# Grant Administration Template

The State department of agriculture must include the following information once at the beginning of the State Plan. 

# Recipient Information

**State Department of Agriculture**:Enter the State Department of Agriculture

## State Plan Coordinator

List the person at the State department of agriculture directly responsible for administering the state plan. 

**Coordinator Name**:Enter the Coordinator’s Name

**Title**:Enter the Coordinator’s Title

**Phone Number**:Enter the Coordinator’s Phone Number

**Email**:Enter the Coordinator’s Email

# Outreach

## Outreach to Specialty Crop Stakeholders to Identify Funding Priorities 

States are encouraged to conduct outreach to specialty crop stakeholders to receive and consider public comment to identify state funding priority needs in enhancing the competitiveness of specialty crops prior to development of your request for proposals or applications.

### Outreach to Identify Funding Priorities

Provide the steps you took to conduct outreach to identify funding priorities.

### identified funding priorities

Provide the funding priority needs identified through your outreach to specialty crop stakeholders. Add more funding priorities by copying and pasting the existing listing or delete funding priorities that aren’t necessary.

**Funding Priority 1**

**Funding Priority 2**

**Funding Priority 3**

**Add other funding priorities as necessary**

### Outreach not Conducted (If Applicable)

If outreach was not conducted to identify funding priorities, provide an explanation why it was not conducted.

## Outreach to underserved and Beginning Farmers

### Identifying underserved and Beginning Farmers

Describe the methods used to identify underserved and beginning farmers within your state.

### Engaging underserved and Beginning Farmers

Describe the methods used to reach out to these groups to inform them about the SCBGP.

### Outreach Not Conducted (If Applicable)

If outreach was not conducted to underserved farmers and beginning farmers, provide an explanation why it was not conducted.

# Competitive Review Process 

## Proposal Solicitation

Describe the methods you used to solicit proposals that met the identified specialty crop funding priority needs.

## grant proposals received

Number of Grant Proposals Received:Enter the Number of Proposals

## Application Review Panel

### Reviewer Selection

Describe how you selected reviewers to ensure the review panel consisted of technical experts from various fields, who were qualified and able to perform high quality and fair reviews.

### Represented Fields of Expertise

Provide the fields of expertise the review panel members represented (i.e., botanists, food nutrition experts, commodity association representatives, etc.).

### Preventing Real or Perceived Conflict of Interest

Describe how you documented and ensured reviewers were free from conflicts of interest (i.e., reviewers signed a conflict of interest statement).

## Sharing the Results of Competitive Process with Applicants

Describe how you will provide or did provide results of the peer review panel to the grant applicants while ensuring the confidentiality of the review panel members.

## Competitive Process Not Conducted (If Applicable)

If you did not conduct a competitive grant process, provide an explanation as to why you did not.

# Overall State Plan Budget Summary

Please ensure the total budget equals the State’s available grant allocation and that the total indirect costs do not exceed 8 percent of your total grant request.

# State Department of Agriculture Oversight

If you are using grant funds for direct administration of the grant agreement, provide the start and end dates for the use of these funds.

**Start Date**:	Start Date	**End Date**:	End Date

# Grant Administration Budget Narrative

All expenses described in this Budget Narrative must be associated with administration expenses for the SCBGP. Applicants should review the Request for Applications section 4.7 Funding Restrictions prior to developing their budget narrative. 

*AMS encourages all grant recipients to include the grant administrative funds in their budget narrative, which can be used for costs such as monitoring subrecipients, ensuring grant recipient and subrecipient compliance with regulations and requirements, and grant management training. Grant recipients are encouraged to conduct periodic site visits to review project accomplishments and monitor progress, to review financial and performance records, organizational procedures and financial control systems and to provide technical assistance to subrecipients as required. These recommended site visits are meant to support accountability, compliance with regulations and requirements, and achievements of subrecipients.*

Please review previous State Plans to ensure that you are not requesting grant administration costs for the same activities for the same period as previously awarded. The Specialty Crop Block Grant Program (SCBGP) will not fund duplicative costs. Your administrative costs, which consist of indirect expenses associated with grant administration and individual project indirect costs, must not exceed 8 percent of your total grant request.

Total Budget: 

## Personnel

List the organization’s employees whose time and effort can be specifically identified and easily and accurately traced to project activities that enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops. See the Request for Applications section 4.7.2 Allowable and Unallowable Costs and Activities, Salaries and Wages, and Presenting Direct and Indirect Costs Consistently under section 4.7.1 for further guidance.

Personnel Subtotal:

### Personnel Justification

For each individual listed in the above table, describe the activities to be completed by name/title including approximately when activities will occur. Add more personnel by copying and pasting the existing listing or deleting personnel that aren’t necessary.

Personnel 1: 

Personnel 2: 

Personnel 3: 

Add other Personnel as necessary

## Fringe Benefits

Provide the fringe benefit rates for each of the project’s salaried employees described in the Personnel section that will be paid with SCBGP funds.

