Foa_Content_of_HHS-2022-ACF-ACYF-CX-0061 final.pdf

Signature Date

Administration for Children and Families

Administration on Children, Youth, and Families-Family and Youth Services Bureau

Transitional Living Program

HHS-2022-ACF-ACYF-CX-0061

Application Due Date: Application Due Date will be submitted as: date based on specified number of days after the actual Synopsis Post Date

Table of Contents Executive Summary

I. Program Description

II. Federal Award Information

III. Eligibility Information

III.1. Eligible Applicants

III.2. Cost Sharing or Matching

III.3. Other

IV. Application and Submission Information

IV.1. Address to Request Application Package

IV.2. Content and Form of Application Submission

Required Forms, Assurances, and Certifications

The Project Description

The Project Budget and Budget Justification

Application Submission Options

IV.3. Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management (SAM)

IV.4. Submission Dates and Times

Explanation of Due Dates

Acknowledgement of Received Application

IV.5. Intergovernmental Review

IV.6. Funding Restrictions

IV.7. Other Submission Requirements

V. Application Review Information

V.1. Criteria

V.2. Review and Selection Process

V.3. Anticipated Announcement and Federal Award Dates

VI. Federal Award Administration Information

VI.1. Federal Award Notices

VI.2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements

VI.3. Reporting

VII. HHS Award Agency Contact(s)

VIII. Other Information

Reference Websites

Application Checklist

Appendix

Funding Opportunity Title:

Transitional Living Program Announcement Type:

Initial Funding Opportunity Number:

HHS-2022-ACF-ACYF-CX-0061

Primary CFDA Number:

93.550 Due Date for Applications:

Application Due Date will be submitted as: date based on specified number of days after the actual Synopsis Post Date Executive Summary Notice:

Applicants are strongly encouraged to read the entire notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) carefully and observe the application formatting requirements listed in Section IV.2. Content and Form of Application Submission. For more information on applying for grants, please visit "How to Apply for a Grant" on the ACF Grants & Funding Page at https://www.acf.hhs.gov/grants/how-apply-grant.

The Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Administration on Children, Youth and Families (ACYF), Family and Youth Services Bureau (FYSB) supports organizations and communities that work every day to end youth homelessness, adolescent pregnancy, and domestic violence. FYSB works toward a future in which all of the nation’s youth, individuals, and families - no matter what challenges they may face - can live healthy, productive, violence-free lives. FYSB’s Runaway and Homeless Youth (RHY) Program is accepting applications for the Transitional Living Program (TLP). The purpose of FYSB’s TLP grant program is to provide safe, stable, and appropriate housing for youth ages 16 to under 22 years of age and their young families who are experiencing homelessness. Housing for such youth may be provided for 18 months (540 days) or, under extenuating circumstances, up to 21 months (635 days).

I. Program Description Statutory Authority This program is authorized under Title III, part B, section 321 of the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act (34 U.S.C. 11221).

Description

ADMINISTRATION ON CHILDREN, YOUTH AND FAMILIES' TRANSITIONAL

LIVING PROGRAM

ACYF, through FYSB, is committed to safety, permanency, well-being, and self-sufficiency for runaway and homeless youth: youth and young adults who cannot live safely with a parent, legal guardian, or relative and have no safe, alternative living arrangement.

FYSB’s RHY Program promotes a Positive Youth Development (PYD) framework, which integrates strengths-based approaches to emphasize youths' self-determination, resilience, life skills, and strengths. It provides a meaningful framework to consistently support youth in identifying their strengths and using their skills towards personal growth, decision-making, development, and success. This PYD framework is essential to ensure a young person has a sense of safety, structure, belonging, membership, self-worth, social contribution, independence, and control over one’s life, as well as skills to develop plans for the future, set goals, make-decisions, and foster healthy interpersonal relationships. The RHY Program also promotes increasing youth leadership capacity through intentional projects and activities designed to enhance this skill set.

Additionally, FYSB’s RHY Program supports projects to increase the prevention and intervention of sexual exploitation and all forms of human trafficking within RHY programs.

These ongoing efforts seek to minimize sexual exploitation and trafficking incidents among runaway and homeless youth, equip programs with the necessary tools to prevent these incidents, and identify youth who are either at risk or victims of human trafficking.

PROJECT OVERVIEW

In response to growing concern for youth in need of long-term, supportive assistance that emergency shelter programs were not designed to provide, Congress created the TLP for older homeless youth as part of the 1988 Amendments to the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974. In 2018, the TLP assisted nearly 1,900 homeless youth safely and appropriately transition from shelter care. Services offered through the TLP are designed to assist young people who are experiencing homelessness make a successful transition to self-sufficient living.

