Granite United Way

Granite United Way, a tax-exempt nonprofit based in Manchester, New Hampshire, operates as a federal grant recipient providing community social services and volunteer-administered tax assistance to underserved populations in New Hampshire, with a secondary role as a subrecipient on state-administered federal grants focused on victim services and substance-use disorder workforce development.

Granite United Way competes as a direct grant recipient with the Internal Revenue Service under the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Matching Grant Program (CFDA 21.009), where it has received consecutive annual awards ranging from $169 thousand to $362 thousand since at least 2022. The organization's most recent VITA grant award, effective October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2026, carries a federal obligation of $181,204 and requires matching non-federal funds. Under VITA, Granite United Way delivers free tax return preparation and electronic filing services to low- to moderate-income individuals, persons with disabilities, non-native English speakers, rural residents, veterans and their families, elderly individuals, and Native Americans. The program requires Granite United Way to ensure that at least 90 percent of returns prepared serve individuals with income at or below Earned Income Tax Credit thresholds and to file all eligible returns electronically. The organization expands electronic filing capacity, enhances volunteer training, strengthens quality control measures, and improves return accuracy at VITA sites. Granite United Way also received a community facility grant from the Rural Utilities Service (awarded June 1, 2023, with ultimate completion date June 1, 2025).

As a subrecipient, Granite United Way operates across multiple federal grant streams routed through New Hampshire state agencies. The New Hampshire Department of Justice Office of the Attorney General has awarded Granite United Way six subrecipient allocations since July 2024 for direct victim services delivered through an adverse childhood experiences response model, coordinating support for children affected by trauma as a result of crime in partnerships that include the Riverbend Community Mental Health, Merrimack County Human Services, and the Franklin Police Department. The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services has designated Granite United Way as a subrecipient for regional public health networks (seven sub-awards, May 2024) and substance use-related information resources (two sub-awards, April 2025). Granite United Way also serves as a subrecipient under a grant administered through Mary Hitchcock Memorial Hospital (awarded December 14, 2023) for workforce development focused on placing job seekers in recovery from substance use disorder at Recovery Friendly Workplaces.

Granite United Way's federal footprint is concentrated in New Hampshire social-service and tax-administration delivery. The Internal Revenue Service accounts for 8 of 24 prime awards (69% coverage); the Department of Justice Victims of Crime program, the Department of Agriculture Rural Housing Service, and the Department of Health and Human Services Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration each contribute three awards. Prime awards comprise 60% of the recent portfolio (21 awards), with grant sub-awards making up 40% (14 awards). Total dollars obligated across all awards stand at $6.8 million over a thirty-year award window (first award September 30, 2005; most recent June 17, 2026). Activity has grown from one award in 2022 to nine in 2024, with five awards in 2025 and one through mid-2026. Only one award faces recompete in the next twenty-four months, presenting minimal near-term recompete exposure.