Foa_Content_of_HHS-2023-ACF-ORR-RE-0017.pdf

Administration for Children and Families

Office of Refugee Resettlement

Ethnic Community Self-Help Program

HHS-2023-ACF-ORR-RE-0017

Application Due Date: 06/09/2023

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 (UEI) 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

Funding Opportunity Title:

Ethnic Community Self-Help Program Announcement Type:

Initial Funding Opportunity Number:

HHS-2023-ACF-ORR-RE-0017

Primary CFDA Number:

93.576 Due Date for Applications:

06/09/2023 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), Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) invites the submission of applications for funding under the Ethnic Community Self-Help (ECSH) Program. The goal of this program is to support Ethnic Community-Based Organizations (ECBOs) in providing refugee and other ORR-eligible populations with critical integration services. ORR considers an ECBO as a non-profit organization whose board of directors is comprised of at least 60 percent current and/or former refugees. The ECSH Program has the following three main objectives: (1) strengthen ECBOs’ provision of culturally and linguistically appropriate services to refugees within 5 years after their initial resettlement; (2) support ECBOs’ organizational development and engagement in capacity building by encouraging their collaboration with established refugee service providers and mainstream organizations; and (3) support ECBOs in promoting community building and civic engagement.

I. Program Description

Statutory Authority This opportunity is authorized by the Immigration and Nationality Act § 412(c)(1)(A), 8 U.S.C.

1522(c)(1)(A)

Description Background ORR supports refugee self-help groups, such as ECBOs. ORR recognizes that ECBOs play an important role in refugee integration by providing culturally and linguistically appropriate services to refugees. An ECBO is a refugee-led non-profit organization, established primarily for the support and advancement of refugees. ECBO leadership and staff help community members navigate their new environment while building on the strengths of refugee communities. This makes them powerful supporters of improved culturally and linguistically https://www.acf.hhs.gov/grants/how-apply-grant appropriate services to refugees that reflect their communities’ lived experiences. ECBOs often also play an important role in promoting cross-cultural understanding between newly arrived refugee communities and receiving communities.

Program Focus ORR encourages ECBOs to apply for and implement ECSH projects. ORR considers an ECBO as a non-profit organization whose board of directors consists of at least 60 percent current and/or former refugees or other ORR-eligible populations, as noted below in Section I. Program Description, Post-Award Requirements, Eligibility for Services. For example, a board member who was granted asylum can be included to demonstrate that the board is composed of 60 percent current and/or former refugees or other ORR-eligible populations.

ORR is interested in, and will award bonus points for, the following: (1) projects implemented by ECBOs; (2) projects that include a direct service component focused on providing services for women that support their social, health, economic, and/or educational needs, and further their overall integration, and (3) projects implemented in at least one of the locations where ORR expects a significant number of refugees to resettle. Please see Section V.1. Criteria, Bonus Points for more information.

ECSH PROGRAM OVERVIEW

Goal and Objectives of the ECSH Program The goal of the ECSH Program is to support ECBOs in providing refugees and other ORR-eligible populations with critical services to assist them in becoming integrated members of American society. In promotion of this goal, ORR identifies the following program objectives that must be carried out under the ECSH Program:

1) OBJECTIVE 1: Strengthen Provision of Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services- To strengthen ECBOs’ provision of culturally and linguistically appropriate services to refugees within 5 years after their initial resettlement. ECBOs must provide services at no cost to refugees.

Allowable activities include, but are not limited to, the following:

Providing direct services and/or appropriate referrals to address refugee needs in the areas of housing, employment, education, health, and citizenship and naturalization preparation (such as employment training, nutrition, social services, English as a Second Language classes, after school and college preparatory programs, digital literacy skills, assistance filling out change of address forms [AR-11], and application assistance for adjustment of legal permanent resident status and citizenship status provided by legally certified practitioners);

Providing orientation workshops focused on navigating different systems in the United States (such as the healthcare, education, and financial systems);

Educating and informing refugee communities on specific issues that violate U.S. laws and/or impede integration (such as domestic violence, sexual harassment, and child abuse and neglect);

Promoting emotional and behavioral well-being through non-clinical interventions (such as community adjustment groups, support groups, and wellness activities);

Providing orientation and/or counseling focusing on social adjustment (such as conflict resolution, stress management, and family strengthening); and

Disseminating information on accessing community services (such as health and mental health services, the importance of preventive health, and available health care coverage).

