Duplicative Grant Consolidation Act
- Bill Number
- H.R. 2101
- Origin Chamber
- House
- Congress
- 119th Congress, Session 1
- Policy Area
- Government Operations and Politics
- Status
- Introduced
- Latest Action
- 2025-03-14: Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
- Last Updated
- 2025-04-04T13:32:36Z
AI-Generated Summary
Purpose
The Duplicative Grant Consolidation Act aims to prevent waste in federal spending by prohibiting the awarding of grants based on duplicate or fraudulent applications and establishing a centralized system to track and identify overlapping grant requests across government agencies. This promotes efficient use of taxpayer funds by ensuring grants are not awarded multiple times for the same purpose.
Key Provisions
- Prohibition on Duplicative Grants (Section 2):
- Federal agencies cannot award a grant to an applicant if it has already received a grant from another agency for the same or identical purpose, unless the applicant is an institution of higher education (a college or university as defined under federal law).
- If duplication is suspected, the heads of the involved agencies must jointly decide which agency should award the grant, if any.
- No grants can be awarded based on fraudulent applications, as determined by the agency head or its Inspector General (an internal watchdog office that investigates waste and misconduct).
- Tracking and Deconfliction System (Section 3):
- Within one year of the bill's enactment, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB, a key federal office overseeing budget and efficiency) must create an electronic database accessible to agencies and their Inspectors General.
- The system allows checks before awarding grants or during audits to see if an applicant has received or applied for similar funding elsewhere.
- It includes details like the awardee's name, principal investigator (lead researcher), award period, agency contact, and a project abstract (summary).
- A separate feature tracks "essentially equivalent work," such as identical or closely related research proposals submitted to the same or different agencies.
- AI Feasibility Report (Section 4):
- The OMB Director, consulting with leaders from the Department of Energy, National Science Foundation, and National Institute of Standards and Technology, must report to Congress on using artificial intelligence (AI) to quickly detect duplicates, similar applications, and signs of waste, fraud, or abuse in grant applications.
- Definitions (Section 5):
- Key terms include "covered application" (any grant application submitted after the system is established, or ongoing ones), "executive agency" (any federal department or agency in the executive branch), and "applicable time period" (from application submission to when grant funds are fully spent).
Significant Changes to Existing Law
- This bill introduces new explicit prohibitions on awarding duplicative or fraudulent grants, which were not previously codified in this manner across all executive agencies.
- It mandates a government-wide electronic tracking system, filling a gap in current practices where agencies often operate independently without centralized oversight for overlaps.
- Exceptions for higher education institutions and the AI report represent novel flexibilities and forward-looking measures not found in prior grant management laws, such as the Federal Grant and Cooperative Agreement Act.
Potential Impacts
- On Government Agencies: Increases coordination and administrative workload for grant reviews and audits, potentially reducing redundant spending but requiring initial setup costs for the tracking system. Inspectors General gain better tools for investigations.
- On Citizens and Applicants: Grant seekers (e.g., researchers, nonprofits) face stricter scrutiny, which could limit funding access for duplicates but ensure fairer competition. Higher education institutions benefit from an exception, easing their multi-agency applications. Overall, it may save taxpayer money by curbing waste.
- On International Relations: Minimal direct impact, though it could indirectly affect U.S.-funded international research collaborations if duplicates involve foreign partners.
Main Stakeholders Affected
- Executive Agencies and OMB: Responsible for implementing the system, conducting checks, and making joint decisions on awards.
- Grant Applicants: Including researchers, businesses, nonprofits, and higher education institutions; non-university applicants may face more barriers to multi-agency funding.
- Inspectors General: Empowered with new tools for audits and fraud detection.
- Congress: Receives the AI report and oversees implementation through specified committees (e.g., House Oversight and Accountability Committee).
- Taxpayers: Indirectly benefit from reduced waste in federal spending, estimated in billions annually for grants.
Notable Legal, Constitutional, or Political Implications
- Legal: Strengthens anti-fraud measures under existing laws like the False Claims Act (which penalizes fraudulent government claims) by adding preventive tools, but the higher education exception could raise questions about equal treatment among applicants.
- Constitutional: No major issues; it aligns with Congress's spending power under Article I, promoting accountability without infringing on free speech or due process in grant applications.
- Political: Emphasizes fiscal responsibility and efficiency, appealing to efforts to streamline government operations. It may spark debate on balancing oversight with innovation, especially in research funding, and highlights growing interest in AI for public administration.
This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the official source document for the authoritative text.
Sponsor
Rep. Bice, Stephanie I. [R-OK-5]
Cosponsors (1)
Recent Actions
- 2025-03-14: Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
- 2025-03-14: Introduced in House
- 2025-03-14: Introduced in House
Bill Versions
- Duplicative Grant Consolidation Act — issued 2025-03-14 — PDF (7 pages)