If you are interested in researching federal government grant opportunities, a great place to start is the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance. The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance is a government-wide collection of Federal services and activities, including programs and projects that provide benefits or assistance to residents of the U.S.. The CFDA non-financial and financial assistance programs managed by departments and other entities within the Federal government.

In 1984, Public Law 98-169 authorized the transfer of responsibilities of the Federal Program Information Act from the Office of Management and Budget to the General Services Administration. The transfer took place in July 1984. These responsibilities include the dissemination of Federal domestic assistance program information through the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance, pursuant to the Federal Program Information Act, Public Law 95-220, as amended by Public Law 98-169.

The GSA now maintains the Federal assistance information database from which program information is obtained. The OMB serves as an intermediary agent between the Federal agencies and GSA, thus providing oversight to the necessary collection of Federal domestic assistance program data.

The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance is the basic reference manual providing information on all Federal domestic activities. Its most critical function is allowing users to identify programs of particular interest. The CFDA also is a tremendous resource for basic information on Federal assistance programs. Additionally, the CFDA endeavors to improve communications and enhance coordination between State and Local entities and the Federal government.

The Catalog lets grant seekers access all domestic programs managed by Federal agencies and departments in a single resource. All information is cross referenced by functional classification, subject, applicant, Deadlines Index, and authorizing legislation. All of this information is invaluable as resource tools that can make it easier to identify specific areas of program interest more efficiently.

Since its inception the GSA has produced a printed edition of the Catalog. Legislation dating back to 1977 required free dissemination of the CFDA to designated recipients. In 2003 the General Services Administration distributed almost 10,000 copies of the Catalog.

Current legislation, however, authorizes GSA to determine in what form to prepare and publish the Catalog. Consistent with the Administration’s Electronic-Government initiatives, the Government Paperwork Elimination Act, and a move to a paper free environment, GSA will now disseminate the Catalog electronically through the CFDA website on the Internet. As a result, effective immediately, General Services Administration will no longer print and distribute free copies of the Catalog.

Michael has an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business. He edits a site on federal government grants and is CEO of Information Organizers, LLC.

When fund raising for your corporation or start-up, investors will want their equity distribution in an SEC recognized format like a Private Placement Memorandum, also known as a PPM or offering memorandum. This unique structure makes use of one of the three Regulation D exemptions stemming from the Securities Act of 1933.

The three powerful exemptions are Regulation D Rule 504, Rule 505 and Rule 506. These rules carry different criteria that help businesses raise equity funding without all the stringent legalities of an IPO. These rules are defined like this: Rule 506 provides an exemption for limited offers and sales without regard to the dollar amount of the offering.

This exemption doesn’t limit the number of accredited investors, but the number of non-accredited investors may not exceed 35 investors. (An accredited investor is any one investor with a certain net worth and or experience in the purchase of stocks.) All non-accredited purchasers, either alone or together with a designated representative must be sophisticated enough (meaning, have the knowledge and experience necessary) to evaluate the merits and risks of the investment. (An offering company will usually determines the sophistication of its investors with a questionnaire subscription agreement.)

Rule 506 requires detailed disclosure of relevant information to potential investors; the extent of disclosure depends on the dollar size of the offering. Rule 505 offerings may not exceed $5 million, less the total dollar amount of securities sold during the preceding 12 month period under Rule 504, Rule 505 or Section 3 of the act. This exemption limits the number of non-accredited investors to 35 but has no investor sophistication standards. Rule 505 requires disclosure similar to that required for Rule 506 offerings, under $7.5 million.

Rule 504 offerings allow a business to raise a maximum of $1 million, less the total dollar amount of securities sold during the preceding 12 month period, under Rule 504, Rule 505 or Section 3 of the act. However, a business can raise only $500,000 by the sale of securities to persons residing in the states of Montana and Alaska, which have no disclosure laws applicable to the offering. For the states that do have disclosure laws, which are 48 out of the 50 states, a business can raise up to $1,000,000. Rule 504 has no prescribed disclosure requirements, no limit on the number of purchasers, and no investor sophistication standards. So if you’re trying to raise capital using a PPM, use the above criteria as a cliff note and as long as you stay within SEC guidelines, raising capital can be easy.

Call 267-233-0183, Private Placement Memorandum Services, visit Princeton Corporate Solutions to get more info about Private Placement Memorandums and passing Due Diligence