Post-Award Changes Requiring Prior Approval

Post-Award Changes Requiring Prior Approval

As a federal grant recipient (or grantee), you may need to modify your grant award or other aspects of your approved application during the year to accomplish certain program objectives. Certain post-award changes require SAMHSA’s prior approval before a recipient makes certain budget modifications or undertakes particular activities. The most common types of post-award changes requiring prior approval are described below. The following links provides guidance and what must be contained in the request:

• Key Staff and Level of Effort Changes
• Budget Revisions
• Change in Scope
• Carryover Requests
• No-Cost Extension Requests

Detailed information on other types changes to activities and costs that require prior approval is outlined in Part II of the HHS Grants Policy Statement (PDF | 1.32 MB). For Drug Free Communities (DFC) Support Program Grants requirements refer to the DFC Handbook (PDF | 708 KB).

Based on the nature, extent, and timing, SAMHSA may approve, deny, or request additional material to further document and evaluate your request. Only responses provided by the GMO are considered valid. If SAMHSA approves the request, an amended Notice of Award (NoA) will be issued. Verbal authorization is not approval and is not binding on SAMHSA. Recipients that proceed on the basis of actions by unauthorized officials do so at their own risk, and SAMHSA is not bound by such responses.

How to Submit a Prior Approval Request

SAMHSA is transitioning to the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) electronic Research Administration (eRA) grants system. Due to this transition, SAMHSA changed the continuation application submission for the following two programs:

• TI-16-011 (TCE-HIV)
• SM-16-008 (NCTSI-TSA)

These programs will offer training on eRA, including how to submit the continuation applications. Information on this training will be sent directly to the recipients in January 2017.

All other discretionary grant continuation applications must be submitted electronically through Grants.gov. If you are eligible for a continuation grant, you’ll receive a letter of notification via email to your designated business official.

At this time, all other grant recipients must submit a post-award request by email. The request must be submitted to the Grants Management Specialist (GMS), and Government Project Officer (GPO) identified on the Notice of Award (NoA) for the grant. The prior approval request email must contain the following:

• Email Subject line with grant number and the organization name
• Signature line with the project director’s name, title, and grantee institution
• Carbon copy the email to the authorized official (the person who signed the SF-424 Face Page as the AOR) and the business official (the person listed on the HHS Checklist) of your organization and the project director
• Attach the prior approval information and supporting documentation required for each type of request (provided in the links above)

SAMHSA usually processes requests within 30 business days after receipt. Incomplete requests will delay the process.