Federal

Financial

Management

System

Requirements

JFMIP-SR-00-3

June 2000

Grant

Financial

System

Requirements
What is JFMIP?

The Joint Financial Management Improvement Program (JFMIP) is a joint and cooperative undertaking of the

U.S. Department of the Treasury, the General Accounting Office, the Office of Management and Budget, and the

Office of Personnel Management, working in cooperation with each other and other agencies to improve financial

management practices in government. The Program was given statutory authorization in the Budget and

Accounting Procedures Act of 1950 (31 USC 3511(d)). Leadership and program guidance are provided by the

four Principals of the JFMIP—Comptroller General of the United States, Secretary of the Treasury, and the

Directors of the Office of Management and Budget, and the Office of Personnel Management. Each Principal

designates a representative to serve on the JFMIP Steering Committee, which is responsible for the general

direction of the Program. The JFMIP Executive Director, and a program agency representative (who serves for 2

years) are also on the Steering Committee.

The Program promotes strategies and guides financial management improvement across government; reviews and

coordinates central agencies’ activities and policy promulgations; and acts as catalyst and clearinghouse for sharing

and disseminating information about good financial management practices. This information sharing is done

through conferences and other educational events, newsletters, meetings with interagency groups and agency

personnel, and through FinanceNet, an electronic clearinghouse on the Internet.

The JFMIP has worked on interagency projects that have developed a financial systems framework and financial

systems requirements documents. For the future, JFMIP plans to assist Federal agencies in improving their

financial systems through its Program Management Office. The Office will work on developing and maintaining

Federal governmentwide standard systems requirements documents, developing and maintaining tools for software

testing, software testing, outreach, and knowledgebase. The first target of opportunity for software testing is core

financial systems. The objectives of the Office are to develop systems requirements, communicate and explain

Federal and agency needs, provide agencies and vendors information to improve financial systems, ensure that

products meet relevant system requirements, and simplify the procurement process. 

Information on JFMIP can be found at its website at www.financenet.gov/fed/jfmip/jfmip.htm or call (202)

219-0526.
Foreword

This is the first functional requirements document issued for grant financial systems for the U.S. Federal

government. It is one of a series of functional systems requirements documents published by the Joint Financial

Management Improvement Program (JFMIP) on Federal financial management systems requirements.

All of the JFMIP Federal Financial Management System Requirements (FFMSR) documents should be considered

together when determining how best to use information and supporting services to meet the financial management

needs of a Federal agency.

The FFMSR series addresses the goals of the U. S. Government Chief Financial Officers’ (CFO) Council, the

JFMIP, the Inter-Agency Electronic Grants Committee (IAEGC), and others, to promote the efficient management 

of assets, and to improve financial management systems government wide to provide useful financial information

on Federal government operations.

Agencies may develop additional technical and functional system requirements as necessary to support unique

mission responsibilities. Agencies must also develop strategies for interfacing or integrating grant financial

management systems with the agency’s core financial system.

We want to take this opportunity to thank the many agency officials and others in the financial and grant

management communities who contributed to this document. We value their assistance and support. Spe cial thanks 

are also extended to the CFO Council’s Fellows Class of 1998/1999 who participated in the development and

formulation of this document. This new JFMIP systems document was chosen as their class project. With

continuing support from the numerous contributors to this project, we can confidently face the fina ncial

management challenges in the new century.

Karen Cleary Alderman

Executive Director

June 2000
Table of Contents

Foreword

Acronyms

Illustrations

Introduction ............................................ 1

Federal Financial Management Framework ............................ 2

System Overview ......................................... 7

Introduction to Functional Requirements.............................. 9

Commitments ........................................... 14

Decommitments .......................................... 17

Obligations ............................................ 19

Payments ............................................. 22

Cost Accruals ........................................... 26

Financial Reports ......................................... 31

Interest Collections ........................................ 34

Grant Closeout .......................................... 35

Records Retention......................................... 36

General Systems Requirements .................................. 37

Information Technology ...................................... 38

Appendix A: References/Authoritative Sources .......................... 41

Appendix B: Glossary/Data Dictionary .............................. 42

Appendix C: Contributors ..................................... 47
Acronyms

ASAP Automated Standard Application for Payment System

CFO Chief Financial Officer

DHHS Department of Health and Human Services

COTS Commercial Off-the-Shelf

FASAB Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board

FFMIA Federal Financial Management Improvement Act

FFMSR Federal Financial Management System Requirements

FLSA Fair Labor Standards Act

FMS Financial Management Service

GAO General Accounting Office

GMRA Government Management Reform Act

GPRA Government Performance and Results Act

IAEGC Inter-Agency Electronic Grants Committee

JFMIP Joint Financial Management Improvement Program

NPR National Partnership for Reinventing Government

OMB Office of Management and Budget

OPM Office of Personnel Management

PMC President’s Management Council

PMS Payment Management System

SGL Standard General Ledger
Illustrations

1. Financial System Improvement Projects . ............................. 3

2. Integrated Model for Federal Information Systems ........................ 5

3. Agency Systems Architecture ................................... 6

4. Grants Overview Process . .................................... 11

5a. Grants Solicitation/Award Process ................................ 12

5b. Grants Management/Administration ............................... 13

6. Process for New Commitments .................................. 15

7. Process for Decommitments.................................... 18

8. Process for Obligations ...................................... 20

9. Process for Advance Payments to Grantees ............................ 23

10. Process for Reimbursement Payments to Grantees........................ 24

11. Cost Accrual Estimate ...................................... 28

12. Verification of Cost Accrual Estimate . ............................. 29

13. Financial Report Process . .................................... 32
Introduction

As the world’s largest and most complex enterprise, the U. S. Federal government faces tremendous challenges in

the area of grants management. These enormous responsibilities involve the management of billions of dollars of

resources.

The Federal government has consistently recognized the importance of having high quality grant financial

management systems to support improvement of government operations and provide financial and related

information to program and financial managers. In response, the JFMIP began the process of defining financial

management system requirements by publishing the FFMSR series of requirements documents. Beginning with the 

Core Financial System Requirements (FFMSR-1) document in January 1988, JFMIP has issued publications in the 

FFMSR series. For additional information, refer to JFMIP’s web page at www.financenet.gov/fed/jfmip/jfmip.htm.

In addition to the basic JFMIP systems requirements documents, several Federal organizations and agencies

recognized the need for a comprehensive document describing a variety of general systems requirements e.g.,

system integration, data stewardship, and internal controls. As a result, JFMIP published the Framework for

Federal Financial Management Systems document in January 1995.

The Federal Financial Management Improvement Act (FFMIA) of 1996 mandated that agencies implement and

maintain systems that comply substantially with Federal financial management systems requirements, applicable

Federal accounting standards, and the U.S. Government Standard General Ledger (SGL) at the transaction level.

The FFMIA statute codified the JFMIP financial systems requirements documents as a key benchmark that agency

systems must meet, in order to be substantially in compliance with systems requirements provisions under FFMIA.

To support the requirements outlined in the FFMIA, JFMIP is updating publications which are obsolete and is

publishing additional requirements documents. This is the first JFMIP Grant Financial System Requirements

document that has been issued.

This JFMIP Grant Financial System Requirements document is intended to identify financial system requirements

necessary to support grants programs. It does not intend to identify the full scope of functional program

requirements associated with grants management programs. Therefore, the illustrations are not intended to be

comprehensive, specific diagrams of all steps involved in the various requirements and processes, i.e., the

illustrations are illustrative only, rather than mandatory. This document is intended to assist systems analysts;

system accountants; and others who design, develop, implement, operate, and maintain financial management

systems. This includes building or buying systems.

Increasingly, integrated financial management systems are necessary to support program managers, financial

managers, budget officials, and others simultaneously. Data and information supplied by systems to these

individuals are expected to be accurate, timely, and consistent across organizations, agencies, and the Federal

government. Systems and data are shared more and more by multiple organizations, agencies, etc., with common

needs.

Grant Financial Systems Requirements 1
Federal Financial Management Framework

This document provides high level functional requirements for grant financial systems that will provide the

capability for financial managers and others to control and account for Federal grant resources as defined in

government wide and agency specific statutes, regulations, and guidelines. Appendix A is a listing of statutory and

regulatory references. This document is one component of a broad program to improve Federal financial

management which involves the establishment of uniform requirements for internal controls, financial systems,

financial information, financial reporting and financial organizations.

As shown in Illustration 1, standards and systems requirements assist agencies in developing effective and efficient

systems and provide a common framework so that outside vendors or in-house programmers can provide software

more economically. Each agency should integrate its unique requirements with these government wide standard

requirements to provide a uniform basis for the standardization of financial management systems as required by the 

CFO Act of 1990 and the FFMIA of 1996.

Financial management systems in the Federal government must be designed to support the vision articulated by the 

government’s financial management community which requires those systems to support the partnership between

program and financial managers and to assure information integrity decision-making and performance

measurement.

This vision includes the ability to:

• Collect accurate, timely, complete, reliable, and consistent information;

• Provide for adequate agency management reporting;

• Support government wide and agency-wide policy decision-making;

• Support the preparation and execution of agency budgets;

• Facilitate the preparation of financial statements and other financial reports in accordance with Federal

accounting and reporting standards;

• Provide information to central agencies for budgeting, analysis, and government wide reporting, including

consolidated financial statements; and

• Provide a complete documentation audit trail to facilitate audits.

In support of this vision, the Federal government must establish government wide financial management systems

and compatible agency systems, with standardized information and electronic data exchange, to support program

delivery, safeguard assets, and manage taxpayer dollars.

It is critical that financial management systems plans support the agency’s mission and programs, including planned 

changes, and that financial management systems plans are incorporated into the agency’s plans for information

technology infrastructure and information systems as a whole. Systems design efforts should also include an analysis 

of how systems improvements, new technology supporting financial management systems, and modifications to

existing work processes can together enhance agency operations and improve program and financial management.

