Committee hears grants‑monitoring bill that would require virtual and in‑person site visits; bill laid over

Representative Hicks introduced House File 3422 on Feb. 26 and asked the House Government Finance and Policy Committee to lay it over for possible inclusion. The bill would codify grants‑management practices across state agencies: virtual monitoring visits for grants under $50,000, annual in‑person monitoring for grants between $50,000 and $250,000, biannual in‑person monitoring for grants over $250,000, quarterly reconciliations for grants over $500,000 and other financial controls.

Representative Sexton suggested a friendly verbal amendment to add a requirement that the commissioner provide an annual report to the legislature summarizing exemptions granted and background for those exemptions; the author said she would work with him to pursue that change in future drafts. Committee members asked grants management staff to explain how virtual monitoring works; Representative Hicks and grants staff described the typical process: pre‑review of documentation, requests for payroll and contract records, invoice reconciliation, review of work plans and materials produced under a grant, and in some cases live video walkthroughs of facilities.

Some members expressed concern about enforcement: Representative Quam said audits and monitoring are sometimes not completed and asked what penalties or disciplinary steps would follow noncompliance; Hicks said codifying the practice into statute is intended to improve compliance but acknowledged it may not fully solve implementation gaps. Members also asked whether a fiscal note was requested; the author said she had not requested one because she considered the bill to reflect current practice, but members asked for additional information from grants management about potential costs.

The committee laid HF3422 over for possible inclusion to allow further work and follow‑up with grants management.