Earlier this month, the Justice Department (DOJ) submitted its biennial Report to Congress on the Effectiveness of Grant Programs Under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). Under the act, which was last reauthorized in 2013, DOJ’s Office of Violence Against Women awarded funding to more than 2,000 grant recipients and technical assistance providers between July 1, 2013 and June 30, 2015. However, while the numerical data is important, even more important are the stories from the individuals whose lives have been assisted by these funds, helping them respond to domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence and stalking.

(The following was excerpted from a recent article in the Federal Grants Management Handbook.) The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) plans to better assess future budget considerations by surveying its project officers in federal fiscal year (FY) 2017 to determine the workload of its grants management staff, in response to a recent report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO).

So it’s been almost a year-and-a-half since we addressed this issue the first time, but we are coming back full cycle to give you the rest of the story.

(The following was excerpted from a recent article in the the Single Audit Information Service.) The Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Office of Justice Programs (OJP) would follow standard operating procedures to require grant recipients to demonstrate that they have sufficient funding to completely construct and operate TJSIP-funded correctional facilities if it issues awards again under the Tribal Justice Systems Infrastructure Program (TJSIP). The change developed in response to a recommendation in a recent DOJ Office of Inspector General (OIG) audit that found concerns related to program oversight.

Other parts of the country may have had their fair share of snow this winter, but for those of us in the nation’s capital, snow has been a scarce commodity in 2017. While a normal winter in Washington, D.C., produces several inches by this time of year, so far we have had only an inch or two, if that, since Dec. 1. This certainly doesn’t bode well for those planning late winter ski trips to local resorts.

(The following was excerpted from a recent article in the Federal Grants Management Handbook.) Several federal departments and agencies, in a joint final rule, adopted a revised federal policy for the protection of human subjects in research, which among other provisions, adds a new requirement for U.S.-based institutions engaged in cooperative research to use a single institutional review board (IRB) for research that takes place in the United States.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently released the results of its financial audit for fiscal years (FY) 2015 and 2016 federal consolidated financial statements, and the news was not good. It could be summed up in one sentence, to wit: “Our report … underscores that much work remains to improve federal financial management, and that the federal government continues to face an unsustainable long-term fiscal path.”

One of my kids favorite books when they were toddlers was one called “Wemberly Worried,” about a little girl mouse who constantly worried about everything. Apparently, there seems to be just as much worrying about some of President Trump’s executive orders, particularly one that affects federal funding to so-called “sanctuary cities.”