State Charter School Facilities Incentive Grants

What's New

Announcing New Fiscal Year 2024 Expanding Opportunity through Quality Charter Schools Program-State Charter School Facilities Incentive Grant (SFIG) Awards!

The U.S. Department of Education (Department) funded two high quality applications from the FY 2024 SFIG discretionary grant competition. These grants, as well as matching funds, will help states establish and enhance or administer "per-pupil facilities aid" for charter schools. 

For more information about previous awards, please visit the Awards tab.

Program Description

This Expanding Opportunity through Quality Charter Schools Program-State Charter School Facilities Incentive Grant Program (SFIG) provides competitive grants to help states establish and enhance or administer "per-pupil facilities aid" for charter schools. The federal funds are used to match programs funded with nonfederal dollars that make payments, on a per-pupil basis, to provide charter schools with facilities financing. The program is intended to encourage states to share in the costs associated with charter schools facilities funding, and as a result states pay an increasing share of the cost of the program. Under this grant, the maximum federal share of facilities funds decreases each year (from 90 percent in the first year to 20 percent in year five) and phases out entirely after five years.

FY 2024 CSP SFIG Notice Inviting Applications

Posted in the Federal Register on Wednesday, April 24, 2024       PDF | HTML

FY 2024 Competition Timeline

Deadline for Notice of Intent to Apply (optional): June 24, 2024  

Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: July 23, 2024

Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: September 23, 2024

FY 2024 Competition Information

Pre-Application Technical Assistance Webinars:

• FY 2024 CSP SFIG Pre-Application Competition Webinar (Live):
  • The Department hosted this webinar on June 4, 2024.
  • During the webinar, the Department reviewed the competition eligibility requirements, priorities, selection criteria, application requirements, and assurances. Also, the Department reviewed what is new in this year's competition and the steps required to complete the Grants.gov registration process and answered participants' questions.
  • Recording
  • Slide Deck
  • Transcript
• FY 2024 CSP SFIG Pre-Application Webinar — Understanding the Cost-Sharing Requirement & Developing the Project Budget (Live):
  • The Department hosted this webinar on June 5, 2024.
  • During the webinar, the Department provided information to help potential applicants understand the program cost-sharing requirements and develop a comprehensive budget that aligns with their proposed project.
  • Recording
  • Slide Deck
  • Transcript 
• FY 2024 CSP SFIG Pre-Application Q&A Webinar Slide Deck:
  • This slide deck was designed to address questions that were submitted by prospective applicants. Questions submitted prior to June14, 2024 were considered for the slide deck.
  • Slide Deck

Application Package and Submission:

• SFIG Application Package Instructions: Please note this is an electronic copy for you to download and use as a guide only.
• Applications must be submitted electronically through the Grants.gov system at http://www.grants.gov/.
• Please do not e-mail an electronic copy of a grant application to U.S. Department of Education staff.

Required Application Forms:

Note: Most of the forms listed below are in the electronic application package in Grants.gov. The following is a list of the required forms that must be completed.

• Project Abstract —  Mandatory
• Project Narrative — Mandatory
• Budget Narrative — Mandatory
• Required Standard Forms, Assurances and Certifications              
  • SF 424 Form — Application Form for Federal Assistance; - Mandatory
  • ED Supplemental Form for SF 424; - Mandatory
  • ED 524 Form and Instructions — Budget Information, Non-Construction Programs Sections A & B only; - Mandatory
  • SF-LLL — Disclosure of Lobbying Activities; - Optional
  • General Education Provisions Act (GEPA) Requirements —  Section 427; - Mandatory
  • SF 424B Form — Assurances, Non-Construction Programs — Mandatory
  • Grants.gov Lobby Form (ED80-0013) - Mandatory
• Other Attachments and Forms — where applicants provide other required items and supplementary documents, including:
  • Enabling Statutes and Other Relevant Legislation (if applicable) - Mandatory
  • Table 1 — Charter School Aid Paid by State (OMB Form 1855-0012) - Mandatory
  • Table 2 — Budget Form: Grant Funds Expenditures (OMB Form 1855-0012) - Mandatory
  • Table 3 — Grant funds as a Percentage of the Cost of Per-Pupil Facilities Aid (OMB Form 1855-0012) - Mandatory
  • Program-Specific Assurances (Matching Requirement) - Mandatory
  • Resumes/Curriculum Vitae - Mandatory

