[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 31 (Wednesday, February 17, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7958-7961]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-3874]



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Part II





Department of Health and Human Services





_______________________________________________________________________



Administration for Children and Families



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Request for Applications Under the Office of Community Services' Fiscal 
Year 1999 Family Violence Prevention and Services Discretionary 
Program; Notice

  Federal Register / Vol. 64, No. 31 / Wednesday, February 17, 1999 / 
Notices  

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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Administration for Children and Families
[Program Announcement No. OCS-99-06]


Request for Applications Under the Office of Community Services' 
Fiscal Year 1999 Family Violence Prevention and Services Discretionary 
Program

AGENCY: Office of Community Services, ACF, DHHS.

ACTION: Announcement of availability of funds and request for 
applications under the Office of Community Services' Family Violence 
Prevention and Services (FVPS) Discretionary Program.

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SUMMARY: The Office of Community Services (OCS) invites eligible 
entities to submit applications for FY 1999 funding of competitive 
grants under the FVPS.
    The Office of Community Services intends to publish another program 
announcement at a later date to cover the following program: CSBG/
Training, Technical Assistance and Capacity Building.
    Applications received in response to the FVPS will be screened and 
evaluated as indicated in this document. Awards will be contingent on 
the outcome of the competition and the availability of funds.

ADDRESSES: Prior to submitting an application, potential applicants 
must obtain a copy of the FVPS Application Kit, containing additional 
program information, forms, and instructions. Application Kits are 
available by writing or calling the Office of Community Services at 5th 
Floor West, Aerospace Building, 370 L'Enfant Promenade, SW Washington 
DC 20447. To obtain a copy of the Family Violence Prevention and 
Services Application Kit, call: (202) 401-4787.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Administration for Children and 
Families, Office of Community Services, Division of State Assistance, 
370 L'Enfant Promenade, SW Washington, DC 20447. Telephone: Sunni 
Knight, (202) 401-5319; James Gray, (202) 401-5705; or William Riley 
(202) 401-5529.
    A copy of the Federal Register containing the FVPS announcement is 
available for reproduction at most local libraries and Congressional 
District Offices. It is also available on the Internet through GPO 
Access at the following web address: http://www.access.gpo.gov/
su__docs/aces/aces140.html If the announcement is not available at 
these sources, it may be obtained by writing to the office listed under 
ADDRESSES above. Application Deadlines: The closing dates for 
submission of applications is May 3, 1999. Further details regarding 
application submission are provided in the Supplementary Information 
section of this program announcement. Mailed applications postmarked 
after the closing date will be classified as late. Refer to Application 
Submission below for other details.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

A. Program Announcement

    The Application Kit for the FY 1999 FVPS will not be published in 
the Federal Register. Rather, OCS is publishing FY 1999 Program 
Announcement OCS-99-06 in the Federal Register. Program Announcement 
OCS-99-06 contains the following information for the FVPS: Program 
Contact Person; Availability Date of Application Kit; Application 
Deadline; Legislative Authority; FY 1999 Family Violence Priority 
Areas; Eligible Applicants and Availability of Funds; Matching 
Requirements; Type of Awards; and Review Criteria.

B. General Instructions

    In order to be considered for a grant under this OCS FVPS program 
announcement, an application must be submitted on the forms supplied 
and in the manner prescribed by OCS in the FVPS Application Kit. When 
requesting an Application Kit, the applicant must specify the Family 
Violence Prevention and Services Program Application Kit. This is to 
ensure receipt of all necessary forms and information, including any 
program-specific evaluation criteria. Application Kits, including all 
of the necessary forms and instructions, will be available for reading 
and downloading from the Internet at the OCS Website at: http://
www.acf.dhhs.gov/programs/ocs

