AMSTRA CAPITAL · LLC

Turning small towns into well-funded communities.

Every year, billions in federal and state grant dollars are allocated for rural America — and only a fraction of it reaches the communities it was meant for. We change that. AMSTRA becomes your grant department.

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02 · Who We Serve

The communities rural America depends on.

We work with seven broad sectors across small-town America. Tap any tile to see how we help — the grants we pursue, the problems we solve, and the outcomes we deliver.

03 · The Funding Gap

The money is already appropriated.
It just isn't reaching you.

Rural communities house a third of America and compete for a sliver of the grant dollars. Most small towns don't lose on merit — they lose because they never applied.

~80%
of competitive federal grants go to communities that already have full-time grant teams. The rest is left on the table.
Anchor statistic — to be verified against primary sources before launch
Small Towns · US
Where rural America lives.
Municipalities under 10,000 people~16,400
Counties classified as rural~1,980
Americans living in rural communities~60M
Grant Dollars · Available vs. Received
The gap rural towns can't close alone.
Annual federal + state dollars available$180B+
% that reaches communities under 25k~18%
Dollars left unapplied-for~82%
04 · What We Do

We become your grant department.

Not a consultant. Not a one-off application. A permanent partner that identifies every dollar your community qualifies for — and then goes and gets it.

Identify

We map every federal, state, and regional program your community qualifies for — across public safety, education, healthcare, infrastructure, and more. Nothing gets missed.

Develop & Write

Our team writes the narratives, builds the budgets, produces the attachments, and handles submission. Your staff stays focused on running the community.

Administer

We stay with you after the award — compliance, reporting, drawdowns, audits. The money is only useful if it's administered correctly, and most of the work lives here.

The difference: we work your entire community simultaneously — not one department at a time.

Most grant shops chase a single opportunity for a single client. We sit down with the mayor, the sheriff, the superintendent, the hospital administrator, and the public-works director together — and pursue funding as one coordinated plan.

05 · Grant Landscape

The programs we work every day.

A living catalog of the federal and state programs we actively pursue for our communities. Swipe or use the arrows to explore.

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06 · Our Approach

Six steps. One long partnership.

The same structured process, every time. No surprises, no mystery.

01

Community Assessment

We sit down with every department and catalog every need, every asset, every deferred project that's been waiting on funding.

02

Grant Identification

We match your community's needs against federal, state, and regional programs — and prioritize the ones you'll actually win.

03

Application Development

Narrative, budget, letters of support, agency compliance. We build the full submission package.

04

Submission & Agency Communication

We submit, track, respond to reviewer questions, and run point with the funding agency from pre-award through decision.

05

Award Administration

Drawdowns, reporting, compliance, audit prep. The hard work starts after the award letter.

06

Ongoing Partnership

New programs open constantly. We stay in your community, mapping the next cycle, building the next application, protecting the last one.

07 · Case Studies

What this looks like on the ground.

Six examples of the work we pursue across the sectors we serve. Swipe to explore — each card shows the program funded, the grants in play, and the typical turn-around.

Photo coming soon
Public Safety

Modern Police Equipment Through Grant Funding

Body-worn cameras, tactical vests, modern radios, and protective equipment can all be acquired through strategic grant funding without burdening local taxpayer budgets. Body cameras enhance officer accountability and provide crucial court evidence; protective gear improves safety on high-risk calls; advanced radio systems keep officers connected during emergencies. Through DOJ COPS grants, FEMA AFG, and state law enforcement assistance funds, we help rural police and sheriff's offices access the equipment they need — and signal to the community a department serious about professional policing.

Grant UsedDOJ COPS · FEMA AFG
Turn-around8–12 months
Photo coming soon
Municipal Government

Digital Government Modernization

A rural municipality of 5,000–15,000 residents looking to modernize citizen services could typically pursue a multi-program package through USDA Community Connect, state digital government initiatives, and targeted foundation grants. Common scope includes a modern public-facing website, online payment and permitting systems, digital records management, and a citizen portal for service requests. These projects reduce administrative costs, improve citizen satisfaction, and position the community to attract new residents and businesses who expect modern government services.

