R2 Firearm and Bow Hunter Safety and Education Program FOR STATE FISH AND GAME AGENCIES | F17AS00020

Opportunity Information: Apply for F17AS00020

The R2 Firearm and Bow Hunter Safety and Education Program (Funding Opportunity Number F17AS00020) is a discretionary grant offered by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service under CFDA 15.626. It is designed specifically for state governments, particularly state fish and game agencies, to strengthen and expand hunter education and safety efforts, with an emphasis on both firearms and archery. The opportunity was created on November 16, 2016, with an original closing date of August 31, 2017, and it listed an award ceiling of $180,000. The overall funding activity focus is education and natural resources, reflecting the program's role in building safe, responsible participation in hunting and shooting sports while supporting wildlife management goals.

At its core, the program allows states to use funds apportioned under Section 10 to enhance and modernize the way hunter education and range-based safety training are delivered. The grant emphasizes improvement rather than maintenance: Section 10 funds are meant to supplement, not replace, Section 4(c) Hunter Education funds. In practical terms, that means states should treat these dollars as an add-on that expands capacity, improves quality, or fills gaps in current programs, rather than using them to backfill existing budgets or sustain baseline activities that are already supported through Section 4(c).

The eligible uses of funding fall into several broad categories. First, states can enhance hunter education, hunter development, and firearm and archery safety programs. "Hunter development" is highlighted as a recruitment and introduction pathway, meaning programs can be aimed at bringing new participants into hunting, bow hunting, target shooting, or archery, not only at certifying existing hunters. Second, the opportunity supports interstate coordination, encouraging states to work together to improve consistency, share best practices, and align efforts related to hunter education and firearm and archery range programs. Third, it explicitly supports bow hunter and archer-focused education and development, recognizing that archery has its own safety practices, equipment knowledge, and training needs. Fourth, the grant can be used to enhance the construction and development of firearm and archery ranges, which can include building or expanding infrastructure that supports safe instruction and supervised practice. Fifth, it supports updates to safety features at existing firearm and archery ranges, which can include improvements that reduce risk, modernize facilities, or bring them into alignment with current safety standards.

The opportunity provides concrete examples of activities that fit within these goals. Funds can support hands-on training that builds safe and proficient use of hunting equipment, reinforces hunter responsibility and ethics, teaches principles of wildlife management, improves wildlife identification skills, and strengthens safe firearms handling practices. The program also allows construction or improvement of facilities needed for instruction, such as classrooms, shooting ranges, and other supporting infrastructure that makes training possible and scalable. In addition, states may use funds to gather and analyze information needed to develop, implement, and evaluate hunter education and safety grant activities, which points to support for planning, assessment, and program improvement rather than only direct instruction. The program also recognizes trapper education as an eligible area when tied to safety and responsible practices, including humane trapping methods, avoiding non-target species, and building practical trapping skills in a way that reduces harm and supports ethical standards. Finally, states can use the grant to communicate information about WSFR grant-funded hunter education and recreational shooting sports activities, which can include outreach and public-facing communication intended to increase awareness, participation, and understanding of program offerings.

Taken together, this grant opportunity is structured to help state fish and game agencies improve the safety, quality, and reach of hunter and archer education, expand infrastructure like ranges and classrooms that make training more accessible, encourage coordination across state lines, and support data-informed program development. The emphasis on supplementation, safety modernization, and recruitment-oriented hunter development signals that the program is meant to build on existing hunter education frameworks while helping states adapt to changing participation trends and facility needs.

• The Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service in the education, natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "R2 Firearm and Bow Hunter Safety and Education Program FOR STATE FISH AND GAME AGENCIES" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.626.
• This funding opportunity was created on Nov 16, 2016.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Aug 31, 2017. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $180,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: State governments.

Apply for F17AS00020

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