Redlands, Calif. -- ESRI, a world leader in GIS software, and Trimble, a world leader in providing GPS solutions, have launched the 2009 Mobile Government Grant Program. Grants will award hardware, software, and training with a value of $89,980 to 20 state and local government agencies in the United States.

“This grant program is about helping governments move faster,” said Christopher Thomas, government industry solutions manager, ESRI. “Providing our resources empowers great projects to get off the ground. Then the lessons learned, best practices, and resulting code can be shared with other government agencies to facilitate their success.

ESRI and Trimble developed the program to foster innovative approaches to solving government problems through the combined use of GIS, GPS, mobile, and server technology. Projects must demonstrate increased efficiencies in collecting data for decision support or increased productivity in delivering government services.

“There are tremendous opportunities to improve the efficiency of field-workers in the public sector,” said Robert Laudati, director of marketing for Trimble’s Mapping and GIS Division. “We’re very pleased to be working with ESRI in support of this grant program, which provides an excellent vehicle for government organizations to demonstrate the value of geoenabling their mobile workforce.”

Applicants can begin submitting their applications immediately. The official deadline for all submissions is 5:00 p.m. Pacific time, November 20, 2009. Awards will be announced December 18, 2009.

To learn more about the ESRI and Trimble Mobile Government Grants, visit www.esri.com/govgrant.