[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 8 (Wednesday, January 12, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 1754-1756]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-00398]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Administration for Community Living


Availability of Program Application Instructions for Title VII, 
Part B of the Rehabilitation Act, Independent Living Services To Expand 
the Public Health Workforce

    Title: Expanding the Public Health Workforce Within the Disability 
Networks: Independent Living Services.
    Announcement Type: Initial.
    Statutory Authority: The statutory authority for grants under this 
program announcement is Section 2501 of the American Rescue Plan Act of 
2021 (Pub. L. 117-2) and awards authorized under Title VII, Part B of 
the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29. U.S.C. 796f et seq.), Independent 
Living Services, shall be provided funding under this opportunity.
    Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 93.369.

DATES: The deadline date for the submission of the Expanding the Public 
Health Workforce within the Disability Networks: Independent Living 
Services is 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time February 11, 2022.

I. Funding Opportunity Description

    The Administration for Community Living (ACL) announced a new 
funding opportunity to expand the public health workforce within the 
disability

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networks. Public health promotes and protects the health of people and 
the communities where they live, learn, work, and play. The disability 
networks funded by ACL play an essential role in that work. The 
disability networks consist of trusted organizations and programs that 
reach and provide services and supports to people with disabilities in 
every community throughout the nation, including those related to 
public health, such as health and wellness education and information, 
counseling, case management and guidance related to health and social 
needs, as well as how to access those supports. These networks have 
over 50 years of community experience and possess intimate knowledge of 
the public health and other resources available and the needs of older 
adults in their direct area.
    As part of its ongoing COVID-19 response efforts, the Biden-Harris 
Administration is investing federal funds through the American Rescue 
Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) \1\ to recruit, hire, and train public health 
workers to respond to the pandemic and prepare for future public health 
challenges. Specifically, the Secretary of the U.S. Department of 
Health and Human Services (HHS) will ``carry out activities related to 
establishing, expanding, and sustaining a public health workforce . . . 
,'' ARPA Sec.  2501(a), and funds may be used to support costs, 
including wages and benefits, of a range of public health professionals 
including but not limited to social support professionals, community 
health workers, communication and policy experts and ``. . . other 
positions as may be required to prevent, prepare for, and respond to 
COVID-19 . . . ,'' ARPA Sec.  2501(b)(1).
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    \1\ American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, Public Law 117-2, 135 Stat 
4 (Mar. 11, 2021).
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    To help advance these efforts, ACL has created the Expanding the 
Public Health Workforce within the Disability Networks program. This 
program aims to increase the number of public health professionals 
within the disability networks to address the unique needs of people 
with disabilities through the support of wages and benefits for these 
professionals. Professionals supported through this program may provide 
a wide range of public health services and supports, including 
provision of culturally affirmative and linguistically accessible 
information, access assistance for vaccines and boosters, transition 
and diversion from high-risk congregate settings to community living, 
provision and connections to health and wellness programs, activities 
that address social isolation and social determinants of health, and 
other activities that support the public health and wellbeing of people 
with disabilities.
    Designated state entities (DSEs)--the eligible entities for this 
opportunity--shall be provided funding to support wages and benefits 
for new staff or increase the full-time equivalent (FTE) of existing 
staff under this opportunity within the Part B Independent Living 
Services program. Award recipients are encouraged to make sub-awards to 
Part B funded CILs, Statewide Independent Living Councils (SILCs), and/
or Part C funded CILs that receive Part B funding. Sub-awards may be 
allocated through an even distribution or based on information in the 
state plan for independent living, or other distribution based on need 
as determined by the chairperson of the SILC and the directors of the 
CILs in the State for the purposes of this funding. Although not 
required for funding, grantees are encouraged to explore options for 
funding to sustain the new FTE after the end of the grant. There is no 
cost sharing or matching requirement for this funding.
    Award recipients will be required to submit annual progress reports 
in the form of a written summary on the number of full-time equivalents 
(FTEs) funded, type of public health professional(s) hired, and the 
activities they are engaged in to advance public health. To be eligible 
to receive this grant, the DSE must submit a Letter of Assurance to ACL 
containing all the assurances required (see ``Section III. Eligibility 
Criteria and Other Requirements'' and ``Section IV. Submission 
Information''). DSEs that do not submit a Letter of Assurance or 
otherwise indicate no desire to receive funds, will be excluded from 
receiving funds.
    ACL may extend deadlines based on the need of the COVID-19 
response, e.g., to meet unanticipated issues related to COVID-19 and/or 
to allow impacted DSEs that missed the cut-off date to submit a Letter 
of Assurance for consideration. ACL intends to issue notices of award 
as soon as possible with an estimated start date of March 1, 2022. 
However, the actual award may be released earlier or later than that 
date. Because the total amount awarded to each grantee is contingent 
upon the total number of grantees applying for funding, grant awards 
will be issued after ACL receives responses from all eligible DSEs. 
Regardless of the date of award, the funding will be available until 
September 30, 2024. Grantees may use the funds over any period of time 
before this date but are encouraged to use the funding as soon as 
possible to have the greatest impact.

