[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 199 (Friday, October 16, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53324-53329]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-24861]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Community Development Financial Institutions Fund
Funding Opportunity Title: Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA)
inviting applications for the FY 2009 funding round of the Financial
Education and Counseling (FEC) Pilot Program.
Announcement Type: Announcement of funding opportunity.
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 21.010.
DATES: Applications for financial assistance through the FY 2009
funding round of FEC Pilot Program must be received by 5 p.m. Eastern
Time (ET), November 19, 2009.
Executive Summary: This NOFA is issued in connection with the FY
2009 funding round of the FEC Pilot Program. Through the FEC Pilot
Program, the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (the
CDFI Fund) shall provide grants to Eligible Organizations to provide a
range of Financial Education and Counseling Services to Prospective
Homebuyers. The goals of grants that are awarded through the FEC Pilot
Program are to identify successful methods of Financial Education and
Counseling Services that result in Positive Behavioral Change for
financial empowerment, and to establish program models for
organizations to implement measurably effective Financial Education and
Counseling Services to Prospective Homebuyers.
I. Funding Opportunity Description
A. Through the FEC Pilot Program, authorized pursuant to Section
1132 of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (Pub. L. 110-
289), the CDFI Fund provides financial assistance awards to Eligible
Organizations to provide a range of Financial Education and Counseling
Services to Prospective Homebuyers.
B. Definitions: For the purposes of this NOFA, the following terms
shall have the following definitions:
1. Act means section 1132(c) of the Housing and Economic Recovery
Act of 2008 (Pub. L. 110-289).
2. Affiliate means any company or entity that Controls, is
Controlled by, or is under common Control with another company.
3. Applicant means any Eligible Organization.
4. Application means the CDFI Fund's funding application form,
including any written or verbal information in connection therewith and
any attachments, appendices and/or written or verbal supplements
thereto, submitted by the Awardee to the CDFI Fund in response to this
NOFA.
5. Assistance Agreement means the formal agreement between the CDFI
Fund and an Awardee that includes the terms and conditions of the FEC
Pilot Program award.
6. Awardee means an Applicant selected by the CDFI Fund to receive
an FEC Pilot Program grant.
7. Collaborative Effort means a joint effort by two or more
Eligible Organizations to carry out Financial Education and Counseling
Services to Prospective Homebuyers, as described in the Application and
as evidenced by a written agreement among the entities for the
Performance Period. The Collaborative Effort must designate the entity
that will serve as the primary FEC Pilot Program point of contact for
the CDFI Fund, and that will serve as signatory to the Assistance
Agreement, receive and allocate award disbursements, and report on
behalf of the collaborative.
8. Community Development Financial Institution (or CDFI) means an
entity certified as a CDFI by the CDFI Fund pursuant to the CDFI
Program regulations set forth at 12 CFR 1805.201.
9. Control means: (i) Ownership, control, or power to vote 25
percent or more of the outstanding shares of any class of voting
securities of any company, directly or indirectly or acting through one
or more other persons; (ii) control in any manner over the election of
a majority of the directors, trustees, or general partners (or
individuals exercising similar functions) of any company; or (iii) the
power to exercise, directly or indirectly, a controlling influence over
the management, credit or investment decisions, or policies of any
company.
10. Credit Union means any credit union that is: (i) Regulated by,
and/or the member accounts of which are insured by, a State agency or
instrumentality; or (ii) a cooperative association organized in
accordance with provisions of the Federal Credit Union Act, chapter 14
of title 12 of the United States Code (12 U.S.C. 1751).
11. Eligible Organization means an entity that: (i) Is certified by
the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) as Housing
Counseling Agencies, in accordance with section 106(e)(1) of the
Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968 (12 U.S.C. 1701x(e)) or is
certified by the Office of Financial Education (OFE) of the Department
of the Treasury, in accordance with section 1132(c)(2) of the Act; and
(ii) meets the minimum threshold requirements, as specified in Section
III(b)(2) of this NOFA, necessary to demonstrate that it has the
experience and ability to provide Financial Education and Counseling
Services to Prospective Homebuyers that result in documented Positive
Behavioral Changes.
12. Financial Education and Counseling Pilot Program (or FEC Pilot
Program) means the program created pursuant to the Act, as implemented
through this NOFA.
