Assistance program
Smith-Lever Extension Funding
$2.8 Billion committed in FY2018–FY2026
- Agency
- National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Agriculture, Department of
- Assistance
- Formula Grants;Project Grants (Discretionary)
- CFDA number
- 10.511
- What it does
- The Smith-Lever Special Needs Competitive Grants Program (SLSNCGP), Assistance supports innovative, education-based approaches to address disaster preparedness and specific responses related to disasters or disaster threats caused by natural, human-made, or technological hazards, or by other factors that contribute to the exposure or vulnerability of a community. The goals and objectives of SLSNCGP include supporting quality of life in communities across the U.S. by addressing disaster preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation in food and agricultural systems. The SLSNCGP also seeks to continue to provide information and resources to USDA target audiences, stakeholders, and collaborators to improve decision-making before, during, and after disasters. The Joint Cooperative Extension Programs at 1862 Land-grant Institutions and University of the District of Columbia Public Postsecondary Education Reorganization Act Program (DCPPERA) supports cooperative agricultural extension activities at Land-grant Institutions. The Cooperative Extension Programs at 1862 Land-grant Institutions (Smith-Lever Special Needs) (SLSN) program supports innovative, education-based approaches to addressing extension education and services to these limited resource farm families to help them achieve desirable results. Methods may include, but are not limited to, collaboration with other organizations, appraising resources for capability of improvement in agriculture or introduction of industry designed to supplement farm income, other new farming ventures or new technologies. The SLSN program seeks to increase the level of agricultural extension activities and reach out to limited resource farm families at a disadvantage for agricultural development because their operations are too small, have low productivity, or are unable to make adjustments to establish profitable operations or profitable employment.
- Who benefits
- See RFAs for specific information.
- Who applies
- 1862 CES Capacity & DCPPERA: Joint Cooperative Extension Programs at 1862 Land-Grant Institutions applications may only be submitted by the following 1862 Land-grant Institutions: Auburn University, University of Alaska-Fairbanks, American Samoa Community College, University of Arizona, University of Arkansas, University of California, Colorado State University, University of Connecticut, University of Delaware, University of Florida, University of Georgia, University of Guam, University of Hawaii, University of Idaho, University of Illinois, Purdue University, Iowa State University, Kansas State University, University of Kentucky, Louisiana State University, University of Maine, University of Maryland-College Park, University of Massachusetts, Michigan State University, College of Micronesia, University of Minnesota, Mississippi State University, University of Missouri, Montana State University, University of Nebraska, University of Nevada-Reno, University of New Hampshire, Rutgers University, New Mexico State University, Cornell University, North Carolina State University, North Dakota State University, Northern Marianas College, Ohio State University, Oklahoma State University, Oregon State University, Pennsylvania State University, University of Puerto Rico, University of Rhode Island, Clemson University, South Dakota State University, University of Tennessee, Texas A & M University, Utah State University, University of Vermont, Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University, University of the Virgin Islands, Washington State University, West Virginia University, University of Wisconsin, and University of Wyoming. University of the District of Columbia Public Postsecondary Education Reorganization Act Program (DCPPERA): Applications may only be submitted by the University of the District of Columbia. 1862 Special Needs Capacity (SLSN): Applications may only be submitted by the following 1862 Land-grant Institutions: University of Alaska-Fairbanks, University of Arizona, Colorado State University, University of Idaho, Kansas State University, Montana State University, University of Nebraska, University of Nevada-Reno, New Mexico State University, North Dakota State University, Oregon State University, South Dakota State University, Texas A&M University, Utah State University, University of Vermont, and University of Wyoming. Smith-Lever Special Needs Competitive (SLSNCGP): Applications may only be submitted by 1862 Land-grant Institutions in the 50 states and the U.S. territories, American Samoa, Guam, Micronesia, Northern Marianas, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Committed by fiscal year
* FY2026 is year-to-date — the fiscal year is still in progress, so its total is still filling in. The striped band and dashed line mark that provisional stretch.
Top recipients
By dollars committed.
How to read these numbers
- Committed through this program
Money committed under this assistance listing (its CFDA program), counted in the year each action happened.
- How it's paid
Most programs pay out one way — a grant, or a direct payment to individuals; the flow bar only appears when a program genuinely mixes types.
- Some recipients aren't itemized
For entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare, the government reports one aggregate instead of naming tens of millions of people, so the recipient roster isn't part of the public record.
- Awards, counted once
An award count is the number of distinct awards with at least one action that year — each counted once, however many times it was amended.
- The colored bars
Every bar on this page splits by how the money moves:
Direct payments