On November 20, 1999, the President signed Public Law 106-107 /WH/html/tips.html#formats (110k), the Federal Financial Assistance Management Improvement Act. The purposes of this law are to:
The Administration shares the goal of simplifying Federal grants management and is committed to working to make it easier for State, local and Tribal governments, as well as nonprofit organizations, to apply for and report progress on Federal grants.
By May 2001, Federal grantmaking agencies will develop plans to simplify the application and reporting procedures used in their grant programs. These plans will cut across agencies, and they will be designed to reduce the differences that exist between programs of similar purpose.
The agencies will also work to provide an electronic common face, as an option, for grantees to perform the administration of their grant programs. This option will not be specific to each agency, but will allow grantees to use a common system to transact business on all their Federal grants. This option will be operational for award funding availability and application processing by May 2001 and fully operational for complete grant cycle process by 2003.
The Chief Financial Officers Council, which represents the 24 largest agencies in the government, has established a Grants Management Committee to lead implementation of this initiative. OMB will provide oversight and technical assistance, as necessary. The Committee has formed workgroups of agency staff that will work to prepare the plans required by the legislation. Prior to May 2001, the agencies will publish their plan in the Federal Register, outlining the steps they will take to meet the goals noted above.
To learn more about this process, please visit the Committee's home page.
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