Pursuant to 34 U.S.C. 11222(a)(7) of the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act (RHYA), projects must “…develop an adequate plan to ensure proper referral of homeless youth to social service, law enforcement, educational (including post-secondary education), vocational, training (including services and programs for youth available under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act), welfare (including programs under the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996), legal service, and health care programs and to help integrate and coordinate such services for youths.”

PROJECT GOAL AND VISION

Goal: The primary goal of the TLP is to help runaway and homeless youth between the ages of 16 to under 22 years of age establish sustainable living and well-being for themselves and, if applicable, their dependent child(ren).

Vision: Successfully transition youth experiencing homelessness into adulthood through self-sufficient and sustainable living and learning skills to promote economic independence in order to prevent long-term dependency on social services.

Applicants seeking to provide services only to pregnant/parenting runaway and homeless youth should apply under the Maternity Group Home (MGH) separate funding opportunity, HHS-

2022-ACF-ACYF-FYSB-YZ-0063.

PROJECT REQUIREMENTS

All TLP Projects MUST provide shelter AND supportive services. Choosing one or the other is not an option.

Consistent with the statutory mandates set forth in the RHY Act, as well as the regulatory requirements set forth in the RHY Rule, TLP projects will include the following components:

Safe, stable, and appropriate shelter TLP projects must provide safe and stable shelter for youth ages 16 to under 22 years of age and, if applicable, their young families who are experiencing homelessness (a community-based, adult-supervised transitional living arrangement that provides youth and if applicable, their children with a supportive and supervised living arrangement) throughout a continuous period not to exceed 540 days, or in exceptional circumstances 635 days, except that a young person who has not reached 18 years of age on the last day of the 635-day period may, in exceptional circumstances (as defined in the Appendix) and if otherwise qualified for the program, remain in the program until the youth’s 18th birthday. Youth and young adults actively in dependent care or custody of a government child welfare or juvenile justice agency are not eligible for TLP services.

TLP projects shall ensure physical structures, technologies, staff supervision practices, and policies and procedures are in place to protect minor youth from potential exposure to unsafe conditions. This includes circumstances where the TLP project serves adult homeless populations who may come into contact with minor youth.

TLP projects will have an agreement and/or linkage with an age appropriate emergency shelter or other temporary housing resources in circumstances when there are no current TLP openings. Projects that do not serve youth of the full age range of 16-21 must have a contingency plan should a youth outside of the project’s age range be referred (including self-referrals.)

TLP projects that are housing facilities and not a family host home, will provide direct on-site supervision.

TLP facilities must adhere to the guidance provided in RHY regulations at 45 CFR. §

1351.18 (c)requiring that runaway and homeless youth centers have, “… a minimum residential capacity of four (4) and a maximum residential capacity of twenty (20) youth in a single structure (except where the applicant assures that the state where the center or locally controlled facility is located has a state or local law or regulation that requires a higher maximum to comply with licensure requirements for child and youth serving facilities), or within a single floor of a structure in the case of apartment buildings, with a number of staff sufficient to assure adequate supervision and treatment for the number of clients to be served and the guidelines followed for determining the appropriate staff ratio.”

TLPs supporting pregnant or parenting youth must provide appropriate space, equipment, and furnishings. There must be a separate bed for each youth/young adult and for each infant/child. In addition, the facility will ensure accommodations that will limit the risk of or prevent injuries associated with, but not limited to, the following: falling, burning, electrical hazards, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), and safe bath and tub space.

TLP staff will be trained to interact with youth experiencing or at risk of experiencing trafficking, sexual exploitation, or other similar traumatic experiences.

TLP projects will ensure youth are engaged in educational advancement, life skills training, job attainment skills, or work activities while in the program.

TLP projects must ensure youth and young adults have safe and appropriate exits when leaving the program.

Comprehensive Youth-Centered Services Model

Social and Emotional Well-being and Strength-based Approach:

The TLP projects utilize a trauma-informed approach, which involves understanding and responding to the symptoms of chronic, interpersonal trauma and traumatic stress, as well as the behavioral and mental health consequences of trauma and prevention of re-traumatization. For more information about the effects of trauma and utilizing a trauma-informed approach, visit https://www.traumainformedcare.chcs.org/resource/samhsas-national-center-for-trauma-informed-care.

TLP projects also utilize a PYD framework that includes healthy messages, safe and structured places, adult role models, skill development, and opportunities to serve others. PYD is an intentional, prosocial approach that engages youth within their communities, schools, organizations, peer groups, and families in a manner that is productive and constructive.

Employing PYD also means promoting increased youth leadership capacity through intentional projects and activities designed to enhance this skill set. For more information on PYD, visit https://rhyclearinghouse.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/PosYthDevel.pdf.

Outreach Implementation Strategy:

Conduct Outreach: TLP projects must describe activities to conduct outreach with runaway, homeless, and street youth, or youth at risk of becoming runaway or homeless. Outreach strategies will be used to engage youth/young adults who might not use RHY program services due to lack of awareness, providing information about services and benefits, and encouraging the use of appropriate services. Outreach activities may include monthly community canvassing, hosting or partnering with community stakeholders to host community engagement events, or other outreach and recruitment efforts.

