October 2026 Funding Trends Report

October Trend at a Glance

October brought the federal funding calendar into focus. DOJ’s COPS and OVW FY2026 solicitations are now closed, the Byrne JAG Local Formula deadline was extended into early November, and Congress’s stopgap spending bill, which expires December 11, also bars OMB from finalizing its Uniform Guidance rewrite until then. November and December carry a short list of BJA, NIJ, and OJJDP deadlines, and a new volunteer fire and EMS fund opened for applications through January 15. Beyond public safety, this month’s calendar also includes EPA, USDA, Interior, NOAA, and DOT opportunities for water, environmental, resilience, and transportation projects. Agencies should use the quieter weeks ahead to get documents, approvals, and budgets ready for the 2027 cycles.

October 2026 Executive Trend Summary

• Federal funding runs on a stopgap through December 11. The continuing resolution signed September 2 holds government funding at FY2026 rates. FY2027 Homeland Security appropriations have not been enacted, so final funding levels for DHS and FEMA preparedness programs remain unsettled.
• OMB’s Uniform Guidance rewrite is on hold, not dead. The stopgap bars OMB from issuing or finalizing the proposed rule, or a substantially similar one, through December 11. Compliance planning is still worthwhile.
• DOJ’s COPS and OVW cycles are closed. Every COPS program on its grants page is marked closed (the Coordinated Tribal Assistance Solicitation ended October 22), and OVW lists no open NOFOs; its last FY2026 notice closed October 8.
• JAG Local Formula was the big law-enforcement deadline. BJA’s page showed Grants.gov on November 3 and JustGrants on November 6 after an extension, with less restrictive equipment guidance.
• NSGP funding is moving through the states. FEMA announced $300 million in Nonprofit Security Grant Program funding on September 28, selecting more than 1,600 nonprofits. State administrative agencies distribute the funds and set their own timelines.
• The AES Safer Tomorrow Fund, is a partnership between AES Corporation and the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) and will award up to $20,000 to ten volunteer fire, EMS, and rescue organizations. Applications are due January 15, 2027.
• USDA’s Easement Restoration and Stewardship program closes November 19 and DOT’s Wildlife Crossings Pilot Program closes November 16. EPA’s free water and wastewater technical assistance is available on a rolling basis, and EPA’s roughly $180 million DERA diesel program is due January 22, 2027.
  

  

Stopgap Funding Ends December 11: What It Means for Grant Seekers
Public Law 119-103, signed September 2, funds the government at FY2026 operating rates through December 11, a 72-day period. A funding gap would begin December 12 unless Congress passes full-year appropriations or another continuing resolution first. For DHS, the baseline is the FY2026 homeland security appropriations act. FY2027 DHS appropriations have not been enacted. The House Appropriations Committee reported its bill (H.R. 9310) on a 34-27 vote with $99.63 billion in discretionary budget authority.

Two provisions of the stopgap matter directly to grant applicants. Section 104 generally bars starting programs that were not funded in FY2026, and Section 109 generally restricts awarding grants that would “impinge” on Congress’s final funding decisions. Section 157 bars OMB from issuing or finalizing its proposed revision of the Uniform Guidance (2 CFR Part 200), through December 11.

Trend Implication
Expect FY2026-level funding through mid-December and treat final FY2027 levels as unknown until a bill passes. The Uniform Guidance proposal is paused only through December 11, so agencies should keep reviewing procurement, conflict-of-interest, subrecipient-monitoring, and records-retention policies now.

BJA FY 2026 Postconviction Testing of DNA Evidence
The BJA FY 2026 Postconviction Testing of DNA Evidence program. This opportunity will assist states and units of local government in defraying the costs associated with postconviction case review, evidence location, and DNA testing in violent felony cases (as defined by state law) where the results of such testing might show actual innocence.
Due Dates: Grants.gov on December 8 at 11:59 p.m. est and JustGrants on November 15 at 8:59 p.m. est. Agencies that have not submitted the SF-424 in Grants.gov should confirm the dates on BJA’s page immediately, because the Grants.gov step comes first.