Grant UsedUSDA Community Connect
Turn-around9–14 months
Photo coming soon
Disaster Preparedness

Pre-Event Mitigation & Continuity Planning

A rural community in a hurricane-, flood-, or wildfire-exposed region looking to harden its critical operations could typically pursue a coordinated package through FEMA's Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program, the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP), and the Emergency Management Performance Grant (EMPG). Common scope includes generators for water and emergency facilities, EOC technology upgrades, hazard-mitigation planning, public-alert systems, and continuity-of-operations documentation. Communities that complete this work before the next event recover faster, qualify for stronger post-disaster funding, and protect the residents who depend on them most.

Grant UsedFEMA BRIC + HMGP
Turn-around9–14 months
Photo coming soon
Infrastructure Resiliency

Critical Systems That Stay Online

A rural community with aging water, energy, and roadway systems facing storm and grid stress could typically assemble a multi-program resiliency package through USDA Rural Development, EPA's Clean Water State Revolving Fund, DOE energy-efficiency programs, and FEMA mitigation grants. Common scope includes water-system hardening, backup power for critical facilities, microgrid feasibility, road and bridge reinforcement, and broadband redundancy. The result: critical services that stay online when the grid doesn't, infrastructure that lasts a generation, and a community better positioned to support its residents and economy through whatever comes next.

Grant UsedUSDA RD + EPA CWSRF
Turn-around12–18 months
Photo coming soon
Education

Security and Safety in Schools

A rural K–12 district looking to modernize school security could typically pursue funding through DOJ's STOP School Violence Act, the COPS School Violence Prevention Program, FEMA preparedness pathways, and state school-safety initiatives. Common scope includes secure entry vestibules, access-control systems, panic-alert technology, threat-assessment training, mental-health and counseling capacity, and school resource officer support. These investments protect students and staff, reduce incident response times, and signal to families and educators that safety isn't an afterthought — it's a budget line and a daily commitment that builds trust across the school community.

Grant UsedDOJ STOP + COPS SVPP
Turn-around8–12 months
Photo coming soon
Correctional Facilities

Resiliency in Rural Detention

A rural county jail or juvenile detention facility facing aging infrastructure, staffing strain, and rising behavioral-health caseloads could typically pursue funding through DOJ's Second Chance Act, the Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (JAG), the Juvenile Justice & Delinquency Prevention program, and SAMHSA behavioral-health grants. Common scope includes facility upgrades, surveillance and security technology, substance-use treatment programming, mental-health support, staff training, and reentry services. These projects reduce recidivism, improve officer and resident safety, and ease the long-term cost burden that aging detention infrastructure places on county budgets.

Grant UsedDOJ Second Chance + JAG
Turn-around10–14 months
Photo coming soon
Fire Service

Modern Fire & Rescue Capability

A rural fire department or volunteer company working to modernize its capability could typically pursue funding through FEMA's Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG), the SAFER staffing program, state fire marshal initiatives, and USDA Rural Development. Common scope includes self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA), turnout gear, pumper or tanker apparatus, station alerting systems, portable radios, and training. These investments keep firefighters safer, extend response range, and ensure the community has the crew and equipment it needs when seconds matter — without forcing the department to choose between gear, staffing, and the next apparatus replacement cycle.

Grant UsedFEMA AFG + SAFER
Turn-around9–14 months
Photo coming soon
Emergency Management

Building the Emergency Operations Capability

A rural county or multi-county emergency management office looking to strengthen day-to-day coordination and activation readiness could typically pursue funding through the Emergency Management Performance Grant (EMPG), state homeland security programs, and FEMA preparedness pathways. Common scope includes emergency operations center (EOC) technology, incident management software, public warning and alert systems, tabletop exercises and training, CERT and volunteer programs, and updated emergency operations plans. The result is an office that can activate quickly, coordinate cleanly across agencies, and communicate with residents the moment it matters most — before, during, and after an incident.

