[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 156 (Monday, August 12, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41936-41940]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-20534]
[[Page 41935]]
_______________________________________________________________________
Part VI
Department of Housing and Urban Development
_______________________________________________________________________
NOFA for Technical Assistance for the John Heinz Neighborhood
Development Program; Funding Availability for Fiscal Year 1996; Notice
Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 156 / Monday, August 12, 1996 /
Notices
[[Page 41936]]
DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
[Docket No. FR-4011-N-01]
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and
Development; NOFA for Technical Assistance for the John Heinz
Neighborhood Development Program
AGENCY: Office of the Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and
Development, HUD.
ACTION: Notice of funding availability for FY 1996.
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SUMMARY: This NOFA announces the availability of $132,978 for technical
assistance funding under the John Heinz Neighborhood Development
Program. These funds are to be used to provide Technical Assistance to
eligible neighborhood development organizations.
In the body of this NOFA is information concerning:
(a) The purpose and background of the NOFA, and the funding level
provided through this NOFA;
(b) Eligible applicants and activities, factors for award and
statutory and cooperative agreement requirements; and
(c) The application requirements and steps involved in the
application process.
DATES: Completed applications must be submitted no later than 4:30 p.m.
Eastern Time on September 11, 1996. HUD reserves the right to extend
the deadline date through notification in the Federal Register. In the
interest of fairness to all competing applicants, an application will
be treated as ineligible for consideration if it is not physically
received by the deadline date and hour. Applicants should take this
requirement into account and make early submission of their materials
to avoid any risk of losing eligibility brought about by unanticipated
delays or other delivery related problems.
ADDRESSES: Completed applications (one original and two copies) should
be submitted to: Processing and Control Branch, Office of Community
Planning and Development, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban
Development, 451 Seventh Street, SW, Room 7251, Washington, DC 20410,
by mail or hand-delivery. When submitting your application, please
refer to FR-4011, and include your name, mailing address (including zip
code), and telephone number. HUD, however, will not accept faxed
applications.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ophelia H. Wilson or Stella Hall,
Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Grant Programs, Office of
Community Planning and Development, U.S. Department of Housing and
Urban Development, 451 Seventh Street, SW, Room 7220, Washington, DC
20410; telephone (202) 708-2186. (This is not a toll-free number.) For
hearing- and speech-impaired persons, this number may be accessed via
TTY (text telephone) by calling the Federal Information Relay Service
at 1-800-877-8339. However, written inquiries are preferred and may be
mailed or faxed to: (202) 708-3363.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Paperwork Reduction Act Statement
The information collection requirements contained in this notice
have been submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for a
temporary extension of the control number, in accordance with the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520) and 5 CFR
1320.13. A notice requesting public comment on this extension will be
published in the Federal Register. When assigned, the OMB control
number will be published by a separate notice in the Federal Register.
An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to
respond to, a collection of information unless the collection displays
a valid control number.
I. Background; Purpose; Authority; Amount Allocated
(A) Background
The purpose of the John Heinz Neighborhood Development Program
(NDP) is to support eligible neighborhood development activities using
cooperative efforts and monetary contributions from local sources. The
Federal funds are incentive funds to promote neighborhood development
initiatives and to encourage neighborhood organizations to become more
self-sufficient in their development activities. The objectives of the
program are: (1) To help neighborhood development organizations
increase their capacities to carry out larger or more complex
activities, in cooperation with private and public institutions; and
(2) to assist neighborhood development organizations to achieve long-
term financial support for their activities. The activities must
benefit low-income persons within the neighborhood.
This program is also designed to help neighborhood development
organizations address the needs of their neighborhood while furthering
the following HUD values:
--A Commitment to Community;
--A Commitment to Support Families;
--A Commitment to Economic Lift;
--A Commitment to Reciprocity and to Balancing Individual Rights and
Responsibilities; and
--A Commitment to Reducing the Separations by Race and Income in
American Life.
