This grant funds vermont fish and wildlife s (vtfwd) business office and grant management responsibilities

Vermont Department Fish & Wildlife received a Formula Grant award of $113,333.00 from the U.S. Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service Region 5 under the Wildlife Restoration and Basic Hunter Education and Safety program (CFDA 15.611). The award, effective July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026, supports the department's business office and grant management operations necessary to administer 18-24 annual project-by-project grants funded through Sport Fish Restoration or Wildlife Restoration mechanisms.

The grant funds critical administrative and compliance functions including staff assistance with grant application development and performance reporting, annual training on TRACS data entry systems and Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration requirements, maintenance of financial records and federal fund draws, site visit oversight, compliance document revision, license revenue monitoring, federal audit coordination, and attendance at required trainings and conferences. These services ensure effective stewardship of federal wildlife restoration funds and adherence to all applicable federal regulations governing the program.

Currently, vtfwd manages 18-24 project-by-project grants funded with sport fish restoration or wildlife restoration funds on an annual basis. In order to ensure effective administration of these grants and compliance with federal regulations, vfwd must address numerous needs from staff and the united states fish and wildlife service (USFWS). In the five-year period covered by this grant application vfwd will assist staff with developing grant applications and performance reports, train staff annually on tracs data entry and oversee the submission of reports, conduct or organize trainings for staff on wildlife and sport fish restoration (wsfr) requirements, maintain financial records of grant expenditures and complete the federal draw, conduct site visits, complete the revision of compliance documents, monitor incoming license revenue and how IT is spent, attend trainings and conferences, and oversee audits.