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2022 Terms and Conditions for Volunteer Generation Fund Grants 

 

These AmeriCorps (AmeriCorps is the operating name for the Corporation for National and 

Community Service) Grant Program Specific Terms and Conditions as well as the 2022 

AmeriCorps General Terms and Conditions, and the provisions of 45 CFR, Part 2540, are 

binding on the recipient. 

 TABLE OF CONTENTS 

 

I. Changes from the 2021 Volunteer Generation Fund Terms 

and Conditions 

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II. Definitions 1

III. Budget and Programmatic Changes 2

IV. Reporting Requirements 3

V. Award Period and Incremental Funding 4

 VI. Program Income 5

VII. National Criminal History Checking Training 5

I. CHANGES FROM THE 2021 VOLUNTEER GENERATION FUND TERMS AND 

CONDITIONS 

- Section IV.D.: Clarified Payment Management System reporting requirements.

- Section VII: updated the link for the required National Service Criminal History Check 

training. 

II. DEFINITIONS 

A. Recipient, for the purposes of this agreement, means the direct recipient of this 

award. The recipient is legally accountable to AmeriCorps for the use of award 

funds and is bound by the provisions of the award. The recipient is responsible for 

ensuring that subrecipients or other organizations carrying out activities under this 

award comply with all applicable Federal requirements, including the AmeriCorps 

General Terms and Conditions, these specific terms and conditions, regulations 

applicable to the program, and the NCSA. 
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B. Subrecipient refers to an organization receiving AmeriCorps grant funds from a 

recipient of AmeriCorps funds. See 2 CFR § 200.93. 

C. Program refers to the activities supported under the award. 

D. NCSA means the National and Community Service Act of 1990, as amended. See 

42 U.S.C. §§ 12501-12657. 

III. BUDGET AND PROGRAMMATIC CHANGES

A. Programmatic Changes. The recipient must first obtain the prior written approval 

of the AmeriCorps Portfolio Manager before making any of the following changes 

(1-3):

1. Changes in the scope, objectives or goals of the program, whether or not 

they involve budgetary changes;

2. Entering into subawards or contracts for activities funded by the award, but 

not identified or included in the approved application and award budget;

3. Upon notification to the AmeriCorps Portfolio Manager, recipients may make 

programmatic changes due to, or in response to, an officially declared state or 

national disaster without written approval from AmeriCorps. As soon as 

practicable, recipients making disaster-related programmatic changes must 

discuss the performance measure adjustments and other AmeriCorps grant 

requirements with the AmeriCorps Portfolio Manager. While written 

approval from AmeriCorps not required before making disaster-related 

programmatic changes, AmeriCorps reserves the right to limit or deny 

disaster-related programmatic changes, including disallowing costs 

associated with the disaster related activities. 

B. Budgetary Changes. The recipient must obtain the prior written approval of 

AmeriCorps’ Portfolio Manager before deviating from the approved budget in any of 

the following ways:

 

1. Specific Costs Requiring Prior Approval before Incurrence under the 

uniform administrative requirement, cost principles, and audit requirements 

for Federal grants at 2 CFR § 200.407. Certain cost items in 2 CFR § 

200.407 require prior written approval of the awarding agency for the cost to 

be allowable such as pre-award costs. Please ensure you consult the 

regulations prior to incurring costs to ensure allowability. 
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2. Purchases of Equipment over $5,000 using grant funds, unless specified in 

the approved application and budget. 

3. Unless the AmeriCorps share of the grant is $100,000 or less, changes to 

cumulative and/or aggregate budget line items that amount to 10 percent or 

more of the total budget must be approved in writing in advance by 

AmeriCorps. The total budget includes both the AmeriCorps and recipient 

shares. Recipients may transfer funds among approved direct cost categories 

when the cumulative amount of such transfers does not exceed 10 percent of 

the total budget. 

C. Approval of Programmatic and Budget Changes. AmeriCorps’ Portfolio 

Managers are the only officials who have the authority to alter or change the terms 

and conditions or requirements of the award. Portfolio Managers will execute written 

amendments and recipients should not assume approvals have been granted unless 

documentation from AmeriCorps’ Office of Grant Administration (OGA) has been 

received via a Notice of Grant Award. Programmatic changes also require final 

approval of AmeriCorps’ OGA after written recommendation for approval is 

received from the Portfolio Manager.

 

IV. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS 

The recipient is responsible for timely submission of periodic progress and financial reports 

during the project period and a final progress and financial report at the end of the period. 

