Fy25 Nh Nofo

FY 2025 Notice of Funding Opportunity

Applications Due April 1, 2025

Native Hawaiian Library Services Grants

Funding Opportunity Number: NAG-HAWAIIAN-FY25
Assistance Listing Number: 45.311

OMB Control No.: 3137-0102

Expiration date: 1/31/2027

Table of Contents

Native Hawaiian Library Services Grants 1

Table of Contents 2

Before You Begin 3

Review the Opportunity 4

1. Basic Information 5

2. Eligibility 8

3. Program Description 10

Prepare and Submit Your Application 17

4. Application Contents and Format 18

5. Submission Requirements and Deadlines 53

Learn About Application Review 55

6. Application Review Information 56

7. Award Notices 59

Find Post-Award Information 60

8. Post-Award Requirements and Administration 61

Other Information 63

9. Other Important Information 64

Before You Begin

M onths to weeks before the deadline, you should:

Prepare and confirm your required registrations.

Register in SAM.gov (registration can take several weeks). Your organization must have an active SAM.gov account and a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) before you apply.

Register in Grants.gov (registration can take several days). You must have an active Grants.gov registration. You’ll need an active SAM.gov account and a Login.gov account to register and access Grants.gov.

See Registration Requirements and Guidance for Required Registrations.

C oordinate internally.

Your organization may require internal coordination between departments (e.g., library, human resources, finance, accounting, grants compliance, etc.). Consider this coordination early on, to ensure an on-time application proposal, thoughtful project design, and to ensure successful post-award administration and compliance.

After you’ve prepared your registrations and coordinated internally with your organization, be sure to:

S ubmit your application in Grants.gov by the deadline:

Applications are due by 11:59 p.m. U.S. Eastern Time on April 1, 2025.

B ookmark these resources for important information:

eCFR: 2 CFR Part 200 -- Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards

General Terms and Conditions for IMLS Discretionary Awards

Native Hawaiian Library Services Grants Program page (IMLS.gov)

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Review the Opportunity

In this step:

1. Basic Information 5

Opportunity Overview 5

Award Overview 6

Executive Summary 7

Agency Contact Information 7

2. Eligibility 8

Eligible Applicants 8

Cost Share Requirements 8

Other Eligibility Information 9

3. Program Description 10

Agency Mission, Goals, and Objectives 10

NH Program Goal and Objectives 11

Performance Measures 13

Funding Restrictions 13

Authorizing Statute and Regulations 16

Equal Opportunity 16

1. Basic Information

Opportunity Overview

Federal Awarding Agency	Institute of Museum and Library Services
Funding Opportunity Title	Native Hawaiian Library Services Grants
Announcement Type	Modification of FY24 Notice of Funding Opportunity
Funding Opportunity Number	NAG-HAWAIIAN-FY25
Assistance Listing Number	45.311
Type of assistance instrument	Grant
Application Deadlines	Submit through Grants.gov by 11:59 p.m. U.S. Eastern Time on April 1, 2025.

Award Overview

Key Dates
Anticipated date of notification of award decisions	August 2025 (subject to the availability of funds and IMLS discretion)
Anticipated start dates for new awards	Projects must begin on September 1, 2025.
Anticipated period of performance	September 1, 2025 – August 31, 2027. Project activities may be carried out for one to two years.

Funding Details
Total amount of funding IMLS expects to award through this announcement	$750,000
Anticipated number of awards	5
Expected amount of individual awards	$50,000 - $150,000
Average amount of funding per award experienced in previous years	$150,000

The funding in the above Award Overview is subject to the availability of funds and IMLS discretion. We are not bound by any estimates in this announcement.

Contingent upon the availability of funds, the quality of applications, and IMLS discretion, we may make additional awards from the pool of unfunded applications from this competition.

Executive Summary

The Native Hawaiian Library Services (‘NH’) program is designed to assist Native Hawaiian serving organizations in sustaining and improving library services with their communities. As information needs change, Native Hawaiian organizations must be able to serve as knowledge and resource centers to benefit their users and the wellness of their communities. The NH program supports organizations across the islands and country to address their individual information needs and priorities. 

Projects may involve, but are not limited to, activities such as:

• educational programming for all ages;

• oral history collection and documentation;

• digital media and technology enhancements;

• institutional planning and policy development;

• professional training, internships, and mentorships;

• supporting and engaging with cultural practitioners and scholars;

• research and development of language and cultural material and tools;

• digitization and digital preservation; and

• furnishing of library spaces for staff and public within existing constructed spaces (please note that IMLS funds are not allowed for construction).

Agency Contact Information

IMLS staff are available by phone and email to answer programmatic and administrative questions relating to this grant program. We also host and record on-demand webinars to introduce potential applicants to funding opportunities. For more information, see our list of webinars and instructions for accessing them.

2. Eligibility

Eligible Applicants

To be eligible for an award under the Native Hawaiian Library Services Notice of Funding Opportunity, your organization must be a nonprofit organization that primarily serves and represents Native Hawaiians, as the term “Native Hawaiians” is defined in 20 U.S.C. § 7517(2), and that offers library services to the community. Such services may include, but are not limited to providing free access to:

• Books, print and electronic media;

• research databases;

• job, employment, and career resources;

• reference desk services;

• space for reading, studying, and meeting; and

• free events and activities such as programs, classes, and cultural events for all ages.

When you apply, you must provide documentation showing that your organization meets this statutory eligibility criteria. See Proof of Eligibility for more information about documentation required of nonprofit organizations that primarily serve and represent Native Hawaiians.

Cost Share Requirements

Cost share is allowed but not required for the NH program. The amount of cost share, if included in an application, is not part of the review process.

Calculate any cost share you include in your project budget carefully - you’ll be required to meet cost share commitments if you choose to include them.

Other Eligibility Information

Application Limits

• A pplications for renewal of your currently active IMLS award(s) are not eligible to compete with applications for new awards.

• Your organization may submit only one application under this announcement.

• If eligible, you may submit multiple applications for support of separate and distinct projects through other IMLS grant programs.

Partnerships and Collaborations

• A pplications involving partnerships or collaborations are welcome so long as the eligible nonprofit organization is the lead applicant.

• If your eligible nonprofit collaborates with a partner, it must meet all eligibility requirements, serve as the lead applicant, and administer the award on behalf of the other(s).

• If we fund the project, the eligible nonprofit will be programmatically, fiscally, and legally responsible for the award.

Ineligible Applicants

• W e will not review or make awards to ineligible applicants. We will notify each applicant who is determined to be ineligible.

• To receive an IMLS award, your organization must be eligible and in compliance with applicable IMLS, administrative, and national policy requirements.
  
  
  

Application Completeness and Deadlines

• Y ou must submit all application components by the deadline indicated in the Opportunity Overview. We won’t consider late applications for funding under this notice.

• The total funding request on the IMLS Budget Form must be between $50,000 - $150,000.

• Your application must be complete, and your project and budget must adhere to the program’s funding restrictions and application instructions.

3. Program Description

Agency Mission, Goals, and Objectives

The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS)’s mission is to advance, support, and empower America’s museums, libraries, and related organizations through grantmaking, research, and policy development. Three agency-level goals, with two objectives each, guide our grantmaking.

Agency-Level Goal 1 Champion Lifelong Learning	Objective 1.1 Advance shared knowledge and learning opportunities for all. Objective 1.2 Support the training and professional development of the museum and library workforce.
Agency-Level Goal 2 Strengthen Community Engagement	Objective 2.1 Promote inclusive engagement across diverse audiences. Objective 2.2 Support community collaboration and foster civic discourse.
Agency-Level Goal 3 Advance Collections Stewardship and Access	Objective 3.1 Support collections care and management. Objective 3.2 Promote access to museum and library collections.

The Native Hawaiian Library Services Grants Program (“NH”) supports the achievement of these agency-level goals and facilitates the delivery of significant results consistent with its Federal authorizing legislation (20 U.S.C. § 9101 et seq.; in particular, § 9161 (Services for Native Americans)). Each award that we make through the NH Program will align with one agency-level goal and one associated objective and will contribute meaningfully to the achievement of both program and agency-level goals.

S earch awards made through the NH program by year, award, number, location and keyword.

NH Program Goal and Objectives

Reflecting our agency-level goals, the NH Program has one program goal and four objectives. Choose the objective that aligns best with your proposed project.

