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SMART Grants: Stage 2

SMART is a two-stage program. Stage 1 (up to $2,000,000 and 18 months) grants are open for any eligible entity to apply.

Stage 2 grants are up to $15,000,000 and 36 months. Only recipients of Stage 1 grants, or eligible entities designated by prior Stage 1 recipients, are eligible to apply for Stage 2.

The FY24 Stage 2 NOFO closed at 5:00pm ET on August 14th. The NOFO text can be found here. It can also be found on Grants.gov.

A webinar on applying to the FY24 Stage 2 SMART Grant NOFO was held July 18th, 2024 at 1pm ET. Watch the recording (Passcode: A7%=$t@3)

Who is Eligible to Apply to Stage 2?

  • Recipients of Stage 1 grants.
  • An eligible entity that has been designated by a Stage 1 recipient. The entity must meet the criteria for eligibility for all SMART grants:
    • a State;
    • a political subdivision of a State;
    • a Tribal government;
    • a public transit agency or authority;
    • a public toll authority;
    • a metropolitan planning organization; and
    • a group of 2 or more eligible entities detailed above, applying through a single lead applicant.

SMART is not accepting collaborative applications for Stage 2 grants.

Every Stage One SMART grantee is eligible to apply for a subsequent Stage Two SMART Grant. In the event that a project has evolved, and a different, eligible entity is a better fit to be the lead applicant for the Stage Two grant, the Stage One SMART grantee must designate the new lead applicant.

For more information, refer to the Letter of Designation Job Aid. The job aid also contains a template for writing the Letter of Designation. This template may not be suitable for all applicants. It is up to you and your partners to adapt the template to be relevant to your situation.

To be considered eligible for a Stage Two SMART, all Grant Stage Two applicants must either

1) be a Stage One grantee OR

2) include a Letter of Designation naming them as the lead applicant in their Stage Two application.

If the Stage Two applicant is the same entity that received the Stage One grant, no Letter of Designation is required.