Grant Recipient Guidance

If you are reading this page, you may be one of the South Carolina American Revolution Sestercentennial Commission (SC250) grant recipients. Through the award, the Commission hopes to form a partnership wherein we provide support to your project and in turn we learn more about and contribute to further telling the story of the Revolutionary Era (1770-1783) in South Carolina. We share your goal to tell a more  inclusive story and capture history for the future.

We welcome stories, feedback, and candid lessons learned at any time. In order to ensure the smooth administration of the SC250 grant, please follow the best practices below and make sure to stay in communication with SC250.

SC250 Contact:

Heather Hawkins, SC250 Grants Manager
803-898-3392 | hhawkins@southcarolina250.com | or through the Web Grants program

Grant Agreement/Contract:

Before funding can be issued, a grant agreement must be electronically signed in the Discover SC Web Grants program. A state vendor number will be required prior to the grant agreement.

• Register as a "SC State Vendor" to be eligible to receive any grant funds. Visit https://procurement.sc.gov/ and check out the Doing Business with Us section.
• Register with the State Treasurer's Office for ACH Direct Deposit. This greatly speeds up any grant distribution. Visit https://treasurer.sc.gov/what-we-do/for-businesses/electronic-payment-information/.

Once you have officially been notified of the grant award, the fiscal agent/grantee should receive an email from the Web Grants system notifying them that the contract is ready for a signature. If not, please let SC250 know.

• The fiscal agent/grantee must sign into the Web Grants system and electronically "sign" the document.

Grant Meeting:

Before any work is done, please make sure to schedule a grant meeting with the SC250 Coordinator. For convenience, the SC250 Coordinator may hold Webex meetings with all grantees from a grant cycle.

Grant Funding Distribution:

Once a grant agreement is signed by all parties, leave an estimated eight weeks for the first grant payment to be distributed. With the County 250 Organizing Grant, the grant award is 100% upfront when a county or city is your fiscal agent. For all other fiscal agents and for all competitive grants, the award is 80% upfront and 20% at completion of report paperwork. Money will be disbursed once the grant agreement is completed and approved by SC250 and SCDAH staff.

Please keep in mind this cash flow when structuring vendor/consultant agreements. Please reach out to SC250 with any questions or concerns.

Fiscal Guidance:

While grants do not fall under state procurement, grantees should follow their local procurement policies. If the fiscal agent does not have written procurement policies, best practice is to look to state procurement rules for guidance.

• For more about SC State Procurement, visit https://procurement.sc.gov/ 
• Below are some state procurement paperwork basics based on total value of invoice (not just SC250 grant amount):
  • Zero to $10,000.00
    • Invoice (must show correct amount charged and payee)
    • Proof of Payment
  • $10,000.01 to $25,000.00
    • Three (3) Written Quotes
    • Invoice
    • Proof of Payment
  • $25,000.01 & Up
    • SC Business Opportunity Ad or Copy of Public Advertisement (i.e., Local Newspaper Ad)
    • Bid Specifications (relevant pages only, doesn’t have to be the entire package unless specifically requested)
• Keep Receipts & Documentation
  • Make sure to keep documentation for how all the state funds were expended. This could include receipts for purchase of materials, contracts and payment documentation for consultants, tear sheets from advertising, and/or pay documentation for administrative oversight pay.

Matching Funds:

County Asset Assessment and Tourism Grants (50% match), Local Activities Grants (20% match), and Site Grants (20% match) require matching funds. Make sure to include details about those matching funds in your grant application budget. Other grants (such as the County 250 Organizing Grant) do not require a match. However, it is always great to show collaboration and buy-in from multiple entities on your grant application. This is especially true if your grant request is part of a larger project.

It is great to document on grant budgets in-kind match such as volunteer hours, food donated by the local merchants association, etc. This shows great local buy in! However, please keep in mind that in-kind donations cannot be used for matching percentage.

Status Reports/Site Visits/Final Report & Closeout:

A status report and a final report must be completed by grantees in the Discover SC Web Grants program. SC250 Commissioners and/or staff may make a pre-arranged site visit to check-in and see how we can aid your project.

Report Deadlines by Grant Quarter

The final report must include:

• all receipts of how grant funding was spent.
• documentation of match funding if required by your grant type.
• documentation of deliverables in the form of photos, reports, etc.
• matrix of how success of the project was measured.
• documentation of any admin overhead time if included in budget (sample timesheet).
• documentation of travel reimbursement if included in the budget (sample travel reimbursement).
• proof of payment for expenses.

Fellow Grantee Recommendation: https://www.camscanner.com/ for keeping receipts

Contact SC250 with Changes to Timelines & Budgets: Please contact SC250 prior to making changes to the grant timeline, scope, and/or budget. If you anticipate needing an extension or more than 10% changes in how your SC250 grant funding is allocated in the grant budget, please reach out to SC250 prior to report dates especially the 5/15/22 date.