FY25 SNAP Healty Fluid Milk Incentive RFA.docx

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program

Healthy Fluid Milk Incentives - Cooperative Agreement

Fiscal Year 2025 Request for Applications (RFA) Assistance Listing Number (ALN): 10.551

Anticipated Award Date:

September 2025

This information is being collected to assist the Food and Nutrition Service in evaluating applications for the Healthy Fluid Milk Incentive Grant. This is a voluntary collection and FNS uses the information to rank and fund applicants for the Healthy Fluid Milk Incentive Grant. This collection does not request any personally identifiable information under the Privacy Act of 1974. According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is 0584-0512. The time required to complete this information collection is estimated to average 50 hours per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding thisburden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service, Office of Policy Support, 1320 Braddock Place, 5th Floor, Alexandria, VA 22314 ATTN: PRA (0584-0512). Do not return the completed form to this address.

Application Checklist

This Application Checklist provides applicants with a list of the required actions and documents that must be completed. However, FNS expects that applicants will read the entire RFA prior to the submission of their application and comply with all requirements outlined in the solicitation. The Application Checklist is for applicant use only and should not be submitted as part of the Application Package.

Complete the following at least four weeks prior to submission:

· Obtain a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number;

· Register the UEI number in the System for Award Management (SAM); and,

· Register in grants.gov.

When preparing your application, ensure:

· Application format and narrative meet the requirements included in Section 4 – Application and Submission Information. This includes page limits, priorities outlined in Section 5 – Application Review Information, and all necessary attachments.

When preparing your budget, ensure the following information is included:

· All key staff proposed to be paid by this grant.

· The percentage of time the Project Director will devote to the project in full-time equivalents (FTEs).

· Your organization’s fringe benefit rate and amount, as well as the basis for the computation.

· The type of fringe benefits to be covered with Federal funds.

· Itemized travel expenses (including type of travel), travel justification, and basis for lodging estimate.

· Types of equipment and supplies, justifications, and estimates, ensuring that the budget is in line with the project description.

· Information for all contracts and justification for any sole-source contracts

· Justification, description, and an itemized list of all consultant services.

· Indirect cost information (either a copy of a Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (NICRA) or if no agreement exists and the applicant has never been approved for a NICRA, they may charge up to 15% de minimis). If an applicant is requesting the de minimis rate or indirect costs are not required, please state this in the budget narrative.

When submitting your application, ensure you have submitted the following:

· SF-424 – Application for Federal Assistance (fillable PDF in Grants.gov)

· SF-424A – Budget Information and Instruction Form (fillable PDF in Grants.gov)

· SF-424B – Assurances for Non-Construction Programs (fillable PDF in Grants.gov)

· SF-LLL – Disclosure of Lobbying Activities

· AD-3030 – Representations Regarding Felony Conviction and Tax Delinquent Status for Corporate Applicants (fillable PDF in Grants.gov). This document is only required if your organization is a corporation. The form is located in the optional tab of the grants.gov application package.

· FNS-906 – Grant Program Accounting System & Financial Capability Questionnaire (fillable PDF in Grants.gov)

· Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (PDF - Upload using the “Add Attachments” button under SF-424 item #15)

· Resumes of key staff

· Letters of support/commitment from key staff and partners

· Additional attachments as required

Table of Contents

1. Program Description and Objectives Executive Summary FNS requests applications for the Healthy Fluid Milk Incentives (HFMI) Cooperative Agreement Project for Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 to support project(s) to increase the purchase of fluid milk among low-income consumers participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) by providing incentives at the point of purchase. In line with Secretary Rollins’ vision for USDA, the HFMI project both develops and implements modernized systems, as well as strengthens strategies to encourage healthy choices, healthy outcomes, and healthy families.

The total funding amount available for FNS to support this program in FY 2025 is $3,000,000, as provided by the Government agencies (State, local, territory, or tribal agencies) and non-profit organizations are eligible to apply for this funding. The anticipated period of performance for this project is from September 26, 2025, to September 30, 2028. Please see Section 3. Eligibility Information, for more details.

Program Description The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) certifies low-income Americans to participate in the program and authorizes and monitors retailers to accept SNAP benefits for eligible food products. Currently, around 42 million low-income Americans receive SNAP benefits, and more than 250,000 retailers are authorized to accept SNAP benefits.

Section 4208 of the Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018 (P.L. 115-334), as amended, authorizes USDA, on a competitive basis, to enter cooperative agreements with governmental entities or nonprofit organizations to carry out Healthy Fluid Milk Incentives (HFMI) projects. The Full-Year Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2025, (P.L. 119-4) provides $3,000,000 for HFMI for fiscal year (FY) 2025.