2) OBJECTIVE 2: Support Organizational Development- To support ECBOs’ organizational development and engagement in capacity building by encouraging their collaboration with established refugee service providers and mainstream organizations.

Allowable activities include, but are not limited to, the following:

Creating partnerships with service providers in an effort to form a collaborative for developing service components in support of newly arrived refugee populations (such as providing bilingual staff assistance for women’s shelters, partnering with local digital literacy providers);

Establishing, improving, and strengthening relations with educational, social, and economic institutions, among others (such as school districts, local chambers of commerce, and law enforcement entities);

Coordinating training or enlisting the assistance of a non-profit development professional to focus on organizational development (such as non-profit management and accountability, roles and responsibilities of board members, leadership development, strategic planning, and data management); and

Providing staff training on issues relevant to refugee service provision (such as cultural competency, case management, confidentiality, mandatory reporting, ethics of interpretation, and workplace wellness).

3) OBJECTIVE 3: Promote Community Building and Civic Engagement- To support ECBOs in promoting community building and civic engagement.

Allowable activities include, but are not limited to, the following:

Conducting outreach activities and providing education and training to refugees around civic engagement, leadership development, and rights awareness (such as holding community leadership workshops);

Organizing refugee self-help efforts with the purpose of promoting and achieving economic self-sufficiency and self-determination; and

Organizing refugees to engage with members of the receiving community (such as participating in local service projects; educating key policy and decision makers about the backgrounds, strengths, and needs of refugees).

POST-AWARD REQUIREMENTS

Coordination with State Refugee Coordinators ECBOs must coordinate services between their organization and the State Refugee Coordinator’s (SRC) office of the state where the proposed project will be implemented. ORR requires evidence of coordination with the SRC’s office of the state where the proposed project will be implemented. For more information, please see Section IV.2., Content and Form of Application Submission, The Project Description, Approach.

Contact information for SRCs, or the individuals responsible for the statewide or regional coordination of the refugee resettlement program, is available on the ORR website at:

https://www.acf.hhs.gov/orr/resource/orr-funded-programs-key-contacts.

Eligibility for Services Individuals with the following statuses are eligible for Refugee Resettlement Program benefits (see 45 CFR § 400.43(a) (1)-(6) or statutory provisions cited below):

1. Individuals paroled as refugees or asylees under section 212(d)(5) of the INA.

2. Refugees admitted under section 207 of the INA.

3. Asylees whose status was granted under section 208 of the INA.

4. Cuban and Haitian entrants, in accordance with the requirements in 45 CFR § 401.2(a).

5. Lawful permanent residents provided the individuals previously held one of the statuses identified above. (Note that this does not refer to Amerasians who are admitted as lawful permanent residents. See #6 below.)

6. Certain Amerasians from Vietnam who are admitted to the U.S. as immigrants pursuant to section 584 of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1988 (as contained in section 101(e) of Public Law 100-202), as amended (8 U.S.C. 1101 note).

7. Iraqi and Afghan Special Immigrants per section 1244(g) of Div. A of Public Law 110-181, as amended (8 U.S.C. 1157 note) and section 602(b) (8) of Div. F of Public Law 118-8, as amended (8 U.S.C. 1101 note).

8. Afghan Humanitarian Parolees, Afghan SQ/SI parolees, Afghan SI Conditional Permanent Residents — see ORR Policy Letters 22-01 and 22-02

9. Ukrainian Humanitarian Parolees—see ORR Policy Letter 22-13

10. Victims of a severe form of trafficking in persons per the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000, Public Law No. 106-386, as amended, 22 U.S.C. 7105(b)(1)(A) and (C).

