GAO Grants Streamlining Report

The GAO has released its second grants streamlining report: http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-06-566

This Report  summarizes the grants streamlining landscape from a grantee's perspective, based on interviews and hard data drawn from a number of  reliable sources.

·        Lack of standardization across agencies and grant administration inefficiencies

·        Continued proliferation of different application, reporting, and payment systems

·        Nomenclature differences across government

·        Agency grant processes do not align with typical grantee business processes

·        Grants.gov implementation difficulties (particularly the lack of a non-PC client, its search capabilities, and the registration process)

·        Inadequate progress across all streamlining initiatives (Grants.gov, GMLOB, workgroups)

·        Continued lack of communication about grants streamlining between government and grantees

·        GAO recommends that P.L. 106-107 be reauthorized beyond its November 2007 sunset date

·        Desire for more definition about the scope and timeline for streamlining initiatives

·        Desire for an end-to-end online grants management system that grantees can use to manage their grants across multiple agencies

It is also important to highlight what's being done to address some of these issues.

·         The P.L. 106-107 Workgroups are aligning terminology and policy language;

·         The Workgroups are also standardizing reporting across agencies and will soon make these available for comment;

·         Grants.gov is optimizing its registration process, in as much as it can, and is seeking out new systems integration services to create a platform for improved 'front office' functionality.

·         The Grants Policy Committee is holding an "open web cast" in September to invite grantee comment on their work.

The GAO Report also includes appendices that detail the issues identified by grantees, and the actions that some states have taken to streamline their grant administration activities.

In addition, the GAO also cites the National Grants Partnership(NGP), an organization that ED and NASACT Co-Chair on the need to have more significant interaction with the cross-agency initiatives before they are published in the Federal Register.

A copy of the report can be downloaded here