{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.cornyn.senate.gov/news/cornyn-colleagues-bill-to-increase-transparency-of-federal-grant-application-process-signed-into-law/", "Cornyn, Colleagues\u2019 Bill to Increase Transparency of Federal Grant Application Process Signed into Law", "2024-12-12", "2024", "2024-12", "Republican", "Senate", "TX", "John Cornyn", "C001056", "www.cornyn.senate.gov", "cornyn", "https://www.cornyn.senate.gov/news/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON \u2013 U.S. Senators John Cornyn (R-TX), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), John Thune (R-SD), Gary Peters (D-MI), John Kennedy (R-LA), and Raphael Warnock (D-GA) released the following statements after their Grant Transparency Act, which would require government agencies to provide competitive grant applicants with more information about their selection criteria and evaluation process, was signed into law:\n\n\u201cGrant applicants often don\u2019t have enough information to know why they are not awarded a competitive grant despite meeting the criteria,\u201dsaid Sen. Cornyn. \u201cThe Grant Transparency Act will require government agencies to shine a light on how they decide between applicants behind closed doors, and I\u2019m glad to see it become law.\u201d\n\n\u201cFederal grant funding provides essential support to small towns and organizations, but the current process can often leave applicants in the dark about how their applications will be evaluated,\u201d said Sen. Hassan. \u201cThis bipartisan legislation will help grant applicants understand exactly how they can successfully compete for federal funding that can make a real difference in their local communities.\u201d\n\n\u201cState and local leaders work hard to develop a strong application process for federal funding,\u201d said Sen. Thune. \u201cThis legislation will require agencies to increase transparency of the grant application process, which will help ensure that funding is truly based on merit, not political favoritism.\u201d\n\n\u201cGrant dollars can be a game changer for communities, but too often applicants lack the information needed to effectively compete for these important federal investments,\u201d said Sen. Peters. \u201cThis law will help applicants across Michigan and the country better understand how their projects will be evaluated, making sure every community has a fair shot at accessing these resources.\u201d\n\n\u201cLouisianians deserve to know how the government chooses competitive grant recipients,\u201d said Sen. Kennedy. \u201cI\u2019m glad to see the Grant Transparency Act become law so our people have more information about how their organizations can access this crucial funding.\u201d\n\n\u201cCommunities throughout Georgia rely on federal grants to better the lives of their community members. But too often, the lack of transparency and clarity from federal agencies makes the barrier to entry for these grants almost unfeasible for the communities that need them most,\u201d said Sen. Warnock. \u201cBecause of our bipartisan efforts, legislation to more easily connect our local communities with federal resources has now become law.\u201d\n\nBackground:\n\nThe Grant Transparency Act will require the Notice of Funding Opportunities (NOFO) for competitive grants to include:\n\nA description of any rating system, evaluation, and selection criteria the agency uses to assess applications for the competitive grant;\n\nA statement of whether the agency uses a weighted scoring method and a description of any weighted scoring method the agency uses for the competitive grant, including the amount by which the agency weights each criterion;\n\nAnd any other qualitative or quantitative merit-based approach the agency uses to evaluate an application for a competitive grant.\n\nSenator Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ) is also a cosponsor of the legislation. U.S. Representatives Russell Fry (SC-07) and Jasmine Crockett (TX-30) led companion legislation in the House.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T19:07:19Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.cornyn.senate.gov/news/cornyn-colleagues-bill-to-increase-transparency-of-federal-grant-application-process-signed-into-law/"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.3459250330924988, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}