All Federal Government projects, programs, services and activities that provide assistance and benefits to citizens are cataloged in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance. All financial and non-financial assistance programs implemented through departments and establishments for the US Federal government are recorded in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance.

In 1984 the Office of Management and Budget transferred responsibility for Federal domestic assistance program information to the General Services Administration. This transfer was mandated by the Federal Program Information Act and included requirements for distribution of the CFDA.

Responsibility for the database of Federal assistance lies with the General Services Administration. The OMB interfaces with the range of Federal agencies on behalf of the General Services Administration delivering the required oversight to the program data related to domestic assistance.

The CFDA 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 Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance 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 provides the user with access to programs administered by Federal departments and agencies in a single publication. Program information is cross referenced by functional classification (Functional Index), subject (Subject Index), applicant (Applicant Index), deadline(s) for program application submission (Deadlines Index), and authorizing legislation (Authorization Index). These are valuable resource tools that, if used carefully, can make it easier to identify specific areas of program interest more efficiently.

For years, GSA has published a printed version of the Catalog, as required by legislation dating to 1977 and 1983. That same legislation allowed GSA to distribute free copies of the printed Catalog to designated recipients. In fiscal year 2003, nearly 10,000 paper copies of the Catalog were distributed at no cost to the recipients.

New rulings now gives the General Services Administration discretion in what form to produce and disseminate the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance. The General Services Administration is endeavoring to move to a more paper free environment and toward that end now maintains and distributes the Catalog through the CFDA Website. The General Services Administration no longer prints and distributes free copies of the Catalog.