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Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program
Division of Energy Assistance/OCS/ACF
State and Tribal LIHEAP Application Requirements and Deadline
for
All Applications of September 1, 2002
THIS CONTAINS INFORMATION ISSUED BY THE U.S. ADMINISTRATION FOR
CHILDREN AND FAMILIES IN LIHEAP ACTION TRANSMITTAL NO.
LIHEAP-AT-2002-3, DATED 6/5/02
TO: LOW INCOME HOME ENERGY ASSISTANCE PROGRAM (LIHEAP)
GRANTEES AND OTHER INTERESTED PARTIES
SUBJECT: State and Tribal LIHEAP Application Requirements
and Deadline for All Applications of September 1,
2002
RELATED Low Income Home Energy Assistance Act of 1981
REFERENCES: (Title XXVI of Public Law 97-35, the Omnibus Budget
Reconciliation Act of 1981), as amended; LIHEAP
Action Transmittal 2000-2, dated November 18, 1999,
which transmitted the Final Rule amending the Block
Grant regulations, as published in the Federal
Register on October 15, 1999 (64 FR 55843-55858);
LIHEAP model plan, as transmitted to grantees by
LIHEAP Information Memorandum 2001-19, dated 3/28/01;
(OMB approval number 0970-0075, for use through
2/28/2005).
PURPOSE: The purpose of this memorandum is to remind grantees
of the application requirements for the funding
period beginning October 1, 2002 for the FY 2003
LIHEAP program, and also to remind all grantees that
their LIHEAP applications for the FY 2003 funding
period are due September 1, 2002.
CONTENT: The LIHEAP application requirements for the
FY 2003 funding period were described in LIHEAP-
IM-2002-12 dated April 15, 2002. The Information
Memorandum also included copies of both the
detailed and abbreviated model plans, along with a
chart showing which grantees must submit detailed
applications this year.
Grantees must submit a "detailed application"
every 3 years, or sooner if they are making major
changes to their LIHEAP programs. Since most
grantees do not substantially change their
programs in a typical 2- to 3-year period, this
frequency will assure that we have a full
description of basic plan elements. As part of
the detailed application, a full description of
how grantees will carry out all of the assurances
specified in the statute and the other program-
specific information required in Section 2605(c)
of the statute must be submitted.
One-third of current grantees must submit detailed
applications for FY 2003 while the remaining two-
thirds will have the option of filing an
abbreviated application for FY 2003. Grantees
that submit an abbreviated application for FY 2003
will be required to submit a detailed application
for FY 2004 or FY 2005. Attached is a schedule
specifying which grantees are required to file
detailed applications in FY 2003 and FY 2004 (See
Attachment 2). Tribes and tribal organizations
must file a detailed application in the same year
as the States in which they are located.
We wish to remind grantees that they must submit
an application each fiscal year in order to
receive LIHEAP funds. Indian Tribes and tribal
organizations must submit their applications by
September 1, unless the State(s) in which the
Tribe or organization is located agrees to a later
submission date. A Final Rule published on
October 15, 1999 in the Federal Register (64 FR
55843) states in 45 CFR 96.10(c)(2) that
applications from States and territories must also
be submitted by September 1 unless the Department
agrees to a later date.
States and territories that will not be able to
meet the deadline for submitting FY 2003
applications should write to this office at the
address at the end of this transmittal. The
letter should state the reason(s) that the
deadline cannot be met and a projected date for
submission.
The final rule also establishes a deadline for the
submission of all information required to complete
the LIHEAP application by Tribes, States and
territories. All information requested by this
office in order to make a grantee's application
complete must be submitted by December 15 of the
fiscal year for which funds are being requested,
unless the State(s) in which a Tribe is located
(in the case of tribal grantees) or the Department
(in the case of States and territories) agrees to
a later date.
Early receipt and processing of your application
also will facilitate your ability to meet the
statutory requirement to obligate at least 90
percent of your funds in the fiscal year in which
they are appropriated.
