Grant Writing Post-Award Management and Reporting 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A grantee discovers mid-project that a key subcontractor has gone out of business. What is the FIRST required action?
- Notify the program officer and request guidance (Correct answer)
- Immediately hire a replacement without notifying the funder
- Suspend the project until the grant period ends
- Redirect the subcontractor budget to personnel costs
Correct answer: Notify the program officer and request guidance
Grantees must promptly notify their program officer of significant disruptions and request guidance before taking unilateral action.
Question 2: Under OMB's Uniform Guidance (2 CFR 200), what is the threshold for a single-audit requirement for non-federal entities?
- $500,000 in federal expenditures per year
- $750,000 in federal expenditures per year (Correct answer)
- $1,000,000 in federal expenditures per year
- $250,000 in federal expenditures per year
Correct answer: $750,000 in federal expenditures per year
The single audit threshold is $750,000 in federal expenditures in a fiscal year under 2 CFR 200.501.
Question 3: What does 'carryover' mean in the context of federal grant management?
- Transferring funds to another grantee organization
- Using unspent funds from one budget period in the next budget period (Correct answer)
- Rolling over unmet performance targets to future reporting periods
- Carrying unexpended funds back to the federal agency
Correct answer: Using unspent funds from one budget period in the next budget period
Carryover refers to obligating or spending unused funds from a prior budget period in a subsequent budget period, often requiring prior approval.
Question 4: Which document serves as the authoritative record of a grant award's terms and conditions?
- The original proposal narrative
- The Notice of Award (NOA) (Correct answer)
- The program officer's email correspondence
- The budget justification
Correct answer: The Notice of Award (NOA)
The Notice of Award (NOA) is the legally binding document that establishes the terms, conditions, and requirements of a federal grant.
Question 5: A nonprofit grantee wants to purchase equipment costing $8,000 using federal grant funds. Under Uniform Guidance, what acquisition threshold triggers equipment classification?
- $1,000
- $2,500
- $5,000 (Correct answer)
- $10,000
Correct answer: $5,000
Under 2 CFR 200.33, equipment is defined as tangible personal property with a useful life of more than one year and a per-unit acquisition cost of $5,000 or more.
Question 6: What is the purpose of a 'no-cost extension' in grant management?
- To increase the grant budget without additional funds
- To extend the performance period without additional funding (Correct answer)
- To add new project activities beyond the original scope
- To transfer award funds to a different project
Correct answer: To extend the performance period without additional funding
A no-cost extension provides additional time to complete project activities without increasing the award amount.
Question 7: Under federal regulations, indirect costs (F&A costs) charged to a grant must be based on what?
- The grantee's self-determined rate
- A negotiated indirect cost rate agreement (NICRA) with the cognizant federal agency (Correct answer)
- A flat 10% de minimis rate applied to all costs
- Whatever rate the program officer approves informally
Correct answer: A negotiated indirect cost rate agreement (NICRA) with the cognizant federal agency
Indirect costs must be charged based on a Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (NICRA) established with the cognizant federal agency, or the 10% de minimis rate if eligible.
Grant Writing Post-Award Management and Reporting 2
A grantee discovers mid-project that a key subcontractor has gone out of business.
What is the FIRST required action?