America The Beautiful
Trail Grant Program 

This first year of funding is designed to support trail work across all 154 National Forests and Grasslands, with a long-term objective of supporting work and improving public access on 250 trails. America The Beautiful Foundation intends for this program to continue beyond its first year and grow alongside the number of trails maintained or improved. 
 

Program Overview 

● Program name: America The Beautiful Trail Grant Program

● Eligible applicants: Non-profit organizations, Tribes, and other non-Federal entities. To ensure coordination, applicants must submit an approval form signed by the local unit with their application. 

● Timeline: Launch date of June 6, 2026. Initial award announcement date of July 26, 2026. Open on a continuous basis, funding permitted. 

● Period of performance: All awarded work must be completed by December 31, 2027, unless otherwise approved in writing by America The Beautiful Foundation. 

● Program website: America The Beautiful Foundation.  

● To apply, send application materials via this form. 

Program Objective and Priorities 

The objective of this program is to fund projects that improve or restore public access on NFS trails by addressing a forest’s high priority trail program needs and addressing critical barriers. 

Competitive applications will show how the proposed work will help provide, improve, or restore public access. Importance is not defined solely by current trail use. America The Beautiful Foundation recognizes that trail importance may also be based on: 

● Community significance. 

● Cultural or historic value. 

● Limited alternative access in a geographic area. 

● Connectivity to other trails, campgrounds, destinations, or recreation infrastructure. ● Recovery after wildfire, severe weather, flooding, deferred maintenance, or loss of prior funding. 
 

Eligible activities are broad and can include direct improvement (e.g. trail clearing, tread repair, trail bridge and other trail structure repair or replacement, signage) as well as trail planning, NEPA, permitting, etc. 

America The Beautiful Foundation acknowledges that many trail projects are delayed by critical barriers such as environmental compliance, surveys, permitting, engineering, access constraints, and trail system planning. These elements may be supported through this program only when the application clearly demonstrates how they will lead to on-the-ground trail improvement. 

Funding Structure 

This grant program seeks to award an average of up to $50,000 per trail. Some trail projects may require less funding while others may justify a higher amount based on complexity, readiness, and restoration value. The amount awarded must be commensurate with the work proposed and the restoration outcomes expected. 

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The application should not exceed $50,000 per trail on average with a maximum application amount of $250,000. Applicants may include one trail or multiple trails in a single application. America The Beautiful Foundation will review requests on a per-trail basis and may choose to fund all, some, or none of the trails included in an application. 
 

Payment terms are expected to be structured as: 

● 50 percent at award, and 

● 50 percent at midpoint or at project completion, depending on the type of work being completed and the terms established in the grant agreement. 

Eligible Applicants 

Non-profit organizations, Tribes, and other non-Federal entities may apply. Prior to award, a Forest Service land manager approval form needs to be signed by the appropriate Forest Supervisor or District Ranger. 
 

Forest Service Approval Form 

If an applicant is using a fiscal sponsor, the fiscal sponsor is the primary applicant. If a subrecipient will complete any portion of the work, that subrecipient must be identified in the application. 
 

Eligible Uses of Funds 

The focus of this program is to improve or restore public access on NFS trails. Eligible uses of funds may include direct physical trail work and related project elements or planning work. 
 

Examples may include, but are not limited to: 

● Trail clearing. 

● Trail corridor clearing/vegetation management. 

● Slope stabilization. 

● New trail construction. 

● Trail bridge construction or repair. 

● Improving or replacing trail structures (steps, puncheons, turnpikes, rock walls). ● Tread repair and drainage improvements. 

● Environmental compliance support. 

● Surveys. 

● Permitting. 

● Engineering and design. 

● Trail or Trail System master planning. 

● Other trail improvement-related work where the applicant can clearly explain the path to physical restoration. 
 

America The Beautiful Foundation intentionally does not define a comprehensive list of critical barriers because trail improvement constraints vary widely by forest, geography, and project history. Applicants will be asked to describe the specific barriers affecting each trail and may be asked to discuss those barriers further during follow-up meetings. 
 

Application Requirements 

Submit applications that address the following requirements to: info@americathebeautifulfoundation.org. Applications must be accompanied by a signed land manager approval form. 
 

Applicants may include multiple trails in one application. For each trail, the application must include enough information for America The Beautiful Foundation to understand the trail’s condition, restoration needs, and expected outcomes. 
 

For each trail, applicants should provide: 
 

1. Trail name. 

2. Forest name. 

3. Project title. 

4. Funding amount requested. 

5. History of the trail/s. 

6. Why the trail/s is/are important. 

7. What led to the current disrepair or closure (such as funding loss, wildfire, severe weather, flood events, erosion, deferred maintenance, or other causes) or current funding need. 8. Description of proposed work. 

9. Description of any critical barriers that must be addressed to improve or restore public access. 10. Clear explanation of how all requested work leads to improved public access.
11. Schedule for completion. 

12. Maps and supporting documentation: 

● A map showing the location of each trail. 

● A project map showing the trail segment, restoration area, or barrier area in enough detail to evaluate the request. 

● Shapefiles, GeoPackage files, or equivalent location-based data where available. If not available during application submission, if selected geo-spatial information will be required.
● Recent photos where available. 

● Any helpful supporting material such as design notes, environmental status notes, or implementation planning documents. 
 

Site Visits 

America The Beautiful Foundation reserves the right to schedule a site visit during application consideration, implementation, and at project conclusion. Site visits may be conducted by America The Beautiful Foundation or one of its partners. 

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Selection Considerations 

Applications will be reviewed based on factors including: 

● Likelihood that the proposed work will result in actual public access improvement.
● Importance of the trail to access, community value, historic significance, or landscape function.
● Severity and cause of disrepair. 

● Readiness and feasibility. 