Key Objectives The primary purpose of the HFMI project is to develop and test methods to increase the purchase and consumption of qualifying fluid milk by SNAP households by providing them an incentive at the point of purchase at authorized retailer locations. “Qualifying fluid milk” includes all varieties of pasteurized cow’s milk that (1) is without flavoring or sweeteners, (2) is consistent with the most recent dietary recommendations, (3) is packaged in liquid form, and (4) contains vitamins A and D at levels consistent with the Food and Drug Administration, State, and local standards for fluid milk. Additionally, through this project, FNS hopes to identify and further strengthen strategies to encourage healthy choices, healthy outcomes, and healthy families.

Below is a list of the Program Objectives. As noted in Section 4, within the “Activities/Indicators Tracker,” proposed activities should be clearly aligned to these objectives and their associated activities and indicators.

Note that if awarded, grantees will be required to report on progress towards activities aligned with the required objective(s) and must use the FNS-908 Performance Progress Report.

Application proposals must include all the objectives identified below. Proposals can contain more objectives.

Project Design The awardee(s) and its team of partners, including retailers, and optionally other community partners, must develop and operate the projects to provide incentives for the purchase of fluid milk at the point of purchase.

Below are the required design parameters.

1. Target Foods

HFMI is intended to increase the purchase and consumption of healthy fluid milk by SNAP households. Qualifying fluid milk under HFMI is defined as all varieties of pasteurized cow’s milk, including lactose-free, that is:

· Without flavoring or sweeteners,

· Packaged in liquid form,

· Consistent with the Food and Drug Administration, State, and local standards for fluid milk Vitamin A and D levels, and

· Consistent with the most recent dietary recommendations.

2. Incentive Models

Applicants must propose one of the following models in their proposal:

MODEL 1 (Automatic Discount):

Fluid milk for immediate point-of-purchase discount- SNAP households must purchase qualifying fluid milk as defined above using their SNAP benefits to receive an automatic discount or $X dollar -off incentive at the time of the qualifying purchase.

· An automatic discount incentive does not require a subsequent purchase for the discount to apply; it is applied immediately at the point-of-purchase.

MODEL 2 (EBT Integration):

Fluid milk for incentive that is delivered into the household’s EBT account - SNAP households must purchase qualifying fluid milk as defined above using their SNAP benefits to receive a set amount or percentage of the qualifying purchase back into their EBT account (i.e. EBT integration) to be used on a subsequent shopping trip for the purchase of any SNAP eligible item at any SNAP-authorized store.

This model is based on the SNAP Electronic Healthy Incentives Project (eHIP) project which allows the incentive amount to be redeemed subsequently in the same manner as any SNAP EBT transaction for any SNAP-eligible food. The SNAP eHIP is an FNS grant that was awarded in June 2023.

Applicants may also propose limiting the use of earned incentives for the purchase of additional healthy fluid milk or dairy food item if the applicant or applicant’s State partner has that capability.

For Model 2, if the HFMI applicant is not a State agency that administers SNAP, then the applicant will need to partner with a State that has or is in the process of developing the EBT-integrated infrastructure to implement this model within the project’s period of operation. Due to current EBT system limitations, States that have already implemented EBT-integrated incentives and whose incentives are active will not be able to operate HFMI via EBT in parallel. Requirements for a letter of commitment demonstrating partnership with a State are outlined in number 8 below.

Applicants must verify with selected partnering retailers, their third-party processor (TPP), and any additional partners, if applicable, that their proposed solution is viable and that the associated costs are acceptable prior to applying for this grant.

MODEL 3 (ONLY IN SPECIAL CASES and in tandem with Model 1 or Model 2):

FNS may consider proposals with a coupon model if the applicant can prove that it is the most efficient or familiar method for the retailer and in the target community (e.g., proposed partnered retailers already operate a successful incentive model (e.g., GusNIP) in the community). However, such models need to be proposed in the RFA and may not be changed after project award. Moreover, this model cannot be the project’s main model and will only be considered in special cases. Therefore, the project’s main model must either be Model 1 (Automatic Discount) or Model 2 (EBT integration).

Alternative incentive models not specified in this solicitation will not be allowed. This is a requirement even if the retailer later determines that the proposed solution is not practicable.

Incentives must be offered to every SNAP household shopping at the partnering retailer locations.

