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The Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration



SAMHSA Grant Annoucements

SAMHSA Grants Management

Standard Terms and Conditions

Remarks for Drug Free Communities Program ONLY

Appeals Process for Drug Free Communities Program Grantees

The Drug Free Communities Programs Progressive Grant program Discipline and Appeals processes have been developed by the Executive Office of the President, Office of national Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) and Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). There are three progressive discipline actions that can be taken: 1) High risk status, 2) Suspension 3) Termination.

An overview of this plan and the complete explanation and procedures are posted on the Drug Free Communities Program website at http://www.ondcp.gov/dfc.


Requirements and Provisions

Terms of Award

With the acceptance of a grant or cooperative agreement award from SAMHSA, the grantee has the responsibility to be aware of and comply with the terms and conditions of award. The Notice of Grant Award (NGA) states that:

This award is based on the application submitted to, and as approved by, SAMHSA on the above-titled project and is subject to the terms and conditions incorporated either directly or by reference in the following:

  • The grant program legislation and program regulation cited in this Notice of Grant Award.

  • The restrictions on the expenditure of Federal funds in appropriation acts, to the extent those restrictions are pertinent to the award.

  • Trafficking in Persons
    This award is subject to the requirements of Section 106 (g) of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000, as amended (22 U.S.C. 7104). For the full text of the award term, go to http://www.samhsa.gov/grants/trafficking.aspx

  • 45 CFR Part 74 or 45 CFR Part 92 as applicable.

  • The Grants Policy Directive (GPD) and the Awarding Agency Grants Administration Manual (AAGAM)

  • HHS Grants Policy Statement Adobe Acrobat (PDF) File

  • This award notice including any special terms and conditions.

45 CFR Part 74 and 45 CFR Part 92 (Regulations Governing SAMHSA Grants)

Regulations found at Title 45, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Part 74 and Part 92, are the rules and requirements that govern the administration of Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) grants.

Part 74 is applicable to all recipients except those covered by Part 92, which governs awards to state and local governments.

These regulations are a term and condition of award. Grant recipients must be aware of and comply with the regulations. The CFR volume that includes Parts 74 and 92 may be ordered from:

U.S. Government Printing Office Superintendent of Documents
Mail Stop SSOP
Washington, D.C. 20402-9328

The 45 CFR Parts 74 and 92 may also be accessed by internet from DHHS GrantsNet.

Grantee Financial Management Requirements:

Federal regulations governing SAMHSA grants (45 CFR Part 74 and 45 CFR Part 92) provide standards for financial management systems of grantee organizations. To determine whether grantees have financial management systems that conform to those standards, SAMHSA’s Financial Advisory Services Officers (FASO) perform Financial Capability Reviews of new or prospective grantees. Based on a recent report on an audit performed in accordance with OMB Circular A-133, or a combination of financial statements together with accounting and personnel policies & procedures (P&P), the FASO will make a determination of the organization’s ability to adequately administer Federal awards. If needed, the FASO will request the grantee take necessary corrective action to conform to the financial management standards. Full text of the financial and management controls that should be incorporated in the P&Ps prior to submission to the FASO can be accessed at Grantee Financial Management Requirements (pdf).

Fiscal and Program Progress Reports Financial Status Report (FSR):

The FSR must be submitted to the Grants Management Branch (DGM) on an annual basis. The FSR is submitted on Standard Form (SF) 269 long form as the report of expenditures documenting the financial status of the award, according to the official accounting records of the grantee organization.

Progress Report:

All SAMHSA awards require either quarterly, semi-annually, or an annual progress report. The frequency and mailing address are indicated in the terms and conditions of award. A final progress report must be submitted to DGM within 90 days after the expiration or termination of the project unless otherwise instructed.

Please send reports to the following address:

Division of Grants Management, OPS, SAMHSA
1 Choke Cherry Road, Room 7-1091
Rockville, MD 20857*

* Use zip code 20850 for overnight delivery

Audit Requirements

Audit requirements for Federal award recipients are defined in OMB Circular A-133, Audits of States, Local Governments, and Non-Profit Organizations (revision published June 27, 2003).