Grant UsedEMPG + State HSGP
Turn-around8–12 months
Photo coming soon
Energy Efficiency

Cutting Municipal Energy Costs

A rural community looking to reduce utility costs across its municipal portfolio — city hall, schools, water facilities, public works garages — could typically pursue funding through DOE's Energy Efficiency & Conservation Block Grant (EECBG), state energy office programs, USDA Rural Energy for America (REAP), and utility rebate stacking. Common scope includes LED lighting retrofits, HVAC modernization, building envelope and insulation upgrades, energy audits, smart controls, and EV-ready infrastructure. These projects pay back inside the budget — every dollar saved on utilities is a dollar the community can redirect to public safety, schools, or essential services.

Grant UsedDOE EECBG + USDA REAP
Turn-around10–14 months
Photo coming soon
Resiliency & Power

Backup Power & Power Offset

A rural community wanting to keep critical facilities running through grid events while offsetting day-to-day power costs could typically assemble a combined package through FEMA mitigation grants (BRIC, HMGP), DOE clean energy programs, USDA REAP for municipal renewables, and state clean energy funds. Common scope includes standby generators for water, wastewater, and emergency facilities, on-site solar paired with battery storage for critical load support, microgrid feasibility studies, and EV fleet charging. These projects deliver two returns: essential services that don't stop when the grid does, and a lower utility line on the monthly budget every month after.

Grant UsedFEMA BRIC + USDA REAP + DOE
Turn-around12–18 months
08 · About AMSTRA

Built for rural America.
By people who've lived it.

AMSTRA Capital, LLC was built on twenty years of work inside the systems that decide which communities get funded and which don't. We saw small towns lose the same grants year after year — not because their projects weren't worthy, but because no one on staff had the time or training to pursue them.

So we built the grant department small communities couldn't build for themselves.

AMSTRA — Austin, Meyer, Strategies. A family-founded firm, headquartered in North Carolina, operating nationwide.
Julie Austin

Julie Austin

Contract Manager

Julie leads ACS as a Contracts and Proposal Specialist with over 29 years of experience in commercial and government contracting. She is an expert in cradle-to-grave contract management, FAR/DFAR compliance, proposal development, and risk mitigation. Over her career, Julie has supported the Aerospace, Intelligence & Information sectors, reviewed classified and unclassified RFPs, developed compliant and competitive proposals, and negotiated cost-plus and fixed-price contracts. She has also completed hundreds of USDA REAP submissions, giving her unique insight into the funding challenges and opportunities facing rural communities.

Jeff Austin

Jeff Austin

Legal & Administration

Jeff brings over 20 years of experience as a licensed attorney and renewable energy strategist. His expertise spans Contract Lifecycle Management, PPAs, EPC agreements, real estate leasing, deal structuring, vendor negotiation, solar strategy, ROI modeling, and compliance oversight. Jeff has closed more than 200 MW of solar projects, managed supply chain and vendor agreements, built financial proformas and IRR/ROI models, and secured project funding for large-scale infrastructure initiatives. His background helps communities structure deals that are financially sound, legally secure, and positioned for long-term success.

Josh Meyer

Josh Meyer

Development & Relations

Josh leads new community relationships and grant development strategy.

Bio in progress
Joey Austin

Joey Austin

Development & Relations

Joey works with communities on project scoping and application development.

Bio in progress
09 · Contact

No forms. No call centers.
When you reach out, you reach us.

Pick the person whose work most fits your question, and contact them directly. We'll get back to you the same day.

Julie Austin

Contract Manager
julie@amstracapital.com 704-883-6259

Jeff Austin

Legal & Admin
jeff@amstracapital.com 704-929-0595

Josh Meyer

Development
josh@amstracapital.com 501-200-7017

Joey Austin

Development
joey@amstracapital.com 910-352-6085
AMSTRA Capital, LLC — a North Carolina Limited Liability Company
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