PKG00256755-instructions..pdf

OMB Number - 1122-0020 Expiration Date: 01/31/2022

U.S. Department of Justice Office on Violence Against Women (OVW)

OVW Fiscal Year 2020 Legal Assistance for Victims (LAV)

Grant Program

Solicitation

Release Date: on or about November 21, 2019

Eligibility

Eligible applicants are limited to: Private nonprofit entities; publicly funded organizations not acting in a governmental capacity; territorial organizations; Indian tribal governments; and tribal organizations.

(See “Eligibility Information”)

Deadlines

Applications are due by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time (E.T.) on January 29, 2020.

(See “Submission Dates and Times”)

Registration Information: To submit an application, all applicants must obtain a Data Universal Number System (DUNS) number and register online with the System for Award Management (SAM) and with Grants.gov. To ensure sufficient time to complete the registration process, applicants must obtain a DUNS number and register online with SAM and with Grants.gov immediately, but no later than January 14, 2020.

(See “Registration”)

Letter of Intent: Applicants are strongly encouraged to submit a Letter of Intent to ovw.lav@usdoj.gov by January 14, 2020. This letter confirms that the applicant has registered with SAM and Grants.gov. Submitting a Letter of Intent will not obligate a potential applicant to https://www.grants.gov/ http://www.grants.gov/ mailto:ovw.lav@usdoj.gov http://www.grants.gov/ ii submit an application. Interested applicants who do not submit a Letter of Intent are still eligible to apply.

(See “Letter of Intent”)

Pre-Application Information Session: OVW will conduct a web-based Pre-Application Information Session for entities interested in submitting an application for this program.

Participation in this session is optional. Interested applicants who do not participate are still eligible to apply.

(See “Pre-Application Information Session”)

Contact Information

For assistance with the requirements of this solicitation, email OVW at ovw.lav@usdoj.gov.

Alternatively, interested parties may call OVW at (202) 307-6026.

Submission and Notification Information

Submission: Applications for this program will be submitted through Grants.gov. For technical assistance with Grants.gov, contact Grants.gov Applicant Support at (800) 518-4726 or support@grants.gov.

The Grants.gov number assigned to this announcement is OVW-2020-17672.

Notification: OVW anticipates notifying applicants of funding decisions by October 1, 2020.

http://www.grants.gov/ http://www.grants.gov/ mailto:support@grants.gov iii

Contents A. Program Description

Overview of OVW Statutory Authority

About the OVW Legal Assistance for Victims Grant Program Program Scope Purpose Areas OVW Priority Areas LAV Statutory Priorities Activities that Compromise Victim Safety and Recovery or Undermine Offender Accountability Out-of-Scope Activities Activities Requiring Prior Approval

B. Federal Award Information Availability of Funds Award Period and Amounts Types of Applications Mandatory Program Requirements

C. Eligibility Information Eligible Applicants Cost Sharing or Matching Other Program Eligibility Requirements Delivery of Legal Assistance Certification Eligible Service Area Required Partnerships Limit on Number of Applications

D. Application and Submission Information Address to Request Application Package Pre-Application Information Session Content and Form of Application Submission Letter of Intent Formatting and Technical Requirements Application Contents Summary Data Sheet Proposal Abstract Project Narrative Purpose of Application What Will Be Done Who Will Implement the Project Budget Detail Worksheet and Narrative Award Period and Amount Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) or Memorandum of Exemption (MOE) Memorandum of Exemption (MOE) Statutory Requirements (Certification Letter) Additional Required Information Application for Federal Assistance (SF-424) iv

Assurances and Disclosure of Lobbying Activities Applicant Financial Capability Questionnaire Confidentiality Notice Form Disclosure of Process Related to Executive Compensation Pre-Award Risk Assessment Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (if applicable) Letter of Nonsupplanting DUNS, SAM, and Grants.gov Registration Submission Dates and Times OVW Policy on Late Submissions Experiencing Technical Difficulties Beyond the Applicant’s Reasonable Control Funding Restrictions Unallowable Costs Food and Beverage/Costs for Refreshments and Meals Conference Planning and Expenditure Limitations Research and Assessments Pre-Agreement Cost Approval Other Submission Requirements Submitting a Grant Application

E. Application Review Information Criteria Review and Selection Process Peer Review Programmatic Review High-Risk Grantees Anticipated Announcement and Federal Award Dates

F. Federal Award Administration Information Federal Award Notices Administrative and National Policy Requirements Information for All Federal Award Recipients Violence Against Women Act Non-Discrimination Provision Accessibility Reporting

G. Federal Awarding Agency Contact(s) H. Other Information

Application Checklist Public Reporting Burden - Paperwork Reduction Act Notice

Federal Award Information:

Funding Type: Grant Estimated Total Funding: $34,000,000,000 Expected Number of Awards: 56 Award Ceiling: $800,000 Award Floor: N/A Registration Due: January 14, 2020 Letter of Intent Due: January 14, 2020 Application Due: January 29, 2020 Anticipated Start Date: October 1, 2020 Length of Award Period: 36 months

OVW LEGAL ASSISTANCE FOR VICTIMS (LAV)

GRANT PROGRAM

(CFDA 16.524)

A. Program Description Overview of OVW OVW is a component of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). Created in 1995, OVW administers grant programs authorized by the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and subsequent legislation and provides national leadership on issues of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking. OVW grants support coordinated community responses to hold offenders accountable and serve victims.