(B) Purpose
The purpose of this NOFA is to obtain contractor services to
provide technical assistance to nonprofit neighborhood-based
organizations to assist them in:
(1) Making better use of available resources by coordinating the
delivery of services and programs available;
(2) Developing strategic plans for the physical and economic
revitalization of local neighborhoods;
(3) Coordinating the delivery of social and human services to
bolster the physical and economic revitalization that is occurring, or
is proposed to occur, in local neighborhoods;
(4) Designing and implementing programs to maintain, rehabilitate
and construct affordable housing; create small business development
opportunities; work with employers to create job and job training
opportunities; create or support stay-in-school and youth mentoring
programs; and
(5) Plan, promote or finance neighborhood improvement efforts.
(C) Authority
Section 123 of the Housing and Urban-Rural Recovery Act of 1983 (42
U.S.C 5318 note) (Section 123) authorized the John Heinz Neighborhood
Development Program. The program is governed by regulations contained
in 24 CFR part 594.
(D) Amount Allocated
This NOFA announces the availability of $132,978 from the John
Heinz Neighborhood Development Program to provide technical assistance
(TA) to nonprofit neighborhood-based development organizations. A
Cooperative Agreement will be for a period of up to 12 months. However,
HUD reserves the right to terminate the award in accordance with
provisions contained in OMB Circulars A-102, A-110, and 24 CFR part 85
any time after 6 months.
In cases where an applicant selected for funding under this NOFA
currently is providing TA under an existing HUD Office of Community
Planning and Development (CPD) TA grant/cooperative agreement, HUD
reserves the right to adjust the start date of funding under this NOFA
to coincide
[[Page 41937]]
with the conclusion of the previous award, or to incorporate the
remaining activities from the previous award into the new agreement,
adjusting the funding levels as necessary.
(E) General Program Requirements
(1) Statutory Requirements. Applicants must comply with any
applicable statutory and regulatory requirements under the John Heinz
Neighborhood Development Program (42 U.S.C. 5138 note and 24 CFR part
594).
(2) Profit/Fee. No increment above cost and no fee or profit may be
paid to any recipient or subrecipient of an award under this NOFA.
(This is in accordance with paragraph 2.19(e) in HUD Handbook 2210.17
(Rev. 2, January 23, 1992).)
(3) Statement of Work. After selection for funding, but prior to
award, the applicant must ensure that any deletions, additions, or
enhancement to the Statement of Work submitted in the application are
incorporated into the approved grant, including details of how the
approved Statement of Work will be accomplished. Following a task-by-
task format, the approved Statement of Work must:
(a) Delineate the tasks and sub-tasks. Indicate the sequence in
which the tasks are to be performed, noting areas of work that must be
performed simultaneously.
(b) Identify specific numbers of quantifiable end products and
program improvements the TA provider aims to deliver by the end of the
cooperative agreement period.
(4) Certifications and Assurances. After selection for funding, but
prior to award, the applicant must submit signed copies of the
following Assurances and Certifications:
(a) Drug-Free Workplace Certification;
(b) Certification Regarding Lobbying; Applicant/Recipient
Disclosure Update Report;
(c) Certification and Disclosure Regarding Payments to Influence
Certain Federal Transactions (where applicable).
(5) Project Management and Staff Allocation Plan. After selection
for funding, but prior to award, the applicant must submit a Project
Management and Staff Allocation Plan for carrying out the activities
proposed in the Statement of Work. The Project Management and Staff
Allocation Plan submission should cover the proposed period of
performance.
(6) Financial Management and Audit Information. After selection for
funding, but prior to award, the applicant must submit a certification
from an Independent Public Accountant or the cognizant government
auditor, stating that the financial management system employed by the
applicant meets prescribed standards for fund control and
accountability required by OMB Circular A-110 for Institutions of
Higher Education and other Non-Profit Institutions, and OMB Circular A-
133 for other nonprofit organizations. The information should include
the name and telephone number of the independent auditor, cognizant
Federal auditor, or other audit agency as applicable.
(7) Demand/Response Delivery System. An awardee must operate within
the structure of the demand/response system described in this section
of the NOFA. The awardee must also coordinate its plan with the HUD
Headquarters Government Technical Representative (GTR) and each Field
Office within whose jurisdictions the awardee is operating, when
applicable.