Applicants may propose to implement different models and/or discount levels at participating stores. If an applicant elects to implement different models and/or discount levels, proposals must include: 1) a justification; 2) confirmation from the retailer(s) confirming the feasibility of programing different incentive scenarios into their point of sale (POS) system; and 3) a management plan explaining how the grantee plans to manage communication and promotional activities for varying incentive models.

3. Incentives Amounts Applicants must indicate the following:

· Whether the incentives will be a percentage-off discount, dollar-off discount, or a dollar-for-dollar match;

· The incentive dollar amount or percentage that will be discounted;

· The maximum incentive amount, if any, that a household may earn per transaction/day/week/month, etc.;

· When the incentive will be available for redemption (i.e., immediately, next day, within 24 hours, etc.); and

· The expiration date for all non-automatic discount incentives. An expiration date is required for all non-automatic discount incentives and cannot be less than 30 days.

4. Site Selection Proposed project site(s) may include State or sub-State areas, such as county, community, or group of contiguous communities, and/or Tribal Lands.

Priority will be given to applicants who target communities, listed under “FY25 Funding Priorities”, and project areas that have not yet been tested in prior HFMI initiatives.

5. Retailer Selection

Applicants must establish partnerships with SNAP-authorized retailers located in the project site(s) and must submit a letter of commitment from each partnering retailer as part of the application package.

Selected grantee(s) will be required to provide the retailer’s FNS authorization numbers in a secured format within two weeks of award. Applicants should confirm that selected partner firms are authorized.

Ideally, project site(s) would include some combination of supermarket chains, independent retailer grocers of all sizes, and convenience stores. The SNAP-authorized retailer partners should offer a range of qualifying fluid milk.

Applicants must indicate the number of retailers they plan to partner with and provide a detailed justification that indicates and explains the likelihood that grant funds specifically designated for the incentive will likely be redeemed by SNAP households over the project period of operation at each retailer. The grantee must agree to make a good faith effort to partner with a sufficient number of retailer locations so that the estimated amount of incentives that will be redeemed is reasonable when compared to the grant funds specifically allocated for incentives.

Indicate if the selected retailers offer other incentives (e.g., fruits and vegetables incentives) and whether the other incentives are operating under a Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program (GusNIP) or an FNS-approved incentive waiver.

If a grantee wishes to add additional retailer banners and/or locations during the project period that were not included in the initial proposal, the grantee will be required to submit a written request to FNS, including justification, store name(s), addresses, and FNS numbers. If the grantee is partnering with a new retailer banner(s), the grantee will be required to attach a letter of commitment from each retailer banner.

Ineligible retailers: Retailers that are not eligible to participate in an incentive project under this grant include:

· SNAP-authorized retailers that do not typically sell qualifying foods to households, such as bakeries, or meat/seafood specialty stores.

· Wholesalers, restaurant, and meal services, such as drug/alcohol treatment programs, battered women’s shelters, communal dining facilities, group living arrangements, homeless meal providers, meal delivery services, and senior and other residential centers.

Funding System Software Upgrades for Retailers in Priority Target Areas: For the purpose of providing and/or redeeming HFMI incentives under this grant, including software changes that may be needed to print information about the incentive earned on the SNAP receipts, applicants may propose to use grant funds for system software upgrade costs for independent retailers that sell sufficient quantities of qualifying fluid milk and are located in Priority Target Areas, described in “FY25 Funding Priorities” (page 9). Using grants for the purchase of hardware for retailers, such as the POS devices themselves, is not allowed. See Part 4. “Budget”.

6. Incentive Delivery Mechanism

FNS is seeking applicants who, in collaboration with their partners, choose an incentive delivery method(s), that either places incentives into a SNAP household’s EBT account though integration with State EBT systems or provides households with an automatic discount at the point of purchase, as described under Part I.D- Project Design.

Applicants must describe the incentive delivery method(s) in high-level detail, including any proposed system enhancements, as part of the proposal.

Retailers with integrated electronic cash register (IECR) systems that include scanners and -POS interfaces will need to reprogram their systems to identify targeted foods, calculate and transmit the value of the incentive, and print resulting incentive values on the SNAP EBT card receipt. Retailers using standalone (side-by-side) POS terminals will need to create and manually enter a separate subtotal of target foods based on visual identification so that this additional value can be captured.

Incentives delivered through a retailer’s POS system for an automatic discount may require additional technical enhancements if the retailer’s system does not already have the capability. These retailers would be expected to keep records that provide the value of the incentive discounts provided.

