§10706 Grant Accountability

Summary

The Attorney General must watch over all grants made under this part to prevent waste and misuse. Applicable committees are the Senate Judiciary Committee and the House Judiciary Committee. The Justice Department’s Inspector General must audit grantees each year starting in the first fiscal year beginning after July 22, 2016, and decides how many audits to do. An “unresolved audit finding” means the Inspector General’s final report says a grantee used money for unauthorized or unallowable costs and the problem is not fixed within 12 months after that report. Any grantee with an unresolved audit finding cannot get grants under this part for the first 2 fiscal years after that 12‑month period ends. The Attorney General must give priority to applicants who had no unresolved findings during the 3 fiscal years before they apply. If a barred grantee is accidentally paid, the Attorney General must put the same amount back into the Treasury’s General Fund and try to recover that money from the grantee. Nonprofit organizations are the tax‑exempt groups under section 501(c)(3). A nonprofit that keeps money offshore to avoid the tax in section 511(a) of title 26 may not be a party to contracts under section 10701(b) or get subawards under section 10701(b). Nonprofits using the standard procedures to justify officer compensation must explain their process in their application, and the Attorney General will make that information public on request. No one may use more than $20,000 of these grant funds for a single conference unless the agency head gives written approval that includes a full cost estimate (food, drinks, A/V, speaker fees, entertainment). The Deputy Attorney General must send an annual report to the applicable committees on approved conference spending. Each year starting in the first fiscal year after July 22, 2016, the Attorney General must certify to the applicable committees that audits were completed and reviewed, required exclusions were issued, reimbursements were made, and must list any excluded grantees from the prior year. Before awarding a grant, the Attorney General must check for duplicate grants under this part; if duplicate grants are given, a report listing the duplicates, total dollars, and the reason must go to the applicable committees.