AT A GLANCE

Review of the National Science Foundation CARES Act Spending Plan

Report No. OIG 20-6-001

May 21, 2020

WHY WE DID THIS REVIEW

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) provided $76 million to NSF, 

including $75 million to support its ongoing grant response to COVID-19 and $1 million to assist in 

the administration of those grants. We conducted a review to identify whether NSF’s plan for 

expending those funds was reasonable, prudent, and met the intent of the funding objectives.

WHAT WE FOUND

We found NSF’s plan to be reasonable, prudent, and consistent with the intent of the Act’s funding 

objectives. NSF is using existing funding mechanisms with established policies, procedures, and 

controls to disperse the funds provided by the CARES Act. This reduces the risk of misuse and helps 

ensure accountability. NSF also established a process to ensure appropriate financial controls over 

CARES Act funds by using a unique fund code. Further, NSF is using funding mechanisms that allow 

for quickly mobilizing the research community so that CARES Act funds can have a timely and 

immediate impact. 

WHAT WE REVIEWED

We reviewed NSF’s CARES Act Spending Plan and Review Team documents, related policies and 

procedures, and additional information provided directly by NSF’s senior leadership. 

REPORT FRAUD, WASTE, ABUSE, OR WHISTLEBLOWER REPRISAL

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CONTACT US

For further information or questions, please contact us at OIGpublicaffairs@nsf.gov or 703.292.7100. 

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National Science Foundation • Office of Inspector General

 2415 Eisenhower Avenue, Alexandria, Virginia 22314 

MEMORANDUM

DATE: May 21, 2020 

TO: Teresa Grancorvitz

Office Head and Chief Financial Officer

Office of Budget, Finance and Award Management

FROM: Mark Bell

Assistant Inspector General

Office of Audits

SUBJECT: Report No. OIG 20-6-001, Review of the National Science Foundation CARES 

Act Spending Plan 

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) is a wide-ranging statute 

enacted on March 27, 2020, to address the health, economic, and societal impacts of the Coronavirus 

Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. It provides NSF with a 

total of $76 million, including $75 million to support its 

ongoing grant response to COVID-19 and $1 million to assist 

in the administration of those grants. These funds include 

Rapid Response Research (RAPID) awards and are in 

addition to NSF’s existing active grant portfolio, which 

totaled more than $33 billion in FY 2019. NSF developed a 

plan for spending its CARES Act funds using existing 

processes and funding mechanisms, and we conducted a 

sufficiency review of this plan as a routine activity. We 

found NSF’s plan to be reasonable, prudent, and consistent 

with the intent of the Act’s funding objectives. 

NSF’s Spending Plan

NSF plans to use the $76 million provided by the CARES 

Act to support additional fast-track, fundamental, and 

transformational research activity associated with 

(1) improving the understanding of SARS-CoV-2, the 

coronavirus causing COVID-19; (2) developing a 

predictive understanding of the spread of the virus; and 

(3) enabling approaches that mitigate the negative 

Source: NSF OIG-generated depiction of 

information from NSF
Additional Information

2

impacts of COVID-19 on public health, society, and the economy. NSF will track the CARES Act 

funding by using a unique fund code. As shown in Figure 1, NSF plans to spend the $76 million as 

follows:

• $67.25 million will be allocated for the RAPID and Early-Concept Grants for Exploratory 

Research (EAGER) funding mechanisms. RAPID is a type of proposal used when there is a 

severe urgency regarding availability of, or access to, data, facilities, or specialized equipment, 

including quick-response research on natural or anthropogenic disasters and similar 

unanticipated events. EAGER is a type of proposal used to support exploratory work in its 

early stages on untested, but potentially transformative, research ideas or approaches. The 

RAPID and EAGER programs have been in place since 2009, and previous awards were used 

to advance understanding of the Ebola and Zika disease outbreaks and measures to contain 

them. RAPID awards have also been used to fund research to improve responses to natural 

disasters such as Hurricane Harvey and unexpected events like the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

• $5 million will be allocated to the Education and Human Resources account to support 

fundamental and transformational research activities that align with the three identified 

research areas. 

• $2.75 million will be allocated to the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small 

Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs. This funding will be focused on the 

development and deployment of new technologies, products, processes, and services with the 

potential to positively impact the nation’s and world’s ability to respond to COVID-19. 

• $1 million will support measures 

taken by NSF to secure ongoing 

continuity of operations during this 

period, including additional 

oversight, management, and 

reporting requirements for 

COVID-19 program funding.

NSF has already begun implementing the 

spending plan and anticipates obligating 

most, if not all, CARES Act funding by 

early June (see Figure 2).

Conclusion

As specified in the spending plan, NSF is using existing funding mechanisms with established policies, 

procedures, and controls to disperse the funds provided by the CARES Act. This reduces the risk of 

misuse and helps ensure accountability. NSF also established a process to ensure appropriate financial 

controls over CARES Act funds by using a unique fund code. Further, NSF is using funding 

mechanisms that allow for quickly mobilizing the research community so that CARES Act funds can 

have a timely and immediate impact. 

We find this plan to be reasonable, prudent, and consistent with the intent of the Act’s funding 

objectives. 

Source: NSF OIG-generated depiction of information from NSF
Additional Information

3

Objective, Scope, & Methodology

The objective of our review was to identify whether NSF’s plan for expending CARES Act funds was 

reasonable, prudent, and met the intent of the funding objectives of preventing, preparing for, and 

responding to COVID-19. To accomplish our objective, we:

• Reviewed NSF’s CARES Act Spending Plan and Review Team documents;

• Evaluated NSF’s plan to identify if an executable spending strategy was established, whether that 

strategy met the intent of the legislation, and whether controls had been identified to properly 

account for the expenditure of funds;

• Reviewed NSF policies, procedures, and supplementary documentation related to the programs 

identified within the spending plan;

• Communicated all questions and comments regarding the spending plan to NSF’s senior 

leadership; and

• Reviewed all subsequent documentation and answers provided by NSF’s senior leadership. 

We did not conduct any expenditure or control testing as part of this review. 

We provided a draft of this memorandum to NSF management for review on May 19, 2020. NSF 

provided us with updated information for Figure 2 of this memorandum but did not communicate any 

additional comments or concerns.

cc: Ellen Ochoa Victor McCrary

Ann Bushmiller John Veysey

Fleming Crim Christina Sarris

Rafael Cotto Allison Lerner

Lisa Vonder Haar Ken Chason

Dan Buchtel Ken Lish

Karen Scott Louise Nelson