Biennial Grants (AZ) is sponsored by Arizona Sports and Tourism Authority. Supports youth and amateur sports in Maricopa County, prioritizing first-time applicants and initiatives benefiting local schools.

Biennial Youth & Amateur Sports Grants in Maricopa County | AZSTA The FY2028 Biennial Grant will open Spring 2027. Since 2000, the Arizona Sports & Tourism Authority (AZSTA) has awarded approximately 700 grants at an estimated $39 million to organizations that promote youth and amateur sports in Maricopa County.

The Youth & Amateur Sports (YAS) grants goal is to identify, solicit, develop, and allocate funding for YAS projects within Maricopa County, which will service a wide variety of sporting and physical activity experiences. AZSTA may, at its sole discretion, match two-thirds of a project's total cost up to a maximum of $250,000. Any grant application requesting more than $250,000 from AZSTA will not be accepted.

For more information about the biennial grants, please review the Guidelines/Start Here and Frequently Asked Questions or email Heather Quinlan . Grant Application and Required Documents Factors for Consideration Grant Application Evaluation Process FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (F. A.

Q.) FY2028 Biennial Grant Interest Form Identify, solicit, develop, and allocate funding for youth & amateur sports proposals in Maricopa County which will service a wide variety of sporting and physical activity experiences. Provide technical assistance, demographic, and facility information as well as outreach to youth and amateur sports participants and their communities about opportunities and activities of AZSTA.

Participate in and encourage partnerships that benefit youth and amateur sports/physical activity. Ensure that funds provided by AZSTA are distributed in a responsible and effective manner while ensuring compliance with the Authority's enabling legislation. Factors for Consideration Adjacent, in proximity, or benefit to a local school.

Benefit to a local community (number of individuals impacted). Demonstrated financial need. Previous AZSTA grant recipients are encouraged to apply, but may not be as highly considered as first time applicants.

AZSTA may match 2/3 of the project's total cost up to a maximum of $250,000. Applicant must provide evidence that it has set aside 100% of their match.

Applicant must be a Maricopa County agency, municipality, school district or any other incorporated public entity (including a combination of the forgoing) or a 501 (c) (3) or 501 (c) (4) non-profit organization, which has been in operation no less than one calendar year (evidence required). Project must be located in Maricopa County.

Funding will be considered for youth and amateur sports and activity related projects such as facility/field construction, renovations, lighting, and equipment.

Funding will not be provided for overhead/administrative expenses, loans or endowments, conferences, individuals, tournaments, travel, capital campaigns, or any other category that the Authority, in its sole discretion, considers to not be related to the goals and objectives of the grant.

Applications will be forwarded to the Authority's Youth and Amateur Sports Committee for their individual review and consideration; the committee will make recommendations to the Board of Directors in a public meeting. The AZSTA Board of Directors will host a public meeting to consider the committee's recommendations and make final approval decisions for the recommended biennial grant applications.

Grant Application Evaluation Process Applications are initially reviewed and evaluated by AZSTA's staff for compliance with the core requirements of the grant program as well as other established application criteria. This initial review may result in additional requests for information and/or clarification. Project site visits from AZSTA staff will be conducted during the evaluation process.

All applications will be forwarded to the members of the Authority's Youth and Amateur Sports Committee for their individual review and consideration. They will be grouped as either conforming or non-conforming with the program's core requirements and other established criteria with explanations as to any non-conformance issues.

Once step two has been completed, the Authority will schedule a public meeting of the Youth and Amateur Sports Committee at which time the staff will provide its recommendations for funding awards. Committee input and staff's recommendations may result in a final list of applications to be forwarded to the Authority's Board of Directors for consideration of formal grant awards.

The Authority's Board of Directors meets to consider the award recommendations from the Youth and Amateur Sports Committee and approve the awards. Final award recipients are notified and are provided an electronic version of the Funding Agreement which must be completed and fully executed within thirty (30) days of the award notification.

All of the applicant's contribution must be documented prior to the execution of the Funding Agreement in order to move forward. A Grant Reporting and Management Workshop will be required for all AZSTA Grant Award recipients to attend. Implementation phase - the project is to be completed within twelve (12) months of the execution of the Funding Agreement.

At the completion of the project there will be one final project progress report form to be completed which summarizes the success of the project meeting its stated goals and objectives. Frequently Asked Questions (F. A.

Q.) Who may apply for a grant? Applicants must be a Maricopa County agency, municipality, school district or any other incorporated public entity, (including any combination of the forgoing) or a 501(c) (3) or 501 (c) (4) non-profit organization, which has been in operation for no less than one calendar year.

Proposed projects must be within Maricopa County. Applicants who have previously received funding from AZSTA may apply for funds, but may not be as highly considered as others who have not received prior funding. For-profit organizations are not eligible for biennial grant awards.

How much in funding can applicants request? The Authority, per A. R.

S. , may not fund more than to two-thirds of a project's total cost. A $250,000 maximum guideline has been established for grant applications.

When can a project start to be eligible for funding? If an applicant is awarded a grant from AZSTA, that portion of the project for which Authority funds have been awarded cannot have started before the execution of a Project Funding Agreement (typically July 1). The Agreement is to be executed within 30 days after the grant is awarded.

Funds will be made available on a pro-rata reimbursement basis after the agreement is executed and work has begun. When must the project be completed? The project must be completed within 12 months of the funding agreement's execution unless otherwise agreed to by the Authority and documented in the funding agreement.

A "Commitment to Complete" provided by the applicants Board of Directors or other appropriate governing body must be submitted with the application. Should the project, as approved, be delayed beyond the twelve month period, the Recipient must provide an extension request in writing with the new projected completion date and explanation of delay.

The extension request will be due 30 days prior to the original project completion due date. The Board in its sole discretion may choose to approve or deny the extension request. How are the Authority's funds disbursed?

Disbursements of grant funds will be available to grant recipients on a pro-rata reimbursement basis. This ensures that the Authority's funds are expended on a pro-rata basis along with the recipient's contribution as the project progresses. For example, the Authority awards $50,000 toward a project with a total value of $150,000.

The Authority's contribution as a percentage of the total value is 33%. As the project moves forward, the grant recipient submits a reimbursement for $10,000. Once approved, the Authority makes a payment of $3,333 (33%) to the recipient.

This would continue through the completion of the project at which time all funds would have been disbursed under the Funding Agreement. How much of the Applicants In-Kind Contribution can be matched? In-Kind contributions are limited in scope and will be reviewed by the Grant Administrator as part of the grant approval process.

Additionally, there are specific percentage limitations which determine the maximum amount of "in-kind contributions" allowed for the grant to be considered for approval: Limit #1 - must be less than 10% of the Total Project Value (example: total project cost = $100,000.

Limit #1 = "'in-kind" contributions must be less than $10,000) Limit #2 - must be less than 25% of the Applicant's Total Contribution (example: total project cost = $100,000. Applicant's contribution = 1/3 = $33,000. Limit #2 = "'in-kind" contributions must be less than $8,250).

What are some examples of projects which have previously been funded? Funding has been awarded for sporting/fitness equipment, transportation, lighting of fields, renovation of existing sports facilities, construction of playgrounds, construction of fitness trails, and construction of sports fields or complexes. What types of funding are not awarded?

Grants will not be awarded for requests for: fixed overhead/administrative expenses (e.g. salaries, rent, utilities, etc.), loans or endowments, conferences, individuals, tournaments or benefit tables, travel (all), capital campaigns, funding to maintain the sustainability of an organization or program, or anything else deemed as not serving the youth and amateur sports community within Maricopa County.