NH Program Goal Develop, enhance, or disseminate practices, programs, models, tools, or staff training to strengthen library and archival services with Kānaka Maoli.
Objective 1 Serve the learning needs and interests of the community.	Examples include, but aren’t limited to: Kānaka Maoli language and culture education   informal STEM or other types of participatory learning;   early learning;   digital, information, health, financial, media, civic, and other types of literacies; and  educational programs, such as classes, events, teaching tools, and/or resources.
Objective 2 Improve Kānaka Maoli well-being.	Examples include, but aren’t limited to: workforce and economic development;   community and civic dialogue;   social, public health, and civic services;   digital services  efforts that increase equity and access; and  developing strategic partnerships within, across, and outside of Native Hawaiian communities.
Objective 3 Provide access to and preservation of information and collections.	Examples include, but aren’t limited to: enhancing information infrastructures;   digital inclusion and digital equity;   privacy and security;   digital preservation strategies;   community memory;   web archiving;   collections stewardship; and  language and cultural preservation and perpetuation.
Objective 4 Provide services to affected communities in the event of an emergency or disaster.	Examples include, but aren’t limited to: emergency and disaster mitigation and management plans;  studying or addressing impacts of emergencies and disasters; and  addressing climate resilience and adaptation.

Performance Measures

We use three performance measures as a basis for understanding and evaluating how well the NH program is meeting its goal and how awardees are managing individual projects. We ask applicants to define and determine how they will measure the following aspects:

E ffectiveness: The extent to which proposed project activities contribute to achieving the NH program goal and objective you selected

Q uality: How well the project activities meet the requirements and expectations of the primary audience

T imeliness: The extent to which each task/activity is completed within the timeframe proposed

As part of your application, you will need to provide a Performance Measurement Plan that describes how you will use these three measures to evaluate your performance in carrying out your project and meeting the NH program goal and the objective you selected.

In your final performance report, we’ll ask you to rate (on a scale of 1 to 5) how well you believe you completed the project in terms of effectiveness, quality, and timeliness.

Funding Restrictions

Allowable and Unallowable Costs

You may use IMLS funds and cost share only for allowable costs as found in IMLS and OMB government-wide cost-principle rules.

Please consult 2 C.F.R. part 200 and 2 C.F.R. part 3187 (in particular, 2 C.F.R. § 3187.15(b)) for additional guidance on allowable costs.

The following lists include some examples of generally allowable and unallowable costs.

A llowable Costs	personnel salaries, wages, and fringe benefits, including annual cost of living increases travel expenses for key project staff and consultants materials, supplies, software, and equipment related directly to project activities adaptive and/or assistive technologies and other resources and services to improve accessibility for persons with disabilities participant support costs, including temporary dependent care, if documented in written policies third-party costs design and publication costs program evaluation staff and volunteer training paid internships/fellowships stipends or honoraria for project advisors and active participants pre-award costs, at the discretion of and with prior written approval from the agency.
U nallowable Costs	general fundraising costs, such as development office staff or other staff time devoted to general fundraising contributions to endowments general operating support costs general advertising or public relations costs designed solely for promotional activities other than those related to the specific project construction or renovation of facilities (generally, any activity involving the construction trades is not an allowable cost) social activities, receptions, or entertainment.

You must explain all proposed expenses in your Budget Justification.

If you have questions about whether specific activities are allowable, contact us for guidance.

Costs for Third Parties

When a project requires the payment of Federal funds to third parties (such as partners, consultants, collaborators, vendors, and/or service providers), it is your responsibility to determine whether you should characterize a third party as a subrecipient or a contractor and include that determination in your agreement with them.

IMLS grant funds may not be provided to any Federal agency serving as a third party.

Indirect Costs

You can choose to:

• use a rate not to exceed your current indirect cost rate already negotiated with a Federal agency;

• use an indirect cost rate proposed to a Federal agency for negotiation, but not yet finalized, as long as it is finalized by the time of the award;

• use a rate not to exceed 15 percent of the Modified Total Direct Costs (MTDC) if your organization does not have a Federally Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (NICRA) and is not subject to other requirements; or

• not include any indirect costs.

.

Authorizing Statute and Regulations

S tatute: 20 U.S.C. § 9101 et seq.; in particular, § 9161 (Services for Native Americans).

Regulations: 45 C.F.R. Chapter XI, 2 C.F.R. Chapter XXXI, and 2 C.F.R. Title 2

Award recipients must follow the IMLS regulations that are in effect at the time of the award*

You can find the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Guidance for Federal Financial Assistance at 2 C.F.R. part 200.

*Please note: OMB has recently updated the Uniform Guidance (see Uniform Guidance Revisions). For IMLS awards made after October 1, 2024, the Uniform Guidance Revisions will apply.

With certain IMLS-specific additions, IMLS regulations at 2 C.F.R. part 3187 have formally adopted the Uniform Guidance Revisions when they became effective on October 1, 2024.

Equal Opportunity

IMLS does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, disability, or age.

For further information, email the Civil Rights Officer at [email protected] or write to the Civil Rights Officer, Institute of Museum and Library Services, 955 L’Enfant Plaza North, SW, Suite 4000, Washington, DC, 20024-2135.

Prepare and Submit Your Application

In this step:

4. Application Contents and Format 18

Get Ready to Apply 18

Readiness Checklist 18

Registration Requirements 19

Guidance for Required Registrations 19

Prepare Your Application 22

Application Components 22

Format, Name, and Sequence of Application Components 24

Instructions for Required Application Components 25

Conditionally Required Documents 51

Supporting Documents 55

Application Checklist 56

Disclosure of Information in Applications 57

5. Submission Requirements and Deadlines 58

Submission Instructions 58

Programmatic, Administrative and Technical Support Contacts 58

IMLS 58

Federal Service Desk 58

Grants.gov 58

Submission Dates and Times 59

Emergency Extensions 59

Intergovernmental Review 59

4. Application Contents and Format

Get Ready to Apply

Readiness Checklist

Be sure to…

• Register in SAM.gov (or check your organization’s registration status and expiration date) as early as possible. Remember that a new SAM registration or troubleshooting issues can take several weeks.

To register, go to SAM.gov Entity Registration and click Get Started.

See the SAM.gov Entity Registration checklist for what you’ll need to register in SAM.

• Get a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number. You’ll get your organization’s UEI when you register in SAM.gov. (This is not a DUNS number. See the DUNS to UEI transition information.)

• Register in Grants.gov.

• Carefully read through this NOFO to get a good understanding of how to craft your Narrative and what other documents we require.

• Review the eligibility requirements and confirm that your organization is eligible.

1. Nonprofit organization that primarily serves and represents Native Hawaiians

2. Offers library and/or archival services to the community

• Review the Funding Restrictions and keep them in mind as you develop your application and budget.

• Review the post-award requirements to make sure you can meet them.

• Find the application package. Go to Grants.gov and search for Funding Opportunity Number: NAG-HAWAIIAN-FY25 or Assistance Listing Number: 45.311.

• Get familiar with Grants.gov Workspace.

• Contact IMLS program staff to discuss your ideas, or if you have questions related to the application process.

Applying for an award takes time. Registering with SAM.gov can take several weeks. There are a few important things you’ll need to do before you can apply.

Registration Requirements

Before you apply, your organization must have these three Federal registrations already in place:

• a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number;

• a current and active System for Award Management (SAM) registration; and

• an active Grants.gov registration with an approved Authorized Organization Representative (AOR).

Check your materials and registrations now to ensure that they are accurate, current, and active.

We strongly recommend that you obtain a UEI number and complete registration with SAM and Grants.gov months to weeks before the application deadline.

Guidance for Required Registrations

Getting a Unique Entity Identifier

The Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number is a non-proprietary alphanumeric identifier assigned to all entities (public and private companies, individuals, institutions, or organizations) who register to do business with the Federal Government. The UEI is requested in, and assigned by, the System for Award Management (SAM). Awardees must inform any subrecipients that the awardee may not make a subaward unless the subrecipient has also obtained a UEI.

If your organization has an active SAM registration, you can find your assigned UEI in your SAM record. If you don’t yet have an active SAM registration, you will receive a UEI when you register in SAM.

Learn more about the UEI.

Registering with SAM

The System for Award Management (SAM) is a Federal repository that centralizes information about grant applicants and awardees. It is always free to all users. You must register with SAM before registering with Grants.gov. Learn how to check an organization’s registration status in SAM.

If you’re registering with SAM for the first time, you must begin by creating a SAM user account through Login.gov. Click here to learn how to create a secure Login.gov account. Then proceed to the SAM registration process.

We recommend that you allow several weeks to complete the SAM registration.

