CARA FY26 Statement of Rates.docx

This is a Statement of Local Rates document that establishes eligibility requirements for the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA) FY26 grant program. Applicants must demonstrate that their local rate of opioid and/or methamphetamine use is significantly higher than the national average or has sustained elevated rates over a long period of time. The document provides a table template for applicants to complete, documenting local rates of opioid and methamphetamine use compared against national averages sourced from two data sources: the Monitoring the Future Survey (MTF) National Survey Results on Drug Use (1975-2023) and the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) Key Substance Use and Mental Health Indicators (2024 data). The document clarifies that due to methodological changes in these national surveys, applicants are not required to demonstrate sustained trends over time; rather, they may satisfy the statutory requirement by showing that current local rates are significantly higher than the most recent national estimates.

The CARA program, administered by the Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, targets youth ages 12-18 and seeks to prevent and reduce opioid and methamphetamine use as well as prescription drug misuse. Eligible applicants must be current or formerly funded Drug-Free Communities (DFC) Support Program recipients and are domestic public or private nonprofit entities. Awards typically range from $250,000 to $418,329 for one to five-year project periods with 12-month budget cycles. Historical award data indicates approximately $8.9 million distributed across 71 cooperative agreements, with potential non-competitive continuation available based on satisfactory progress and federal interest.