Geographic Location of Project Activity (GEO) Report -Venues Tab- Instructions and Frequency Asked Questions

Geographic Location of Project Activity (GEO) Report
-Venues TabInstructions and Frequency Asked Questions
Updated November 2024

The National Endowment for the Arts collects information regarding the location of significant project activity to
understand the geographic scope and distribution of our grant and cooperative agreement activities. This
information is used in our reports to Congress, the federal Office of Management and Budget, and the public.
Completing your GEO requirement is a two-step process. First, you will complete a spreadsheet of project
activity locations in the Venues tab in REACH. Second, you will mark your GEO as complete through the GEO
Submission Confirmation at the award’s Forms & Reports tab in REACH.
Instructions
1) At the Venues tab in REACH, click on “Edit Venues.”
2) Enter your data in the spreadsheet (see Page 2 for field descriptions), one record per row. All locations
of significant project activity must be entered. Review the GEO FAQs if you have questions about the
type of data you should be entering.
3) Save and submit your GEO. When you have finished, click Save and then click Back to Award.
PLEASE NOTE: GEO entries will not save until you click Save. Do not close the window or hit the back
button on your browser without saving data first. If you do not see the Save button, make sure you are
viewing the Venues tab in full screen mode.
4) Respond Yes to the GEO Submission Confirmation at the award’s Forms & Reports tab in REACH. This is
how your GEO status will be changed to “Submitted.”
Reminders
 Only report on approved project scope activities and locations. All outdoor locations must have
received National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) clearance from the NEA to be included in your
project.
 Costs of entertainment, including amusement, diversion, and social activities and any associated costs
are unallowable; generally, this includes activities at venues such as bars, wineries, and breweries where
the consumption of alcohol/social activity is the primary purpose of the venue.
 Buildings and facilities (including projects held in historic facilities) must be physically accessible to
people with disabilities.
 Do not enter a private home address unless it is your organization’s primary official address.

IMPORTANT: When done, you must also respond Yes to the GEO Submission Confirmation at the award’s
Forms & Reports tab in REACH. This is how your GEO status will be changed to “Submitted.”
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GEO Spreadsheet Field Descriptions
Site Name

The name of the venue where the activity took place.

Activity Type

Use the dropdown list to select the activity type that best matches what occurred at this
location. If multiple types of activity took place, select the one that was most significant.

Venue Type

Use the dropdown list to select the venue type that best matches this location.

Is Primary

Select True from the dropdown list if this was the primary venue for your award activity.
Select False if another venue was primary or if there was no primary venue. (It is not
required that one venue is primary.)

Is Tentative

Since the GEO is completed after your project ends, select False from the dropdown list.

Street1

Enter the physical location of the venue. Spell out the street name completely. Street types
and directional may be abbreviated (e.g., Pennsylvania Ave NW, W Maple St). Do not use
PO Box or Rural Route numbers.

Street2

Enter suite numbers, floors, and any additional information (such as the name of a
university/college or auditorium/hall).

City

The city where the venue is located.

State

The two-letter state abbreviation of the state where the venue is located. Select from the
dropdown list.

Postal Code

The five-digit ZIP code for the location of the venue.

Country

Select USA from the dropdown, or a different country if you are reporting on international
activity.

From

The date on which project activity began at the location. If uncertain of the exact date,
select the first day of the month. Use a MM/DD/YYYY format.

To

The last date of project activity at the location. If uncertain of the exact date, select the last
day of the month. Use a MM/DD/YYYY format.

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Frequently Asked Questions
 GEO CONTENT
What data do I need to begin?
You will need to know when and where activities took place and what the activities were. To be specific: the
date range and type of activity, and name and type of the venue (Valley High Auditorium, the Great Theater, city
park, etc.), and its street address, including the five-digit ZIP code.
What activities do I need to report?
Report significant activities detailed in your Final Descriptive Report that took place at your organization’s
primary address and at additional locations. These activities may include, but are not limited to, creation of
artwork, festivals, concerts, performances, readings, classes, lectures, demonstrations, workshops, symposiums,
conferences, exhibitions, film screenings, school or community residencies, artwork conservation, urban
planning/design, and publishing.
Should I include activities that took place before or after my grant period?
No. Even if activities related to your project took place before or after your grant period, only those activities
that occurred during the grant period (and were supported by funds reported on your Federal Financial Report)
are eligible to be part of your grant project. Consult the How to Manage Your NEA Award Handbook if you need
information about scope and time amendments.
All activity took place at our organization’s primary address. Do I need to report it?
Yes, please enter the organization’s primary address.
All activity took place virtually. What do I put for the address?
Enter your organization’s primary address. Do not enter a private home address unless it is the same as your
organization’s primary address. You need at least one address in your GEO report.
We had international activity. Do I need to report it?
Include international venues in the spreadsheet if the activity was supported by your project
budget. (International travel must be pre-approved in your project budget; international activities cannot be
included otherwise.) For international addresses, we only need the city and country.
Is there a maximum number of entries that can be included?
You can paste up to 200 addresses at a time. Click save and then you can add more.
Do I need to report multiple activities at the same location?
No. We only need to collect each address once. If several types of activities took place at the same location,
select the activity type of most substantial activity and the full time frame in which all of the activities took
place. We understand that this may not accurately reflect the full scope of your activity; however, this report is
for identifying unique locations only.
We worked with a school/business/organization, but all activity took place at our venue. Do I need to report
their location?
No, do not include locations from which audiences might be drawn.
We worked with a school/business/organization, but all activity took place virtually. Do I need to report their
location?
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You can include the partner organization addresses if participants engaged in the activity at the partner’s
physical location, however, do not enter private home addresses.
We sent artists or teaching artists to a school/business/organization to engage in project activity. Do I need to
report that/those locations?
Yes, include all locations where significant project activity took place.
Our tour went to 250 locations. Do I need to report them all?
The short answer is yes, we want GEO data on all of your project locations. But if you cannot find valid street
addresses for each location, please report as many as possible. Final Reports staff will review your GEO
alongside your Final Descriptive Report and Federal Financial Report to determine if the GEO is sufficient. We
recommend that you make note of the required spreadsheet elements so you can plan in advance for reporting
on any future grants.
Our project was a
. What do I need to submit?
a. Website
If all of your events are web-based, please enter the physical location(s) where the site is created and/or
managed.

