You’ve scoured the internet for hours, looking for an effective and reliable source to give you some information on grants and loans offered by the United States government. You have stumbled upon dozens of references and web sites, but none of them have enough information about what these grants and loans are exactly, and how they are obtained. 

Your tiresome searching, that up to now has still been fruitless and unsuccessful, ends here. Read on to learn some useful information on US government grants and loans.

What are US government grants and loans?

Let’s begin with loans. Government loans are like ordinary loans, and cater to a wide variety of needs, from business startup loans, disaster relief, housing, veteran, agriculture to student loans. The US government has set up a site specifically about the loans that its many departments offer. The site can be found at www.govloans.gov. In this site you will find agencies that offer different kinds of loans. You will also be able to search through loans that are currently available, so that you may find the one that best suits your financial needs.

A federal grant, on the other hand, is a form of financial assistance given by a federal agency to a beneficiary, whether it is a private citizen or an organization, for the purpose of carrying out public support or stimulation authorized by the law of the United States.

Every year, over 1,000 federal grants are offered by 26 federal agencies. These grants fall under different categories, such as:
Agriculture
Energy
Arts
Regional Development
Education
Environmental Quality
Food and Nutrition
Health
Community Development
Humanities
Business and Commerce
Housing
Disaster Prevention and Relief
Information and Statistics
Law, Justice, as well as Legal Services
Natural Resources
Science and Technology
Employment, Labor and Training
Social Services and Income Security
Transportation

Grants can also be categorized into two, namely general purpose, or operating support grants, and program development, or project support grants. General purpose grants can be used on the general expenses on operations by the recipient, while project support grants can be used on a specific set of related activities. Such grants require that a project set explicit or specific objectives and a predetermined cost. A project support grant, being much more specific than the general purpose grant, is restricted to be used on the predetermined project.   

The United States government has set up a website specifically about the grants that its various agencies offer. You can visit the site at www.grants.gov.