Detailed information on eligibility of ORR-funded projects is available at 45 CFR § 400.43, 45 CFR § 401.2, ORR Policy Letters 16-01, 16-01 document guide, 16-01 FAQ, 22-01, 22-02, and 22-13, which can be found on the ORR website at: https://www.acf.hhs.gov/orr/policy-guidance/policy-letters.

For convenience, the term "refugee" is used in this NOFO to encompass all such eligible persons, unless noted.

ORR assistance and services must be provided to refugees without regard to race, religion, nationality, sex (including gender identity and sexual orientation), or political opinion.

Service Provision and Case Documentation ECBOs must have models of service provision that reflect the specific cultural, linguistic, and training needs of the target population and are designed in partnership with the target population and reflect their feedback and lived experiences. ECBOs must ensure that activities and strategies around organizational development and capacity building clearly meet the needs of the https://www.acf.hhs.gov/orr/resource/orr-funded-programs-key-contacts https://www.acf.hhs.gov/orr/policy-guidance/policy-letters https://www.acf.hhs.gov/orr/policy-guidance/policy-letters organization, its staff, and the communities it serves. ECBOs must also ensure that outreach strategies secure the participation of and endorsement from the target population. This includes describing how outreach strategies involve all segments of the community such as women, youth, and marginalized subgroups.

ECSH Program recipients must start to provide services to eligible individuals within the first 90 days of the project period. In addition, recipients must develop an individualized service plan for each eligible individual after assessing their needs. After the assessment, the individual may receive a referral and/or access to direct services.

ECSH Program recipients must also ensure that individuals are eligible for ECSH services.

Verifying eligibility consists of the following: 1) immigration status under which eligibility is claimed (for example, refugee, asylee, Humanitarian Parolee) and 2) date of eligibility (for example, date of arrival in qualifying status, date of grant of qualifying status). The following documents are examples of acceptable proof of eligibility: I-94 showing admission into the U.S.

as a refugee; a U.S. Permanent Resident Card (U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Form I-551), also known as a green card; Asylum Grant Letter; or I-94 noting Humanitarian Parole.

Recipients must ensure compliance with 45 CFR § 75.303(e) to take reasonable measures to safeguard protected personally identifiable information of program participants.

ORR will not require ECSH Program recipients to conduct record keeping activities subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) for which it has not received approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Record keeping requirements are approved under OMB control number OMB 0970-0558, and the expiration date is November 30, 2023.

ECSH Data Indicators The ECSH Data Indicators is a reporting form that recipients will be required to submit as part of their semi-annual reporting.

As required by the PRA of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3501-3521, the public reporting burden for the ECSH Data Indicators is estimated to average 2 hours per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and reviewing the collection information. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. This form is approved under the OMB control number OMB 0970-0490, and the expiration date is March 31, 2026. Data points include, but are not limited to, the following:

Number of clients served;

Number of clients served according to status;

Types of services provided;

Number of new partnerships developed; and Types of training provided to staff.

Program Performance Evaluation ECSH Program Evaluation

If ACF identifies additional resources to fund a federal study of the funded ECSH Program activities, then the recipient will be required to participate. The study would utilize an outside non-recipient evaluation team and would focus on the processes, implementation, progress indicators, and quality improvement of funded activities.

NOTE: Consistent with the PRA of 1995, (44 U.S.C. 3501-3521), under this NOFO, ORR will not conduct or sponsor-and a person is not required to respond to a collection of information covered by such Act, unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. ECSH Program will obtain OMB approval for a federal study of the funded grant activities, as appropriate.

Participation in ORR-Sponsored Workshops ECSH Program recipients will be expected to participate in ORR-sponsored webinars, trainings, and peer-sharing events throughout the program period. An annual workshop is planned for each program year. Attendance is required for one key staff member to participate in a 2-day workshop in Washington, DC, each year.

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 Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) 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.

Response to Nationally Declared Emergency

If, during the project period, ORR and/or recipients are required to adjust program and/or recipient requirements due to nationally declared emergency, ORR will exercise maximum flexibilities as needed. Requirements may be conducted virtually and/or timelines modified in consultation with ORR.