13. Financial Education and Counseling Services means activities
that increase the financial knowledge and decision-making capabilities
of Prospective Homebuyers. Such education and counseling services shall
prepare or assist Prospective Homebuyers to develop monthly budgets,
build personal savings, finance or plan for major purchases, reduce
personal debt, improve financial stability, and set and reach financial
goals. Such services may include: Helping Prospective Homebuyers to
improve their credit scores by understanding the relationship between
credit histories and credit scores; and educating Prospective
Homebuyers about the options available to build savings for short- and
long-term goals.
14. HUD Housing Counseling Agency means an entity that is currently
certified and maintains its certified status in accordance with section
106(e)(1) of the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968 (12 U.S.C.
1701x(e)) through the Performance Period.
15. Intermediary Organization means an Eligible Organization whose
strategy for delivering Financial Education and Counseling services to
Prospective Homebuyers is to provide support, through financial or
technical assistance, to other organizations that will, in turn,
provide Financial Education and Counseling services directly to
Prospective Homebuyers.
16. Local government means a city, town, township, county, parish,
village, or other general purpose political subdivision of a State or
Federal Territory, or a general purpose political subdivision thereof
that is established pursuant to legislation and designated by the chief
executive to act on behalf of the jurisdiction.
17. Low-income means a family or individual income that does not
exceed 50 percent of the median income of the area in which they
reside, as determined by the Secretary of Housing and Urban
[[Page 53325]]
Development, with adjustments for smaller and larger families pursuant
to section 102(a)(20) of the Housing and Community Development Act, the
pertinent provisions of which are codified at 42 U.S.C. 5302(a)(20).
18. Low-wealth means a Net Worth below the national median as
defined by the Federal Reserve Board's most recently published Survey
of Consumer Finances. For more information concerning the Survey of
Consumer Finances, please refer to http://www.federalreserve.gov/pubs/oss/oss2/scfindex.html.
19. Moderate-income means a family or individual income that
exceeds 50 percent, but does not exceed 80 percent, of the median
income of the area in which they reside, as determined by the Secretary
of Housing and Urban Development, with adjustments for smaller and
larger families pursuant to section 102(a)(20) of the Housing and
Community Development Act, the pertinent provisions of which are
codified at 42 U.S.C. 5302(a)(20).
20. Net Worth means assets less liabilities.
21. Performance Period means the period beginning with the
effective date of the Assistance Agreement and includes an Awardee's
three full consecutive fiscal years after such effective date, during
which the Awardee must meet performance goals set forth in the
Assistance Agreement, or such other period as may be established by the
CDFI Fund.
22. Positive Behavioral Changes means changes in activities,
especially measurable changes, reflecting increased financial knowledge
(what consumers know) and management skills (what consumers do). Such
changes include, but are not limited to, increasing savings, engaging
in short- or long-term financial planning, tracking expenses and
income, and better managing credit.
23. Prospective Homebuyer means an individual of at least 18 years
of age who, at the time of initial receipt of Financial Education and
Counseling Services funded in whole or in part through an award under
the FEC Pilot Program: (i) Is Low-Income, Moderate-Income, and/or Low-
Wealth; and (ii) does not currently own, hold title to, or pay a
mortgage on a residence.
24. State government means any State of the United States, the
District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or any Federal
territory, or any agency or instrumentality thereof that is established
pursuant to legislation and designated by the chief executive officer
to act on behalf of the jurisdiction.
25. Subsidiary means any company which is owned or Controlled
directly or indirectly by another company.
26. Tribal government means a unit of local government that is
established to act on behalf of Native American, Alaskan Native, and
Native Hawaiian people, or is a political subdivision that is
designated by the chief executive of the jurisdiction to act on behalf
of the rights associated with residents of a federally recognized
Indian Reservation or of Hawaiian Home Lands as defined by the Hawaiian
Homes Commission Act (42 Stat. 108) or members of corporations
designated under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C.
1601).
II. Award Information
A. Funding Availability: Through this NOFA, the CDFI Fund expects
that it will award not more than five grants in the aggregate amount of
$2 million in FY 2009 appropriated funds. The CDFI Fund expects that
each FEC Pilot Program grant will be made in the amount of $400,000;
and accordingly, each Applicant is required to apply for a grant in the
amount of $400,000. However, the CDFI Fund reserves the right to
provide any grant in an amount other than $400,000 or in an amount
other than that which the Applicant requests. The CDFI Fund reserves
the right to fund, in whole or in part, any, all, or none of the
applications submitted in response to this NOFA.