Reassessing information and processing needs and redesigning processes, procedures, and policies are essential steps 

to meeting user needs.

2 Grant Financial Systems Requirements
Grant Financial Systems Requirements 3

 Federal Financial Management Framework

Illustration 1

Financial System Improvement Projects

Agency Implementation

! Adaptation

! Procedures

! Training

! Documentation

! Conversion

! Maintenance

Subject of 

this report

! Additional 

 Agency 

 Functional 

 Requirements

! Additional 

 Agency 

 Technical 

 Requirements

! Integration 

 Strategy

! Software/ 

 Hardware 

 Evaluation

! Software 

 Selection

Standards/

Requirements

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

 Standard Reporting 

Requirements

 U.S. Government Standard 

General Ledger

 Core Financial System 

Requirements

 Human Resources & Payroll 

Systems Requirements

 Travel System 

Requirements

 Seized Property and 

Forfeited Assets System 

Requirements

 Direct Loan System 

Requirements

 Guaranteed Loan System 

Requirements

 Inventory System 

Requirements

Managerial Cost 

Accounting

 Grant System Requirements 

 Other Standards

System Requirements for 
Integrated Financial Management Systems

Financial management systems must be designed with effective and efficient interrelationships between software,

hardware, personnel, procedures, controls, and data contained within the systems. To be integrated, financial

management systems must have, as a minimum, the following four characteristics:

• Standard data classifications (definitions and formats) established and used for recording financial events;

• Common processes used for processing similar kinds of transactions;

• Internal controls over data entry, transaction processing, and reporting applied consistently; and

• A design that eliminates unnecessary duplication of transaction entry.

The financial management systems policy described in the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular

A-127 “Financial Management Systems,” requires that each agency establish and maintain a single integrated

financial management system. Without a single, integrated financial management system to ensure timely and

accurate financial data, poor policy decisions are more likely to occur, managers are less likely to be able to report

accurately on government operations in a timely manner; scarce resources are more likely to be directed toward the

collection of information rather than to delivery of the intended programs; and modifications to financial

management systems necessary to keep pace with rapidly changing user requirements cannot be coordinated and

managed properly. The basic requirements for a single, integrated financial management system are outlined in

OMB Circular A-127.

Having a single, integrated financial management system does not necessarily mean having only one software

application for each agency covering all financial management systems needs. Rather, a single, integrated financial

management system is a unified set of financial systems and the financial portions of mixed systems encompassing

the software, hardware, personnel, processes (manual and automated), procedures, controls, and data necessary to

manage the financial operations of the agency, and report on the agency’s financial status to central agencies,

Congress, and the public.

Unified means that systems are planned and managed together, operated in an integrated fashion, and linked

together electronically in an efficient and effective manner to provide agency wide financial system support

necessary to carry out the agency’s mission and support the agency’s financial management needs.

Integration means that the system’s user is able to have one view into systems whereby, at whatever level a user is

accessing the system, the user can obtain the needed information efficiently and effectively through electronic

means. Integration does not mean that all information must be physically located in the same databa se. 

Interfaces, where one system feeds data to another system following normal business/transaction cyc les such as

grant obligations recorded in general ledger control accounts at the time the grant awards are made , may be

acceptable as long as the supporting detail is maintained and accessible to managers. In such cases, interface linkages 

must be electronic unless the number of transactions is so small that it is not cost-beneficial to automate the

interface. Reconciliations between systems, where interface linkages are appropriate, must be maintained to ensure

accuracy of the data.

To develop any integrated information system, it is critical that senior systems analysts and systems accountants

identify:

• The scope of the functions to be supported (processes);

• How data quality will be assured (data stewardship);

• The information to be processed (management information);

4 Grant Financial Systems Requirements

Federal Financial Management Framework
• How systems hardware & software fit together to support the functions (systems architecture); and

• Safeguards needed to ensure the integrity of operations and data (internal control).

All of these pieces must be brought together in a model such as the one shown in Illustration 2. These pieces must

work together to form an efficient integrated information system. A change to any part of the model will require

determination of the implications on other parts of the model. For example, a new reporting requirement may

require changes throughout the entire model.

Agency Financial Management Systems Architecture

Agency financial management systems are information systems that track financial events and summarize

information to support the mission of an agency, provide for adequate management reporting, support agency level 

policy decisions necessary to carry out fiduciary responsibilities, and support the preparation of auditable financial

statements.

Agency financial management systems fall into four categories:

• Core financial systems;

• Other financial and mixed systems, including grant systems;

• Shared systems; and

• Departmental executive information systems (systems to provide management information to all levels of

management).

Grant Financial Systems Requirements 5

 Federal Financial Management Framework

Integrated Model for

Federal Information Systems

Data Stewardship

Processes

Management

Information

Systems

Architecture

Illustration 2
These systems must be linked together electronically to be effective and efficient. Summary data transfers must be

provided from agency systems to central systems to permit summaries of management information and a gency

financial performance information on a government wide basis.

Subject to government wide policies, the physical configuration of financial management systems, including issues

of centralized or decentralized activities, processing routines, data, and organizations, is best left to the

determination of the agency, which can determine the optimal manner in which to support the agency mission. The 

physical design of the system, however, should consider the agency’s organizational philosophy, the technical

capabilities available, and the most appropriate manner to achieve the necessary single, integrated financial

management system for the agency.

The agency systems architecture shown in Illustration 3, provides a logical perspective identifying the relationships

of various agency systems types. Although this does not necessarily represent the physical design of the system, it

does identify the systems types needed to support program delivery/financing and financial event processing for

effective and efficient program execution.

Grant Systems

As shown in Illustration 3, grant financial systems are an integral part of the total financial management system for

a number of Federal agencies. Grant financial systems support programmatic objectives and interact with core

financial systems to: record advances, collections and disbursements in the general ledger consistent with the SGL;

validate funds availability; update budget execution data; and record other grant related transactions.

6 Grant Financial System Requirements

Agency Systems Architecture

Core

Financial

System

Property

Management

System

Revenue

System

Budget

Formulation

System

Non-financial

Systems

Travel

System

Seized Property

and Forfeited

Assets

System

Guaranteed

Loan

System

Inventory

System

Insurance Claim

System

Acquisition

System

Benefit Payment

System

Financial

Reporting

System

Illustration 3

Human Resources

& Payroll

Systems

Direct

Loan

System

Grant

System
System Overview

The complexity, diversity, and size of grant programs in Federal government agencies place unique demands on

managers that are responsible for those programs. The constantly changing requirements of grant programs has led

management to look not only at the functional capabilities of grant financial systems, but also the managerial

environments in which these systems are supported and operated.

All grant financial systems that are being designed and implemented, or are in use, must operate in accordance with

existing laws and regulations. It is the responsibility of each agency to be knowledgeable of the legal requirements

governing its grants financial operations.

All grant financial systems must provide, as a minimum, the following qualities:

• Complete and accurate funds control;

• Complete, accurate, and prompt recording of obligations;

• Complete, accurate, and prompt payment of grantee payment requests;

• Complete, accurate, and prompt generation and maintenance of grant financial records and transactions;

• Timely and efficient access to complete and accurate information, without extraneous material, to those

internal and external to the agency who require the information;

• Timely and proper interaction of the grant financial system with Core financial systems and other existing

automated systems; and

• Adequate internal controls to ensure that the grant financial system is operating as intended.

This document identifies functional requirements for grant financial systems. Although the document may be used

when developing new grant financial systems, or improving or evaluating current systems, the document does not

provide a specific model for such systems. Functional requirements not mandated by law, regulation, or directive

must result in cost-effective systems that are in the interest of the government. All possible alternatives for meeting

the requirements should be considered.

Functional requirements of Federal grant financial systems can be segregated into two general categories,

mandatory and value-added. Definitions for these two categories of requirements are:

Mandatory - Mandatory requirements describe and consist of the minimum acceptable functionality necessary to 

establish a system, or are based on Federal laws and regulations. Mandatory requirements are those against

which agency heads evaluate their systems to determine substantial compliance with systems requirements

under the FFMIA. These requirements apply to existing systems in operation and new systems planned or

under development.

Value-added - Value added requirements describe optional features and may consist of any combination of the

following: (1) using state of the art technology, (2) employing the preferred or best business practices, or (3)

meeting the special management needs of an individual agency. Agencies should consider value added features

when judging systems options. The need for these value-added features in agency systems is left to the

discretion of each agency head.

All requirements in this document are mandatory, unless otherwise identified as value-added. Value added or

optional requirements are discussed at various points throughout this document. The burden of demonstrating that 

these value added or optional functions are cost effective and clearly in the interest of the government rests with the

CFOs of each agency. Further, each agency must develop an efficient, effective, and economical stra tegy for

interfacing its grants financial system with other systems that share or utilize data.

Grant Financial Systems Requirements 7
Grant financial management activities can be further categorized based on types of activities within the overall

grants process. The remainder of this document provides functional requirements based on these categories as

follows:

• Introduction

• Commitments

• Decommitments

• Obligations

• Payments

• Cost Accruals

• Financial Reports

• Interest Collections

• Grant Closeout

• Records Retention

• General System Requirements

• Information Technology in the Grants Process

System Overview

8 Grant Financial System Requirements
Introduction to Functional Requirements

Definition

A federal grant is a financial assistance instrument which, consistent with 31 U.S.C. Section 6304, Using grant

agreements, provides money and/or direct assistance to the recipient to carry out a public purpose authorized by a

law of the United States, instead of acquiring property or services for the Federal governments own use.

Cooperative agreements are also funding instruments which have a similar process. Throughout this document,

statements applicable to discretionary grants generally apply to cooperative agreements as well. Cooperative

agreements may also be used for financial assistance, except unlike grants, substantial involvement between the

granting agency and the grant recipient is anticipated. Grants, cooperative agreements, and other contractual

agreements may be processed by some agencies using the same administrative, accounting, and financial systems.