The Cash Management Improvement Act of 1990
(Public Law 101-453, as amended by Public Law
102 -589), is in effect. This statute, which
covers States and territories but not Tribes,
imposes a requirement for timely transfers of
funds between Federal agencies and States. The
Department of the Treasury has issued a Final Rule
(57 FR 60676-60684, published December 21, 1992)
implementing the statute, which affects the LIHEAP
program. The receipt of your application several
weeks before you intend to draw funds from the
Payment Management System will allow us to comply
with the intent of this Act and its implementing
regulations.
All necessary information must be included
in the application before it can be accepted
as complete and we can issue a grant. When
we have to ask for additional information, it
means that you may not receive the grant award on
the schedule you had planned.
Another reason the approval process often takes
longer than necessary is the submission of
delegations of the governor's authority that do
not specify authority to sign the LIHEAP
assurances. LIHEAP regulations at 45 CFR 96.10(b)
require that the 16 assurances (15 for Tribes and
some territories) in the LIHEAP statute must be
signed by the grantee's chief executive officer or
"by an individual authorized to make such
certifications on behalf of the chief executive
officer." A delegation of authority to administer
the LIHEAP program, or one that delegates
authority to sign assurances but does not specify
the LIHEAP program, is not sufficient. The
delegation must specifically authorize the
delegatee to sign the LIHEAP assurances.
Please note that the signature requirements
and requirements for public participation in
developing the application (plus a public hearing
requirement for States) apply to Abbreviated as well
as Detailed applications. In providing the
opportunity for public participation, grantees that
will file an abbreviated plan should also make the
most recent detailed application available for public
review.
Use of the model plan format continues to be
optional. To assist grantees that choose
not to use the model plan format, we have attached
reminders of the elements necessary for a complete
application.
This model plan is available on Microsoft Word 97
disks, upon request. It may also be downloaded
from the LIHEAP website at
http://www.acf.dhhs.gov/programs/liheap/forms.htm
Required Household Report
As part of their annual LIHEAP grant applications,
grantees are required to report data on households
that applied for and those that received LIHEAP
assistance during the previous fiscal year.
Therefore, your FY 2003 LIHEAP application must
include a report on FY 2002 applicant and
recipient households.
Section 2605 (c)(1)(G) requires grantees to
report the number and income levels of those
households applying for and those households
receiving assistance, and the number of assisted
households with at least one or more individuals
who are in each of 3 categories: (1) 60 years or
older, (2) disabled, and (3) under 6 years old.
(Territories with block grant allocations of
$200,000 or less and tribal grantees are required
to submit a report only on the number of
households served under each LIHEAP component).
FY 2003 grant awards will not be made until the
report for FY 2002 is received. If final figures
are not yet available when you submit your
application, we will accept estimates. Updated
figures should be provided as soon as possible
thereafter.
Carryover and Reallotment Report
The required report on the amount of funds
each grantee will carry over from FY 2002 to
FY 2003 -- or will have available for reallotment
--is due August 1, 2002. Please remember that the
statute states that no grantee will receive its FY
2003 grant until it has submitted its carryover
and reallotment report for its FY 2002 funds.
(See LIHEAP AT-2002-2, dated 5/29/02 for more
details.)
Leveraging Incentive Program
We remind LIHEAP grantees applying for leveraging
incentive funds that the regulations at
45 CFR 96.87, which govern the leveraging
incentive program, require you to include in your
FY 2002 LIHEAP plan a description of any
leveraging activities that took place during FY
2002 that are integrated and coordinated with your
LIHEAP program, but that are not administered as a
part of LIHEAP. You must submit any necessary
amendments to your plan to provide those
descriptions to the Division of Energy Assistance
by the end of the FY 2002 fiscal year, September
30, 2002, in order to qualify for FY 2003
leveraging grant awards. Leveraging activities
that you expect to carry out during FY 2003 should
be described in your FY 2003 plan and application.
Please refer to LIHEAP-AT-2001-08 (dated 8/2/01),
that describes the requirements to qualify for
leveraging incentive funds for these resources.
