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23.1 What
is the purpose of this chapter? This chapter provides guidance for making budget changes
in nonconstruction grants funded under:
A. The Sport Fish and Wildlife
Restoration Programs,
B. The State Wildlife Grants
Program, and
C. The Landowner Incentive
Program.
23.2 What
is the scope of this chapter?
A. This chapter applies to all
Service personnel who administer (concur on or approve) grants funded
through the programs listed in section 23.1A through C.
B. This chapter applies to
transfers among separately budgeted programs, projects, functions, or
activities (direct-cost categories) for nonconstruction grant agreements.
23.3 What
are the authorities for this chapter?
A. Federal Aid in Sport Fish
Restoration Act (16
U.S.C. 777).
B. Pittman-Robertson
Wildlife Restoration Act (16
U.S.C. 669).
C. Uniform Administrative
Requirements for Grants and Cooperative Agreements to State and Local
Governments, Changes (43
CFR 12.70).
D. Federal Grant and Cooperative
Agreement Act (31
U.S.C. 6301).
E. Department of the Interior and Related Agencies
Appropriations Acts for FY 2001 - Land Conservation, Preservation and
Infrastructure Improvement (P.L.
106-291).
F. Department of the Interior and Related
Agencies Appropriations Acts for FY 2002-2005 - State and Tribal Wildlife
Grants (P.L.
107-63, P.L.
108-7, P.L. 108-108, and P.L. 108-447).
23.4 What
budget changes must the Service approve?
A. We must approve transfers among
direct-cost categories for nonconstruction grants when:
(1) The cumulative changes exceed
10 percent of the total approved budget in the grant agreement, and
(2) The Federal share of the grant is
greater than $100,000 (43
CFR 12.70(c)(1)(ii)). We refer to this as the “10-percent rule.”
B. We must provide prior written
approval for any budget change in a grant agreement that results in an
increase in the total approved budget (43
CFR 12.70(c)(1)(i)).
23.5 How
should the Service address budget changes? All nonconstruction grant
agreements should contain a provision that specifically addresses the
State’s ability to make transfers among direct-cost categories at any
level. Such a provision allows States to make transfers as long as they
spend the funds to achieve the grant’s approved fish and wildlife
objectives.
A. Suggested language for the provision is: “This grant is not subject
to the requirements of 43
CFR 12.70(c)(1)(ii), the so called “10-percent rule.”
B. If the State objects to having such a provision
in the grant agreement or if there is a compelling reason not to include
such language, we do not include the provision in the grant agreement and
the procedures in sections 23.6 or 23.7 apply, as appropriate.
23.6
If the grant agreement does not contain a provision addressing budget
changes, how should the Service handle requests for such changes during the
grant period?
A. When the Federal share of a grant is more than
$100,000, we must provide the State with prior, written permission before
it may transfer more than 10 percent of the total approved budget in the
grant agreement among direct-cost categories.
B. We should grant permission to the State if, in
our judgment, we would have allowed the transfers as a provision in the
original grant agreement.
23.7 Does the Service
have authority to waive the “10-percent rule” if the State makes transfers
of more than 10 percent of the total approved budget without receiving
prior authorization? Yes.
In the absence of specific language in the grant agreement (section 23.5A) or without receiving prior written
permission (section 23.6), we retain the authority
to waive, in writing, the prior approval requirement. We may retroactively
approve such transfers without regard to whether or not the grant is open
or closed. This authority is discretionary and we apply it on a
case-by-case basis.
23.8 For grants
approved before July 17, 2003 (when the Service first addressed changes in
Director’s Order 156), how should the Service address requests for a waiver
as described in section 23.7 above? For grants approved before July 17, 2003, where the State failed to
get our written permission to make a transfer among direct-cost categories,
we should grant a waiver in writing if, in our judgment, we would have
allowed the transfer as a provision of the original grant agreement.
23.9 Are there exceptions to the guidance in
sections 23.7 and 23.8 for nonconstruction grants? Yes. Budget changes involving the transfer of
funds allotted for training require our prior written approval unless
specifically addressed in the grant agreement (43
CFR 12.70(c)(1)(iii)).
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