Funding Opportunity
The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), Drinking Water Protection Section, is accepting applications for the 2026 Community Public Water System Fluoridation Equipment Competitive Grant Program. This applicant-facing public-health financial-assistance program helps small Minnesota community public water systems replace necessary fluoridation equipment or obtain ion-selective electrode testing devices to monitor safe, effective fluoride concentrations.
Funding and Schedule
Each eligible public water system may request up to $3,000. MDH expects approximately 15 awards from an estimated $45,000 total competition pool; the $45,000 is not an individual applicant award. No matching contribution is required. Grants are paid by reimbursement, not advance payment. The anticipated project period is January 2027 through August 14, 2027, with invoices due upon completion by August 15, 2027. Applicants must not incur grant costs or begin work before the agreement is fully executed and effective.
Eligible Applicants
Eligible applicants are Minnesota community public water systems that add fluoride to satisfy the state’s drinking-water requirements, serve fewer than 10,000 people, employ or contract with a properly certified water operator, and are not under a current MDH administrative penalty for state or federal public-water-system violations. The system must need replacement fluoridation process equipment to maintain a water fluoride concentration of 0.5–0.9 mg/L, or need an ion-selective electrode analysis device to monitor fluoride concentrations adequately.
Allowable and Prohibited Expenses
Grant funding is restricted to purchase and installation of approved fluoridation process equipment and/or ion-selective electrode analysis devices. Fluoride chemicals, lobbying and political contributions, fundraising, bad debts, late fees, finance charges, contingency funds, administrative or indirect costs, and taxes other than sales tax on goods or services are not eligible. Selected applicants must obtain required MDH review and approval of equipment installation plans before purchases or construction, and must meet applicable water-quality monitoring, monthly reporting, and quarterly sampling duties.
Application Deadline — Important Official-Source Discrepancy
The controlling October 2026 RFP states Monday, November 23, 2026, at 4:30 p.m. Central Standard Time (CST), and says late applications will not be accepted. MDH’s separate general Open Grant Opportunities listing currently displays November 30, 2026, at 4:30 p.m. CT. The discrepancy has not been reconciled in a published RFP amendment. To protect eligibility, submit by the earlier November 23 deadline unless MDH provides authoritative written confirmation of an extension. Verify the currently controlling date directly with MDH.
How to Apply
Email the completed application to health.drinkingwater@state.mn.us. The required package includes a signed application (RFP Appendix A), signed fluoridation-equipment and engineering cost estimates (Appendix C), signed conflict-of-interest disclosure (Appendix F), and signed due-diligence form (Appendix G). Explain the proposed work, implementation entity, costs, outcome, readiness, and equipment need, including verification from the public water system owner or certified operator. The RFP instructs applicants to allow time for confirmation and to contact the grant coordinator if no receipt acknowledgment arrives within one business day.
Official Sources
Read the October 2026 controlling 22-page RFP and application instructions, the MDH program and application materials page, and the MDH general open-grants index. Research verified October 25, 2026. Check these sources for any amendments or revised deadline instructions before applying.