Governor's Office of Appalachia | Grants

The Grant Process
The Governor’s Office of Appalachia administers several grant programs. The funding for the grants comes from either the Appalachian Regional Commission or the State of Ohio.

Appalachian Regional Commission Grants may fit into one of several categories. Most grants support economic development initiatives or water/sewer projects. However, the Governor’s Office of Appalachia funds diverse projects like educational scholarships to Appalachian students who wish to pursue higher education that will enable them to become successful, engaged community members.

To start the grant process, interested organizations may request forms from the Governor’s Office of Appalachia, the Appalachian Regional Commission, or their local development district. Potential partners then submit their completed forms to their local development district. The board of the local development district will review each potential grant applicant. After the local development district board votes on each grant, the package is sent to the Governors office of Appalachia for processing. Grants that are not sent by the local development district to the Governor’s Office of Appalachia for processing may compete in the next round of grant funding.

The Governor’s Office of Appalachia reviews the packets, and consults with the appropriate local development district to clarify any issues. Approved grants are sent by the Governor’s Office of Appalachia to a “basic agency” to be managed through the remaining administrative processes. Finally, grants are sent to the Appalachian Regional Commission or Ohio Department of Development for final approval.

» Chart of flow process

Area Development, Distressed Counties/Flex-E, and Access Roads are all projects federally funded by the ARC. Area Development, Community Investment Funds, Community Facility Funds, and Director Discretionary Funds are all State funded programs. Applicants in distressed counties may apply for up to 80% of funding with a 20% match and applicants in nondistressed counties may apply for up to 50% of funding with a 50% match for projects.