Statutory Authority This program is authorized by 34 U.S.C. § 20121.

About the OVW Legal Assistance for Victims Grant Program The LAV Grant Program is intended to increase the availability of civil and criminal legal assistance1 needed to effectively aid adult and youth (ages 11 and older) victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking by providing funds for comprehensive direct legal services to victims in legal matters relating to or arising out of that abuse or violence.

Comprehensive legal services should address the broad spectrum of legal issues that victims encounter and help promote economic independence for victims. In addition to representation in emergency and non-emergency protection order hearings, this includes representation in family matters (divorce, child custody, or child support), consumer or housing matters, and credit restoration.

For additional information about this program, see https://www.justice.gov/ovw/grant-programs and https://www.vawamei.org/grant-program/legal-assistance-program/.

1 “Legal assistance” includes assistance to adult and youth victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking in: a) family, tribal, territorial, immigration, employment, administrative agency, housing matters, campus administrative, or protection or stay away order proceedings, and other similar matters; and b) criminal justice investigations, prosecutions, and post-trial matters (including sentencing, parole, and probation) that impact the victim’s safety and privacy. Intake or referral, by itself, does not constitute legal assistance. 34 U.S.C.

§12291(a)(19).

https://www.justice.gov/ovw/grant-programs https://www.vawamei.org/grant-program/legal-assistance-program/

Program Scope Activities supported by this program are determined by statute, federal regulations, and OVW policies. If an applicant receives an award, the funded project is bound by the provisions of this solicitation, the DOJ Financial Guide, including updates to the financial guide after an award is made, the section of the Solicitation Companion Guide on post-award requirements for all federal award recipients, and the conditions of the award.

Purpose Areas Pursuant to 34 U.S.C. § 20121(c), funds under this program must be used for one or more of the following purposes:

1. To implement, expand, and establish cooperative efforts and projects between domestic violence, dating violence, and sexual assault victim service providers and legal assistance providers to provide legal assistance for victims of domestic violence, dating violence, stalking, and sexual assault.

2. To implement, expand, and establish efforts and projects to provide legal assistance for victims of domestic violence, dating violence, stalking, and sexual assault by organizations with a demonstrated history of providing direct legal or advocacy services on behalf of these victims.

3. To implement, expand, and establish efforts and projects to provide competent supervised pro bono legal assistance for victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking, except that not more than 10 percent of the funds awarded may be used for this purpose.2

OVW Priority Areas In FY 2020, OVW is interested in supporting the priority areas identified below. Applications proposing activities in the following areas will be given special consideration:

1. Empower victims to become survivors by growing them past their vulnerabilities to a place of self-sufficiency.

2. Increase efforts to combat stalking.

3. Address the specific challenges that rural communities face in responding to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking.

LAV Statutory Priorities Improve the Availability of Legal Services for Sexual Assault Survivors Pursuant to 34 U.S.C. § 20121(f)(2)(C), not less than 25 percent of funds made available for the LAV Grant Program must be used to support projects focused solely or primarily on providing legal assistance to victims of sexual assault. OVW recognizes the need to place increased focus on sexual assault in order to address the lack of available direct legal services for survivors of sexual assault and the unique aspects of sexual assault trauma from which survivors must heal. Applicants proposing to focus 50 percent or more of their grant-funded activities on intimate and non-intimate partner sexual assault legal services will be given special consideration. In addition, applications that are submitted by sexual assault victim

2 The 10 percent limit is on the funds awarded under the LAV Program overall and is not specific to an individual project.

https://www.justice.gov/ovw/file/1030311/download https://www.justice.gov/ovw/resources-applicants service providers3 or sexual assault coalitions that propose to focus 80 percent or more of their grant-funded activities on non-intimate partner sexual assault legal services can apply for larger awards and may be eligible for an additional 24 months of non-competitive funding (see “Award Period and Amounts” for more information).

Tribal Programs Pursuant to 34 U.S.C. § 20121(f)(2)(A), not less than three percent of funds made available for the LAV Program must be used for projects that assist adult and youth victims of domestic violence, dating violence, stalking, and sexual assault on lands within the jurisdiction of an Indian tribe. Applications proposing to assist such victims will receive special consideration in order to meet this requirement, but they must include the percentage of proposed activities that will support services to victims on tribal lands.

