Federal Uniform Grant Guidance

The federal Uniform Grant Guidance outlines the requirements agencies must use when applying for and receiving federal grant money. It is a publication of the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

OMB’s goals for the Uniform Grant Guidance are to:

Streamline guidance for federal awards to ease administrative burdens.
Strengthen oversight over federal funds to reduce risks of fraud, waste and abuse.
Focus grant policies on areas that emphasize the achievement of better grant outcomes at lower costs.

The Uniform Guidance is available online at the Electronic Code of Federal Regulations website. It is broken into 6 subparts:

Subpart A contains acronyms and definitions used throughout the Guidance.
Subpart B discusses general provisions, including the purpose of the Guidance, its applicability and effective date.
Subpart C covers administrative requirements directed primarily at federal agencies, including pre-award activities and requirements for the contents of federal awards.
Subpart D includes many of the administrative requirements that will be areas of focus for recipients including procurement, internal control, and subrecipient monitoring.
Subpart E includes reforms to the cost principles previously found in Circulars A-21, A-87 and A-122.
Subpart F includes the reforms to single audit requirements that were previously found in Circulars A-133 and A-50. These are only briefly addressed in this overview.

The standards that affect the administration of grants and cooperative agreements issued by federal agencies are effective for awards or increments of awards issued on or after Dec. 26, 2014. The audit provisions are effective for fiscal years beginning on or after Dec. 26, 2014.

Reference Materials