B. Detailed Application content requirements are found in the FEC
Pilot Program Application and related guidance materials.
C. The primary purposes of the FEC Pilot Program are: (i) To
identify successful methods of Financial Education and Counseling
Services that result in Positive Behavioral Changes for financial
empowerment of Prospective Homebuyers; and (ii) to establish program
models for organizations to implement measurably effective Financial
Education and Counseling Services to Prospective Homebuyers.
D. To achieve such purposes, the CDFI Fund will award FEC Pilot
Program grants to Eligible Organizations that provide Financial
Education and Counseling Services to Prospective Homebuyers with the
goals of: (i) Increasing the financial knowledge and decision-making
capabilities of Prospective Homebuyers; (ii) assisting Prospective
Homebuyers to develop monthly budgets, build personal savings, finance
or plan for major purchases, reduce personal debt, improve financial
stability, and set and reach financial goals; (iii) helping Prospective
Homebuyers to improve their credit scores by understanding the
relationship between credit histories and credit scores; and (iv)
educating Prospective Homebuyers about the options available to build
savings for short- and long-term goals.
E. Awardees will be selected based upon factors which include, but
are not limited to, their experience and ability to provide Financial
Education and Counseling Services to Prospective Homebuyers which
result in documented Positive Behavioral Changes (see Section V. B.--
C., below, for Criteria and Review and Selection Process).
F. Uses of Funds: In general, eligible uses of FEC Pilot Program
awards include all allowable expenses as defined by Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-122, ``Cost Principles For Non-
Profit Organizations,'' and OMB Circular A-87, ``Cost Principles for
State, Local, and Indian Tribal Governments,'' related to the
administration, operation, and implementation of a Financial Education
and Counseling Services program. For example, eligible uses may
include, but are not limited to, the following:
1. Personnel (Salary): An Awardee may use FEC Pilot Program grant
funds to cover the salary paid currently or accrued for services
rendered by permanent or temporary staff in carrying out a distinct
project or for a set period during the Performance Period. The CDFI
Fund will only cover salary for duties that are related to the purpose
of the award. Compensation paid for employees engaged in activities
funded with a FEC Pilot Program grant must be consistent with that paid
for similar work for other Awardee employees.
2. Personnel (Fringe Benefits): An Awardee may use FEC Pilot
Program grant funds to cover the fringe benefits paid currently or
accrued for services rendered by permanent or temporary staff in
carrying out a distinct project or for a set period during the
Performance Period. Fringe benefits are for personnel listed in
Personnel (Salary) and only for the percentage of time devoted to the
FEC Pilot Program-related activities during the Performance Period.
Fringe benefits on overtime hours are limited to FICA, Workman's
Compensation, and Unemployment Compensation. Fringe benefits provided
to employees engaged in activities funded with a FEC Pilot Program
grant must be consistent with that paid for similar work for other
Awardee employees.
3. Professional Service Costs (Consulting and Contracts): An
Awardee may use FEC Pilot Program grant funds to acquire external
expertise that will
[[Page 53326]]
directly further the purposes and activities of its Financial Education
and Counseling Services.
4. Materials and Supplies: An Awardee may use FEC Grant Program
grant funds to purchase supplies and/or to produce materials that will
directly further the purposes and activities of its Financial Education
and Counseling Services. Generally, supplies include any materials that
are expended or consumed over time.
5. Equipment and Other Capital Expenditures: An Awardee may use FEC
Pilot Program grant funds to acquire new equipment or to enhance
existing equipment that will directly further the purposes and
activities of its Financial Education and Counseling Services.
6. Other Program Expenses: An Awardee may use FEC Pilot Program
grant funds to cover other direct expenses allowable under OMB Circular
A-122 and OMB Circular A-87, including direct payments made to the
recipients of the Awardee's Financial Education and Counseling Services
(e.g., contributions to a matched savings account; compensation for
participating in follow-on surveys; reimbursement for expenses
associated with attending training sessions; etc.). For all other costs
outlined in OMB Circular A-122 and OMB Circular A-87, the Awardee must
demonstrate to the satisfaction of the CDFI Fund that the activity will
be directly linked to its Financial Education and Counseling Services.