II. Award Information

1. Funding Instrument Type

    These awards will be made in the form of new grants, evenly 
distributed to eligible entities.

2. Anticipated Total Funding per Budget Period

    Awards made under this announcement will have an estimated start 
date of March 1, 2022 and an end date of September 30, 2024.
    The total available funding for this opportunity is $4,480,000.
    Eligible entities who do not complete assurance requirements below, 
or otherwise indicate no desire to receive funds, will be excluded from 
receiving funds. This will have the effect of increasing the amount of 
funds available for eventual recipients.
    ACL will distribute the $4,480,000 evenly to all eligible entities 
to ensure a sufficient level of funding to provide substantive support 
for the public health workforce, which equates to a minimum award of 
$80,000. This figure is based on the current number of eligible 
entities and would rise if some eligible entities refuse or are deemed 
ineligible.

III. Eligibility Criteria and Other Requirements

1. Eligible Entities

    The eligible entity for these awards is the designated state entity 
(DSE) for Part B Independent Living Services under Title VII of the 
Rehabilitation Act.

2. Match

    Cost Sharing or Matching is not required.

3. Other Requirements

A. Letter of Assurance
    A Letter of Assurance is required to be submitted by the eligible 
entity in order to receive an award. The Letter of Assurance must 
include the following:
    1. Assurance that the award recipient is the DSE for Part B 
Independent Living Services.
    2. Assurance that funds will be spent in ways consistent with the 
purpose of the funding to support the cost of wages and benefits for 
public health professionals, directly or through contract, such as:
     Case investigator,
     Contact tracer,
     Social support specialist,
     Community health worker,
     Public health nurse,
     Disease intervention specialist,

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     Epidemiologist,
     Program manager,
     Laboratory personnel,
     Informaticians,
     Communication and policy experts,
     Other positions as may be required to prevent, prepare 
for, and respond to COVID-19.
    3. Plan for the distribution of funds within the state Part B 
funded independent living services program. Award recipients are 
encouraged to make sub-awards to Part B funded CILs, Statewide 
Independent Living Councils (SILCs), and/or Part C funded CILs that 
receive Part B funding. Sub-awards may be allocated through an even 
distribution or based on information in the state plan for independent 
living, or other distribution based on need as determined by the 
chairperson of the SILC and the directors of the CILs in the State for 
the purposes of this funding.
    4. Assurance to provide semi-annual federal financial reports and 
annual program reports that include the number and type of full-time 
equivalents hired, and activities performed to advance public health.
B. DUNS Number
    All grant applicants must obtain and keep current a D-U-N-S number 
from Dun and Bradstreet. It is a nine-digit identification number, 
which provides unique identifiers of single business entities. The D-U-
N-S number can be obtained from: https://iupdate.dnb.com/iUpdate/viewiUpdateHome.htm.
C. Intergovernmental Review
    Executive Order 12372, Intergovernmental Review of Federal 
Programs, is not applicable to these grant applications.

IV. Submission Information

1. Letter of Assurance

    To receive funding, eligible entities must provide a Letter of 
Assurance containing all the information outlined in Section III above.
    Letters of Assurance should be addressed to: Jennifer Johnson, 
Deputy Commissioner, Administration on Disabilities, Administration for 
Community Living.
    Letters of Assurance should be submitted electronically via email 
to [email protected].

2. Submission Dates and Times

    To receive consideration, Letters of Assurance must be submitted by 
11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on February 11, 2022. Letters of Assurance 
should be submitted electronically via email and have an electronic 
time stamp indicating the date/time submitted.

VII. Agency Contacts

1. Programmatic and Submission Issues

    Direct programmatic inquiries to [email protected].

    Dated: January 6, 2022.
Alison Barkoff,
Principal Deputy Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2022-00398 Filed 1-11-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4154-01-P