FAQ: Douglas County Stimulus Grants Program

What is meant by stimulus?
Arts/ & culture and human services organizations across the county have been struggling in the wake of COVID-19. You have experienced business interruption in the form of a loss of income/revenue and/or an increase in expenses due to COVID-19 impacts on your operations and communities. The Stimulus Grant seeks to make your operations more financially stable, as doing so will help you return to, or continue, serving children, families or communities who need you now more than ever.

How can an organization use these funds?
This funding is meant to provide financial assistance to eligible entities that sustained a loss of income/revenue and/or an increase of expenses due to COVID-19 impacts on their operations and communities. Once received, the organization can use the funds as it sees fit to stabilize its operations.

How does my organization apply for this funding?
All applications will be processed through the Omaha Community Foundation’s online grant portal, which can be accessed here.

How much will be awarded?
There are two pools of funding available, based on the funding that remained from OCF’s original CARES Act grant programs:
– Arts, Culture & Entertainment: at least $5 million is available in stimulus grants to eligible organizations
– Human Services: at least $3 million is available in stimulus grants to eligible organizations

Organizations can only apply for one type of stimulus grant.

What if my organization is headquartered outside of Douglas County, Nebraska?
Funding under this program is only available to support work taking place in Douglas County for Douglas County residents by organizations that have both paid/volunteer staff and a mailing address within Douglas County boundaries. The application should be completed with a focus only on Douglas County-specific work, and all financial submissions must separate out Douglas County activities from overall work.

Who is ineligible to apply for this program?
The following organizations are NOT eligible to apply for this funding:
– Units of local government and tribal governments
– Foundations
– Hospitals
– Child-care providers
– Federally Qualified Health Centers
– Regional Behavioral Health Centers
– Schools
– Houses of worship

Why aren’t local governments and tribal governments eligible?
Local and tribal governments are not eligible for the Community Foundation’s CARES grants as there are other funds under the CARES Act for which they are eligible.

What information do I need to provide to be considered?
Applicants must provide contact information along with their federal and state tax identification numbers, and your most recently completed fiscal year budget, each as relevant to verify your eligibility, and various other documentation that may be requested by OCF to demonstrate the negative impact COVID-19 has had on your organization. See the application for requirements.

I received funding from the Douglas County CARES Not-for-Profit Program, the Douglas County CARES Arts, Culture, and Entertainment Program, and/or the Nebraska Community CARES Stimulus Grant. Am I still qualified for this grant?
Yes, you are still qualified to apply for this grant. Receiving funding from those grant programs do not preclude you being qualified for this grant program.

I receive funding from other OCF grant programs. Am I still qualified for this program?
Yes, you are still qualified to apply for this grant.

I expect there will be questions that cannot be answered in this FAQ. Can I call someone?
Yes, OCF will accept verbal questions from interested persons during the application period by calling (402)884-0450 8am to 5pm CDT. Persons taking questions will answer your questions during the call, or in some cases may need to call you back. Please be prepared to leave your name and contact information. If you are leaving a voice mail, please include your organization name in the recording.

Is this a first-come-first-served program?
No, there will be no priority afforded to those who apply early. All applications received by the October 15, 2020 deadline will be considered equally.

Our organization lost a lot because of the pandemic, and may have to close its doors, i.e. end operations without a lot of financial assistance soon. The Stimulus Grant won’t fully bring us back to pre-pandemic operations. Can we request a specific or increased amount of funding?
The size of Stimulus Grant awards depends largely on the number of applications received. OCF intends to extend the financial assistance to as many eligible entities as possible. Funding will be awarded based on your organization’s budget size. Human service organizations located (or with a mailing address) in zip codes with the highest rates of COVID-19 (based on the Douglas County Health Department heat map) may receive additional consideration of funding.

How will I know if my organization’s application has been received by the Omaha Community Foundation?
Organizations will receive a confirmation to the email address associated with its account in the grant application portal. If an email confirmation is not received, organizations can check on the status of the application in the account application portal under the “Submitted” menu. If you continue to have concerns over whether an application has been submitted, please contact us at covid19@omahafoundation.org.

Who will decide which organizations receive funding?
A Fund Committee of the Omaha Community Foundation will make grant determinations and the list of prospective grantees. These will then be submitted to the staff of Douglas County for review.

Who will disburse these grants?
The Omaha Community Foundation will disburse grant awards directly to nonprofit grantees.

What if my organization is headquartered outside of Douglas County, Nebraska?
Funding under this program is only available to support work taking place in Douglas County for Douglas County residents by organizations that have both paid/volunteer staff and a mailing address within Douglas County boundaries. The application should be completed with a focus only on Douglas County-specific work, and all financial submissions must separate out Douglas County activities from overall work.

What if we are headquartered inside of Douglas County, Nebraska, but also work in other counties or states?
The application should be completed with a focus only on Douglas County-specific work.

If I am awarded a grant from the Douglas County Stimulus Grants Program, what will be required to receive the funds?
It is required that organizations complete a registration on SAM.gov. View information on how to do this here. This registration and your organization’s federal debarment status will be verified during the Omaha Community Foundation’s due diligence process. More information on what debarment means can be found here. Finally, the Omaha Community Foundation is also in the process of finalizing grant and service agreements that any fund recipient would be required to sign and uphold. As soon as they are available, the agreements will be posted.

It is required that organizations complete a registration on SAM.gov. View information on how to do this here. This registration and your organization’s federal debarment status will be verified during the Omaha Community Foundation’s due diligence process. More information on what debarment means can be found here. Finally, the Omaha Community Foundation is also in the process of finalizing grant and service agreements that any fund recipient would be required to sign and uphold. As soon as they are available, the agreements will be posted.

Who do I call if I have a question about my application?
Email any question to covid19@omahafoundation.org — please be sure to include your contact information and your organization’s name in the subject line. For assistance, you may also call 402-884-0450.