C. Application Submission

    Mailed applications shall be considered as meeting an announced 
deadline if they are either received on or before the deadline date or 
sent on or before the deadline date and received by ACF in time for the 
independent review to: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 
Administration for Children and Families, Office of Grants Management/
OCSE, 4th Floor Aerospace, 370 L'Enfant Promenade, SW, Washington, DC 
20447; with the note: Attention: Application for Family Violence 
Prevention and Services Program or CFDA No. 93-592.
    Applicants must ensure that a legibly dated U.S. Postal Service 
postmark or a legibly dated, machine produced postmark of a commercial 
mail service is affixed to the envelope/package containing the 
application(s). To be acceptable as proof of timely mailing, a postmark 
from a commercial mail service must include the logo/emblem of the 
commercial mail service company and must reflect the date the package 
was received by the commercial mail service company from the applicant. 
Private Metered postmarks shall not be acceptable as proof of timely 
mailing. (Applicants are cautioned that express/overnight mail services 
do not always deliver as agreed.)
    Applications handcarried by applicants, applicant couriers, or by 
other representatives of the applicant shall be considered as meeting 
an announced deadline if they are received on or before the deadline 
date, between the hours of 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., EST, at the U.S. 
Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children 
and Families, Office of Grants Management/OCSE, ACF Mailroom, 2nd Floor 
Loading Dock, Aerospace Center, 901 D Street, SW, Washington, DC 20024, 
between Monday and Friday (excluding Federal holidays). The address 
must appear on the envelope/ package containing the application with 
the note: Attention: Family Violence Prevention and Services Program or 
CFDA No. 93-592.
    ACF cannot accommodate transmission of applications by fax or 
through other electronic media. Therefore, applications transmitted to 
ACF electronically will not be accepted regardless of date or time of 
submission and time of receipt.
    Applications, once submitted, are considered final and no 
additional materials will be accepted.
    Late applications: Applications, which do not meet the criteria 
above, are considered late applications. ACF shall notify each late 
applicant that its application will not be considered in the current 
competition.
    Extension of deadlines: ACF may extend application deadlines when 
circumstances such as acts of God (floods, hurricanes, etc.) occur, or 
when there are widespread disruptions of the mail service. 
Determinations to extend or waive deadline requirements rest with ACF's 
Chief Grants Management Officer.

D. Details for This Program Announcement

    Pertinent information of concern for potential applicants for the 
Family

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Violence Prevention and Services Program is set forth below:

(CFDA No. 93.592) Deadline Date: May 3, 1999

    (1) Program Contact Persons: Sunni Knight (202) 401-5319; James 
Gray (202) 401-5705; or William Riley (202) 401-5529.
    (2) Date of Application Kit: February 17, 1999.
    (3) Application Deadline: Applications must be POSTMARKED by May 3, 
1999. Detailed application submission instructions are included in the 
Application Kit.
    (4) Legislative Authority: Title III of the Child Abuse Amendments 
of 1984, (Pub. L. 98-457, 42 U.S.C. 10401, et seq.) is entitled the 
Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (the Act). The Act was 
first implemented in FY 1986, was reauthorized and amended in 1992 by 
Pub. L. 102-295, and was amended and reauthorized for fiscal years 1996 
through 2000 by Pub. L. 103-322, the Violent Crime Control and Law 
Enforcement Act of 1994 (the Crime Bill). The Act was most recently 
amended by Pub L. 104-235, the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act 
Amendment of 1996.
    (5) FY 1999 Family Violence Priority Areas:
    (a) Priority Area Number FV-01-99, Improving the Health Care 
Response to Domestic Violence;
    (b) Priority Area Number FV-02-99, Training Grant Stipends in 
Domestic Violence for Historically Black, Hispanic-Serving and Tribal 
Colleges and Universities; and
    (c) Priority Area Number FV-03-99, Public Information Community 
Awareness Campaign Projects for the Prevention of Family Violence.
    (6) Eligible Applicants and Availability of Funds
    (a) FV-01-99: Eligible applicants are State and local domestic 
violence coalitions or domestic violence advocacy programs; State and 
local health agencies, State and local health professional associations 
or societies; nonprofit health care facilities; and State or local 
entities with experience in the field of family violence prevention. 
The eligible applicant must represent a team of organizations from both 
the domestic violence and health care communities. The maximum federal 
share for this project is not to exceed $75,000. The length of the 
project should not exceed a 17-month project period. Applications for 
lesser amounts will also be considered under this priority area. It is 
anticipated that 4 projects may be funded; more may be funded depending 
on the number of acceptable applications received for lesser amounts.
    (b) FV-02-99: Eligible applicants are: Historically Black Colleges 
and Universities; Hispanic/Latino Institutes of Higher Education; and 
American Indian Tribally-controlled Community Colleges and 
Universities. (Fiscal Year 1998 recipients of Family Violence Training 
Grant Stipend awards are not eligible applicants.) The institution must 
be fully accredited by one of the regional institutional accrediting 
commissions recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education and the 
Council on Social Work Education;
    This competitive program provides stipends for a maximum amount not 
to exceed $300,000 per project period (the project period is 36 
months). This amount includes direct and indirect costs per college or 
university. The federal share will fund, per each 12 month budget 
period, up to 5 student candidates at a maximum of $11,250 each and 
will fund 1 faculty coordinator of the project at $43,750. It is 
anticipated that 8 projects will be funded yearly at $100,000 each. 
Applications for lesser amounts will also be considered for this 
priority area.
    (c) FV-03-99: Eligible applicants are: State and local public 
agencies, Territories, and Native American Tribes and Tribal 
Organizations who are, or have been, recipients of Family Violence 
Prevention and Services Act grants; State and local private non-profit 
agencies experienced in the field of family violence prevention; and 
public and private non-profit educational institutions, community 
organizations and community-based coalitions, and other entities that 
have designed and implemented family violence prevention information 
activities or community awareness strategies. The maximum federal share 
of the project is not to exceed $35,000 for the 1-year project period. 
Applications for lesser amounts also will be considered under this 
priority area. It is anticipated, subject to the availability of funds, 
that 4 projects will be funded at the maximum level; more than 4 
projects may be funded depending on the number of acceptable 
applications for lesser amounts which are received.
    (7) Matching Requirements: Successful applicants must provide at 
least 25 percent of the total cost of the project. The approved total 
cost of the project is the sum of the ACF share and the non-federal 
share. The non-federal share may be met by cash or in-kind 
contributions, although applicants are encouraged to meet their match 
requirements through cash contributions. Therefore, a project 
requesting $50,000 in federal funds (based on an award of $50,000 per 
budget period) must include a match of at least $16,666 (25% of the 
total project cost) for a total budget of $66,666. Therefore, a project 
requesting $100,000 in federal funds (based on an award of $100,000 per 
budget period) must include a match of at least $33,333 (25% of the 
total project cost) for a total budget of $133,333. If approved for 
funding, grantees will be held accountable for commitments of non-
federal resources and failure to provide the required amount will 
result in a disallowance of unmatched Federal funds. This matching 
requirement applies to all 3 Priority Areas.
    (8) Type of Awards: Grants.
    (9) Review Criteria for Family Violence Prevention and Services 
Competitive Discretionary Grants: Using the appropriate criteria below, 
a panel of at least three reviewers (primarily experts from outside the 
Federal government) will review each application. Applicants should 
ensure that they address each minimum requirement in the priority area 
description under the appropriate section of the Program Narrative 
Statement.
    Reviewers will determine the strengths and weaknesses of each 
application in terms of the appropriate evaluation criteria listed 
below, provide comments and assign numerical scores. The point value 
following each criterion heading indicates the maximum numerical weight 
that each section may be given in the review process:
(a) Need for the Project (10 Points)
    The extent to which the need for the project and the problems it 
will address have national significance; the applicability of the 
project to coordination efforts by national, Tribal, State and local 
governmental and non-profit agencies, and its ultimate impact on 
domestic violence prevention services and intervention efforts, 
policies and practice; the relevance of other documentation as it 
relates to the applicant's knowledge of the need for the project; and 
the identification of the specific topic or program area to be served 
by the project. Maps and other graphic aids may be attached;
(b) Goals and Objectives (10 Points)
    The extent to which the specific goals and objectives have national 
or local significance, the clarity of the goals and objectives as they 
relate to the identified need for and the overall purpose of the 
project, and their applicability to policy and practice. The provision 
of a detailed discussion of the objectives and the