Awardees are expected to use a portion of FEC Pilot Program grant funds
to finance costs related to evaluating the impact of the Financial
Education and Counseling Services on the financial knowledge, and
change of skills and behavior, of Prospective Homebuyers. Such uses may
include development and implementation of assessment tools, including
both short-term and longitudinal assessments, and other research on
effectiveness of particular program activities.
7. Indirect Costs: An Awardee may use no more than fifteen percent
(15%) of FEC Pilot Program grant funds to cover indirect expenses
allowable under OMB Circular A-122 and OMB Circular A-87.
G. FEC Pilot Program grant funds must be used to support the
Awardee's activities: grant funds cannot be used to support the
activities of, or otherwise be ``passed through'' to third-party
entities, including Affiliates or Subsidiaries, without the prior
written permission of the CDFI Fund. Notwithstanding this general
prohibition against passing through funds to other entities,
Intermediary Organizations shall be permitted to apply for FEC Pilot
Program grant funds in furtherance of their strategy to support other
providers of Financial Education and Counseling Services to Prospective
Homebuyers, provided that such funds are not used to provide financial
or technical assistance to any other organization (or its Affiliates)
that receives a FEC Pilot Program grant through the FY 2009 funding
round.
H. Assistance Agreement: Each Awardee under this NOFA must sign an
Assistance Agreement in order to receive a disbursement of award
proceeds from the CDFI Fund. The Assistance Agreement contains the
terms and conditions of the award. For further information, see Section
VI.A. of this NOFA.
III. Eligibility Information
A. Eligible Applicants: An Applicant must be an Eligible
Organization in order to be eligible to receive an FEC Pilot Program
award. In addition, as described further below, in order to be deemed
eligible for an FEC Pilot Program award, an Eligible Organization must
demonstrate that it meets certain minimum threshold requirements with
respect to its experience and ability to provide Financial Education
and Counseling Services to Prospective Homebuyers that result in
documented Positive Behavioral Changes.
1. Eligibility Specifications:
(a) HUD Housing Counseling Agencies: To be eligible for an award
through this NOFA, a HUD Housing Counseling Agency must be certified as
such in accordance with section 106(e)(1) of the Housing and Urban
Development Act of 1968 (912 U.S.C. 1701x(e)), as of November 19, 2009
and must maintain its status as a HUD Housing Counseling Agency through
the Performance Period.
(b) State, Local, and Tribal governments: State, Local, and Tribal
governments must provide applicable documentation in the form specified
in the Application.
(c) CDFIs: To be eligible for an award through this NOFA, a CDFI
must be certified as a CDFI by the CDFI Fund as of November 19, 2009
and must maintain its CDFI certification throughout the Performance
Period.
(d) Credit Unions: To be eligible for an award through this NOFA, a
Credit Union must have received its Credit Union charter by or before
November 19, 2009 and must maintain its status as a Credit Union
throughout the Performance Period.
2. Experience and Ability: In order to be deemed an Eligible
Organization by the Office of Financial Education (OFE), an
organization must demonstrate that, at the time of Application
submission, it has the requisite experience and ability to provide
Financial Education and Counseling Services to Prospective Homebuyers
that result in documented Positive Behavioral Changes. As specified
further in the Application, an entity must demonstrate that: (i) It has
been providing Financial Education and Counseling Services for a period
of at least three years immediately prior to the Application deadline;
(ii) it has at least two full-time equivalent positions dedicated to
the development and/or delivery of Financial Education and Counseling
Services (this may include the time of more than two staff persons,
board members, or outside contractors totaling 75.0 hours or more per
week); (iii) it has provided Financial Education and Counseling
Services (either directly or, in the case of an Intermediary
Organization, indirectly) to at least 100 Potential Homebuyers in
calendar year 2008 or to an average of at least 150 Potential
Homebuyers per year over the three calendar years prior to the
Application deadline, and tracked Positive Behavioral Change outcomes
with respect to such services; and (iv) at the time of Application, it
has budget resources of at least $50,000 dedicated to the provision of
Financial Education and Counseling Services. Entities that cannot
satisfy each of these four requirements do not meet the minimum
requisite experience and ability to administer an FEC Pilot Program
award, and will not be eligible for FEC Pilot Program awards.
3. Eligibility Reviews: Eligibility reviews will be completed at
the time of Application submission, based on the Application.