You must always maintain an active SAM registration with current information while you have an active award or an application under consideration. We may not make an award to you until you have complied with all applicable UEI and SAM registration requirements. If you have not fully complied with the requirements by the time we’re ready to make a Federal award, we may make a Federal award to another applicant.

You must renew your organization’s registration in SAM at least every 12 months or whenever your organization’s information changes. An expired registration will prevent you from submitting applications via Grants.gov and receiving awards or payments. Award payments will be made to the bank account that is associated with your organization’s SAM registration.

Registering with Grants.gov

Grants.gov is the centralized website for grant seekers to find and apply for Federal funding opportunities. Grants.gov is owned and operated by the Federal Government and is always free to all users.

You must register with Grants.gov prior to applying. The multistep registration process cannot be completed in a single day. You should make sure your institution’s SAM registration is current and active before registering with Grants.gov. If your organization is not already registered, allow several weeks before the application deadline to complete this one-time process. Do not wait until the day of the application deadline to register.

The Grants.gov user ID and password you obtain when you register are required to submit your application.

After your organization registers with Grants.gov and creates an Organizational Applicant Profile, the request for the organization’s Grants.gov roles and access is sent to the eBiz POC. The eBiz POC will then log into Grants.gov and assign the appropriate roles to individuals within the organization. This will include the Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) which will give permission to complete and submit applications on behalf of the organization.

T IP: Know who your organization’s Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) is and coordinate their availability to approve your application submission in Grants.gov. Add additional AORs if you can.

Designating more than one AOR when you register in Grants.gov will help you avoid missing the deadline if a single AOR is unavailable when you are ready to submit the application.

It is also important to update the contact information and password in Grants.gov whenever an AOR changes. AOR changes can take over 24 hours to go into effect, so complete this well before the deadline.

Visit Grants.gov/Support, email [email protected], or call Grants.gov Applicant Support at 1-800-518-4726 for technical assistance. Grants.gov Applicant Support is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, except for Federal holidays.

Application Package

You must apply electronically through Grants.gov Workspace or a Grants.gov system-to-system solution.

Use one of the following identifiers to locate the application package in Grants.gov:

• Funding Opportunity Number: NAG-HAWAIIAN-FY25

• Assistance Listing Number: 45.311

To request an audio recording of this announcement, call 202-653-4744. To request a paper copy of this announcement, call 202-653-4744 or email [email protected].

Persons who are deaf or hard of hearing (TTY Users) can contact IMLS at 202-207-7858 via 711 for TTY-Based Telecommunications Relay Service.

Prepare Your Application

This section outlines the components, format, and content requirements to help you prepare a complete application.

You must apply by 11:59 p.m. U.S. Eastern Time on April 1, 2025. We make awards only to eligible applicants that submit applications through Grants.gov on or before this deadline.

If your application is missing any Required Documents from the list below, we will consider it to be incomplete, and may reject it from further consideration (see 2 C.F.R. § 3187.9.).

Application Components

Required Documents

You must include all required components for your application to be complete.

Component	File Requirements
The Application for Federal Domestic Assistance/Short Organizational Form (SF-424S)	Format: Grants.gov web form
IMLS Library – Discretionary Program Information Form	Format: Grants.gov web form
Organizational Profile	File Format: PDF Page Recommendation: 1 page File Name: Organizationalprofile.pdf
Narrative	File Format: PDF Page Recommendation: 5 - 8 pages File Name: Narrative.pdf
Schedule of Completion	File Format: PDF Page Recommendation: 1 page per year File Name: Scheduleofcompletion.pdf
Performance Measurement Plan	File Format: PDF Page Recommendation: 1 – 2 pages File Name: Perfmeasurement.pdf
IMLS Budget Form	File Format: IMLS PDF form File Name: Budget.pdf
Budget Justification	File Format: PDF File Name: Budgetjustification.pdf
Resumes of Key Project Staff and Consultants	File Format: PDF Page Recommendation: 2 pages per person File Name: Resumes.pdf
Proof of Eligibility	File Format: PDF File Name: Proofeligibility.pdf

Conditionally Required Documents

You must include these components if they are applicable to your institution or your project. Refer to Conditionally Required Documents to determine which, if any, you need to include in your application.

Component	File Requirements
Final Federally Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement	File Format: PDF File Name: Indirectcostrate.pdf
Digital Products Plan	File Format: PDF Page Length Recommendation: 2 pages File Name: Digitalproduct.pdf

Supporting Documents

You may include additional documents to support your proposal.

Component	File Requirements
Supporting Documents (Information that supplements the Narrative and supports your project description)	File Format: PDF File Name(s): Supportingdoc1.pdf Supportingdoc2.pdf Supportingdoc3.pdf

Format, Name, and Sequence of Application Components

Document Format and File Size

The SF-424S and the IMLS Library - Discretionary Program Information Form are online forms that you’ll complete in Grants.gov Workspace. You must submit all other application components as PDF documents.

Use standard formatting and fonts in your application components and limit individual file sizes to 200mb or less.

Page Recommendations

Note the page recommendations listed in the table of Application Components.

Naming Convention

Use the naming conventions, also known as file names, for each of the documents indicated in the tables of Application Components.

I MPORTANT: Attachment file names are limited to the following characters: A-Z, a-z, 0-9, underscore (_), hyphen (-), space, period (.). If attachment file names use any other characters, the application may be rejected by Grants.gov.

Attachment Order

In Grants.gov, attach all application components in the sequence listed in the table above. Use all 15 fields in the “Attachments Form” first. If your application requires more than 15 attachments, select the “Other Attachments Form. Note that if you select the “Other Attachments Form,” you will be required to upload the 16^th attachment in the “Mandatory Other Attachment” field first; any subsequent attachments should be uploaded under the “Optional Other Attachments.”

Instructions for Required Application Components

SF-424S Form

The SF-424S Form, or the Application for Federal Domestic Assistance/Short Organizational Form, is part of the application package in Grants.gov.

SF-424S Item	Instructions
Items 1 - 4	Grants.gov automatically populates items 1-4.
Item 5. Applicant Information	Legal Name: Enter your organization’s legal name as it appears in your SAM registration. This is the organization with the authority to apply directly for funding in this program. If you have an organizational unit that will be carrying out the project, be sure to specify it as the organizational unit on the IMLS Library – Discretionary Program Information Form. Address: Enter the organization’s address as it appears in your SAM registration. Web Address: Enter the URL of your organization’s website. Type of Applicant: Select the code that best characterizes your organization from the menu in the first dropdown box. Leave the other boxes blank. Employer/Taxpayer Identification Number (EIN/TIN): Enter the EIN or TIN assigned to your organization by the Internal Revenue Service. Organizational UEI: Enter your organization’s Unique Entity Identifier (UEI). If your organization’s SAM registration is active, you can find your assigned UEI in your SAM record. If you cannot locate your UEI, contact the Federal Service Desk at www.fsd.gov or 1-866-606-8220. Congressional District: Enter your organization’s congressional district. Use the following format: two-letter state abbreviation, followed by a hyphen, followed by a zero, followed by the two-digit district number. For example, if the organization is located in the 5th Congressional District of California, enter “CA-005.” For the 12th Congressional District of North Carolina, enter “NC-012.” For states and territories with “At Large” Congressional Districts—that is, one representative or delegate represents the entire state or territory—use “001,” e.g., “VT-001.If your organization does not have a congressional district (e.g., it is located in a U.S. territory that does not have districts), enter “00-000.” To determine your organization’s district, visit the House of Representatives website and use the “Find Your Representative” tool.
Item 6. Project Information	Project Title: Enter a brief descriptive title for your project, using no more than 200 characters, including spaces. IMLS may use this title for public information purposes. Project Description: Enter a brief description (about 120 words) of your project. Tell us about the purpose of the project, the activities to be performed, the deliverables and expected outcomes, and the intended beneficiaries. Use clear language that can be understood by readers who might not be familiar with the discipline or subject area. Proposed Project Start Date/End Date: Enter the start date of 09/01/2025. The project period must end on the last day of the month in which these activities are completed. NOTE: We use Login.gov for user authentication in our electronic grants management system, eGMS Reach. Login.gov helps protect user identity through stronger passwords and two-factor authentication. L ogin.gov requires that the email addresses entered for the Project Director, Primary Contact/Grants Administrator, and Authorized Representatives in Items 7, 8, and 9 on the SF-424S Form be unique to those individuals. General email addresses or those used by several people in a single office are not acceptable.
Item 7. Project Director	The Project Director will have primary responsibility for carrying out your project’s activities. Enter the requested information for this individual here. We require that the Project Director be a different person than the Authorized Representative.
Item 8. Primary Contact/Grants Administrator	The Primary Contact/Grants Administrator has the core responsibility for administering the award. Enter the requested information for this individual here. If you have a staff member who assisted with writing the grant, temporarily adding them as a Grant Administrator might be useful during the review process. If the grant is awarded, then a personnel change request can be submitted for post-award grant administration. Please still complete both items 8 and 9 if the Primary Contact/Grants Administrator is the same as the Authorized Representative. In some organizations this individual may be the same as the Project Director. If this is the case, check the box and skip to Item 9.
Item 9. Authorized Representative	The Authorized Representative has the authority to legally bind your organization. Enter the requested information for this individual here. The Authorized Representative cannot be the same person as the Project Director. By checking the “I Agree” box at the top of Item 9, this individual certifies the applicant’s compliance with the IMLS Assurances and Certifications and any other relevant Federal requirements. Grants.gov automatically populates the “Signature of Authorized Representative” and “Date Signed” boxes upon submission of the application. This is the person whose name was listed as your organization’s authorized representative when you registered with Grants.gov. Please note that this name might not be the same as the name and other information you entered in Item 9 above.