7. Household Earnings Information

Projects should include ways to provide each household with information on the incentive amount or discount earned and, if applicable, the remaining accumulated value of incentives, as well as the expiration date for unused incentives.

Proposals for EBT integration projects must:

· Specify that incentives will be assigned a hierarchy level that maintains first in, first out redemption of benefits;

· Specify that the Automated Response Unit (ARU) will report incentive transaction and balance information in the same manner as other transactions when the caller selects the options to listen to the list of the most recent transactions or to have a two-month statement mailed; and

· Include, at a minimum, a message on the required printed receipt provided at the point of purchase for all SNAP purchases that indicates the Healthy Fluid Milk Incentive amount issued and the Expiration Date.

While not required for automatic discount models, ideally, proposals for automatic discount projects will include the amount of the discount printed on the required receipt for SNAP purchases. If proposing an automatic discount, please include the feasibility and/or any limitations for including this on the receipt for each partnering retailer.

Technical assistance from FNS will be available to awardees on their projects as needed (if awarded).

8. Letters of Commitment

Applicants proposing the Automatic Discount model (MODEL 1 above), or coupon model (Model 3 above), must submit letters of commitment from:

1. Each retailer banner or location that will participate in the project.

At a minimum, the letters of commitment from retailer banners or locations must include the following as applicable to each partner:

· Confirmation that the proposed solution is viable and that costs are acceptable, including retailer costs associated with:

· Recognizing qualifying foods and totaling their value;

· Applying an automatic discount, if applicable;

· Placing information about the incentive earned on the SNAP receipt, if applicable; and

· Meeting reporting and accounting requirements.

· Confirmation that the selected retailer(s) systems can provide data that reflects SNAP EBT transactions separate from other EBT transactions (i.e., TANF, WIC, etc.) to meet the reporting and accounting requirements.

· A description explaining partnering retailers’ Third-Party Processor (TPP) provider, the type of POS system the retailer uses, and any changes that will made to the POS system, if applicable, and documentation that shows the retailer has discussed the needed changes and cost with their service providers.

· Retailers with IECR systems: Confirmation that the selected retailer(s) can program their systems to offer incentives or the commitment to upgrade their systems to offer incentives using the proposed project design.

· Retailers with side-by-side POS terminals: Confirmation that the selected retailer(s) has 1) a process in place to identify qualifying milk purchases at the POS, and 2) a system to offer and track incentives using the proposed project design.

Applicants proposing the EBT integration model (MODEL 2 above) must submit letters of commitment from:

1. Each retailer banner or location that will participate in the project;

2. Each SNAP State agency where the project will operate (if applicant is not the SNAP State agency); and

3. Each State’s EBT contractor for the proposed EBT system changes.

Letters of commitment for EBT integration models must also include confirmation from the applicable partner that the EBT and/or retailer system is able to:

· Validate participating HFMI stores;

· Properly calculate and post incentives earned;

· Identify incentives separately from SNAP transactions in order to debit and post incentives, and for back-end accounting and tracking purposes;

· Transmit the information in the authorization request to the EBT system in a manner compliant with current ANSI message standard X9.58, modified as necessary to transmit HFMI data in a standard manner for all retailers participating in the project (this will require collaboration with FNS, participating integrated retailers and their TPPs, and standalone terminal providers);

· Generate appropriate approval messages to retailers;

· Print incentive values earned on EBT receipts;

· Apply a cap to the monthly amount of incentive that can be earned by any one household;

· Remove incentive amounts from the available balance after the expiration date.

· Ensure that households no longer in SNAP (i.e. no longer receiving monthly benefit allotments) cannot earn incentives.

· Continue to include checks for valid FNS authorization number, account number and PIN value, as well as determining that account status is active and that there are sufficient funds.

· Meet the reporting and accounting requirements.

9. Retailer Training and Technical Support Plan

Applicants must provide a plan for training cashiers and other on-site staff of participating firms on the mechanics, as well as the requirements and limitations of HFMI to ensure compliance. The proposal must also describe the process for addressing and resolving any technical, policy or operational issues that may arise at firm locations during the course of project implementation and ongoing operations and how that process will be communicated to participating firms.

A detailed description of the resolution process should include information on the organizations/partners responsible for such activities, including hours of availability, and expected response timeframes.

10. Communication/Outreach Promotion

Applicants must include a detailed plan for communicating information about and promoting HFMI incentives to SNAP households in their grant application.