Under the demand/response system, the TA provider will be required
to:
(a) Market the availability of their services to existing grantees
and other eligible participants.
(b) Obtain approval for the technical assistance delivery plan from
the HUD Headquarters Government Technical Representative with oversight
for the Cooperative Agreement.
(c) Work cooperatively with other TA providers to ensure that
clients are provided with the full range of TA services needed and
available. TA providers are expected to be knowledgeable about the
range of services available from other providers; make referrals and
arrange visits by other TA providers, when appropriate; and carry out
TA activities concurrently, when it is cost-effective and in the
interests of the client to do so. HUD may direct the TA provider to
conduct joint activities.
(d) When conducting training sessions as part of its TA activities,
the provider will be expected to:
(1) Make provision for professional videotaping of the workshops/
courses as directed by the GTR and ensure their production in a
professional and high-quality manner suitable for viewing by other CPD
clients; and
(2) Design the course materials as step-in packages, so that a
Field Office or other TA provider may separately give the course on its
own; and arrange for joint delivery of the training with Field Office
participation when so requested by the HUD Headquarters GTR or the
Field Office.
(e) Report to the HUD Headquarters GTR with oversight for the
Cooperative Agreement. At a minimum, this reporting shall be on a
quarterly basis, unless otherwise specified in the approved TA action
plan.
(f) When approved or requested by HUD Headquarters, HUD Field
Offices staff will serve as active participants in the delivery of
technical assistance by funded providers, serving in such roles as
Cooperative Agreement Officers, GTRs, Coordinators, etc., as needed.
II. Eligible Applicants
An eligible applicant must meet the criteria listed below:
All applicant organizations must have demonstrated experience in
providing technical assistance in a geographic area larger than a
single city or county and must propose to serve an area larger than a
single city or county.
A consortium of organizations may apply but HUD will require that
one organization be designated as the legal applicant, where legally
feasible. Where one organization cannot be so designated for all
proposed activities, HUD may execute more than one cooperative
agreement with the members of a consortium.
The TA provider may propose assistance using in-house staff,
consultants, subcontractors and subrecipients, and networks of private
consultants or local organizations with requisite experience and
capabilities. Whenever possible, applicants should make use of
technical assistance providers located in the Field Office
jurisdictions receiving services. This draws upon local expertise and
persons familiar with the opportunities and resources available in the
area to be served, while reducing travel and other costs associated
with delivering the proposed technical assistance services.
Eligible applicants may be:
(1) Public and private nonprofit or for-profit groups, including
educational institutions qualified to provide technical assistance on
the John Heinz Neighborhood Development Program; or
(2) Public and private nonprofit intermediary organizations that
provide services (in more than one community) to neighborhood
development organizations to support neighborhood development or social
or economic community revitalization efforts. An intermediary will be
considered as a primarily single-State technical assistance provider if
it can document that more than 50 percent of its past activities in
working with nonprofit and other organizations on neighborhood
revitalization efforts (production of housing, social service delivery,
job creation, or job training, or revitalization of deteriorating
neighborhoods), or delivery of technical assistance to these
[[Page 41938]]
groups, was confined to the geographic limits of a single State.
III. Eligible Activities
Funding under this NOFA is available to provide technical
assistance to eligible neighborhood development organizations to plan,
develop, administer, implement, and evaluate eligible activities (see
24 CFR 594.10), or to coordinate effectively eligible activities with
other federally, State-, locally, or privately funded community
development activities.
IV. Factors for Award
(A) Rating Factors. Applicants will be evaluated competitively and
ranked against all other applicants that have applied. The factors and
maximum points for each factor are provided below. The maximum number
of points is 100.
Rating of the ``applicant'' or the ``applicant's organization and
staff,'' unless otherwise specified, will include any subcontractors,
consultants, subrecipients, and members of consortia that are firmly
committed to the project.
1. Potential effectiveness of the application in meeting the needs
of nonprofit neighborhood-based development organizations (40 points).
