Government grants professionals have spent much of 2026 adjusting to changes in federal funding, growing compliance expectations, and uncertainty surrounding new regulations. For agencies already managing large grant portfolios with limited staff, keeping up has become increasingly difficult.
And while some questions about the federal grants landscape remain unanswered, there is plenty that organizations can do now to prepare for 2027.
During Euna Solutions’ recent webinar, 2027 Gov Grants Trends and Strategies You Need to Know, experts from Euna Solutions and CliftonLarsonAllen (CLA) examined the developments that shaped grants management in 2026, including proposed changes to federal grant regulations and the growing role of technology. The discussion also offered practical advice for agencies trying to plan ahead while so much remains unsettled.
Here are some of the major takeaways.
Grants Compliance Is Becoming More Complex
Compliance has always been part of managing federal grants, but the responsibilities facing today’s grants teams extend well beyond submitting reports and tracking expenditures.
Organizations must maintain accurate documentation, monitor subrecipients, oversee financial activity, and demonstrate that funding is being used according to applicable requirements. These responsibilities become harder to manage when information is spread across departments or maintained in separate systems.
Findings from Euna Solutions’ 2026 State of Grants Management and Technology Report, highlighted during the webinar, illustrate how widespread this pressure has become. Approximately 77% of respondents reported increased compliance oversight over the past year, with 31% describing the increase as significant.
The possibility of additional regulatory changes has made preparation even more important.
In May 2026, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) proposed substantial revisions to the Uniform Guidance under 2 CFR Part 200. The proposed Uniform Grants Regulation would change how federal financial assistance is administered, including expanding certain oversight requirements and establishing a more directly binding government-wide regulatory framework.
Originally intended to take effect October 1, 2026, the proposed rule was delayed by a continuing resolution that prohibits its finalization through December 11, 2026. Its eventual effective date remains uncertain.
Because the proposed amendments are not final, agencies should avoid treating them as though they are already in effect. However, waiting until a final rule is published to examine existing processes could leave teams with substantial work to complete under tight deadlines.
Preparing for Regulatory Changes Before They’re Finalized
One of the webinar’s most practical discussions concerned what agencies should be doing while federal regulatory changes are still pending.
The challenge is finding the right balance. Organizations need to prepare for potential new requirements without investing significant resources in changes that may look different once the final regulation is published.
The speakers outlined three approaches to managing this uncertainty.
Start with what you know. Agencies can review their current grants, identify which awards could be affected, establish clear ownership of compliance responsibilities, and locate the documentation associated with each program. These are worthwhile activities regardless of how the proposed regulation develops.
Evaluate potential operational changes. Proposed requirements involving employment eligibility verification, payment controls, and federal oversight may affect existing processes. Grants teams should work with finance, legal, human resources, and other relevant departments to understand where adjustments might be necessary.
Hold off on changes that require final regulatory language. Rewriting policies, conducting formal training on new requirements, or substantially reconfiguring workflows may be premature until agencies have greater clarity.
The discussion also raised an important operational question: Can an organization’s current processes, staff, and systems support additional requirements?
For many agencies, answering that question will reveal opportunities to strengthen operations now, even before new regulations take effect.
Funding Uncertainty Is Changing How Agencies Approach Grants
Regulatory changes aren’t the only factor influencing grants strategy. Throughout 2026, public organizations have continued navigating uncertainty around federal funding priorities and availability. For governments that depend on grants to support infrastructure, public services, and community programs, these shifts can make long-term planning more complicated.
Agencies may need to pursue different funding opportunities, diversify their funding sources, or reconsider which programs are sustainable with the resources available. This places greater importance on understanding the broader funding landscape rather than evaluating opportunities individually.
During the webinar, Euna Solutions demonstrated how grant opportunity data can help organizations examine available funding, monitor activity across states, and identify potential areas of interest.
Having access to this information is valuable, but it also needs to inform decisions. Grants teams should consider how opportunities align with organizational priorities, whether staff have the capacity to manage additional awards, and what long-term administrative responsibilities new funding might create.
A successful grants strategy isn’t necessarily the one that pursues the most opportunities. It’s the one that helps an organization secure and manage funding it can use effectively.
Technology and AI Are Taking on a Larger Role
As grants responsibilities grow, organizations are looking for ways to reduce the amount of staff time spent on administrative work.
According to survey findings shared during the webinar, 29% of organizations reported actively using automation or AI tools, while 50% were exploring, piloting, or planning to explore new solutions.
Interest is growing across several areas of grants management, including application intake and review, compliance tracking, data analysis, funding opportunity discovery, and workflow automation.
For grants professionals, the immediate opportunity is often quite practical. Reducing repetitive data entry, making documentation easier to find, and improving the consistency of reporting can free up time for work that requires greater judgment and expertise. Technology can also help organizations maintain continuity when staffing changes or responsibilities are shared across departments.
For example, Euna Grants brings grants, projects, budgets, documents, and reporting into a centralized system. With structured workflows, configurable forms, and automated reminders, agencies can reduce manual administrative work and maintain greater visibility throughout the grant lifecycle without relying on disconnected spreadsheets and email threads.
The purpose isn’t to remove people from the process. It’s to give them better information and more time to focus on funding decisions, compliance oversight, and program outcomes.
Five Actions to Strengthen Your Grants Strategy for 2027
The webinar concluded with five recommendations that organizations can begin putting into practice as they prepare for the coming year.
The first is to centralize grant data. When staff can access consistent information about awards, deadlines, expenditures, and requirements, it’s easier to coordinate work and respond to questions from leadership or auditors.
Next, agencies should look for opportunities to reduce manual work. Repetitive administrative tasks consume time that could otherwise be spent pursuing funding, supporting programs, or improving oversight.
The third recommendation is to measure what matters. While the number of applications submitted and dollars awarded remain useful metrics, they don’t tell the full story. Organizations should also consider administrative efficiency, time spent managing applications, and whether awarded funding is producing the intended results.
Stronger collaboration is another priority. Grants management rarely belongs to one department alone. Finance, program leadership, procurement, and grants professionals all contribute to successful administration, making communication and clearly defined responsibilities essential.
Finally, organizations should build infrastructure that supports growth. This means evaluating whether current processes and systems can accommodate additional awards, new reporting requirements, and changing staff capacity.
Together, these actions can help agencies strengthen their grants operations without waiting for the next regulatory announcement.
Moving Into 2027 With a Stronger Grants Strategy
There are still unanswered questions about what federal grants management will look like in 2027. Funding priorities may continue to shift, and agencies will need to monitor developments surrounding the proposed Uniform Grants Regulation.
What organizations can control is how well prepared they are to respond. Understanding current awards, improving documentation, reducing unnecessary administrative work, and giving staff better access to information can make future changes easier to manage. These improvements also help agencies make more informed decisions about the funding they pursue and the programs they support.
Watch the Webinar
Want to learn more about the compliance developments, funding trends, and practical recommendations discussed by Euna Solutions and CLA? Watch the on-demand webinar, 2027 Gov Grants Trends and Strategies You Need to Know, for a closer look at what agencies should consider as they prepare for 2027.