The awardee must ensure the following is communicated to SNAP households:

· Availability of incentives and the conditions for receiving the incentives;

· Qualifying foods for which an incentive is offered, and the eligible foods that can be purchased with incentives;

· Location of participating retailers;

· Cap amounts (purchase/daily/weekly/monthly), if applicable, and how to track the amount of incentives earned;

· How to use the incentives earned, and locations of where earned incentives can be used;

· The expiration date of the incentives earned; and

· Where to get additional information.

Examples of State SNAP agency promotional activities include:

· Making HFMI promotional materials available at local SNAP offices;

· Allowing promotional videos to be played at local SNAP offices;

· Creating promotional materials for social media accounts; or

· Partnering with the State Agency to send promotional materials through direct mail to SNAP recipients in the participating retailer’s area. State Agencies may not provide outside entities with a list of SNAP recipients’ mailing addresses, even under a MOU.

11. Nutrition Education Component

SNAP EBT integrated and automatic discount incentives apply to all SNAP households regardless of whether the SNAP client is aware of the HFMI program. As a way to more proactively create a behavioral change and increase the purchase and consumption of healthy milk, FNS is requiring a nutrition education component to bring more awareness to the HFMI program. Proposals should include a description of planned activities.

All proposals must note any planned partnerships or collaborations (e.g., increased collaboration with SNAP-implementing agencies and other stakeholder programming).

Data Collection and Evaluation

Given the limited funds available, FNS will conduct an outcome evaluation using data provided by the awardee. FNS will develop and monitor indicators of progress towards objectives by examining HFMI project activities in terms of (1) the project’s administrative costs, (2) the amount of incentives or discounts issued, and (3) sales of fluid milk, as described below. Data should be reported separately by retailer outlet (e.g., individual store/market locations). Awardees may not change the amount of the incentive or discount provided by an individual retailer outlet without FNS approval.

Awardees are required to have a Data Use Agreement with each firm that guarantees each firm will provide the following required data elements related to administrative costs:

· If additional funding other than the FNS grant is used to support this project, grantee must be able to separately identify and account for any SNAP funds used for the incentive program and for administrative costs; and

· Breakout of SNAP grant funding spent on administrative costs versus incentives to SNAP participants.

Data Use Agreements shall also guarantee that each firm will provide the following required data elements related to incentive issuance and sales, at a minimum:

· Amount of incentives issued to SNAP participants, in dollars and number of transactions;

· Sales of qualifying fluid milk by type, broken out by SNAP EBT and all other tenders[footnoteRef:2]. [2: WIC EBT sales should be included with “other tenders”, distinguished from SNAP EBT sales.]

See Attachment A for the required data template that will need to be submitted to FNS monthly.

Sales completed with non-SNAP EBT tenders may be aggregated and do not need to be broken out by tender type. All data elements related to incentive issuance and sales shall be aggregated at the weekly level, with a week defined as Sunday to Saturday. Each week shall be presented as a row in a cumulative spreadsheet (see template attached). The updated spreadsheet shall be shared with FNS by the first Wednesday of each month. These submissions shall include any information on unusual circumstances affecting sales for any retailer (e.g., natural disaster, systems outage, broken dairy case, supply chain issues, special milk/ dairy promotion unrelated to this project, etc.) to explain unusual/ unexpected sales data. The submission shall specify which week(s) each circumstance occurred. Applicants may propose to provide other data elements, including but not limited to the number of unique SNAP participants earning incentives or discounts. If applicable, applicants shall describe the feasibility of collecting such data.

To assist FNS in examining the impact of the incentive program, awardees also will be required to obtain either (1) historical data from participating retailer outlets or (2) current data from comparison retailer outlets. Historical data refer to data from at least 3 months preceding incentive program implementation and include SNAP EBT and all other sales of fluid milk by type. Comparison retailer outlets refer to outlets that are similar to participating outlets in terms of SNAP EBT sales volume, geographic location, and other characteristics but are not themselves participating in the incentive program. Applicants shall propose a strategy for selecting and obtaining data for comparison retailer outlets.

Along with providing data for the outcome evaluation to FNS, the awardee shall conduct a process evaluation to understand implementation of the incentive program. Applicants shall propose an approach to evaluating store staff training, promotion and marketing activities, and other aspects of implementation. Any data collection activities that involve human subjects must be approved by the awardee’s Institutional Review Board. Time required to receive such approval shall be built into the proposed timeline.

