Federal grants spending reports delayed

The audit of Commonwealth grants spending over the four financial years to June 2025 was due to be published by the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) by April, but instead the auditor released an update simply noting that the publication date had moved.

The review will assess spending recorded on the GrantConnect system, which federal agencies are required to use.

The purpose of the audit is “to provide transparency of, and insights on, government grants expenses and Commonwealth entities’ self-reporting of grants on GrantConnect, for the past four years from 2021–22 to 2024–25”.

Commonwealth grants spending comprises about 30 per cent of the total estimated $125 billion annual distribution of grants in Australia, a SmartyGrants analysis suggests.

The total value of federal grants distributed in 2023–24 was $38.5 billion, although the annual figure varied considerably during the covid-19 pandemic.

The ANAO did not respond to queries from Grants Management Intelligence about the status of the report.

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Defence spending review

The ANAO has also delayed the findings of an audit of defence program grants.

The report on the Skilling Australia’s Defence Industry grants program was due in April, and while work on it is now underway, the findings are not expected to be made available until September.

It will assess whether the program has met Commonwealth rules, examine funding design and administration, and review whether applications were properly assessed, funding decisions were well-informed, and evaluations were properly performed.