Stories Needed from Members about their ARRA Experience with RSA

Read stories submitted by members so far.

July 24, 2009

Earlier this month, NCIL sent out an alert to help members prepare for their upcoming meetings with RSA about their plans to use ARRA Part C dollars. In that alert, NCIL asked members to submit their stories to NCIL to post on the website.  NCIL has received several verbal accounts, and one written account. NCIL will get the link up this week, and will post that write-up and others as they come in. Please take some time to write about your experience with this process. Talk about the following:

1. A general account of what happened
2. What your state did to prepare
3. What you could have done differently
4. Recommendations to other states as they prepare

Please send your write-up to Jason Beloungy. His e-mail is jason@ncil.org. If you have questions, you can e-mail Jason or call him at 1-202-207-0334 (Toll-Free: 1-877-525-3400), ext. 1008.

American Recovery & Reinvestment Act & Independent Living Update

July 1, 2009

Background

NCIL continues to work with the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) regarding distribution of funds from the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act (ARRA) as well as current appropriations from the Title VII Independent Living Program to ensure that both sets of funds are utilized in ways that are consistent with each state's individual State Plan for Independent Living (SPIL).
Process

• RSA began holding webinars on possible uses of Title VII, Chapter 1 Part C funds on June 4th of this year. (These online presentations coincided with the NCIL Annual Conference, so many of you may have missed them.) 

• Representatives from Designated State Units (DSUs) and Statewide Independent Living Councils (SILCs) will be invited to participate in conference calls with RSA to discuss how ARRA funds will be distributed in manners consistent with the SPIL.  Please see the letter from RSA (below) for further details.

Requirements

• ARRA funds are considered to be discretionary.  Funding is available once a state’s SPIL is approved.  However, RSA has chosen not to release funding until October 1, 2009 for existing CILs and December 31, 2009 for states choosing to start new CILs.

• “New” CILs started with ARRA funds, as well as existing Centers, will have until September 30, 2014, to “obligate” funds.

• Title VII Chapter 1, Part B and Chapter II, Older Blind funds require a 10 percent match, which can include in-kind contributions.

• ARRA funds will be given a Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) number that is separate from the CFDA number given to Title VII funds.

• The Administration does not condone reductions in regular allocations for recipients of ARRA funding [i.e., states contemplating reducing state funding for Independent Living to an amount comparable to the incoming ARRA funds].

• Note that there is no maintenance of effort requirement for any IL funding in the ARRA, which means that although RSA does NOT condone using ARRA funds to supplant a loss of state funding, there is nothing in the ARRA that prohibits the use of such.

• ARRA funds may be used to establish a new CIL, and a kind of reverse grandfather clause is provided for them: after ARRA funds have ended, the new Centers will be eligible for Part C dollars on the same basis as CILs currently receiving this funding.  For example, if a state has five existing CILs and a sixth CIL is started with ARRA funding, once the funding ends, this new CIL will be eligible to receive Part C funding. Future allocations of Part C funding will then be distributed among all six CILs, rather than just the initial five.  Also, instead of two years to use ARRA funds, the new CILs will now have five years due to the 09 Appropriations Supplemental recently signed by President Obama.  NCIL discourages states from starting new CILs with ARRA funding unless they have developed a strategy to continue funding the new CILs after the ARRA funds have been expended. 

• On June 24th, 2009, President Obama signed into law H.R. 2346, the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2009, which removes the requirement for RSA or Designated State Units to start new Centers for Independent Living with American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funding.  This would leave it to the State Plan for Independent Living (SPIL) to determine if new CILs should be developed.

• Since the IL program is considered discretionary, new CILs will have to compete for ARRA funding. 

What you must do

• States must pay close attention to SPIL language regarding:

• Unserved/underserved geographic areas;
• Use of Part C and Part B funds to serve such areas; and
• The minimum funding levels of existing CILs and plans for expanding the network of CILs.
• Involve your network of CILs
• Start planning now!

• For more information
  
  
• In an effort to help SILCs and Centers who will be going through this process, we invite members to submit a write-up of their experience with this process to NCIL to post on our website. Stories will be posted on a weekly basis. Please send write-ups of your experience to Jason Beloungy at jason@ncil.org.
• fact sheets about the ARRA funding
• state-by-state totals
• state-by-state breakdown of ARRA funds Part B:  http://www.ed.gov/policy/gen/leg/recovery/guidance/ils.pdf

People to call if you need help:

• Kelly Buckland: 202–207–0334; kelly@ncil.org
• Jason Beloungy: 202-207–0334; jason@ncil.org
• Maureen Ryan: 608–444–3482; moryan@charter.net
• Jeff Hughes: 405-321-3203; jlhughes@progind.org

NCIL Fact Sheet: Stimulus Update

April 16, 2009

NCIL is working with the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) regarding the distribution of funds in the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and current Independent Living Appropriations. David Esquith, Director of the State Monitoring and Program Improvement Division (SMPID) presented before the NCIL Board of Directors last month. Below is an updated version of what we’ve learned.

Title VII, Part B and C:

• RSA has released fact sheets about the ARRA funding.
  
  
• All of Part B and Older Blind (OB) funding is now available.
  