Education and Awareness: TLP projects must inform the community about the TLP through social media, public service announcements, and collaboration with other youth and family serving organizations; the National Communication System for Runaway and Homeless Youth (i.e., the National Runaway Safeline; culturally specific community-based organizations; schools; sexual violence organizations; organizations providing support or services to those who have experienced trafficking or are at-risk of experiencing trafficking agencies; law enforcement; health care providers; legal services;

and other stakeholders. Public education includes the development and distribution of materials providing information about services, benefits, and encouraging the use of appropriate services.

Youth Engagement and Collaboration: TLPs must engage youth with lived expertise to assist in locating youth, developing youth-centered services and outreach strategies that are individualized to meet the youth's needs, and ensuring education and awareness strategies are grounded in youth voice and collaboration.

Provision of Basic Needs:

When necessary and appropriate to facilitate the delivery of required TLP housing and services and build trust with workers, projects must provide food, drink, clothing, transportation, personal safety information (e.g., national youth hotlines, local hotlines), hygiene products to prevent malnutrition and ill-health, and when appropriate, items suitable for an infant or toddler, and resource guides that include pregnant and parenting resources. Project staff build rapport to identify youth who are at-risk of or are victims of sexual trafficking, commercial sexual exploitation, sex abuse, labor trafficking, and other forms of victimization. TLP staff provide valuable information to youth in case of potential trafficking or life-threatening situations (e.g., the National Suicide Hotline, National Runaway Safeline, National Human Trafficking Hotline, and National Domestic Violence Hotline).

Screening and Assessment:

TLP projects will implement standardized methods to assess eligibility and the services required to meet the immediate needs of the client. Immediate needs may include the client's physical health and behavioral health, connection to family, safety, access to resources, issues of neglect or abuse, and other risk and protective factors impacting the well-being and self-sufficiency of youth.

Assessments are individualized with priority on reunifying youth who have left home without permission to a parent, guardian, another adult relative, or another adult that has the youth’s best interest in mind and can provide a stable housing, as defined in 45 CFR § 1351.1 of the RHY Rule. Assessment tools evaluate the unique needs of subpopulations of runaway and homeless youth, including, but not limited to, the following: 1) youth who are pregnant or parenting; 2) system-involved youth, to include juvenile justice and child welfare; 3) sexually exploited or trafficked youth; 4) youth in need of substance abuse and/or mental health services; and 5) other vulnerable populations (e.g., tribal youth; youth with disabilities; youth who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning, (LGBTQ) and/or intersex as described in 45 CFR §

1351.23 (a) of the RHY Rule).The screening tools should be able to identify the unique needs of runaway and homeless youth and guide identification, assistance, and referral for delivery of appropriate services.

For more information on screening and assessment tools that can be used for types of interventions and services available, visit: https://rhyclearinghouse.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/screening-assessment-tool- 20160314-508-1150.pdf.

Case Management:

Projects must identify and assess the needs of the client and, as appropriate, arrange, coordinate, monitor, evaluate, and advocate for a package of services to meet the specific needs of the client.

(45 CFR § 1351.1) The following list includes specific programmatic requirements for case management planning for youth in TLP projects:

Individualized Service or Treatment: TLP projects must deliver individualized services for every TLP client. Treatment and services must be based on the person’s goals that include evidence-informed strategies to assist with the trajectory of achieving sustainable living.

Case Management for Infant/Toddler: TLP projects supporting pregnant or parenting youth\young adults must deliver individualized services for the young person’s infant or child. At a minimum, services should include well-care visits and sensory and developmental screenings and assessments.

Service Coordination: Projects must refer clients for services based on an assessment of client’s needs to ensure appropriate system of care services are accessible. Systems of care services must include social services; law enforcement; educational services;

vocational training; welfare; legal services; organizations that provide support or services to those who have experienced trafficking or are at-risk of experiencing trafficking;

mental and behavioral health; schools; health care programs, including health insurance options; and affordable childcare and/or child education programs. In addition, projects will take steps to ensure that youth who are under the legal jurisdiction of the juvenile justice or child welfare systems receive services from those systems until such time as they are released from the jurisdiction of those systems. Referrals may also include Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program; Temporary Assistance for Needy Families;

child care; Head Start; Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children; parenting and early childhood development services; and other related family/child support services. Pursuant to section 1351.23(b) of the RHY Rule, RHY projects will communicate with the National Communication System for Runaway and Homeless Youth (i.e., the National Runaway Safeline) regarding national, state, and local resources and how to connect youth in need with those resources.

Transition Planning:

TLP projects must work with the client to develop a written transitional living strategy that meets their level of need for a safe and stable living environment after program exit. This strategy must ensure the youth has access to important documents and paperwork (e.g., birth certificate, social security card, driver's license or state identification card, medical records, credit reports).

