GRANT Act

Summary

Grant Reform and New Transparency Act of 2016 or the GRANT Act This bill directs the Office of Management and Budget to upgrade any public website for finding federal grant opportunities to: (1) serve as a central point of information on, and provide full access for applicants to, competitive grants; and (2) capture in one site, or provide electronic links to, other relevant databases. Executive agencies shall post on such website: (1) a clear statement of the purpose, duration, and eligibility requirements of the grant and, for merit-based grants, a description of the manner in which applications or proposals will be evaluated, ranked, and selected; (2) agency contacts and application deadlines; and (3) copies of each proposal that resulted in a grant award, the final grant agreement, and selection documentation and justification. Under certain circumstances, agencies may limit postings to proposal abstracts or executive summaries, redact personally identifiable information, and exclude sensitive information about critical infrastructure. Agencies must evaluate: (1) the ability of the applicant to carry out the grant, manage funds according to accepted cost accounting principles, and comply with federal fund recipient reporting requirements; (2) the past performance and integrity of the applicant; (3) whether the applicant has received other federal funds; and (4) any interagency duplication of efforts for research grants. Agencies must post a forecast of all non-emergency grant solicitations the agency expects to issue for the upcoming calendar year. Upon an applicant's request, an agency must explain the basis for an award decision of a grant exceeding $100,000 pursuant to a merit-based selection procedure. Inspectors General shall review the effectiveness of agency conflicts of interest policy with respect to the peer review process for competitive grants in order to detect favoritism. The Government Accountability Office shall report on the size and training of the federal grants workforce, on whether a warrant system similar to that used in the federal acquisition system should be established for federal officials authorized to award grants, and on recommendations for improving such workforce.

This text is taken from the official record. PoliticalRepo does not editorialize.

Timeline

1. 23 May 2016

   Introduced

   Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

   Source: IntroReferral

2. 23 May 2016

   Introduced

   Introduced in Senate

   Source: IntroReferral

3. 25 May 2016

   Reported

   Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.

   Source: Committee

4. 8 June 2016

   Floor

   Star Print ordered on the bill.

   Source: Floor

5. 9 December 2016

   Calendars

   Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 723.

   Source: Calendars

6. 9 December 2016

   Reported

   Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Reported by Senator Johnson with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. Without written report.

   Source: Committee

7. 9 December 2016

   Reported

   Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Reported by Senator Johnson with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. Without written report.

   Source: Committee

8. 20 December 2016

   Floor

   By Senator Johnson from Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs filed written report under authority of the order of the Senate of 12/10/2016. Report No. 114-407.

   Source: Floor

9. 20 December 2016

   Committee

   By Senator Johnson from Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs filed written report under authority of the order of the Senate of 12/10/2016. Report No. 114-407.

   Source: Committee

Votes

No vote records are attached yet.

Versions

• Reported to Senate · 9 December 2016 · Official file
• Introduced in Senate · 23 May 2016 · Official file

Documents

6 official files

• Reported to Senate (text)

  Reported to Senate · EN · 9 December 2016

  ViewDownloadOpen at official source

• Reported to Senate (PDF)

  Reported to Senate · EN · 9 December 2016

  ViewDownloadOpen at official source

• Reported to Senate with amendment(s)

  summary · EN · 9 December 2016

  Open at official source

• Introduced in Senate (text)

  Introduced in Senate · EN · 23 May 2016

  ViewDownloadOpen at official source

• Introduced in Senate (PDF)

  Introduced in Senate · EN · 23 May 2016

  ViewDownloadOpen at official source

• Introduced in Senate

  summary · EN · 23 May 2016

  Open at official source

Sponsors

• James Lankford · R · Sponsor
• · ssga00 · Standing

Related records

No cross-record relationships stored yet.