The recipient is responsible for setting submission deadlines for its respective subrecipients 

to ensure the timely submission of recipient reports. 

A. Progress Reports. The recipient shall complete and submit one annual progress 

report in eGrants to report on progress toward achievement of its approved 

performance targets. 

Due Date Reporting Period Covered 

 November 30 Start of the award through September 30 

B. Final Progress Reports. A recipient must submit, in lieu of the last annual progress 

report, a final project report. This final progress report is due 60 days after the end of 

the project period. 

C. Federal Financial Reports (FFRs). The recipient shall complete and submit 

financial reports in eGrants to report the status of all funds. The recipient must 

submit timely cumulative financial reports in accordance with AmeriCorps 

guidelines according to the following schedule:
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Due Date Reporting Period Covered 

April 30 Start of the award through March 31 

October 31 April 1 – September 30 

A recipient must set submission deadlines for its respective subrecipients that ensure 

the timely submission of recipient reports. 

 

D. Final Financial Report. A recipient completing the final year of its award must 

submit, in lieu of the last financial report, a final financial report in eGrants. The 

final financial report is due no later than 120 days after the end of the project period.

Additionally, grantees must submit a quarterly FFR/Federal Cash Transaction Report 

to PMS no later than 120 days after the end of the project period.

E. Reporting at the Dept. of Health and Human Services/Payment Management 

System (HHS/PMS). The recipient must submit the Federal Financial Report (FFR) 

Cash Transactions Report on a quarterly basis to the HHS/PMS per the Electronic 

Funds Transfer Agreement.

F. Requests for Extensions. Each recipient must submit required reports by the given 

dates. Extensions of reporting deadlines will be granted only when: 1) the report 

cannot be furnished in a timely manner for reasons, in the determination of 

AmeriCorps, which are legitimately beyond the control of the recipient, and 2) 

AmeriCorps receives a written request explaining the need for an extension before 

the due date of the report.

Extensions of deadlines for reports may only be granted by the AmeriCorps Portfolio 

Manager, as appropriate. 

 

V. AWARD PERIOD AND INCREMENTAL FUNDING 

For the purpose of this award, a project period is the complete length of time the recipient is 

proposed to be funded to complete approved activities under the award. A project period 

may contain one or more budget periods. A budget period is a specific interval of time for 

which Federal funds are provided to fund a recipient’s approved activities and budget. 

Unless otherwise specified, the award covers a two-year project period. In approving a 

multi-year project period, AmeriCorps generally makes an initial award for the first year of 

operation. Additional funding is contingent upon satisfactory performance, a recipient’s 

demonstrated capacity to manage an award and comply with award requirements, and the 

availability of Congressional appropriations. AmeriCorps reserves the right to adjust the 

amount of an award or elect not to continue funding for subsequent years. The project period 

and the budget period are noted on the award document. 
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VI. PROGRAM INCOME 

A. General. Income, including fees for service earned as a direct result of the awardfunded program activities during the award period, must be retained by the recipient 

and used to finance the grant’s non-AmeriCorps share.

B. Excess Program Income. Program income earned in excess of the amount needed to 

finance the recipient share must follow the appropriate requirements of 2 CFR § 

200.307(e)(1) and be deducted from total claimed costs. Recipients that earn excess 

income must specify the amount of the excess on the financial report. 

C. Fees for service. When using assistance under this grant, the recipient may not enter 

into a contract for or accept fees for service performed under the award when: 

1. The service benefits a for-profit entity;

2. The service falls within the other prohibited activities set forth in statute, 

regulation, or these grant terms and conditions, or 

3. The service violates the provisions of 42 U.S.C. § 12637 – Nonduplication and 

Nondisplacement. 

VII. NATIONAL SERVICE CRIMINAL HISTORY CHECK TRAINING 

 

All recipients and subrecipients must complete and retain a certificate of completion of the 

AmeriCorps’ National Service Criminal History Check (NSCHC) e-course training every 

year to ensure that recipients and subrecipients conducting criminal history background 

checks comply with all NSCHC requirements. The AmeriCorps designated e-course 

provides a thorough overview of the requirements and can be found at: 

https://americorpsonlinecourses.litmos.com. Each grant recipient and subrecipient must 

identify at minimum one staff person who has some responsibility for NSCHC compliance 

to fulfill this requirement on behalf of the grant recipient or subrecipient. The grant recipient 

and subrecipient must retain the certificate of completion and assign staff to retake the 

course annually prior to the expiration of the certificate. Grant recipients must save 

certificates of completion from each year as grant records.