Aftercare: Each TLP project must ensure youth and young adults have safe and appropriate exits when leaving the program. Projects must develop and implement an aftercare strategy, covering at least 3 months, to stay in contact with clients who leave the program to ensure their ongoing safety, stability, and access to services. An aftercare strategy must be completed, in collaboration with the youth, for every youth/young adult at or prior to exit counseling. This strategy must outline what services were provided, including appropriate referrals for needed health care services, and referrals and counseling on insurance coverage through family health care insurance plans or to agencies that assist in enrolling persons in Medicaid, or other publicly available insurance plans. The aftercare strategy must track the youth’s housing status, educational services, and the rate of participation and completion of the services in the plan beyond 3 months if services are still provided. The aftercare strategy must include evidence of, but not be limited to, the following:

o Contact in regular intervals for a period of 90 days (minimum) with youth who leave the program in order to ensure their ongoing safety and access to services;

o Assistance with youth in overcoming barriers that may interfere with the achievement of their goals;

o Develop and implement a strategy to assist youth and young adults to connect with their schools or to obtain appropriate educational services, training, or employment services. This includes coordination with McKinney-Vento school district liaisons, designated under the McKinney-Vento Act;

o Provide proactive and reactive strategies and solutions to encourage retention in education, employment, housing, personal issues, and other key areas;

o Provide supportive services to assist in advancement to better jobs or post-secondary education and training; and o Provide proactive and reactive strategies to support social and emotional well-being and permanent connections.

Life Skills Training:

In addition to the above comprehensive aftercare services, TLP projects must provide life skills instruction to promote a client’s long-term economic independence in order to ensure their continued well-being:

Financial Literacy and Budgeting: TLP projects must provide fundamental financial literacy skills to include money management, credit counseling, banking, home ownership, household budgeting, and smart grocery shopping.

Health and Nutrition: TLP projects must ensure clients receive consistent mental and physical health care as appropriate and when applicable, prenatal care, well-baby exams and immunizations. Projects must ensure that supporting data are tracked and documented into the client file. In addition, clients must receive instruction in understanding preventative health measures, family planning, healthy diets, and meal planning.

Where available, applicants should describe the specific curricula to be used and any evidence-based interventions or practices utilized to support skill development.

PERFORMANCE STANDARDS

The RHY Rule establishes RHY program performance standards as measures of successful outcomes for youth. The performance standards are used to monitor project performance in achieving the purposes of the RHY Act.

The RHY Rule requires TLP recipients to collect data that demonstrate their ability to meet the performance standards described in section 1351.31 of the RHY Act. Specifically, TLP projects are responsible for consistently enhancing four core outcome areas for youth, to include: 1) social and emotional well-being; 2) permanent connections; 3) education or employment; and 4) safe and stable housing.

Projects collect and report on data via the RHY-Homeless Management Information System (RHY-HMIS) and the ACF Performance Progress Report (PPR) on data standards detailed in Section VI.3., Reporting. The ACF PPR is found under the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Control Number 0970-0406.

Through the provision of safe and stable housing and services, indicators of improvements include, but are not limited to:

1. Social and Emotional Well-Being: Clients will be connected to trauma-informed, system of care providers to assist and promote positive physical health, substance abuse treatment, mental health, personal safety (e.g., identify potential trafficking situations), and reduce sexual risk behaviors they may face.

2. Permanent Connections: Clients will experience positive ongoing attachments to families, communities, schools, and other social networks.

3. Education or Employment: Clients will connect to school or vocational training programs, improve interviewing and job attainment skills, and obtain and maintain employment.

4. Safe and Stable housing: Clients will transition to safe and stable housing that appropriately matches their level of need after leaving a TLP to include: moving in with family, when appropriate, or other permanent supportive housing, residential treatment center, or substance abuse treatment facility.

FYSB received approval from the OMB for information collection under the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) on the TLP performance standards for post-award reporting. The RHY- HMIS Report process is found under PRA OMB Control Number 0970-0573, Expiration Date 7/31/2024. Please see Section VI.3. Reporting for more information.

Training:

Recipients must send at least one key staff person to attend the annual national RHY grantee training, the annual regional training, and any other required training or technical assistance sponsored by the RHY Program.

Sustainability Plan:

Successful TLP projects plan for project sustainability from the beginning of the project design and revisit and revise the plan throughout the life of the project. These plans include the following:

Sustainability through diversification of funding to continue services in the event of a loss of FYSB funding, as well as plans to address staff retention and staff turnover;

Accountability in meeting FYSB’s TLP performance standards; and Collaboration through building meaningful partnerships with other service agencies, youth with lived experience of homelessness, and other experts on runaway and homeless youth in the community.