Activities that Compromise Victim Safety and Recovery or Undermine Offender Accountability OVW does not fund activities that jeopardize victim safety, deter or prevent physical or emotional healing for victims, or allow offenders to escape responsibility for their actions.

Applications that propose any such activities may receive a deduction in points during the review process or may be eliminated from consideration entirely. Information on activities that compromise victim safety and recovery or undermine offender accountability may be found in the Solicitation Companion Guide.

Out-of-Scope Activities The activities listed below are out of the program scope, and they will not be supported by this program’s funding. See also the list of unallowable costs in the Funding Restrictions section of this solicitation.

1. Research projects. (This does not include assessments conducted only for internal improvement purposes up to one percent of the award). For information on distinguishing between research and assessments, see the heading on this topic in the Funding Restrictions section of this solicitation and the Solicitation Companion Guide).

2. Representation in tort cases.

3. Child sexual abuse cases (i.e., involving victims under the age of 11).

4. Cases involving the child protection system unless the child dependency hearing involves allegations “relating to or arising out of” abuse of the client (rather than abuse of the children).

5. Criminal representation of victims charged with crimes.

6. Support of law reform initiatives, including but not limited to litigation.

7. Providing general training and/or technical assistance to agencies that are not formal or informal LAV Grant Program project partners.

8. Cases involving Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA).

3 A “victim service provider" is a nonprofit, nongovernmental or tribal organization or rape crisis center, including a state or tribal domestic violence and/or sexual assault coalition, that assists or advocates for domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking, including a domestic violence shelter, faith-based organization or other organization, with a documented history of effective work concerning domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking. 34 U.S.C. § 12291(a)(43). Victim service providers must provide direct services to victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual violence, or stalking as one of their primary purposes and have a demonstrated history of effective work in this field.

9. Funds for victim assistance/support unrelated to the provision of legal assistance or legal advocacy (such as transitional housing assistance, therapeutic counseling, hotlines, and rental assistance).

10. Training events that do not support the provision of legal assistance to victims. (Limited exceptions are allowed for outreach and cross-training between project partners, but such exceptions require prior approval from OVW).

Applications that propose activities that are deemed to be substantially out-of-scope may receive a deduction in points during the review process or may be eliminated from consideration entirely.

Activities Requiring Prior Approval Recipients must receive prior approval before using grant funds to support surveys, whether conducted as part of a program or needs assessment, or for any other purpose. Prior approval is necessary to determine whether the activity is within the scope of the award and meets the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act (see the Solicitation Companion Guide for more information).

B. Federal Award Information Availability of Funds All awards are subject to the availability of appropriated funds and any modifications or additional requirements that may be imposed by law. There is no guarantee that funds will be available in the future. OVW may elect to make awards in a future fiscal year for applications submitted under this solicitation but not selected for FY 2020 funding, depending on the merits of the applications and the availability of funding.

Award Period and Amounts The award period is 36 months. Budgets must reflect 36 months of project activity, and the total “estimated funding” on the SF-424 must reflect 36 months. OVW anticipates that the award period will start on October 1, 2020.

This program typically makes awards in the range of $600,000 - $800,000. OVW estimates that it will make up to 56 awards for an estimated $34,000,000.

Funding levels under this program for FY 2020 are:

1. New and Continuation LAV Grant Program applications proposing to provide legal services primarily to victims of domestic violence or that do not meet the requirements for the specific sexual assault-related project described below may request up to $600,000 for the entire 36-month project period.

2. New and Continuation LAV Grant Program applications submitted by sexual assault victim service providers or sexual assault coalitions and that are proposing to focus 80 percent or more of the project’s activities on legal services for victims of non-intimate partner sexual assault, may request up to $800,000 for the entire 36-month project period. Note: if funded, at the end of the 36-month award period, these grantees may be eligible to receive 24 months of additional non-competitive funding to continue their projects.

OVW has the discretion to make awards for greater or lesser amounts than requested and to negotiate the scope of work and budget with applicants prior to making an award.

Awards will be made as grants.

Types of Applications In FY 2020, OVW will accept applications for this program from the following:

New: Applicants that have never received funding under this program or whose previous funding expired more than 12 months ago.

Continuation: Applicants that have an existing or recently closed (within the last 12 months from the date the solicitation closes) award under this program. Continuation funding is not guaranteed.

Recipients of an FY 2018 or 2019 award under this program are NOT eligible to apply as the lead applicant on an FY 2020 proposal. In making award decisions and assessing award amounts, OVW will take into consideration the overall LAV funding an applicant partner has received under an FY 2018 or 2019 LAV award or subaward.

