The following Safety & Health Grant Guidelines outline how to apply for funding and complete the reimbursement process. If you have additional questions after reviewing the information below, contact Safety & Health Services at (518) 486-2936 or [email protected].

Project Coordinator 
This individual fulfills all grant requirements on behalf of the agency/facility and works closely with the agency fiscal officer. They do not have to be a state manager. This person can be anyone who is willing to take on the responsibility. 

Management
Someone who can obligate and speak on behalf of the State, the agency, and facility or location.  
 

CSEA Leaders
This is the CSEA Local President. In instances where the President is on any extended leave, the Executive Vice President would be allowed to sign. If the CSEA Local is an administrativeship, the Regional President can sign.

Agency Fiscal or Procurement Staff 
This person will oversee or delegate the procurement, reimbursement processes, and SFS activity. This could be someone with a procurement/fiscal title or an administrative/clerical title.
 

Joint Labor/Management Support
CSEA leaders and state management representatives must commit to work together through all phases of the grant project.

Exclusive Benefit
The project or training funded by the grant must be for the exclusive benefit of CSEA-represented NYS employees. 

You can apply for up to $50,000, each fiscal year, for training or projects that:

• Improve workplace safety and health programs.
• Prevent work-related injuries and illnesses.
• Reduce lost work time and workers’ compensation costs.
• Increase organizational effectiveness.
• Enhance employee job skills and safety and health knowledge.
   

Eligible examples include, but are not limited to:

• Asbestos Awareness Training,
• ARC Flash Training,
• Boiler Technical Training,
• Chainsaw and Logging Training,
• De-escalation Training - Verbal Judo,
• Electrical Workplace Safety Training: Low and High Voltage Qualified (including ARC Flash), and
• Interplay Learning Training - EH&S and Advancement Training.

The Partnership makes all decisions related to grant funding. Our primary responsibility is to ensure that the grants are used in an appropriate and responsible manner. However, there are certain projects which cannot be covered by grant funding. Therefore, we reserve the right to reject any project that we consider ineligible for grant funding. 

Grant funding is not available to: 

• Hire staff.
• Buy food or beverages.
• Supplement agency budgets for routine or mandatory safety and health training.
• Buy equipment, unless it is for demonstration or training purposes.

Follow all state and agency purchasing practices, including: 

• Do not buy anything before you get formal written approval. 
• Request any changes in writing. Wait for written approval; otherwise, purchases will not be reimbursable.
• Purchases should never be made using a personal credit card. 
• NYS agencies are tax-exempt. Therefore, do not include sales tax.  
• Keep all invoices, original receipts, procurement card statements, and copies of purchase orders (including screenshots showing proof of payment).
• The grant may be withdrawn if purchases are not completed, and the required documentation is not received within 90 days from the approval letter OR before the end of the NYS fiscal year in which the grant was awarded, whichever comes first.
• The Partnership retains ownership of any curriculum, equipment, and training materials developed using grant funds.

It generally takes four weeks from the time of submission to receive a decision.  The following timeline is an estimate and is subject to change. 

 
Three Business Days – You'll get an email confirming receipt of your application. 
Two Weeks – If anything is missing from your application, you will hear from us.  
Four Weeks – Once the Statewide Safety and Health Co-chairs review the application, the state management representative and CSEA Local President will receive a written decision.
 

The Safety & Health Grant Program is a reimbursement program. Once a grant is approved, you will receive an approval letter that outlines all required documentation that must be submitted to us, and items or training can then be purchased by the agency/facility using agency funds. After the project is complete and the Partnership receives all required documents, the agency will then be reimbursed. The grant may be withdrawn if purchases are not completed, and the required documentation is not received within 90 days from the approval letter OR before the end of the NYS fiscal year in which the grant was awarded, whichever comes first. 

Reimbursement for approved project expenses will occur through a funding expense transfer process. This happens via a General Ledger Journal Entry in the Statewide Financial System (SFS), following NYS Finance Law and Office of the State Comptroller’s rules and regulations. Agencies will need to coordinate with their agency staff who are able to enter SFS General Ledger Journals. Once entered, the required reimbursement documents listed in your approval letter should be attached to the Journal. Once the journal is approved by the agency, it will automatically be routed to Office of Employee Relations for approval.

Once you have reviewed the Safety & Health Grant Guidelines above, you're ready to apply!
 

How to Apply