Summary

In response to a congressional request, GAO reviewed federal management of discretionary assistance programs, specifically the policies and practices agency officials use to decide which eligible applicants receive awards and how much they receive.

GAO found that: (1) most federal discretionary grant programs have competitive processes to solicit and review applications; (2) nearly two-thirds attempt to solicit applications from all eligible applicants; and (3) over three-fourths use persons from outside the program office to provide an independent perspective in the review of applications. GAO believes that the discretionary grant process could be strengthened in many programs to enhance competition and promote accountability for award decisions through: (1) more rigorous review of unsolicited applications; (2) internal review of decisions restricting the scope of applicant solicitation; (3) the use of independent reviews; and (4) managerial accountability for deviation from reviewers' recommendations in the award decision process.