II. Federal Award Information

Funding Instrument Type:

G (Grant) Estimated Total Funding:

$5,000,000 https://www.acf.hhs.gov/administrative-and-national-policy-requirements#book_content_14 https://www.acf.hhs.gov/administrative-and-national-policy-requirements https://www.acf.hhs.gov/administrative-and-national-policy-requirements

Expected Number of Awards:

Award Ceiling:

$260,000 Per Budget Period

Award Floor:

$100,000 Per Budget Period

Average Projected Award Amount:

$250,000 Per Budget Period

Anticipated Project Start Date:

09/30/2023 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 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.

The Grants Project Team (Grant Management Specialist, Federal Project Officer, and technical assistance provider) will use the grant recipient’s semi-annual performance progress and financial reports, site visits, audit reports, and other supporting documentation to determine, in accordance with the requirements in the ECSH NOFO and statute, if satisfactory progress is being made. ORR will factor in the recipient’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: 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. ORR will measure progress against the requirements in this NOFO and description of services and outcomes in the grant application, which are incorporated into the terms and conditions of the grant. ORR will also factor in the recipient’s ability to meet the dues dates as identified in the NOFO. Please refer to Section VI.3. Reporting for more information on required reports.

III. Eligibility Information

III.1. Eligible Applicants

Eligible applicants for refugee programs under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) section 412(c)(1)(A) are "public and private nonprofit agencies" such as the following:

State governments;

County governments;

City or township governments;

Special district governments;

Independent school districts;

Public and state-controlled institutions of higher education;

Native American tribal governments (federally recognized);

Native American tribal organizations (other than federally recognized tribal governments);

Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities;

Non-profits with 501(c)(3) Internal Revenue Service (IRS) status (other than institutions of higher education);

Non-profits without 501(c)(3) IRS status (other than institutions of higher education);

and Private institutions of higher education.

Additional Information on Eligibility ECSH Program recipients awarded in fiscal year (FY) 2022 (with a project start date of 9/30/2022) are eligible to apply under this NOFO, but must propose distinct and separate services from those being conducted under their existing ECSH project, and/or must propose servicing a distinctively different geographic location from their existing location. See Section IV.2. Content and Form of Application Submission, The Project Description, Additional Eligibility Documentation.

Applications from individuals (including sole proprietorships) and foreign entities are not eligible and will be disqualified from competitive review and 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:

No 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 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.

III.3. Other

For eligibility requirements for individuals receiving services under this program, see Section I.

Program Description, Post-Award Requirements, Eligibility for Services.

Application Disqualification Factors Applications from individuals (including sole proprietorships) and foreign entities are not eligible and will be disqualified from competitive review and 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 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 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 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 Grants.gov after 11:59 pm ET on the due date, as indicated by a dated and time-stamped email from Grants.gov, will be disqualified from competitive review and funding under this funding opportunity. That is, applications submitted to Grants.gov, on or after 12:00 am ET on the day after the due date will be disqualified from competitive review and funding under this funding opportunity.

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

Each time an application is submitted via 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 funding under this funding opportunity. Paper applications received from applicants that have not received https://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/documents/ACF_Policy_for_Requesting_an_Exemption_from_Required_Electronic_FINAL_0.pdf https://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/documents/ACF_Policy_for_Requesting_an_Exemption_from_Required_Electronic_FINAL_0.pdf approval of an exemption from required electronic submission will be disqualified from competitive review and 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

Zahra Cheema Administration for Children and Families Office of Refugee Resettlement

HHS-2023-ACF-ORR-RE-0017

330 C Street, SW.

Washington DC

DC

20201 202-401-5676 Zahra.Cheema@acf.hhs.gov www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/orr Application Packages

Electronic Application Submission:

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

Applications in Paper Format:

For applicants that have received an exemption to submit applications in paper format, Standard Forms (SFs), assurances, and certifications are available in the "Select Grant Opportunity Package" available in the NOFO's Grants.gov Synopsis under the Package tab at 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 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 Grants.gov is required to upload only two electronic files, excluding SFs and Office of Management and Budget (OMB)-approved forms. No more than two files will be accepted for the review, and additional files will be http://www.gsa.gov/fedrelay removed. SFs 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 and 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 SFs 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 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 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 OMB-approved forms, the application submission is limited to 85 pages in its entirety. Documents exempted from double spacing have been identified earlier in this section.

