QA-2786

Questions and Answers: Permanent Supportive Housing

Is my organization eligible to apply? IDHS/SUPR is interested in funding organizations that have experience in providing permanent supportive housing to individuals with SUD or co-occurring disorders and in administering rental subsidies and/or housing vouchers. These organizations must demonstrate their understanding of the Housing First approach and be absolutely clear that housing is not dependent on an individual's ability or interest in seeking treatment or other SUD services. An organization does not need to be licensed by the IDHS/SUPR to apply. For additional information regarding eligible applicants see the Section C - Eligibility Information.
Does the requirement of servicing 30 individuals for SFY2022 include the children of families? No, 30 individuals would be the head of household. Children and other family members do not count to the outcome measure of 30 individuals.
Is there a limit to family size or the size of the apartment being subsidized? There is not a limit to family size or the size of the apartment being subsidized.
Is there a limit on the amount of rent for subsidized units? Please refer to the Federal Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Fair Market Rents for guidance on payment standard amounts for housing.
The NOFO says that only $1M is available to be awarded, but up to 5 awards may be made for between $750K -$1M, how much can we submit in our budget? The NOFO assumes the submission of a partial year budget for SFY22 and that organizations will submit a full budget for SFY23 at the time of renewal. Organizations should submit budgets for SFY22 that include the number of subsidies they can achieve during SFY 22. DHS/SUPR will also allow for reasonable start up costs.
Do you have an idea of how many years this funding will be available? We anticipate this funding to continue into SFY23, however Funding is subject to availability and is issued for the length of the contract period.
It states 1-5 grants at $750,000-$1,000,000, but then overall funding available is $1,000,000. Is it expected that a single awardee would apply for no less than $750,000? I am trying to gauge the scope to see if it would be manageable for our organization. The NOFO assumes the submission of a partial year budget for SFY22 and that organizations will submit a full budget for SFY23 at the time of renewal. Organizations should submit budgets for SFY22 that include the number of subsidies they can achieve during SFY 22. DHS/SUPR will also allow for reasonable startup costs.
It is stated that the grant would start with the last 4 months of the FY. Is the expectation that the 25-30 clients placed would be in that 4-month period or in the FY23 time period? No. 25-30 client households would be for a full year.
Do all priority populations have to be served by each grantee? Or just be given priority? Organizations are expected to give priority to the identified populations, but not have to serve only those populations.
Is the total application limited to ten pages as stated on page 11 of the NOFO? I ask because the page breakdown of the narrative topics on pages 12-16 of the NOFO appears to exceed ten pages. Please follow the guidelines under the narrative topics and disregard the ten page maximum on page 11.
What is the grant period? In section B. Funding Information, it states that "the grant period will begin upon execution of the grant agreement (estimated to be 3/1/2022) and will extend through 6/30/2022." Does this mean that if we get funding, we would have about four months to spend the entire amount down (including hiring staff, finding 30 eligible individuals, and stably housing them)? The grant period is 3/1/2022 - 6/30/22. Your budget should reflect that time period. IDSH/SUPR understands that there is start up time. You should reflect in your narrative what you will accomplish during the first four months, then what you will accomplish during the following full year.
When we provide the budget, what time period should it be for? Should it cover the four-month period stated above or should cover a full year of spending? The budget you submit should reflect the four-month period for this fiscal year. We anticipate this funding to continue into SFY23, however funding is subject to availability and is issued for the length of the contract period.Similarly, when creating a detailed timeline, what time period should it cover (4 months, a year, or more)? The timeline should reflect what you plan to accomplish in the first four months and what you plan to accomplish for SFY23.
Does IDHS/SUPR envision the funded organization(s) to get annual funding to keep these individuals housed? We want to be able to think about continuity of housing stability and our sustainability plan for the 30+ individuals that we would house and support with the grant. We anticipate this funding to continue into SFY23, however funding is subject to availability and is issued for the length of the contract period.
For the IDHS/SUPR Permanent Supportive Housing NOFO, would the subsidies or vouchers be Bridge Subsidy or a similar subsidy/voucher? This PSH program operates like a subsidy/voucher program in that tenants will pay a percentage of their income toward rent/utilities and the program picks up the remainder. Please refer to https://store.samhsa.gov/product/Permanent-Supportive-Housing-Evidence-Based-Practices-EBP-KIT/SMA10-4509 for further guidance.
Do applicants build in the subsidies into the grant or will they be accessing and coordinating vouchers or subsidies? Applicants should build the subsidies into their budgets. Organizations will be the administrators of the subsidies.
The NOFO states "Non-Competitive" can you explain what this means for this grant? This award is exempt from the requirements of 2 CFR 200.204 and 2 CFR 200.205. This Non-competitive Notice of Funding Opportunity serves as the Divisions public notice of Federal financial assistance as required by 2 CFR 200.203.
