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Nebraska responses to the federal grant review process survey, 2021
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States employ a variety of processes to apply for and administer federal grants. Ballotpedia's 2021 state survey of the federal grant review process examined the general processes applied by the 50 states in order to seek and distribute federal funds.
Research from the Pew Charitable Trusts found that federal funds made up 32% (roughly $639 billion) of all state revenue in 2017, making them the second-largest source of state revenue behind state tax collections.[1] States direct federal funds to government programs related to education, healthcare, transportation, infrastructure, and other policies.[1]
This page features Nebraska's responses to Ballotpedia's 2021 survey.
Background
From August 5, 2021, to September 27, 2021, Ballotpedia staff contacted the executive and legislative budget offices of all 50 states via email and/or telephone to update a publicly available 2016 survey on state approaches to the federal grant review process.
Our staff contacted state officials with the following survey questions:
- Approval processes for federal grants
- What is your state’s process for federal grant applications and the approval process?
- What is your state’s approval process when the legislature is not in session?
- How does the legislature monitor the intent of federal grants? What legislative rules allow the state greater oversight of federal funds in the budgets?
- Contingency plans for the loss or decline of federal funds
- What is your state’s contingency plan in the case of a decline or loss of federal funds?
- Quality control processes for federal grants
- What is your state’s quality control process for tracking the effectiveness of federal funds?
- Does your state attempt to estimate the cost of federal fund requirements? If so, how?
- How does your state prioritize federal funds to best meet the needs of constituents?
- If your state doesn’t appropriate key federal funds like food stamps and unemployment benefits, are your state’s federal funds off-budget? How do you track this information?
Our staff also contacted state officials with the following two new survey questions regarding federal funds made available in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic:
- Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic funds
- Who has decision rights over American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) State Fiscal Recovery Fund allocations in your state?
- Who has decision rights over Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund allocations in your state?
Nebraska 2021 survey responses
What is your state’s process for federal grant applications and the approval process?
“Grant applications are initiated and managed by each agency. For Code agencies, Governor’s Policy Research Office may have a role. Appropriation of federal funds are part of the mainstream budget process, generally as an estimate and not an absolute limit.”
What is the approval process when the legislature is not in session?
“No separate process. Control is more at the agency/executive branch level. Coordination with the Legislative branch can and usually does occur for non-routine federal grant opportunities that come up in interims.”
How does the legislature monitor the intent of federal grants?
“Monitoring occurs post appropriation as part of the assigned duties of the Fiscal Office in working with their assigned agencies. Federal funds are under the same oversight conditions as other state funds.”
What is your state’s contingency plan for state financing in the case of losses or decline in federal funds?
“Federal funding reductions or discontinuations are likely to result in relative adjustments in programmatic operations and expenditures. No specific plan is in place. Past contingency plans have been tailored, ad hoc, by the Executive Budget Office in collaboration with the Legislative Fiscal Office. Internal surveys of agencies to assess risks and consequences have been done, as needed. Otherwise, environmental scans using contract services (such as FFIS) have been used to evaluate periodic risks and funding changes. Coordination with individual agencies have followed. Given sufficient lead time, agencies strategies have been crafted and options of “federal fund” pick up by the state explored.”
What is your state’s quality control process for tracking the effectiveness of federal funds?
“Agency assessments, ex post budget review process (oversight), study resolutions, and performance audits can occur.”
Does your state attempt to estimate the cost of federal fund requirements? If so, how?
“Administrative costs are captured as part of budget process, as are matching requirements.”
How does your state prioritize federal funds to best meet the needs of constituents?
“Formal prioritization (scoring), does not occur, since most federal funds do not in effect compete with one another. The choice to apply or not apply for funding is initiated typically by a state agency and perhaps the Governor/Governor’s Policy Research staff. Criteria (if any) would be established there, subsequently becoming part of the Legislature’s review, as needed.”
If your state does not appropriate key federal funds like food stamps and unemployment benefits, are your state’s federal funds off budget? How do you track this information?
“Federal funds are appropriated in budget bills, along with all other fund types. Federal funds typically are shown as estimates, thus, are used for planning and budgeting purposes but do not serve as an absolute spending limit. Federal funds are appropriated in budget programs that lawfully administer the particular federal fund(s), and are not otherwise co-mingled. Federal funds are not “off budget.” All budget amounts are embedded within the financial/budget control system and expenditure transactions tracked in line-item detail.”
Who has decision rights over American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) State Fiscal Recovery Fund allocations in your state?
“The Governor will provide a recommendation to the full Legislature for approval, much like a customary state budget process.”
Who has decision rights over Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund allocations in your state?
“Elementary and secondary school aid is administered by the Nebraska Department of Education, which operates independently of the Governor’s cabinet agencies.”
Other state survey responses
Click on a state below to view its responses to the 2021 survey on the federal grant review process:
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
See also
- State survey of the federal grant review process, 2021
- State responses to the federal grant review process survey, 2021
- State responses by question to the federal grant review process survey, 2021
- Federalism
External links
Footnotes
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