CSBG DCL Model Plan FAQs

Publication Date: August 27, 2015
Current as of:

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Administration for Children and Families
Office of Community Services
Division of State Assistance
370 L'Enfant Promenade, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20447

www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ocs/programs/csbg

Community Services Block Grant
Dear Colleague Letter

Re: CSBG Model Plan FAQs

Date: August 27, 2015

Dear Colleagues:

Since the new automated Community Service Block Grant (CSBG) State Plan form went live on August 5, the Office of Community Services (OCS) has received a number of questions regarding system access, data entry, and plan submission.

In order to assist states in submitting state plan data using the new system, we would like to address a few common issues states have encountered.  In addition, please see the attached Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) from the August 6 “CSBG Model State Plan Technical Webinar.”

The following are three items that have been conveyed by multiple states.

Cover Page (Form SF-424):

Last year, for FY 2015, states were required to select and submit the mandatory grant application SF-424M on the automated system and then upload their completed plan as an attachment.  However, for FY 2016 (and future) state plan submissions, states should only select and complete the “Model State Plan (CSBG)” in OLDC and should not select and submit the SF-424M separately.  The new Model State Plan (CSBG) encompasses both the SF-424M and the CSBG Model State Plan in one form.  Complete instructions on how to access and navigate the Model State Plan can be found on the OLDC Technical Webinar August 6 presentation (see pages 28 and 29).

https://extranet.acf.hhs.gov/oldcdocs/pdf/OLDCTechnicalWebinar%20CSBG%208-6-15-Final-updated8_6.pdf  (PDF)

Section 7, Question 7.9

Due to a system error, several states indicated that question 7.9 would not validate.  This system error has now been fixed.  If you have already completed 7.9 and have errors, please re-validate Section 7 in order for the errors to clear.  If you are still experiencing errors, please double check the following:

  • If you have a 1-year plan, only submit data for Year One
  • If you have a 2-year plan, you must submit data for both years
  • Only submit dollars or percentages, not both
  • For each activity that will receive funding, a brief description should be provided, with the exception of 7.9f.
    • 7.9f is correlated with a programmatic assurance, so a response is required here

If after double checking the above, you are still receiving errors, please contact Niki and Monique (contact information below).

Certifying the Authorized Plan

The certifying official should be the only one to certify the plan, just as though this were a paper plan signed by the governor’s authorized official. Although both the grant administrator and the certifying official are able to certify the plan in OLDC, the grant administrator should not certify the plan unless he or she is also officially designated as the responsible official under the Governor’s authority.  If this is not done by the certifying official that is on file, the plan will be returned to the State during the review process.  To avoid a possible delay in the acceptance of your State’s plan, please only have the certifying official certify the plan.

Please don’t hesitate to contact OCS staff should you have any questions or concerns as you complete your state plan form.  Please submit any technical questions regarding OLDC to both Niki Frazier, Nikita.Frazier@acf.hhs.gov, and Monique Alcantara, Melania.Alcantara@acf.hhs.gov.  States may also access training tools and resources for OLDC at https://extranet.acf.hhs.gov/oldcdocs/materials.html (scroll down to “Program Specific Documentation”).

Thank you for your ongoing attention to this work.  We greatly appreciate your additional effort as we transition to a more efficient and effective state plan submission process for CSBG.

Jeannie L. Chaffin                                                                                            Seth Hassett
Director                                                                                                            Director, Division of State Assistance
Office of Community Services                                                                          Office of Community Services

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