Guidelines

The OMB issues grants management circulars which are published in the Federal Register (administrative

requirements, cost principles, and audit circulars). Federal agencies issue regulations implementing those OMB

circulars and as needed publish other policy issuances that aid in understanding and complying with new

regulations.

Scope of the Grant Business

Total grant funding for the U.S. Federal government was nearly $300 billion during Fiscal Year 1999. Grants for

food, transportation, research, and other public missions involve institutions and organizations throughout the U.S. 

economy, underscoring the importance of efforts to improve grant financial management systems.

Grant Life Cycle

The life cycle of a grant includes application, review, award, performance, payment, and closeout.

There are two major types of grants: mandatory and discretionary.

Mandatory grants include entitlement programs (e.g., Medicaid, Food Stamp Administration) block grants (e.g.,

housing), and formula grants (e.g., highway construction). Mandatory grants are awarded non-competitively to

eligible entities as long as those entities submit acceptable state plans or applications.

Discretionary grants are awarded under a wide range of specific programs, such as education and research.

Competitive applications are submitted for funding under an announced program with a specific mission identified.

The discretionary grant process usually begins with articulation of the availability of funds through an

announcement, specifying the funding agency’s objectives and scope of program, relevant dates and deadlines,

grantee eligibility, and terms of the evaluation to determine awardees. Many agencies also accept unsolicited

applications.

The grants process calls for preliminary and/or full applications from organizations or individuals desiring to

participate in the agency program, describing their proposed work, project team, and budget justification.

Upon receipt of a grant application, agencies usually provide a status indication (by telephone, po stcard, letter, or

on-line web site) to the applicant, pending completion of a review of their application and final decision.

Grant Financial System Requirements 9
Discretionary grant review processes, usually based upon project quality and mission relevance, may require an

outside peer review, although in some agencies the federal staff fill this role. This procedure results in priority

ranking, budget commitments, and award decisions. Notification of award (or declination) ends this part of the

grant process.

A mandatory or discretionary award includes information on budget amounts, required reports (administrative,

financial, and technical), regulatory requirements, and other instructions as part of the grant’s terms and conditions.

On the basis of the award, the grantee may then proceed to perform as prescribed, incurring authorized costs and

requesting payment from one of the designated government-wide drawdown systems. Payment requests must carry 

accounting information sufficient to associate amounts requested with the specific grant(s), unless pooling

arrangements have been made, allowing delayed reconciliation of accounts.

Existing grants often require modification. Modifications for which the grant financial system must account include 

changes in the dollar amount awarded and extensions of the grant period.

All grants ultimately require closeout. Discretionary grants are generally awarded for projects with stated

completion dates. Their duration may be extended, but will eventually end. This is not the case for all mandatory

grants, which generally continue unless the program statute is rescinded. Reviews, audits, and documentation for

financial, property, and technical matters are usually required for the successful closeout of a grant award. This is

the final step in the grant life cycle.

Illustration 4, outlines the overall grant financial process described above.

Illustrations 5a and 5b, depict how the grants financial system may interact and interface with oth er external (non

grant) systems and with or within the agency’s core financial system. These illustrations are intended to show the

relationships between the grants award process and the financial requirements involved in that proc ess.

Introduction to Functional Requirements

10 Grant Financial System Requirements
Grant Financial System Requirements 11

Introduction to Functional Requirements

Announcements/Solicitation

Funding Agency &Amounts

Program Need & Scope

Effective Date & Deadlines

Application/Proposal

PerformingOrganization Profile

Project Description

Performer Profiles

Budgets/Jusification

Review

Funding Agency Panel/Process

Technical Merit/Mi ssion Relevance

Prioritization withi nBudget

Funding Mechanism

Status Checking

Appli cant Queries

Commitment/Ob ligation

Funds Allocated by Project

Funding Documents Approved

Receip t of Grant Award

Terms, Budget & Effective Date

Accounting/Admin. Data

Other Grantee Actions

Perform Work/IncurExpense

Request Funds from Agency

Expend Funds

P rovide Financial/Technical Reports

Disclose Inventions

Request Renewal as Appropriate

Other Funding Agency Actions

Provide Cash Payments

Cost Accruals

Review Reports

Monitor GranteePerformance

Initiate Closeout

Closeout

Financial/Property/Technical

Pre-Award

Post-Award

Grants Overview Process

Illustration 4
12 Grant Financial System Requirements

Introduction to Functional Requirements

Budget

Approval

Agency Solicitations

or Announcements

Applicants Request

Solicitation/Submits

Proposal

Funding

Established

Financial

System

Funds

Committed

Agency Reviews

Proposal

Recommends Funding Award

Notification

Obligation

Award

Applicant Acceptance

(Cooperati ve Agreements)

Grants Solicitation/Award Proces

Illustration 5a
Commitments

Value-Added (All Requirements in this Chapter are Value-Added)

Definition

A commitment is an administrative reservation of a specific amount of an agency’s available funds that provides for

a later issuance incurring of a grant award and incurring of the related obligation. Requirements for recording

commitments are optional based on the individual agency’s program needs.

Commitment Process Flow (see Illustration 6)

Listed below are the major steps in the commitment process.

The system should support the following major steps associated with processing a commitment for agencies with a

commitment process.

• Decision to Fund a Grant - Occurs after a proposal application process (involving application receipt, review,

and selection) has been completed. The steps or procedures followed by an agency before the funding

decision are dependent on the specific requirements established by an agency which are based on the nature

of the agency’s grant programs.

• Initiate Commitment Request; Input Budgetary/Program Data into System - Examples of financial data elements

include the following:

• Commitment Request Identifier

• Requisition Date

• Corresponding Proposal Identifier

• Funding Dollar Amount

• Fund Code(s)/Appropriation Code(s)

• Accounting Code

• Budget Year(s) of Funding

• Name of the Individual Initiating the Commitment

• Object Classification

• Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number

• Direct Requested Commitment to Approving Official - Approving official(s) have the authority to commit funds. 

They review and approve or reject the commitment request. As part of their review, they must verify funds

availability. Commitment requests should be transmitted to the approving official(s) in an automated

manner.

• Review Approved Commitment Request Against Edits; System Performs Following Edit Checks - Approved

commitments are processed through a series of edit checks. For example:

• Verify Authority of Approving Official(s)

• Validate Commitment Data Input by Requestor

• Verify Accounting Code(s)

Grant Financial System Requirements 13
• Verify Funds Availability

• Provide Controls to Prevent Processing a Duplicate Document

• Commit Funds and Post Transactions to Standard General Ledger (SGL) - Transactions are recorded in the

Financial System as a commitment against Budget Accounts. Committed dollars are matched against

budgetary resources.

A requirement to use standard general ledger (SGL) accounts at the transaction level is contained in the

Federal Financial Management Improvement Act (FFMIA) of 1996 and OMB Circular A-127, Financial

Management Systems. Accounts and entries are identified in the Treasury Financial Manual (TFM),

Supplement No. 2, which is available on the SGL website at www.fms.treas.gov/ussgl.

• Notify Procurement/Grants Office to Start Negotiation of Grant with Potential Grantee - Outstanding

commitments must be reviewed and reconciled on a continuous basis throughout the year to ensure that they 

are converted to valid obligations. Funds not obligates should be decommitted no later than the date on

which funds expire.

14 Grant Financial System Requirements

Commitments

Agency

Grant Programs

Standard General

Ledger (SGL)

Grant Work

by Recipient

Payment

System

Status of Funds

Payment Requests

Payments

Monitoring

Reporting

Close-out

Grants Management/Administration

Illustration 5b
Commitments

Grant Financial System Requirements 15

Make

Funding Decisions

Funding

Deci sions

Approved?

Funding

Decisions

Approved?

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

No

Enter Required Data to

Post Commitment

Post Commitment

Pass

Transaction

Edits

Funds

Available?

Commit Funds and

Post to SGL

Contact

Budget Office

No

Process for Commitments

Illustration 6
Decommitments

Value-Added (All requirements in this Chapter are Value-Added) (However, Decommitment requirements are mandatory

when Commitment requirements are adopted by the agency)

Definition

A decommitment is the act of reversing a commitment of funds previously recorded in an agency’s financial system. 

Decommitments are mandatory when commitment requirements are adopted by the agency.

Decommitment Process Flow (see Illustration 7)

Listed below are the major steps in the decommitment process. The decommitment process may be combined with

the obligation process, described in the next chapter.

The system must support the following major steps associated with processing a decommitment.

• Initiate the Decommitment Request - The decommitment action is initiated by the individual requesting

decommitment. This request should be transmitted to the proper financial official(s) in an automated

manner. Organization specific budgetary and program data is entered into the system regarding the request.

• Edit Process - Approved decommitments are processed through a series of edit checks:

• Verify Authority of Approving Official(s)

• Validate Data Input by Requestor, including CFDA Number

• Decommit Funds and Post to SGL - The transaction should be recorded in the financial system as a

decommitment against the budgeted accounts.

The requirement to use standard general ledger (SGL) accounts at the transaction level is contained in the

Federal Financial Management Improvement Act (FFMIA) of 1996 and OMB Circular A-127, Financial

Management Systems. Accounts and entries are identified in the Treasury Financial Manual (TFM),

Supplement No. 2, which is available on the SGL website at www.fms.treas.gov/ussgl.

• Notify Program Staff - Decommitments are confirmed to program staff.

• Outstanding Commitments - Outstanding commitments must be converted to valid obligations or

decommitted before the expiration date of the funds committed.

16 Grant Financial System Requirements
Grant Financial System Requirements 17

Decommitments

Yes

No

Program Office

Initiates

Decommitment Reques t

Pos t Deco mmitment

Committed

Fun ds

Available to

Decom mit

Decommit Funds and

P ost toS GL

Notify

Program Office

Process for Decommitments

Illustration 7
Obligations

Mandatory (All requirements in this Chapter are Mandatory)

Definition

An obligation occurs when an obligating official makes an award to an entity on behalf of a Federal awarding

agency, thereby, obligating that agency to fund a project that relates to a Federal grant program a dministered by

that agency.

