Congratulations on receiving a Whale Tail^® Grant!

Below are resources to help you with grant management and contract requirements. Please don't hesitate to contact your Grant Manager at Jessica.Lie@coastal.ca.gov, or the Public Education Program Manager at Annie.Frankel@coastal.ca.gov with any questions.
(This page was last updated 09/18/2025.)

DISCLAIMER REGARDING COMMUNICATION WITH THE COMMISSION
Applicants and grantees are notified that all communication to and from the Commission is subject to public release under the state's Public Records Act (PRA). That communication includes, but is not limited to, messages, documents, pictures, and financial details listed in spreadsheets. Please avoid using any personal data (home addresses, personal cell phones, personal emails) in your communications with us. Do not assume your communication or any aspect of it is confidential. If you have concerns about specific material, please request a phone call from staff.

Please submit invoices and final reports by email.

Invoicing

Invoicing instructions for reimbursement. Please share this document with the people who will be making grant purchases and preparing invoices. This guidance document includes detailed invoicing instructions and our typical reporting requirements.

Invoice Checklist to review before submitting an invoice. This checklist is just for your use and does not need to be submitted with your invoice.

*Please follow up with your Grant Manager if you don't hear back within 2 business days of submitting your invoice.

Invoice Templates and Forms:

• You can use our fillable invoice template or your own invoice format. If the template does not provide enough lines for your expense items, you can insert additional rows using the Word or Excel version of the template. If you create your own invoice, be sure that it includes the level of detail required for your Whale Tail Grant. See Invoice Checklist.
  (Note: Any line item changes more than 10% from the grant agreement budget and/or expense items not included in the grant agreement budget must be approved by the Grant Manager. Please contact Jessica.Lie@coastal.ca.gov for approvals before preparing your invoice.)


• Fillable invoice template as Word document, PDF file, or Excel spreadsheet


• Travel Expense forms to complete, sign, and include with your invoice if you are billing for travel expenses, especially mileage. If your travel consists only of school or charter bus fees, you do not need to submit a Travel Expense Claim form with your invoice.
  If you are unable to edit Excel spreadsheets or have any trouble with the Travel Expense form, please contact Jessica.Lie@coastal.ca.gov for assistance with your travel invoice.


• Example of completed Travel Expense form (PDF) with mileage, parking, and rental car expenses. Sections for you to complete are highlighted in yellow.
• 2025 Travel Expense form (Excel) for mileage that took place during 2025 with mileage rate of 70 cents/mile
• 2024 Travel Expense form (Excel) for mileage that took place during 2024 with mileage rate of 67 cents/mile


• For stipend backup documentation, you can use our fillable stipend form or your own format if it includes a similar level of information.


• Fillable stipend form as Word document, PDF file, or Excel spreadsheet

Reporting

Please refer to your signed grant agreement for your specific reporting requirements, found in Exhibit A. If your grant requires progress reports, those dates will be noted there. At any time, during a progress report or otherwise, you can contact your Grant Manager about upcoming events or announcements regarding your grant project for the Coastal Commission to consider promoting on our social media.

A progress report is a brief check-in for you to let us know if your project is on schedule with the timeline in your grant agreement, or if there are any issues to bring up or changes you may need to request. You can also share any successes, upcoming events, or photos. Progress reports should not be time-consuming to prepare. You can submit progress reports through email or have a phone/Zoom conversation (~15 minutes). Please contact Jessica.Lie@coastal.ca.gov to arrange a progress report call or if you have any questions about what to include.

• Progress report questions (Word) if it's helpful to work from a list of questions.

Your final grant report is a detailed, written document submitted by email to your Grant Manager at the end of your grant project. You will find a list of questions to answer and things to include in your final report in Exhibit A of your grant agreement. You should review this section before you start your project so that you can be sure to collect the information needed for your report.

• Final report template (Word) lists what content to include in the final report. You can use this template or your own format.

Funding Credit

Funding credit logo to use on webpages, social media, flyers, booklets, or any other printed or visual materials that will be created as part of the program receiving funding. Funding for our grants program is made possible by sales of the WHALE TAIL® License Plate, donations to the Protect Our Coast and Oceans Fund on the California state tax return, and funds from the State of California. Your grant agreement includes language requiring acknowledgement of support from the Coastal Commission and funding sources, including using the logo where possible, on publicity, outreach, and educational materials prepared as part of the grant project, and when publicizing such work in any media. You will include evidence showing how and where you acknowledged your funding source in your final grant report.

• Funding credit logo with frame
• Funding credit logo no frame