● Clarity of restoration pathway where non-implementation work is requested.
● Reasonableness of budget relative to work proposed. 

● Potential for the grant to unlock additional restoration work. 

● Organizational capacity to complete and report on the work. 

● Completion of the land manager approval form. 
 

America The Beautiful Foundation may choose to: 

● Fund only one trail within a multi-trail application. 

● Fund some but not all components of a single-trail application. 

● Request revisions before award. 

● Conduct follow-up meetings or site visits prior to making a decision. 
 

Claims Matrix Guidance 

America The Beautiful Foundation seeks the highest level of integrity in documenting program impact. Applicants and recipients must distinguish between primary and secondary outcomes. 
 

Primary outcomes 

Primary outcomes are those directly supported by this grant where no other entity can reasonably claim those same outcomes as their own direct work. In some cases, attribution may be straightforward. In others, particularly where this grant supports a larger trail improvement package, careful proportional attribution may be required. 
 

Secondary outcomes 

Secondary outcomes are broader project outcomes that were supported, matched, or unlocked in part by this grant but were not directly delivered solely through this funding. Secondary claims may arise as part of a larger project, but they should not be overstated. 
 

Direct implementation 

Direct implementation means physical trail restoration work such as: 

● Clearing trails. 

● Trail corridor clearing/vegetation management. 

● Stabilizing slopes. 

● Constructing or repairing trail bridges. 

● Improving or replacing trail structures (steps, puncheons, turnpikes, rock walls).
● Completing a physical improvement to the trail. 

Example 

If a trail project includes 10 miles of clearing and America The Beautiful Foundation funding directly and uniquely supports 2 miles of that work, then 2 miles may be reported as primary and the remaining 8 miles may be reported as secondary only if the recipient can credibly demonstrate that the grant contributed to unlocking or supporting that broader outcome. 
 

Secondary metrics should not be claimed for work that was not directly supported by the project. For example, if this grant supports matching funds under an MSA & SPA, the grant should not automatically claim the full breadth of those agreements. 
 

Quarterly Reporting 

Each selected recipient must submit a quarterly report for the duration of the grant period whether or not measurable progress occurred during that quarter. 
 

Each quarterly report must include, at minimum: 

● Financial expenditures during the quarter. 

● Cumulative expenditures to date. 

● Summary of physical work completed. 

● Summary of non-physical work completed. 

● Metrics achieved during the quarter. 

● Cumulative metrics to date. 

● Primary metrics. 

● Secondary metrics. 

● Secondary match sources or leveraged funding sources. 

● Budget changes approved in writing by America The Beautiful Foundation.
● Key risks, delays, or implementation issues. 
 

Budget changes require prior written approval from America The Beautiful Foundation. Any approved budget changes must be noted in the quarterly report and final report. 
 

Quality Assurance and Quality Control 

Recipients are expected to maintain adequate internal quality assurance and quality control processes. Supporting documentation should be retained for expenditures, work completed, metrics reported, and other key project records. 
 

America The Beautiful Foundation reserves the right to review documents, request clarification, and verify reported claims, expenditures, and deliverables. 

Publicity and Signage 

Recipients and subrecipients agree that America The Beautiful Foundation may use their names and logos on the Foundation’s website and in promotional materials related to the program. 
 

Where appropriate, America The Beautiful Foundation would like signage to be included on trails that acknowledges the participation of America The Beautiful Foundation, the U.S. Forest Service, the recipient, and any subrecipient involved in the restoration. Such signs may be functional and integrated into trail name signs, directional signs, rest area signage, campground signage, or similar infrastructure, with names and or logos placed appropriately. 
 

Legal and Administrative Terms 
 

Conflict of interest 

Applicants must disclose any actual or potential conflict of interest involving project partners, contractors, consultants, subrecipients, or decision-makers connected to the proposed work. America The Beautiful Foundation may request additional information and may impose conditions or decline funding where a conflict cannot be adequately addressed. 
 

Records retention 

Recipients must retain financial records, supporting documentation, reports, maps, and related project records for at least three years after submission of the final report, unless a longer period is required by law or by the governing U.S. Forest Service agreement. 

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Right to audit and document review 

America The Beautiful Foundation reserves the right to review project records, source documentation, and other supporting materials reasonably related to the grant. This may include desk review, virtual review, or site-based review during the grant term and during the records retention period. 
 

Indemnification 

To the fullest extent permitted by law, the recipient shall be responsible for its own acts and omissions and those of its employees, contractors, agents, volunteers, and subrecipients in connection with the grant-funded work. The recipient shall indemnify, defend, and hold harmless America The Beautiful Foundation, its directors, officers, employees, agents, representatives, and partners from and against claims, damages, liabilities, losses, and expenses arising out of or related to the recipient’s or subrecipient’s performance of the project, except to the extent caused by the gross negligence or willful misconduct of America The Beautiful Foundation. 

Program Terms 

America The Beautiful Foundation reserves the right to: 

● Open and close funding rounds as funding permits. 

● Request additional information. 

● Conduct follow-up meetings. 

● Conduct site visits during consideration, implementation, or closeout. 

● Fund all, part, or none of an application. 

● Fund one or more trails within a larger application. 

● Fund selected elements of a larger single-trail project. 

● Approve, deny, or condition requested budget changes. 

● Verify and adjust reported claims or metrics where documentation is insufficient. ● Publicize awarded projects and participating organizations. 
 

Submission of an application does not guarantee funding. 
 

Contact 

Program information is available at www.americathebeautifulfoundation.org. 

Email: info@americathebeautifulfoundation.org 
 

Program Dates 

● Launch: June 6, 2026 

● Continuous submissions: Open while funding remains available 

● Initial award announcement: July 26, 2026 

● Completion deadline: December 31, 2027 

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