4. Applications Submitted as Part of a Collaborative Effort: In
such circumstances, the Collaborative Effort must identify in the
Application the lead organization that will serve as the primary
administrator of the FEC Pilot Program award. This lead organization
must be able to assert that it can satisfy each of the four threshold
criteria identified in Section III.A.2., above.
5. Entities That Submit Applications Together with Affiliates or
Subsidiaries; Applications From Common Enterprises: If an Applicant and
its Affiliates or Subsidiaries wish to submit Applications, they must
do so collectively, in one Application; an Applicant and its Affiliates
or Subsidiaries may not submit separate Applications. If Affiliated or
Subsidiary entities submit multiple Applications, the CDFI Fund
reserves the right either to reject all such Applications received or
to select a single Application as the only Application considered for a
grant.
[[Page 53327]]
For purposes of this NOFA, in addition to assessing whether
Applicants are Affiliates or Subsidiaries, the CDFI Fund will consider
whether Applicants constitute a common enterprise. For the purposes of
this NOFA, a common enterprise may exist: (i) Where the activities
described in Applications submitted by separate entities are, or will
be, operated and/or managed such that, in fact or effect, they may be
viewed as a single entity; (ii) where the Applications submitted by
separate entities contain significant narrative, textual or other
similarities; or (iii) where the strategies and/or activities described
in Applications submitted by separate entities are so closely related,
in fact or effect, they may be viewed as substantially identical
Applications. In such cases, the CDFI Fund reserves the right: to
reject all Applications received from all such entities; to select a
single Application as the only one that will be considered for an
award; and/or, in the event that an Application is selected to receive
an award, to deem certain activities ineligible.
B. Limitations on Awards: Awardees are required to account for the
use of all FEC Pilot Program award dollars. FEC Pilot Program award
funds cannot be used to cover expenses of any same activities for which
the Awardee has received, or will receive, awards from other sources of
federal financial assistance; notwithstanding this limitation, FEC
Pilot Program award funds can be used to increase the population served
by the Awardee, and/or to increase the scope of the Awardee's Financial
Education and Counseling Services. Intermediary Organizations that
receive FEC Pilot Program awards may not use those dollars to provide
assistance to other FEC Pilot Program awardees (or their Affiliates)
that receive awards through this funding round.
C. Matching Funds: There are no matching fund requirements for the
FEC Pilot Program.
IV. Application and Submission Information
A. MyCDFIFund Accounts: All Applicants must register User and
Organization accounts in myCDFIFund, the CDFI Fund's Internet-based
interface. An Applicant must be registered as both a User and an
Organization in myCDFIFund as of the Application deadline in order to
be considered to have submitted a complete Application. As myCDFIFund
is the CDFI Fund's primary means of communication with Applicants and
Awardees, organizations must make sure that they update the contact
information in their myCDFIFund accounts before the Application
deadline. For more information on myCDFIFund, please see the
``Frequently Asked Questions'' link posted at https://www.cdfifund.gov/myCDFI/Help/Help.asp.
B. Applications Submitted via myCDFIFund: Applicants must submit
Applications under this NOFA electronically, through myCDFIFund, the
CDFI Fund's Internet-based interface. No paper submittals or
attachments will be accepted. Applications sent by mail, facsimile or
other form will generally not be accepted, except in circumstances
approved in advance by the CDFI Fund, in its sole discretion. The CDFI
Fund will post to its Web site at http://www.cdfifund.gov instructions
for accessing and submitting Applications as soon as they become
available.
C. Application Content Requirements: Detailed Application content
requirements are found in the Application and guidance materials. Each
Applicant must provide, as part of its Application, a Dun and
Bradstreet Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number pursuant to
OMB guidance (68 FR 38402). In addition, each Application must include
a valid and current Employer Identification Number (EIN). Applicants
should allow sufficient time for the IRS and/or Dun and Bradstreet to
respond to inquiries and/or requests for identification numbers. An
Application that does not include an EIN is incomplete and cannot be
transmitted to the CDFI Fund. The preceding sentences do not limit the
CDFI Fund's ability to contact an Applicant for the purpose of
obtaining clarifying or confirming application information such as a
DUNS number or EIN information. Once an Application is submitted, the
Applicant will not be allowed to change any element of the Application.
D. Application Deadlines: The FEC Pilot Program Application must be
submitted to the CDFI Fund, in accordance with the instructions
provided in the Application guidance materials, by no later than 5 p.m.