An organization is required to have a non-Federal audit if, during its fiscal year, it expended a total of $500,000 ($300,000 for fiscal years ending before December 31, 2003 ) or more in Federal awards. Federal awards are defined in OMB Circular A-133 to include Federal financial assistance and Federal cost reimbursement contracts received both directly from a Federal awarding agency as well as indirectly from a pass-through entity.

45 CFR 74.26(d) discusses the requirements and available non-federal audit options for Department of Health and Human Service awards. Two audit options are available to commercial organizations. One option is a financial related audit as defined in the Government Auditing Standards, GPO stock #020-000-00-265-4 (commonly known as the Yellow Book) of all HHS awards; the second option is an audit that meets the requirements of OMB Circular A-133.

Commercial organizations that receive annual DHHS awards totaling less than the OMB Circular A-133's audit requirement threshold are exempt from a non-Federal audit for that year, but must make records available for audit or review as requested by SAMHSA or other designated officials.

OMB Circular A-133 now requires that all auditees submit a completed data collection form (SF-SAC) in addition to the audit report. For questions concerning the submission process or to obtain a copy of the form, you may call the Federal Audit Clearinghouse (888-222-9907).

Information can also be found on the Internet at http://harvester.census.gov/sac/. Audit reports for both SAMHSA and other HHS awards shall be submitted to the Federal Audit Clearinghouse at the address shown below:

Federal Audit Clearinghouse
Bureau of the Census
1201 E. 10th Street
Jeffersonville , IN 47132

Public Policy Requirements

Public policy requirements concerning civil rights, handicapped individuals, sex discrimination, and age discrimination require the one-time submission of Assurance Form HHS 690 prior to award. All subsequent applications must certify that the form (or the previous forms HHS 441, 641, 639-A, and 680) has been filed. These forms are provided as part of SAMHSA's application kit and can be downloaded from SAMHSA's Web site.

To inquire as to whether your organization has previously filed the HHS 690 or the previous forms, contact the HHS Office for Civil Rights at (202) 619-0403.

Cost Principles

Cost Principles of allowable and unallowable expenditures for SAMHSA grantees are provided in the following documents:

Administrative Standards

In addition to the cost principles, OMB has established administrative standards and audit requirements for organizations receiving Federal assistance. These administrative standards are contained in the following documents:

Postaward Administrative Requirements

Introduction

This Notice implements the process by which grantees may submit prior approval requests (postaward administrative changes) for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) grants and cooperative agreements. All requests for SAMHSA awarding office prior approval must be made in writing to the awarding office Grants Management Officer (GMO) no later than 30 days before the proposed change. Failure to obtain prior approval, when required, from the appropriate SAMHSA awarding office may result in the disallowance of costs, termination of an award, or other enforcement action within SAMHSA's authority.

The GMO is responsible for reviewing the request with the appropriate program official, as necessary, and for informing the grantee in writing of the final disposition of the request. Only responses signed by the GMO are to be considered valid. Grantees who take action on the basis of letters by unauthorized officials do so at their own risk. Such responses will not be considered binding by or upon SAMHSA, and HHS.

Grantee Procedures

  1. The Project/Program Director initiates a request, and includes his/her title and organization, telephone number, fax number and e-mail address countersigned by the organization's business official.

  2. Such request must be sent to the awarding office GMO with a carbon copy to the Project Officer.

  3. All information and justification will be included in plain text in the body of the formal request including the grantee's grant number. If the grant number is omitted and/or additional documentation is necessary for SAMHSA to properly evaluate the request, the request will be considered incomplete and will be returned to the grantee clearly delineating the missing information.

  4. The grantee must resubmit the entire documentation to the awarding office GMO.

  5. When submitting e-mail requests, please include grant number, Project Director, the authorized institutional official's name, title and institution, telephone number, fax number and e-mail address. It is understood that the transmission of electronic prior approval requests is a clear expression of institutional approval and that all internal procedures have been properly completed. Additionally, the grantee will be responsible for any internal distribution of the request.

SAMHSA Procedures

  • When SAMHSA staff receive a request, it will be routed to the Grants Management Specialist (GMS) who will determine if the request is complete or incomplete.

