COMPLIANCE AND REPORTING
New Grants and Payment Management Systems Coming October 2020!
On October 15, 2020, the COPS Office will transition to the Department of Justice's Justice Grants System (JustGrants) for all grants management activities. The NexGen Agency Portal Login will no longer be available after September 22, 2020. Data for all current active awards from NexGen will be migrated to JustGrants. This will include all open, active awards and any awards that have not yet reached final closure. Once migrated, all award management activities will take place in JustGrants starting October 15, 2020. In the weeks leading up to the transition, there are a number of actions that current award recipients will need to take. Learn more about this transition, these actions, and associated key dates for the COPS Office on the Justice Grants Website or by calling the COPS Office Response Center at 1-800-421-6770. https://justicegrants.usdoj.gov/
All grantees must ensure proper compliance and timely reporting on COPS Office grants and cooperative agreements. You can get an overview of COPS Office compliance and reporting below, but please reference your Grant Owner's Manual for complete directions.
COMPLIANCE
Each COPS Office grant or cooperative agreement must comply with terms established by the COPS Office. Common compliance areas include allowable costs, community policing, local source and matching funds, financial and programmatic reporting, retention, and supplanting. The COPS Office assesses compliance through on-site visits and office-based reviews. For more information on COPS Office compliance activities, read Grant Monitoring Standards and Guidelines.
REPORTING
PROGRAMMATIC REPORTING
As a result of listening sessions across the country and feedback from applicants and awardees, the COPS Office is pleased to announce a change to the frequency of programmatic progress report submissions in order to streamline COPS grant-related materials and processes.
The existing quarterly programmatic progress report cycle has been changed to a semi-annual submission which will be due March 30 and August 30 for the preceding 6 month period. We anticipate that the first of these semi-annual report templates, which have been redesigned to better assess progress and accomplishments at the awardee and program levels, will be available near March 1, 2020. The templates will cover the initial transition reporting period from October 2019 through February 2020 for your award(s).
You will be sent notifications when it’s time to submit your report via Agency Portal*. See your Grant Owner's Manual for specifics.
See the Frequently Asked Questions and New Questions for All Programs for more details.
FINANCIAL REPORTING
You must submit a Federal Financial Report using Standard Form 425 (SF-425) on a quarterly basis (within 30 days after the end of each calendar quarter) via Agency Portal.*
| REPORTING QUARTERS | SF-425 DUE DATE |
|---|---|
| Jan. 1 – Mar. 31 | April 30 |
| April 1 – June 30 | July 30 |
| July 1 – Sept. 30 | Oct. 30 |
| Oct. 1 – Dec. 31 | Jan. 30 |
If you do not submit your SF-425 by the due date, you will not be able to draw down funds through the Grant Payment Request System.
See our Financial Toolkit or your Grant Owner's Manual for more details.
CLOSING OUT YOUR GRANT
At the end of your grant period, we require documentation demonstrating that you have met all of the financial and programmatic requirements of the grant.
You will be asked to submit 1) a final Federal Financial Report (SF-425) and 2) a final Progress Report. Please see your Grant Owner's Manual for complete details.
Please note: Grant funds reflecting allowable costs must be obligated before the end of the grant period. Obligated funds cover monies spent and expenses for all approved items that you have incurred but not yet paid. You have up to 90 days after the end of the grant period to request reimbursement for funds obligated.