Obligation Process Flow (see Illustration 8)

Listed below are the major steps in the obligation process.

The system must support the following major steps associated with processing an obligation.

• Grant Proposal Reviewed - The proposed grant action is reviewed. The grant is negotiated with the grantee,

and a grant agreement document is prepared. The applicant may review and approve or reject the grant

agreement document.

• Direct To Obligating Official - Obligating official(s) have the authority to legally bind the Federal government 

to provide funds for a specific project or purpose. Obligating officials review and approve or reject grant

agreement documents.

Provide for approval or disapproval of grant obligation.

• Edit Process - Approved obligations are processed through a series of edit checks:

• Verify Authority of Obligating Official(s)

• Validate Grant Obligation Against Edits in the Core Financial System

• Verify Funds Availability

• Validate Input Data, Including the CFDA Number

• Provide Controls to Prevent a Duplicate Obligation

• Obligate funds - Record transactions into the grants financial management system. 

Provide for the capability to maintain chronological order of commitments, obligations, and payments. 

Provide the capability to cite multiple appropriations or other funding sources.

Record obligations or Federal Funds authorized based on grant awards and liquidate related commitment(s).

• Capture Data Elements - Examples of financial data elements are:

• Grant Number

• Grantee or Recipient Name

• Grantee Identifier

• Grant Purpose

• Dollar Amount

• Accounting Classification Data, e.g.:

• Appropriation

• Object Classification

18 Grant Financial System Requirements
Grant Financial System Requirements 19

Obligations

Request Obligation

of Funds

Funding

Decisions

Approved?

Approved

Award?

Yes

Post Obligation

Funds

Comm itted

Funds

Avai lable?

Funds Available to

Grantee for Payment

Ye Yess

Yes

Decommit & Obligate

Funds - Post to SGL

Obligate Funds -

Post to SGL

Contact

Budget Office

No

Funding

Decisions

Approved?

Pass

Edits

No

No

No

Process for Obligations

Illustration 8
• Project

• Program

• Tax Payor Identification

• CFDA Number

• Post Transaction to the SGL

A requirement to use standard general ledger (SGL) accounts at the transaction level is contained in the

Federal Financial Management Improvement Act (FFMIA) of 1996 and OMB Circular A-127, Financial

Management Systems. Accounts and entries are identified in the Treasury Financial Manual (TFM),

Supplement No. 2, which is available on the SGL website at www.fms.treas.gov/ussgl.

20 Grant Financial System Requirements

Obligations
Payments

Mandatory

Funds are paid to grantees as either advances or reimbursements.

Definition

Advances are payments to a grantee in anticipation of expenditures the grantee has yet to make for program

purposes. Advance payments are the preferred method of funding a grantee’s program operations unless

circumstances warrant using alternative, more restrictive methods. Grantees shall be paid in advance, provided they

minimize the time elapsing between the transfer of funds and their disbursement.

Reimbursements to grantees are for work performed for which expenses are incurred but not paid.

Payment Process Flows (see Illustration 9 regarding Advance Payments and Illustration

10, regarding Reimbursement Payments)

The system must support the following major steps.

• Receive Payment Request from Grantee - The grantee submits a request for cash. If the awarding agency and

the grantee have agreed to use a pooled payment procedure, the grantee requests a single dollar amount

covering all its grants with the awarding agency. Otherwise, the grantee identifies the amount of cash needed

for each grant.

• Optional Data Elements - Requirements in the Request such as:

• Grantee Name and Identifier

• Amount Requested

• Grantee Official Authorized to Submit Request

• Authorized Grantee’s Information

• Amount of Funds Authorized

• Amount Approved

• Amount Disallowed

• Program Funding Codes

• Appropriation Code(s)

• Review Request

• Edit Process - Screen the request for missing data elements, clerical errors, internal logic (e.g. request not in

excess of Federal funds authorized). Perform non-routine edit checks installed by the Federal awarding

agency, such as:

• Verify whether the grantee is delinquent in submitting financial reports, if financial reports are required

• Verify funds availability

• Provide controls to prevent processing a duplicate payment

Grant Financial System Requirements 21
22 Grant Financial System Requirements

Payments

Request Reimbursement

Paym ent

Funding

Deci sions

Approved?

Pass

Edits

Funding

Deci sions

Approved?

Funds

Available

Funding

Deci sions

Approved?

Flag for

Review

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Review by

Approving Official

Paym ent

Approved

Funds Adv

or Exp?

Post Expenditure

Transaction to SGL

PostAdvance

Transaction to SGL

Transmit

Paym ent

Notify

Grantee

No

No

No

No

Exp ended Advance

Payment Process to Grantees

Illustration 9
Grant Financial System Requirements 23

Payments

Request Reimbursement

Payment

Review Request

Funding

Decisions

Approved?

Request

Complete?

Funding

Decisions

Approved?

Funds

Available?

Yes

FundsAdv

or Exp?

Post Expenditure

Transaction to SGL

Post Advance

Transaction to SGL

Transmit

Payment

Notify

Grantee

Yes

Yes

No

No

Expended Advance

Reimbursement Payment Process to Grantees

Illustration 10
• Record Flagged - The record may be flagged if the grantee is subject to sanctions requiring the withholding of

payments.

Verification of Work Performed Requests for reimbursement are forwarded to the appropriate personnel for

verification of the work completed.

• Transfer Cash to Designated Payee and Post Transactions to SGL - The Federal awarding agency transfers the

approved amount to the grantee’s financial institution and the transaction is posted to the SGL. Payments

may be recorded in the SGL as an advance or as an expenditure, depending on agency program

requirements.

The values posted to these SGL accounts depend on whether the grantee requested the payment advance by

the pooling or grant-by-grant method. If the grant-by-grant method was used, the portion of the

disbursement designated by the grantee for each grant is posted to a subsidiary account corresponding to that 

grant. If the grantee used the pooling method, the entire payment advance is distributed among grant

subsidiary accounts by algorithm. Regardless of which method is used, additional operations must be

performed to further distribute the payment advance among the contributing sources on a reasonable basis

for any grant funded by multiple sources.

Standard General Ledger (SGL) accounts are required for advance payments and for reimbursement

payments from appropriated funds for current operating expenses only. A requirement to use standard

general ledger (SGL) accounts at the transaction level is contained in the Federal Financial Management

Improvement Act (FFMIA) of 1996 and OMB Circular A-127, Financial Management Systems. Accounts

and entries are identified in the Treasury Financial Manual (TFM), Supplement No. 2, which is available on

the SGL website at www.fms.treas.gov.ussgl.

Value-Added (Will become mandatory upon issuance of governmentwide system standardization policy)

Initiative to Streamline Grant Payment Systems in the Federal Government

In June 1998, the CFO Council released a report endorsing the use of one of three existing systems by the Federal

government for grant payments by October 1, 2002. All Department of Defense organizations are to utilize the

Defense Procurement Payment System (DPPS). All civilian Federal departments and agencies are to use one of the

following two systems: the Automated Standard Application for Payment System (ASAP) provided by the

Financial Management Service (FMS) of the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Federal Reserve Bank of

Richmond; and the Payment Management System (PMS) provided by the Department of Health and Human

Services (DHHS). It should be stressed that the CFO Council endorsed these systems for the grant payment

process only. Individual agencies may elect to utilize these systems for additional grant processes. The Council’s

goal is to significantly reduce the number of Federal cash drawdown systems used throughout the Federal

government and the costs associated with the development and maintenance of multiple systems. The report is

available on the world wide web at: http://www.financenet.gov/financenet/fed/cfo/grants/cd0618.htm.

24 Grant Financial System Requirements

Cost Accruals
Cost Accruals

Mandatory (All requirements in this Chapter are Mandatory)

Overview

Federal agencies are required to prepare financial statements in accordance with Federal Financial Accounting

Standards established by the Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board (FASAB) on the world wide web at: . 

Standards for accounts receivable and accounts payable result in an accrual basis of accounting for transactions. This 

basis of accounting records expenses when incurred, whether or not they have been paid in cash; and records

revenues as earned, whether or not cash has been received. In general, under the accrual basis of accounting,

expenses and revenues may give rise to payable/liability or receivable/asset accounts when the timing of the

recognition of revenues or expenses differs from the transfer of cash.

In accordance with FASAB Statement of Federal Financial Accounting Standards Number 5 - “Accounting for

Liabilities of the Federal Government,” for federal non-exchange transactions, which include many grant and

certain entitlement programs, a liability, an account payable to the grantee, should be recognized for any unpaid

amounts due as of the reporting date. Generally, this is a two step process. The first step is to recognize as expense

and as a payable the amount of allowable expense that the grantees have incurred as of the end of the period, but

have not collected from the agency. That amount may include amounts claimed by the grantee or amoun ts incurred 

but not reported by the grantee. This will require that the agency estimate the amounts not reported to it by the

grantee but due the grantee. The second step occurs after the grantee has submitted financial reports giving its

actual costs. At that time, the agency should make any entries needed to adjust the expense amounts previously

recognized.

In addition to accruing expenses, the agency may be required to accrue a receivable related to improper payments.

In some, but not all, cases, agencies may request reimbursement from grantees for amounts improperly expended.

Generally the grant accrual system should maintain various data such as 1) internal historical financial data, 2)

criteria/structure of agency programs, and 3) relevant external information on the timing and nature of recipients’

cash flows. The grants system should maintain the amounts disbursed to grantees during each year and the amounts 

of expenses reported by the grantee. In addition, other data such as grant award amounts, and remittances should

be included in this information database. This data should include the amounts disbursed to grantee s during each

year and the amounts actually expended by the grantees. In addition, other data such as grant award amounts, and

remittances should be included in this information database.

The grant accrual process may entail the use of information from both the grantor’s and grantee’s databases to

estimate the unpaid amount.