Registering on Grants.gov and SAM.gov:

REGISTER EARLY — Grants.gov registration involves many steps including registration on SAM (SAM.gov), which usually takes approximately 7 to 10 business days, but can take longer depending on the completeness and accuracy of the data entered into the SAM database by an applicant.

You may begin working on your application while completing the registration process, but you cannot submit an application until all of the Registration steps are complete.

Please note that once your SAM registration is active, it will take 24-48 hours for the information to be available in Grants.gov, and before you can submit an application through Grants.gov.

For detailed information on the Registration Steps, please go to here. Please note that your organization will need to update its SAM registration annually.

To register in SAM.gov, click on the "Get Started" link under the "Register Your Entity…" heading in SAM.gov.

Grantees, and other entities wanting to do business with the U.S. Department of Education (e.g., entities applying for a grant), that are not already registered in SAM.gov must complete the "Register Entity" registration option and NOT the "Get a Unique Entity ID" option. The "Get a Unique Entity ID" option, which is not a full registration, is only available to entities for reporting purposes. Failing to complete the "Register Entity" option may result in loss of funding, loss of applicant eligibility, and/or delays in receiving a grant award.

Information about SAM is available at SAM.gov. To further assist you with registering in SAM or updating your existing SAM registration, see the Quick Start Guide for Grant Registrations and the Entity Registration Video here.

FY 2024 CSP SFIG Grant Eligibility Information

1. Eligible Applicants: States. In order to be eligible to receive a grant, a State shall establish or enhance, and administer, a per-pupil facilities aid program for charter schools in the State, that—

1. Is specified in State law; and
2. Provides annual financing, on a per-pupil basis, for charter school facilities.

Note: A State that is required under State law to provide charter schools with access to adequate facility space, but that does not have a per-pupil facilities aid program for charter schools specified in State law, is eligible to receive a grant if the State agrees to use the funds to develop a per-pupil facilities aid program consistent with the requirements in this notice inviting applications.

2.a. Cost Sharing or Matching: Under section 4304(k)(2)(C) of the ESEA, a State must provide a State share of the total cost of the project. The minimum State share of the total cost of the project increases each year of the grant, from 10 percent the first year to 80 percent in the fifth year.

Note: A State may partner with one or more organizations, and such organizations may provide up to 50 percent of the State share of the cost of establishing or enhancing, and administering, the per-pupil facilities aid program.

Applicants that are provisionally selected to receive grants will not receive grant funds unless they demonstrate, by September 1, 2019, that they are, or will be able to, provide the State share required under this program.

b. Supplement-Not-Supplant: This program involves supplement-not-supplant funding requirements. Under section 4110 of the ESEA (20 U.S.C. 7120), program funds must be used to supplement, and not supplant, State and local public funds expended to provide per-pupil facilities aid programs, operations financing programs, or other programs, for charter schools. Therefore, the Federal funds provided under this program, as well as the matching funds provided by the grantee, must be in addition to the State and local funds that would otherwise be used for this purpose in the absence of this Federal program. The Department generally considers that State and local funds would be available for this purpose at least in the amount of the funds that was available in the preceding year and that the Federal funds and matching funds under this program would supplement that amount.

3. Other: The charter schools that a grantee selects to benefit from this program must meet the definition of charter school in the CSP authorizing statute throughout the grant period. The definitions of charter school, per-pupil facilities aid programs, and authorized public chartering agency are in sections 4310(2), 4304(k)(1), and 4310(1) of the ESEA (20 U.S.C. 7221), and included in this notice.

