Virginia Emergency Shelter Upgrade Assistance Grant Fund

The Virginia Emergency Shelter Upgrade Assistance Grant Fund is administered by the Virginia Department of Emergency Management and supports local governments in strengthening emergency shelter infrastructure. The fund resulted from Senate Bill 350, introduced by Senator Lucas, and went into effect on July 1, 2020. The program is identified by VDEM as a mitigation grant. For the current application period, applications opened August 13, 2026, and must be submitted to VDEM by November 30, 2026. The General Assembly appropriated $2,500,000 to the fund for this funding cycle. Funding must be used solely to provide matching funds to eligible localities for permanent infrastructure associated with emergency shelters. Eligible activities include installing, maintaining, or repairing permanent infrastructure related to standby backup energy generation, including solar energy generators, and improving the hazard-specific structural integrity of locally owned shelter facilities through wind hardening or retrofit work. Specific eligible project types include the purchase and installation of a permanent generator, generator transfer switches or quick connects, a solar power generation solution, and wind hardening or retrofit of a local shelter. The program prioritizes projects that support or protect vulnerable and marginalized populations, provide long-term and permanent risk-based solutions, and identify alternative solutions. Localities applying for their primary shelter solutions receive priority, as verified through Local Capabilities Assessment Report submissions. Eligible applicants are local governments as defined as political subdivisions under Virginia Emergency Services and Disaster Laws Section 44-146.16. This includes any city or county in the Commonwealth, the Town of Chincoteague, the Town of West Point, and any town with a population greater than 5,000 that chooses to maintain an emergency management program separate from the county in which it is located. Applicants must have a current, locally adopted emergency operations plan that complies with Code of Virginia Section 44.146.19(E), including the requirement that the plan be revised every four years, by the application deadline. Local governments are limited to one shelter upgrade application per year, although a single application may include more than one project site. The state share for an individual grant award is limited to $450,000. State cost share is based on the Local Council of Governments Fiscal Stress Index and may range from 60 percent to 75 percent of total project costs, requiring the locality to provide the remaining project cost share. Local governments may overmatch when necessary to achieve the desired scope of work. The Shelter Upgrade Fund may also provide matching funds for existing FEMA Hazard Mitigation Assistance grants used to upgrade shelters. A local government may receive and implement only one shelter upgrade grant at a time. Construction associated with previous awards must be complete at the time of application, although a locality with a current Shelter Upgrade Grant project in progress may apply and subsequently receive a new award after the existing project concludes. Applications and supporting documentation must be submitted through the VDEM EM Grants system by November 30, 2026. Applicants that do not already have a VDEM EM Grants account must register for an account, identify the reason for registration as a Shelter Upgrade application, and select Hazard Mitigation Assistance as the program category. VDEM staff will review and approve the account request, after which the applicant can begin the application. The source provides an Emergency Shelter Upgrade Assistance Grant Application link through VDEM EM Grants as well as a Shelter Upgrade Application Checklist. The source does not state a separate letter of intent, concept paper, pre-proposal, or other pre-application gating deadline. Applications are prioritized based on the stated funding priorities, including protection of vulnerable and marginalized populations, use of long-term and permanent risk-based solutions, primary shelter status, and identification of alternative solutions. Primary shelter status is verified through Local Capabilities Assessment Report submissions. The period of performance is 18 months. Questions about the program may be directed to Melaney Rodriguez, hazard mitigation grants administrator, at Melaney.Rodriguez@vdem.virginia.gov. The source does not provide a grant award notification date, a separate award start date, or a recurring future application schedule.

Prioritize projects that support or protect vulnerable and marginalized populations; demonstrate a long-term and permanent risk-based solution; applications for primary shelter solutions receive priority and will be verified through Local Capabilities Assessment Report submissions; identify alternative solutions.