Grant Transparency Act of 2023

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5536) to require transparency in notices of funding opportunity, and for other purposes, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on this measure.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, before serving in Congress, I served in the South Carolina State legislature. Now, here in Washington, I am passionate about ensuring that State, local, and Federal Governments all work together and work together well.

During my time in office, I have heard from many of our local governments, and particularly in my district in those rural communities, that applying for Federal grant money can be a complicated and often confusing process.

In big cities, you often have professional staff that do this. In a small town, it is the mayor or his spouse that is doing this.

After putting time and effort into filling out a competitive grant application, applicants are left wondering why

they were not chosen to be awarded Federal grant money, especially if they met all of the criteria listed when applying. This leads to grant applicants feeling as though the decisions are made behind closed doors. I think we can all agree that navigating the bureaucratic labyrinth known as Washington, D.C., can be complicated for local governments and for organizations.

Grant writers and applicant staff may even be unaware of which selection criteria are weighted more heavily when filling out applications.

The Grant Transparency Act requires Federal Government agencies to shine a light on their decisionmaking process when awarding competitive Federal grant money. With this legislation, Federal Government agencies would be required to disclose their selection methods when awarding competitive grants.

Specifically, the bill requires that notice of funding opportunities for all Federal competitive grants to have: one, a description of any rating system, evaluation, and selection criteria the agency uses to assess the grant application; two, a statement on whether the agency uses a weighted scoring method and a description of that method; and, three, any other qualitative or quantitative merit-based approach the agency may use to evaluate applications.

State and local governments across South Carolina's Seventh Congressional District and nationwide compete for Federal grant money on a continual basis. Federal grant money allows investment to come to our communities and improve the daily lives of our constituents, ranging from sewer and wastewater systems to airports, fire stations, and recreational facilities.

These are all things that Americans rely on and utilize in their daily lives. The Grant Transparency Act would help out our local governments and organizations when they fill out applications to compete for that funding. They deserve this transparency from their Federal Government.

Today, let's empower grant applicants to put their best foot forward and bring those Federal dollars home. I thank my Oversight Committee colleague Jasmine Crockett for co-leading on this bill. This simple bill has the potential to make a very meaningful impact in countless communities and nonprofits nationwide.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this straightforward, bipartisan bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I encourage all my colleagues to support this commonsense and bipartisan bill to make the application process for competitive grants much more transparent on our local governments and nonprofits.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I rise in support of H.R. 5536 and applaud Representatives Russell Fry and Jasmine Crockett for their bipartisan leadership on this bill.

H.R. 5536 aims to increase transparency in the Federal grantmaking review and award process. It does so by strengthening agency compliance with title 2 of the Code of Federal Regulations, which describes the contents that notices of funding opportunities must include.

It requires that each notice of funding opportunity for a competitive Federal grant to include specific information about how applications will be assessed, providing all applicants with greater access to the information they need to submit competitive applications.

The Biden-Harris administration has taken important steps to strengthen transparency in and improve accessibility to the Federal grantmaking process.

For example, in April 2024, the Office of Management and Budget announced significant updates to the Uniform Grants Guidance, which governs how agencies make grants and provide other forms of financial assistance. The updates focused on reducing compliance costs, removing barriers to entry and accessibility, and making Federal funds easier to track.

H.R. 5536 is aligned with these goals, and I urge my colleagues to support it today.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 565, H.R. 5536.

I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.