The system must:

Either have a format structured to facilitate accrual accounting or provide an alternate process that will

calculate an accrual estimate.

When faced with the dilemma of estimating year-end accruals, one of several alternate processes may be used as

follows:

• Poll all grantees as of September 30 of each fiscal year.

• Take a statistical sample of grantees and base projections on the sample.

Grant Financial System Requirements 25

Cost Accruals
• Perform a linear regression or other appropriate statistical analysis as of the end of each fiscal year, using

amounts disbursed to grantees vs. amounts expensed in previous years to arrive at an algorithm to estimate

current year-end status of accruals.

• Forecast the fourth quarter expenditures using a forecasting model such as the auto-regressive forecasting

model or the exponentially weighted moving-average forecasting model.

• Estimate and post a grant accrual based on an analysis of the aggregate amount of disbursements and not

individual grantee file reviews.

Definition

Accrual accounting is the method of accounting in which an entity’s financial position and operating results are

measured by the flow of economic resources. Transactions are recorded in the accounting period in which they

occur or whose operations they benefit, regardless of when the related cash receipts and disbursements take place.

Accrual Process Flows (see Illustrations 11 and 12 )

The system must support the following major steps. Process Steps:

• Illustration 11 - Initial Cost Accrual Estimates

• Initiate the Accrual Process - The accrual process (AP) has to have the ability to:

Review electronic files of grant and grantee records including program and financial files.

Select and retrieve specific items (data) from these files and compare that data to data stored in other

programs.

• Update AP Program Accrual File - Data available for selection during the AP accrual process should

include the grantee’s identification number, types of grants received, grant numbers, dollar amounts, time 

periods, grantee’s financial history by fiscal quarters, and other data considered pertinent to the Agency.

• Run AP Program Accrual File - The accrual process uses the information collected to recognize liabilities

for any unpaid amounts due at a specific point in time; e.g., the end of a month, quarter or fiscal year.

Two situations can exist: (1) Negative Cash Balance - If grantee liabilities exceed advances, i.e., there is a

negative cash balance, which indicates there is a receivable to the grantee and an accounts payable to the

agency; or (2) Positive Cash Balance - If advances exceed grantee liabilities, i.e., there is a positive cash

balance, which indicates there is a payable to the grantee and an accounts receivable to the agency.

• Review /Approve Program Results/Approve - The information produced from the accrual process allows an

agency to reasonably estimate the amount of funds listed as an advance to grantees which should be

expensed and the amount of unreported grantee expenses to record as a liability at the end of a fis cal

period.

• Post the Grant Accrual Amount - A requirement to use standard general ledger (SGL) accounts at the

transaction level is contained in the Federal Financial Management Improvement Act (FFMIA) of 1996

and OMB Circular A-127, Financial Management Systems. Accounts and entries are identified in the

Treasury Financial Manual (TFM), Supplement No. 2, which is available on the SGL website at

www.fms.treas.gov/ussgl.

26 Grant Financial System Requirements

Cost Accruals
Grant Financial System Requirements 27

Cost Accruals

Search External

Historical Database

Search Internal

His torical Database

Obtain Last

Reports Received

Update Program Data Re-Initiate Program

Run Program File

Review Program Results

Re-Examine/Recalculate

Historical Data

Results

Approved?

Post Accrual

Results to the SGL

Initiate Accrual Program

Ye s

No

A

Go to Step A when

the grantee’sfinancial

reports ar e received.

Example of Initial Cost Accrual Estimate

Illustration 11
28 Grant Financial System Requirements

Cost Accruals

Search Grant Files

for Desired Files

Make Changes

to Data Program

Select Data

Compare Data Files

Store Data

Material

Difference?

Approve Program

Open Program Data Files

Post SGL Entries

to Finance System

Yes

No

A

Example of Verification Cost Accrual Estimate

Illustration 12
Validation of Accrual Estimates

A comparison of grant accrual estimate to actual is not possible if the grantee does not report total expenditures

(cash and all expenses) as of the end of the reporting period. However, it is may be possible to verify components

of the accrual e.g., where the grantee reports cash expendistures as of the end of the reporting period. When cash

expenditures are reported by the grantee, the expenditures should be compared to the cash portion of the accrual

estimate, and adjustments made to the accrual if material differences are identified.

• Verification Process Begins - The verification process begins after the grantee’s financial reports, for the end of

the fiscal period involved, are received and the data from these reports has been entered into the agency’s

files.

• Review/Approve Program Results - The agency analyzes the data input from these reports, and compares it to

the estimated expenditures projected by the AP and posts the SGL entries. After comparing the projected

expenditures with those of the financial report the required adjustments are calculated and the adjustments

made so that the estimated expenditures equal the actual expenditures.

Grant Financial System Requirements 29

Cost Accruals
Financial Reports

Mandatory (All requirements in this Chapter are Mandatory)

Overview

Grantees are required to periodically report the financial results of their grant-supported activities. A grantee may

use one or more of the following for this purpose: the Standard Form (SF) 269, Financial Status Report; the

SF-272, Federal Cash Transactions Report; or program-specific reports approved by OMB under the Paperwork

Reduction Act (PRA). The SF-269 is a budgetary document; it informs the Federal awarding agency how much of 

the grant award the grantee has expended, obligated but not yet expended, and not yet obligated as of the report

date. The SF-272 captures the amount of Federal funds awarded under the grant that the grantee has disbursed as

of the report date, both for the report period and cumulatively. Program-specific reports capture comparable

information. The Federal awarding agency may also collect this information electronically.

Federal awarding agencies use the data: (1) regulate the flow of Federal funds to grantees; (2) mo nitor grantees’

use of the funds; (3) account for the appropriations supporting their grant awards; and (4) forecast grantees’

funding and cash needs. For example, an agency that requires the submission of quarterly SF-269 reports can

compare the cumulative outlays reported by grantees to the grantees’ cumulative cash draws in order to gauge the

propriety of the latter.

Grantees meeting criteria stated in the Single Audit Act and OMB Circular A-133 (Audits of States, Local

Governments, and Non-Profit Organizations) are required to obtain audits made by independent Certified Public

Accountants or State auditors. The grantees or their auditors are required to submit their audit reports to the

Federal Audit Clearinghouse, which notifies Federal awarding agencies of any audit findings requiring action on

their part. The Federal awarding agencies rely on such audits, in addition to their other monitoring tools, to

validate the financial data reported by their grantees.

Financial Report Process Flow (see Illustrations 13)

The system must support the following major steps associated with processing financial reports. Process steps from

initiating the financial report process through sending financial reports (FR) to grantees are not applicable to

agencies which do not prepare the FR(s). Their systems begin with the step “Receive Financial Report”.

Listed below are the major steps in the reporting process.

Process Steps:

• Initiate the Financial Report Process - The financial report process (FRP) must have the ability to:

• Review electronic files of the grant and grantee. This including program and financial files.

• Select and review specific items (data) from these files.

• Compare the selected data to data previously stored in the FRP.

• Update the FRP File - Data selected by the FRP should include the grantee’s identification number, types of

grants received, grant identifying number, dollar amounts, time periods of performance, grantee’s financial

history by grant, and other data considered pertinent by the granting Agency.

• Run FRP File/Prepare Financial Report - The FRP uses the information collected to prepare financial reports

for the grantees at a specific point in time; i.e., the end of a month or a quarter.

The FRP must have the ability to prepare the reports in both electronic and hard copy formats.

30 Grant Financial System Requirements
Grant Financial System Requirements 31

Financial Reports

Requestfor

Reimbursement

Payment

Send FR(s)

to Grantees

Search

Internal Database

Search

External Database

Search

Last Report Received

Report Passes

Edits and

Verification?

Prepare Transactions

and Post to SGL

Return to Grantees for

Correction Resubmission

Process Edits

Run FRP File

Prepare FR(s)

Receive

Financial Report

Update

FRP File

Yes No

Financial Report Process

Illustration 13.
• Receive Financial Report - Financial reports received electronically from the grantees should feed automatically 

into the grants financial report process.

Reports received in a hard copy format will have to be manually input to the report process.

• Edit Process - Review the report and verify for:

• Completeness

• Mathematically correctness

• Validity of information such as grant numbers and award numbers

• Proper certification

• Assurance that amounts reported as expenditures do not exceed the balance of funds available.

• Provide controls to prevent processing duplicate reports.

• Reports failing the edit process are returned to the grantee.

• Transactions Prepared and Posted to SGL - Federal departments/agencies that utilize other agency systems for

processing grantee’s financial reports (e.g. DHHS’s Payment Management System) must have a

reconciliation process in place between the other agency’s financial systems and the agency’s SGL.

SGL entries are required to expense advance payments. A requirement to use standard general ledger (SGL)

accounts at the transaction level is contained in the Federal Financial Management Improvement Act

(FFMIA) of 1996 and OMB Circular A-127, Financial Management Systems. Accounts and entries are

identified in the Treasury Financial Manual (TFM), Supplement No. 2, which is available on the SGL

website at www.fms.treas.gov/ussgl.

SGL entries are also required to adjust for differences between the grant expenditures previously posted to

theses accounts when reimbursement payments were made to the grantees and the grant expenditures

reported on the grantee’s financial reports. A requirement to use standard general ledger (SGL) accounts at

the transaction level is contained in the Federal Financial Management Improvement Act (FFMIA) of 1996

and OMB Circular A-127, Financial Management Systems. Accounts and entries are identified in the

Treasury Financial Manual (TFM), Supplement No. 2, which is available on the SGL website at

www.fms.treas.gov/ussgl.

• Reconciliation – Sufficient and appropriate information must be maintained for reconciliation with the

agency’s core financial system.

32 Grant Financial System Requirements

Financial Reports
Interest Collections

Mandatory (All requirements in this Chapter are Mandatory)

Overview

Interest earned on advances of Federal funds must be handled in prescribed manners in accordance with

administrative requirements based on the cost principles established for the grantee organization involved. The

system must support the following major steps.

