Australian Government Grants News - August 2021 Edition

The Commonwealth Grants Rules and Guidelines 2017 provides an intentionally narrow use for ‘one-off or ad hoc grants’. These types of grants should only be used in limited situations, often due to urgency for unforeseen circumstances (not late planning). The context for using this approach is generally that it would be for a specific need but not for an activity required on an ongoing basis.

The characteristics of a one-off or ad hoc grant are:

• there is an urgent need for payment to a recipient to address an unexpected or unforeseen need;
• it is only available to one, or few, applicants;
• it would not be expected to be for an extension of current activities;
• the grant is generally for a period of less than 12 months; and/or
• it is a single grant for a purpose not expected to be repeated and/or the grant agreement is unlikely to be renewed.

The decision to use a one-off or ad hoc process should be specifically recorded and agreed by a minister or official. The Department of Finance should be consulted when planning for a significant one-off or ad hoc grant or where a number of these are required for similar purposes.

Grant opportunity guidelines are required for one off or ad hoc grant processes. While these guidelines are not required to be published on GrantConnect, it is better practice to do so for transparency and accountability purposes. Grants awarded from one-off or ad hoc processes must be published.

Analysis of the GrantConnect data on grants awarded shows that in some instances the grant award details differ to those provided in the related grant opportunity guidelines.

Entities should ensure the published details are correct and are encouraged to maintain consistency between the grant opportunity and the grant award notification.

The selection process stated in the grant award notice should be the same as what was given in the grant opportunity. For example, grants awarded through an open competitive process and which have a single payment associated with them are not one-off or ad hoc grants. The grant award notice should state that the selection process was an open competitive process. 

Entities should also ensure published grants awards are linked to the relevant grant opportunity. This will enhance the value and transparency of data on GrantConnect.

Granting entities, donors and the public can now see information about the kinds of programs and services that charities provide on the Australian Charities and Not-for-Profits Commission (ACNC) Charity Register. This includes the beneficiaries of those programs.  

The ACNC Charity Register is a free comprehensive database that provides financial and other information about approximately 59,000 registered organisations. In the last financial year, there were more than 4.2 million searches of the register.

Additional enhancements will allow users to search for charities and programs based on program location later this year. The ACNC anticipates this change will further increase the use of the register. The new features will improve transparency and build public trust and confidence in the charity sector.

Earlier this year the Community Grants Hub (the Hub) and the Department of Finance undertook a joint Proof of Concept (POC) data-matching exercise to test the feasibility of using Robotic Process Automation (RPA) to update the Charity Status Indicator in the Grant Payment System (GPS), using data from the Australian Charities and Not-for-Profits Commission (ACNC). 

The POC successfully demonstrated the RPA capability in completing large data extractions and updating relevant IT systems. The POC also provided a greater level of compliance and assurance about charities. 

The collaboration between agencies and the re-use of government data sources has seen a return on investment for the Hub. 

The ACNC data is significant for the assurance of data quality and accuracy for allocating grants to registered charities and not-for-profit organisations. The department now uses current ACNC data and updates GPS weekly.

This automation saved the manual effort involved for nearly 70,000 records by almost 2,300 hours.

If you would like to learn more about Robotic Process Automation in the Community Grants Hub email Robotics@dss.gov.au.

The Community Grants Hub (the Hub) is using Robotic Process Automation (RPA) to support the strategic priority of administering grant programs on behalf of client agencies.

The Hub implemented RPA to reduce the manual effort of high volume, manual repetitive routine processes that run regularly. Automation of these processes also increased the reputational value of the Hub by improving the accuracy, accountability, and assurance in grant administration, as well as allowing staff to focus on higher value work.

The adoption of RPA has matured across the Hub in particular over the last several months, with Hub business teams taking advantage of the opportunity to reduce the effort of manual, repetitive tasks by utilising the capability of RPA.

Since the inception of RPA, the Hub has seen:

• maturity and uptake of RPA;
• Governance Assurance and Controls established;
• reusable objects and the development of a library to enable faster development and delivery; and
• cross collaboration with other departments and sharing of library objects.

The RPA team is continuing to build a pipeline of future automation to support and streamline the ongoing administration services provided to grant recipients.

The future is limitless and with strong communication, change management and business confidence, RPA will continue to transform and grow, leading the way in automation across the Hub.

If you would like to learn more about Robotic Process Automation in the Community Grants Hub email Robotics@dss.gov.au.

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) is reminding government entities that the Taxable Payments Annual Report (TPAR) is due by 28 August 2021. As a government entity, you need to lodge a TPAR to report to the ATO:

• the total payments you make to an entity for providing services; and
• grants payments to people or organisations with an Australian business number.

Local government entities are not required to report grants.

Government entities required to report grants

If your entity provides grants of the type listed under Division 59 in the Income Tax Assessment Act (ITAA 1997) you must:

• complete a TPAR; and
• answer 'yes' to the question 'Is this payment listed under Division 59 in the ITAA 1997?'.

If you don’t need to lodge, you can complete the TPAR – not required to lodge online form at: www.ato.gov.au/TPARnilreport – this will update the ATO’s records to avoid unnecessary follow up by them. 

To find out more visit the ATO’s website www.ato.gov.au/TPARgov.

Non-assessable non-exempt grants

The Federal Government can declare eligible business support grants as non-assessable, 
non-exempt (NANE) income. This means grant recipients do not include NANE income in their income tax return and they do not pay tax on it.

The ATO has made improvements to the TPAR grant information available in pre-fill as information only, to include an alert to clients where the grant reported may be eligible as NANE.

For more information about Government grants and NANE go to www.ato.gov.au/prefillnane.

The Commercial Providers Branch (CPB) in the COVID-19 Vaccine Taskforce, Department of Health, is seeking APS officers for a range of critical roles to support the Australian Government vaccine roll-out. CPB is responsible for the commercial arrangements for the establishment and management of contracts related to the vaccination of vulnerable Australians. There are currently four existing and two new Vaccine Administration Service providers to undertake disability, residential aged care and aged care workforce vaccinations (a mandatory requirement from 17 September 2021). 

CPB is also managing a request for tender for vaccine administration by residential aged care providers and an aged care employee vaccination support grant opportunity. The priorities of the Branch are expected to change as the Government prioritises other vulnerable Australians and / or critical industry sectors. 

There are a number of current opportunities at the EL1, APS 4-6 levels (high performing staff will be considered for acting opportunities). 

CPB is standing up an entire grants administration team and require grants managers and assessors, including an EL2 officer, an EL1, an APS 6 and two at the APS 4-5 levels. 

Core skills required for these roles, include:

• grant assessment and evaluation experience, including evaluation report writing;
• well-developed organisational skills and a strong attention to detail;
• willingness to process grant opportunities quickly and efficiently; and
• adaptability, reliability and flexibility.

Should you be interested in any of these opportunities, please provide your resume, a short email summary of the roles you are interested in, two referees (including your current supervisor) and confirmation that you have discussed this opportunity with your Director and/or Assistant Secretary. 

Contact: 
Ms Emily Kelly
Acting Director 
Commercial Providers Branch 
E: emily.kelly@health.gov.au 
P: (02) 6289 1368