Appropriations & �Community Project Funding

Thursday, August 19, 2026

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Presented by: Antwoin Monach

Legislative Director

Overview of the Appropriations Process in Congress�

• U.S. Constitution, Article I, Section 9, Clause 7 - “No money shall be drawn from the treasury but in consequence of the appropriations made by law; and a regular statement of account of receipts and expenditures of all public money shall be published from time to time." 

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• The one function Congress must do each year to keep the federal government functioning. If not, we risk a lapse in funding and government shutdown.

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• Each Fiscal Year (FY) runs from October 1-September 30. We are currently in FY26, with FY27 beginning on October 1^st.

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• Each fiscal year, a new appropriations bill or continuing resolution (CR) must be passed by both chambers and signed into law by the President that covers all 12 appropriations subcommittees and sets new spending levels to avoid a government shutdown.

A Timeline of the Appropriations Process…�& the importance of managing expectations.

• President normally releases their fiscal year budget in early February.
• The President’s budget indicates to the American people and their Congressional representatives the administration’s budget priorities and goals for the upcoming fiscal year.

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• Appropriations request process typically begins between February and March – and varies year to year.
• These requests include Community Project Funding, otherwise known as CPFs.
• CPFs allocate funding for specific projects located in Congressmembers’ districts.
• This past submission process allowed for each Congressmember’s office to submit a total of 20 CPF requests. This is something that could change.
• This year, the deadline to submit these projects for FY27 was May of 2026.

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• Please note: the deadline to submit CPF applications for FY27 has already passed.
• This presentation is intended to guide you on the process for submitting projects for FY28 and beyond.
• The application process will likely begin in Spring of 2027 (typically February-April). Our office will post our internal guidance in early 2027, and additional guidance will be released once we receive preliminary guidance from the committee.

Eligibility Requirements to Submit a Request for Community Project Funding (CPF) ��Due to House Rules, eligibility requirements have little to no flexibility. �

• Who is eligible for CPFs?
• State or local governmental entities
• Certain Eligible Non-profits – must provide evidence of their non-profit organization status, e.g. 501(c)3, 501(c)6, etc.
• All for-profit recipients are prohibited.
• Fully utilize all funds within a year of receipt from agency.
• Each project request must demonstrate that the funding secured will be used in federal fiscal year (October 1 to September 30 of the fiscal year). Multi-year funding requests are not allowed. 
• Demonstrate strong community support.
• Community support may include letters of support from elected community leaders; press articles; newspaper editorial boards; projects listed on State’s or city’s intended use plans, community development plans, or other publicly available planning documents; city council or local board resolutions; and others. 
• Demonstrate how the federal funding will help address a specific community need and why its essential.
• Projects located in GA-04 and which serve our constituents will receive priority consideration.
• Help us understand why this request is important so we can fight for it.

Additional Guidance for Submitting a Request for Community Project Funding (CPF)��

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• Which appropriations subcommittee does your CPF fall under? Most likely:

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• Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies (THUD)
• Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies (Interior)
• Homeland Security
• Military Construction, Veteran Affairs, and Related Agencies
• Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration
• Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
• Energy and Water Development
• Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies

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• Review Congressman Johnson’s Submitted CPFs for FY27 as helpful examples.

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• Review the guidelines released by the Republican Majority for FY27 to get a sense of what you can possibly expect for FY28 CPFs.

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• Next year’s guidelines are subject to change.

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Common Pitfalls Among Submitted Community Project Funding (CPF) Requests

• Project is not a non-profit or governmental entity.

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• Project isn’t located in or benefits GA-04.

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• Project doesn’t meet cost-sharing requirements (review guidance for specifications).

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• Typically, 80%-20% or 75%-25% cost-sharing federal to non-federal split.

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• Project is ineligible, e.g., falls under appropriate subcommittee.

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• Project demonstrates insufficient community support or community need.

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• Project’s requested funding amount is unreasonably high, and application doesn’t provide an itemized budget breakdown.

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• Project utilizes a portion of funding for ineligible expenses, e.g., staff salaries and operational expenses.

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• To ensure eligibility for your CPF, closely review the guidance as soon as its released (anticipated to drop in Spring 2027).

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Let’s focus on the elements you can control.

• Familiarize yourselves with past CPF guidance so you have a sense of what kind of funding is eligible and what’s not.
• Seek to have your FY27 CPF application proposals drafted by the end of February 2026 and ready for submission as soon as the application form goes live on Congressman Johnson’s website.
• Keep in mind the funding process is complex and subject to factors beyond our control. For this reason, we recommend against putting all your funding eggs into this one basket.
• Make sure your organization has contingencies in place in case Congress does not pass a funding bill, or cuts funding significantly, or significantly delays implementation of funding.
• Be sure to read and review all available guidance once it’s released.
• Be sure to include in your application:
• Your organization’s full legal name and address.
• A responsive point of contact for the organization (direct phone and email address), and
• As much information you can to build a case for your project and its merits.
• If our office has questions about your application, we will follow-up directly to ensure we get everything we need.
• Please be responsive and ready to provide additional information at a moment’s notice.

My Community Project Funding (CPF) was selected. Now what?

My Community Project Funding (CPF) was selected. Now what?

Other Helpful Resources…

• House Appropriations Committee CPF Guidance and Overview for FY27:
• https://appropriations.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/republicans-appropriations.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/fy-2027-community-project-funding-request-general-guidance.pdf
• FY 2027 Community Project Funding Tables:

(Click each subcommittee to find FY 2027 CPF project tables for the eight subcommittees currently available.)

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We are here to help!

• Congressman Hank Johnson’s office stands ready to protect federal funding that helps your organization continue its great work for the people of Georgia’s 4^th District. Keep in touch, so we know what to fight for!
• Contact our D.C. office to set-up a virtual staff meetings or visit in-person with our District office staff.
• Email me Antwoin.Monach@mail.house.gov or Marcus Garza (our Chief of Staff) at Marcus.Garza@mail.house.gov with any additional CPF related questions.