When funded, states or their designated entities (for example, Housing Finance Commissions) are eligible to receive funding through formula grants based on population and need.

Many are "formula grants" made available to States and local governments, which in turn award grants to grassroots and local organizations.

Many of these are "formula grants" made available to states and local governments, which then award grants to local organizations.

Categorical grants may be spent only for narrowly defined purposes and 33% of categorical grants are considered to be formula grants.

In fiscal Year 2011, Congress funded only formula grants.

Federal, state, and tribal victim assistance programs receive formula grants, discretionary grants, and set-asides according to a carefully established annual allocation procedure.

The majority of these grants were distributed through state agencies to local organizations in the form of formula grants (GAO 2006:17).

The remaining three grants are formula grants, which are grants that must be distributed according to how the legislation describes.

For instance, some formula grants consider a state's personal income in determining levels of federal support.

Notwithstanding his criticism of Tardif in other respects, William Johnson also credited him with "[taking] the politics out of municipal financing by establishing formula grants."