Make Sure To Put in Your Two Cents Worth on Title 2 Revisions

Time is quickly running out. Don’t let the opportunity go by without adding your “two cents worth” on ideas for potential revisions to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) uniform guidance. Comments must be submitted via Regulations.gov by March 13 by referring to Document No. 2023-02158.

OMB issued a request for information (RFI) on Feb. 9 Federal Register, requesting that grants stakeholders offer suggestions for revisions to subtitle A of Title 2 of the Code of Regulations, which includes the uniform guidance (2 C.F.R. Part 200). OMB anticipates that it will issue proposed revisions later this year after evaluating the RFI comments, and will publish a final update to Title 2 by this December.

OMB is updating Title 2 with the goal of incorporating statutory requirements and administration priorities, and reducing agency and recipient burden. The revision will not represent a complete revision or restructuring of Title 2, which also includes other regulations (e.g., Part 180: OMB Guidelines to Agencies on Governmentwide Debarment and Suspension (Nonprocurement; Part 182: Governmentwide Requirements for Drug-Free Workplace (Financial Assistance); Part 183: Never Contract with the Enemy, etc.). OMB will strive to maintain the title’s current overall structure, including section numbers.

Via the RFI, OMB seeks information on the following specific questions:

• What specific section(s) of Title 2 would benefit from revision in order to support the goal of reducing administrative burden?
• What specific section(s) of Title 2 have been interpreted differently by federal agencies and recipients leading to inconsistent implementation of federal financial assistance?
• What specific section(s) of Title 2 would benefit from improved clarity or more precise language?
• What specific suggestions do you have for otherwise improving the language of Title 2 (e.g., consistent use of terms, other suggested edits)?

March 13 also is the deadline date for comments related to OMB's proposed rule to add a new Part 184 in Title 2 that provides implementation guidance under the Build America, Buy America Act (BABA) provisions of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) (Pub. L. 117-58). The proposal also would add a new uniform guidance provision at §200.322(c), Domestic Preference for Procurement, which would state that “federal awarding agencies providing federal financial assistance for infrastructure projects must comply with the Buy America Preferences set forth in 2 C.F.R. Part 184.” Interested stakeholders should submit comments on this proposed rule through Regulations.gov by referring to Document No. 2023-02617.

If you’ve got two cent to add to these conversations, now is the time to cash them in!

Join us for our following Thompson Grants events:
Nonprofit Legal, Finance, and Grants Conference | April 6-7, 2023 | Washington, D.C.
Federal Grants Forum | June 28-30, 2023 | Portland, Maine