b. Publication

Please enter the physical location(s) where the publication was created. Be sure to include locations of
supported author readings or related events. Distribution locations are not required.

c. Broadcast

Please enter the physical location(s) where the broadcast was recorded and/or produced. If your project
included the distribution of that recording, please enter each broadcast station’s physical address. We do
not accept submission of a carriage list.

d. Festival

If festival events took place at multiple venues, report all addresses.

None of your venue and/or activity types accurately reflect the information we want to provide. Can I select
multiple types?
No. Please select the type that most accurately reflects your activity/venue. ‘Other’ is an option in both
categories should you be unable to find an appropriate type.
 TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE
Where is the save button in the Venues tab?
If you do not see a Save button in the upper left corner of the spreadsheet frame, try maximizing your browser
window. If that doesn’t help, check for an arrow with a dropdown menu. And if it doesn’t appear in the
dropdown menu, try switching browsers.
Can I work on my GEO outside of REACH?
Yes, you can use our Excel spreadsheet template to record your GEO data offline:
https://www.arts.gov//sites/default/files/GEO-spreadsheet-for-Venues-tab-1.21.22.xlsx.
The spreadsheet template is specifically formatted to match all of the data validations in the Venues tab
spreadsheet. Do not attempt to modify the spreadsheet headers or dropdowns, or enter information in a
format that is different from what is requested. When pasting into the Venues tab spreadsheet, do not include
the header row. Doing otherwise will result in errors when you paste your data.
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Can I change the format of the spreadsheet?
No, you must follow the exact format. If you are going to copy and paste, use only our Excel spreadsheet
template and do not change its preset formatting. Only select from the drop-down options provided and do not
overwrite the options or adjust the column settings. Do not add information beyond what is requested in the
spreadsheet. Making changes to the spreadsheet format will cause errors when you try to paste the data in the
Venues tab.
What should I do if I get an error when pasting the data from the Excel template?
Try the following:
1) Look the spreadsheet over to see if any formatting was changed (like font or column width).
2) Make sure that all of the From dates are before the To dates.
3) Check all dropdown selections to make sure none were overwritten.
4) Download a new, blank copy of the Excel template and paste the venue data in, using the Match
Destination Formatting paste option.
 SUBMITTING AND FINALIZING YOUR REPORT
Can I edit the information I’ve submitted?
Please proofread your GEO spreadsheet closely before submission. But if you discover an error in previously
submitted information, you can go back into the Venues tab spreadsheet and make corrections (until the GEO
report status changes to Approved in REACH).
I’ve submitted my Geographic Location of Project Activity report, but the status is Not Submitted at the Forms
& Reports tab. Did you receive it?
After submitting your GEO report, you must complete the GEO Submission Confirmation to update the report’s
status. To do this, go to the Forms & Reports tab for the award in REACH. Click on the pencil icon next to the
Geographic Location of Project Activity report, and then follow the instructions provided.
I’m having difficulties. Who do I contact for help?
If you have questions, including technical ones, contact the Office of Grants Management’s Final Reports Team
at finalreports@arts.gov or (202) 682-5403.

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ONLY for organizations that received a Local Arts Agencies grant or cooperative agreement for
subgranting in FY23 or earlier
Your GEO will report on subgrantees, but not the locations of subgrantee activities. Use the following guidance
to enter data in the Venues tab:
• Site Name: Enter subgrant recipient’s legal name
• Activity Type: Leave blank
• Venue Type: Leave blank
• Is Primary Site?: Select no
• Is Tentative?: Select no
• For Street1, Street2, City, State, Postal Code, and Country: Enter the sub-grant recipient’s street 1, street 2,
city, state, ZIP code, and country.
• From: Enter the date the sub-grant was awarded.
• To: Leave blank

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