Fringe Subtotal:

## Travel

Explain the purpose for each Trip Request. Please note that travel costs are limited to those allowed by formal organizational policy; in the case of air travel, project participants must use the lowest reasonable commercial airfares. For recipient organizations that have no formal travel policy and for-profit recipients, allowable travel costs may not exceed those established by the Federal Travel Regulation, issued by GSA, including the maximum per diem and subsistence rates prescribed in those regulations. This information is available at http://www.gsa.gov. See the Request for Applications section 4.7.2 Allowable and Unallowable Costs and Activities, Travel, and Foreign Travel for further guidance.

Travel Subtotal:

### Travel Justification

For each trip listed in the above table describe the purpose of this trip and how it will achieve the objectives and outcomes of the project. Be sure to include approximately when the trip will occur.  Add more trips by copying and pasting the existing listing or delete trips that aren’t necessary.

Trip 1 (Approximate Date of Travel MM/YYYY):

Trip 2(Approximate Date of Travel MM/YYYY):

Trip 3(Approximate Date of Travel MM/YYYY):

Add other Trips as necessary

### Conforming with Your Travel Policy

## Equipment

Describe any special purpose equipment to be purchased or rented under the grant. ‘‘Special purpose equipment’’ is tangible, nonexpendable, personal property having a useful life of more than one year and an acquisition cost that equals or exceeds $5,000 per unit and is used only for research, medical, scientific, or other technical activities. See the Request for Applications section 4.7.2 Allowable and Unallowable Costs and Activities, Equipment - Special Purpose for further guidance.

Rental of "general purpose equipment’’ must also be described in this section. Purchase of general purpose equipment is not allowable under this grant. See Request for Applications section 4.7.2 Allowable and Unallowable Costs and Activities, Equipment - General Purpose for definition, and Rental or Lease Costs of Buildings, Vehicles, Land and Equipment.

Equipment Subtotal:

### Equipment Justification

For each Equipment item listed in the above table describe how this equipment will be used to achieve the objectives and outcomes of the project. Add more equipment by copying and pasting the existing listing or delete equipment that isn’t necessary.

Equipment 1: 

Equipment 2: 

Equipment 3: 

Add other Equipment as necessary

## Supplies

List the materials, supplies, and fabricated parts costing less than $5,000 per unit and describe how they will support the purpose and goal of the proposal and enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops. See Request for Applications section 4.7.2 Allowable and Unallowable Costs and Activities, Supplies and Materials, Including Costs of Computing Devices for further information.

Supplies Subtotal:

### Supplies Justification

Describe the purpose of each supply listed in the table above purchased and how it is necessary for the completion of the project’s objective(s) and outcome(s).

## Contractual/Consultant

Contractual/consultant costs are the expenses associated with purchasing goods and/or procuring services performed by an individual or organization other than the applicant in the form of a procurement relationship. If there is more than one contractor or consultant, each must be described separately. (Repeat this section for each contract/consultant.)

### Itemized Contractor(s)/Consultant(s)

Provide a list of contractors/consultants, detailing out the name, hourly/flat rate, and overall cost of the services performed. Please note that any statutory limitations on indirect costs also apply to contractors and consultants.

Contractual/Consultant Subtotal:

### Contractual Justification

Provide for each of your real or anticipated contractors listed above a description of the project activities each will accomplish to meet the objectives and outcomes of the project. Each section should also include a justification for why contractual/consultant services are to be used to meet the anticipated outcomes and objectives. Include timelines for each activity. If contractor employee and consultant hourly rates of pay exceed the salary of a GS-15 step 10 Federal employee in your area, provide a justification for the expenses. This limit does not include fringe benefits, travel, indirect costs, or other expenses. See Request for Applications section 4.7.2 Allowable and Unallowable Costs and Activities, Contractual and Consultant Costs for acceptable justifications.

Contractor/Consultant 1:

Contractor/Consultant 2:

Contractor/Consultant 3:

Add other Contractors/Consultants as necessary

### Conforming with your Procurement Standards

## Other

Include any expenses not covered in any of the previous budget categories. Be sure to break down costs into cost/unit. Expenses in this section include, but are not limited to, meetings and conferences, communications, rental expenses, advertisements, publication costs, and data collection.

If you budget meal costs for reasons other than meals associated with travel per diem, provide an adequate justification to support that these costs are not entertainment costs. See Request for Applications section 4.7.2 Allowable and Unallowable Costs and Activities, Meals for further guidance.

Other Subtotal:

### Other Justification

Describe the purpose of each item listed in the table above and how it is necessary for the completion of the project’s objective(s) and outcome(s).

## Indirect Costs

The indirect cost rate must not exceed 8 percent of your total grant request. 

Indirect costs are any costs that are incurred for common or joint objectives that therefore, cannot be readily identified with an individual project, program, or organizational activity. They generally include facilities operation and maintenance costs, depreciation, and administrative expenses. See Request for Applications section 4.7.1 Limit on Administrative Costs and Presenting Direct and Indirect Costs Consistently for further guidance.

Indirect Subtotal:

8