Board hears plan for a new targeted-grant program to speed focused awards

Board staff presented a proposed targeted-grant framework meant to fill a gap between full RFP processes and the responsive grant program. The targeted approach would let the board issue narrowly scoped solicitations for highly specific project needs, open them for 2'3 weeks, and use a shorter, less resource-intensive review to reach decisions more quickly.

Staff said targeted grants would be suitable when the board wants to fund a clearly defined service or system-improvement project and when there are a small number of organizations with the necessary technical capacity. The model would also allow the board to ask staff to work with applicants to refine proposals before final approval.

Board members responded favorably. "I absolutely love this idea," Jason said, praising the potential to get money to well-designed projects without the delays of a full RFP. Members asked staff to identify a first set of topic areas (the needs assessment suggests possible priorities such as diversion/deflection) and to detail any additional staff capacity or costs the new process would require.

Next steps described by staff include drafting a sample targeted solicitation packet tied to a priority identified in the needs assessment, estimating staff time required to run a pilot, and returning to the board with the packet and proposed timeline. Board members asked for the approach to be presented as a concrete information packet similar to RFP materials so they can approve each targeted solicitation individually.

The board signaled preliminary support and asked staff to return with materials at a future meeting.