New $5M grant round to boost emergency readiness in small Ontario communities

What’s happening

• The Ministry of Emergency Preparedness and Response opened a fourth round of the Community Emergency Preparedness Grant (CEPG) with $5 million available.
• Application window: Aug 19, 2026 to Oct 7, 2026 (deadline 4:00 p.m. ET).

Who can apply

• Upper, lower and single‑tier municipalities with population under 100,000 (2021 census)
• Local Services Boards (Northern Services Boards Act)
• First Nations, Inuit or Métis communities and Indigenous organizations (including Tribal Councils)
• Fire protection service providers in unorganized territories (Fire Protection and Prevention Act, 1997)
• Past CEPG recipients are not eligible in this round

What the money can pay for

• Critical equipment: generators, sandbagging machines, thermal imaging drones, portable radios, pumps, chainsaws
• Emergency operations centre upgrades
• Emergency management training, exercises and public awareness campaigns

How to apply

• Applicants need an ontario.ca login and must register for Transfer Payment Ontario
• The province will hold an information session; advance registration is required to attend

By the numbers (from the release)

• $5 million available in this round
• $20 million total committed to CEPG over four years
• 342 communities and organizations have received CEPG funding so far

Example cited

• Township of Adjala‑Tosorontio previously received $50,000 to buy pumps, hoses, chainsaws and radios that were used in recent wildfire responses.