The Institute of Museum and Library Services

The Institute of Museum and Library Services is an independent civilian agency that administers federal grant programs supporting museums, libraries, and cultural institutions, with a secondary contracting footprint centered on meeting planning and research support.

IMLS operates a substantial but contracting grant portfolio. Since 2000, IMLS has awarded 4,664 federal grants totaling $1.39 billion in federal dollars obligated (combined federal and non-federal share of $1.95 billion). However, grant activity has declined sharply in recent years: the agency issued only 1 grant award in 2019, the most recent on record. Over the five years prior to that decline—2015 through 2019—IMLS averaged 4.8 grants per year. The portfolio is dominated by Project Grants, which account for 4,333 awards (93%), with Formula Grants making up the remainder. Among the 98 distinct recipients across the portfolio history, concentration data is not separately reported, but the multiyear gap since the last recorded grant award suggests the agency may not be actively obligating new grant funds at present.

On the contracting side, IMLS has awarded 459 contracts totaling $110.7 million in combined potential value since 2008, with $90.3 million obligated to date. Contract activity has remained modestly steady: 21 awards in 2022, 32 in 2023, 34 in 2024, 23 in 2025, and 23 year-to-date in 2026. The competitive landscape is moderately concentrated. Over the last five years, the top five primes by award count—Capital Meeting Planning Inc., Vanguard Communications of Falls Church Inc., American Institutes for Research in the Behavioral Sciences, Mathematica Inc., and ICF Incorporated—hold 52 percent of recent awards. Capital Meeting Planning dominates with 30 awards and $9.5 million combined potential value, while by-value concentration is more dispersed, with the same five firms holding only 25 percent of combined potential value across the recent window. The contractor base spans 179 distinct primes over the portfolio lifetime. The vast majority of awards carry no set-aside designation (79%), with small-business set-asides (6%) and 8(a) arrangements (5% combined sole-source and competitive) accounting for most of the remainder.

Open grant opportunities posted September 1, 2026, with a November 13, 2026 due date include the Native Hawaiian Library Services Grants program, Museums Empowered, the 21st Century Museum Professionals Program, Museum Grants for American Latino History and Culture, National Leadership Grants for Libraries and Museums, Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program, Native American Library Services Enhancement Grants, Inspire Grants for Small Museums, Native American Library Services Basic Grant, Native American/Native Hawaiian Museum Services, and Museum Grants for African American History and Culture. Eligibility constraints vary; several programs restrict awards to tribal governments or organizations serving specific populations.