New Public Grant Database Aims to Expand Access for Colorado’s Nonprofits
Communities Lead Communities Thrive (CLCT), a statewide coalition of community-rooted nonprofits, today announced the launch of a one-of-a-kind, publicly-accessible Colorado State Grant Database for nonprofits – a free online tool created to help small and under-resourced organizations more easily find state funding opportunities.
In the absence of a centralized grant portal maintained by the State of Colorado, many nonprofits face significant barriers to identifying and applying for available state funds. CLCT’s database responds directly to the needs of its coalition members and organizations across the state, offering a streamlined way to view open grant opportunities specifically for nonprofits across all state agencies.
“This database is about breaking down barriers,” said Marco Dorado, CLCT Managing Director. “Too often, small nonprofits miss out on state funding simply because they don’t have the time or staff to hunt down scattered information across the numerous state agency websites and inconsistent grant portals. By creating a single, convenient place to find state grants available to nonprofits, we’re helping level the playing field and making public dollars more accessible for the organizations doing critical work in Colorado communities every day.”
While originally developed to support CLCT’s more than 25 coalition organizations, the database is available to the public. Users can search by agency, review eligibility information, and access direct application links. The database will be updated bi-weekly and reflects a growing call for more transparent, accessible public funding infrastructure.
“As an organization that partners with and invests in community-rooted nonprofits across Colorado, we’ve seen firsthand how inequitable and burdensome the state’s fragmented grantmaking systems can be,” said Rachel Griego, Senior Vice President of Community Innovation and Strategic Partnerships at the Latino Community Foundation of Colorado and Chair of the CLCT Steering Committee. “The responsibility of navigating outdated and inaccessible systems should not fall on organizations already doing the hard work of serving communities and driving change. In a time of limited public resources, making existing state funding truly accessible is not only a matter of equity — it’s an essential step toward a just and accountable governance.“
Creating the database required CLCT staff to invest over 140 hours to manually review dozens of state agency websites and grant portals for nonprofit grant opportunities – a time-consuming process made more difficult by the decentralized and inconsistent nature of how Colorado publishes its grant opportunities. Some agencies list grants on their own websites, others rely on third-party platforms, and several require users to register to view basic application information. In many cases, outdated or incomplete information further complicated the search. These challenges illustrate the very barriers small nonprofits face every day when trying to access state funding and underscore the urgent need for a more centralized and transparent system.
As part of our ongoing advocacy work, CLCT will continue to advocate for the State of Colorado to build a permanent, centralized public grants system that ensures all nonprofits – regardless of size or connections – have a fair shot at state funding.
Nonprofits can access the database by visiting: www.coclct.org/stategrants