By submitting the electronic application, you acknowledge that your organization certifies compliance with relevant Federal requirements, including but not limited to the IMLS Assurances and Certifications, to the same extent as a signature does on a paper application.

IMLS Library – Discretionary Program Information Form (PIF)

The IMLS Library – Discretionary Program Information Form is part of the application package in Grants.gov. Sections of this form are dynamic, so your answers to certain questions will determine what questions you see next.

PIF Section	Instructions
Section 1. Grant Program	Select Native Hawaiian Library Services Grants.
Grant Program Goals and Objectives	Refer to the NH Program Goal and Objectives. Select the objective that best aligns with your proposed project.
Section 2. Applicant Information	Does your non-profit have an organizational unit (department, library, school, college or university, other nonprofit) that will carry out the activities described in your application? Refer to the entity listed in Item 5a of the Grants.gov SF-424S Form that you are submitting with your application and review the Helpful Definitions of organizational unit and legal applicant on the Program Information Form. Select YES if your nonprofit has an organizational unit, then provide the requested information and select an institution type for the organizational unit. Select NO if your nonprofit does not have an organizational unit, then select an institution type.
Section 3. Financial Information	Complete the table with figures representing the most recently completed fiscal year in the top row, followed by those for the previous year, and concluding with those for the year before that. Provide the information requested for the legal applicant if you have not identified an organizational unit for this application. If you have identified an organizational unit for this application, provide the information requested for that unit.
Section 4. Funding Request	Refer to the Grant Fund total in Section 10 of the IMLS Budget Form (PDF, 1.6MB) that you are submitting with your application. Provide the amount in dollars that you are requesting from IMLS (between $50,000 - $150,000).
Section 5. Indirect Costs	Refer to the IMLS Budget Form – Indirect Costs in the Budget guidance. Select one option and provide any required information for your selection. Your selection should match the choice you make on the IMLS Budget Form that you are submitting with your application.
Section 6. Abstract	Write an Abstract of no more than 3,000 characters (including spaces) in a concise narrative format for a general audience. Address the following: Identify the organization and, if applicable, any collaborators. Describe the need, challenge, or opportunity your project will address, and how it was identified. List the high-level activities you will carry out and identify the associated time frame. Identify who or what will benefit from your project. Specify your project’s intended results and how they will be shared. Describe how you will measure your success in achieving your intended results. Enter or paste your text into the form. If your proposal is selected for funding, the Abstract may be published online, or otherwise shared, by IMLS. As such, please do not include any sensitive, proprietary, or confidential information.
Section 7. Project Keywords	Select from one to eight keywords that best characterize your project from the options provided on the form. You can find the full list of keywords here. We may use these keywords as search terms in our compilations describing the agency’s grantmaking and/or provide them as tools to help applicants, other awardees, and the public understand more about what we support.

Organizational Profile

Write a brief Organizational Profile for your organization, addressing the following, save it as a PDF, and use Organizationalprofile.pdf as its file name. We recommend limiting the Organizational Profile to one page.

• Your organization’s mission or statement of purpose, noting the source, approving body, and date of the official document in which it appears.

• Your service area (i.e., communities and/or audiences served, including size, demographic characteristics, and geographic area).

Narrative

Write a Narrative using the structure and format below and save it as a PDF. Be clear and concise with a minimum of technical jargon and acronyms. Include references throughout your Narrative to any Supporting Documents that provide supplementary material.

When writing your narrative, consider the review criteria.

Narrative - Required Format

Page Recommendation: 5 - 8 numbered pages

File Name: Narrative.pdf

IMPORTANT: Grants.gov limits attachment file names to the following characters: A-Z, a-z, 0-9, underscore (_), hyphen (-), space, period (.). If attachment file names use any other characters, the application may be rejected by Grants.gov.

File Format: PDF

Font Size: 11-point or higher

Margins: 0.5 inches or greater

Components: Organize the Narrative using the following section headings:

• Project Justification

• Project Work Plan

• Project Results

Narrative Sections

Narrative Section	Guidance
P roject Justification	What current need, challenge, or opportunity will your project address and how was it identified? Describe how you have used reliable sources to define the need, challenge, or opportunity and develop the scope for the project. Who is the primary audience for your project and how have they been involved in the planning? “Primary audience” refers to those who will be most immediately and positively affected by your project. Be specific by identifying age groups, community members with particular needs, and/or other types of primary audiences.
Project Work Plan	What specific activities will you carry out and in what sequence? Who will execute your project? Be sure to identify all key staff. How have you involved stakeholders in the planning and development of the project and how will you incorporate their input throughout the project? What existing resources within the organization, assets within the organization or community, and/or potential partners will you use during this project to aid in its success? How and with whom will you share your work’s results and lessons learned?
Project Results	What are your project’s intended results and/or product(s), and how will they address the need, challenge, or opportunity you identified in the Project Justification section? How do you define success for this project, and how will it be evaluated? How will you disseminate the results (deliverables, lessons learned, etc.) of the project to the primary audience? How will you sustain the benefit(s) of your project beyond the conclusion of the period of performance?

Refer to the Evaluation Resources on the IMLS website for program planning tools, evaluation definitions, and examples.

Refer to our guidance on disclosing information in your application.

Reviewers may also choose to visit your organization's website, as listed on the SF-424S form provided with your application.

Schedule of Completion

The Schedule of Completion should reflect each major activity identified in your application Narrative and the project dates identified on the SF-424S and the IMLS Budget Form. It should show when each major project activity will start and end. We recommend one page per project year in the schedule. See the sample Schedule of Completion below. Save this document as a PDF and use Scheduleofcompletion.pdf as the file name.

Performance Measurement Plan

Your Performance Measurement Plan should show how you will evaluate and assess your performance as an awardee and achieve your selected program goal and objective from the perspectives of Effectiveness, Quality and Timeliness for your overall project.

For each performance measure, identify what data you will collect from what source, the method you will use to collect it, and according to what schedule. The chart below provides sample statements for each measure and a space to record your own. We've provided a fillable version of this chart (DOCX, 25KB), which you are welcome, but not required, to use. We recommend limiting your Performance Measurement Plan to two pages. Save your document as a PDF and use Perfmeasurement.pdf as the file name.

IMLS Budget Form

Make sure that JavaScript is enabled in your web browser. Download the IMLS Budget Form (PDF, 1.6MB) to your computer and work on it outside your web browser. When you’ve completed the form, save it as a PDF and upload it as part of your application through Grants.gov.

The IMLS Budget Form accommodates up to three years of project activities and expenses though applications for this program will only use up to 2 years. Allowable costs and other budget details vary by program. Be sure to review the Notice of Funding Opportunity for the grant program to which you are applying and the cost principles in 2 C.F.R. part 200 and 2 C.F.R. part 3187.

The Year 1 columns should include costs for activities that begin on the project start date (09/01/2025) and end 12 months later. If the project timeline exceeds one year, list the costs for the next 12 months in the Year 2 columns.

Tips for completing your budget form:

• T he budget should include the project costs that will be charged to grant funds as well as those that will be supported by cost share, if any.

• In-kind contributions to cost share may include the value of services (e.g., donated volunteer or consultant time) or equipment donated to the project between the authorized start and end dates of your project.

• All the items listed, whether supported by grant funds or cost share, must be necessary to accomplish project objectives, allowable according to the applicable Federal cost principles, auditable, and incurred during the award period of performance.

• Charges to the project for items such as salaries, fringe benefits, travel, and contractual services must conform to the written policies and established practices of your organization.

