Categorical grants are grants, issued by the United States Congress, which may be spent only for narrowly-defined purposes. Additionally, recipients of categorical grants are often required to match a portion of the federal funds. About 90% of federal aid dollars are spent for categorical grants. Grants are funds given to tax-exempt nonprofit organizations or local governments by foundations, corporations, governments, small business and individuals. ... Type Bicameral Houses Senate House of Representatives President of the Senate President pro tempore Dick Cheney, (R) since January 20, 2001 Robert C. Byrd, (D) since January 4, 2007 Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, (D) since January 4, 2007 Members 535 plus 4 Delegates and 1 Resident Commissioner Political...

Categorical grants- the main source of federal aid to state and local government,can only be used for one of several hundred specific purposes, or categories of state and local spending.

Categorical grants are distributed either on a formula basis or a project basis. For project grants, states compete for funding; the federal government selects specific projects based on merit. Formula grants, on the other hand, are distributed based on a standardized formula set by Congress.

During the development of the Interstate Highway System, congressional grants provided roughly 90% of the funding. Categorical grants may be spent only for narrowly defined purposes and 33% of categorical grants are considered to be formula grants. Examples of categorical grants include Head Start, the Food Stamp Program, and Medicaid. Interstate Highways in the 48 contiguous states. ... Head Start is a program of the United States Department of Health and Human Services that focuses on assisting children from low-income families. ... The Food Stamp Program is a federal assistance program that provides food to low income people living in the United States. ... Medicaid is the US health insurance program for individuals and families with low incomes and resources. ...

This type of grant differs from block grants in that block grants are issued in support of general governmental functions such as education or law enforcement. State and local recipients have more leeway in determining how best to use the money. In a federal system of taxation systems and spent it without any restrictions from above. ...