Purpose

• Establish standards for how competitive grants administered by the Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs (the Commissioner) can be awarded and managed.
• Create requirements for grant scoring, reporting, and oversight to ensure grants serve Minnesota veterans and their immediate family members.

Definitions (key terms used in this section)

• Commissioner: the commissioner of veterans affairs.
• Veteran: a Minnesota resident who served in the United States armed forces.
• Dependent child: a child under age 22 who is a biological or adopted child of a veteran.
• Immediate family member: a spouse or dependent child of a veteran.
• Grantee: a Minnesota-based nonprofit organization applying for and receiving a competitive grant.

Eligibility of Grantees

• To be eligible, a grantee must be:
  • A Minnesota-based nonprofit that has been operating for at least five years.
  • In good standing with the Minnesota Attorney General.
  • Have a current Form 990 on file with the IRS.

Use of Grant Money

• Grant funds may only be used to provide services to:
  • Minnesota veterans, or
  • Immediate family members of Minnesota veterans, or
  • Immediate family members of a deceased Minnesota veteran who died in the line of duty.
• If there are more eligible applicants than funds, priority must be given to veterans with physical, mental, or chemical health disabilities.

Grant Scoring and Amounts

• The Commissioner must create a grant application scoring system that evaluates applicants based on their history of serving veterans.
• The scoring system must include measurable outcomes for veterans already served.
• Grant amounts are determined from the scoring results; a grantee’s requested amount cannot determine the grant amount.

Oversight, Suspension, and Compliance

• The Commissioner may withhold grant funds if a grantee:
  • Has committed fraud, is under criminal investigation, harms the state or the Department’s reputation, or is unable to deliver required services.

Reporting Requirements

• Beginning in 2027, grantees must annually report by February 15 with details including:
  • Purpose of the grant and grant amount.
  • Amount of previous grants and other state/federal grants received.
  • Numbers served (veterans, active service members, and immediate family members) and outcomes/criteria used for success.
  • Grantee’s charitable giving ratio.
• The Commissioner can require additional reporting as specified in the grant agreement.
• Beginning in 2027, by March 1, the Commissioner must report to legislative chairs and ranking minority members with jurisdiction over veterans affairs, summarizing and aggregating data from grantees.

Administrative Costs and Legal Interaction

• The Commissioner may retain up to 5% of the amount appropriated for competitive grants to cover administrative and compliance monitoring costs.
• The grant requirements in this section are in addition to existing grants management requirements in the relevant statutes (notwithstanding any contrary laws).

Significant Changes to Existing Law

• Creates a formal, codified framework for competitive grants administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs, including:
  • Eligibility criteria for grant recipients.
  • A standardized grant scoring and outcomes system.
  • Prioritization rules for veterans with disabilities when resources are limited.
  • A mandatory annual reporting regime for grantees and aggregate reporting to the legislature.
  • A cap on administrative costs and explicit oversight provisions (suspension/withholding of funds for misconduct).
• Integrates these grants with broader grant management requirements, ensuring enhanced transparency and accountability.

Relevant Terms - competitive grant - grantee - grant scoring system - measurable outcomes - veterans - immediate family members - dependent child - nonprofit - Form 990 - Attorney General - fraud - criminal investigation - disrepute - administrative costs - grants management - Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs - Minnesota statutes (chapter 196) - reporting requirements - legislative committees (veterans policy and finance)