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County staff warn proposed federal grant rule rewrite could disrupt awards; commissioners endorse a letter
Summary
Staff told commissioners a proposed rewrite of federal grant guidance could allow grants to be stopped mid-award, expand audit requirements and require subcontractor certification. The board authorized staff to draft a letter coordinated with the National Association of Counties and the county's congressional delegation.
County staff told Strafford County commissioners that a proposed rewrite of the federal "uniform guidance" for grants could have far-reaching effects for local grant recipients and for small vendors.
A staff member described the proposal (transcript reference: "section 2 CFR part 20" in the record) and said the National Association of Counties recommended soliciting support to modify or oppose the rule. "They can stop a grant anytime," the staff member said, warning that changes could apply pre-award, post-award and to auditing requirements and could increase costs for grant recipients.
The staff member said the rewrite could shift responsibility for certifications to subrecipients and subcontractors, which smaller vendors may struggle to satisfy. That, the staff member said, could discourage small vendors from participating as subgrantees. The staff member also cited the U.S. Supreme Court case South Dakota v. Dole in describing legal points raised during a webinar about the proposal.
The staff member asked the board for permission to draft a letter outlining the county's concerns and to coordinate with NACo and the county's congressional delegation; the board agreed and staff said they would draft the letter and circulate it to commissioners for review before submission. The staff member said they would likely include a request for more time to review the proposal and suggested cc'ing Senator Susan Collins.
Next steps: staff will draft the county's letter of concern, circulate it to commissioners and submit it to the county's congressional delegation and NACo on a timeline intended to meet the federal comment deadline.