  • If the request is complete, a copy along with the GMS' recommendation will be forwarded to the Project Officer for his/her recommendation.

  • The normal SAMHSA response time should be within 30 days of the receipt of the formal request, and SAMHSA's acceptance of the request.

  • All replies from SAMHSA Grants Management staff will include the Grants Management official's name, title, telephone number, fax number and Internet address.

  • All requests for prior approval and subsequent replies will be filed in the SAMHSA official grant file, and will be available for future reference.

Content of Prior Approval Requests

The following outline is intended to be helpful in presenting the content necessary for SAMHSA staff to properly judge the request. If all the required information outlined below is not provided in the initial request, it may be necessary for SAMHSA staff to return the initial documentation to the grantee and/or request additional information from the grantee. This will result in a substantial delay of any decision being rendered on the original request.

For SAMHSA discretionary grants, grantees must obtain written prior approval from the GMO for the following postaward changes. Other prior approvals may be required by the Notice of Grant Award, specific program legislation, or regulations. Therefore, the following list may not be all inclusive.

Carryover requests:

The Financial Status Report must be submitted directly to the Division of Grants Management before a request can be considered by SAMHSA staff. The request should be signed by the Program Director and the Business Office of the organization and must include the following:

  • Justification and plans for use of carryover.

  • Amount of funds requested for carryover. Include line-item budget and budget narrative (in text format), of requested direct and indirect costs. If other than one time cost, please explain future year implications.

  • If unobligated balance is significant (25% of the current budget period's total costs), please provide an explanation as to why available funds were not used.

No-cost (time) extension requests:

A no-cost extension may be requested if the grantee requires additional time beyond the established expiration date (project end date) to fully complete its program plans and objectives proposed in the original application, or accomplish orderly phase-out of the project. The fact that funds remain at the expiration of the grant is not, in itself, sufficient justification for a no cost extension. The grantee must submit a written request for an extension to the SAMHSA awarding office no later than 60 days prior to the expiration date of the project period. The request must include the following:

  • Strong programmatic justification explaining why it is crucial for the project to be granted a time extension.

  • Length of time extension is requested (not to exceed 12 months).

  • Project plans and objectives proposed for the time extension.

  • The amount of unexpended funds available from prior budget period(s).

  • The amount of current year funds that will be available for use during the extension period.

  • A detailed line-item budget and budget narrative for the (1) unobligated funds and (2) current year funds.

Re-budgeting requests:

SAMHSA grantees are, in general, allowed a certain degree of latitude to re-budget within and between budget categories in the approved total direct budget of the project to meet unanticipated requirements or to accomplish certain programmatic changes. However, significant re-budgeting requires SAMHSA awarding office prior approval. Significant re-budgeting occurs when the cumulative amount of transfers among direct cost categories for the current budget period exceeds 25 percent of the total amount awarded, or $250,000, whichever is less. The request must include the following:

  • Detailed budget and justification.

  • Amount of funds to be re-budgeted.

  • Indication of which budget categories will be moved from and to.

  • Indication as to whether there will be a change in scope.

Change in effort:

Whenever there is to be a change in the level of participation (increase or decrease) in the approved project by the project director, program director or key personnel as designated by the terms and conditions of award, the grantee must notify SAMHSA as soon as such information is known but no later than 30 days before the expected date of departure or change in participation level. The request must include the following:

  • Justification for the increase or decrease in the level of participation.

  • Statement of proposed changes in duties/responsibilities.

  • Description of the change in effort level (from what percent to what percent).

  • Description of the duration of change.

  • Indication of what re-budgeting may occur as a result of the change in effort.

Change in Program Director (PD)/Key Personnel:

The grantee organization is required to seek approval in writing before a substitute or permanent individual is appointed to replace an absent or departed PD or key personnel. If the PD or key personnel is absent from the project for 3 months or more, a substitute or permanent individual must be proposed by the grantee organization and must be approved by the SAMHSA awarding office. The request for approval of a substitute or permanent PD should include:

  • Justification for the change.

  • Curriculum vitae of the individual proposed.

  • Any budgetary changes resulting from the proposed change.

Certificate of Confidentiality

Contact Information

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Last Update: 9/24/2008