Subawards Recipients under this grant program may opt to transfer a portion of substantive programmatic work to other organizations through subaward(s). The prime recipient must maintain a substantive role in the project. ACF defines a substantive role as conducting activities and/or providing services funded under the award that are necessary and integral to the completion of the project.

Subrecipient monitoring activities alone as specified in 45 CFR § 75.352 do not constitute a substantive role. Furthermore, ACF does not fund awards where the role of the applicant is primarily to serve as a conduit for passing funds to other organizations unless that arrangement is authorized by statute.

Subrecipient(s) must meet the eligibility requirements identified in the NOFO, Section III.1.

Eligible Applicants. Additionally, all subrecipient(s) must obtain a Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number, or after government-wide implementation, a Unique Entity Identifier assigned by the System for Award Management (SAM), if they do not already have one. Prime recipients are required to check SAM to verify that the subrecipient(s) is/are not debarred, suspended, or ineligible.

Please reference the Award Term and Condition on Subawards on the ACF Administrative and National Policy Requirements website for further requirements involving subawards.

II. Federal Award Information Funding Instrument Type:

G (Grant) Estimated Total Funding:

$20,668,143 Expected Number of Awards:

Award Ceiling:

$250,000 Per Budget Period

Award Floor:

$100,000 Per Budget Period

Average Projected Award Amount:

$175,000 Per Budget Period

Anticipated Project Start Date:

09/30/2022 Length of Project Periods:

36-month project period with three 12-month budget periods

Additional Information on Project Periods and Explanation of 'Other' Additional Information on Awards:

Awards made under this funding opportunity are subject to the availability of federal funds.

Applications requesting an award amount that exceeds the Award Ceiling per budget period, or per project period, as stated in this section, will be disqualified from competitive review and from funding under this funding opportunity. This disqualification applies only to the Award Ceiling listed for the first 12-month budget period for projects with multiple budget periods. If the project and budget period are the same, the disqualification applies to the Award Ceiling listed for the project period. Please see Section III.3. Other, Application Disqualification Factors.

Note: For those programs that require matching or cost sharing, recipients will be held accountable for projected commitments of non-federal resources in their application budgets and budget justifications by budget period or by project period for fully funded awards, even if the projected commitment exceeds the required amount of match or cost share. A recipient's failure to provide the required matching amount may result in the disallowance of federal funds.

For more information on these requirements, see Section III.2. Cost Sharing or Matching.

Continuation of Project An initial grant award will be for a 12-month budget period. The award of continuation grants beyond the initial 12-month budget period will be subject to the availability of funds, satisfactory progress on the part of the grantee, and a determination that the continued funding would be in the best interest of the federal government.

The Grants Project Team (Grant Management Specialist, Federal Project Officer, and Technical Assistance Provider) will use the grantee’s semi-annual performance progress and financial reports, site visits, audit reports, data from the RHY-HMIS, and other supporting documentation to determine, in accordance with the requirements in the NOFO and statute, if satisfactory progress is being made. FYSB will factor in the grantee’s ability to meet the dues dates as identified in the NOFO. The Grants Project Team’s review of reports and other documentation will be used to assess progress in the following: 1) accomplishing the project goals, objectives, and activities; 2) completing proposed activities; and 3) documenting allowable expenses that support project goals, objectives, and the approved budget. Please refer to Section VI.3.

Reporting for more information on required reports.

Please see Section IV.6. Application and Submission Information, Funding Restrictions for limitations on the use of federal funds awarded under this announcement.

III. Eligibility Information III.1. Eligible Applicants Public (state, local, and tribal) and private nonprofit entities (including faith-based, community, and tribal organizations) and coordinated networks of such entities are eligible to apply for a RHY Program grant. Any organizations that is part of a state or local juvenile justice system is not eligible to apply. Coordinated networks of such entities are eligible to apply unless they are part of the juvenile justice system. For profit organizations are not eligible. Private institutions of higher education must be non-profit entities.

Applications from individuals (including sole proprietorships) and foreign entities are not eligible and will be disqualified from competitive review and from funding under this funding opportunity. See Section III.3. Other, Application Disqualification Factors.

Faith-based and community organizations that meet the eligibility requirements are eligible to receive awards under this funding opportunity. Faith-based organizations may apply for this award on the same basis as any other organization, as set forth at and, subject to the protections and requirements of 45 CFR Part 87 and 42 U.S.C. § 2000bb et seq., ACF will not, in the selection of recipients, discriminate against an organization on the basis of the organization's religious character, affiliation, or exercise.

Reference to Legal Status See Section IV.2. Legal Status of Applicant Entity for documentation required to support eligibility.

Funding Restrictions Reference Please see Section IV.6. Funding Restrictions for any limitations on the use of federal funds that could affect the eligibility of an applicant or project.