ET on November 19, 2009. Applicants and potential Applicants with
technical or programmatic questions must contact the CDFI Fund by 5
p.m. ET on November 17, 2009 in order to receive a response to their
inquiries. The CDFI Fund will not respond to Applicants and potential
Applicants that submit questions after this date until after the
Application deadline.
E. Paperwork Reduction Act: Under the Paperwork Reduction Act (44
U.S.C. chapter 35), an agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection
of information, and an individual is not required to respond to a
collection of information, unless it displays a valid OMB control
number. Pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act, the Application has
been assigned the following control number: [1559-0034].
F. Late Delivery: The CDFI Fund will neither accept a late
Application nor any portion of an Application that is late; an
Application that is late, or for which any portion is late, will be
rejected. The CDFI Fund will not grant exceptions or waivers. Any
Application that is deemed ineligible will not be returned to the
Applicant.
G. Intergovernmental Review: Not applicable.
H. Funding Restrictions: For allowable uses of FEC Pilot Program
award proceeds, please see Section II.F. above.
V. Application Review Information
A. Format: Applications must be single-spaced and use a 12-point
font with 1-inch margins. Each section in the Application that is
reviewed has recommended page limitations. Applicants are encouraged to
read each section carefully and to remain within the page limitations
for each section. There is also an absolute page limitation of 25 pages
for the entire Application. The CDFI Fund will not consider responses
beyond the 25 page limitation. Also, the CDFI Fund will read only
information requested in the Application and will not read attachments
that have not been specifically requested in this NOFA or the
Application.
B. Criteria: Applicants will be evaluated across several key areas:
1. Implementation Plan: The Applicant must provide a detailed,
successful strategy for developing and delivering innovative Financial
Education and Counseling Services to Prospective Homebuyers. The
Applicant is required to identify and describe, among other things: (i)
Its particular target market; (ii) the types of Financial Education and
Counseling Services that the Applicant will provide to its target
market, including any proposed innovations that will enhance the
likelihood of success within the Performance Period; (iii) the need and
demand for such services among the target market; and (iv) the delivery
strategy for providing such services to the target market, including
how it collaborates with other entities, and any proposed innovations
that will enhance the likelihood of success within the Performance
Period.
[[Page 53328]]
2. Proposed Impacts: The Applicant must be able to demonstrate that
the effective delivery of its proposed Financial and Education
Counseling Services will result in documented Positive Behavioral
Changes among Prospective Homebuyers. To this end, the Applicant must
identify and describe, among other things: (i) Its benchmarks for
measuring Positive Behavioral Changes; (ii) its strategy for tracking
and documenting Positive Behavioral Changes over time; and (iii) the
extent to which it believes its model, if successful, can be readily
replicated by other providers of Financial Education and Counseling
Services.
3. Organizational Capacity: The Applicant must demonstrate the
ability and capacity to undertake its proposed delivery of the
Financial Education and Counseling Services to Prospective Homebuyers,
to measure and report on outcomes, and to manage its FEC Pilot Program
award dollars. To this end, the Applicant will be required to identify
and describe, among other things: (i) Its key personnel and staffing
resources (current and proposed); (ii) its track record of providing
Financial Education and Counseling Services and tracking program
outcomes; (iii) its current financial condition, including results of
recent audits; and (iv) its experience administering other federal
government grant awards, if applicable.
4. Budget/Sources and Use of Funds: The Applicant must demonstrate
that it has a strategy to effectively and efficiently make use of the
FEC Pilot Program award dollars. To this end, the Applicant will be
required to complete a table outlining its proposed sources and uses of
funds, and to provide a narrative explanation of how its award dollars
will be used to: (i) Further the development and delivery of its
Financial Education and Counseling Services; (ii) track customer
performance; (iii) evaluate program effectiveness; and/or (iv)
facilitate program replication.
C. Review and Selection Process:
1. Eligibility and Completeness Review: The CDFI Fund will review
each Application for completeness. The OFE will review each Application
to determine whether the Applicant meets the eligibility requirements
set forth in this NOFA. An incomplete Application does not meet
eligibility requirements and will be rejected. Any Application that
does not meet eligibility requirements will not be returned to the
Applicant.