File 1: Project Description The Project Description can be organized in the following order:

Table of Contents Project Summary Geographic Location Need for Assistance Objectives Expected Outcomes Approach Project Timeline and Milestones Organizational Capacity Narrative Plan for Oversight of Federal Award Funds and Activities Program Performance Evaluation Plan Logic Model Project Sustainability Plan Project Budget and Budget Justification

File 2: Appendices The Appendices file must include the following:

Legal Status of Applicant Entity/Proof of Non-Profit Status Additional Eligibility Documentation Protection of Sensitive and/or Confidential Information Third-Party Agreements (if applicable) Organizational Capacity Documentation o Resumes of current staff o List of Board of Directors o Organizational Chart o Evidence that each participating organization, including partners, contractors and/or subrecipients, posses the organizational capability to fulfill their role(s) and function(s) effectively o Job description for each vacant key position

Documentation of coordination from the SRC’s office, or the office responsible for the statewide or regional coordination of the refugee resettlement program, as applicable, of the state where the proposed project will be implemented. This can be a letter or email from the SRC to the applicant acknowledging that the applicant’s ECSH project proposal was discussed, for example.

Any other information the applicant deemed relevant to the application

ELECTRONIC APPLICATION SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS

Applicants are required to submit their applications electronically unless they have 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 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 SFs and OMB-approved Forms SFs and OMB-approved forms 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 SFs, OMB-approved forms, and required assurances and certifications.

Naming Application Submission Files Carefully observe the file naming conventions required by 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 Applicants must 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 PDFs in order to comply with the two-file upload limitation. Documents in file formats that are not supported by ACF will be removed from the application and will not be used in the competitive review. This may make the application incomplete, and ACF will not make any awards based on an incomplete application.

ACF supports the following file formats:

Adobe PDF – Portable Document Format (.pdf) Microsoft Word (.doc or .docx) Microsoft Excel (.xls or .xlsx) Microsoft PowerPoint (.ppt) Image Formats (.JPG, .GIF, .TIFF, or .BMP only)

Do Not Encrypt or Password-Protect the Electronic Application Files If ACF cannot access submitted electronic files because they are encrypted or password protected, the affected file will be removed from the application and will not be reviewed. This removal may make the application incomplete, and ACF will not make awards based on an https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/submitting-utf-8-special-characters.html incomplete application.

FORMATTING FOR PAPER APPLICATION SUBMISSIONS:

The following requirements are only applicable to applications submitted in paper format.

Applicants must receive an exemption from ACF in order for a paper format application to be accepted for review. For more information on the exemption, see "ACF Policy for Requesting an Exemption from Required Electronic Application Submission'" at www.acf.hhs.gov/grants/howto#chapter-6.

Format Requirements for Paper Applications All copies of mailed or hand-delivered paper applications must be submitted in a single package.

If an applicant is submitting multiple applications under a single NOFO, or multiple applications under separate NOFOs, each application submission must be packaged separately. The package(s) must be clearly labeled with the NOFO title and Funding Opportunity Number.

Applicants using paper format should download the application forms package associated with the NOFO's Synopsis on Grants.gov under the Package tab.

Applicants are advised that the copies of the application submitted, not the original, will be reproduced by the federal government for review. All application materials must be one-sided for duplication purposes. All pages in the application submission must be sequentially numbered.

Addresses for Submission of Paper Applications See Section IV.7. Other Submission Requirements for addresses for paper format application submissions.

Required Forms, Assurances, and Certifications

Applicants seeking an award under this funding opportunity must submit the listed SFs, assurances, and certifications with the application. All required SFs, assurances, and certifications are available in the Application Package posted for this NOFO at Grants.gov.

Forms/Assurances/Certifications Submission Requirement Notes/Description

SF-424 - Application for Federal Assistance

Submission is required for all applicants by the application due date.

