National Nonprofit Organization Recreational Boating Safety Grant Program

The mission of the National RBS Program is to ensure the public has a safe, secure, and enjoyable recreational boating experience by implementing programs designed to minimize the loss of life, personal injury, and property damage while cooperating w

The U.S. Coast Guard awards cooperative agreements to nonprofits with 501(c)(3) IRS status, other than institutions of higher education, to support recreational boating safety efforts on a national level.

Applicants must be a nongovernmental organization. Applicants must be designated as a nonprofit organization with tax-exempt status by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in accordance with 26 U.S.C. § 501(c)(3). Applicants must demonstrate the ability to provide recreational boating safety services via one of the definitions of national-in-scope published in the Notice of Funding Opportunity. Applicants must demonstrate that one of their primary functions is to provide services to the public.

Applicants are required to submit a copy of their letter from the IRS specifying the organization's 501(c)(3) status.

Recreational boating safety projects must qualify as national-in-scope per the applicant eligibility definitions.

The Notice of Funding Opportunity is open for a minimum of 60 days. We generally announce the competition in late November/early December. The period of performance is either one-year or three-years depending on available funding. Grantees are permitted to request a one-time no-cost extension.

Applications are subjected to a merit review performed by subject matter experts (reviewers). Reviewers assess the applications for technical merit, personnel qualifications, and the degree to which a proposal offers potential value and measurements to program goals as stated in the Notice of Funding Opportunity. Upon completion of the review, staff log the scores and prepares a ranking list, along with the recommended funding levels from the reviewers, for discussion and consideration. All recommendations are presented to the Boating Safety Branch and Division Chiefs for their review. The Office Chief then reviews and presents a recommendation to the Director of Inspections and Compliance for their review and ultimate approval. The Director of Inspections and Compliance has the authority to approve the awards. Once the Director of Inspections and Compliance determines the final funding levels, an approval memo is generated, co-signed, and kept as part of the official program file.