III.2. Cost Sharing or Matching Cost Sharing / Matching Requirement:

Yes Recipients must provide at least 10 percent of the total approved cost of the project. The total approved cost of the project is the sum of the ACF (federal) share and the non-federal share. The non-federal share may be met by cash or in-kind contributions, although applicants are encouraged to meet their match requirements through cash contributions. For example, in order to meet the match requirements, a project requesting $250,000 in ACF (federal) funds must provide a non-federal share of the approved total project cost of at least $ 27,778 , which is 10 percent of total approved project cost of $ 277,778 .

For all federal awards, any shared costs or matching funds and all contributions, including cash and third-party in-kind contributions, must be accepted as part of the recipient’s cost sharing or matching when such contributions meet all of the criteria listed in 45 CFR § 75.306.

For awards that require matching by statute, recipients will be held accountable for projected commitments of non-federal resources in their application budgets and budget justifications by budget period, or by project period for fully funded awards, even if the projected commitment exceeds the amount required by the statutory match. A recipient’s failure to provide the statutorily required matching amount may result in the disallowance of federal funds.

Recipients will be required to report these funds in the Federal Financial Reports.

For awards that do not require matching or cost sharing by statute, where “cost sharing” refers to any situation in which the recipient voluntarily shares in the costs of a project other than as statutorily required matching, recipients will be held accountable for projected commitments of non-federal resources in their application budgets and budget justifications by budget period, or by project period for fully funded awards. These include situations in which contributions are voluntarily proposed by a recipient or subrecipient and are accepted by ACF. Non-federal cost sharing will be included in the approved project budget so that the recipient will be held accountable for proposed non-federal cost sharing funds as shown in the Notice of Award

(NoA). A recipient’s failure to provide voluntary cost sharing of non-federal resources that have been accepted by ACF as part of the approved project costs and that have been shown as part of the approved project budget in the NoA, may result in the disallowance of federal funds. Recipients will be required to report these funds in the Federal Financial Reports.

For examples of matching requirements based on specific award amounts, see Sample Chart of Matching Funding Amounts below.

Sample Chart of Matching Funding Amounts

Federal Amount Non-Federal Share Total Project Cost for 12-month period

$100,000 $11,111 $111,111

$125,000 $13,889 $138,889

$150,000 $16,667 $166,667

$175,000 $19,444 $194,444

$200,000 $22,222 $222,222

$250,000 $27,778 $277,778

Matching Waiver Pursuant to 48 U.S.C. § 1469a(d) Matching requirements (including in-kind contributions) of less than $200,000 (up to $199,999) are waived under grants made to the governments of American Samoa, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (other than those consolidated under other provisions of 48 U.S.C. § 1469) pursuant to 48 U.S.C. § 1469a(d). This waiver applies whether the matching required under the grant equals or exceeds $200,000.

III.3. Other Application Disqualification Factors Applications from individuals (including sole proprietorships) and foreign entities are not eligible and will be disqualified from competitive review and from funding under this funding opportunity.

Award Ceiling Disqualification

Applications that request an award amount that exceeds the Award Ceiling per budget period or per project period ("per project period" refers only to fully funded awards), as stated in Section II. Federal Award Information, will be disqualified from competitive review and from funding under this funding opportunity. This disqualification applies only to the Award Ceiling listed for the first 12-month budget period for projects with multiple budget periods. If the project and budget period are the same, the disqualification applies to the Award Ceiling listed for the project period.

Required Electronic Application Submission

ACF requires electronic submission of applications at www.Grants.gov. Paper applications received from applicants that have not been approved for an exemption from required electronic submission will be disqualified from competitive review and from funding under this funding opportunity.

Applicants that do not have an internet connection or sufficient computing capacity to upload large documents to the internet may contact ACF for an exemption that will allow the applicant to submit applications in paper format. Information and the requirements for requesting an exemption from required electronic application submission are found in "ACF Policy for Requesting an Exemption from Electronic Application Submission."

Missing the Application Deadline (Late Applications)

The deadline for electronic application submission is 11:59 pm ET on the due date listed in the Overview and in Section IV.4. Submission Dates and Times. Electronic applications submitted to www.Grants.gov after 11:59 pm ET on the due date, as indicated by a dated and time-stamped email from www.Grants.gov, will be disqualified from competitive review and from funding under this funding opportunity. That is, applications submitted to www.Grants.gov, on or after 12:00 am ET on the day after the due date will be disqualified from competitive review and from funding under this funding opportunity.

Applications submitted to www.Grants.gov at any time during the open application period, and prior to the due date and time, which fail the www.Grants.gov validation check, will not be received at, or acknowledged by ACF.

Each time an application is submitted via www.Grants.gov, the submission will generate a new date and time-stamp email notification. Only those applications with on-time date and time stamps that result in a validated application, which is transmitted to ACF will be acknowledged.

