(a) General requirements. When funds are available for grants for case management services authorized under §§ 61.90 through 61.98, VA will publish a Notice of Fund Availability (NOFA) in the Federal Register in accordance with § 61.3. The applicant must meet all of the following requirements or the application will be rejected without further consideration:
(1) The applicant must submit an application and comply with the application requirements identified in the NOFA, e.g., complete all parts of the correct form and include all information requested in the NOFA.
(2) Include a signed Application for Federal Assistance (SF 424) that contains the applicant's Employer Identification Number or Taxpayer Identification Number (EIN/TIN). All non-profit applicants must provide their Internal Revenue Service 501(c)(3) or (19) determination letter, which includes the EIN/TIN contained in the application. Applicants that apply under a group EIN/TIN must be identified by the parent EIN/TIN as a member or sub-unit of the parent EIN/TIN and provide supporting documentation.
(3) The application must be received before the deadline established in the NOFA.
(4) The applicant must be a nonprofit organization or a State, local, or tribal government.
(5) The activities for which assistance is requested must be eligible for funding under §§ 61.90-61.98.
(6) The applicant must agree to comply with the requirements of §§ 61.90 through 61.98 and demonstrate the capacity to do so.
(7) The applicant must not have an outstanding obligation to VA that is in arrears, or have an overdue or unsatisfactory response to an audit.
(8) The applicant must not have been notified by VA as being in default.
(b) Rating criteria. To be eligible for a case management grant, an applicant must receive at least 750 points (out of a possible 1000) and must receive points under paragraphs (c) through (f) of this section.
(c) Project plan. VA will award up to 400 points based on the demonstration and quality of the following:
(1) The process used for deciding which veterans are referred and accepted for case management services.
(2) How, when, and by whom the progress of participants who are receiving case management services toward meeting their individual goals will be monitored, evaluated, and documented. This monitoring includes, but is not limited to, a description of how home visits would be provided and the general purpose and frequency anticipated of the home visits.
(3) How the participant's system of natural supports would be assessed and developed.
(4) How crisis intervention services will be coordinated, as needed, to promote the maintenance of permanent housing, access to medical care, mental health or substance use disorder treatment.
(5) How the applicant will provide education to case management participants, as needed, in the areas of tenant rights and responsibilities, rental/lease agreements, landlords rights and responsibilities, and budgeting.
(6) How case management services will be phased out.
(d) Ability of the applicant to develop and operate a project. VA will award up to 200 points based on the extent to which the applicant demonstrates the necessary staff and organizational experience to develop and operate the proposed project, based on the following:
(1) Staffing plan for the project that reflects the appropriate professional staff, both administrative and clinical;
(2) Experience of staff, or if staff is not yet hired, position descriptions and expectations of time to hire;
(3) Applicant's previous experience assessing and providing for the housing needs of formerly homeless veterans;
(4) Applicant's previous experience in providing case management services to assist persons in maintaining permanent housing;
(5) Applicant's previous experience in coordinating crisis intervention services, including medical, mental health, and substance use disorder services.
(6) Applicant's experience in working with local landlords as part of providing housing support services.
(7) Historical documentation of past performance both with VA and non-VA projects, including those from other Federal, state and local agencies, and audits by private or public entities.
(e) Need. VA will award up to 150 points based on the extent to which the applicant demonstrates:
(1) Substantial unmet need for formerly homeless veterans who have exited homeless transitional housing or residential services and are in need of time limited case management to maintain permanent housing. Demonstration of need must be based on reliable data from reports or other data gathering systems that directly support claims made; and
(2) An understanding of the formerly homeless population to be served and its supportive service needs.
(f) Completion confidence. VA will award up to 50 points based on the review panel's confidence that the applicant has effectively demonstrated the case management services project will be completed as described in the application. VA may use historical program documents demonstrating the applicant's past performance, including those from other Federal, state and local agencies, as well as audits by private or public entities in determining confidence scores.
(g) Coordination with other programs. VA will award up to 200 points based on the extent to which the applicant demonstrates that it has coordinated with Federal, state, local, private, and other entities serving homeless persons or persons at risk for homelessness in the planning and operation of the case management services project. Such entities include, but are not limited to, shelters, transitional housing, Public Housing Authorities, health care or social service providers, providers funded through Federal initiatives, local planning coalitions or provider associations, or other program providers relevant to the needs of formerly homeless veterans in the local community. Applicants are required to demonstrate that they have coordinated with the VA medical facility of jurisdiction or VA regional office of jurisdiction in their area. VA will award up to 50 points of the 200 points based on the extent to which commitments to provide supportive services are documented at the time of application. Up to 150 points of the 200 points will be given to the extent applicants demonstrate that:
(1) They are part of an ongoing community-wide planning process within the framework described in this section, which is designed to share information on available resources and reduce duplication among programs that serve homeless veterans (e.g. Continuum of Care);
(2) They have consulted directly with the closest VA medical facility and other providers within the framework described in this section regarding coordination of services for project participants; and
(3) They have coordinated with the closest VA medical facility their plan to assure access to health care, case management, and other care services.