Applicant Information

The Notice Inviting Applications (NIA) for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 Expanding Opportunity through Quality Charter Schools Program-State Charter School Facilities Incentive Grant (SFIG) Program was published in the Federal Register on April 24, 2024. The deadline for submission of a grant application under this competition is 11:59:59p.m. ET on July 23, 2024.

The SFIG program extended the deadline for transmittal of applications for the FY 24 Expanding Opportunity through Quality Charter Schools Program — State Charter School Facilities Incentive Grant Program competition to July 29, 2024 for eligible applicants located in counties in Texas that are covered by the major disaster declaration caused by Hurricane Beryl.

For eligible entities in this Federally-declared disaster area, the revised Deadline for Transmittal of Applications will be July 29, 2024. The revised deadline for Intergovernmental Review will be September 27, 2024.

For more information about the deadline extension for eligible applicants covered by the major disaster declaration please see the notice published in the Federal Registrar on July 22, 2024.

Eligibility

1. Eligible Applicants: States. In order to be eligible to receive a grant, a State shall establish or enhance, and administer, a per-pupil facilities aid program for charter schools in the State, that—

1. Is specified in State law; and
2. Provides annual financing, on a per-pupil basis, for charter school facilities.

Note: A State that is required under State law to provide charter schools with access to adequate facility space, but that does not have a per-pupil facilities aid program for charter schools specified in State law, is eligible to receive a grant if the State agrees to use the funds to develop a per-pupil facilities aid program consistent with the requirements in this notice inviting applications.

2.a. Cost Sharing or Matching: Under section 4304(k)(2)(C) of the ESEA, a State must provide a State share of the total cost of the project. The minimum State share of the total cost of the project increases each year of the grant, from 10 percent the first year to 80 percent in the fifth year.

Note: A State may partner with one or more organizations, and such organizations may provide up to 50 percent of the State share of the cost of establishing or enhancing, and administering, the per-pupil facilities aid program.

Applicants that are provisionally selected to receive grants will not receive grant funds unless they demonstrate, by September 1, 2019, that they are, or will be able to, provide the State share required under this program.

b. Supplement-Not-Supplant: This program involves supplement-not-supplant funding requirements. Under section 4110 of the ESEA (20 U.S.C. 7120), program funds must be used to supplement, and not supplant, State and local public funds expended to provide per-pupil facilities aid programs, operations financing programs, or other programs, for charter schools. Therefore, the Federal funds provided under this program, as well as the matching funds provided by the grantee, must be in addition to the State and local funds that would otherwise be used for this purpose in the absence of this Federal program. The Department generally considers that State and local funds would be available for this purpose at least in the amount of the funds that was available in the preceding year and that the Federal funds and matching funds under this program would supplement that amount.

3. Other: The charter schools that a grantee selects to benefit from this program must meet the definition of charter school in the CSP authorizing statute throughout the grant period. The definitions of charter school, per-pupil facilities aid programs, and authorized public chartering agency are in sections 4310(2), 4304(k)(1), and 4310(1) of the ESEA (20 U.S.C. 7221), and included in this notice.

Included in the chart below is the amount of funding per fiscal year since 2009.

Legislation, Regulations, and Guidance

• The U.S. Secretary of Education is authorized to award grants for this competition under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015 (ESSA) (20 U.S.C. 7221c). For program legislation visit: 20 USC 7221c.
• For grant regulations contained in EDGAR (Education Department General Administrative Regulations) go to: http://www2.ed.gov/policy/fund/reg/edgarReg/edgar.html.
• State Charter School Facilities Incentive Program Regulations can be found at eCFR :: 34 CFR Part 226 — State Charter School Facilities Incentive Program.
• For guidance on the State Charter School Facilities Incentive Grants Program, visit: PDF (126KB)
• Frequently Asked Questions regarding the circumstances under which CSP funds may be used for grants that support preschool education in charter schools, under new authority in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2014 can be found at: MS Word (45 KB)

Included below is information regarding the new awards made in each fiscal year since FY 2009.

Awards Table Instructions: Please use the scroll bar at the bottom of the Awards tab to view the entire Awards table.