  
• Part B and OB match will be required (10%; and subject to current rules, which means the match can include in-kind); state-by-state funding totals can be found on the RSA website.
  
  
• Part C and training assistance will be made available by the end of the Fiscal Year. SILCs and DSUs need to consider whether or not a SPIL amendment is necessary given the influx of Federal funding through the ARRA.
  
  
• The Administration does not condone reductions in regular allocations for recipients of economic stimulus funding, there is no maintenance of effort requirement for any IL funding in the ARRA.
  
  
• There will be two separate Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) numbers for each funding source (ARRA and Appropriation).
  
  
• CILs have until September 30, 2011 to “obligate” the ARRA Part C funds.
  
  
• ARRA funds = $87.5 million. The following subtract from that total:
  
  
• 1.8% Training and Technical Assistance
  
  
• 1% for the 21b Program for underserved populations such as minorities and Native Americans
  
  
• $100,000 for peer review contracts to do Part C competitions
  
  
• Part C minimum allotments increase to $1.117 million (current minimum allotment is approximately $780,000); the rest will be distributed per the existing funding formula.
  
  
• RSA will engage each state to discuss how the new money will distributed under each SPIL, to gain a "common understanding." Webinars will be held with RSA, DSUs, and SILCs to clarify the process of using the Part C funds. RSA has made it clear that Part C is difficult to administer because it is "very complex."
  
  
• Part C funds are discretionary, so they will be distributed via competitive grants to create new Centers or grants to existing Centers. 
  
  
• The status of the two 723 states (Massachusetts & Minnesota) may be in jeopardy because of the influx of federal funding.

Title I:

• 50% of Title I VR funding will be made available by the end of March, the other 50% will be made available by end of FY09; state match was waived by ARRA for Title I.

For more information about RSA’s plans for IL funding, please contact Mr. Esquith at (202) 245-7336 or david.esquith@ed.gov.

Stimulus Update: March 4, 2009

John Lancaster, Kelly Buckland, Dan Kessler, Jeff Hughes and NCIL staff have been in constant contact with RSA for the last few weeks, waiting for answers to our questions on the Stimulus (ARRA) Act. RSA has been telling NCIL they will have paperwork describing how much each state will receive and how soon.

Read the questions NCIL submitted to RSA, along with the suggested answers! [ text only ]

In the 2009 Omnibus Appropriation Act, Independent Living funds have increased by 5% . Congress is debating it now and is expected to pass the bill later this week and start work on the 2010 budget. As many will recall, Congress did not pass a 2009 Appropriations bill, so the Omnibus Bill incorporated all the mandatory and discretionary spending. With the Stimulus funding and the ‘09 Omnibus Act, look for a large increase in funding this year and be ready to spend it.

As we move forward in the 111th Congress, it is critical we demonstrate the power of the grassroots Independent Living Movement. We will secure full civil rights for people with disabilities and create a world in which people with disabilities are valued equally and participate fully!

Information Alert

Independent Living funding in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act

February 10, 2008

Background: Centers for Independent Living have advocated for increased funding for years. The stimulus bill has been passed by both Houses and sent to Conference Committee to hammer out the differences. The House bill had recommended $200 million for Independent Living and the Senate recommended $110 million.

The Conference Committees just released the report and Independent Living is slated to receive $140 million! Our advocacy efforts have paid off and increased funding will be available soon.

NCIL is working with Members of Congress and the Rehabilitation Administration Services for Centers for Independent Living and Statewide Independent Living Councils to ensure the funding is distributed according to Congressional intent.

The Text of the Conference report is available at: http://www.rules.house.gov/111/LegText/hr1_legtext_cr.pdf.

Vocational Rehabilitation will get $540 million, Part C $87,500,000 Part B $18,200,000 and Chapter 2 $34,300,000. Our program is on page 172 and 173 in the PDF.

View the Joint Explanatory Statement on page 65 of the following link: http://www.rules.house.gov/111/LegText/hr1_cr_jes.pdf.

REHABILITATION SERVICES AND DISABILITY RESEARCH: “For an additional amount for "Rehabilitation Services and Disability Research" for providing grants to States to carry out the Vocational Rehabilitation Services program under part B of title I and parts B and C of chapter 1 and chapter 2 of title VII of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, $680,000,000: Provided, That $540,000,000 shall be available for part B of title I of the Rehabilitation Act: Provided further, That funds  provided herein shall not be considered in determining the amount required to be appropriated under section 100(b)(l) of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 in any fiscal year: Provided further, That, not withstanding Section 7(14)(A), the Federal share of the costs of vocational rehabilitation services provided with the funds provided herein shall be 100 percent: Provided further, That $140,000,000 shall be available for parts B and C of chapter 1 and chapter 2 of title VIl of the Rehabilitation Act:  Provided further, That $18,200,000 shall be for State Grants, $87,500,000 shall be for independent living centers, and $34,300,000 shall be for services for older blind individuals.”

For more information: Contact NCIL Policy Analyst Elizabeth Leef by email, Elizabeth@ncil.org, phone: (202) 207-0334, ext 1015 or fax: (202) 207-0341.