Oct 29, 2025

Beyond the Numbers: How to Write an Accurate Grant Budget

By Joelle Greenland, AICP, Senior Planning Consultant, Founder and Principal, Green Lands Consulting

The dreaded budget section. No one sets out to write a grant saying, “I can’t wait to talk about the budget!” In fact, many applicants believe that the most critical part of their application is the narrative section – I mean, that’s where we tell our story, right?

Not quite.

In the world of grant writing, your budget is more than just a bunch of numbers and estimates. In fact, it tells a very important story, one that is integral to how competitive your application is. Think of your budget as the evidence that supports the narrative. It tells the reviewer whether you have done your homework and if you are organized, realistic and prepared to take on the responsibilities of managing a federal grant. A well-justified budget can make all the difference in your application being selected or passed over.

I’ve been in the brownfields arena for quite some time and in my experience in writing and reviewing grants, there are several core principles and best practices for building a sound and solid budget:

Accurate & Simple: Keep your numbers clean and simple. Use clear tasks and round numbers as appropriate. This will not only make it simple for others to understand, but it will make your life a lot easier when managing the budget if awarded.
Balanced & Supportive: Every dollar needs to directly relate and support the activities described in your narrative. If you say you will be conducting community engagement events, then your budget must show funds allocated to them. More importantly, the budget specifies whether these funds are under Personnel (you’re doing it internally) or Contractual (you are hiring someone). Showing EPA that you will have agency over your grant, rather than just “turning it over” to a contractor to manage, is key. This can easily be deciphered by looking at one’s budget.
Ask for Only What You Need: Too much/too little? Do your homework and take the time to really think through the tasks, deliverables, etc. An Inflated and/or underestimated budget raises red flags and could question your level of commitment.
No Ineligible Activities: Do not include any ineligible activities (i.e., demolition, grant writing) without a very good reason. Doing so makes it glaringly obvious that you are unfamiliar with the funding guidelines as well as its restrictions.
Detail- Oriented: Details build credibility. Be specific. A line item for “Travel – Conferences – $10,000” is okay, but “Travel – National/State Brownfield Training Conferences for two City staff (including lodging, airfare, meals, at GSA rate)” is much better. It shows that you’ve thought through the various aspects of attending such events and understand General Services Administration (GSA) rates as well – it’s not your first rodeo or if it is, you did your homework understanding federal awards.
Double & Triple Check Numbers: Meticulously check your numbers (both rows and columns add up). A simple math error can cost you valuable points as well as undermine your attention to detail.

Of course, there are always exceptions. This is why justifications are essential in any application when there are anomalies. For instance, if you are in a rural community and priority sites are in remote villages hundreds of miles away, then the numbers in “Travel” may be unusually high compared to other applications. This is when your budget narrative becomes your “financial narrative” connecting the dots for the reviewer. And if done well, it will provide a compelling case for not only your capability in managing the funds but also the feasibility of your projected outcomes.

A Proactive Approach to Project Costs

A solid budget is not something you do after writing the narrative – it’s an integral part of the grant writing process. It should be considered well before you even begin to write. Let’s break it down:

Estimate the Costs for Each Phase: Break your project down (assessments, cleanup and reuse planning, community engagement, etc.) and develop cost estimates for each phase. This approach makes the budget easier to conceptualize and justify.
Budget BEFORE Identifying Funding: Before you identify grants to apply for, develop a preliminary budget based on your project’s actual needs, vs crafting a budget tailored to grant amounts. This ensures that you are seeking the right level of funding and helps you identify other viable sources that match your timing, capacity and financial restrictions, i.e. cost shares.
Stay Flexible: Your estimates are a snapshot in time. They will most likely change, especially over the life of the grant. Building contingencies for unexpected costs (within reason) demonstrates proactive project management.
Look Inward and Outward: Don’t budget in a vacuum. Talk to partners, stakeholders, colleagues (especially your finance team), to ensure that you have a clear understanding of salaries and overhead rates. Reach out to existing or former grantees or environmental consultants for realistic cost estimates.

Putting it All Together

Clean and Simple Budget:

Level of Detail

A generic budget might show:

Travel – $14,400

Travel costs to perform community outreach at villages.

However, an effective and justified budget would break it down:

Community Engagement – $14,400

Travel costs cover two people to perform community outreach during the second year to inform the four remote villages about the planned cleanup work. Travel per person per trip includes: Airfare ($1,150 x 2 = $2,300 x 4 villages = $9,200); Lodging ($160/nt x 2 nights = $320 x 2 = $640 x 4 villages = $2,560); Per diem (GSA) ($110 x 3 days = $330 x 4 villages = $2,640).

The Budget is Your Guarantee

Essentially, your budget says, “this is what I’m going to do with your money” – it is your promise to the funder (in this case EPA) that you will do what you said you would do. You’re not just asking for money. Instead, you are treating the budget as a strategic component of your application. By providing a detailed, organized and justified budget, you demonstrate the confidence and capability necessary to secure the resources needed to transform a brownfield into a community asset.

For more in-depth guidance on budgets, please visit EPA’s “How To Develop a Budget”.

Extended Education Opportunity:

Joelle Greenland presented “Demystifying Capital Stacks and Budgeting” during the National League of Cities Brownfield Program Workshop on Oct. 9th. View all workshop assets here

Access assets for Topic 4: Demystifying Capital Stacks & Budgeting below

Watch the Video

Download the Slide Deck