31 U.S.C. § 6301: Purposes

promote a better understanding of United States Government expenditures and help eliminate unnecessary administrative requirements on recipients of Government awards by characterizing the relationship between executive agencies and contractors, States, local governments, and other recipients in acquiring property and services and in providing United States Government assistance; uniformity in their use by executive agencies; a clear definition of the relationships they reflect; and a better understanding of the responsibilities of the parties to them; and promote increased discipline in selecting and using procurement contracts, grant agreements, and cooperative agreements, maximize competition in making procurement contracts, and encourage competition in making grants and cooperative agreements. Nothing in the Federal Grant and Cooperative Agreements Act of 1977 ( 31 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.) may be construed to prohibit the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency from negotiating and entering into cooperative agreements and grants authorized by law which affect real property of the Federal Government in the District of Columbia if the principal purpose of the cooperative agreement or grant is to provide comparable benefits for Federal and non-Federal properties in the District of Columbia. Subsection (a) shall apply with respect to fiscal year 2001 and each succeeding fiscal year.”