Applicants should share the data template (see Attachment A) with retailers when seeking partnerships to ensure all parties are aware of the required fields. The requirement to sign the data template, only applies if an award is made to an applicant. Proposals should discuss any opportunities and challenges with the data collection requirements and how they will be addressed. Proposals should also describe any previous process evaluation experience with SNAP participants, food retailers, or nutrition incentive programs. The proposal should demonstrate the capacity and willingness to comply with the data collection and evaluation requirements.

Proposed Project Enhancements

In addition to meeting the basic requirements of this RFA, applicants may wish to include in their proposal enhancements that exceed the project requirements. Enhancements may be submitted in the application as long as these do not detract from or interfere with the goals, rigor, and integrity of the project or contradict project design requirements. Such enhancements may include but are not limited to: partnership with other entities which offer additional, or matching, funding, or nutrition education. Any enhancements should be presented separately from the core proposal in the application and should include an accompanying budget proposal that is separate from the core proposal budget.

It should be noted that this section will not be scored; however, it will be factored into other scored sections as appropriate and could impact selection.

Key Timeframes

The period of performance for the FY 2025 SNAP HFMI Cooperative Agreement will not exceed 4 years. The awardee will be expected to launch the project in a fully operational form within 18 months of executing a signed cooperative agreement. During this 18-month period, the awardee will be expected to make and test all administrative and accounting systems adjustments to set HFMI up for operations. Once launched, the project operations may last for the remainder of the grant period of performance. The awardee will be responsible for collecting and reporting specified incentive issuance and redemption data during the entire project period on a monthly basis.

First-time HFMI grantees will be required to participate in biweekly conference calls with FNS during the initial implementation. Thereafter, first-time grantees and any grantees who have received HFMI funding in the past, will be required to participate in conference calls as needed, to report on project progress/status to FNS. Formal progress and financial reports are due quarterly.

2. Federal Award Information The following information is intended to provide applicants with information to help make informed decisions about proposal submissions.

· Total amount of funding expected to award: $3,000,000

· Anticipated number of awards: 1

· Minimum award amount (award floor): $1.00

· Maximum award amount (award ceiling): $3,000,000

· Anticipated award announcement date: September 2025

· Anticipated period of performance (start and end date of the award): September 2025 – March 31, 2028

· Application due date: August 6, 2025

Please note:

· Grant awards are subject to the availability of funding and/or appropriations of funds and FNS reserves the right not to make awards.

FNS reserves the right to use this solicitation and results of this competition to award additional grants in the next fiscal year should additional funds be made available.

Allowable Costs Funds provided under HFMI must primarily provide financial incentives at the POS to encourage SNAP recipients to purchase more fluid milk. As a result, the Agency will give priority to applicants who propose to spend at least 65% (with a minimum of 50%) of the total requested grant funds on incentives.

If an applicant proposes to integrate healthy fluid milk incentives into a State’s EBT systems that has or is currently in the process of implementing EBT integration for incentives, grant funds may be used to pay for EBT system software upgrades required to incorporate HFMI into the existing EBT processing systems.

Funds may provide for necessary retailer system software changes or upgrades for independent partnering retailer(s) located in one of the targeted priority areas for the purpose of providing and/or redeeming HFMI incentive under this grant.

Costs that are indirect in nature and included in entities’ indirect cost pool fall under the indirect cost rate.

Equipment and Supplies: Expenditures for equipment (i.e., items of personal property having a useful life of more than one year and a cost of $10,000 or more) are allowable expenses with prior approval by FNS. FNS reserves the right to approve/disapprove these expenditures based on needs as expressed by the proposed project. Supplies do not require a separate specific prior approval outside of the budget/proposal approval process.

Unallowable Costs Funds awarded under this grant may not be used for any purpose that limits the use of benefits provided under the Act. Similarly, funds awarded may not be used for the purpose of providing access to ineligible items under the Act. Examples include, but are not limited to, giveaways of alcohol, tobacco, firearms, and lottery tickets.

Under no circumstances may HFMI awardees engage in any activities intended to persuade or recruit individuals to apply for SNAP benefits. The use of Federal funds to employ personnel tasked with enrolling individuals in SNAP is strictly prohibited (no supplanting).

Promotional activities must be limited to factual statements and HFMI awardees must generally avoid emotional appeals in their promotional activities. Promotional activities funded with Federal and/or match funds:

· Must present factual statements intended to inform, not to persuade,

· May include locational information about firms (i.e., the address of firms participating in the grantee's project),

· May also specify that firms accept SNAP and EBT (this includes appropriate logo use as outlined here: Using the SNAP Logo, and

· May include information describing the mechanics of the grantee's project (e.g., spend $1 on milk and earn $1 to spend on other dairy products).