2. Substantive Review: If an Application is determined to be
complete and the Applicant is determined to be an Eligible
Organization, the CDFI Fund will conduct the substantive review of the
Application in accordance with the criteria and procedures described in
this NOFA, the Application, and any Application guidance. As part of
the review process, the CDFI Fund may contact the Applicant by
telephone, email, mail, or through an on-site visit for the sole
purpose of obtaining clarifying or confirming Application information.
The CDFI Fund reserves the right to collect such additional information
from Applicants as it deems appropriate including, for example, copies
of financial education curricula and organizational information. After
submitting its Application, the Applicant will not be permitted to
revise or modify its Application in any way nor attempt to negotiate
the terms of an award. If contacted for clarifying or confirming
information, the Applicant must respond within the time parameters set
by the CDFI Fund.
3. Application Review; Selection: Awards will be made based on
Applicants' experience and ability to provide Financial Education and
Counseling Services to Prospective Homebuyers that result in documented
Positive Behavioral Changes, in accordance with the criteria set forth
above in Section V.B.
(a) Application Review: Applications will be sorted into peer
groupings based on factors such as the delivery strategy used to
provide Financial Education and Counseling Services and the target
market (geographic or otherwise) that is identified. To the extent
possible, based primarily on the number of Applications received,
Applications will be reviewed by multiple reviewers. Reviewers will be
assigned a set number of Applications within each peer grouping. With
respect to each Application reviewed, the reviewer will give equal
weight to all elements of the Application proposal (i.e., each plan
will be reviewed holistically--no one element will be scored higher or
lower than any other element). Once the reviewer has completed all of
his/her review assignments, he/she will provide a ranking of each
Application relative to the other Applications that were reviewed.
(b) Application Selection: Once all Applications have been
reviewed, those Applications that were ranked the highest by the
reviewers will be reviewed by a selection committee. Each member of the
selection committee will review and rate each of these Applications,
and based upon their ratings, will select up to five organizations that
will be provided with awards. As part of this process, the selection
committee will take into consideration the diversity of the Awardee
pool, to ensure to the extent practicable that a broad cross-section of
geographic areas served, target markets and delivery strategies are
represented.
(c) Evaluating Prior Award Performance: In the case of an Applicant
that has received awards from any federal programs, the CDFI Fund
reserves the right to contact officials from the appropriate federal
agency or agencies to determine whether the Awardee is in compliance
with current or prior award agreements, and to take such information
into consideration before making an award under the FEC Pilot Program.
4. Award Notification: Each Applicant will be informed of the CDFI
Fund's award decision either through a notification from the CDFI Fund
if selected for an award or written declination if not selected for an
award. The CDFI Fund will notify Awardees by e-mail using the addresses
maintained in the Awardee's myCDFIFund account.
5. The CDFI Fund reserves the right to reject an application if
information (including administrative errors) comes to the attention of
the CDFI Fund that either adversely affects an Applicant's eligibility
for an award, or adversely affects the CDFI Fund's evaluation or
scoring of an Application, or indicates fraud or mismanagement on the
part of an Applicant. If the CDFI Fund determines that any portion of
the Application is incorrect in any material respect, the CDFI Fund
reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to reject the Application.
The CDFI Fund reserves the right to change its eligibility and
evaluation criteria and procedures, if the CDFI Fund deems it
appropriate; if said changes materially affect the CDFI Fund's award
decisions, the CDFI Fund will provide information regarding the changes
through the CDFI Fund's Web site. There is no right to appeal the CDFI
Fund's award decisions. The CDFI Fund's award decisions are final.
VI. Award Administration Information
A. Assistance Agreement: Each Applicant that is selected to receive
an award under this NOFA must enter into an Assistance Agreement with
the CDFI Fund in order to receive disbursement of award proceeds. The
Assistance Agreement will set forth certain required terms and
conditions of the award, which will include but not be limited to: (i)
The amount of the award; (ii) the type of award; (iii) the approved
uses of the award; (iv) the approved target market to which the funded
activity must be directed; (v) performance goals and measures; and
[[Page 53329]]
(vi) reporting requirements for all Awardees. Assistance Agreements
under this NOFA generally will have three-year performance periods.
B. The CDFI Fund reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to
terminate the Assistance Agreement and rescind an award if the Awardee
fails to return the Assistance Agreement, signed by the authorized
representative of the Awardee, and/or provide the CDFI Fund with any
other requested documentation, within the deadlines set by the CDFI
Fund. Each Awardee must provide the CDFI Fund with a certificate of
good standing (or equivalent documentation) from its State (or
jurisdiction) of incorporation.