The deadline for receipt of paper applications is 4:30 pm ET on the due date listed in the Overview and in Section IV.4. Submission Dates and Times. Paper applications received after 4:30 pm ET on the due date will be disqualified from competitive review and from funding under this funding opportunity. Paper applications received from applicants that have not received approval of an exemption from required electronic submission will be disqualified from competitive review and from funding under this funding opportunity.

Notification of Application Disqualification Applicants will be notified of a disqualification determination by email or by USPS postal mail within 30 federal business days from the closing date of this NOFO.

IV. Application and Submission Information IV.1. Address to Request Application Package FYSB Operations Center c/o F2 Solutions

Attn: Transitional Living Program NOFO

FON: HHS-2022-ACF-ACYF-CX-0061

1401 Mercantile Lane Suite 401 Largo

MD

20744 1-855-792-6551 TechAssist@fysb.net Application Packages

Electronic Application Submission:

The electronic application submission package is available in the NOFO's listing at www.Grants.gov.

Applications in Paper Format:

For applicants that have received an exemption to submit applications in paper format, Standard Forms, assurances, and certifications are available in the "Select Grant Opportunity Package" available in the NOFO's Grants.gov Synopsis under the Package tab at www.Grants.gov. See Section IV.2. Request an Exemption from Required Electronic Application Submission if applicants do not have an Internet connection or sufficient computing capacity to upload large documents (files) to www.Grants.gov.

Federal Relay Service:

Hearing-impaired and speech-impaired callers may contact the Federal Relay Service (FedRelay) for assistance at www.gsa.gov/fedrelay.

IV.2. Content and Form of Application Submission

FORMATTING APPLICATION SUBMISSIONS

Each applicant applying electronically via www.Grants.gov is required to upload only two electronic files, excluding Standard Forms and OMB-approved forms. No more than two files will be accepted for the review, and additional files will be removed. Standard Forms and OMB-approved forms will not be considered additional files.

FOR ALL APPLICATIONS:

Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) AOR is the designated representative of the applicant/recipient organization with authority to act on the organization’s behalf in matters related to the award and administration of grants. In signing a grant application, this individual agrees that the organization will assume the obligations imposed by applicable Federal statutes and regulations and other terms and conditions of the award, including any assurances, if a grant is awarded.

Point of Contact In addition to the AOR, a point of contact on matters involving the application must also be identified. The point of contact, known as the Project Director or Principal Investigator, should not be identical to the person identified as the AOR. The point of contact must be available to answer any questions pertaining to the application.

Application Checklist Applicants may refer to Section VIII. Other Information for a checklist of application requirements that may be used in developing and organizing application materials.

Accepted Font Style Applications must be in Times New Roman (TNR), 12-point font, except for footnotes, which may be TNR 10-point font. Pages that contain blurred text, or text that is too small to read comfortably, will be removed.

English Language Applications must be submitted in the English language and must be in the terms of United States (U.S.) dollars. If applications are submitted using another currency, ACF will convert the foreign currency to U.S. currency using the date of receipt of the application to determine the rate of exchange.

Page Limitations Applicants must observe the page limitation(s) listed under "PAGE LIMITATIONS AND CONTENT FOR ALL SUBMISSION FORMATS:". Page limitation(s) do not include SFs and OMB-approved forms.

All applications must be double-spaced. An application that exceeds the cited page limitation for double-spaced pages in the Project Description file or the Appendices file will have extra pages removed, and those pages will not be reviewed.

Application Elements Exempted from Double-Spacing Requirements The following elements of the application submission are exempt from the double-spacing requirements and may be single-spaced: the table of contents, the one-page Project Summary, required Assurances and Certifications, required SFs, required OMB-approved forms, resumes, logic models, proof of legal status/non-profit status, third-party agreements, letters of support, footnotes, tables, the line-item budget and/or the budget justification.

Adherence to NOFO Formatting, Font, and Page Limitation Requirements Applications that fail to adhere to ACF’s NOFO formatting, font, and page limitation requirements will be adjusted by the removal of page(s) from the application. Pages will be removed before the objective review. The removed page(s) will not be made available to reviewers.

Applications that have more than one scanned page of a document on a single page will have the page(s) removed from the review.

For applicants that submit paper applications, double-sided pages will be counted as two pages.

When the maximum allowed number of pages is reached, excess pages will be removed and will not be made available to reviewers.

NOTE: Applicants failing to adhere to ACF’s NOFO formatting, font, and page limitation requirements will receive a letter from ACF notifying them that their application was amended.

The letter will be sent after awards have been issued and will specify the reason(s) for removal of page(s).

Corrections/Updates to Submitted Applications When applicants make revisions to a previously submitted application, ACF will accept only the last on-time application for pre-review under the Application Disqualification Factors. The Application Disqualification Factors determine the application's acceptance for competitive review. See Section III.3. Other, Application Disqualification Factors and Section IV.2.

Application Submission Options.

