Resources

Washington, June 15 – When auditors eventually submit entire single audit reporting package online as part of America Recovery and Reinvestment Act requirements, they must ensure that no personal information is included, according to a key official with the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

Washington, May 21 – The process for conducting single audits of programs under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act should be altered to make them more timely and useful, the Government Accountability Office is recommending in the first of a series of reports on how states are implementing Recovery Act funds.

Washington, May 13 – In guidance released this week, Office of Management and Budget officials are telling state officials that they can use up to 0.5 percent of the total Recovery Act funds they receive to cover administrative costs associated with overseeing their grant awards.

Washington, May 8 – As more grantseekers begin using the federal government’s Web portal, Grants.gov, to submit applications for American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding, officials are noting an increased number of questions coming in to its contact center. To help answer some of these questions, Granst.gov has updated its site with a new guide to address its users’ frequently asked questions. The Economic Recovery Grants Center below provides some of the most common questions along with Grants.gov’s answers.

Washington, May 6 — The Federal Bar Association hosted a question-and-answer session on aspects of grants law and regulations at the National Grants Management Association Annual Training Conference. Session panelists were Thomas Armstrong, assistant general counsel for appropriations and budgeting at the Government Accountability Office; Stacia Davis Le Blanc, senior counsel at Feldesman Tucker Leifer Fidell LLP; Peter Wathen-Dunn, senior attorney for the Department of Education’s Office of General Counsel; and Jennifer Schwab, senior attorney with the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of General Counsel. The following offers condensed responses to Recovery Act questions posed during the session.

Washington, March 31 – The Association of Government Accountants’ Partnership for Intergovernmental Management and Accountability recently held a conference call on the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Following are abridged responses offered during a question-and-answer session. The participants were Danny Werfel, deputy controller at the Office of Management and Budget; Sheila Conley, deputy chief financial officer at the Department of Health and Human Services; Owen Barwell, deputy chief financial officer at the Department of Energy; Kristine Leiphart, deputy chief financial officer of the Federal Transit Administration; and Melinda Morgan, director of the financial staff at the Department of Justice.

The Economic Recovery Grants Center recently obtained a list of new and revised grant programs whose Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance numbers have been affected by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Pub. L. 111-5). Click on the attached PDF for the complete list.

Washington, March 24 – The Office of Management and Budget still is formulating its policies for data reporting and data flow under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, Pub. L. 111-5, an OMB official said recently.

Many grant proposals and even some foundation applications require or request proof of involvement with partners. Those who are providing the funds want an assurance that their money is well spent on collaborative projects and that there is coordination without duplication of services. Good communication is the key to success in developing and maintaining those collaborative partnerships. This is true for the grant world as well as any other field, activity or relationship. In order to achieve good communication, everyone in a collaborative group has to understand

Most grant writers and their agencies are most familiar with competitive project grants. The federal government also allocates monies for formula grants and earmarked grants.