Project Budget
The most important part of the grant application (for the people reviewing it) is the project budget, or the “Money Part” or your whole project and application.
No matter how rich you think the government is, every department that awards grants has a budget they have to work within. They have to work hard to get the money from the state legislature. They have to be able to show those in charge the results, so they are very much aware of the costs and expenses your project might have… to these guys, the dollar amount is very important.
Some departments have certain levels of funding. The most I have ever seen awarded to an individual is $20,000.00. Most departments have, for example, a $5000.00 and $10,000.00 program and not anything in between. So, if you’re Project Budget comes in at $7,500.00 it doesn’t fit.
So before you decide what amount grant you want, do some research and see what levels the department you are planning to apply to offers. This will help you set up your budget accordingly, and prevent you from making the mistake of asking for more money than the department is prepared to grant you.
It’s also a good idea to look around their site and see if they have a list of grants awarded in previous years. This is very instructive in that you can see what has been successful in the past and how much money was awarded.
So try your best to work within the limits of the grants that are available to you, your states budget is likely very tight and even though you may think your project is amazing. Try to keep in mind that the people reviewing your project see many others like it every single day, and would rather choose one that is within their budget than risk their money.
Okay, after you’ve done a little research on funding levels, it’s time to start on your project budget. You need to be able to justify every dollar you ask for...and justify it on the state’s terms.
Here is something that most people mess up on:
The Federal Guidelines for travel expense is somewhere around 36 cents a mile. Most states do not use that figure! I’ve seen everything from 30 cents to 35 cents. You need to see what your state figures mileage reimbursement at. You can usually find this through a Google search. To be safe, if you can’t find it, use 30 cents a mile.
Just remember not to go overboard with your figures when writing up your budget, be very modest because the persons reviewing your budget will always try and be as conservative as they possibly can when figuring out your expenses.
You need to list things like mileage, your time, printed materials you will need, special equipment, (like slide projectors, sound equipment, etc). Anything you would use exclusively for your project.
A great tip about this:
If you need a sound system (or anything) for your project and you already have one, put the amount you paid for the piece of equipment into your budget with an asterisk after it. Then write that you have already purchased this item. It shows your commitment to the project! Always helps the approval process.
Ok, now to help you out with your project budget, here is an example of what one should look like:
Project: The Craft Of Business For Crafters
Start Date: July 1,
End Date June 30,
Assumptions:
1 seminar weekly for 52 weeks
1 paid local newspaper ad for each seminar
Maximum mileage charged: 200 miles one way
Budget:
Newspaper ads: 52 ads X $8.00 $ 416.00
Mileage: 400 miles X 52 X .30 $ 6240.00
Slide Projector: ** $ 300.00
Handouts: 1000 X .05 $ 50.00
Instructional Time 208 hours X 15.00 $ 3120.00
Misc. Costs $ 174.00
Total Budget: $10,000.00
** I have already purchased this item in anticipation of using it in this project. It is not added into the budget.
_____________________________________________________________
The budget is pretty straightforward. You will notice I put a cap on how much mileage I would charge. If you live in a big state like Texas or California, you will probably want to adjust this accordingly.
I also discounted my time drastically. In the majority of state grants, you make most of your money in mileage reimbursements. In the example budget, it was over 60% of the budget.
In this example, the state had a limit of $10,000.00. If I had valued my time at my usual rate of $50 an hour, the hourly rate alone would have brought me well over the budget.
I have found over the years that state departments understand mileage well…they deal with it on a daily basis. Most of them get reimbursed for their mileage when they travel on state business. This is their comfort zone.
When you set your hourly wage, it makes no sense to the workers reviewing your application for you to be making $50 an hour. Simply because most of them make about $15 an hour on average, and it is difficult for them to understand your $50 an hour requirement.
Now go on and start on your budget. Remember to stay within the funding levels established by your state. And remember to stay within budget.