NEHA-FDA RFFM Grant Program Home

The National Environmental Health Association (NEHA) and U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) work in partnership to administer the NEHA-FDA Retail Flexible Funding Model (RFFM) Grant Program. The program provides funding to State, Local, Tribal, and Territorial (SLTT) retail food regulatory agencies as they advance conformance with the Voluntary National Retail Food Regulatory Program Standards (Retail Program Standards). FDA is utilizing our strengths to assist SLTT retail food programs in their efforts to reduce the occurrence of foodborne illness risk factors and implement and attain conformance with the Retail Program Standards.

The Grant Portal is No Longer Open to Accept Applications for CY 2023 Grants

The NEHA-FDA RFFM Grant Portal was open to accept new CY 2023 applications from August 17 through October 12, 2022. The next round of funding, for CY 2024 grant awards, will likely be offered in the summer/fall of 2023.

I Submitted an Application, Now What?

Jurisdictions with submitted CY 2023 applications can view the status of their grant application(s) any time in the NEHA-FDA RFFM Grant Portal, although no changes will occur until after Award Notices are sent via email to the POC email address listed in your Grant Portal. Award Notices are expected to go out in December 2022.

CY 2023 Application Details

Key Dates

• Application Portal opened: August 17, 2022
• Application Portal closed: October 12, 2022
• Award Notices for all CY 2023 grant awards are expected to be sent in December 2022
• Full-Year Grant Performance Period for all new CY 2023 Grants: January 1-December 31, 2023

Key Resources

• Complete CY 2023 Grant Guidance and Application Templates and Budget Examples are now available
• NEHA-FDA RFFM Year 2 Kickoff Webinar (August 3, 2022) | Webinar Recording | Presentation Slides

Types of Grants Available for CY 2023

Track 1 Development Base Grant Application, with up to $26,500 in funding through a single application

• Required Outcome: Complete an SA9 and a CSIP, or just a CSIP (Up to $5,000)
• Optional Outcome 1: Request to be a Mentee (Up to $14,000)
• Optional Outcome 2: Request funding to attend one or more Self-Assessment and Verification Audit Workshops (Up to $7,500)

Track 2 Development Base Grant Application, with up to two outcomes

• Required Outcome: For work on Standards 1-8 (Up to $5,000)
• Optional Outcome: For work on Standard 9 in pursuit of a Public Health Metric (Up to an additional $5,000)

Optional Add-On Grants for Tracks 2 and 3

Track 2 Development Base Grant applicants and current Track 3 Maintenance and Advancement Base Grantees can apply for any or all of the following three Optional Add-On Grants:

• Mentorship:
  • Be a Mentee (Up to $14,000)
  • Be a Mentor with 1-5 Mentees (Up to $24,000)
• Training: Provide approved Retail Program Standard (RPS) training to staff (Up to $7,500)
• Special Projects: Complete an Integrated Food Safety System (IFSS) special project (Up to $20,000)

Current Grantees and Applicants

Grantees can use the "Access the Grant Portal" link to log in to the Grant Portal using your existing username and password.

From the Grant Portal:

• View and print granted and declined applications
• View and print official NEHA-FDA RFFM Grant Program Award Letters
• Access required reports and due dates, file reports, and request payments

Grantees should review the Reporting and Payments requirements.

Hear what our grantees have to say about their experience on our Grantee Testimonials page.

Retail Food Safety Regulatory Training Needs Assessment

Remember to take the national Retail Food Safety Regulatory Needs Assessment survey to

• Identify the strengths and gaps in educational resources for the retail food safety regulatory professional
• Give input on jurisdiction-level training needs
• Assess knowledge gaps as they pertain to workforce needs

Results will be shared widely to

• Bolster educational resources
• Reduce knowledge gaps in training materials
• Improve workforce capabilities

Contact

For more information and support, contact:

NEHA-FDA Retail Flexible Funding Model Grant Program Support Team

Email: retailgrants@neha.org

Toll-Free: 1-833-575-2404

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