C. Reporting:
1. Reporting requirements: The CDFI Fund will collect information,
on at least an annual basis, from each Awardee which may include, but
shall not be limited to: (i) Use of FEC Pilot Program award dollars;
(ii) aggregated characteristics of individuals that received Financial
Education and Counseling Services funded by FEC Pilot Program award
dollars; and (iii) the extent to which the Awardee satisfied its
performance goals and measures, to include measures of the
effectiveness of the Awardee's strategy and ability to create Positive
Behavioral Change among Prospective Homebuyers. Each Awardee is
responsible for the timely and complete submission of such reports,
even if all or a portion of the documents actually is completed by
another entity or signatory to the Assistance Agreement. If such other
entities or signatories are required to provide reports or other
documentation that the CDFI Fund may require, the Awardee is
responsible for ensuring that the information is submitted timely and
complete. The CDFI Fund reserves the right to contact such additional
entities or signatories to the Assistance Agreement and require that
additional information and documentation be provided. The CDFI Fund
will use such information to monitor each Awardee's compliance with the
requirements set forth in the Assistance Agreement and to assess the
impact of the FEC Pilot Program. The CDFI Fund reserves the right, in
its sole discretion, to modify these reporting requirements if it
determines it to be appropriate and necessary; however, such reporting
requirements will be modified only after notice to Awardees.
2. Accounting: The CDFI Fund will require each Awardee that
receives an award through this NOFA to account for and track the use of
the grant award. This means that for every dollar of an award received
from the CDFI Fund, the Awardee will be required to inform the CDFI
Fund of its uses. This will require Awardees to separately account for
the proceeds and use of the award, subject to the applicable OMB
Circulars. The CDFI Fund will provide guidance to Awardees outlining
the format and content of the information to be provided on an annual
basis, outlining and describing how the funds were used. Each Awardee
that receives an award must provide the CDFI Fund with the required
complete and accurate Automated Clearinghouse (ACH) form for its bank
account prior to award closing and disbursement.
VII. Agency Contacts
A. The CDFI Fund will respond to questions and provide support
concerning this NOFA and the Application between the hours of 9 a.m.
and 5 p.m. ET, starting the date of the publication of this NOFA
through two days prior to the Application deadline. The CDFI Fund will
not respond to questions or provide support concerning the Applications
that are received after 5 p.m. ET on said dates, until after the
Application deadline. Applications and other information regarding the
CDFI Fund and its programs may be obtained from the CDFI Fund's Web
site at http://www.cdfifund.gov. The CDFI Fund will post responses on
its Web site to questions of general applicability regarding the FEC
Pilot Program.
B. The CDFI Fund's contact information is as follows:
Table 4--Contact Information
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fax number for all offices: 202-622-7754
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Telephone number
Type of question (not toll free) E-mail addresses
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FEC Pilot Program.......................... 202-622-6355 cdfihelp@cdfi.treas.gov
Compliance, Monitoring and Evaluation...... 202-622-6330 cme@cdfi.treas.gov
Information Technology Support............. 202-622-2455 IThelp@cdfi.treas.gov
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
C. Communication with the CDFI Fund: The CDFI Fund will use the
myCDFIFund Internet interface to communicate with Applicants and
Awardees, using the contact information maintained in their respective
myCDFIFund accounts. Therefore, the Applicant and any Subsidiaries,
signatories, and Affiliates must maintain accurate contact information
(including contact person and authorized representative, e-mail
addresses, fax numbers, phone numbers, and office addresses) in its
myCDFIFund account(s). For more information about myCDFIFund (which
includes information about the CDFI Fund's Community Investment Impact
System), please see the Help documents posted at http://www.cdfifund.gov/ciis/accessingciis.pdf.
VIII. Information Sessions and Outreach
The CDFI Fund may conduct webinars or host information sessions for
organizations interested in applying to, or learning about, the CDFI
Fund's programs. For further information, please visit the CDFI Fund's
Web site at http://www.cdfifund.gov.
Authority: Pub. L. 110-289.
Dated: October 9, 2009.
Jose Villar,
Chief Operating Officer, Community Development Financial Institutions
Fund.
[FR Doc. E9-24861 Filed 10-15-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-70-P