• You must report all revenues generated with project funds during the award period of performance as program income.

• If you need more lines for a specific section, summarize the information in the IMLS Budget Form and explain it further in the Budget Justification.

Budget Form Section	Instructions
Salaries and Wages	Include both temporary and permanent staff as well as volunteers engaged in project activities. Document the method of cost computation in your Budget Justification by including the base salary or wages for each person and the percentage of time each person is allocated to the project activities, which may be shown as a percentage of time, number or days, or number of hours.
Fringe Benefits	Fringe benefits can be claimed as a direct cost for only those positions included in your direct cost pool and only on the portion of salaries and wages identified for this project. Indicate your organization’s fringe benefit rate (in percent) and the base (in dollars) to which the rate is applied (e.g., 20% x $175,089.00).
Travel	Explain the method of cost computation for each travel cost, including per diem, lodging, and transportation, in your Budget Justification. You must use the lowest available commercial fares for coach or equivalent accommodations, and you must use U.S. flagged air carriers for foreign travel when such services are available, in accordance with applicable U.S. legal requirements. Note: You must include $3,000 per year of proposed budget for a minimum of one staff to travel to attend an IMLS-designated meeting. Location of the meeting is at the discretion of the IMLS Office of Library Services and awardees will be notified of meeting location after they have been awarded. Refer to the Narrative section for information about special travel requirements, if any.
Supplies, Materials, and Equipment	List the costs of supplies, materials, and equipment purchased specifically for the proposed project. For definitions and other information, please see 2 C.F.R. part 200. Use the Budget Justification to explain or describe these items in further detail.
Subawards and Contracts	List each third party that will undertake project activities and their associated costs as an individual line item on your IMLS Budget Form. Designate each third party as either a subaward or a contract using the dropdown menu on each line. Itemize these third-party costs in your Budget Justification.
Student Support	If your project includes Student Support costs, enter them in this section. Refer to Student Support Costs in the Budget for a definition and examples.
Other Costs	Use this section for costs that cannot be assigned to other categories. Do not use this section to list items that do not fit in the lines allotted for another section.
Total Direct Costs	These amounts will total automatically.
Indirect Costs	Indirect costs are expenses that are incurred for common or joint objectives that cannot be easily identified with a particular project. Indicate your organization’s indirect cost rate (in percent) and the base (in dollars) to which the rate is applied (e.g., 34% x $123,456.78). Refer to Indirect Costs in the Budget for more information.
Total Project Costs	These amounts will total and round up to the nearest dollar automatically.

Cost Share in the Budget

Cost share is the portion of the project costs that is not paid by IMLS funds. Common examples of cost share include cash outlays; contribution of property and services; and in-kind contributions, such as staff or volunteer time that support project activities.

Cost share is not required for this program. If you do choose to include cost share in your budget, calculate the amounts carefully – you’ll be required to meet any cost share commitments you make. Note that that inclusion of cost share in an application is not considered in our review process.

All expenses, including cost share, must be incurred during the award period of performance unless otherwise specified and allowed by law. Federal funds from other Federal awards may not be used for cost share. All Federal, IMLS, and program requirements regarding the use of funds apply to both requested IMLS funds and to cost share. See 2 C.F.R. §§ 200.1 Definition of cost sharing and 200.306 Cost sharing for more information on cost share.

Indirect Costs in the Budget

Indirect costs are expenses incurred for common or joint objectives and thus cannot be readily associated with a particular project. Some examples include depreciation on buildings and equipment, the costs of operating and maintaining facilities, and general administration and general expenses, such as the salaries and expenses of executive officers, personnel administration, and accounting.

See 2 C.F.R. part 200.414 Indirect costs for additional guidance.

Options for Calculating and Including Indirect Costs in a Project Budget

You can choose to:

• use a rate not to exceed your current indirect cost rate already negotiated with a Federal agency and is unexpired through 9/1/2025;

• use an indirect cost rate proposed to a Federal agency for negotiation but not yet finalized, as long as it is finalized by the time of the award (9/1/2025);

• use a rate not to exceed 15 percent of Modified Total Direct Costs (MTDC) if the organization currently does not have a Federally Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (NICRA) and is not subject to other requirements; or

• not include any indirect costs.

Using a Federally Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement

A Federally Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (NICRA) is a document that reflects an estimate of indirect costs negotiated between the Federal Government and a non-Federal entity. There are several types of indirect cost rates (e.g., Provisional, Predetermined, Fixed, Final), and some agreements identify several locations to which a particular rate applies (e.g., on-site/campus, off-site/campus), and/or program types for which a particular rate may be used (e.g., Instruction, Organized Research, All Programs, Other Sponsored Activities).

If your organization already has a NICRA in effect, you may use one of the approved rates in the calculation of your project’s indirect costs and by extension, your total project costs, if you apply the appropriate rate and include a copy of the current agreement with your grant application. You may choose to use a rate lower than a rate in your agreement, but you may not choose a higher one. We will accept only those NICRAs that are current by the award date.

Carefully review your institution’s negotiated indirect cost rate(s) to make sure you are using the appropriate rate for your project.

P lease be aware that the indirect cost rate used in your approved IMLS budget (and that will also appear on the Official Award Notification if an award is made) will apply throughout the life of your award. You may not use a different rate for the award, even if you negotiate a new rate with your cognizant agency after the award has begun.

Using a Proposed Indirect Cost Rate

If your organization is currently negotiating a NICRA with a Federal agency, you may use the indirect cost rate proposed to the Federal agency to estimate indirect and total project costs. In such situations, if we issue an award, we will accept the rate only if the negotiations are final by the award date (9/1/2025) and a copy of the final agreement is submitted to us. IMLS staff will work with you to adjust your budget prior to issuing an award.

Using the 15 Percent De Minimis Indirect Cost Rate

You may choose to charge a de minimis rate of up to 15 percent of Modified Total Direct Costs (MTDC), as long as you do not have a current NICRA and you meet the applicable requirements.

See 2 C.F.R. part 200, including 2 C.F.R. §§ 200.1 (Definitions), 200.414(f), and 200.510(b)(6), for additional guidance.

MDTC includes:

• all direct salaries and wages,

• applicable fringe benefits,

• materials and supplies,

• services,

• travel, and

• up to the first $50,000 of each subaward (regardless of the period of performance of the subawards under the award).

MTDC excludes:

• equipment,

• capital expenditures,

• charges for patient care,

• rental costs,

• tuition remission,

• scholarships and fellowships,

• participant support costs, and

• the portion of each subaward in excess of $50,000.

Other items may only be excluded when necessary to avoid a serious inequity in the distribution of indirect costs, and with the approval of the cognizant agency for indirect costs.

If you are using the up to 15 percent de minimis indirect cost rate, check the box indicated on the IMLS Budget Form. No additional documentation is required.

Applying an Indirect Cost Rate to the Cost Share Portion of a Budget

You may, if consistent with 2 C.F.R. part 200 (Uniform Guidance), apply your indirect cost rate to your total direct costs covered by cost share, but you must account for any costs you claim as cost share in the cost share column on the IMLS Budget Form. IMLS funds can be used for indirect costs, but only for the portion of the total direct costs for which you are requesting IMLS funds (the Grant Funds column). (See, for example, 2 C.F.R. §§ 200.412-414.)

Restrictions on Project Costs Included in Indirect Cost Calculations

If you have a current NICRA, you must follow its conditions and requirements.

As noted above, if you do not have a current NICRA and meet applicable requirements, you may elect to charge a de minimis rate of up to 15 percent of the Modified Total Direct Costs (MTDC) in your indirect cost calculations.

If you have a current NICRA with a rate of less than 15 percent, you must use it rather than the de minimis rate in your indirect cost calculations.

Please see the section above on the up to 15 percent de minimis rate as well as 2 C.F.R. § 200.414(f).

Student Support Costs in the Budget

Students are:

• Individuals enrolled in a community college, undergraduate, or graduate program of study

• Individuals participating in post-master’s or post-doctoral programs that are focused on supporting their careers or professional development

• Library, archives, and museum staff participating in education and training activities focused on their careers or professional development

Examples of Student Support include:

• Tuition support for students participating in the project

• Salaries or stipends for graduate assistant work, if their work is focused on research and teaching activities (therefore contributing to their education)

• Pay and benefits for a resident or fellow to work in a position that is intended to support their learning outcomes or professional development

• Costs for travel and conference registration provided to support a student or participant’s learning outcomes or professional development

• Costs of supplies and equipment provided to students to support a student’s learning outcomes or professional development

Activities not considered Student Support include:

• Students employed in roles that are primarily administrative or clerical, doing work that is not primarily focused on their career or professional development. These costs should be listed in the Salaries and Wages section of the budget, and tuition paid on behalf of these students would not be considered Student Support.