Note: OVW will not fund the same entity, as either a lead recipient or partner/subrecipient, on more than two discretionary awards in FY 2020, absent extenuating circumstances. This award limit applies across all OVW programs but does not include awards made for nationwide projects, such as those made under OVW’s Training and Technical Assistance Initiative.

Additionally, current grantees with a substantial amount of unobligated funds remaining (50 percent or more of the previous award) as of March 31, 2020 without adequate justification may not be considered for funding, or may receive a reduced award amount if selected for funding in

FY 2020.

Mandatory Program Requirements Applicants that receive funding under this program will be required to engage in the following activities:

1. OVW-sponsored training and technical assistance.

2. An OVW-sponsored assessment or program evaluation, if applicable.

3. A New grantee orientation, unless exempted by OVW.

C. Eligibility Information

Applications that are submitted by ineligible entities or that do not meet all program eligibility requirements will not be considered for funding. In addition, an application that is deemed deficient in one or more of the following categories may not be considered for funding: 1.

activities that compromise victim safety, 2. out-of-scope activities, 3. unallowable costs, 4. pre-award risk assessment, 5. completeness of application contents, and 6. timeliness. An applicant with past performance issues, long-standing open audits, or an open criminal investigation also may not be considered for funding.

Eligible Applicants The following entities are eligible to apply for this program (34 U.S.C. § 20121(c)):

1. Private nonprofit entities.

2. Indian tribal governments,4 including tribal consortia.5

3. Tribal organizations.6

4. Territorial organizations.7

5. Publicly funded organizations not acting in a governmental capacity such as law schools.

Faith-based and community organizations that meet the eligibility requirements are eligible to receive awards under this solicitation (see “Faith-Based Organizations” on the OVW website for more information).

Note: Any nonprofit organization that holds money in offshore accounts for the purpose of avoiding paying the tax described in section 511(a) of the Internal Revenue Code is not eligible for a grant from this program. See 34 U.S.C. § 12291(b)(16)(B)(ii).

Cost Sharing or Matching This program has no match or cost sharing requirement.

Other Program Eligibility Requirements In addition to meeting the eligible entity requirements outlined above, applications for this program must also meet the requirements below. All certification and other eligibility related documents must be current and developed in accordance with the FY 2020 solicitation.

Certifications must take the form of a letter, on letterhead, signed and dated by the authorized representative. Failure to provide required certifications may disqualify an application from further consideration. At a minimum, an application missing the required certification letter will be required to submit a certification letter prior to receiving an award. The signed certification

4 A “tribal government” is the governing body of an Indian tribe or a tribe, band, pueblo, nation, or other organized group or community of Indians, including any Alaska Native village or regional or village corporation (as defined in, or established pursuant to, the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. §§ 1601 et seq.)), that is recognized as eligible for the special programs and services provided by the United States to Indians because of their status as Indians. 34 U.S.C. § 12291(a)(36).

5 Regarding a tribal consortium application, the applicant must submit documentation of authority in the form of a resolution or legal equivalent from each tribal consortium member, unless existing consortium bylaws or other tribal governance documents allow action without explicit authorization from the member tribes in the consortium. In that case, the tribal consortium must submit a resolution, letter, affidavit, or other documentation, as appropriate, that certifies that the tribal consortium has the legal authority to apply for grants under this solicitation on behalf of the consortium. This documentation must be current, be sufficient to demonstrate authority for the application, contain authorizing signature(s), and be submitted by the application’s due date. In addition, a copy of the bylaws or other governance documents that allow the tribal consortium’s action without support from all consortium members must be included with this documentation.

6 A “tribal organization” is the governing body of any Indian tribe; any legally established organization of Indians which is controlled, sanctioned, or chartered by such governing body of a tribe or tribes to be served, or which is democratically elected by the adult members of the Indian community to be served by such organization and which includes the maximum participation of Indians in all phases of its activities; or any tribal nonprofit organization. 34 U.S.C. § 12291(a)(38). A “tribal nonprofit organization” is a victim services provider that has as its primary purpose to assist Native victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking; and that has staff and leadership with a demonstrated history of assisting American Indian or Alaska Native victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking. 34 U.S.C. § 12291(a)(37).

7 For the purposes of this solicitation, a “territorial organization” is a nonprofit, nongovernmental organization addressing domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and/or stalking within a United States Territory, which include the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands.

https://www.justice.gov/ovw/resources-applicants#Resources letter must be uploaded as a separate attachment in Grants.gov. Sample certification letters can be found on the OVW website at https://www.justice.gov/ovw/resources-applicants.

