Skip to Main Content

Extreme Weather Grant for Extreme Heat, Cold or Poor Air Quality Shelters

The Extreme Weather Response Grant Program provides financial assistance to political jurisdictions in Washington State to support response activities during extreme weather events. The program aims to reimburse eligible political jurisdictions for costs incurred in responding to community needs for vulnerable populations during periods of extremely hot or cold weather or severe poor air quality from wildfire smoke.

For a detailed outline of Grant Program requirements, please refer to the Grant Program Plan (PDF)

Grant Updates

  • 11/23/2024: LISTENING SESSION - EWRG Reimbursement Process. Sign-up to register for our scheduled listening session this month! We will be providing an overview of the EWRG grant reimbursement request process and a Q & A portion on Thursday, November 21, 2024 at 3:00PM-4:00PM. Register Here.
  • 11/6/2024: EWRG Preparedness Funds Recipients were announced Oct. 9, 2024. See list of recipients here: Preparedness Funds Recipients Announcement (PDF)

Funding Overview for State Fiscal year 2024-2025

  • Grant Funds Available: $1,350,000
    • Shelter Preparedness Funds (Competitive): $1,000,000
    • Response Funds (Non-Competitive): $350,000

Grant Categories & Application Process

  1. Shelter Preparedness Funds - CLOSED
    • Purpose: Support small-scale projects and pre-staging activities or purchases to enhance sheltering capacity prior to an extreme weather event.
    • Eligible Costs Include:
      • Purchasing shelter supplies and equipment (e.g., cots, blankets, hygiene supplies).
      • Retrofitting facilities to become shelters and/or be pet-friendly.
      • Administrative costs related to project management.
    • Application Periods:
      • Pre-Application: CLOSED 
      • Full Application: CLOSED
  1. Response Funds (Non-Competitive): OPEN for applications!
    • Purpose: Reimburse costs incurred during extreme weather events.
    • Eligible Costs Include:
      • General operating costs for warming and cooling centers.
      • Transportation costs for individuals and pets to shelters.
      • Supplies and equipment needed for shelters.
      • Staffing costs for shelter operations.
    • Application Period: June 17, 2024 - June 1, 2025
    • Applicant eligibility: To qualify for this grant, a county, city, town, or federally recognized tribe must:
      1. Have shelter location(s) must be in a geographic area where vulnerable populations face combined, multiple environmental harms and health impacts, as determined by the department.
      • Note: The term “shelter" is used to denote a congregate center, space or other public building held open to the public without charge to provide a safe location for people to shelter from extreme weather conditions. The “shelter" is not required to be held open overnight.
      2. Have demonstrated a lack of local resources to address community needs serving vulnerable populations; and
      3. Have incurred eligible costs as described in the Grant Program Plan for the benefit of vulnerable populations.
    • Application Process: Complete Response Funds – Application Form, and attach the following supporting documents:

If your application is approved, you will receive an official notice that you are eligible to submit reimbursement requests for shelter costs incurred during qualifying events during the performance period of this grant from July 1, 2024 – June 30, 2025.

Reimbursement Request

Approved applicants with signed Agreement Forms must meet the requirements listed below to be eligible for reimbursement. All reimbursement requests must be submitted through the Online Reimbursement Request Submission Form.

IMPORTANT NOTE: All costs must be incurred by the approved entity prior to submitting a reimbursement request. Please ensure all invoices are paid prior to seeking reimbursement under this program.

Preparedness Funds – for costs incurred prior to an extreme weather event

Approved recipients of EWRG Preparedness Funds must upload the following documents through the Online Reimbursement Request Submission Form

  • A19-1A Invoice Voucher Preparedness Funds (Excel)
  • Detailed County/Tribe Accounting/Expenditure Reports showing payments made for shelter costs incurred.
  • Copies of invoice payments or receipts supporting expenditure reports.
  • Any other documentation that supports the legitimacy of the costs incurred such as, but not limited to, contracts, credit card statements, internal logs, or spreadsheets.

Response Funds – for costs incurred during a qualifying extreme weather event

*IMPORTANT NOTE: Reimbursement is not guaranteed and is contingent upon the availability of funds. Funding will be provided to all qualifying applicants on a first-come, first-served basis until the allocated funds are exhausted. Reimbursement decisions, including full, partial, or no reimbursement, are at the discretion of EMD and dependent on the remaining funding.

An applicant is eligible to submit a reimbursement packet if the following steps are completed:

Meet Extreme Weather Event Criteria – For an event to qualify under this grant, jurisdiction must experience and/or have the following in place:

  • An Extreme Weather Event existed in jurisdiction.
    • Extreme Heat, Extreme Cold and/or unhealthy Air Quality
  • Sheltering is needed to meet health recommendation levels established by the Regional and/or Local/Tribal Public Health or other decision-making officials.
    • Local/Tribal determination of temperature levels for heating and cooling sheltering requirements.
    • Air Quality level for Wildfire smoke shelters.
  • AND/OR
    • If no local guidelines are in place, the following criteria will be used:
      • A National Weather Service Advisories level of "Warning" for extreme heat and extreme cold will be used to determine eligibility.
      • “Unhealthy for All” category of AirNow Air Quality Index (or Air Quality Index value of 151 or higher) due to wildfire smoke.

Send notice of shelter periods – Approved applicants must notify EMD Human Services of shelter operating periods for a qualifying Extreme Weather event within 15 days after the shelter closing date by sending an email to humanservicesgrants@mil.wa.gov.

  • Notice should include the criteria met by the qualifying weather event, along with the start and end date period of the shelter operations and estimated incurred costs if available.

You will receive a response letter from EMD that includes information on funding availability, and whether your request will receive full, partial, or no reimbursement for your shelter costs based on your cost estimates.

Incur Costs – Approved applicants must prepare supporting documents to show incurred eligible costs as described in this Grant Program Plan for the benefit of vulnerable populations.

Submit Reimbursement Request – Approved applicant must submit their Reimbursement Request Packet online within 90 days after the end of sheltering operations in response to the qualifying extreme weather event. Packet must include:

  • A19-1A Invoice Voucher (Excel)
  •  Detailed County/Tribe Accounting/Expenditure Reports showing payments made for shelter costs incurred.
  • Copies of invoice payments or receipts supporting expenditure reports.
  • Any other documentation that supports the legitimacy of the expenditures such as, but not limited to, contracts, credit card statements, internal logs, or spreadsheets.
  • EWRG Response Funds – Grant Progress Report (PDF)

Documents and Links

Contact Information

The Grant Program Plan has a Frequently Asked Questions Section. For assistance in completing an application or additional questions about the Extreme Weather Response Grant Program, please contact:

EMD Human Services Grants
Email: humanservicesgrants@mil.wa.gov
Phone: (253) 512-7403
Monday – Thursday 0700-1730