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extent to which the objectives are realistic, specific, and achievable;
(c) Approach (30 Points)
    The extent to which the application outlines a sound and workable 
plan of action pertaining to the scope of the project, and details how 
the proposed work will be accomplished; relates each task to the 
objectives and identifies the key staff member who will be the lead 
person; provides a chart indicating the timetable for completing each 
task, the lead person, and the time committed; cites factors which 
might accelerate or decelerate the work, giving acceptable reasons for 
taking this approach as opposed to others; describes and supports any 
unusual features of the project, such as design or technological 
innovations, reductions in cost or time, or extraordinary social and 
community involvements, and provides for projections of the 
accomplishments to be achieved.
    The extent to which, when applicable, the application describes the 
evaluation methodology that will be used to determine if the needs 
identified and discussed are being met and if the results and benefits 
identified are being achieved;
(d) Results and Benefits (20 Points)
    The extent to which the application identifies the results and 
benefits to be derived, the extent to which they are consistent with 
the objectives of the application, the extent to which the application 
indicates the anticipated contributions to policy, practice, and 
theory, and the extent to which the proposed project costs are 
reasonable in view of the expected results. Identify, in specific 
terms, the results and benefits, for target groups and human service 
providers, to be derived from implementing the proposed project. 
Describe how the expected results and benefits will relate to previous 
demonstration efforts; and
(e) Level of Effort: (30 Points)
    Staffing pattern--Describe the staffing pattern for the proposed 
project, clearly linking responsibilities to project tasks and 
specifying the contributions to be made by key staff.
    Competence of staff--Describe the qualifications of the project 
team including any experiences working on similar projects. Also, 
describe the variety of skills to be used, relevant educational 
background and the demonstrated ability to produce final results that 
are comprehensible and usable. One or two pertinent paragraphs on each 
key member are preferred to resumes. However, resumes may be included 
in the ten pages allowed for attachments/appendices.
    Adequacy of resources--Specify the adequacy of the available 
facilities, resources and organizational experience with regard to the 
tasks of the proposed project. List the financial, physical and other 
resources to be provided by other profit and nonprofit organizations. 
Explain how these organizations will participate in the day to day 
operations of the project.
    Budget--Relate the proposed budget to the level of effort required 
to obtain project objectives and provide a cost/benefit analysis. 
Demonstrate that the project's costs are reasonable in view of the 
anticipated results.
    Collaborative efforts--Discuss in detail and provide documentation 
for any collaborative or coordinated efforts with other agencies or 
organizations. Identify these agencies or organizations and explain how 
their participation will enhance the project. Letters from these 
agencies and organizations discussing the specifics of their commitment 
must be included in the application.
    Authorship--The authors of the application must be clearly 
identified together with their current relationship to the applicant 
organization and any future project role they may have if the project 
is funded. Applicants should note that non-responsiveness to the 
section designated as ``Minimum Requirements for Project Design'' in 
the applicable priority areas, will result in a low evaluation score by 
the panel of expert reviewers.
    Applicants must clearly identify the specific priority area under 
which they wish to have their applications considered, and tailor their 
applications accordingly. Previous experience has shown that an 
application which is broad and more general in concept than outlined in 
the priority area description is less likely to score as well as one 
which is more clearly focused and directly responsive to the concerns 
of that specific priority area.
    Additional Requirements: Applicants for grants must also meet the 
following requirements:

A. Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 #0970-0062

    Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13, the 
Department is required to submit to OMB for review and approval any 
reporting and record keeping requirements in regulations, including 
Program Announcements. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a 
person is not required to respond to, a collection of information 
unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. This Program 
Announcement does not contain information collection requirements 
beyond those approved for ACF grant announcements/applications under 
OMB Control Number 0970-0062.

B. Intergovernmental Review

    The Family Violence Prevention and Services Program is covered 
under Executive Order 12372, ``Intergovernmental Review of Federal 
Programs,'' and 45 CFR part 100, ``Intergovernmental Review of 
Department of Health and Human Services Programs and Activities.'' 
Under the Order, States may design their own processes for reviewing 
and commenting on proposed Federal assistance under covered programs.

    Note: State/Territory participation in the Intergovernmental 
Review process does not signify applicant eligibility for financial 
assistance under a program. A potential applicant must meet the 
eligibility requirements of the program for which it is applying 
prior to submitting an application to its SPOC, if applicable, or to 
ACF.

    As of September 1998, a number of jurisdictions have elected not to 
participate in the Executive Order process. Applicants from these 
jurisdictions or for projects administered by federally recognized 
Indian Tribes need take no action in regard to E.O. 12372. A list of 
these non-participating jurisdictions can be found in the Application 
Kit for the Family Violence Prevention and Services Program.
    Although the non-participating jurisdictions no longer participate 
in the process, entities which have met the eligibility requirements of 
the program are still eligible to apply for a grant even if a State, 
Territory, Commonwealth, etc. does not have a SPOC. All remaining 
jurisdictions participate in the Executive Order process and have 
established SPOCs. Applicants from participating jurisdictions should 
contact their SPOCs as soon as possible to alert them of the 
prospective applications and receive instructions.
    Applicants must submit any required material to the SPOCs as soon 
as possible so that the program office can obtain and review SPOC 
comments as part of the award process. The applicant must submit all 
required materials, if any, to the SPOC and indicate the date of this 
submittal (or the date of contact if no submittal is required) on the 
Standard Form 424, item 16a. Under 45 CFR 100.8(a)(2), a SPOC has 60 
days from the application deadline to comment on proposed new or 
competing continuation awards. SPOCs are encouraged to eliminate the

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submission of routine endorsements as official recommendations.
    Additionally, SPOCs are requested to clearly differentiate between 
mere advisory comments and those official State process recommendations 
which may trigger the ``accommodate or explain'' rule. When comments 
are submitted directly to ACF, they should be addressed to: Department 
of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, 
Office of Grants Management/OCSE, 4th Floor, 370 L'Enfant Promenade, 
SW., Washington, DC 20447.

    Dated: February 10, 1999.
Donald Sykes,
Director, Office of Community Services.
[FR Doc. 99-3874 Filed 2-16-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184-01-P