Delivery of Legal Assistance Certification Pursuant to 34 U.S.C. § 20121(d), to be eligible for an award, any recipient or subrecipient providing legal assistance with funds awarded under this program must certify in writing that:

1. any person providing legal assistance with funds through this program:

(A) has demonstrated expertise in providing legal assistance to victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking in the targeted population; or (B)

i. is partnered with an entity or person that has demonstrated expertise described in subparagraph (A); and

ii. has completed, or will complete, training in connection with domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking and related legal issues, including training on evidence-based risk factors for domestic and dating violence homicide;

2. any training program conducted in satisfaction of the requirement of paragraph (1) has been or will be developed with input from and in collaboration with a tribal, state, territorial, or local domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault or stalking victim service provider or coalition, as well as appropriate tribal, state, territorial, and local law enforcement officials;

3. any person or organization providing legal assistance with funds through this program has informed and will continue to inform state, local, or tribal domestic violence, dating violence, or sexual assault programs and coalitions, as well as appropriate state and local law enforcement officials of their work; and

4. the grantee’s organizational policies do not require mediation or counseling involving offenders and victims physically together, in cases where sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, or child sexual abuse is an issue.

Eligible Service Area Applicants from within all U.S. states and territories and tribes are eligible to apply. However, the LAV Grant Program will give special consideration to applicants proposing to serve communities within rural areas.

Required Partnerships An applicant must include a nonprofit, nongovernmental or tribal organization with demonstrated expertise on domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and/or stalking either as a lead applicant or a partner. The organization serving as the required expert on these crimes may be a larger, multi-service organization that does not solely address domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and/or stalking but has a distinct or designated division or program that focuses on serving victims of these crimes. Additional documentation of the required expertise must be provided through either a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) or a Memorandum of Exemption (MOE) (see MOU/MOE requirements section).

Limit on Number of Applications OVW will consider only one application per organization for the same service area. In addition, if an applicant submits multiple versions of the same application, OVW will review only the most recent system-validated version submitted before the deadline.

D. Application and Submission Information Address to Request Application Package The complete application package (this solicitation, including links to required forms) is available on Grants.gov and on the OVW website. Applicants wishing to request a paper copy of these materials should contact ovw.lav@usdoj.gov or (202) 307-6026.

Pre-Application Information Session OVW will conduct an optional web-based pre-application information session for entities interested in submitting an application for this program. During this session, OVW staff will review this program’s requirements, review the solicitation, and allow for a brief question and answer period. The session is tentatively scheduled for: Tuesday December 17, 2019.

The total number of participants for the session may be limited, and therefore interested participants from the same agency/jurisdiction are expected to participate together. OVW reserves the right to deny multiple registrations from a single agency/jurisdiction to allow as many interested applicants as possible to participate.

Participation in the pre-application information session is optional. Interested applicants that do not participate in the session are still eligible to apply.

To register, contact the LAV Grant Program at ovw.lav@usdoj.gov or at (202) 307-6026.

Registration must be received at least five days prior to the start of the session. Participants are not registered until they receive a confirmation email. The webinar will be captioned in English and Spanish. Interested applicants needing additional language assistance should contact this program’s POC at ovw.lav@usdoj.gov or (202) 307-6026 at as soon as possible, but no later than December 10, 2019.

Content and Form of Application Submission The information below (“Letter of Intent” through “Additional Required Information”) describes the full content and form of application submission.

Letter of Intent Applicants intending to apply for FY 2020 funding under this program are strongly encouraged to submit a Letter of Intent. The letter should state that the applicant is registered and current with SAM and with Grants.gov. The letter should be submitted to OVW at by January 14, 2020.

This letter will not obligate the applicant to submit an application. See https://www.justice.gov/ovw/resources-applicants for a sample Letter of Intent.

Formatting and Technical Requirements Applications must follow the requirements below for all documents, unless otherwise noted.

Points may be deducted for applications that do not adhere to the following requirements:

1. Double spaced (Summary Data Sheet, and charts may be single spaced).

2. 8½ x 11 inch paper.

3. One-inch margins.

4. Type no smaller than 12 point, Times New Roman (TNR) or Arial font, except for footnotes, which may be in 10-point font.

5. Page numbers.

http://www.grants.gov/ https://www.justice.gov/ovw/how-apply mailto:ovw.lav@usdoj.gov mailto:ovw.lav@usdoj.gov mailto:ovw.lav@usdoj.gov

6. No more than 20 pages for the Project Narrative.

7. Word documents in the following formats: Microsoft Word (.doc), PDF files (.pdf), or Text

Documents (.txt).

8. Headings and sub-headings that correspond to the sections identified in this section of the solicitation.

Application Contents Applications must include the required documents and demonstrate that the program eligibility requirements have been met. For a complete checklist of the application contents, see the Other Information section in this solicitation.

OVW will not contact applicants for missing items on the list below. Applications that do not include all of the following documents will be considered substantially incomplete and will not be considered for funding:

1. Project Narrative.

2. Budget Detail Worksheet and Narrative.

3. Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) or Memorandum of Exemption (MOE).