Required for all applications.

Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) and System for Award Management (SAM) registration.

Required of all applicants.

Applicants must have a UEI and

See Section IV.3. Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) and System for Award Management (SAM) for more information.

https://www.acf.hhs.gov/grants/howto#chapter-6

Forms/Assurances/Certifications Submission Requirement Notes/Description maintain an active SAM registration throughout the application and project award period.

Obtain a UEI and SAM registration at: http://www.sam.

gov.

SF-424 Key Contact Form

Submission is required for all applicants by the application due date.

Required for all applications.

Certification Regarding Lobbying (Grants.gov Lobbying Form)

Submission required of all applicants with the application package. If it is not submitted with the application package, it must be submitted prior to the award of a grant.

Submission of the certification is required for all applicants.

SF-424A - Budget Information - Non- Construction Programs and SF-424B - Assurances - Non- Construction Programs

Submission is required for all applicants when applying for a non-construction project.

SFs must be used.

Forms must be submitted by the application due date.

By signing and submitting the SF- 424B, applicants are making the appropriate

Required for all applications when applying for a non-construction project.

https://www.sam.gov/ https://www.sam.gov/

Forms/Assurances/Certifications Submission Requirement Notes/Description certification of their compliance with all Federal statutes relating to nondiscrimination.

SF-Project/Performance Site Location(s) (SF-P/PSL)

Submission is required for all applicants by the application due date.

Required for all applications. In the SF-P/PSL, applicants must cite their primary location and up to 29 additional performance sites.

SF-LLL - Disclosure of Lobbying Activities

If submission of this form is applicable, it is due at the time of application. If it is not available at the time of application, it may also be submitted prior to the award of a grant.

If any funds have been paid or will be paid to any person for influencing or attempting to influence an officer or employee of any agency, a member of Congress, an officer or employee of Congress, or an employee of a member of Congress in connection with this commitment providing for the United States to insure or guarantee a loan, the applicant shall complete and submit the SF-LLL, "Disclosure Form to Report Lobbying," in accordance with its instructions.

Additional Required Assurances and Certifications Mandatory Grant Disclosure All applicants and recipients are required to submit, in writing, to the awarding agency and to the HHS Office of the Inspector General (OIG), all information related to violations of federal criminal law involving fraud, bribery, or gratuity violations potentially affecting the federal award. (Mandatory Disclosures, 45 CFR § 75.113)

Disclosures must be sent in writing to:

The Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Grants Management, ATTN: Grants Management Specialist, 330 C Street, SW., Switzer Building, Corridor 3200, Washington, DC 20201

And to:

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, ATTN:

Mandatory Grant Disclosures, Intake Coordinator, 330 Independence Avenue, SW., Cohen Building, Room 5527, Washington, DC 20201

Fax: (202) 205-0604 (Include “Mandatory Grant Disclosures” in subject line) or

Email: grantdisclosures@oig.hhs.gov

Non-Federal Reviewers Since ACF will be using non-federal reviewers in the review process, applicants have the option of omitting from the application copies (not the original) specific salary rates or amounts for individuals specified in the application budget as well as Social Security Numbers, if otherwise required for individuals. The copies may include summary salary information. If applications are submitted electronically, ACF will omit the same specific salary rate information from copies made for use during the review process.

The Project Description

The Project Description Overview

General Expectations and Instructions The Project Description provides the information by which an application is evaluated and ranked in competition with other applications for financial assistance. It must address all activities for which federal funds are being requested and all application requirements as stated in this section. The Project Description must explain how the project will meet the purpose of the NOFO, as described in Section I. Program Description. As a reminder, reviewers will be evaluating this section in accordance with Section V.1. Criteria.

The Project Description must be clear, concise, and complete. ACF is particularly interested in Project Descriptions that convey strategies for achieving intended performance. Project Descriptions are evaluated on the basis of substance and measurable outcomes, not length.

Cross-referencing should be used rather than repetition. Supporting documents designated as required must be included in the Appendix of the application.

Table of Contents List the contents of the application including corresponding page numbers.