MURFREESBORO, TN (WGNS) - The Murfreesboro City Council voted Thursday, March 26, 2026, to approve the Community Investment Trust funding of qualified charitable organizations in FY27. For the upcoming fiscal year, $598,525 will be distributed to thirty (30) charitable organizations, a 22 percent increase over FY26. Last year, $490,696 was distributed to twenty-nine (29) charitable organizations. Council approval represents the final approval needed to award funds to the selected charitable organizations. The Committee on Contributions recommends grants to the Community Investment Trust (CIT) Board of Trustees. The Board approved the grants Feb. 23, 2026, and forwarded them to Council for final review.

On average, the 30 organizations received 61 percent of funds requested, significantly higher than in FY25 and FY26 in which the average of awards was 48 percent and 53 percent of the funds requested, respectively. This is the third year of Trust distributions to qualified charities following the sale of assets from the City’s Electric Department to Middle Tennessee Electric Cooperative (MTE). The top five charities awarded were The Journey Home, Habitat for Humanity, Boys & Girls Club, Child Advocacy Center, and Greenhouse Ministries. For a complete listing of the FY27 qualified charities, projects, and funded amounts awarded, visit www.murfreesborotn.gov/CommunityGrantApplication.

“Benefits to our community from the establishment of the Trust continue to grow,” said Mayor Shane McFarland. “The City Council appreciates the dedicated members of the Board of Trustees and the Committee on Contributions for their hard work in benefiting our community. The funding to these 30 local non-profits will provide worthy services to homeless programs, affordable housing programs, senior and teen services, and more.”

“I am truly honored to serve on the Committee on Contributions,” said Committee Chair Carl D. Montgomery, “Using our highly objective grant funding process and enhanced methodology of scoring and reviewing charitable agencies and their projects, we funded a significant percentage of the applicants’ requests. We look forward to funding an even greater number of non-profits in our community, as Trust funding expands in future years.”

Each fiscal year, the Murfreesboro Community Investment Trust distributes five percent of its balance. Fifteen percent of that distribution is allocated to qualified charitable organizations. The remaining amount funds community projects through the City. For the FY26-27 grant process, the Trust will distribute $598,525 to charitable organizations.

Since funding began, the Trust has disbursed more than $1.45 million to charitable organizations. Additionally, the Trust has contributed almost $5,000,000 to other projects benefiting the community, such as parks and roadways.

In the Fall of 2026, the Committee on Contributions of the Murfreesboro Community Investment Trust will once again accept applications for grants that will be awarded in FY28 to eligible charitable organizations serving the Murfreesboro community. Interested applicants are encouraged to review the Trust’s Grant Application website for more information: https://www.murfreesborotn.gov/2562/Community-Grant-Application

Members of the Committee on Contributions are: Carl D. Montgomery, chair, John A. Hinkle, Jr., Lynn Lien, Lyle Lynch, Wade Hays, Ronnie Martin, Collier Andress Smith.

Members of the Trust’s Board of Trustees are: Kevin Gentry, chair, Shawn Applegate, Anne C. Davis, Stephen F. Flatt, Rick LaLance, Kirk Garrett, and Richard C Stone, Jr.

The Murfreesboro Community Investment Trust was established in 2021 from the proceeds of the sale of the City’s electric department to MTE. The purposes of the Trust are set forth in the Trust Agreement as follows: 

• To support projects and programs of the City or other nonprofit institutions that benefit the City’s inhabitants and improve or enhance the quality of life of the City’s inhabitants or aid civic or other public improvements;
• To promote and advance the social welfare of the inhabitants of the City;
• To promote and support educational and recreational programs, facilities, and opportunities within the City;
• To fund public works within or benefiting the City; and
• To advance the general welfare of the City and its residents

The four grant categories established by the Trust Agreement are: Education and Youth Services (20%), Community Safety and Victim Services (15%), Health Related Services (10%), and Other. The total awards within the first three categories is limited by the Trust Agreement to a percentage of the total available funds. No Grant exceeds the limitation of 25 percent of available funds to a single organization.