1.This Act may be cited as
the Federal Financial Assistance
Management Improvement Act of 2009
.
2.Section 11 of the Federal Financial
Assistance Management Improvement Act of 1999 (31 U.S.C. 6101 note) is
amended—
(1)in the section
heading, by striking AND
SUNSET
; and
(2)by striking
and shall cease to be effective 8 years after such date of
enactment
.
3.Website relating
to Federal grantsSection 6 of
the Federal Financial Assistance Management Improvement Act of 1999 (31 U.S.C.
6101 note) is amended—
(1)by redesignating subsections (e) and (f) as
subsections (f) and (g), respectively;
(2)by inserting
after subsection (d) the following:
(e)Website
relating to Federal grants
(1)The Director shall establish and maintain a public
website that serves as a central point of information and access for applicants
for Federal grants.
(2)To
the maximum extent possible, the website established under this subsection
shall include, at a minimum, for each Federal grant—
(A)the grant
announcement;
(B)the statement of
eligibility relating to the grant;
(C)the application
requirements for the grant;
(D)the purposes of
the grant;
(E)the Federal
agency funding the grant; and
(F)the deadlines for
applying for and awarding of the grant.
(3)The website established under this subsection shall,
to the greatest extent practical, allow grant applicants to—
(A)search the
website for all Federal grants by type, purpose, funding agency, program
source, and other relevant criteria;
(B)apply for a
Federal grant using the website;
(C)manage, track,
and report on the use of Federal grants using the website; and
(D)provide all
required certifications and assurances for a Federal grant using the
website.
;
and
(3)in subsection
(g), as so redesignated, by striking All actions
and inserting
Except for actions relating to establishing the website required under
subsection (e), all actions
.
4.The Federal
Financial Assistance Management Improvement Act of 1999 (31 U.S.C. 6101 note)
is amended by striking section 7 and inserting the following:
7.Evaluation of
implementation
(a)Not later than 9 months after the date of enactment of
the Federal Financial Assistance Management
Improvement Act of 2009, and every 2 years thereafter until the
date that is 15 years after the date of enactment of the
Federal Financial Assistance Management
Improvement Act of 2009, the Director shall submit to Congress a
report regarding the implementation of this Act.
(b)
(1)Each report under subsection (a) shall include, for the
applicable period—
(A)a list of all
grants for which an applicant may submit an application using the website
established under section 6(e);
(B)a list of all
Federal agencies that provide Federal financial assistance to non-Federal
entities;
(C)a list of each
Federal agency that has complied, in whole or in part, with the requirements of
this Act;
(D)for each Federal
agency listed under subparagraph (C), a description of the extent of the
compliance with this Act by the Federal agency;
(E)a list of all
Federal agencies exempted under section 6(d);
(F)for each Federal
agency listed under subparagraph (E)—
(i)an explanation of
why the Federal agency was exempted; and
(ii)a certification
that the basis for the exemption of the Federal agency is still
applicable;
(G)a list of all
common application forms that have been developed that allow non-Federal
entities to apply, in whole or in part, for multiple Federal financial
assistance programs (including Federal financial assistance programs
administered by different Federal agencies) through a single common
application;
(H)a list of all
common forms and requirements that have been developed that allow non-Federal
entities to report, in whole or in part, on the use of funding from multiple
Federal financial assistance programs (including Federal financial assistance
programs administered by different Federal agencies);
(I)a description of
the efforts made by the Director and Federal agencies to communicate and
collaborate with representatives of non-Federal entities during the
implementation of the requirements under this Act;
(J)a description of
the efforts made by the Director to work with Federal agencies to meet the
goals of this Act, including a description of working groups or other
structures used to coordinate Federal efforts to meet the goals of this Act;
and
(K)identification
and description of all systems being used to disburse Federal financial
assistance to non-Federal entities.
(2)The second report submitted under subsection (a), and
each subsequent report submitted under subsection (a), shall include—
(A)a discussion of
the progress made by the Federal Government in meeting the goals of this Act,
including the amendments made by the Federal
Financial Assistance Management Improvement Act of 2009, and in
implementing the strategic plan submitted under section 8, including an
evaluation of the progress of each Federal agency that has not received an
exemption under section 6(d) towards implementing the strategic plan;
and
(B)a compilation of
the reports submitted under section 8(c)(3) during the applicable
period.
