Eligibility Criteria Expanded for Non-Profit Infrastructure Capital Grants

Eligibility criteria for grants under the Nonprofit Infrastructure Capital Investment Program (NICIP) have been expanded to permit certain long-term/post-acute care and hospice providers to apply, along with nonprofit housing and senior services providers. Organizations are eligible to apply for a NICIP grant if they:

Are registered with Grants Gateway and are prequalified at the time and date that the application is due;
Are a human services organization as further defined below;
Provide direct services in New York State to individuals and families residing in New York State as further defined below;
Currently receive funding from New York State in the form of a State contract, State authorized payment, or State payment rate;
Have annual revenue, as reported on line 12 of their most recently filed IRS form 990 as included in their prequalification application, of at least $100,000; and
Are not excluded from applying based on the criteria below.

The following types of organizations are not eligible to apply for a NICIP grant:

Colleges and universities;
Elementary and secondary schools;
Hospitals and diagnostic and treatment centers authorized under Article 28 of the New York State Public Health Law;
Fire departments;
Libraries;
Organizations whose primary function is fundraising;
Organizations whose primary function is lobbying or advocacy;
Organizations whose primary function is volunteer recruitment and placement;
Membership or umbrella organizations;
Organizations that have received or will be receiving funding through the Health Care Efficiency and Affordability Law for New Yorkers (HEAL NY) or the Capital Restructuring Financing Program (CRFP);
Organizations that are the Performing Provider System lead for a Delivery System Reform Incentive Payment Program (DSRIP) network.

A recently released amendment to the request for applications (RFA) narrowed the list of excluded categories of organizations. Under the amendment, as noted above, entities that have received or will be receiving funding through the Health Care Efficiency and Affordability Law for New Yorkers (HEAL NY) or the Capital Restructuring Financing Program (CRFP) are ineligible for the NICIP. In addition, entities that are Delivery System Reform Incentive Payment (DSRIP) program leads are ineligible. Originally, the NICIP RFA had excluded any entity eligible for those funding streams.

A “Human services organization” is defined as a nonprofit organization that provides programs and services in New York State that protect the health and well-being of individuals and families residing in New York State. “Direct services” means prevention, intervention, and/or habilitative services that a nonprofit organization provides directly to a consumer or group of consumers.

A total of $50 million is available for NICIP grants; with $30 million reserved for projects that involve construction (renovations or expansions of program space, accessibility renovations, or energy efficiency modifications); $10 million reserved for projects related to technology; and $10 million for projects from either category.

Questions and answers will be posted by Dec. 2nd. Applications are due Dec. 23rd by 4 p.m. An up-to-date Grants Gateway Account is needed to apply. The Grants Gateway is hosting periodic webinars on the registration and submission process. The RFA and information about Grants Gateway webinars are available here, by searching for the term "nonprofit."

Contact: Karen Lipson, klipson@leadingageny.org, 518-867-8383 ext. 124.