In addition, the following three documents are required; failure to submit them will not result in removal from consideration but may result in a loss of points:

1. Summary Data Sheet.

2. Proposal Abstract.

3. Delivery of Legal Assistance Certification.

Summary Data Sheet (5 Points Total) The Summary Data Sheet should be one to four pages and may be single or double spaced.

The Summary Data Sheet does not count toward the 20 page limit for the Project Narrative.

Provide the following information:

1. Name, title, address, telephone number, and email address of the individual with authority to accept grants on behalf of the applicant.

2. Name, title, address, telephone number, and email address for the grant point-of-contact. This person must be an employee of the applicant.

3. Statement as to whether the applicant (the organization whose DUNS number is being used for the application) will serve as a fiscal agent/sponsor and pass all funds through to an entity or entities that will implement the project. Such an applicant will not be involved with implementation of the project beyond issuing subaward(s) to these entities and conducting minimal administrative activities. A fiscal agent/sponsor applicant must list these subrecipients and include a statement acknowledging that, should an award be made, the applicant will be responsible for all applicable statutory, fiscal, and programmatic requirements, including those of 2 C.F.R. Part 200, as well as all project deliverables. In such situations, the fiscal agent/sponsor must be an eligible applicant for the program.

4. Statement as to whether the applicant has expended $750,000 in federal funds in the applicant’s past fiscal year. If so, specify the end date of the applicant’s fiscal year.

5. Summary of all current and pending OVW grants (if applicable). If the applicant has a current grant or cooperative agreement under any OVW grant program or an award that has been closed within the last 12 months from the date this solicitation closes, the information must be provided in a table using the sample format found on the OVW website at https://www.justice.gov/ovw/resources-applicants. Failure to provide the http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?tpl=/ecfrbrowse/Title02/2cfr200_main_02.tpl required table will result in a loss of points. The applicant should also provide the same information regarding any current OVW grants or pending applications on which the applicant is a subrecipient.

6. A list of all other federal grant programs from which the applicant currently receives funding or for which it has applied for funding in FY 2020 to do similar work. Provide this information in a table using the sample format found on the OVW website at https://www.justice.gov/ovw/resources-applicants.

7. Statement as to whether the applicant is a nonprofit organization that holds money in offshore accounts for the purpose of avoiding paying the tax described in section 511(a) of the Internal Revenue Code.

8. Statement as to whether the applicant is a nonprofit organization that uses the Internal Revenue Service's three-step safe-harbor procedure to establish a rebuttable presumption that its executives' compensation is reasonable. If the applicant is not a nonprofit organization or is a nonprofit that does not use the safe-harbor procedure, provide a statement to that effect. For additional information about the safe-harbor procedure, see "Disclosure of Process Related to Executive Compensation" in the Additional Required Information section.

9. The percentage of grant activities, should the application be funded, that will address each of the following issues (the total percentages should not exceed 100 percent):

• Domestic violence.

• Sexual assault (intimate partner).

• Sexual assault (non-intimate partner).

• Dating violence.

• Stalking.

10. Statement as to whether the applicant is a recipient, or partner/subrecipient, on a current grant or pending application for this grant program. If a current grant, provide the year of the award and the role of the applicant on the award (recipient or project partner).

11. Statement as to whether any proposed project partner/subrecipient is a recipient, or partner/subrecipient, on a current grant or pending application for this grant program. If a current grant, provide the year of the award and the role of the partner(s) on the award (recipient or project partner/subrecipient).

12. Statement as to whether the applicant is addressing the LAV sexual assault priority area, focusing 50 percent or more of grant-funded activities on intimate and non-intimate sexual assault legal services.

13. Statement as to whether the applicant is addressing the LAV sexual assault priority area, focusing 80 percent or more of grant-funded activities on non-intimate sexual assault legal services.

14. Statement as to whether the application addresses the self-sufficiency priority area.

15. Statement as to whether the application addresses the stalking priority area.

16. Statement as to whether the application addresses the rural priority area.

17. If applicable, the percentage of grant activities, should the application be funded, that will support services to victims on tribal lands.

18. If applicable, the amount of funding, should the application be funded, that will be allocated towards pro bono activities.

19. Name of the required nonprofit, nongovernmental or tribal organization with demonstrated expertise on domestic violence and/or sexual assault.

Proposal Abstract (not scored but used throughout the review process) The Proposal Abstract must provide a short summary (no more than two pages double-spaced) of the proposed project, including names of applicant and partners, project title, purpose of the project (including goal and intended outcome), primary activities for which funds are requested, who will benefit (including geographic area to be served), products and deliverables, and how the applicant will measure progress in completing project goals and objectives. Applicants must not summarize past accomplishments in this section.

