1. RMEF PAC and State Grant Guidelines, Procedures and Processes

2. Mission Allocation Form

3. RMEF PAC Committee
Project Advisory Committees (PAC’s) exist in all elk states. By definition, elk states are those that have wild, free-ranging elk managed by the state wildlife agency under a formal elk management plan. Part of the plan needs to provide for hunting or future hunting of elk. The PACs have been established to promote a science-based evaluation of projects, to promote interagency support for RMEF projects and to guarantee that RMEF funds are expended on projects with the greatest potential benefit to elk, other wildlife and their habitat. The value of the PAC process cannot be overstated. The PAC's responsibility is to review the project proposals submitted for RMEF funding consideration and make recommendations as to the merit of the proposal to improve elk habitat, collect necessary information to better manage the elk resource, increase the body of scientific knowledge for elk and habitat, educate the public with strong conservation messages or promote ethical hunting through various techniques.

4. RMEF PAC Committee
The PAC's primary responsibilities are to:
Solicit project proposals from agencies, landowners or other organizations.
Review project proposals and candidly discuss the merits of each proposal.
Prioritize submitted proposals based on the elk management and wildlife habitat needs and opportunities in their state
Recommend projects for RMEF funding based on priorities and funding limitations.

5. RMEF PAC Committee
The PAC's authority is to advise and recommend. Final authority for project approval rests with the RMEF Board of Directors or RMEF National Project Review Committee (NPRC). The NPRC is currently comprised of the VP of Lands and Conservation, Director of Field Programs, the Directors of Field Operations for that PAC state, the Lands and Conservation Programs Information Manager.

6. RMEF PAC Guidelines RMEF Funds:
List amount of funds requested from RMEF. Break out request by project type in order for us to evaluate cost of each. Requests for multi-year funding should show annual amounts rather than total. RMEF policy limits funding to the first year of the project. Funding for subsequent years is contingent upon the project coordinator submitting a written progress report and a new project proposal form for the next year’s funding consideration. Projects demonstrating good progress receive priority for available funds.

7. RMEF PAC Guidelines Matching/Contributor Funds
In the spirit of partnerships, RMEF requires at least a 1:1 match ratio but looks favorably on higher matching contributor funds. List all matching funds and their source. Example: USFS $2,000; BLM $1,500. Volunteer groups contributing labor should be identified as volunteer groups with a reasonable per hour rate. It is important to include all contributors as RMEF attempts to recognize them by various means.

8. RMEF PAC Guidelines Use of RMEF Funds:
RMEF contributes toward projects that extend an agency’s/organization’s ability to implement habitat enhancement, wildlife management or research projects. It is not our desire to replace agency/organization maintenance and operations budgets.
RMEF policy requires its grant funds be used exclusively for actual "on the ground" expenses incurred during project completion. RMEF policy strictly prohibits the use of its funds for administrative, overhead or indirect costs.

9. RMEF PAC Guidelines Use of RMEF Funds: - Continued
Routine agency/organization operations are not eligible for RMEF funding. Flight time for annual surveys is viewed as an agency responsibility. Flight time has been approved to test new sampling techniques or for special projects i.e. telemetry studies to determine habitat use, migration patterns, winter and summer range distributions. Etc.

10. RMEF PAC Guidelines Use of RMEF Funds: - Continued
Identify specifically how RMEF funds will be used (i.e. helicopter $5,000, seed $3,000, guzzler $2,500, etc.). Please use only the direct project costs. While match ratios are important, so are cost per acre or other unit cost measures.
Salaries: Salaries for permanent employees will not be considered for RMEF funding. Salary costs of burn crews, biologist aides, and graduate student stipends may be considered for RMEF funding.

11. RMEF PAC Guidelines Use of RMEF Funds: - Continued
Equipment: RMEF does not fund capital facility or capital equipment items. Equipment purchases have been primarily limited to elk radio collars, telemetry receivers and antennas.

12. RMEF PAC Guidelines Use of RMEF Funds: - Continued
Planning and inventory: RMEF views these as agency responsibilities mandated by legislative or congressional action. Once the planning, inventory and mapping are completed, identified projects can be submitted for RMEF project funding consideration. Since monitoring is so important to measure the success of the project, RMEF will consider requests for partial funding for formal project follow-up monitoring.

13. RMEF STATE GRANT PROGRAM
Hunting and Conservation Heritage & Outreach Guidelines

14. RMEF STATE GRANT PROGRAM
What We Fund
Projects that educate members and the public about habitat conservation, the value of hunting, hunting ethics, and/or wildlife management.
Outreach or marketing tools that increase the public awareness of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation and its mission.

