NDOW: SHOOTING RANGE GRANT FUNDS AVAILABLE

The Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW) like most state wildlife agencies receives the bulk of its funding through user fees (hunting and fishing licenses, big game tags, etc.) and excise taxes on shooting, archery, angling and recreational boating equipment collected by the federal government under the Pittman-Robertson (PR) and Dingell-Johnson (DJ) Acts. In turn, NDOW wants to return some of those tax revenues to Nevada through shooting range grants and is seeking worthy projects to do just that.

Any individual or organization with a shooting range project proposal is encouraged to apply, but of course all grants come with some basic qualifications and stipulations and shooting range grant funds are no exception.

The range must be open to the public for free or a reasonable charge. If fees are charged the proceeds must go to maintaining or improving range facilities.

• A local government entity (city, county, township, etc.) must be willing to accept the funds, agree to oversee the project and sign a long-term agreement ensuring facility availability, operations and maintenance.
  
  
• 25 percent match must be provided. The match can come in many forms including cash, donated goods and/or services and volunteer time.

PR excise tax revenue is returned to the states via the US Fish and Wildlife Service’s    Federal Assistance Program, with a portion of the funds earmarked specifically for Hunter Education or shooting range development and enhancement. These funds are allocated though a formula which takes into account the state’s population, number of licensed hunters and land mass, which in Nevada’s case translates into $80,000 that is available on an annual basis.

In the past, NDOW range grant funds have been used to help support the Clark County Shooting Park, Washoe County Regional Archery Facility and shooting ranges in Douglas, Elko, Humboldt counties and many others across the state. These ranges have helped meet the need for local shooting facilities and NDOW is always on the lookout for other projects.

“NDOW’s number one priority when it comes to shooting ranges is to have an adequate number of facilities that provide safe, convenient, affordable places for the public to shoot,” said John McKay, NDOW outdoor education coordinator. “A lot of traditional shooting areas have been closed due to development, environmental degradation and other safety concerns. As a result, many communities lack the shooting ranges necessary for the general public to practice safe recreational shooting and NDOW wants to support projects that provide places to shoot.”

Download the application here. The application deadline is May 12, 2012. Sample Contract

http://ndow.org/about/news/pr/2012/April/Shooting_Range_Funds.shtm