Recovery.gov - Track the Money

Grantees will identify projects and activities to be assisted with CDBG funds in action plan amendments that all grantees will be required to submit in order to receive their funding. HUD estimates that grantees will propose between 10,000 and 12,500 discrete activities to be assisted with CDBG funds. These will not be known until grantees submit their action plan amendments. Projects will range from small scale, single family rehabilitation activities to major infrastructure and economic development activities. Grantees have the discretion to choose activities for funding, subject to the limitations of the Recovery Act which prohibits assistance to aquariums, casinos (and other gambling establishments), golf courses, swimming pools, and zoos, as well as the guidelines for responsible spending outlined in a Presidential memorandum dated March 20, 2009. As a result, HUD cannot at this time identify specific projects or activities that will be funded with CDBG

Project/Activity: CDBG projects will be described in the grantee action plan amendments. HUD plans to list these projects and activities on its website (HUD.gov/Recovery) as grantees submit them for approval.
Description: Projects will range from small scale, single-family rehabilitation activities to major infrastructure and economic development activities.
Funding: $980,000,000.00

Project/Activity : HUD will provide training, technical assistance, monitoring, enforcement, and research and evaluation activities.
Description: HUD will hire staff, build IT systems and work with grantees to ensure effective and efficient implementation
Funding: $10,000,000.00

(1) Data Collection and Reporting
a. Spend Plans: This list will include the amount of funds allocated to the proposed activities. HUD intends to compile and display these lists on the HUD Recovery Act website prior to approving the substantial action plan amendment. HUD field staff will review grantee plans for compliance with both CDBG and Recovery Act requirements, including the President’s March 20, 2009 memorandum on responsible spending of Recovery Act funds.
b. Financial Reports: HUD generates two financial reports that will be analyzed weekly. These include a Summary Financial Report that indicates the amount of funds for each program, and a Funding Notification Report, which shows the amount of funding by program for every jurisdiction, including local governments and states.
c. Quarterly Recipient Reports: The cornerstone of HUD’s monitoring and evaluation system is the project data collected from grantees. The Recovery Act specifically requires data collection fields for grantees and contractors. A list of data requirements can be found on www.hud.gov/recovery. In addition, CDBG grantees will be required to provide data for all fields within the Integrated Disbursement and Information System (IDIS) that are applicable to the CDBG eligible activities being funded by the grantee. The link to IDIS is: www.hud.gov/offices/cpd/systems/idis/idis.cfm.

(2) Ongoing Grantee Management: HUD categorizes grantees by risk, then monitors and allocates interventions, including training, technical assistance and if warranted, disciplinary action. High Risk grantees will be identified through application of Community Planning and Development’s (CPD) established risk analysis process which encompasses the CDBG program. Risk analysis provides the information needed for CPD to effectively target its resources to grantees that pose the greatest risk to the integrity of CPD programs, including identification of the grantees to be monitored on-site and remotely, the program areas to be covered, and the depth of the review. The selection process should result in identifying those grantees and activities that represent the greatest vulnerability to fraud, waste, and mismanagement. CPD will monitor grantee disbursement patterns via reports available through IDIS and other HUD systems. CPD will also evaluate substantial action plan amendments and proposed activities prior to approval of amendment and will monitor CDBG grantee implementation actions for consistency with approved plans. To ensure budget/cost compliance CPD will monitor grantees consistent with established CDBG monitoring guidelines as identified in the CPD Monitoring Handbook (Handbook 9509.2, Rev. 5). Sanctions relating to improper use of funds will be based upon sanctions available to CDBG program under HCD Act of 1974 and 24 CFR 570, Subpart O. CPD will use Recovery Act set aside funds as well as regular CDBG technical assistance funds to provide guidance to grantees or special requirements associated with the use of funds.

With respect to reporting, OMB has issued detailed guidance on the requirements for recipients of the Recovery Act funds. Specifically, each prime and first tier recipient is required to report specified information to HUD 10 days after the end of each calendar quarter. This includes, but is not limited to, a detailed list of all projects and activities for which Recovery Act funds were obligated or expended, an evaluation of the completion status of the project or activity, and an estimate of the number of jobs created or retained. In addition to the overarching requirements of the Recovery Act, HUD has also identified a number of program-specific measures that will be collected through this reporting process.

HUD expects that the transparency requirements of the Recovery Act, specifically the requirement to publish both spending and recipient performance reports, will create accountability amongst its managers and grantees. In addition, HUD will establish internal management controls to create a greater level of accountability for performance. There are three levels of internal performance reviews: 1) The HUD Recovery Act program management team will work with the leads of the program and cross-cutting teams to prepare a bi-weekly program snapshot report for the steering committee to review with the Deputy Secretary and Secretary. Drawing from the program and risk management plans, the reports will include summary-level quantitative financial and programmatic performance measures and targets, key milestones, issues or risks, , and actions being taken to address the issues. Interim spending and performance targets will be set to ensure that annual objectives from the program plans are met. Performance data will be summarized by grantee risk category, as defined in the agency’s risk management plan. Performance measure targets and milestones that are missed, or that are in jeopardy of being missed, will be accompanied by an explanation of the reasons why, including any issues affecting progress and the specific plan for their resolution or mitigation. 2) In addition to the bi-weekly program management team meeting and reporting, each program team will meet with the Secretary, Deputy Secretary and Steering Committee on a monthly basis to review a more detailed set of Recovery Act performance measures. 3) On a quarterly basis, these monthly meetings will include updated grant recipient data described above.

HUD is requiring CDBG-R grantees to submit a list of proposed activities along with their substantial action plan amendment. CDBG-R grantees will forward this spreadsheet to HUD which will then post all proposed activities to its Recovery Act website for public review and comment. The purpose of this exercise is to ensure the highest possible level of transparency and accountability in the use of CDBG-R funds. Once the activities are approved, HUD will post these activities on the HUD Recovery website as well.

New buildings and major renovations financed through formula grants are required to meet local energy codes.