Office of Criminal Justice Grants
Third-Party Subrecipient Determinations
The determination checklist indicated I was entering into a relationship with a SUBRECIPIENT, what do I do now?
Now that you have determined your contractual service relationship is with a third-party subrecipient, your organization is now considered a "pass-through entity". As a pass-through entity you are now responsible for ensuring your subrecipient adheres to the terms and conditions of the federal award and the rules and regulations governing federal grants. Following the steps below will help ensure you maintain compliance for both you and your third-party subrecipient.
Step 1: Third-Party SAM Registrations and EEO Certifications
Many of the compliance requirements you were required to complete with your application flow down to any third-party subrecipient you contract with. As a pass-through entity, you are now responsible for ensuring your third-party subrecipient maintains active registrations and certifications in order to receive reimbursement.
SAM Registration
As a tiered recipient of federal grant funds, your third-party subrecipient must register in SAM.gov and must maintain an active SAM registration throughout the life of the award. Third-party subrecipients may complete their registration by visiting:
https://sam.gov/content/entity-registration. As a pass-through entity, you must maintain a printed copy of their active SAM registration(s) in your grant file and provide them to OCJG at the time of application or prior to reimbursement. OCJG will not be able to reimburse you for any expenses if your third-party subrecipient does not have their own active SAM registration.
EEO Certifications
All recipients of federal funds must comply with Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Certification provisions. It is required for all recipients and subrecipients to create an account through the Office for Civil Rights (OCR)
EEO Reporting Tool and complete annual certifications and plans through the portal. EEO Certifications expire one year from the date signed. As a pass-through entity, you must maintain a printed copy of their active EEO Certification(s) in your grant file and provide them to OCJG at monitoring. Failure to ensure your agreements meet the federal compliance requirements will result in a finding on your award at the time of monitoring.
Step 2: Develop and Execute your Third-Party Subaward Agreement
As a pass-through entity, there are numerous federal compliance requirements and conditions that must be passed down to your third-party subrecipient. In order to assist with meeting these requirements, OCJG created a Third-Party Certificate of Subaward. This certificate must be completed and provided to OCJG along with a copy of your executed agreement, and a copy must be provided to your third-party subrecipient for their records. This certificate assures both you and your subrecipient are in compliance with the pass-through entity provisions outlined in 2 CFR 200.332(a)(1).
You are responsible for ensuring your third-party agreements comply with all required provisions. If you have an existing contractual agreement with your subrecipient, you must review the agreement to ensure it incorporates and complies with the relevant elements outlined in the certificate. Failure to ensure your agreements meet the federal compliance requirements will result in a finding on your award at the time of monitoring.
Step 3: Complete the Third-Party Subaward Risk Assessment
Federal guidelines require pass-through entities to perform a "risk assessment" on each subaward they issue to gauge the recipient's risk of noncompliance with federal rules, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the executed award. In order to streamline this process, OCJG requires all recipients entering into third-party subrecipient relationships with providers to complete the
Third-Party Risk Assessment form. This form should be completed at the time the third-party subaward is executed and must be maintained and provided to OCJG at the time of monitoring.
Step 4: Complete the Third-Party Subaward Monitoring Questionnaire
Pass-through entities are required to monitor the compliance of their subawards, not only for programmatic/performance aspects, but for financial and general administrative compliance as well. Once your third-party subrecipient is well underway and conducting activities, you should conduct the Third-Party Subaward Monitoring. While OCJG acknowledges each organization may have its own "contract" monitoring processes and tools, we require our recipients to use our
Third-Party Subaward Monitoring Questionnaire to monitor the activities of their subrecipient. This form should be completed and provided to OCJG upon request.
In the event you notice areas of concern during the monitoring of your third-party provider please contact
your assigned Grant Specialist C (GSC), or
the CPR Unit Supervisor, for further guidance.