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Wasatch County explains TAP grant tiers, 25% match and application process at community workshop
Summary
Wasatch County held a workshop to explain its TAP (sales-tax funded) grant program, covering three funding tiers, a 25% match (including volunteer in-kind valued at $32.46/hour), application scoring, required support letters, and award timing. Staff offered pre-submission review and guidance on bids, budgets and interlocal coordination with Midway and Heber.
Wasatch County staff and local volunteers held a public workshop to walk community members through the countyTap (TAP) grant program, laying out eligibility, timelines and documentation applicants must provide.
The countypresenter, identified in the meeting as the grant program lead, said the program is organized into three tiers: projects under $5,000 (Tier 1), projects from $5,000 to $150,000 (Tier 2) and projects above $150,000 (Tier 3), which typically cover larger infrastructure such as trails or complexes. "If you ask for under $5,000, we'll just give you that money and you can spend it," the presenter said, noting smaller awards are paid up front while larger awards generally provide half up front and the remainder upon completion.
Why it matters: TAP funding is drawn from a local sales-tax pool and is intended to support public projects across arts, trails, parks and community infrastructure. Because the tax is subject to renewal by voters, the county said it requires visibility for funded projects and wants applicants to show clear public benefit.
Key details applicants should know: the TAP board applies a 25% match requirement to all tiers. "Every tier has a 25% match," the presenter said, and that match can be a mix of cash and in-kind volunteer time. The county values volunteer time at $32.46 an hour for match purposes and asks applicants to maintain a volunteer log and a reimbursement ledger to ensure in-kind hours align with claimed match.
On budgets and bids, staff urged applicants to calculate total project cost first and then derive the match. For larger projects the county recommended, and sometimes requires, written bids so reviewers can verify cost estimates. The presenter advised applicants to round to whole dollars and to include contingency so they are not short when contractors increase prices before funds are available.
The application process: the county moved its application to an online form with required fields to ensure complete submissions, but staff acknowledged the current platform lacks a save-and-return function. They recommended preparing answers offline (for example in a document or spreadsheet) and pasting completed responses into the form. The TAP documents page includes the scoring rubric and budget templates the board will use when evaluating applications.
Support materials and partners: applicants must upload supporting documents, including a marketing plan and three letters of support. If a project uses a partnerentity's property, the county said it needs a partner letter from an official at that organization confirming the partnership. County staff said applicants may disclose other grant awards that will provide part of the match, but must state that clearly in the application.
Deadlines and award timing: staff described a spring cycle (applications in Januarythrough February) and a summer cycle (applications opening July 1 to August 30). The TAP board reviews in March, the county council approves awards in April, contracts are issued promptly and applicants have 14 days to sign; funds commonly start to move in May. Contracts run for up to one year and require progress reports every six months; extensions can be requested.
Coordination with cities: the county explained that TAP dollars are shared by interlocal agreement with municipalities (Midway, Heber and others) and encouraged applicants pursuing a project that spans jurisdictions to apply to each relevant funder separately. Staff recommended close communication among municipal boards to avoid duplicate full funding commitments across jurisdictions.
Practical help: the presenter and board members offered pre-submission feedback to applicants, and said two board members are typically assigned to follow up with each application to ask clarifying questions before scoring. Staff reiterated they are available by email to schedule one-on-one assistance.
The session closed with examples from community members (including a proposal to combine storytelling and native-plant work at the Hubert Grove apple orchard) and a reminder to applicants that TAP-funded projects must include visible acknowledgement so voters can see how the tax funds were spent. The county encouraged community members to contact staff for help drafting budgets and preparing support materials.
