Communities Lead, Communities Thrive
BRIC serves as a vehicle to amplify
the voice of community members, often
unheard around social issues and policies directly affecting them.
House Bill 26-1274
State Agency Payments
to Grant Recipients
OFFICIALLY LAW!
What the Law Will Do
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Allows state agencies to provide advance grant payments
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Maintains accountability and oversight
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Gives agencies more flexibility to support nonprofit partners
A Win for Colorado Nonprofits & Communities
The BRIC Fund is proud to celebrate the signing of House Bill 26-1274 into law as a co-founder/member of Communities Lead Communities Thrive (CLCT).
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This new law gives state agencies greater flexibility to provide advance payments to nonprofit grantees that demonstrate a need, helping organizations deliver services faster and reducing the financial burden of waiting for reimbursement.
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This achievement was shaped by nonprofit leaders across Colorado who shared their experiences through CLCT’s Funding the Frontlines listening sessions and advocated for change.
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While this is an important step forward, the work continues. Through CLCT, we remain committed to advancing policies that make state funding more accessible and equitable for nonprofits serving communities across Colorado.
Recognizing continued barriers within Colorado’s decentralized grant systems—especially for organizations with limited capacity—CLCT launched a first-of-its-kind Colorado State Grant Database for Nonprofits in June 2025. Updated biweekly and born directly from the needs expressed by coalition members, this free, centralized tool reduces access barriers and brings transparency to state grant opportunities across agencies
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At the BRIC Fund, we’re proud to be a core part of this collective impact. Through capacity-building grants, technical support, and policy advocacy, CLCT—and by extension BRIC—is helping transform Colorado’s nonprofit ecosystem into one that centers equity, justice, and community power.
"This work is not about charity—it’s about equity, justice, and sustainability. When you invest in the infrastructure and leadership of nonprofits led by and serving historically marginalized communities, you are investing in solutions that are built from within, owned by the community, and designed to endure. That’s how we build the future our communities deserve."
- LaDawn Sullivan, Executive Director, BRIC Fund,
CLCT Steering Committee Member
Historic Small Community- Based Nonprofit Grant Program
BRIC serves as a community accountability member of the SNGP Committee led by Colorado’s Department of Local Affairs. In 2024, the Program distributed 33 million dollars of the ARPA funds in infrastructure grants to over 350 nonprofits serving the Black, Indigenous, Latino, AAPI, LGBTQ, and rural communities of Colorado.
Grants of up to $100k support technology needs, professional development for staff and board members, strategic planning, organizational development to build capacity, adapt fundraising, or other services, communications, and existing program expansion or evaluation.
Outcomes/
Achievements
In early 2022, CLCT proposed Colorado House Bill 22-1356, which requested $35 million of federal American Rescue Plan Act funds to provide infrastructure grants for smaller nonprofits that provide culturally appropriate and relevant services and resources to families and communities. But also, those organizations that have been historically underrepresented, underfunded, under-resourced, and continue to struggle with pandemic recovery.
HB 22-1356 - the Small Community-based Nonprofit Grant Program Bill - was passed by the Colorado Legislature and signed by Gov. Jared Polis on June 3, 2022.
This bill awards grant funds directly to the organizations best equipped to identify and generate community-led and culturally responsive solutions to address their specific needs.
“It’s an opportunity for the state of Colorado not only to say that we are promoting equity, but we are putting in practice equity in the way we are doing better investments for small nonprofits.” ~ Ricardo Perez, CLCT Member and executive director, Hispanic Affairs Project