Enhance your use of federal grants

Since 2018, major global events have resulted in economic disruptions that require federal stimulus intervention for communities, businesses, and households across the United States. These federal funding programs have been operationalized through congressional appropriations and significant grant funding programs. They focused on various areas, including economic stabilization, small business assistance, public health, education, transportation, infrastructure, digital transformation, and energy. These disruptions resulted in unprecedented grant opportunities for a wide range of entities including public, nonprofit, and commercial entities. Federal funding in the form of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) & Sciences Act, and other Department of Energy initiatives are available to commercial entities to tackle important issues related to climate change, infrastructure, revitalization and energy innovation. In light of these developments, it is crucial for entities across sectors to stay informed and strategically positioned to leverage these extensive federal funding opportunities while remaining compliant with federal regulations.

Learning from the past, preparing for the future

The global pandemic created federal spending to support those affected and surged to $7.5 trillion in FY20211¹. While the pandemic and associated funding opportunities were frequently described as “unprecedented,” disasters on a national and global level are predicted to increase in frequency.

Are you prepared to manage federal funding should the need arise? Many rules and regulations have been established to cover federal grant funding. Understanding the regulations with which funding must comply, building a knowledgeable team to get the job done, following procurement guidelines, creating strong systems and processes, and retaining required supporting documentation can set organizations up for results.

A few actions can be taken up front to keep you prepared. Download our whitepaper now to learn more about these leading practices and stay ahead of potential pitfalls:

• Build a regulatory framework
• Take note of procurement requirements
• Review equipment policies
• Staff and/or train your team
• Check the grant administration requirements
• Consider making a grants management policy
  

How Deloitte can help

Before organizations elect to use federal grant funding, many important details must be noted, which can help them establish the relevant systems to manage funding effectively upon award. Creating these systems and retaining the associated documentation with the grant funding can help mitigate compliance issues resulting in the granting agency clawing back or taking away funding after closeout. This will also help build confidence before submitting the final expenditure report.

However, organizations do not need to do this alone. Many grants have a component of administrative costs associated with them that can be used for internal or contractor costs associated with the labor and resources required for administering and managing the grant. Contractors will need to be procured through a process that aligns with the funding requirements if federal grant funding is utilized. Deloitte can help organizations in the following ways:

1. Identify grants for which an organization may be eligible
2. Perform a grant readiness assessment
3. Develop tools and procedures
4. Execute grant eligibility, compliance, and monitoring
5. Set up a project management office and facilitate grant administration
6. Provide ad hoc technical assistance

Federal grant funding has many rules and regulations. Understanding the regulations with which funding must comply, building a knowledgeable team to get the job done, following procurement guidelines to a tee, creating strong systems and processes, and retaining required supporting documentation can set organizations up for success.

¹ USAspending.gov, “Grants and fixed charges,” accessed April 2, 2024.