§1232f — Title 20 Education | U.S. Code

§1232f Records

Title 20 › Chapter 31— GENERAL PROVISIONS CONCERNING EDUCATION › Subchapter III— GENERAL REQUIREMENTS AND CONDITIONS CONCERNING OPERATION AND ADMINISTRATION OF EDUCATION PROGRAMS: GENERAL AUTHORITY OF SECRETARY › Part 4— Records; Privacy; Limitation on Withholding Federal Funds › § 1232f

Last updated Apr 5, 2026|Official source

Summary

Recipients of federal money must keep clear records that show how much they got, how they used it, the full cost of the activity paid with the money, how much of that cost came from other sources, and any other papers needed for a good financial or program audit. They must keep those records for three years after the activity ends. The Secretary and the Comptroller General of the United States, or their authorized representatives, must be allowed to look at any of those records for audits. They can review records tied to grants, subgrants, cooperative agreements, loans, or similar arrangements and records that show whether the recipient followed program rules.

Title 20, §1232f

Education — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Each recipient of Federal funds under any applicable program through any grant, subgrant, cooperative agreement, loan, or other arrangement shall keep records which fully disclose the amount and disposition by the recipient of those funds, the total cost of the activity for which the funds are used, the share of that cost provided from other sources, and such other records as will facilitate an effective financial or programmatic audit. The recipient shall maintain such records for three years after the completion of the activity for which the funds are used.

(b)The Secretary and the Comptroller General of the United States, or any of their duly authorized representatives, shall have access, for the purpose of audit examination, to any records maintained by a recipient that may be related, or pertinent to, grants, subgrants, cooperative agreements, loans, or other arrangements to which reference is made in subsection (a), or which may relate to the compliance of the recipient with any requirement of an applicable program.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Prior Provisions

A prior section 443 of Pub. L. 90–247 was classified to section 1233b of this title prior to repeal by Pub. L. 103–382.

Amendments

1994—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 103–382, § 248(1), substituted “grant, subgrant, cooperative agreement, loan, or other arrangement” for “grant, subgrant, contract, subcontract, loan, or other arrangement (other than procurement contracts awarded by an administrative head of an educational agency)”, inserted “financial or programmatic” before “audit.”, and substituted “three years” for “five years”. Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 103–382, § 248(2), substituted “to any records maintained by a recipient that may be related, or pertinent to, grants, subgrants, cooperative agreements, loans, or other arrangements” for “to any records of a recipient which may be related, or pertinent to, the grants, subgrants, contracts, subcontracts, loans, or other arrangements”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

Section effective with respect to appropriations for fiscal year 1980 and subsequent fiscal years, see section 1261 of Pub. L. 95–561, set out as a note under section 1232c of this title.