VI. Grants and Agreements

Guidance and Resources

The following three questions, along with the flowchart at the end of this section, can serve as general guides for identifying the right instrument:

However, it is important to keep in mind that the requirements for different instruments are very specific, and the information in this chapter is only an overview. For more comprehensive guidance, users should consult the following resources:

• Forest Service Grants and Agreements Specialists – Involving these personnel early in the process of developing a formalized partnership agreement will assure that partnerships get started on the right track. Contact information for Grants and Agreements Specialists is available online at the Forest Service's website for Acquisition Management
(http://www.fs.fed.us/business/).

• Templates – Templates for common Forest Service agreement instruments are available through the online Partnership Resource Center.

• Forest Service Manual 1580 – FSM 1580 establishes Forest Service direction on the use of Federal Financial Assistance (grants and cooperative agreements) and other agreements. It includes a detailed discussion of partnerships and agreements. It is available online (http://www.fs.fed.us/im/directives/).

• Forest Service Agreements Desk Guide – The Desk Guide is a reference tool to help Forest Service employees who engage in partnerships understand what is possible within the available authorities. The Desk Guide is available online ( http://www.fs.fed.us/business/).

• Authorities – A summary of legislative authorities for the Forest Service is available in Appendix F – Statutory Authorities.

Decision Tree to Determine the Appropriate Instrument for a Partnership

The decision tree below provides basic guidance for choosing partnership instruments. Appendix B – Glossary of Terms – defines terms used in this chart.

Text version of chart (web page)

Adobe Acrobat PDF pages (from PDF version of this guide)