Grants typically allocate federal dollars for a specific purpose based on a state's population.

"Categorical grants" typically allocate federal dollars for a specific purpose based on a state's population.

Think that you are the legislative head or governor of a state, and you require subsidizing for state ventures. How might you want to get a boatload of cash from the government? Sounds great, isn't that so? Not all that snappy… there's dependably a catch! 
This is the fundamental thought of a categorical grant, it refers to the cash allowed by the central government to state and nearby governments, with strict confinements on how it is to be spent. The cash must be gotten if the state or neighborhood government agrees to specific directions. However, the states don't need to take the cash on the off chance that they would prefer not to follow the controls.