See 2 C.F.R. § 200.466 (Scholarships and student aid costs); see also 2 C.F.R. § 200.430 (Compensation – personal services).

Budget Justification

To write your Budget Justification, follow the format of the IMLS Budget Form’s section headings and save it as a PDF. Address both grant funds and cost share, if included.

Budget Section	Instructions
Salaries and Wages	Identify each person whose salary or wages will be paid with IMLS funds or by cost share, provide their names, and describe their role in the project. Document the method of cost computation by including the base salary or wages for each person and the percentage of time each person is allocated to the project activities, which may be shown as a percentage of time, number of days, or number of hours. If cost share is being provided by unpaid volunteers, explain how you arrived at the dollar amount used to represent the value of their services. For new staff positions included in this project, provide information on how the estimated salary and wages align with industry standards and prevailing wages for your local area.
Fringe Benefits	Identify your organization’s fringe benefit rate (in percent) and the base (in dollars) to which the rate is applied for each person. If you have consolidated several persons’ fringe benefits into a single line on the IMLS Budget Form, break out the detail here.
Travel	For each trip, explain the purpose of the trip and specify the points of origin and destination, the name of the traveler, and break out the costs of transportation, lodging, per diem, and any other expenses associated with the travel. Explain how you arrived at these dollar amounts. * *A breakdown of travel costs is not necessary for the required IMLS-designated meeting. Please label line item, ‘IMLS Designated Meeting’ and budget $3000/year for a minimum of one staff to attend.
Supplies, Materials, and Equipment	List each type of supply, material, and equipment you propose to purchase or provide as cost share for the project. Detail the number and unit cost for each item and explain how you arrived at the dollar amounts. Provide vendor quotes or price lists as Supporting Documents with your application.
Subawards and Contracts	List the costs of project activities to be undertaken by third parties for the project (familiar terms for third parties can include partners, consultants, subgrantees, contractors, collaborators, vendors, and service providers). Identify each third party by name, describe their role in the project, the activities they will carry out, and the cost. For each entry, designate the third party as either a subrecipient (who receives a subaward) or a contractor (who receives a contract). Explain costs for third parties and provide relevant Supporting Documents with your application. IMLS grant funds generally may not be provided to other U.S. government agencies. You are responsible for making a case-by-case determination as to whether the agreement you make with a third party should be a subaward or a contract. That determination will depend upon the nature of your relationship with the third party with respect to the activities to be carried out. See 2 C.F.R. § 200.331 (Subrecipient and contractor determinations).
Student Support	Explain your method for calculating the costs listed in this section. See the definition and examples of Student Support.
Other Costs	Use this section for costs that cannot be assigned to other categories.
Total Direct Costs	Indicate the total direct costs and specify how much you are asking from IMLS and how much you intend to provide as cost share, if any
Indirect Costs	If you include indirect costs in your project budget, identify the indirect cost rate (in percent) and the base (in dollars) to which the rate is applied. Read about indirect costs in the Budget..
Total Project Costs	Indicate the total project costs here and specify how much you are asking from IMLS and how much you intend to provide as cost share, if any.

Resumes of Key Project Staff and Consultants

Provide a resume for each person whose expertise is essential to the success of the project. We recommend limiting each resume to two pages. Use standard fonts and formatting and save all the resumes in a single PDF. Use Resumes.pdf as the file name. You must include the resume of the Project Director listed in Item 7 of the SF-424S.

If you plan to hire key project staff after the project is awarded, then instead of a resume, provide position description(s) including the qualities, range of experience, and education necessary to successfully implement and complete project activities.

Refer to our guidance on disclosing information in your application.

Proof of Eligibility

As proof that your organization meets the eligibility requirements of this program, you must provide the two documents described below:

• A copy of your organization’s charter documents, including the articles of incorporation, and

• Either a copy of the IRS letter indicating your organization’s nonprofit status, or an official document identifying your organization as a unit of state or local government or other tax-exempt multipurpose organization. If this document is prepared specifically for this application, it must be on the parent organization’s letterhead and certified by an official of the parent organization.

Since an organization’s status may change over time, you must submit these documents with each application, even if you have submitted it with other applications in the current year or in previous years.

Note: We will not accept a letter of State sales tax exemption as proof of nonprofit status.

Conditionally Required Documents

These documents may be required for your application, depending upon the goals and activities within your project scope. Refer to the table below to determine which, if any, Conditionally Required Documents you may need to provide.

If you fail to provide a Conditionally Required Document, we will consider your application incomplete and may reject it from further consideration.

If you are:	Then you must provide:	Notes:
Using a Federally negotiated indirect cost rate in your budget	A copy of your current, unexpired Final Federally Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement. Save the document as a PDF and use Indirectcostrate.pdf as its file name.	If you do not have a current negotiated (including provisional) indirect cost rate and elect to charge a de minimis rate of up to 15 percent of Modified Total Direct Costs (see 2 C.F.R. part 200, including 2 C.F.R. §§ 200.1 and 200.414(f)), you do not need to provide any documentation.
Proposing to generate digital content, resources, assets, or software	A Digital Products Plan (two pages, recommended). Save it as a PDF and use Digitalproduct.pdf as its file name.	Describe the types of digital products you will create during your project and address issues relating to availability, permissions, and sustainability for each type. See the next section for additional guidance for creating a Digital Products Plan.

Digital Products Plan

We ask applicants who propose to generate digital content, resources, assets or software to create and submit a Digital Products Plan describing how you will address specific aspects of creating and managing digital products, employing practices and standards that are most appropriate for their specific project. IMLS staff and peer reviewers will assess your plan, and it will be important in determining whether your project will be funded. Organize your plan to address the following:

• Type

• Availability

• Access

• Sustainability.

We participate in the Federal Agencies Digital Guidelines Initiative (FADGI), a collaborative effort by Federal agencies to define common standards, guidelines, methods, and best practices for creating digital collections. Visit the FADGI website for a growing list of links to relevant standards, recommendations, and other resources. While this list is not exhaustive—nor do we endorse any specific resource—applicants considering digital projects may find the information useful.

Use the guidance below to help you create and organize your Digital Products Plan.

T ype

What digital products will you create?

Most projects are likely to generate digital content, resources, or assets. They may be digitized or born-digital products created by individuals, project teams, or through community gatherings. Examples include, but are not limited to, still images, audio files, moving images, microfilm, object inventories, object catalogs, artworks, books, posters, curricula, field books, maps, notebooks, scientific labels, metadata schema, charts, tables, drawings, workflows, teacher resources, and software, including source code, algorithms, applications, and digital tools, plus accompanying documentation.

In your Digital Products Plan,

• describe the digital content, resources, or assets you will create or collect,

• the quantities of each type,

• the digital file format(s),

• the accompanying metadata, and,

• any relevant standards you will use.

• If you are developing software, you should also specify the programming languages, platforms, frameworks, software, or other applications you will use to create your software and explain why you chose them.

A vailability

How will you make your digital products openly available (as appropriate)?

We encourage grant recipients to make works produced with IMLS support available to your communities, and to share their work products (including publications, datasets, educational resources, software, and digital content) whenever possible through free and open-access journals and repositories. Your project may involve making digital products available through public or access-controlled websites, kiosks, or live or recorded programs.

We expect you to ensure that publications produced under an award (including but not limited to peer-reviewed manuscripts resulting from research conducted under an award) are made available in a manner that permits the public to access, read, download, and analyze the work without charge.

In your Digital Products Plan,

• describe how you will make the digital content, resources, assets, software, and metadata available to the primary audience(s);

• include details such as the delivery strategy (e.g., openly available online, available to specified audiences) and underlying hardware/software platforms and infrastructure (e.g., specific digital repository software or leased services, accessibility via standard web browsers, requirements for special software tools to use the content, delivery enabled by IIIF specifications); and

• identify and explain the reasons for any limitations in your Digital Products Plan.

Access

What rights will you assert over your digital products, and what limitations, if any, will you place on their use?

Will your products implicate privacy concerns or cultural sensitivities, and if so, how will you address them?

Award recipients may copyright any work that is subject to copyright and that was developed under an award or for which ownership was purchased. However, IMLS reserves, for Federal Government purposes, a royalty-free, nonexclusive, and irrevocable right to reproduce, publish, or otherwise use the work and authorize others to reproduce, publish, or otherwise use the work.