Regardless of format, the following example would be an unallowable expense:

"Sign up to receive SNAP benefits and then you can also get 50% off a gallon of milk at Main Street Grocers! Drinking milk will keep you and your family healthy and happy, so come on down on the corner of Maple and Elm Streets!"

The following example would be considered an allowable promotional expense:

“Thanks to HFMI, when you use your SNAP benefits to purchase 1% or Skim milk at any of the retailers listed below, you will receive 50% off.”

Funds awarded under this grant may not be used for the purchase of hardware equipment, including POS devices, for partnering retailers. All equipment costs require prior approval.

Entertainment: Costs of entertainment, including amusement, diversion, and social activities and any associated costs are unallowable (such as mascot costumes, promotional items, etc.) unless there is a programmatic purpose and prior approval is granted by FNS.

A complete listing of selected items of costs is located at 2 CFR 200.420 – 200.476.

All costs proposed in the budget and detailed in the budget narrative must be allowable, reasonable, necessary, and allocable. Refer to 2 CFR Part 200 Subpart E – Cost Principles for a detailed description of all allowable and unallowable costs.

Non-Supplantation Grants must be used to supplement, not supplant, non-Federal funds that would otherwise be available for expenditure on incentive program activities. Grant funds must be used to fund new projects. They may not be used to replace State or local funds that would, in the absence of Federal aid, be available or forthcoming for incentive programs.

3. Eligibility Information Eligible Applicants Entities not meeting the eligibility definitions will be deemed ineligible and removed from competition without further consideration. The following are eligible entities, which are described in more detail below:

· Governmental entities (State, local, territory, or tribal agencies)

· All non-profit organizations must include their 501(c)(3) determination letter issued by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

A government entity is a State, local, territory, or tribal agency. A nonprofit entity is any organization or institution with IRS 501(c) status or accredited institutions of higher education, where no part of the net earnings benefit any private shareholder or individual. All applicant organizations must be domestic entities and shall be owned, operated, and located within the 50 United States, the District of Columbia, Guam, or the United States Virgin Islands. All applicants must demonstrate in their application that they are a domestic entity and either a government agency or a 501(c) non-profit organization. Each eligible applicant may only submit one application in response to this grant solicitation. Suspended or debarred organizations are ineligible to apply.

In addition, applicants must meet the following requirements: (1) have experience in: (i) efforts to reduce food insecurity in the community, including food distribution, improving access to services, or coordinating services and programs; or (ii) experience with SNAP;

(2) demonstrated competency to implement a project, provide fiscal accountability, collect data, and prepare reports and other necessary documentation; and (3) possess a demonstrated willingness to share information with researchers, evaluators, practitioners, and other interested parties, including a plan for dissemination of results to stakeholders (see page 40).

Partners and Collaborators: Applicants are encouraged to seek and create partnerships with public or private, non-profit or for-profit entities, and/or other appropriate professionals; community-based organizations; and local government entities; and/or partnering entities for the purposes of providing additional resources and strengthening under-resourced communities. Only the applicant must meet the requirements specified above for grant eligibility. Project partners and collaborators need not meet the eligibility requirements. Awardees may collaborate with organizations not eligible to apply for this grant, provided such organizations are necessary for the successful completion of the project.

Note: In cases where an applicant is deemed nonresponsive for failing to submit required elements or documents associated with this RFA, they will be considered ineligible and removed from consideration.

IN ADDITION: Those applicants who fail to submit any required documents or forms will be deemed NONRESPONSIVE and therefore will be INELIGIBLE to participate in the competition and removed from further consideration.

Ineligible Applicants

· International (non-U.S. or non-U.S. territories) entities are not eligible to apply.

Cost Sharing or Matching Considerations There are no cost sharing or matching requirements for this program. However, FNS supports collaboration among local, State, regional, or national partnerships that leverage assets to most effectively reach the goals associated with this solicitation.

Pre-Award Screening Requirements In reviewing applications in any discretionary grant competition, prior to making a Federal award, Federal awarding agencies, in accordance with 2 CFR 200.205, are required to review information available through any OMB-designated repositories of government-wide eligibility qualifications or financial integrity information. Additionally, Federal awarding agencies are required to have a framework in place for evaluating the risks posed by applicants before they receive Federal awards. The FNS review of risk posed by applicants will be based on the following:

· SAM.gov, the System for Award Management, the Official U.S. Government system that consolidated the capabilities of CCR/FedReg, ORCA, EPLS and FAPIIS

· FNS Risk Assessment Questionnaire (FNS-906)

· Applicants must complete the Grant Program Accounting System & Financial Capability Questionnaire that allows FNS to evaluate aspects of the applicant’s financial stability, quality of management systems, and history of performance, reports, and findings from audits. The questionnaire contains a number of questions that may be an indicator of potential risk.

