Grants Management Policy List

Minnesota state agencies must work to deliberately avoid both actual and potential conflicts of interest related to grant-making at both the individual and organizational levels. When a conflict-of-interest concerning state grantmaking exists, transparency shall be the guiding principle in addressing it.

Policy 08-01 (PDF)

It is the policy of the State of Minnesota to ensure fairness, precision, equity and consistency in competitive grant awards including diversity and inclusion in grantmaking. State competitive grant review processes shall be conducted using review criteria that are identified in the notice of grant opportunity or request for proposal and a standardized scoring system to rate each application against the chosen criteria. Competitive grant review criteria and standardized scoring systems must include and identify how a state agency’s grant process will implement diversity in grantmaking.

Policy 08-02 (PDF)

It is the policy of the State of Minnesota to include sufficient information in notices of grant opportunities and requests for proposal (RFPs) so that potential applicants may make informed decisions about applying for and managing state grants. It is also the policy of the State of Minnesota to publicize competitive grant opportunities broadly. Agencies should pursue additional methods and identify multiple ways to share grant request for proposals through existing and diverse networks and community relationships to provide clear instructions to potential applicants. 

Policy 08-03 (PDF)

Minnesota state agencies must use a written grant contract agreement or grant application with a corresponding grant award notification for all grants made by the agency. Grant contract agreements must conform to Minn. Stat. §16B.98, subd. 5, Creation and Validity of Grant Agreements, including approval by the commissioner of the Department of Administration.

Policy 08-04 (PDF) 

Supporting Documents: 

Policy 08-04 Updates FAQ (PDF)

This policy details responsibilities for reporting, notifying, and responding to suspected fraud or misuse in grants or grant programs. It also identifies events that require notifications to the Office of Grants Management (OGM).  Agencies must effectively manage the risk of fraud and misuse in grant programs. This includes establishing internal controls to prevent and detect fraud or misuse, having procedures to investigate and respond if issues arise, and training agency staff to understand and apply internal policies, procedures, and controls. 

Policy 08-05 (PDF)

To protect the interests of the State, it is the policy of the State of Minnesota to complete a pre-award risk assessment before making a grant subject to Minn. Stat. § 16B.97 and 16B.98 of $50,000 or more to a potential grantee to assess the risk that they cannot or would not perform the required duties specified in the grant contract agreement.

Policy 08-06 (PDF)

• Single Source Justification Form (PDF)
• Single Source Justification Form Update Crosswalk (PDF)
• OGM Policy 08-07 Single Source Grant - Change Crosswalk (PDF)
• OGM Policy 08-07 Update FAQ (PDF)

State agencies shall specify the method and schedule of payments for each grant in the grant agreement. Grant payments may not be issued until the funds are encumbered and the grant agreement is fully executed. Reimbursement is the preferred method for making grant payments.

Policy 08-08 (PDF)

It is the policy of the State of Minnesota to monitor progress on state grants by requiring grantees to submit written progress reports at least annually until all grant funds have been expended and terms of the grant agreement have been met. Grant payments shall not be made on grants with past due progress reports unless the state agency has given the grantee a written extension.

Policy 08-09 (PDF)

It is the policy of the State of Minnesota to conduct at least one monitoring visit per grant period on all state grants over $50,000 and to conduct at least annual monitoring visits on grants over $250,000. State agencies must also conduct a financial reconciliation of grantees' expenditures at least once during the grant period on grants over $50,000.

Policy 08-10 (PDF)

It is the policy of the State of Minnesota to manage legislatively mandated grants with the same level of oversight applied to other state grants, while respecting and maintaining the legislative intent. Legislatively made grants shall be monitored using the same standards applied to other types of state grants. In situations in which the purpose and amount of a grant is stated in law, but the grantee organization is not stated, state agencies must use either a single/sole source or competitive process to select the grantee.

Policy 08-11 (PDF) 

It is the policy of the State of Minnesota to document changes to a grant contract agreement or grant award notification using a fully executed grant contract agreement amendment.

Policy 08-12 (PDF)

It is the policy of the State of Minnesota to consider a grant applicant's past performance before awarding subsequent grants to them. State agencies must consider a grant applicant’s performance on prior grants from that agency before making a new grant award.

Policy 08-13 (PDF)

Supporting Resources:

• Upload a grantee evaluation
• View publicly posted grantee evaluations