Sponsor
Tom McClintock
Representative · R-CA
Representative · R-CA
Requires GAO and grant recipients to produce annual and project-level federal grant reports, and makes noncompliant recipients ineligible for future grants until they comply.
Official title: To require the Comptroller General to submit to Congress a report on grants, and for other purposes.
Introduced August 31, 2026 by Tom McClintock · Last progress August 31, 2026
The bill substantially increases transparency and oversight of federal grants, but does so at the cost of added compliance and reporting burdens (and privacy risks) for smaller recipients and increased federal administrative workload.
Taxpayers, state and local governments, and the public will receive annual, public lists of every federal grant (name, purpose, amount, recipient, project description), increasing transparency and enabling public accountability.
Congress, federal grantors, and oversight bodies will get compiled, project-level annual reports on how grant funds were spent, improving congressional oversight and the ability to detect waste or misuse.
Grant recipients (nonprofits, small businesses, and governments) will be required to report salary totals, subcontractor payments, administrative costs, materials, and unspent funds, which should reduce misuse and improve accountability.
Small grant recipients — including local governments, nonprofits, and small businesses — will face added administrative burden and compliance costs to prepare detailed project reports, straining limited budgets and staff.
State and local service providers and nonprofits that fail to file required reports can become ineligible for future federal grants, risking disruptions to public services if compliance lapses occur for administrative or timing reasons.
Publishing project-level financial details (including salaries and subcontractor payments) could create privacy and competitive concerns for small businesses and nonprofit contractors by revealing sensitive business information.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Requires the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to publish annual, project-level information on federal grants and directs grant recipients to submit standardized post-project reports with salary, subcontractor, administrative, and unspent funds details. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) must issue guidance and notify recipients, and recipients who fail to comply become ineligible for future federal grants until they provide required information. Sets tight timelines for initial and recurring reports: GAO must deliver an initial grants inventory within six months and then annual grant and project-report compilations; recipients must file project reports within three months of project completion; OMB must issue guidance within three months of enactment. Key terms and relevant congressional committees are defined for reporting purposes.