influence over grantmaking.