(c)Definition of
applicable periodIn this section, the term applicable
period means—
(1)for the first
report submitted under subsection (a), the most recent full fiscal year before
the date of the report; and
(2)for the second
report submitted under subsection (a), and each subsequent report submitted
under subsection (a), the period beginning on the date on which the most recent
report under subsection (a) was submitted and ending on the date of the
report.
.
5.
(a)The Federal Financial
Assistance Management Improvement Act of 1999 (31 U.S.C. 6101 note) is
amended—
(1)by redesignating
sections 8, 9, 10, and 11 as sections 9, 10, 11, and 12, respectively;
and
(2)by inserting
after section 7, as amended by this Act, the following:
8.
(a)Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of
the Federal Financial Assistance Management
Improvement Act of 2009, the Director shall submit to Congress a
strategic plan that—
(1)identifies
Federal financial assistance programs that are suitable for common applications
based on the common or similar purposes of the Federal financial
assistance;
(2)identifies
Federal financial assistance programs that are suitable for common reporting
forms or requirements based on the common or similar purposes of the Federal
financial assistance;
(3)identifies common
aspects of multiple Federal financial assistance programs that are suitable for
common application or reporting forms or requirements;
(4)identifies
changes in law, if any, needed to achieve the goals of this Act; and
(5)provides plans,
timelines, and cost estimates for—
(A)developing an
entirely electronic, web-based process for managing Federal financial
assistance, including the ability to—
(i)apply for Federal
financial assistance;
(ii)track the status
of applications for and payments of Federal financial assistance;
(iii)report on the
use of Federal financial assistance, including how such use has been in
furtherance of the objectives or purposes of the Federal financial assistance;
and
(iv)provide required
certifications and assurances;
(B)ensuring full
compliance by Federal agencies with the requirements of this Act, including the
amendments made by the Federal Financial
Assistance Management Improvement Act of 2009;
(C)creating common
applications for the Federal financial assistance programs identified under
paragraph (1), regardless of whether the Federal financial assistance programs
are administered by different Federal agencies;
(D)establishing
common financial and performance reporting forms and requirements for the
Federal financial assistance programs identified under paragraph (2),
regardless of whether the Federal financial assistance programs are
administered by different Federal agencies;
(E)establishing
common applications and financial and performance reporting forms and
requirements for aspects of the Federal financial assistance programs
identified under paragraph (3), regardless of whether the Federal financial
assistance programs are administered by different Federal agencies;
(F)developing
mechanisms to ensure compatibility between Federal financial assistance
administration systems and State systems to facilitate the importing and
exporting of data;
(G)developing common
certifications and assurances, as appropriate, for all Federal financial
assistance programs that have common or similar purposes, regardless of whether
the Federal financial assistance programs are administered by different Federal
agencies; and
(H)minimizing the
number of different systems used to disburse Federal financial
assistance.
(b)In
developing and implementing the strategic plan under subsection (a), the
Director shall consult with representatives of non-Federal entities and Federal
agencies that have not received an exemption under section 6(d).
(c)
(1)Not later than 6 months after the date on which the
Director submits the strategic plan under subsection (a), the head of each
Federal agency that has not received an exemption under section 6(d) shall
develop a plan that describes how the Federal agency will carry out the
responsibilities of the Federal agency under the strategic plan, which shall
include—
(A)clear performance
objectives and timelines for action by the Federal agency in furtherance of the
strategic plan; and
(B)the
identification of measures to improve communication and collaboration with
representatives of non-Federal entities on an on-going basis during the
implementation of this Act.
(2)The
head of each Federal agency that has not received an exemption under section
6(d) shall consult with representatives of non-Federal entities during the
development and implementation of the plan of the Federal agency developed
under paragraph (1).
(3)Not
later than 2 years after the date on which the head of a Federal agency that
has not received an exemption under section 6(d) develops the plan under
paragraph (1), and every 2 years thereafter until the date that is 15 years
after the date of enactment of the Federal
Financial Assistance Management Improvement Act of 2009, the head
of the Federal agency shall submit to the Director a report regarding the
progress of the Federal agency in achieving the objectives of the plan of the
Federal agency developed under paragraph
(1).
.
(b)Technical and
conforming amendmentSection 5(d) of the Federal Financial
Assistance Management Improvement Act of 1999 (31 U.S.C. 6101 note) is amended
by inserting , until the date on which the Federal agency submits the
first report by the Federal agency required under section 8(c)(3)
after
subsection (a)(7)
.
March 11, 2009
Reported without amendment