State Governments

Interest earned on advances of Federal funds by state agencies, instrumentalities, and fiscal agents is governed by

the Cash Management Improvement Act (CMIA) of 1996, i.e., Public Law 101-453). State organizations and/or

representatives not subject to the CMIA and its implementing regulations are treated as “Other Organizations”, as

listed below.

Other Organizations

Interest earned on Federal advances by other grantee organizations is subject to OMB Circular A-110, Grants

Management Common Rule, or program regulations as applicable. In accordance with entities subject to Section

.22 of OMB Circular A-110 which earn interest earned on Federal advances in excess of $250 per year in the

aggregate must be remitted annually to the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), Payment

Management System, Rockville, Maryland 20852. This office acts as the government-wide agent for all collections

of interest generated from grant advances.

Grant Financial System Requirements 33
Grant Closeout

Mandatory (All requirements in this Chapter are Mandatory)

Overview

The grantee’s authority to incur new obligations against the grant expires at the end of the grant period. The

grantee and its Federal awarding agency must then wind up all grant-related business through a process known as

closeout. For the grantee, closeout may include such tasks as disposing of major property acquired under the grant; 

submitting final reports on the grant-supported activity; and rendering a final accounting for the Federal funds

made available for the grant. The Federal awarding agency uses the data from the grantee’s final financial report to

determine its final financial obligation to the grantee and to settle any resulting claims due to or from the grantee. 

Closeout is generally the concluding act of administering a grant.

Financial Processes

The system must support the following major processes.

• Financial Status Report (FSR) Closing Process - The amount reported as expense must agree with the cash

disbursed on the FCTR. Any unobligated balances must be deobligated in the accounting system. A closing

transaction is recorded/issued to close out the grant in the accounting system. Procedures should be

established to identify grantees who are delinquent in submitting final reports.

• Federal Cash Transaction Report (FCTR) Process - The granting agency must monitor accounts that have

expired grants and have not been reported closed by the recipient. Agencies must track open grants funded

from appropriations that are expiring within the next 12 months.

• Post Closing Collections - Agencies must have accounting procedures to collect receivables and liquidate

payables due after the close out of the grant.

• Reconciliation - Sufficient information must be maintained to reconcile with the agency’s core financial

system.

34 Grant Financial System Requirements
Records Retention

Mandatory (All requirements in this Chapter are Mandatory)

Agency systems must maintain, store, and permit ready retrieval of grant financial data. The time frames for various 

parts of this requirement differ depending on the subject matter. The system must be sufficiently flexible to retain

and purge data consistent with varying record keeping requirements. 

Per 36 C.F.R. 1228, the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) must approve the destruction of

records created within the Federal government. must be approved by the National Archives and Records

Administration (NARA), per 36 C.F.R 1228. Expenditure Accounting Records are currently authorized for

disposal by General Records Schedule 7, Expenditure Accounting Records, and General Records Schedule 20,

Electronic Records are the current authorities for disposal of Expenditure Accounting Records. (Copies may be

obtained from your agency’s records officer or from NARA.) For expenditure records not covered by this

authority, or for any questions regarding the disposition of federal records, please contact:

National Archives and Records Administration (NARA)

7th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW

Washington, DC 20408

Phone number — (202) 501-5400

Grant Financial System Requirements 35
General System Requirements

Mandatory (All requirements in the Chapter are Mandatory)

System Interfaces

The grant financial system, at the standard and/or agency-level, must be able to accept, process, and report on

transactions with other internal and external systems. The system must record and track such transactions and

related information in order to provide the basis for central control. This may require a custom interface to properly 

identify and format the transactions.

The system must:

• Provide system flexibility in accepting data input from multiple media so that it can recognize the unique

data input requirements of interface systems.

• Subject all transactions from interfacing systems to the grant financial system edits and validations.

• Provide system capability to customize data input, processing rules, and edit criteria. Provide flexibility in

defining internal operational procedures and in supporting agency requirements.

• Provide the capability to identify and process information from other systems that enter and update the

standard grant financial system.

• Provide system capability to allow users to customize output for reporting and providing interfaces to other

systems necessary to meet agency requirements for external processing (e.g., general ledger posting, budget

formulation, budget reconciliation and budget execution).

• Capture the transaction dates in order to ensure compliance with the Cash Management Improvement Ac t.

• Capture information to comply with reporting and referral requirements of the Debt Collection

Improvement Act of 1996.

• Capture information necessary to report on property, plant, and equipment in the hands of grantees as

required by Statement of Federal Financial Accounting Standards No. 6 (SFFAS No. 6) Accounting for

Property, Plant and Equipment.

• Capture financial information necessary to comply with OMB Circular A-110 Uniform Administrative

Requirements for Grants and Agreements with Institutions of Higher Education, Hospitals, and Other

Non-Profit Organizations (11/19/93, amended 9/30/99).

Other General Systems Issues

A variety of general systems requirements, including data stewardship, systems architecture, system s integration,

internal control, and others are contained in the JFMIP FFMSR-0, January 1995, entitled Framework for Federal

Financial Management Systems. The Framework document along with all other JFMIP requirements documents

can be found at: www/financenet.gov/jfmip/jfmip.htm 

36 Grant Financial System Requirements
Information Technology in the Grants Process

Value-Added (All requirements in this Chapter are Value-Added)

Introduction

This section describes a framework for introducing information technology (IT) into the external grants process.

The framework comprises the federal grant-making agencies, working under a single “umbrella” interagency

committee structured to reflect the concerns of major customer groups, and motivated by common goals to

streamline and improve the grants process and to develop a common face with agency grantees. This section also

describes a work-in-progress, developed within the framework and updated as of the issue date of this document,

that exemplifies the benefits of using IT and provides some guidelines for future cooperative effort.

Organizing to Employ Information Technology

The federal grant enterprise is conducted in 23 major grant making federal agencies. Depending on the mission of

the agency and the target recipient community, administrative requirements vary from agency to agency and even

program to program within agencies. The 1997 National Performance Review (NPR) report, Access America,

identified federal grant distribution as an area ripe for the application of electronic commerce solutions. In response 

to that report, the GSA Electronic Commerce Program Office (ECPO) established and sponsors the Inte r-Agency

Electronic Grants Committee (IAEGC), an interagency organization, to coordinate, promote and facilitate the

effective use of electronic commerce throughout the federal grants community.

The IAEGC has focused on development of common face solutions for electronic grants. Efforts to ach ieve a common

face have culminated in the concept of the “Federal Commons”. The Federal Commons project is a collaboration of the 33 

Federal grant-making agencies that are members of the IAEGC, and functions as one of three IAEGC subcommittees.

This project is supported by activities in the two other subcommittees: State, Local, Non-Profit and Other (S&L)

Subcommittee; and the Research and Related (R&R) Subcommittee. The S&L Subcommittee, comprising federal

agencies that award grants primarily to state and local governments and non-profit organizations, was formed to better

serve the needs of its diverse customer base. The R&R Subcommittee, more commonly known as the Federal Electronic

Commerce Committee (ECC), deals with grants to research entities such as universities and laboratories. Charter, plans,

meeting agendas and minutes, reports, and roster for the IAEGC and its subgroups may be reviewed at

Applying Information Technology within the Framework

The ECC was formed by research-sponsoring agencies to develop a means to transmit a research grant application

(proposal) electronically rather than by paper, using a data element dictionary of all information transmitted in the

application. This effort, completed in 1994, resulted in the first electronic standard for grant applications, now

known as the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) X12 Transaction Set 194, (See the Federal Electronic

Data Interchange web page at SNAD.NCSL.NIST.GOV/FEDEDI) The ECC sets priorities and publicizes its

efforts by publishing a Project Plan, currently in its third version. This plan describes further work of the ECC,

including 

• Expanding EC technologies to include the World Wide Web for data exchange; 

• Expanding electronic business transactions to include awards, solicitations, trading partner registration and profiles, 

and progress reporting;

• Increasing the number of participating agencies; and

• Introducing the Federal Commons concept as a means of exchanging data among federal agencies and grant

recipients.

Grant Financial System Requirements 37
The S&L Subcommittee grew out of work in the ECC to develop a common web site for grant transactions. This

group achieved a working prototype site for a wide range of grant transactions, providing software for download

by the potential grantee using Java applet technology. This system requires little or no grantee investment, and is

designed for state and local governments with limited IT budgets and capabilities. This group has developed a

Business Plan outlining subsequent efforts, including

• Enlarging the IAEGC data dictionary to include additional data elements that are required by state and local

governments, non-profits, and other organizations;

• Promoting the widest possible use of common electronic commerce processes throughout the federal grants

community;

• Reaching out to trading partners with information about electronic options, and providing opportunities for

questions and feedback; and

• Supporting development and implementation of the Federal Commons concept.

The Federal Commons Project

As proposed, the Federal Commons will provide a government-wide electronic commerce approach to grants

management. The Federal Commons is envisioned as a coordinated network of federal grant administration systems 

and databases. One means of access to the Federal Commons will be a Web-based interface. This Federal Commons 

Web Site will enable grantee organization users (universities; research institutions; small businesses; state and local

governments; and other non-profit organizations) to become more familiar with grant activities ongoing in the

participating agencies. In addition, the Federal Commons Web Site will include interfaces designed to support

secure transmission of administrative information for pre-award and post-award grants business processes. For each 

business process, users will be provided with technological options as to how such information can be formatted,

transmitted and/or received. In response to the extensive burden that would be placed on agencies to support every

technology option, the Federal Commons employs the concept of service centers. An agency that assumes

responsibility for the deployment of a specific technology associated with various grant business processes would

become a service center for that technology.

The Federal Commons, therefore, begins the transition from agency independent electronic grant administration

initiatives toward a common government electronic grant administration business model that provides

technological flexibility for grant recipients. It employs a concept of lead agency responsibility in the deployment of

technologies associated with various grant business processes. The Federal Commons will provide flexible

technological alternatives, support for the entire grants life cycle, a single point of entry for grantees to all

participating agencies, and secure interfaces.

