Commonwealth Grant Guidelines Updated

The Federal Government has introduced new Commonwealth Grant Guidelines from June 1, 2013 which reflect the operations of the new charity regulator, the ACNC and newly introduced anti-gag legislation.

The Commonwealth Grant Guidelines (CGGs) establish the Government’s overarching grants policy framework, under which government agencies undertake their own grants activities.

The Federal Government says updated CGGs aim to reduce red tape and strengthen the relationships between the Government and the Not for Profit sector.

The updated CGGs:

• apply to a broader range of government activities, as the definition of a ‘grant’ has been expanded
• focus more strongly on government agencies working collaboratively with stakeholders, particularly when planning and designing granting activities and developing grant documentation, such as grant agreements
• require that agency staff should not seek information from grant applicants and grant recipients that is already collected and accessible from other Australian Government entities
• require that agency staff must not seek information provided to the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) from an organisation regulated by them
• require that reporting and acquittal requirements be commensurate with the assessed risks
• require that unless agency staff assess the granting activity as higher risk, then a financial acquittal should not be sought from an entity regulated by the ACNC
• require that agency staff take into account the administrative costs involved for both the grant recipient and the agency when considering the appropriate length of grant agreements
• encourage the use of longer-term grant agreements, where appropriate, rather than multiple short-term grant agreements
• encourage the use of better practice tools and templates, such as the National Standard Chart of Accounts and the Low-risk Grant Agreement Template
• mandate that agency staff must not use criteria in grant applications, selection processes or clauses in grant agreements that seek to limit, prevent or ban NFP organisations from advocating on policy issues.

For more information, view the Guidelines in full.