In rating this factor, HUD will consider the extent to which the
proposal:
(a) Identifies high priority needs and issues to be addressed.
(b) Outlines a clear and effective plan for addressing those needs.
(c) Identifies creative and promising ways to assist organizations
in carrying out eligible program activities.
(d) Identifies specific numbers of quantifiable end-products and
services the TA provider aims to deliver by the end of the cooperative
agreement period to assist nonprofit neighborhood organizations build
capacity (e.g., number of organizations that will build capacity
through leveraging resources both outside of and within the community
and through the development of new partnerships with national
foundations, nonprofit corporations, public and private organizations,
and local or State governments, to find feasible ways to obtain
resources to support their neighborhood revitalization efforts), and
identifies the number of organizations that will be linked with a
national technical assistance provider to receive further technical
assistance.
2. Soundness of approach (20 points). In rating this factor, HUD
will consider the extent to which the proposal:
(a) Provides a cost-effective plan for designing, organizing, and
carrying out the proposed technical assistance within the established
budget and time frames.
(b) Demonstrates an effective and creative plan for working with
other TA providers in each Field Office jurisdiction in which the
applicant will operate.
3. Capacity of the applicant and relevant organizational experience
(30 points). In rating this factor, HUD will consider the extent to
which the proposal demonstrates:
(a) Recent, relevant, and successful experience of the applicant's
organization and staff in providing technical assistance to nonprofit
neighborhood-based (grassroots) organizations.
(b) The experience and competence of key personnel in managing
complex, multi-faceted or multi-disciplinary programs that required
coordination with other TA entities.
(c) The applicant has a working knowledge of, and established
relationships with, key public bodies and private organizations
involved in CPD programs nationally.
(d) The applicant has sufficient personnel or access to qualified
experts or professionals to deliver the proposed level of technical
assistance in a timely and effective fashion.
4. Transferability of results (10 points). In rating this factor,
HUD will consider the extent to which the applicant proposes a
feasible, creative plan that uses state of the art technology to
transfer models and lessons learned to clients in other HUD programs.
(B) Selection Process. Once scores are assigned, all applications
will be listed in rank order. Regardless of final scores, HUD may apply
the following criteria to select a provider and projects that would
best serve program objectives: geographic distribution; and diversity
of methods, approaches, or kinds of projects. HUD will select a
provider that brings expertise in one or more specialized activity
area, to strengthen or supplement the intermediary network in terms of
the location (service area), types, and scope of technical assistance
provided.
V. Application Process
All information and forms needed to complete and submit an
application under this NOFA are contained in the NOFA, except for
Standard Form SF 424 and SF 424B. These forms are available from HUD by
faxing a request to Ophelia H. Wilson or Stella Hall (fax: (202) 708-
3363; or see Section VI of this NOFA for instructions for obtaining the
SF 424 forms).
The address for submitting an application is: Processing and
Control Branch, Room 7251, Office of Community Planning and
Development, Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 Seventh
Street, SW, Washington, DC 20410. In submitting your application,
please refer to FR-4011 and include your name, mailing address
(including zip code), and telephone number. The completed application
(one original and 2 copies) must be physically received by the
Processing and Control Branch, at the above address, no later than 4:30
p.m. Eastern Time on September 11, 1996. HUD reserves the right to
extend the deadline date through notification in the Federal Register.
HUD will not accept faxed applications. Applications not meeting the
format requirements identified in Section VI of this NOFA, Application
Submission Requirements, will not be considered for funding.
All applications should be sent to HUD's Washington, DC,
Headquarters Office. Only applications that are received on time will
receive funding consideration.
VI. Application Submission Requirements
All applicants must submit applications on 8 1/2'' by 11'' paper,
bound in looseleaf binders for easy photocopying. All pages and
attachments must be numbered consecutively, in arabic numbers. No tabs
or fold-out sheets will be permitted. Items not meeting these
specifications will not be reproduced and distributed for review.
Applications must use the following format and contain the following
items:
(1) Transmittal Letter.