Additional Certifications
Please remember that all States, whether or
not they use the model plan, must file the
lobbying certification and, if applicable, Form
LLL, which discloses lobbying payments. Tribes
and tribal organizations are not required to file
the lobbying certification. The debarment and
suspension certification must be filed by all
grantees, as must the drug-free workplace
certification, unless a State has submitted a
Statewide assurance to the Department of Health
and Human Services. Grantees that do not
use the model plan should remove these
certification forms from the back of the model
plan and include them with their applications.
(See LIHEAP IM-2002-12, dated 4/15/02.)
Certification by the Chief Executive Officer
The Chief Executive Officer of the grantee must
"certify" to the assurances in section 2605(b) of
the statute (16 assurances for States, 15 for
Tribes and some territories). This can be
accomplished in two different ways. The chief
executive officer may sign either: (1) the
assurances contained in the law listed exactly as
they appear in the amended statute (copy
incorporated in the model plan); or (2) a "blanket
assurance" which is a Statement that certifies to
the assurances in the law. An example of an
acceptable blanket assurance is:
I certify that the (Name of Grantee) will
comply with the 16 assurances contained in
Title XXVI, section 2605(b) of the Omnibus
Budget Reconciliation Act of 1981 as amended,
in the administration and operation of its
Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program.
The chief executive officer means, in most
Tribes, the tribal chairperson or President
of the Tribal Council. For States, the chief
executive officer is the governor. The assurances
may not be signed by any other person, such as the
LIHEAP Coordinator, the Business Manager, or the
Director of Social Services. There is only one
exception to this policy. The chief executive
officer may, in writing, specifically authorize
another person to sign on his or her behalf. Such
an authorization will be accepted only if it
states that the designated person is authorized to
sign the LIHEAP assurances. Authorization simply
to administer the LIHEAP program is not
acceptable. The authorization must mention the
LIHEAP program by name.
Tribe-State Agreements
Under the LIHEAP statute and implementing regulations,
we determine grant amounts to be awarded to Tribes and
tribal organizations based on the number of eligible
households in the Tribe compared to the number of
eligible households for the State, unless the
Tribe and the State agree to a larger amount. We
encourage Tribes and States to develop an
agreement on funding levels.
As in previous years, grants will be issued
to tribal grantees based on eligible household
numbers unless an agreement between the State
and tribal grantee has been made. Therefore,
if a State and Tribe are planning to negotiate
an agreement, it is important to start that
process now.
Inter-Tribal Agreements
If a tribal organization or consortium is
applying on behalf of several Tribes, the
application must list all Tribes to be served.
Any Tribes added to the list after the September 1
application due date must receive the State's
approval before HHS can issue funds to the
organization or consortium on behalf of the
additional Tribes.
A consortium must also have a resolution
for each Tribe for which it is applying,
authorizing the consortium to apply for and
administer LIHEAP funds on the Tribe's behalf.
The authorization must be in the form of a
resolution duly passed by the tribal council. A
letter signed by a program administrator or by a
tribal chairperson will not suffice.
Note: Postal Delays
Due to current situations affecting the receipt of
mail in the Washington, DC metropolitan area,
Federal government agencies are unable to accept
mail through the U.S. Postal service that has not
been processed through special equipment. Regular
deliveries have resumed, but delays continue due
to an irradiation process. Therefore, to ensure
the timely receipt of your application for LIHEAP,
we recommend that you use a commercial courier
service that can guarantee that the application is
postmarked on or before September 1, 2002. You
may fax Abbreviated Model Plans only to (202) 401-
5661.
Application Submission
Applications should be delivered to:
Nick St. Angelo, Director
Division of Energy Assistance
Office of Community Services/ACF/HHS
370 L'Enfant Promenade, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20447
ATTACHMENTS: (1) LIHEAP Funding Application Reminders
(2) Schedule for Detailed LIHEAP Plans
INQUIRIES TO: Trudy Hairston, Program Specialist
Division of Energy Assistance
Telephone: (202) 401-4853
Fax: (202) 401-5661
E-mail: thairston@acf.hhs.gov
_______________/s_____________
Clarence H. Carter
Director
Office of Community Services
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URL: http://www.acf.dhhs.gov/programs/liheap
Posted on 6/24/02
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