Purpose of the Bill

The bill aims to enhance the management and oversight of grants within Minnesota by ensuring state employees involved in grants management are properly trained and certified. It also seeks to enforce stricter monitoring and accountability measures for grantees to prevent misuse of public funds.

Main Provisions

• Training and Certification Requirements: State employees with responsibilities in grant management must complete grants management training and achieve certification from the commissioner, demonstrating their competence in grants policies and procedures.

• Grants Management Duties: These include developing proposals, reviewing applications, monitoring compliance, conducting site inspections, and processing grant closures.

• Unannounced Monitoring Visits: For grants over $50,000 to $250,000 and those over $250,000, at least one unannounced in-person monitoring visit is required to ensure compliance and verify the proper use of grant funds.

• Handling Grantee Non-compliance: In cases of non-compliance, granting agencies must document issues and, depending on the severity, either provide assistance to rectify unintentional errors or report serious violations to the commissioner and appropriate law enforcement.

• Fraud and Misuse of Funds: Agencies must report suspected fraud to law enforcement and may suspend or withhold funds until the investigation affirms the integrity of the grantee.

• Sanctions and Debarment: Grantees found to have misused funds may be suspended or debarred from receiving state grants for up to three years, though they have the right to request a hearing.

Significant Changes

The bill introduces mandatory training and certification for state employees involved in grants management, thus raising the professionalism in grants oversight. It strengthens measures for monitoring compliance and combating fraud in state-issued grants, including the institution of unannounced visits and immediate reporting of suspicious activities.

Relevant Terms

grants management, certification, unannounced monitoring, compliance, fraud, misuse of funds, debarment, suspension, accountability, grant oversight, public funds, training requirements.