Project Narrative (55 Points Total) The Project Narrative may not exceed 20 pages, double-spaced. Reviewers will only read the equivalent of 20 pages, double-spaced during the review process. The Project Narrative must include the following three sections:

Purpose of Application (10 points) This section must:

1. Describe the challenge or need faced by the community and how the goal/vision for the project will meet that need.

2. Describe the communities to be served, including the geographic location and the populations in the service area. Special consideration will be given to applicants that propose to serve each population in their geographic/service area.

3. To qualify for the OVW rural priority, describe what makes the geographic service area rural (using U.S. Census or other appropriate government data) and how isolated the area is from needed services.

4. Describe the current legal services to prevent or reduce domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and/or stalking in the jurisdiction, and the gaps in those services in the proposed service area.

Applicants proposing to address the LAV sexual assault priority must also:

1. Describe the problem of sexual assault (both intimate and non-intimate partner) in the proposed service area (include local statistics/data, whenever possible).

2. Describe the available legal services for victims of sexual assault in the proposed service area.

3. Describe the gaps in legal services for victims of sexual assault in the proposed service area.

4. Describe the barriers victims of sexual assault experience when attempting to access support and legal services in the proposed service area.

Applicants proposing to address the stalking priority area must also:

1. Describe the problem of stalking within the proposed service area.

2. Describe the available legal services for victims of stalking in the proposed service area.

3. Describe the barriers victims of stalking experience when attempting to access support and legal services in the proposed service area.

What Will Be Done (30 points)

The application must provide a clear link between the proposed activities and the need identified in the “Purpose of Application” section above. The application must not include any of the activities listed as unallowable costs in the Funding Restrictions section of this solicitation.

1. Describe the approach to addressing the challenge or need identified in the Purpose of the Application section, including, to qualify for the OVW rural priority, how the project will address the challenges associated with the remoteness of the service area.

2. Performance measurement: Describe how the applicant will measure its progress in achieving the project’s goal(s)/vision. Identify targeted outcome(s) and describe any tool(s) the applicant will use to track those outcomes and report them to OVW. Tools may include OVW performance progress reports and logic model templates (both available at www.vawamei.org).

3. Describe how the applicant will move to project sustainability.

4. Describe the extent to which the project will provide holistic and comprehensive legal services to victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and/or stalking who cannot afford legal services. Special consideration will be given to applications proposing to provide legal services that promote economic independence, including protective order hearings, family matters (divorce, child custody, or child support), consumer or housing matters, and credit restoration.

5. Describe measurable goals and objectives for the proposed project.

6. Describe specific tasks and activities necessary for accomplishing all stated goals and objectives.

7. Describe how proposed activities would address the need identified.

8. Detail how the proposed activities will protect victim confidentiality.

9. Include a timeline for the proposed project that identifies when the tasks and activities will be accomplished within the 36-month grant period.

10. Provide a supervision and mentoring plan for grant-funded attorney staff.

11. If applicable, include a description of any products that will be generated using grant funds and how these products will be used to address the legal needs of victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking. Product development is not required as some communities would not benefit from the development of new products.

12. If the applicant proposes to use databases or other information-gathering or sharing technology, explain how the project will address any victim safety concerns that may arise from the use of the technology, such as confidentiality, safety planning, and informed consent.

13. Describe the planned outreach activities to promote services to all victims in the proposed geographic service area identified in the Purpose of the Application section.

1. Describe the legal services that will be provided to victims of sexual assault with LAV Grant Program funding.

2. Describe any proposed outreach efforts to victims of sexual assault regarding the comprehensive legal sexual assault services that will be provided by the proposed project.

3. Provide (1) the number of victims of intimate partner sexual assault served in the past 12 months, (2) the number of victims of non-intimate partner sexual assault served in the past 12 months, and (3) information on the types of legal support provided to survivors of http://www.vawamei.org/ intimate partner and non-intimate partner sexual assault by the lead applicant and project partner(s) in the past 12 months.

Applicants proposing to address the stalking priority area must also describe:

1. The legal services that will be provided to victims of stalking with LAV Grant Program funding.

2. Any proposed outreach efforts to victims of stalking regarding the comprehensive legal services that will be provided by the proposed project.

Who Will Implement the Project (15 points)

1. Identify the key individuals and organizations, including project partners, involved in the proposed project.

2. Demonstrate that the individuals and organizations identified have the capacity to address the stated need and can successfully implement the proposed project activities;

attach resumes or job descriptions of all key personnel.

3. Identify all project partners, specifying their respective roles and responsibilities, including linking all activities listed in the What Will Be Done section to a specific agency.

In particular, identify and describe the organization that will provide legal representation to victims.

4. For the individuals identified in response to #1, above, describe their relevant experience and expertise in addressing domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and/or stalking; or, where positions are vacant, describe the required experience and expertise for those positions.