The Federal Commons has a rich legacy in the technical implementations and data standards development both of

federal agencies and grants recipient organizations. It leverages the work of the Federal Electronic Commerce

Committee in the development of grants business data standards such as the ANSI X12 194 Transaction Set (grant

proposals/applications) and the corresponding grants data dictionary. It builds on the technology used in agency

systems (e.g., Fastlane from the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) , Commons from the National Institute of

Health (NIH), US Electronic Grants Project from the Department of Transportation (DOT) and Paperless

Voucher System from the Office of Naval Research (ONR)). 

Toward the realization of this concept, the Federal Commons Subcommittee began meeting in 1998 to support the 

initial stage of software development, including formalizing user requirements as well as defining system

requirements. With such specifications defined, a proof of concept system is under development. The proof of

concept will provide four types of grant administration activity as described below.

38 Grant Financial Systems Requirements

Information Technology in the Grants Process
User Registration – This activity enables an individual to register as a Federal Commons user. A user can specify

identification parameters (i.e., a user name, a password, and a unique identifier). These parameters will be stored in

a central repository. When a Federal Commons user accesses the Federal Commons Web Site or that of a Federal

Commons agency , the identity of the user will be validated against these parameters. In addition, the Federal

Commons will facilitate the linking between the unique identifiers of Federal Commons users and the internal data

structures of participating agencies.

Status Query – This activity enables a Federal Commons user to log into the Federal Commons Web Sit e and query 

application/proposal and/or award status. The user can select which federal agencies to access, and the Federal

Commons Web Site will coordinate the retrieval of status information from the appropriate agencies.

Organizational Profile Submission – This activity enables a Federal Commons user to log into the Federal

Commons Web Site and create/modify an Organizational Profile (OPF) for the grantee organization. Th e user can

select which Federal agencies are to receive the OPF, and the Federal Commons Web Site will communi cate the

OPF to the appropriate agencies. The web site will also submit the profiles to an interagency repository. Federal

Commons agencies will be able to query the profiles from this repository.

Professional Profile Submission – This activity enables Federal Commons users to log into the Federal Commons

Web Site and create/modify their biographical information as contained in a Professional Profile (PPF). The user

can select which Federal agencies are to receive the PPF, and the Federal Commons Web Site will communicate the 

PPF to the appropriate agencies.

The Federal Commons homepage www.fedcommons.gov will have links to agency Web sites and a demo version

of the approach to common business processes. During the first half of 1999, the first common grant modules: user 

registration, status query, organizational profile and professional profile, will be deployed. Following the initial

deployment, an assessment report will be written. The report will address the following topics: key technology

accomplishments, results of testing with customers, recommendations regarding architecture and software tools,

and future tasks.

Conclusions

The Federal Commons concept and its preliminary design have been presented to the Federal Agency Information

Architecture Working Group of the Chief Information Officer Council’s Interoperability Committee, for

coordination and possible assistance in design enhancement and implementation. As the design is tested and refined 

within the grants community, its flexibility and convenience should increase its applicability to a wide range of

agency programs through stable data dictionaries, leveraged technologies from federal agencies, and common

electronic forms and accessibility. Working within the framework of the grant-making community, members of the

IAEGC and its subgroups are developing IT solutions for grants process problems experienced by the grantee

community. Current information is available at the IAEGC and Federal Commons web sites.

Grant Financial Systems Requirements 3 9

Information Technology in the Grants Process
Appendix A: References/Authoritative Sources

• OMB Circular A-11, Preparation and Submission of Budget Estimates (Part 1)

• OMB Circular A-34, Instructions on Budget Execution

• OMB Circular A-102, Grants and Cooperative Agreements with State and Local Governments

• OMB Circular A-110, Administrative Requirements for Grants and Agreements with Institutions of Higher

Education, Hospitals, and Other Non-profit Organizations

• OMB Circular A-127— Revised, Transmittal Memorandum No. 1

• OMB Circular A-123, Management Accountability and Control

• OMB Circular A-130, Management of Federal Information Resources

• OMB Circular A-133, Audits of States, Local Governments, and Non-Profit Organizations

• OMB Circular A-134, Financial Accounting Principles and Standards

• FFMSR-0, JFMIP Framework for Federal Financial Management Systems

• FFMSR-1, JFMIP Core Financial System Requirements

• SFFAS 1, Accounting for Selected Assets and Liabilities

• SFFAS 5, Accounting for Liabilities of the Federal Government

• SFFAS 7, Accounting for Revenue and Other Financial Sources

• U.S. Government Standard General Ledger

• U.S.C. Sections 1301, 1341, 1534, 3512(d)

40 Grant Financial Systems Requirements
Appendix B: Glossary/Data Dictionary

Accrual Accounting The method of accounting in which an entity’s financial position and operating results are measured by

the flow of economic resources. Transactions are recorded in the accounting period in which they occur

or whose operations they benefit, regardless of when the related cash receipts and disbursements take

place.

Advance A payment made to a grantee upon its request either before the grantee has made outlays or through the

use of predetermined payment schedules. (A-110, sec. ___.2(d)) Advances represent cash drawdowns

made by the grant recipient to meet immediate cash needs.

Allotment A subdivision of funds below the apportionment level; usually, at the office level within the organization.

Apportionment A distribution made by OMB of amounts available for obligation in an appropriation or fund account

into amounts available for specified time period, activities, project, objects, or combinations thereof. The

amounts so apportioned limit the obligations that may be incurred. (A-34, Part II, Section 21.1, p.ll-1).

Appropriation One of the basic forms of budget authority. Statutory authority that allows federal agencies to incur

obligations and to make payment out of the Treasury for specified purposes. An appropriation act is the

most common means of providing budget authority, but in some cases the authorizing legislation itself

provides the budget authority. (A-34, Part II, Section 21.1).

Appropriation or Fund Account

A summary account established in the Treasury for each appropriation and/or fund showing transaction s

to such accounts. Each such account provides the framework for establishing a set of balanced accounts on 

the books of the agency concerned. As used in A-34, this phrase refers to general fund expenditure

accounts, special fund expenditure accounts, public enterprise revolving funds, intragovernmental

revolving funds, management funds, trust fund expenditure accounts, and trust revolving fund accounts.

(A-34, Part II, Section 21.1, p. ll-4 and 5).

Approving Authority

Individuals designated by their institution to have the authority to approve a given action.

Approving Official Same as an “Approving Authority” above.

Award Financial assistance that provides support or stimulation to accomplish a public purpose. Awards include

grants and other agreements in the form of money or property in lieu of money, by the Federal

Government to an eligible recipient. The term does not include: technical assistance, which provides

services instead of money; other assistance in the form of loans, loan guarantees, interest subsidi es, or

insurance; direct payments of any kind to individuals; and, contracts which are required to be entered into 

and administered under procurement laws and regulations. (A-110, sec. ___.2(e))

Block Grants Grants issued to government units to support a variety of activities within a broad area of responsibility

instead of focusing on a specific activity. Examples include block grants for social services, maternal and

child health, and transportation.

Budget Accounts The lower level budget allocation of a given budget appropriation; usually, for budget execution

purposes, agency appropriations are allocated/distributed to lower levels within an organization; budget

accounts represent the lowest level at which funding is controlled.

Budget Authority Authority provided by law, including joint resolutions making continuing appropriations (also known as

continuing resolutions), and becoming available during the year to incur obligations. The basic forms of

budget authority are appropriations, authority to borrow, and contract authority. (A-34, Part II, Section

21.1, p.ll-3).

Budget Year The fiscal year for which the funds are appropriated for by Congress; “budget year” is also known as

“funding year” or “program year”; note that an appropriation for a given “budget year” may be available

Grant Financial Systems Requirements 41
for use (obligation) over multiple “fiscal years”; the time period for utilization is stipulated in the

appropriation.

Closeout The process by which a Federal awarding agency determines that all applicable administrative actions and

all required work of the award have been completed by the recipient and Federal awarding agency.

(A-110, sec. ___.2(g))

Commitment of Funds

The amount of allotment or lower level authority committed in anticipation of an obligation. (SGL,

definition of account 4700). Commitment is the act of reserving appropriated funds for an eventual

obligation/award action by an organization.

Commitment Request

The requesting action within an organizational entity, which eventually leads to a commitment of funds

for a given purpose.

Core Financial System

The financial system which supports the financial functions of an organization which are required to track

financial events and provide significant financial information to management, and/or required for the

preparation of financial statements. Core financial systems are combined with the financial portion of

mixed systems to form the Financial Management System of an organization.

Disbursement 1. The transfer of cash from the U.S. Treasury to a grantee, generally by deposit to the grantee’s account

with its financial institution.

2. The expenditures (disbursements) reported by grant recipients for the current and previous years. The

actual funds a recipient spent to carry out a program that is supported by administer a grant award. The

term is synonymous with expenditure.

Discretionary Grant Award

A grant awarded for a project of fixed duration that supports the purposes stated in the program’s

authorizing statute, regulations, and announced awarding agency priorities. Within these parameters, the

awarding agency determines which projects will be funded, which applicants will receive awards, and the

dollar amount of each award. Such determinations are usually made through a competitive process.

Drawdown The process of requesting a payment from the recipient’s grant award and receiving the payment into the

recipient’s depositor account at the recipient’s financial institution or bank.

Expenditure The actual funds a recipient spent to carry out a program that is supported by administer a grant award.

(See disbursement.)

External Program Data

This data represents specific program criteria for various types of grant programs including research,

block, formula and discretionary grants, and recipients such as states and local governments, institutions,

and individuals. This external data will help the agency develop trend analyses on how the recipients draw

and spend grant funds.

Federal Awarding Agency

A Federal agency that awards a grant to a grantee and provides funding for grant purposes. 