Is there any distinction between indirect costs and administrative costs? Please refer to 2 CFR 200.
If so is there information regarding what expenses should be allocated to indirect costs and what expenses should be allocated to administrative costs? If so, is there somewhere we can find this information? Please refer to 2 CFR 200
When would we need to have the program up and running? Organizations should reflect in the narrative what they plan to accomplish in the first four months and what they plan to accomplish in the first full grant year.
What is the funding range? We have some confusion regarding the amount available and the amount to be awarded. The NOFO indicates $1,000,000 available in funding however the award range indicates $750,000 to $1,000,000. Is there only $1,000,000 available for this NOFO or do the awards range from $750,000 to $1,000,000 per award? The NOFO assumes a partial year budget or SFY 22 and that organizations will submit a full budget for SFY 23 at the time of renewal.
Can we use funds for furniture? Yes, you can purchase furniture for clients with this funding opportunity. Please review 2 CFR 200 for further accounting information.
Can we use funds for storage expenses for our unused items, i.e. furniture, glassware, etc. Please refer to 2 CFR 200.
What is the length of the project/funding and/or date range of the award? When does the project start and when does it end? The grant period is 3/1/2022 - 6/30/22. Your budget should reflect that time period. We anticipate this funding to continue into SFY23, however Funding is subject to availability and is issued for the length of the contract period.
Is this a competitive or a non-competitive opportunity? This is a non-competitive funding opportunity
What is meant by a Non-Competitive funding opportunity? This award is exempt from the requirements of 2 CFR 200.204 and 2 CFR 200.205. This Non-competitive Notice of Funding Opportunity serves as the Divisions public notice of Federal financial assistance as required by 2 CFR 200.203.
What is the award period for this grant? The grant period is 3/1/2022 - 6/30/22. Your budget should reflect that time period. We anticipate this funding to continue into SFY23, however Funding is subject to availability and is issued for the length of the contract period.
I don't see the option for the PSH CSFA, which is 444-26-2786. Maybe it's not up yet? There is a program titled "215-HOUSING FIRST PSH" with CSFA "444-22-2616", but the NOFO shows CSFA 444-26-2786. Please find the NOFO opportunity And the Smart Alert.
Also, is there an excel template for getting the budget worked out before entering into CARS, like a worksheet listing all the sections? I have the budget training manual from 2018, but I thought there used to be the option to work it out in excel before entering it into CARS. Use the uniform budget templates and follow the corresponding instructions.
Is there a specific format for the program plan we should use? I see the following under Section E - Application Review Information. Is this the outline we should follow? Organizations that are applying for this funding opportunity should respond to the questions in Section E and use that as the basis for the program plan. The response to these criteria should be considered the program narrative as required in Section D.
What CSFA should I choose for the GATA budget in the CSA system, given that the CSFA listed in the NOFO is not listed, and What is the 3-digit NOFO suffix? The correct GATA budget is now listed in the CSA System. The CSFA number is 444-26-2786. The 3 digit NOFO suffix is not needed.
Under "Indicator of Successful Project" it states: " Supervision must be provided by a licensed clinician." If the project is going to be part of a Recovery Oriented Systems of Care / and its RCO partner, where the Recovery staff is not supervised by clinical staff, and the service plan will be centered on ROSC services and COD assessment, treatment and services will be referred out as needed, does the program have to be supervised by a licensed clinician (in that clinical services are not actually being provided)? If the answer is still "yes," can that supervisor be contractual? Answer: Yes, the program does need to be supervised by a licensed clinician. Yes, the supervisor can be contractual. The expenses for the contractual supervisor should be accounted for in your budget.
Will every organization that applies receive funding? No. Not everyone who applies will receive funding. As listed in the NOFO under "Agency Funding Priorities", IDHS/SUPR is interested in funding organizations that have experience in providing permanent supportive housing to individuals with SUD or co-occurring disorders and in administering rental subsidies and/or housing vouchers. These organizations must demonstrate their understanding of the Housing First approach and be absolutely clear that housing is not dependent on an individual's ability or interest in seeking treatment or other SUD services. Applications will also be reviewed and assessed based on their program plans as required in Section E. If an organization does not meet the criteria as outlined in Section E, they may/will not funded. Additionally, total amount of available funding will also be considered as a criterion during the selection process.
There appears to be a conflict in the NOFO. Item 14 in the Summary section indicates that there are no restrictions on indirect costs. However, the performance standards section indicates that "Grantee will spend no more than 10% on Administrative costs." We do not want to be deemed non-responsive based on this conflict. Any guidance. that can be provided would be appreciated. Applicants are expected to provide budgets that do not allocate more than 10% for administrative costs.