We expect applicants receiving Federal funds for developing or creating digital products to release these files under open-source licenses to maximize access and promote reuse. All work products resulting from IMLS funding should be distributed for free or at cost unless IMLS has provided written approval for another arrangement.

In your Digital Products Plan,

• identify any licenses under which digital products will be shared (e.g., Creative Commons licenses, RightsStatements.org statements);

• describe what intellectual property rights you will assert over your digital products and explain any limitations or conditions you will place on their use, and;

• if your products implicate privacy concerns or cultural sensitivities, describe these issues and how you plan to address them.

S ustainability

How will you address the sustainability of your digital products?

To the maximum extent possible, the digital products created with IMLS funding should be freely and readily available for use and reuse.

Some digital products that are generated during a project should be long-lived, requiring permanent preservation, and others (e.g., preliminary analyses, drafts of papers, plans for future work, peer-review assessments, most social media communications, and communications with colleagues) should be retained and shared in the medium- or short-term.

In your Digital Products Plan,

• describe your plan for preserving and maintaining digital products during and after the period of performance;

• identify the appropriate length of time different digital products should be curated;

• address storage systems, shared repositories, technical documentation, migration planning, and commitment of organizational funding for these purposes.

Note: You may charge the Federal award before closeout for the costs of publication or sharing of results if the costs are not incurred during the period of performance of the Federal award (see 2 C.F.R. § 200.461 Publication and printing costs).

Supporting Documents

Applicants may submit a reasonable number of optional Supporting Documents that supplement the Narrative in support of the project description. Optional Supporting Documents should help IMLS staff and reviewers envision the project in greater detail and/or show relevant support or buy-in. Do not use Supporting Documents to introduce new topics or to continue answers to the Narrative questions.

Please refrain from attaching an excessive number of pages of supplemental material, as this may cause issues with your application submission through Grants.gov.

Give each document a clear, descriptive title at the top of the first page. You may wish to consider the following:

• Letters of commitment from partners, consultants, new staff, or any third party that will receive grant funds or make substantial contributions towards the completion of project activities

• Bibliography or references relevant to your proposed project design or evaluation strategy

• Letters of support from experts and stakeholders

• Relevant images or figures that support your proposed project

• Reports from planning activities

• Contractor quotes

• Equipment specifications

• Products or evaluations from previously completed or ongoing projects of a similar nature

• Collections, technology, or other departmental plans for the organization as applicable to the proposed project

• Appendix with hyperlinks to relevant online materials

• Needs assessments

Application Checklist

Use this checklist to make sure you have everything you need to submit a complete application.

General Readiness

• Review the Readiness Checklist and make sure your organization has a UEI, and that your SAM.gov and Grants.gov registrations are current and active.

Forms (follow form and Grants.gov instructions)

• SF-424S

• IMLS Library – Discretionary Program Information Form

Files

• Organizational Profile

• Narrative

• Schedule of Completion

• Performance Measurement Plan

• IMLS Budget Form

• Budget Justification

• Resumes of Key Project Staff and Consultants

• Proof of Eligibility

• Any Conditionally Required Documents, if applicable

• Supporting Documents, if any

• Double-check format, file names, page recommendations, and attachment order for all your PDF documents.

Disclosure of Information in Applications

We may share grant applications, products, and reports to further the mission of the agency and the development of museum, library, archival, and information services. As a general practice, and except for information that is privacy-protected, information contained in IMLS applications that receive funding may be made public. Please identify any information you deem confidential, sensitive, and/or proprietary and seek to have protected.

5. Submission Requirements
   and Deadlines

Submission Instructions

You must submit your applications for funding using Grants.gov Workspace. Do not submit through email or postal mail to IMLS.

Review the Registration Requirements and time frames. We strongly recommend that you obtain a UEI number, register with SAM and Grants.gov, and complete and submit your application early. Leave plenty of time and use the contact information below to reach out to IMLS, the Federal Service Desk, or Grants.gov Help for questions and technical difficulties.

Programmatic, Administrative and Technical Support Contacts

IMLS

IMLS staff are available by phone and email to answer programmatic and administrative questions relating to this grant program. We also host webinars to introduce potential applicants to funding opportunities. For more information, see our list of webinars and instructions for accessing them.

Federal Service Desk

Visit the Federal Service Desk or call 1-866-606-8220 for questions about registering or renewing your registration with login.gov or SAM.gov. Hours of operation are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern Time.

Grants.gov

Visit Grants.gov Support, email [email protected], or call Grants.gov Applicant Support at 1-800-518-4726 for assistance with software issues, registration issues, and technical problems. Grants.gov Applicant Support is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, except for Federal holidays.

Be sure to obtain a case number when calling the Federal Service Desk or Grants.gov for support.

Submission Dates and Times

You must submit your applications for funding using Grants.gov Workspace. Do not submit through email or postal mail to IMLS.

For the NH Program, Grants.gov will accept applications through 11:59 p.m. U.S. Eastern Time on April 1, 2025.

We award grants only to eligible applicants that submit complete applications, including attachments, through Grants.gov, on or before the deadline, as indicated by the date stamp generated by Grants.gov.

Grants.gov will generate a series of emails confirming the status of each application. Applicants can check the status of their application(s) in Grants.gov by using “Track My Application.” For further details, visit Check Application Status at Grants.gov.

Emergency Extensions

Under certain circumstances, we allow an extension of grant application deadlines for adversely affected applicant organizations located in counties listed in Emergency Declarations and/or Major Disaster Declarations. See Application Deadlines for further information.

Intergovernmental Review

This funding opportunity is not subject to intergovernmental review per Exec. Order No. 12372.

Learn About Application Review

In this step:

6. Application Review Information 60

Eligibility and Completeness Checks 60

Review and Selection Process 60

Peer Review Criteria 61

Risk Assessment 63

7. Award Notices 64

Notifying Funded Applicants 64

Notifying Non-Funded Applicants 64

6. Application Review Information

Eligibility and Completeness Checks

We assess every application to make sure it meets basic requirements for eligibility and completeness.

We won’t consider an application that:

• does not meet the eligibility criteria for the program

• is submitted after the deadline

• requests funding outside of the applicable range

• does not adhere to the funding restrictions and guidelines of the program

• is missing required or conditionally required application components

If your application is rejected during these initial eligibility and completeness checks, we’ll notify you by email. If you believe we rejected your application in error, you can appeal the decision in writing within ten business days of the date we sent the rejection notice.

Review and Selection Process

We use a peer review process to evaluate all complete applications from eligible institutions. Reviewers are professionals in the field with relevant knowledge and expertise in the types of project activities identified in the applications.

We instruct reviewers to evaluate applications according to the review criteria. Peer reviewers must comply with IMLS and Federal ethics and conflicts of interest requirements.

The Director considers the input from the review process and makes final funding decisions consistent with the purposes of the agency’s mission and programs.

Peer Review Criteria

We instruct reviewers to evaluate applications according to the review criteria listed in this section and to consider all Required, Conditionally Required, and Supporting Documents.

Cost share is not required for this program and is not considered in application reviews.

Review Criteria
Project Justification	How well does the proposal align with the NH program goal? How well has the applicant described the current need, challenge, or opportunity? Has the applicant appropriately defined the primary audience(s) for this work?
P roject Work Plan	Are the time, financial, personnel, and other resources identified appropriate and realistic for the scope and scale of the project? How is the applicant leveraging stakeholders, existing resources, assets, and/or potential partners to aid in project’s success? If present, how does the Digital Products Plan reflect appropriate practices and standards for creating and managing the types of digital products proposed? How effective is the plan for communicating results and lessons learned likely to be?
Project Results	Are the project’s intended results clearly articulated, realistic, meaningful, and linked to the need, challenge, or opportunity addressed by the project? How has success been defined, and is it measurable? How well will the product(s) created by the project be made available and accessible to the primary audience? Is the plan to sustain the benefit(s) of the project beyond the conclusion of the period of performance reasonable and practical?

Risk Assessment

For Federal awards with a total amount of Federal share greater than the simplified acquisition threshold, we’re required to review and consider applicant information in the designated integrity and performance system.

This information is accessible through SAM. The simplified acquisition threshold is currently $250,000 but is periodically adjusted.

You may review information in the designated integrity and performance systems accessible through SAM and comment on any information about your organization that a Federal awarding agency previously entered.

We will consider any comments by the applicant, in addition to the other information in the designated integrity and performance system, in considering the applicant’s integrity, business ethics, and record of performance under Federal awards when completing the review of risk posed by applicants.

