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Examples of block grants include the Workforce Investment Act program, which provides state and local agencies money to help youths and adults obtain skill sets that will lead to better-paying jobs, and the Surface Transportation Program, which helps state and local governments maintain and improve highways, bridges, tunnels, sidewalks, and bicycle paths.

Noteworthy characteristics examples how to#

Block grants come with less stringent federal administrative conditions and provide recipients more flexibility over how to spend grant funds. Medicaid and the food stamp program are examples of categorical grants.

These grants also often require some commitment of matching funds. Categorical grants are federal transfers formulated to limit recipientsвЂ™ discretion in the use of funds and subject them to strict administrative criteria that guide project selection, performance, and financial oversight, among other things. ДЇederal cash grants do come with strings attached the national government has an interest in seeing that public monies are used for policy activities that advance national objectives. At the turn of the twentieth century, cash grants replaced land grants as the main form of federal intergovernmental transfers and have become a central part of modern federalism. Numerous universities and colleges across the country, such as Ohio State University and the University of Maine, are land-grant institutions because their campuses were built on land donated by the federal government. Millions of acres of federal land were donated to support road, railroad, bridge, and canal construction projects, all of which were instrumental in piecing together a national transportation system to facilitate migration, interstate commerce, postal mail service, and movement of military people and equipment. In the first half of the 1800s, land grants were the primary means by which the federal government supported the states. The national government has used grants to influence state actions as far back as the Articles of Confederation when it provided states with land grants. Thus, given its coercive nature, a mandate is commonly likened to a вЂњstick.вЂќ Grants

Mandates are typically backed by the threat of penalties for non-compliance and provide little to no compensation for the costs of implementation. On the other hand, unfunded mandates impose federal requirements on state and local authorities. A grant is commonly likened to a вЂњcarrotвЂќ to the extent that it is designed to entice the recipient to do something. Intergovernmental grants offer positive financial inducements to get states to work toward selected national goals.

The national governmentвЂ™s ability to achieve its objectives often requires the participation of state and local governments.

Describe the characteristics of federal unfunded mandates.

Identify the types of federal intergovernmental grants.

Explain how federal intergovernmental grants have evolved over time.

By the end of this section, you will be able to: