Source: https://www.tvc.texas.gov/2019-2020-general-assistance-grant-request-for-applications/
Timestamp: 2019-04-20 16:23:31+00:00

Document:
The Fund for Veterans’ Assistance (FVA or “Fund”) was created in the 79th Legislature, and codified in the Texas Government Code § 434.017, Fund for Veterans’ Assistance and the Texas Administrative Code § 460, Fund for Veterans’ Assistance Program. The Fund is composed of money deposited under Government Code §§ 466.027 and 466.408 for proceeds from a Texas Lottery Commission Veterans’ Assistance game, Texas Transportation Code § 502.1746 for donations from vehicle registration and drivers’ license renewals, Government Code § 411.1741 for donations from License to Carry renewals, Parks and Wildlife Code §12.07 for donations from hunting and fishing license renewals, gifts and grants contributed to the Fund, and the earnings of the Fund. The Texas Veterans Commission oversees all rules governing the awarding of grants from the FVA.
The purpose of this Request for Applications (RFA) is to seek Grant Applications from Eligible Applicants for Reimbursement Grants using FVA funds. All grant awards will be made through a competitive grant selection process. VCSO Funding is available for General Assistance grants.
Family Services: Services may include youth programs, family programs, reintegration, and deployment readiness programs. Services may not include Mental Health components.
Financial Assistance: Financial assistance that is short-term and temporary in nature, such as, a one-time utility payment, one-time rental payment, transportation assistance, or child care. Financial assistance payments should only be made if the organization verifies that the Beneficiary is the named person on the utility, rent agreement, mortgage, or other bill presented. Financial assistance payments are not to be made to the Beneficiary, but to the vendor. Medical expenses and child support payments are NOT considered for financial assistance. Gift cards, pre-paid gas cards, other pre-paid service cards, cash or cash equivalents are NOT allowable. Services may not include Mental Health components. One-time assistance payments shall not cover more than six months.
Supportive Services: This category is for support services such as elder care, food delivery programs, financial counseling, and case management. Pre-paid service cards, such as gas, groceries, and department store-related cards are NOT allowable. Services may not include Mental Health components.
Grants awarded under this RFA will begin on July 1, 2019 and end on June 30, 2020. Reimbursement will only be made for those allowable expenses that occur within the term of this grant. No pre-award spending will be allowed. The initial term of the grant shall be for one (1) year from July 1, 2018 to June 30, 2020. Agency may, in its sole discretion, exercise the option to renew the grant for one (1) additional one (1) year period. To be considered for a renewal, grantees must meet both performance and expenditure benchmarks and have no outstanding compliance issues on the 3rd Quarter Performance and Expenditure Report. To exercise the option to renew the term, FVA will notify the grantee; such notice may be by NOGA issuance.
The anticipated amount available for awarding in 2019-20 for all four FVA grant programs including VCSO Funding is $26,000,000. The number of awards will be dependent upon the FVA grant amounts awarded to Eligible Applicants. Requested grant amounts must be one of the specific grant amounts listed. This amount is subject to change due to availability of funds.
While there is no mandated matching requirement, the FVA does expect Grantees to share in the operational cost of funded projects. Applicants are required to identify the anticipated funds they will use on the Proposed Project. Organization revenue, excluding FVA grants, will be reviewed with respect to the amount requested in the application.
Grant Project. The work and activities for which grant funding has been awarded and information is provided in the approved application. During the open application process and before the Texas Veterans Commission makes final grant awards, indicated by a fully-executed NOGA, the Grant Project will be known as the Proposed Project.
IRS Tax Form 990 showing Part X Balance Sheets. Refers to form used by tax-exempt organizations, non-exempt charitable trusts, and section 527 political organizations to provide the IRS with the information required by Internal Revenue Code, 26 U.S.C. § 6033 (relating to returns by exempt organizations). To be considered as sufficient Minimum Required Financial Documentation, the Form 990 submitted must be a complete, legible copy of the signed form filed with the IRS and include Part X. Balance Sheets.
Notice of Grant Award. The Notice of Grant Award (NOGA) and all addenda represent a legally binding contract (“Agreement”) between the parties. Upon Commission approval of the grant award, the parties will be bound by the following: 1) the terms and requirements within this RFA document, 2) FVA Grant Program Requirements and Terms & Conditions, 3) the Grant Application and all items submitted by the grant applicant to the Commission in response to this RFA, and 4) the Notice of Grant Award (NOGA). In the event of conflicts or inconsistencies between any of these documents, the provisions set forth in the NOGA will prevail.
Proposed Project. The work and activities for which funding is sought and information is provided in the application. Should the Texas Veterans Commission approve the Application, the Proposed Project will then become known as the Grant Project.
VCSO Funding. SB 1679 (85th Legislature) created a 5% set-aside for VCSO applications for FVA grants. This funding is available for General Assistance, Housing for Texas Heroes, and Veterans Mental Health grant applications with the Veteran County Service officer listed as the Project Coordinator.
The grantee will use the following documents to determine that beneficiaries are eligible to receive services. Veterans must provide one of the following; DD-214, NGB-22, NA Form 13038, Certification of Military Service, Uniform Services Identification Card, Department of Veterans Affairs Summary Letter with Character of Service listed, State of Texas Issued Driver License with Veteran designation, or Department of Veterans Affairs eBenefits Summary Letter with Character of Service listed. Dependents must provide one of the following; Uniform Services Identification Card, Marriage Certificate, Birth Certificate, or Adoption Certificate. Surviving Spouses must provide one of the following; Uniform Services Identification Card, Marriage Certificate, Death Certificate and or one of the forms listed for above for Veterans eligibility.
All funding awarded under this grant must be expended within the Grant Funding Period of July 1, 2019 to June 30, 2020. No pre-award spending will be allowed. All costs associated with the preparation and submission of an Application for this RFA is the responsibility of Applicant. These costs shall not be chargeable to TVC by any successful or unsuccessful Applicant.
There should be no expectation of additional or continued grant funding on the part of the Grantee. Any additional funding or future funding will require an accepted TVC offer of grant renewal, or submission of a Grant Application during a subsequent Request for Applications. An amendment extending the Grant Period may be considered by the FVA.
Please note: Applicant organizations with contracts or agreements with the Texas Veterans Commission may be ineligible for Fund for Veterans’ Assistance grant funding requested for Proposed Projects involving the same or similar services as those funded under the contract. Applicants are responsible for ensuring their submitted application discloses any such contract. The Proposed Project must be clearly and sufficiently differentiated in the application from any contracted services.
$500,000 – Requests of this amount are available to Statewide Proposed Projects ONLY.
An Eligible Applicant must provide the minimum required financial documentation listed below for the range in which their requested grant amount falls. Units of Local Government are not required to submit financial documentation. The amount of funding requested by an Eligible Applicant will determine the financial documents the Eligible Applicant must provide. An Eligible Applicant may supply financial documentation that is greater than what is required for an FVA Grant Amount, but may not supply less than the Minimum Required Financial Documentation. See Section III. Definition of Key Terms for more information regarding required financial documentation.
Grant funds are not to be used to conduct activities or to provide services that are the same as those currently provided by the Texas Veterans Commission. However, grant funds may be used to conduct activities or provide services that complement those provided by the Texas Veterans Commission. Services provided by the Texas Veterans Commission include Claims Representation and Counseling, Education, Employment, Women Veterans, Veterans Mental Health, Healthcare Advocacy, and Veteran Entrepreneur Programs. More information about the programs can be found on the website, http://www.tvc.texas.gov.
Applicant organizations with contracts or agreements with the Texas Veterans Commission may be ineligible for Fund for Veterans’ Assistance grant funding requested for Proposed Projects involving the same or similar services as those funded under the contract. Applicants are responsible for ensuring their submitted application discloses any such contract. The Proposed Project must be clearly and sufficiently differentiated in the application from any contracted services.
Cash or Cash Equivalents – per Texas Administrative Code, Title 40, Part 15, Section 460.10(3) distribution of cash or a cash equivalent to veterans and/or their families is prohibited. Cash equivalents include gift cards and gas cards.
Preparation of Grant Application costs – costs associated with preparing and/or submission of an Application are the responsibility of the Applicant.
Applicants are required to complete and submit the application on the TVC GovGrants portal (http://tvcportal.force.com/). Paper applications are no longer available, required, or accepted. Each Organization is required to register for one account in the GovGrants portal. This one account is used for all applications submitted by that Organization. Each section description provides an explanation of the information required to complete the application.
The application period for this grant opens September 8, 2018 and closes November 16, 2018. Applications must be submitted by November 16, 2018 by 5:00 p.m. through the TVC GovGrants portal. Only applications submitted via the portal will be considered for funding.
Upon Commission approval of the grant awards, the parties will be bound by the following: 1) the terms and requirements within this RFA document, 2) FVA Grant Program Requirements and Terms & Conditions, 3) the Grant Application and all items submitted by the grant applicant to the Commission in response to this RFA, and 4) the Notice of Grant Award (NOGA). In the event of conflicts or inconsistencies between any of these documents, the provisions set forth in the NOGA will prevail.
Applicants are expected to read and be familiar with ALL FVA Grant Program Requirements, Terms and Conditions and are expected to comply with them. Applicant will attest to a True and Correct Statement as part of the online application submission confirming compliance with all program requirements, terms and conditions, and provisions and assurances.
Submitted via the TVC GovGrants portal by the deadline established in this RFA.
If an audit completed in the past 2 years has significant deficiencies or material weaknesses.
The Application Package is not submitted through the TVC GovGrants portal by the deadline.
Applicant financial stability will be assessed based on submitted financial documentation and additional information available. The organization’s reported previous year annual revenue not including any FVA grants will be compared to the amount requested in the application. All information should demonstrate that the applicant, if selected, has sufficient working capital available to execute the project and then request reimbursement supported by adequate documentation.
All eligible applications will be given to the FVA Advisory Committee for their review and preparation of award recommendations to the Commission. The FVA Advisory Committee uses the application, its attachments, the staff score, the Commissions priorities and their knowledge and personal experience as veterans from across the state to formulate an opinion on the eligible applications.
The FVA Advisory Committee will convene in Austin, Texas on or about January 29, 2019 for a public presentation of the Proposed Projects by Applicants. Following that public presentation, the FVA Advisory Committee will convene in Austin, Texas in March 2019 to make the award recommendations. Additional information on this meeting will be available and shared at a later date. The dates of these meetings are subject to change. Please check the FVA website for updated information.
The funding recommendations made by the FVA Advisory Committee will be presented to the Commission in May 2019 for the Commission’s award decision. Additional information on this meeting will be made available at a later date. The exact date of this meeting has not been set. Please check the FVA website for updated information.
After an application is submitted to the FVA and prior to the TVC Commission making the grant awards, the TVC and FVA staff and the FVA Advisory Committee members will not be able to discuss application status with any organization.
Potential applicants will have the opportunity to participate in an information session regarding the 2019-20 FVA grant applications to be held via webinar. The webinars are tentatively scheduled for 10 am, Sep 6, 2018 and 10 am, Oct 4, 2018. The presentation will be the same for both webinars and FVA staff will take questions at the end. Information regarding the meeting and webinar will be available on the FVA website. Please check the FVA website for updated information.
The information session webinar will address any questions regarding the application or application process but will not address a specific project or an organization’s application.
All questions pertaining to this RFA must be submitted to rfaquestions@tvc.texas.gov with “2019-20 General Assistance Question” in the subject line of the email. Responses will be posted on the TVC GovGrants portal FAQs tab.
A complete Application Package includes submission completed online application and attached items listed below via the TVC GovGrants portal. An Application Package may have up to five attachments. Failure to complete all required fields in the portal Or to provide required attachments OR to agree with the True and Correct Statement may negatively impact the application or result in ineligibility.
The Application Package includes the following items: When submitting Application Package name each attachment according to numbers below.
September 8, 2018 2018-2019 RFA opens with the RFA posted at https://www.tvc.texas.gov/grants-funding/ and the TVC GovGrants portal (http://tvcportal.force.com/) funding opportunities available.
Sep 6, Oct 4, 2018 Informational application webinars. Additional information will be posted on website. These dates are subject to change. Please check the FVA website.
Nov 16, 2018 All applications must be submitted by 5:00 p.m., Central Standard Time.
January 28-29, 2019 All eligible organizations may present their application to the FVA Advisory Committee in Austin. Additional information will be posted on the website at a later date. This date is subject to change. Please check the FVA website.
March 2019 Funding Recommendation meeting. FVA Advisory Committee meets in Austin, Texas. Additional information will be posted on the website at a later date. This date is subject to change. Please check the FVA website.
May 2019 TVC Commission meeting. Austin, Texas. Additional information will be available at a later date. This date is subject to change. Please check the FVA website.
June 2019 Notice of Grant Awards to be sent to funded organizations.
July 1, 2019 Grant Funding Period begins.
July 2019 Mandatory grantee training. Additional information will be available at a later date.
June 30, 2020 Grant Funding Period ends.

References: § 434
 § 460
 § 502
 § 411
 §12
 § 6033