Federal Funds Authorized

The total amount of Federal funds obligated by the Federal Government for use by the recipient. This

amount may include any authorized carryover of unobligated funds from prior funding periods when

permitted by agency regulations or agency implementing instructions. (A-110, sec. ___.2(p))

42 Grant Financial Systems Requirements

Appendix B: Glossary/Data Dictionary
Financial System An information system, comprised of one or more applications, that is used for any of the following:

• collecting , processing, maintaining, transmitting, and reporting data about financial events;

• supporting financial planning or budgeting activities;

• accumulating and reporting cost information; or

• supporting the preparation of financial statements

(A-127 Revised, Item 5 – “Definitions”)

Fiscal Year The twelve month period, October 1st through September 30th, for a given year.

Formula Grant A grant where the funds are awarded based upon a formula defined in the program statute or agency’s

regulations.

Funding Period The period of time when Federal funding is available for obligation for use by the recipient. (A-110, sec.

___.2(r))

Grant Period The period established in the grant document during which Federal sponsorship begins and ends and

represents the grant’s period of performance.

Grant A contractual relationship between a Federal awarding agency and a non-Federal entity (the grantee), in

which the awarding agency agrees to transfer money or something of value to the grantee. The grantee

agrees to use such resources in carrying out a public purpose of support or stimulation authorized by law.

Neither party envisions substantial involvement by the awarding agency in carrying out the grant. A grant 

contrasts with a cooperative agreement, in which the awarding agency does become substantially involved 

in the Federal sponsored activity, and with a procurement contract, which a Federal agency uses to obtain

goods and services for its own use (31 USC 6304).

Historical Data The amounts disbursed to grantees during each year and the amounts actually expended by the grantees.

In addition, other data such as grant award amounts, and remittances should be included in this

information store.

Information System The organized collection, processing, transmission, and dissemination of information in accordance with

defined procedures, whether automated or manual. Information systems include non-financial, financial,

and mixed systems. (A-127 Revised, Item 5 – “Definitions”)

Internal Program Data

This data represents specific program criteria for the various types of grant programs such as block grants

versus formula or discretionary grants. This data would also include grantee’s identification numbers,

period of availability for each grant, number of grants, and authorizations.

Mixed System An information system that supports both financial and non-financial functions of the Federal

government or components thereof. (A-127 Revised, Item 5 – “Definitions”)

Object Classification

A method of classifying obligations and expenditures according to the nature of services or articles

procured, e.g., personal services, supplies and materials, and equipment. Obligations are classifie d by the

initial purpose for which they are incurred, rather than for the end product or service provided. OMB

Circular A-11 provides current object classifications for reporting budget estimates to OMB. Many

agencies have defined lower levels of object classification for internal use. (A-11, Sec 35.1)(From JFMIP

FFMSR-1 9/95; p. 54)

Obligating Official Individuals authorized to legally bind the Federal Government to provide funds for a specific project or

purpose.

Grant Financial Systems Requirements 43

Appendix B: Glossary/Data Dictionary
Obligation Obligations are amounts of orders placed, contracts awarded, services received, and similar transactions

for bona fide needs existing during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future

period and that comply with applicable laws and regulations. Such amounts will include outlays for which 

obligations had not been previously recorded and will reflect adjustments for differences between

obligations previously recorded and actual outlays to liquidate those obligations. (A-34, Sec 21.1, p.

11-7).

Pooled Payment A consolidated advance payment to a grantee to cover anticipated cash needs for all grants the grantee has

with the Federal awarding agency making the payment. The grantee identifies its cash needs collecti vely

rather than by individual grant.

Pooling A process whereby a recipient (university or other non-profit) with multiple many awards from one

agency may request advances/payments based on a single estimate of immediate cash needs for all of the

recipient’s awards.

Principal Investigator (PI)

The individual, designated by the grantee, who will be responsible for the scientific or technical direction

of the project.

Program Generally defined as an organized set of activities directed toward a common purpose, or goal, undertaken 

or proposed by an agency in order to carry out its responsibilities. In practice, however, the term program 

has many uses and thus does not have well-defined, standard meaning in the legislative process. Program

is used to describe an agency’s mission, programs, functions, activities, services, projects, and processes.

Program Income Gross income earned by the grantee that is directly generated by a supported activity or earned as a result

of the grant (see exclusions in paragraphs A-110, ___.24 (e) and (h). (A-110, sec. ___.2(x))

Project A planned undertaking of something to be accomplished, produced, or having a finite beginning and

finite end. Examples are a construction project or a research and development project. (SGL p. IV-7).

Project Period The period established in the award document during which Federal sponsorship begins and ends.

(A-110, sec. ___.2(z))

Recipient An organization receiving financial assistance directly from Federal awarding agencies to carry out a

project or program. (A-110, sec. ___.2(cc))

Remittances Grant funds on deposit with the grantees, which the Federal awarding agency must recover. These

amounts consist of unexpended funds and balances previously advanced to the grantee. Remittances ma y

result from overpayments and audit disallowances.

System Requirements

JFMIP systems requirements are either mandatory or value added. The definitions of these two categories

are:

Mandatory - Mandatory requirements describe what the system must do and consists of the minimum

acceptable functionality necessary to establish a system, or are based on Federal laws and regulations.

Mandatory requirements are those against which agency heads evaluate their systems to determine

substantial compliance with systems requirements under the FFMIA. These requirements apply to

existing systems in operation and new systems planned or under development.

Value-added - Value added requirements describe features or characteristics which are considered to be

optional or additional functionality to a system and may consist of any combination of the following: (1)

using state of the art technology, (2) employing the preferred or best business practices, or (3) meeting

the special management needs of an individual agency. Agencies should consider value-added features

when judging systems options. The need for these value-added features in agency systems is left to the

discretion of each agency head.

44 Grant Financial Systems Requirements

Appendix B: Glossary/Data Dictionary
Standard General Ledger (SGL)

The uniform chart of accounts issued by the U.S. Department of Treasury that are required to be used by

all Federal Agencies to record accounting transactions.

Unliquidated Obligations

For financial reports prepared on a cash basis, they are the amount of obligations incurred by the recipient 

that have not been paid. For reports prepared on an accrued expenditure basis, they represent the amount

of obligations incurred by the recipient for which an outlay has not been recorded.

Grant Financial Systems Requirements 45

Appendix B: Glossary/Data Dictionary
Grant Financial Systems Requirements 46

Appendix C: Contributors

Joint Financial Management Improvement

Program (JFMIP) Steering Committee

Donald V. Hammond, Chair

U.S. Department of the Treasury

Alternate: Robert Reid

Alternate: Larry Stout

Karen Cleary Alderman

Executive Director, JFMIP

Alternate: Doris Chew

Joseph L. Kull

Office of Management and Budget

Alternate: Jerry Williams

William B. Early

General Services Administration

Alternate: Elisabeth Gustafson

Jeffrey C. Steinhoff

U.S. General Accounting Office

Alternate: Linda Calbom

Kathleen M. McGettigan

Office of Personnel Management

Alternate: Donna R. Ballard

Former Members

Norwood J. Jackson

Office of Management and Budget

Thomas R. Bloom

General Services Administration

Gene L. Dodaro

U.S. General Accounting Office

Sheila Conley

Office of Management and Budget

J. Gilbert Seaux

Office of Personnel Management

Joint Financial Management Improvement Program

Karen Cleary Alderman

Executive Director, JFMIP

Dennis S. Mitchell

Systems Accountant

Evelyn Gaites

Women’s Executive Leadership Program

Department of Education

Irene Lucas

Women’s Executive Leadership Program

Department of State

Project Leaders

George Strader (Project Chair)

Deputy Chief Financial Officer 

Department of Health and Human Services

Tom Doherty, Director, Financial Systems

Charles Worthy

Albert J. Muhlbauer (Former Project Chair)

Deputy Chief Financial Officer 

National Science Foundation

Richard A. Noll (Team Leader)

Team Members

Office of Management and Budget

Jean Holcombe

Sandra Swab

F. James Charney

General Accounting Office

Gloria Jarmon

Director, Health, Education & Human Services

Accounting and Financial Management Issues

Chinero N. Thomas

Assistant Director, Health, Education & Human

Services Accounting and Financial Management Issues
Grant Financial Systems Requirements 47

Appendix C: Contributors

Cheryl Driscoll

Audit Manager, Health, Education & Human Services

Accounting and Financial Management Issues

Department of Transportation & IAEGC Co-Chair

J. Ann Fisher

Program Analyst, Office of the Secretary

Office of Naval Research & IAEGC Co-Chair

L. Bradley Stanford

Special Assistant to the Chief Information Officer for

Electronic

Department of Education

Paul V. Gilbreath

Project Director for EDCAPS

Rebecca Harding

National Institutes of Health

J. Wayne Berry

Deputy Assistant Director for Finance

U.S. Department of Agriculture

Christopher M. Lipsey

Staff Accountant, Grants Management Division, Food

and Nutrition Service

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Alan B. Lewis

Chief, Las Vegas Financial Management Center

Chief Financial Officer Council’s Fellows

Program (1998-1999 Class)

Richard A. Noll

Defense Finance and Accounting Service/National

Science Foundation Fellow (Team Leader)

Ralph Beaty

U.S. Department of Agriculture/National Aeronautics

and Space Administration Fellow

Chandler B. Gardiner

General Services Administration/U.S. Department of

Agriculture Fellow

Willa R. Green

U.S. Department of Labor/U.S. Department of

Agriculture Fellow

Thaddeus L. Kontek

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency/U.S.

Department of Labor Fellow

Margaret M. Myers

Veterans Affairs/ General Services Administration

Fellow

Debra E. Watson

National Science Foundation/ National Aeronautics and

Space Administration Fellow

Betty G. Weber

U.S. Department of the Army/National Aeronautics and 

Space Administration Fellow/U.S. Department of Army

Fellow

Betty J. White

Joint Financial Management Improvement

Program/U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Fellow