5. If the applicant is not the nonprofit, nongovernmental or tribal organization with demonstrated expertise in domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and/or stalking, identify and describe the partner that meets this requirement.

6. If the required organization with domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault,, and/or stalking (either applicant or partner) is a larger, multi-service organization that does not solely address one or more of these crimes, describe the distinct or designated division or program within the larger organization that focuses on serving victims of these crimes.

• Detail the experience and expertise of staff from the lead applicant and/or project partners in providing legal services to victims of sexual assault beyond intimate partner assault.

• Detail the experience and expertise of staff from the lead applicant and/or project partners in providing legal services to victims of stalking.

Budget Detail Worksheet and Narrative (15 Points) All applications must include a detailed budget and budget narrative. See the sample Budget Detail Worksheet and the Creating a Budget webinar available on the OVW website at https://www.justice.gov/ovw/resources-applicants. Keep in mind that budgetary requirements vary among programs. Applicants must submit reasonable budgets based on the resources needed to implement their projects in their specific geographic location.

Award Period and Amount Budgets should cover a period of 36 months, commencing October 1, 2020 and ending on September 30, 2023. Budget requests should not exceed $600,000, with the exception of sexual assault victim service providers or sexual assault coalitions proposing to focus 80 percent or more of grant-funded activities on legal services for victims of non-intimate partner sexual assault, who may request up to $800,000.

The budget and budget narrative will be reviewed separately from the proposed project narrative. The budget narrative must describe each line item requested in the budget and explain all costs included in the budget, including how the costs of goods and services are determined and how they will fulfill the objectives of the project.

The budget must:

1. Display a clear link between the specific project activities and the proposed budget items. The budget should not contain items that are not supported by the project narrative.

2. Include funds to attend OVW-sponsored training and technical assistance in the amount of $10,000 for applicants located in the 48 contiguous states and $15,000 for applicants located in the territories, Hawaii, and Alaska. This amount is for the entire 36 months and NOT per year. Applicants also may budget expenses in excess of the required amount if they are aware of relevant non-OVW sponsored conferences or training for which they would like permission to use grant funds to support staff/project partner attendance.

3. Include funds or describe other resources available to the applicant to ensure access for individuals with disabilities, Deaf/hard of hearing individuals, and persons with limited English proficiency. See Accessibility under Federal Award Administration Information for more information.

4. Compensate all project partners for their full level of effort, unless otherwise stated in the MOU/MOE. For more information on compensating project partners, see the sample Budget Detail Worksheet on the OVW website at https://www.justice.gov/ovw/resources-applicants.

5. Distinguish clearly between subawards and contracts in allocating any grant funds to other entities. Pursuant to 2 C.F.R. § 200.330, a subaward is for the purpose of carrying out a portion of the federal award, such as compensating an MOU partner, and a contract is for the purpose of obtaining goods and services for the grantee’s own use.

The substance of the relationship is more important than the form of the agreement in determining whether the recipient of the pass-through funds is a subrecipient or a contractor. The awarding and monitoring of contracts must follow the recipient’s documented procurement procedures, including full and open competition, pursuant to the procurement standards in 2 C.F.R. §§ 200.317-200.329. The issuance and monitoring of subawards must meet the requirements of 2 C.F.R. § 200.331, which includes oversight of subrecipient/partner spending and monitoring performance measures and outcomes attributable to grant funds. For more information, see the sample Budget Detail Worksheet and the Solicitation Companion Guide on the OVW website at https://www.justice.gov/ovw/resources-applicants.

OVW awards are governed by the provisions of 2 C.F.R. Part 200 and the DOJ Financial Guide, which include information on allowable costs, methods of payment, audit requirements, accounting systems, and financial records. For additional information on allowable and unallowable costs, go to the Funding Restrictions section of this solicitation and the sample Budget Detail Worksheet on the OVW website at https://www.justice.gov/ovw/resources-applicants.

Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) or Memorandum of Exemption (MOE) (20 Points Total) For purposes of this solicitation, the MOU is a document containing the terms of the partnership and the roles and responsibilities between two or more parties. The MOU is not a substitute for a subaward agreement, which ensures that subrecipients adhere to the requirements of the award and 2 C.F.R. Part 200 (see 2 C.F.R. § 200.331). Partners receiving funds under the award generally are considered subrecipients because they are carrying out a portion of the federal award.

The MOU must be a single document and must be signed and dated by the Authorized Representative of each proposed partner organization during the development of the application. MOUs missing signatures may result in a point deduction or removal from consideration, particularly if the MOU is missing the signature of a required partner. If necessary, an MOU can include multiple signature pages so long as each page includes the names and titles of all signatories to the MOU.

The MOU must clearly:

1. Identify the partners and provide a brief history of the collaborative relationship among those partners, including when and under what…