This is a Modification to the Standing Announcement for Unaccompanied Alien Children Program Announcement, HHS-2008-ACF-ORR-ZU-0119, published to the ACF Grant Opportunities webpage on February 15, 2008. The funding opportunity description is hereby modified.

Summary:

One of the functions of the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) Division of Unaccompanied Children's Services (DUCS) is to provide temporary shelter care to Unaccompanied Alien Children (UAC) in ORR custody. Unaccompanied Alien Children have no lawful immigration status in the United States; have not attained 18 years of age; and for whom: there is no parent or legal guardian in the United States; or no parent or legal guardian in the United States is available to provide care and physical custody (6 U.S.C. 279(g)(2)). The UAC population consists of children from 0-17 years of age, primarily males, but also including females, pregnant teens, and newborn babies. UAC may be nationals of any country. However, the majority are from El Salvador, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Guatemala, The People's Republic of China, and India. 

This announcement provides the opportunity to fund state-licensed care providers for basic and specialized residential shelter and/or group homes, foster care, staff secure, secure, and therapeutic shelter care and services for UAC.  Care providers are expected to provide developmentally, culturally and age appropriate services including education, health care, socialization/recreation, vocational training, mental health services, family reunification, access to legal services, and case management. Care providers must also have clinical and case management teams to assess UAC for mental health and trafficking issues.

There are two priority areas for funding: Priority Area 1 Mega Grants (National Network Applicants) and Priority Area 2 Micro Grants (Individual Applicants).  Applicants can apply to both priority areas under separate applications.

Purpose of Modification

This modification removes all references, requirements and priority considerations given to shelters that are located in “high apprehension areas.” Due to the recent passage of the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA) of 2008 ORR will need to dramatically increase its overall bed capacity (number of beds and types of specialized care) in response to the needs of UAC who may be the victims of trafficking. ORR also anticipates that the implementation of TVRPA will result in a higher number of referrals to the ORR UAC program from other regions of the country, outside of the traditional high apprehension areas.  

The modification also includes increased funding levels for Priority Area I Mega Grants, National Network Applicants

By modifying the announcement ORR hopes to increase the number and types of care providers that respond to the announcement. 

Modification to the published announcement:

All references (including attachments, links), requirements, and priority considerations related to “high apprehension areas” are no longer applicable to this announcement. Please note that the term “high apprehension areas” as inferred in the announcement, and cited in the following sections of the standing announcement, are no longer applicable to the announcement.

In addition, the modification announces increase funding levels for Priority Area 1, Mega Grants (National Network Applicants) in the following categories: Anticipated Total Priority Area Funding and Ceiling on Amount of Individual Awards.

SECTION I. FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION

Program Locations

First paragraph text is now changed to:

“Applications submitted pursuant to this announcement must plan for the delivery of the minimum services as described in Program Services (above). The shelter/s should be located in areas easily accessible to immigration courts, pro bono legal services, national airports, and community mental health and medical services.   Geographic priority consideration and discretion  will be given based on overall program capacity and services delivery considerations.  

The sentence “Priority consideration and discretion will be given to areas of high apprehension mainly along the border States of Texas, Arizona, and California.  See attached chart.”  is now deleted.

Replace the deleted information with the following sentence “Geographic priority consideration and discretion will be given based on overall program capacity and services delivery considerations.”

Priority Area 1
 Mega Grants (National Network Applicant)

DESCRIPTION
Second paragraph text is now changed to:
“ORR is seeking applicants who have large national network capability to assist ORR with building capacity. Priority will be given to applicants who have national networks that would be able to accommodate volume fluctuations in the UAC population. Applicants will also be required to provide oversight and monitoring of the facilities within their networks.”

The words “in high apprehension locations (visit http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/orr/programs/unaccompanied_alien_children.htm  to view map of high apprehension locations)” are now deleted.

SECTION II. AWARD INFORMATION

Please delete the following information under SECTION II. AWARD INFORMATION from the original, published announcement:

Anticipated Total Priority Area Funding:  “$30,000,000” is now deleted
Ceiling on Amount of Individual Awards: “$30,000,000” is now deleted  

Replace the deleted information with the following information:

Anticipated Total Priority Area Funding:  $40,000,000
Ceiling on Amount of Individual Awards: $40,000,000

SECTION II. AWARD INFORMATION

LENGTH OF PROJECT PERIOD
Fourth paragraph, last sentence is now changed to:
“The total funding under this announcement will not exceed $40,000,000.”

SECTION V. APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION, EVALUATION CRITERIA, Criterion entitles “APPROACH – 30 points”

 Specific to Priority One:
First bullet is changed to:
·  Priority will be given to applicants who have large national network capability to assist ORR with building capacity and who will be able to accommodate volume fluctuations in the UAC population. Applicants will also be required to provide oversight and monitoring of the facilities within their networks.  Clarity of plan for maintaining minimum capacity, as well as their ability to expand capacity in response to program fluctuations and serve specialized types of care (such as staff secure and/or therapeutic care) in addition to primary shelter care.   All identified capacity must be appropriately licensed to ensure immediate accessibility as the program necessitates.

The words “in strategic high apprehension locations and those” are now deleted.

SECTION V. APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION, EVALUATION CRITERIA
Criterion entitled “GEOGRAPHIC LOCATION – 15 points”

The second bullet, “·  Applicant is located in a demonstrated high apprehension areas.” is now deleted.

Replace the deleted bullet with the following sentence:
·  Geographic priority consideration and discretion will be given based on overall program capacity and services delivery considerations

Priority Area 2
Micro Grants (Individual Applicants)

DESCRIPTION
Second paragraph text is now changed to:
“ORR may also seek applications from individual care providers or partnerships between two entities to provide specialized services.”

The words “and to meet the strategic needs in high apprehension areas (visit http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/orr/programs/unaccompanied_alien_children.htm  to view map of high apprehension locations).” is now deleted.

SECTION  V. APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION, Evaluation Criteria
Criterion entitled “ GEOGRAPHIC LOCATION - 15 points”

The second bullet, “·  Applicant is located in a demonstrated high apprehension areas.” is now deleted.

Replace the deleted bullet with the following sentence:
· Geographic priority consideration and discretion will be given based on overall program capacity and services delivery considerations

All information in this modification is accurate and replaces information specified in the February 15, 2008 Program Announcement.

ANNOUNCEMENT AVAILABILITY:

To access this Program Announcement please go to the ACF Grant Opportunities webpage at http://www.acf.hhs.gov/grants/index.html or to http://www.Grants.gov.

For further information, please contact Belinda Rochelle at 202-401-5269 or belinda.rochelle@acf.hhs.gov.   

Posted on February 23, 2009