Copies Required Applicants must submit one complete copy of the application package electronically. Applicants submitting electronic applications need not provide additional copies of their application package.

Applicants submitting applications in paper format must submit one original and two copies of the complete application, including all Standard Forms and OMB-approved forms. The original copy must have original signatures.

Signatures Applicants submitting electronic applications must follow the registration and application submission instructions provided at www.Grants.gov.

The original of a paper format application must include original signatures of the authorized representatives.

Accepted Application Format With the exception of the required Standard Forms (SFs) and OMB-approved forms, all application materials must be formatted so that they are 8 ½" x 11" white paper with 1-inch margins all around.

If possible, applicants are encouraged to include page numbers for each page within the application.

ACF generally does not encourage submission of scanned documents as they tend to have reduced clarity and readability. If documents must be scanned, the font size on any scanned documents must be large enough so that it is readable. Documents must be scanned page-for-page, meaning that applicants may not scan more than one page of a document onto a single page. Pages with blurred text will be removed from the application.

PAGE LIMITATIONS AND CONTENT FOR ALL SUBMISSION FORMATS:

With the exception of SFs and forms approved by the OMB, the application submission is limited to 85 pages in its entirety. The two files applicants must submit are:

The Project Description file must include these items:

1. Table of Contents

2. Project Summary

3. Need for Assistance

4. Approach

5. Logic Model

6. Organizational Capacity

7. Program Performance Evaluation Plan

8. Line Item Budget and Budget Justification

9. Geographic Location

10. Plan for Oversight of Federal Awards and Activities

11. Project Sustainability Plan

The Appendices file must include these items:

1. Legal Status of Applicant Entity

2. Third-party Agreements

3. Organizational Capacity: Organizational Chart and Resumes

4. Indirect Cost Rate Letter (if applicable)

5. Current Licensure (if applicable and as required by your state)

6. Letters of Support

ELECTRONIC APPLICATION SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS

Applicants are required to submit their applications electronically unless they have requested and received an exemption that will allow submission in paper format. See Section IV.2. Application Submission Options for information about requesting an exemption.

Electronic applications will only be accepted via www.Grants.gov. ACF will not accept applications submitted via email or via facsimile.

Each applicant is required to upload ONLY two electronic files, excluding SFs and OMB-approved forms.

File One: Must contain the entire Project Description, and the Budget and Budget Justification (including a line-item budget and a budget narrative).

File Two: Must contain all documents required in the Appendices.

Adherence to the Two-File Requirement No more than two files will be accepted for the review. Applications with additional files will be amended and files will be removed from the review. SFs and OMB-approved forms will not be considered additional files.

Application Upload Requirements ACF strongly recommends that electronic applications be uploaded as Portable Document Files (PDFs). One file must contain the entire Project Description and Budget Justification; the other file must contain all documents required in the Appendices. Details on the content of each of the two files, as well as page limitations, are listed earlier in this section.

To adhere to the two-file requirement, applicants may need to convert and/or merge documents together using a PDF converter software. Many recent versions of Microsoft Office include the ability to save documents to the PDF format without need of additional software. Applicants using the Adobe Acrobat Reader software will be able to merge these documents together. ACF recommends merging documents electronically rather than scanning multiple documents into one document manually, as scanned documents may have reduced clarity and readability.

Applicants must ensure that the version of Adobe Acrobat Reader they are using is compatible with Grants.gov. To verify Adobe software compatibility please go to Grants.gov and click on “Applicants” at the top bar menu and select “Adobe Software Compatibility", which is listed under "Applicant Resources." The Adobe verification process allows applicants to test their version of the software by opening a test Workspace PDF form. Grants.gov also includes guidance on how to download a supported version of Adobe, as well as troubleshooting instructions for use, if an applicant is unable to open the test form.

The Adobe Software Compatibility page located on Grants.gov also provides guidance for applicants on filling out a Workspace PDF form. In addition, it addresses local network and/or computer security settings and the impact this has on use of Adobe software.

Required Standard Forms (SFs) and OMB-approved Forms Standard Forms (SFs) and OMB-approved forms, such as the SF-424 application and budget forms and the SF-P/PSL (Project/Performance Site Location), are uploaded separately at Grants.gov. These forms are submitted separately from the Project Description and Appendices files. See Section IV.2. Required Forms, Assurances, and Certifications for the listing of required Standard Forms, OMB-approved forms, and required assurances and certifications.

Naming Application Submission Files Carefully observe the file naming conventions required by www.Grants.gov. Limit file names to 50 characters (characters and spaces). Please also see https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/submitting-utf-8-special-characters.html.

Use only file formats supported by ACF It is critical that applicants submit applications using only the supported file formats listed here.

While ACF supports all of the following file formats, we strongly recommend that the two application submission files (Project Description and Appendices) are uploaded as PDF documents in order to comply with the two-file upload limitation.