Welfare Reform Research, Evaluations and National Studies (93.595)

 

Program

93.595 Welfare Reform Research, Evaluations and National Studies

 

Federal Agency

ADMINISTRATION FOR CHILDREN AND FAMILIES, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

 

Authorization

Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, Section 413, Public Law 104-193, 42 U.S.C. 613, 613 note, and 710.

 

Program Number

93.595

 

Last Known Status

Active

 

Objectives

To support research on the benefits, effects, and costs of different welfare reform interventions; to fund studies such as on the effects of different programs on welfare dependency, illegitimacy, teen pregnancy, employment rates, child well-being, and related areas; to assist in the development and evaluation of innovative approaches for reducing welfare dependency and increasing the well-being of minor children in welfare families; and to study and analyze outcome measures for evaluating the success of the States in moving individuals out of the welfare system into employment.

 

Types of Assistance

Project Grants.

 

Uses and Use Restrictions

Grants, cooperative agreements, and contracts are awarded for innovative research, demonstrations, and evaluations that are responsive to the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) program priorities. All applications must meet standards of excellence in research, demonstration, or evaluation design.

 

Eligibility Requirements

Applicant Eligibility

Grants and cooperative agreements may be made to or with governmental entities, colleges, universities, nonprofit and for-profit organizations (if fee is waived). Contracts may be awarded to nonprofit or for-profit organizations. Grants or cooperative agreements cannot be made directly to individuals.

Beneficiary Eligibility

Needy individuals, children, and families will benefit.

Credentials/Documentation

Applicants must present written evidence of other agencies' willingness to cooperate when the project involves the use of other agencies, facilities, or services. Nonprofit organizations which have not previously received ACF program support must submit proof of nonprofit status. For State and local governments, costs will be determined in accordance with 45 CFR 92 and OMB Circular No. A-87. For other grantees, applicable costs and administrative procedures will be determined in accordance with 45 CFR Parts 74 and 92.

 

Application and Award Process

Preapplication Coordination

This program is eligible for coverage under E.O. 12372, "Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs." An applicant should consult the office or official designated as the single point of contact in his or her State for more information on the process the State requires to be followed in applying for assistance, if the State has selected the program for review.

Application Procedure

All information and forms required to prepare a grant or cooperative agreement application are published in the Federal Register unless restricted to State Agencies, in which case materials will be mailed directly. Copies of the program announcements may be available on the Internet or from the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation, ACF, 7th Floor, 370 L'Enfant Promenade, SW., Washington, D.C. 20447. All information needed to submit a proposal for a contract is provided through a Request for Proposal published in the Commerce Business Daily.

Award Procedure

Official notice of approved grant or cooperative agreement is made through issuance of a Financial Assistance Award. Official notice of an accepted contract proposal is made through award of a contract.

Deadlines

Deadlines for grants and cooperative agreements are announced in the Federal Register as part of the announcement or are mailed to State Agencies where applicants are limited to those agencies. Deadlines for requests for contract proposals are specified in the Commerce Business Daily as part of the solitation of proposals.

 

Range of Approval/Disapproval Time

Appeals

Appeals are processed in accordance with HHS regulations in 45 CFR Part 16.

Renewals

Extensions and continuations are available if formally applied for and approved. If an application is recommended for approval for 2 or more years, the grantee or contractor must submit each year a formal request for continuation accompanied by a progress report which will be evaluated prior to a recommendation of continuation.

 

Assistance Considerations

Formula and Matching Requirements

Grantees are generally required to share in the cost of projects. Cost sharing may range anywhere between 5 and 25 percent of the total approved project cost for grants or cooperative agreements. Contracts are not required to share in the project cost.

Length and Time Phasing of Assistance

Funds are granted on a 1- to 5-year basis, with support beyond the first year contingent upon acceptable evidence of satisfactory progress, continuing program relevance, and availability of funds.

 

Post Assistance Requirements

Reports

Reports of progress and expenditures are required on all projects. Comprehensive final reports are generally due within 90 days of completion of the project.

Audits

Audits are conducted in accordance with the requirements in 45 CFR 74 and 92.

Records

Proper accounting records, identifiable by grant or contract number and including all receipts and expenditures, must be maintained until all questions are resolved.

 

Program Accomplishments

In fiscal year 2002, 31 grants and 32 contracts were awarded. In fiscal years 2003 and 2004, grant and contract awards are expected in Compassion Capitol Fund, child welfare, welfare reform, evaluation of employment strategies (including job retention, advancement, and serving the hard-to-employ), family formation and strethening families/marriages.

 

Financial Information

Account Identification

75-1553-0-1-609.

Obligations

(Grants, Cooperative Agreements and Contracts) FY 02 $61,158,000; ($29,913,092 is allocated for Compassion Capital Fund); FY 03 est $69,482,410 ($34,772,500 is allocated for Compassion Capital Fund). (Note: The remaining $34,709,910 represents the total funding level jointly appropriated for two programs: 93.647, Social Services Research and Demonstration and 93.595, Welfare Reform Research, Evaluations and National Studies including $5,961,000 Public Health Services Evaluation funding) FY 04 est $127,000,000 ($100,000,000 is allocated for Compassion Capital Fund).

Range and Average of Financial Assistance

(Grants, Cooperative Agreements and Contracts) $10,000 to $2,000,000; $505,000.

 

Regulations, Guidelines and Literature

Guidelines and other information are published in the Federal Register and Commerce Business Daily.

 

Related Programs

93.558, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families; 93.647, Social Services Research and Demonstration; 93.648, Child Welfare Services Training Grants.

 

Information Contacts

Regional or Local Office

Contact the appropriate ACF Regional Administrator. (See Appendix IV of the Catalog for ACF Regional Offices.)

Headquarters Office

Karl Koerper, Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, Department of Health and Human Services, 7th Floor, Aerospace Building, 370 L'Enfant Promenade, SW., Washington, DC 20447. Telephone: (202) 401-4535. Use the same number for FTS. Fax: (202) 205-3598, E-Mail: KKOERPER@ACF.HHS.GOV.

Web Site Address

http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ofa

 

Examples of Funded Projects

See 93.647, Social Services Research and Demonstration, for examples of planned projects.

 

Criteria for Selecting Proposals

The criteria for selecting projects to be funded under this program are published in the grant or contract announcement.