(2) OMB Standard Form 424, Request for Federal Assistance and
Standard Form 424B, Non-Construction Assurances, signed by a person
legally authorized to enter into an agreement with the Department. Fax
requests for Standard Forms 424 and 424B to Ophelia Wilson or Stella
Hall at (202) 708-3363 (this is not a toll-free number).
(3) A Statement of Work that incorporates all activities to be
funded in the application and details how the proposed work will be
accomplished. Following a task-by-task format, the Statement of Work
must:
(a) Delineate the tasks and sub-tasks involved and how the tasks
meet the Factors for Award. Indicate the sequence in which the tasks
are to be performed, noting areas of work that must be performed
simultaneously.
(b) Identify specific numbers of quantifiable end-products and
program improvements the TA provider aims to
[[Page 41939]]
deliver by the end of the cooperative agreement period.
(4) Narrative statement addressing the Factors for Award in Section
IV of this NOFA. The narrative response should be numbered in
accordance with each factor for award identified under Section IV.
(5) Budget-by-task for which funds are requested.
(6) Summary Budget identifying costs by cost category, in
accordance with the following:
(i) Direct Labor by position or individual, indicating the
estimated hours per position, the rate per hour, estimated cost per
staff position, and the total estimated direct labor costs;
(ii) Fringe Benefits by staff position identifying the rate, the
salary base the rate was computed on, estimated cost per position, and
the total estimated fringe benefit cost;
(iii) Material Costs indicating the item, unit cost per item, the
number of items to be purchased, estimated cost per item, and the total
estimated material costs;
(iv) Transportation Costs. Where air transportation is proposed,
costs should identify each destination, number of trips per
destination, estimated air fare, and total estimated air transportation
costs. If other transportation costs are listed, the applicant should
identify the other method of transportation selected, the number of
trips to be made to each destination, the estimated cost, and the total
estimated costs for other transportation costs. In addition, applicants
should identify per diem or subsistence costs per travel day on the
number of travel days included, the estimated costs for per diem/
subsistence, and the total estimated transportation costs;
(v) Equipment Charges, if any. Equipment charges should identify
the type of equipment, quantity, unit costs, and total estimated
equipment costs;
(vi) Consultant Costs. Indicate the type, estimated number of
consultant days, rate per day, total estimated consultant costs per
consultant, and total estimated costs for all consultants;
(vii) Subcontract Costs. Indicate each individual subcontract and
amount. Each proposed subcontract should include a separate budget that
identifies costs by cost categories;
(viii) Other Direct Costs listed by item, quantity, unit cost,
total for each item listed, and the total direct costs for the award;
(ix) Indirect Costs, identifying the type of cost, approved
indirect cost rate, base to which the rate applies, and total indirect
costs.
These line items should total the amount requested. The submission
should include the rationale used to determine costs and validation of
fringe and indirect cost rates.
Corrections to Deficient Applications
Applicants will have 14 calendar days from the date HUD notifies
the applicant of any technical deficiency to submit the appropriate
information in writing to HUD. Notification of a technical deficiency
shall be made in writing. Technical deficiencies relate only to items
that would not improve the substantive quality of the application
relative to the ranking factors such as a failure to submit a required
certification.
VII. Other Matters
Environmental Review
A Finding of No Significant Impact with respect to the environment
has been made in accordance with HUD regulations in 24 CFR part 50 that
implement section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act of
1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332). The finding is available for public inspection
during regular business hours in the Office of the General Counsel,
Rules Docket Clerk, Room 10276, 451 Seventh Street, SW, Washington, DC
20410. This NOFA funds only technical assistance; therefore, awards
under this NOFA are categorically excluded from environmental
assessment under the National Environmental Policy Act and are not
subject to environmental review under related environmental laws and
authorities, in accordance with 24 CFR 50.20(b) and 50.19(g),
respectively, of the HUD regulations.
Federalism
The General Counsel, as the Designated Official under section 6(a)
of the Executive Order 12612, Federalism, has determined that the
policies contained in this notice will not have substantial direct
effects on States or their political subdivisions, or the relationship
between the Federal government and the States, or on the distribution
of power and responsibilities among the various levels of government.
