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Background: Grants.Gov and the Department of Health and Human Services

Since inception, HHS has served as the managing partner of Grants.gov, the source to find and apply for federal government grants. In 2006, Grants.gov processed 65,000 grant applications. In 2007, the number of applications nearly tripled, rising to 185,000. In 2008, 204,000 applications were submitted.

Since the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act passed, Grants.gov has supported up to 200,000 daily users in their search for federal grant opportunities. Grants.gov has also experienced a sharp increase in the number of grant applications submitted from an average of 3,000 per week in December 2008 to 11,000 in one week in March, 2009. We estimate that the Recovery Act will result in the submission of an additional 75,000 grant applications on Grants.gov.

HHS is acting quickly to accommodate the unprecedented demand by strengthening and improving Grants.gov. We have identified a path forward to correct the problems of Grants.gov and have begun to implement it. The Office of Management and Budget and HHS are working to ensure that the necessary funds are in place to increase storage and processing capacity and purchase new hardware and software to support Grants.gov. These improvements will be made rapidly and will help ensure Grants.gov runs in a smooth and efficient manner. Grants.gov will remain the source for potential grantees to identify and apply for federal grants. Additionally, HHS will lead a government-wide effort to develop a longer-term plan for the next generation of Grants.gov in the coming months.