Who Can Apply
County, city, township, and special district governments, other qualifying local units, and federally recognized tribal governments that perform law-enforcement functions. No cost share or match is required.

AES Safer Tomorrow Fund: A New Door for Volunteer Departments
The National Volunteer Fire Council and AES opened the AES Safer Tomorrow Fund on October 15. Ten volunteer fire, EMS, or rescue organizations will each receive up to $20,000, and applicants are encouraged to request the full amount with an itemized budget close to that figure. Funds may go toward equipment, training, emergency preparedness and prevention, and recruitment and retention. Applications close at noon est on January 15, 2027, and decisions are expected by April 30, 2027.

Upcoming: Grants Day 2026 with the GrantFinder Team
Join Lexipol’s grants team for a two-hour Gov1 webinar on Monday, November 16, at 1 p.m. est. Topics include federal funding changes, matching grant opportunities to community needs, application tips, and what happens after an award, with live Q&A. Registrants who cannot attend live receive a recording afterward. Register on Gov1.

Priority DOJ Applications Due November 2026 Through January 2027
Most DOJ solicitations show two dates: the Grants.gov SF-424 deadline first, then the JustGrants deadline. An agency that misses the Grants.gov date cannot move on to JustGrants, so treat the first date as the real cutoff.

Water, Environment, Resilience, and Transportation
Local governments, special districts, and nonprofits can also tap federal programs outside the public-safety lane. These opportunities often fund fleets, water and wastewater systems, parks, flood resilience, and roadway projects that sit with public works, utilities, and planning departments, so they are worth sharing across your grants team.

Also note: the National Park Service’s Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership Program reviews applications once a year after a November 1 deadline, which has just passed for this cycle. Applicants are state lead agencies and Tribes, with local governments eligible as subrecipients for projects in qualifying urban areas, so cities and counties should talk with their state lead agency about next year’s round.

November–December Grant Strategy

• Prioritize by deadline and readiness, not simply by award size.
• For DOJ applications, submit the Grants.gov SF-424 early and then complete JustGrants. Confirm that SAM.gov, Grants.gov, JustGrants, FEMA GO, and state portal access is active before the final week, and that the correct person is listed as your Authorized Organization Representative (AOR). An expired registration or outdated AOR can stall a submission.
• Keep decision-makers available for certifications, resolutions, MOUs, and required approvals, especially with holiday schedules ahead.
• For HSGP and NSGP, check each State Administrative Agency’s calendar directly; state subaward and pass-through deadlines rarely mirror the federal dates.
• Review grant policies now for procurement, conflicts of interest, subrecipient monitoring, equipment management, records retention, and closeout.
• Prepare for early-2027 cycles by refreshing equipment inventories, staffing data, call volume, incident trends, quotes, and capital plans.
• Pull together a grants team, not a grants person. Bring in finance, the mayor or city/county manager’s office, your SAM.gov account holder, department head(s), IT, and maintenance or public works, and meet monthly to work through the pipeline. The more buy-in across departments, the more funding you will ultimately secure.

Useful Grant Education

• FireRescue1: Pa. lawmaker proposes sustainability fund to help struggling volunteer fire, EMS departments
• Police1: The Public Safety Drone Funding Playbook (sponsored grants guide)
• NLC: Apply for Grants to Support Innovative Community Litter Solutions - National League of Cities

DOJ Funding Links

• Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) | Funding Opportunities
• Grants | COPS Office
• Opportunities & Awards | Current Funding Opportunities | Office of Justice Programs

Foundation Grants Currently Open

• FM Global Fire Prevention Grant Program (national) – reviewed quarterly; confirm the next deadline with FM Global
• AES Safer Tomorrow Fund – volunteer fire/EMS in eligible counties – due Jan. 15, 2027
• Peoples Bank Foundation – OH, WV, KY, VA, MD & DC – quarterly reviews; next listed deadline Dec. 1
• Ion Bank Foundation – CT & NJ – eligible regions listed on the guidelines page