NEHA-FDA RFFM Grant Program
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.
Grant applicants and existing users can access the grant portal by logging in to the Grant Portal.
Additionally, jurisdictions that have never registered or applied for a NEHA-FDA RFFM grant can use the button below to register for a new account.
Calendar Year 2024 Applications
The NEHA FDA RFFM Grant portal will open to accept applications on Wednesday, August 16, 2023 and will remain open until 7:59 PM ET on Wednesday, October 11, 2023. New and existing grantees may apply for Calendar Year 2024 funding. Award notices are expected to be sent in December 2023.
Q&A Webinar for CY2024 Applications
For the CY 2024 application period, we offered two 60-minute Q&A sessions to answer your questions about the NEHA-FDA RFFM Grant Program Year 3 application cycle.
Tuesday, August 8, 2023
Tuesday, September 26, 2023
The informational sessions provided the opportunity to ask about the program, application tracks, training, deadlines, resources, and more.
Program Overview for 2024
The five different grant types offered to support Calendar Year (CY) 2024 projects include:
Track 1 Development Base Grant (1-Year Combined Award), for:
- Completing a Self-Assessment of All Nine Standards (SA9) and a Comprehensive Strategic Improvement Plan (CSIP), OR completion of a CSIP only with a current SA9 (August 2018 or later).
- Additional funds are available through the Mentee Optional Add-On, offering funding to be a Mentee, and
- Through the Training Optional Add-On, offering funding for up to two (2) staff members to attend an in-person Self-Assessment and Verification Audit (SA VA) Workshop,
- All through a single application.
Track 2 Development Base Grant (1-Year Combined Award), for:
- Work on Continuous Improvement in Standards 1-8, and
- An optional outcome to include work on Standard 9 in Pursuit of a Public Health Metric.
- Additional funds are available through the Mentee Optional Add-On, offering funding to be a Mentee, and
- Through the Training Optional Add-On, offering funding to attend Retail Food Safety Training, Workshops, and Conferences,
- All through a single application. NEW for 2024.
Three Optional Add-On Grants, available for Track 2 applicants and current Track 3 grantees, including:
- Mentorship Optional Add-On Grant (1-Year Award, for Track 2 and 3 applicants), with the option to apply to be a Mentor for Track 2 applicants (instead of choosing the Mentee Optional Add-On in the Base Grant), or to be a Mentee or a Mentor for current Track 3 Maintenance and Advancement Base grantees;
- Training Optional Add-On Grant (1-Year Award, for current Track 3 Maintenance and Advancement Base grantees only), to support attendance at Retail Food Safety Trainings, Workshops, and Conferences.
- Special Projects Optional Add-On Grant (1-Year Award, for Track 2 applicants and current Track 3 Maintenance and Advancement Base grantees), to support Integrated Food Safety System (IFSS) projects.
Important Note Regarding 3-Year Grant Options: Although they may be available again in the future, the three-year grant types offered in the CY 2022 grant cycle (Capacity Building Grants and Track 3 Maintenance and Advancement Base Grants) will not be offered as new grants for the CY 2024 grant cycle.
Payments for CY 2024 Grants
As an innovation for CY 2024, with the goal of significantly reducing the administrative burden for jurisdictions, several grant types will now utilize deliverables-based payments (Fixed Funding).
Grant types and options that will utilize Fixed Funding based on deliverables include:
- Track 1 Development Base Grants (Base funding, Mentee Optional Add-On funding)
- Track 2 Development Base Grants (Base funding, Public Health Metric Funding, Mentee Optional Add-On funding)
- Mentorship Optional Add-On Grants (Mentee and Mentor funding)
To receive payment for the Fixed Funding grants or options, specified deliverables must be met for each grant type and option. Payment will be based on deliverables achieved during the project period. Expense documentation WILL NOT be required for payment of Fixed Funding outcomes and options, and your actual spending DOES NOT need to conform to the deliverables-based payment amounts. You are free to expend funds as determined by your unique needs, with the only requirement for payment being confirmation that each selected deliverable has been met. For audit purposes, however, keep in mind that your spending must always adhere to all applicable federal subaward grant funding rules.
Traditional Reimbursements still apply to several grants and options, and payment will be based on an approved budget in the grant application and detailed receipts included with a Reimbursement Request.
Grant types that will utilize Traditional Reimbursements include:
- Track 3 Maintenance and Advancement Base Grants
- Capacity Building Optional Add-On Grants
- Training funds (offered as Training Optional Add-On for Tracks 1 and 2, and through the Training Optional Add-On Grants for current Track 3 Maintenance and Advancement Base grantees)
- Special Projects Optional Add-on Grants
Advance Payments are still an option for all grant types.
For complete details on CY 2024 program changes, please review the Grant Guidance.
Key Dates
- July 14, 2023: CY 2023 Interim Reports were due
- August 16, 2023: CY 2024 Application Portal opens
- October 11 2023: CY 2024 Application Portal closes, Proposals are due at 7:59 pm ET
- January 1, 2024: Grant Performance Period begins for all CY 2024 Awards
- December 31, 2024: Grant Performance Period ends for all Awards (Y1, Y2, Y3)
Current Grantees
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.
The NEHA-FDA RFFM Reimbursement Request Excel Template, required with all Reimbursement Requests, is also available for download on the Reporting and Payments page.
Hear what our grantees have to say about their experience on our Grantee Testimonials page.
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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