(1)
To conduct social, economic, and demographic research on topics
important to the Social Security Old Age, Survivors and Disability
Insurance and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) programs and the
current and future well-being of their beneficiaries; (2) to develop
and carry out experiments and research demonstration projects to
determine the efficacy of: (a) alternative ways of rehabilitating
beneficiaries and encouraging their return to work; and (b) modifying
conditions applicable to such beneficiaries including: (i) early
referral for rehabilitation services; and (ii) greater use of employers
and others in the rehabilitation and placement process.
TYPES
OF ASSISTANCE:
Project Grants. Place Cursor Here for Definition
USES
AND USE RESTRICTIONS:
Grants
are awarded for innovative research and demonstrations which add
to existing knowledge and improve methods and techniques for the
management, administration, and effectiveness of Social Security
Administration (SSA) programs. Grant funds may not be used for construction
or major renovation of buildings.
ELIGIBILITY
REQUIREMENTS:
Applicant
Eligibility: Applicants applying for grant funds
may include State and local governments, educational institutions,
hospitals, public and private organizations, and nonprofit and profit
organizations. Private individuals are not eligible to apply. Profit
organizations may apply with the understanding that no grant funds
may be paid as profit to grant recipients. Profit is considered
any amount in excess of the allowable costs of the grant recipient.
A profit organization is a corporation or other legal entity that
is organized or operated for the profit or benefit of its shareholders
or other owners and must be distinguishable or legally separable
from that of an individual acting on his/her own behalf.
Beneficiary
Eligibility: State agencies, local governments,
educational institutions, hospitals, nonprofit organizations,
and profit organizations are eligible to apply for grant funding.
Credentials/Documentation:
Costs and administrative requirements for grantees will be determined
in accordance with Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
regulations 45 CFR 74 and 92.
Pre-application
Coordination: Not applicable. This program is
excluded from coverage under E.O. 12372.
Application
Procedure: The standard application forms
furnished by SSA must be used for this program. When grant opportunities
are available, SSA publishes a notice in the Federal Register
soliciting grant applications. Application kits that contain the
prescribed application forms and supplemental descriptive information
on the priority areas are available from: Grants Management Team,
Office of Operations Contracts and Grants (OOCG), Office of Acquisition
and Grants (OAG), Office of the Deputy Commissioner for Finance,
Assessment and Management (DCFAM), Social Security Administration,
1-E-4, Gwynn Oak Building, 1710 Gwynn Oak Avenue, Baltimore, MD
21207-5279. Contact: Ms. Phyllis Y. Smith, Grants Management Officer.
Telephone: (410) 965-9518. Also, SSA grant program announcements
and application information can be obtained from the SSA/OAG Internet
site at: www.ssa.gov\oag\grants. To be considered for a grant
award, all applicants must complete the prescribed application
forms and submit them to the Grants Management Team. The application
shall be executed by an individual authorized to act for the applicant
agency or organization and who will assume the obligations imposed
by the terms and conditions of the grant. As part of the project
title (page 1 of the application form, Form SSA-96, item 11),
the applicant must clearly indicate whether the application submitted
is in response to a priority area identified in a program announcement,
and must reference the applicable priority area (e.g., "001")
in which it is competing. At least three independent reviewers
prepare written assessments of each program-relevant grant application.
Applications found irrelevant to program objectives are returned
to the applicants.
Award
Procedure: OAG provides a Notice of Grant
Award (or a Notice of Cooperative Agreement Award) as official
notice for approved applications. The notice indicates award amount,
the purpose of the award, award terms and conditions, the budget
period, the anticipated project period, and the grantee's cost-sharing
requirement.
Deadlines:
Closing dates for receipt of grant applications are published
in the Federal Register announcement (usually 60 to 90 days after
date of publication in the Federal Register).
Range
of Approval/Disapproval Time: Generally, 3
to 6 months after the closing date established in the Federal
Register announcement.
Appeals:
There are no formal appeal procedures. If an application is not
approved, the reasons will be stipulated in the denial notice.
Renewals:
Grants can be extended and continued via formal application, which
is subject to approval. If an application is recommended for approval
for 2 or more budget years, the grantee must submit a formal request
for funding continuation each year accompanied by a progress report.
This will be evaluated prior to a recommendation of continuation
of funding.
SSISTANCE
CONSIDERATIONS:
Formula
and Matching Requirements: Grantees are required
to share the cost of projects. The cost-sharing ranges from 5 to
25 percent of total project costs. This program has no statutory
formula.
Length
and Time Phasing of Assistance: Funds are
usually granted for a period of 12 to 17 months. Funds, however,
can be granted for a minimum of 3 months, and up to a maximum
of 60 months.
POST
ASSISTANCE REQUIREMENTS:
Reports:
Progress and financial reports are required on all projects. Quarterly
reports are due within 30 days after the end of each quarter of
the budget period. Comprehensive final reports are due no later
than 90 days after the grant expires.
Audits:
Audits shall be conducted in accordance with the provisions of
OMB Circular No. A-133 and HHS regulations 45 CFR 74 and 92.
Records:
Grantees must maintain financial records, supporting documents,
statistical records and all other records pertinent to an award
for 3 years. In the event of an audit, records must be maintained
until all questions are resolved.
FINANCIAL
INFORMATION:
Account
Identification: 28-8704-0-7-601.
Obligations:
(Grants) FY 01 $13,607,855; FY 02 est $8,896,068; and FY 03 est
$1,370,539.
Range
and Average of Financial Assistance:
From $100,000 to $1,750,000. Figures may vary with
type of program.
In fiscal year 2001, there were 15 awards totaling $13,607,855 all
for continuation of existing projects. In FY 2002, SSA anticipates
making 15 awards totaling $8.9 million for continuation of projects.
REGULATIONS,
GUIDELINES, AND LITERATURE:
None.
INFORMATION
CONTACTS:
Regional
or Local Office: Not applicable.
Headquarters
Office: Phyllis Y. Smith, Grants Management
Officer, Office of Operations Contracts and Grants, Office of
Acquisition and Grants (OAG), DCFAM, Social Security Administration,
1-E-4, Gwynn Oak Building, 1710 Gwynn Oak Avenue, Baltimore, MD
21207-5279. Telephone: (410) 965-9518.
Web
Site Address: http://www.ssa.gov
EXAMPLES
OF FUNDED PROJECTS:
(1) Poverty Among Older Women: A Cross National Perspective; (2)
Disability Research Institute: Partnership in a New Paradigm; (3)
Putting the Pieces Together for Employment; (4) Opening Doors to
the Future for Adolescents with Special Healthcare Needs; (5) Making
Work Pay: Reducing Medicaid and Social Security Barriers to Employment;
(6) Work Incentive, Counseling and Assistance Program for SSI Recipients;
and (7) Individual Planning for Self Sufficiency.
CRITERIA
FOR SELECTING PROPOSALS:
Generally, applications are evaluated on the following criteria:
(1) Adequacy of project design; (2) relevance of the activity to
the objectives of the program; (3) qualifications of personnel;
(4) adequacy of facilities to conduct activity; (5) reasonableness
of costs; and (6) usefulness of the results.