15. RMEF STATE GRANT PROGRAM
What We Fund – Continued
Scholarships to natural history or outdoor skills programs, such as Becoming an Outdoors-Woman.
Membership in or sponsorship of state based organizations associated with the National Assembly of Sportsmen's Caucuses.

16. RMEF STATE GRANT PROGRAM
What We Fund – Continued
Outdoor skills programs, including shooting, survival, and hunting skills programs
Teaching tools for youth educators (e.g., elk and wildlife trunks)

17. RMEF STATE GRANT PROGRAM
What We Do Not Fund
Administrative costs, overhead, or other indirect costs
Political projects, political candidate endorsements
Academic scholarships directly to individuals or education institutions such as high schools and colleges.

18. RMEF STATE GRANT PROGRAM
What We Do Not Fund – Continued
Memberships or affiliations with other organizations
Capital equipment purchases such as computers, projectors, vehicles or trailers
Construction of buildings of any kind or equipment for buildings

19. RMEF STATE GRANT PROGRAM
Requirements and Contingencies
Applicants are required to demonstrate a $1:$1 funding match in cash or in-kind contributions. There are several types of in-kind services:
Space, including maintenance and utilities
Staffing by volunteers or paid employees (volunteer time is calculated at $20/hr for in-kind budgeting)
Clerical assistance

20. RMEF STATE GRANT PROGRAM
Requirements and Contingencies – Continued
Equipment and furniture
Construction and renovation
Printing
Transportation
Public relations and promotional activities
Recreational activities

21. RMEF STATE GRANT PROGRAM
Requirements and Contingencies – Continued
State Grant Proposals are reviewed between January 1 and September 1 of each year. To find out more about submission deadlines for your specific state, contact your state’s Regional Director.

22. RMEF STATE GRANT PROGRAM
Requirements and Contingencies – Continued
RMEF policy requires an in-house review of the final draft for all permanent interpretive displays to ensure the conservation message is consistent with our mission. Funding for interpretive displays will not be sent until RMEF receives, reviews, and approves message content.

23. RMEF STATE GRANT PROGRAM
Requirements and Contingencies – Continued
Project Completion Reports must be submitted to RMEF within 60 days of project completion. Accurate Project Completion Reports contribute to RMEF marketing, fundraising and publications. Applicants who do not submit a report will be ineligible for future RMEF funding until the project completion report is received.

24. RMEF STATE GRANT PROGRAM
Requirements and Contingencies – Continued
Photos are vital to sharing project accomplishments. Please provide RMEF with as many high quality photos as possible.

25. RMEF STATE GRANT PROGRAM
How Much We Award
To inquire about availability of funds, contact your state RMEF Regional Director. For RMEF Regional Director contact information, please visit our website at

26. RMEF STATE GRANT PROGRAM
How to Apply
All applicants must complete the State Grant Project Proposal.
If you are applying for a new project that has not previously received RMEF funding, you may complete the State Grant Application Planning Organizer.

27. RMEF STATE GRANT PROGRAM
How to Apply – Continued
Submit all State Grant forms to your state’s RMEF Regional Director for consideration. For RMEF Regional Director contact information, please visit our website at
Contact your state’s RMEF Regional Director to find out when projects will be considered and funding will be available.

28. RMEF STATE GRANT PROGRAM
State Grant Selection and Funding Process
State Grant applications will be reviewed and prioritized by the State Grant Review Team. This team includes the Regional Director, the State Chair(s), and may include the appropriate Regional Chair(s). The State Chair(s) and Regional Director will work as a team to designate additional RMEF volunteers to the team.

29. RMEF STATE GRANT PROGRAM
State Grant Selection and Funding Process – Continued
The State Grant Review Team will evaluate grant requests to determine whether they are consistent with RMEF’s funding guidelines, and whether the grant amount requested is reasonable and appropriate for the scope of the project. After reviewing and assessing each state grant request, the State Grant Review Team decides which requests to recommend for approval.

30. RMEF STATE GRANT PROGRAM
State Grant Selection and Funding Process – Continued
The Regional Director forwards all recommended grant requests to the Director of Operations and appropriate Regional Chair(s). Within five working days, the Regional Chair(s) will review and forward any comments to the Director of Operations for final approval.

31. RMEF STATE GRANT PROGRAM
State Grant Selection and Funding Process – Continued
The Director of Operations forwards the state grants that have been approved for funding to RMEF Headquarters for processing. The Regional Director contacts applicants to let them know whether their grant request was approved.

32. RMEF STATE GRANT PROGRAM
State Grant Selection and Funding Process – Continued
RMEF Headquarters requires 45 days to process state grants and issue the check. The check will be sent along with an award notification letter and the Project Completion Report.

33. RMEF STATE GRANT PROGRAM
For information regarding Project Completion Reports, interpretive display draft review or photos, please contact: Christine Hastings, (406)

34. Questions?