The evaluation of the information obtained from the designated systems and the risk assessment questionnaire may result in FNS imposing special conditions or additional oversight requirements that correspond to the degree of risk assessed.

Acknowledgement of USDA Support As outlined in 2 CFR 415.2, grant recipients shall include acknowledgement of USDA Food and Nutrition Service support on any publications written or published with grant support and, if feasible, on any publication reporting the results of, or describing, a grant-supported activity. Grant recipients may be asked to host USDA officials for a site visit during the course of their grant award. All costs associated with the site visit will be paid for by USDA and are not expected to be included in grant budgets.

4. Application Content Information Content and Form of Application Submission FNS strongly encourages eligible applicants interested in applying to this program to adhere to the following applicant format. The proposed project plan should be presented on 8 ½” x 11” white paper with at least 1-inch margins on the top and bottom. All pages should be single-spaced in 12-point font. The project description with relevant information should be captured on no more than 35 pages, not including the cover sheet, table of content, resumes, letter(s) of commitment, endorsement letter(s), budget narrative(s), appendices, and required forms. All pages, excluding form pages must be numbered.

Special Instructions:

· Late application submission will not be considered in this competition. FNS will not consider additions or revisions to applications unless they are submitted via Grants.gov by the deadline. No additions or revisions will be accepted after the deadline.

· Letters of support must be submitted with the application through grants.gov. Letters submitted via email will not be considered.

· Applications submitted without the required supporting documents, forms, certification will not be considered.

· Applications missing a written proposal or budget narrative will not be considered and deemed nonresponsive and removed from further consideration.

· FNS reserves the right to request clarification on any application submitted in response to this solicitation.

· Applications not submitted via Grants.gov will not be considered.

· If multiple application packages are submitted through Grants.gov by the same applicant in response to this solicitation, FNS will accept the latest application package successfully submitted. All other packages submitted by the applicant will be removed from this competition.

Cooperative Agreement This grant will be awarded in the form of a cooperative agreement. This agreement is a legal instrument reflecting a relationship between the Federal government and the awardee. Substantial involvement is expected between the Federal government and the awardee when carrying out the activity in the agreement. Cooperative agreements are subject to the same administrative requirements as grants.

Project Roles and Responsibilities

FNS will provide direction and technical assistance to the awardee. FNS will approve major aspects of the project in advance of implementation in a manner and timeframe agreed upon between the awardee and FNS. FNS will establish a funding mechanism consistent with the cooperative agreement and provide the awardee with detailed directions on claiming and accounting for HFMI funds. FNS will evaluate quarterly progress reports and financial reports to ensure objectives, terms, and conditions of the agreement are met. FNS will participate in periodic collaborative meetings with the awardee.

The awardee has overall responsibility for project planning, implementation, and operations in cooperation with retailers and other partners as designated by the awardee. FNS encourages consultation and partnering with SNAP-Ed agencies who have experience with participant training through teaching SNAP households how to make healthy meals and how to stretch their SNAP dollars. The awardee shall:

· Select/hire appropriately credentialed personnel to manage and operate the project;

· Delegate responsibilities to retailers and other partners as appropriate;

· Recruit and train retailers in all relevant aspects of HFMI and overseeing their activities to ensure project integrity and effectiveness, including:

· Amending the retailer’s point-of-sales service provider agreements, as needed, to support system and procedural changes at participating retailers;

· Developing a plan for the tracking and use of incentives that ensures project integrity;

· Developing Memoranda of Understanding with participating retailers that have the capability to identify HFMI target foods to ensure they understand their responsibilities and meet milestones of the HFMI management plan.

· Informing and educating SNAP recipients on HFMI incentives and how to use them;

· Collecting, recording, and reporting required data; and

· Providing necessary support, resources, and oversight.

· Train other partners, as applicable, on the requirements and limitations of HFMI to ensure compliance;

· Maintain records on project costs;

· Seek FNS approval at critical junctures and checkpoints after award, including management plan, budget plan, training plans, EBT contractor’s design and implementation plan (if applicable), and retailer accountability plans that are submitted in preliminary form in the application;

· Meet specific obligations and approval points that will be further delineated by FNS…