Federal grant programs / Department of Agriculture

Equipment Grants Program (EGP) (10.519)

Also known as EGP

• Awarded, FY 2021 to 2025$24.1 million
• Grant awards77
• Typical award$341,700
• Awarded in FY 2025$4.8 million
• Size rank1253 of 1824
• Type of assistanceGrant

Key findings

• Annual funding was roughly flat, $5.0 million in fiscal 2021 and $4.8 million in fiscal 2025.
• It is the 1253rd largest of 1,824 federal grant programs by five-year awards.
• The 20 largest recipients received 59% of the money.
• Awards went to recipients in 39 states and territories.

What the program funds

The Equipment Grants Program (EGP) serves to increase access to shared-use special purpose equipment/instruments for fundamental and applied research for use in the food and agricultural sciences programs at institutions of higher education, including State Cooperative Extension Systems. The program seeks to strengthen the quality and expand the scope of fundamental and applied research at eligible institutions, by providing them with opportunities to acquire one shared-use piece of equipment/instrument that supports their research, research training, and Extension/outreach goals and may be too costly and/or not appropriate for support through other NIFA grant programs. EGP grants are not intended to replace requests for equipment in individual project applications. The program emphasizes shared-use instrumentation that will enhance the capabilities of researchers, educators, and Extension specialists both within and outside the proposing organization.

From the federal Assistance Listing. Read the full listing on SAM.gov.

Open opportunities

No opportunity under this program is open or forecast on Grants.gov right now. Programs often post once a year, so the funding history below shows what to expect.

Rules from the program listing

Who can apply

Colleges, Universities or State Cooperative Institution, as defined in 7 U.S.C. § 3103. Including: 1862 and 1890 Land-grant institutions; State-certified Schools of Forestry as stipulated in accordance with 16 U.S.C.582a et seq. (the McIntire-Stennis Act of 1962); State Agricultural Experiment Stations located in the 50 States, the District of Columbia and the Insular Areas in accordance with 7 U.S. C. 361a et seq. (the Hatch Act of 1887); "Cooperative extension services" meaning the organizations established at the Land-grant Colleges and Universities under the Smith-Lever Act of May 8, 1914 (38 Stat. 372–374, as amended; 7 U.S.C. 341–349), and section 209(b) of the Act of October 26, 1974 (88 Stat. 1428, as amended; D.C. Code, sec. 31–1719(b)); Accredited schools or colleges of veterinary medicine or State agricultural experiment stations that conduct animal health and disease research in accordance with section 1433(c) of the National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977; Hispanic-serving institutions as defined in section 1101a of title 20; Eligible institutions in insular areas including, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; Guam; American Samoa; the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands; the Federated States of Micronesia; the Republic of the Marshall Islands; the Republic of Palau; and the Virgin Islands of the United States.

What the money can and cannot pay for

a. Fundamental research is research that increases knowledge or understanding of the fundamental aspects of phenomena and has the potential for broad application and has an effect on agriculture, food, nutrition, or the environment. b. Applied research is research that includes expansion of the findings of fundamental research to uncover practical ways in which new knowledge can be advanced to benefit individuals and society. No Indirect Cost (IDC). IDC is not authorized for the EGP program. Also, applicants should note that the cost of acquisition or depreciation of equipment purchased with a grant under this section shall not be- (1) charged as an indirect cost against another Federal grant; or (2) included as part of the indirect cost pool for purposes of calculating the indirect cost rate of an eligible institution;

Matching requirements

This program has no statutory formula. Matching requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing. MOE requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.

Award range and average, in the agency's words

Average award is $500,000.

Examples of funded projects

Fiscal Year2025: The EGP program supported equipment projects from a range of different food and agricultural science disciplines. The EGP program supported a project titled "Strengthening Microscale Imaging Capabilities for Food and Agricultural Materials through 3D X-Ray Microtomography" which will aid in providing insight into spacial arrangements of soil to understand carbon cycling, microplastics in soil, and overall soil health and longevity. The EGP program also supported "The Acquisition of a long-read sequencing platform to Support Crop Resistance Breeding." This project enables DNA sequencing to study crop breeding resistance in plants, as well as identifying animal pathogens, aiding farmers and ranchers.

Quoted from the program's federal Assistance Listing. The notice of funding opportunity is the official source for each competition's rules.

Who usually wins

Colleges and universities received 96% of the money, nonprofits 3.3%.

By state

5 states have a page for this program: those that received at least $1 million or 10 awards. They are Texas, North Carolina, Arkansas, California and Wisconsin.

Award amounts are federal obligations reported to USAspending.gov for fiscal 2021 to 2025; see how our data works.