7. Award Notices

We will not release information about the status of an application until we have completed all deliberations.

We expect to notify applicants of funding decisions by email in August 2025.

Notifying Funded Applicants

If your application is funded, we’ll send your Authorizing Official, Project Director, and Grant Administrator an email notification with our congratulations and instructions for accessing our electronic grants management system, eGMS Reach. Once you activate your eGMS Reach account, you’ll have access to your Official Award Notification, award letter, reporting schedule, and IMLS-approved budget document.

T he Official Award Notification is the only document obligating funds and authorizing you to begin performance on its specified dates. Unless you’ve confirmed and received prior written approval from us that pre-award costs are allowed, incurring those costs before the period of performance is at your own risk.

Notifying Non-Funded Applicants

If your application is not funded, we’ll send your Authorizing Official, Project Director, and Grant Administrator an email notification to let you know. We’ll share the number of applications and the total of requested funding we received for the program this year. You can also contact us to help you understand the decision and decide whether to revise the proposal and submit it again to IMLS or another funding agency in the future.

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Find Post-Award Information

In this step:

8. Post-Award Requirements and Administration 60

Administrative and National Policy Requirements 60

Reporting 61

8. Post-Award Requirements and Administration

Administrative and National Policy Requirements

There are important laws and regulations you’ll need to understand and comply with if you receive an award. Awardees are subject to:

• 2 C.F.R. part 200 Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards

• 2 C.F.R. part 3187

• The IMLS General Terms and Conditions for IMLS Discretionary Grant and Cooperative Agreement Awards; and

• The IMLS Assurances and Certifications.

Applicants for Federal funds must certify that they are responsible for complying with certain nondiscrimination, debarment and suspension, drug-free workplace, and lobbying laws. These are set out in more detail, along with other requirements, in the IMLS Assurances and Certifications. By submitting the application, which includes these Assurances and Certifications, you certify that you are in compliance with these requirements and that you will maintain records and submit any reports that are necessary to ensure compliance. Failure to comply with these statutory and regulatory requirements may result in the suspension or termination of an award and require that the awardee return funds to the government.

For information about award termination, please see the IMLS General Terms and Conditions for IMLS Discretionary Grant and Cooperative Agreement Awards and 2 C.F.R. § 200.340 Termination.

*Please note: OMB has recently updated the Uniform Guidance (see Uniform Guidance Revisions). For IMLS awards made after October 1, 2024, the Uniform Guidance Revisions will apply.

With certain IMLS-specific additions, IMLS regulations at 2 C.F.R. part 3187 have formally adopted the Uniform Guidance Revisions when they became effective on October 1, 2024.

Reporting

Awardees must comply with the following reporting requirements.

Financial and performance reports are due according to the reporting schedule in your official award documents. You must submit your performance and financial reports in eGMS Reach. We may publish interim and final performance report content on the IMLS website.

You must also comply with 2 C.F.R. §§ 180.335 and 180.350 and 2 C.F.R. part 3185 with respect to providing information regarding all debarment, suspension, and related offenses, as applicable.

Other Information

In this section:

9. Other Important Information 63

Acknowledging IMLS Support 63

Conflict of Interest Requirements 63

Additional Information about IMLS 64

IMLS Obligations to Make Awards 64

Copyright Information 64

Application Completion Time 64

PRA Clearance Number 64

Keywords 65

9. Other Important Information

Acknowledging IMLS Support

Awardees must include acknowledgement of IMLS support in all grant products, publications, websites, and presentations developed with IMLS funding.

All work products should reference IMLS and include the associated award number(s). Our Grantee Communications Kit provides guidance for fulfilling these requirements.

Conflict of Interest Requirements

As a non-Federal entity, you must follow IMLS conflict of interest policies for Federal awards. You must disclose in writing any potential conflict of interest to an IMLS Program Officer, or to the pass-through entity if you are a subrecipient or contractor. This disclosure must take place immediately whether you are an applicant or have an active IMLS award.

The IMLS conflict of interest policies apply to subawards as well as contracts, and are as follows:

• As a non-Federal entity, you must maintain written standards of conduct covering conflicts of interest and governing the performance of your employees engaged in the selection, award, and administration of subawards and contracts.

• None of your employees may participate in the selection, award, or administration of a subaward or contract supported by a Federal award if he or she has a real or apparent conflict of interest. Such a conflict of interest would arise when the employee, officer, agent, board member, or any member of his or her immediate family, his or her partner, or an organization which employs or is about to employ any of the parties indicated herein, has a financial or other interest in or a tangible personal benefit from an organization considered for a subaward or contract. The officers, employees, agents, and board members of the non-Federal entity must neither solicit nor accept gratuities, favors, or anything of monetary value from subrecipients or contractors or parties to subawards or contracts.

If you have a parent, affiliate, or subsidiary organization that is not a state, local government, or Tribe, you must also maintain written standards of conduct covering organizational conflicts of interest. Organizational conflicts of interest means that because of relationships with a parent company, affiliate, or subsidiary organization, you are unable or appear to be unable to be impartial in conducting a subaward or procurement action involving a related organization.

Additional Information about IMLS

Visit the IMLS website for additional information on IMLS and IMLS activities.

IMLS Obligations to Make Awards

This announcement does not obligate IMLS to make any Federal award or commitment.

Copyright Information

Awardees may copyright any work that is subject to copyright and was developed under an award or for which ownership was acquired under a Federal award. IMLS reserves a royalty-free, nonexclusive, and irrevocable right to reproduce, publish, or otherwise use the work for Federal purposes and to authorize others to do so. For additional information, please see 2 C.F.R. § 200.315 (Intangible property).

Application Completion Time

Complete applications include the elements listed in the Table of Application Components. IMLS estimates the average amount of time needed for one applicant to complete the Narrative portion of this application to be 3 hours. This includes the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and writing and reviewing the answers. Please note that you might need to factor in time to align departments, and coordinate approvals and signatures for submission.

IMLS estimates that it will take an average of 30 minutes per response for the SF-424S and IMLS Library – Discretionary Program Information Form and three hours per response for the IMLS Budget Form.

We welcome your suggestions for improving this collection of information and for making it as easy to use as possible. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to our Office of Grants Policy and Management. Please note that applicants are not required to respond to any collection of information unless it displays a currently valid U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number.

PRA Clearance Number

OMB Control No.: 3137-0102, Expiration date: 1/31/2027

Keywords

In Section 7 of the IMLS Library – Discretionary Program Information Form, we ask you to select from one to eight keywords that best characterize your project from the options that appear alphabetically below. We may use these keywords as search terms in our compilations describing the agency's grantmaking and/or provide them as tools to help applicants, other awardees, and the public understand more about what we support.

A-B-C Accessibility / Universal Design / Inclusive Design Archives Practice / Management / Use Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning Broadband Access Civic Engagement Civic Technology Collections Care / Conservation / Preservation Collections Management Community Engagement Community Memory / Community History Community Science Crowdsourcing D-E-F-G Data Privacy / Security Data Science / Computational Analysis Digital Asset Management Digital Preservation / Curation Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Early Learning Emergency / Disaster / Crisis Preparedness and Response Environmental Education Family Learning Fellowship / Internship / Mentorship Programs Gaming H-I-J-K-L Institutional Capacity Building Language Preservation / Cultural Revitalization Literacy: Civic Literacy: Digital Literacy: Financial Literacy: Health and Wellness Literacy: Information M-N-O Museum and Library Partnerships Museum Education Technology Museum Exhibitions Museum Interpretation

Museum Multilingual Programs / Resos Museum Program Evaluations Museum Visitor Services Museum /Archives / Library Staff Professional Development / Training Open Educational Resources Oral History P-Q-R-S Pre-K-12 Out of School / Summer Programs Pre-K-12 School Programs Public Programs Scholarly Communications School Libraries / Librarianship Services and Programs for Adults Services for Children and Families Services for College Students Services for Emerging Adults Services for English-Language Learners Services for Immigrants / Refugees Services for Incarcerated Individuals / Returning Citizens Services for Individuals who are Neurodivergent Services for Individuals with Disabilities Services for LGBTQIA+ Services for Older Adults Services for Rural Communities Services for Those below the Poverty Line or Unstably Housed Services for Tribal Communities Services for Urban Communities Services for Veterans / Active-Duty Military Services for Teens Shared Infrastructures / Open-Source Software STEM / STEAM Programming Summer Services T-U-V-W-X-Y-Z Teacher / Educator Professional Development Web Archiving Website Creation / Enhancement Workforce Development