As a result, the notice is not subject to review under the Order. The
notice merely announces funding for the provision of technical
assistance services to nonprofit neighborhood-based development
organizations.
Impact on the Family
The General Counsel, as the Designated Official under Executive
Order 12606, The Family, has determined that this notice will have a
beneficial, although indirect, impact on family formation, maintenance,
and general well-being. The technical assistance provided as a result
of an award under this NOFA will promote the ability of eligible
applicants to meet the requirements and program objectives of the
program. Accordingly, since the impact on the family is beneficial and
indirect, no further review is considered necessary.
Documentation and Public Access Requirements; Applicant/Recipient
Disclosures: HUD Reform Act
Documentation and public access requirements. Pursuant to Section
102 of the Department of Housing and Urban Development Reform Act of
1989 (42 U.S.C. 3537a) (HUD Reform Act), HUD will ensure that
documentation and other information regarding each application
submitted pursuant to this NOFA are sufficient to indicate the basis
upon which assistance was provided or denied. This material, including
any letters of support, will be made available for public inspection
for a 5-year period beginning not less than 30 days after the award of
the assistance. Materials will be made available in accordance with the
Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552) and HUD's implementing
regulations at 24 CFR part 15. In addition, HUD will include the
recipients of assistance pursuant to this NOFA in a Federal Register
notice of recipients of HUD assistance awarded on a competitive basis.
(See section 102 and 24 CFR part 4, subpart A, as published on April 1,
1996 (61 FR 14448).)
Disclosures. HUD will make available to the public for 5 years all
applicant disclosure reports (HUD Form 2880) submitted in connection
with this NOFA. Update reports (also Form 2880) will be made available
along with the applicant disclosure reports, but in no case for a
period less than 3 years. All reports--both applicant disclosures and
updates--will be made available in accordance with the Freedom of
Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552) and HUD's implementing regulations at 24
CFR part 15.
Prohibition Against Advance Information on Funding Decisions
HUD's regulation implementing section 103 of the Department of
Housing and Urban Development Reform Act of 1989 (42 U.S.C. 3537a)
(Reform Act), codified as 24 CFR part 4, applies to the funding
competition announced today. The requirements of the rule continue to
apply until the
[[Page 41940]]
announcement of the selection of successful applicants.
HUD employees involved in the review of applications and in the
making of funding decisions are restrained by part 4 from providing
advance information to any person (other than an authorized employee of
HUD) concerning funding decisions, or from otherwise giving any
applicant an unfair competitive advantage. Persons who apply for
assistance in this competition should confine their inquiries to the
subject areas permitted under 24 CFR part 4.
Applicants or employees who have ethics-related questions should
contact the HUD Office of Ethics (202) 708-3815 (TDD/Voice) (this is
not a toll-free number). Any HUD employee who has specific program
questions, such as whether particular subject matter can be discussed
with persons outside the Department, should contact the appropriate
Field Office Counsel or Headquarters counsel for the program to which
the question pertains.
Prohibition Against Lobbying Activities
The use of funds awarded under this NOFA is subject to the
disclosure requirements and prohibitions of section 319 of the
Department of Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for
Fiscal Year 1990 (31 U.S.C. 1352) (the ``Byrd Amendment'') and the
implementing regulations at 24 CFR part 87. These authorities prohibit
recipients of Federal contracts, grants or loans from using
appropriated funds for lobbying the Executive or Legislative branches
of the federal government in connection with a specific contract, grant
or loan. The prohibition also covers the awarding of contracts, grants,
cooperative agreements, or loans unless the applicant has made an
acceptable certification regarding lobbying.
Under 24 CFR part 87, applicants, recipients, and subrecipients of
assistance exceeding $100,000 must certify that no federal funds have
been or will be spent on lobbying activities in connection with the
assistance.
The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance program number is
14.242.
Dated: July 31, 1996.
Andrew Cuomo,
Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development.
[FR Doc. 96-20534 Filed 8-7-96; 5:00 pm]
BILLING CODE 4210-29-P
