MCHB ALL GRANTEES MEETING

Other HRSA Partners: Changes in Grants Management

October 4-7,2004

LARRY POOLE: Good afternoon everyone. I want to say it’s great to be here, it actually is. One of the things that people that know me know that what you see is what you get, and I draw my energy from grantees. Too often in the area of grants administration you’re caught up in process and whether or not you dotted all your I’s and crossed all your T’s, and you forget why you’re here. And, this evening I look at this full room and hoping it’s a very quiet full room with very few questions about our grants process, but I see real people, and it reminds me that what we do every day, you know, trying to assure that the MHC Awards and administers grant funds in a way that will benefit the American people, it makes it worthwhile. And, I just want to say thank you for doing what you’re doing, now I honestly mean that, because people need what you do out there. And, that’s why I’m here and why I do what I do and why our staff does what they do to help you carry out your mission. But enough preaching and let me move on before my 15 minutes is up. Over the past year-and-a-half, two years there have been rumors and talk of rumors, not of war, but about how grants has changed. And, I jumped the slide too quick. Okay. But let me reassure you that the rules have not changed. The requirements have not changed. They remain the same.

So, you know, in the midst of our internal reorganization don’t use it as an opportunity to say “Oh, well, the rules have changed, they have not.” You’re still required to perform or to complete performance reporting, financial status reports, prepare applications, all of those wonderful things that you love doing are the same. But what has changed is the agency’s effort to refine and to create a more consistent application of those requirements. In the past, there were four independent grants offices that service the six agency offices and bureaus. Those offices were consolidated into one and with our goal and effort is to try to become more consistent in how we interpreted those requirements and applied those requirements because I can guarantee you there were four different ways for providing the instructions on how to complete a financial status report. Everyone knows what a financial status report is, right? I just assumed that since grants is the most exciting topic in the world that a financial status report just comes naturally.

Forgive me, but financial status report is in my opinion, the most important report in terms of accounting for the expenditure of federal funds, so. But what has changed? In that consolidation, the agency has created a new office. It’s called the Office of Federal Assistance Management and it’s headed up by Nancy McGinnis who is the acting associated administrator. And, for the first time in the agency’s history, we have all of the major grant processes and administrative structures under one umbrella, which will aid for that consistency, not only in the application of rules and requirements, but also interpretation of policy into one place. That office has four divisions, Division of Financial Integrity, Division of Grants Policy, Division and in my opinion the best division in the entire agency of Grants Management Operations.

And, then we have the Division of Independent Review. Financial Integrity, that’s a relatively new office. That office is responsible for conducting pre-award audits of grantees and applicants, including the reviewing of the department’s, any department *(inaudible) list or any flags that we may have within our system. They also provide and make recommendations on any potential grant restrictions, as well as identifying problems. Of particular note is that one of the responsibilities for federal agency is to assure that funds are awarded, are awarded, not just to carry out the program activities, but also that they’re carried out by organizations that have the ability to manage and safeguard those funds. So, it’s not only great that you have the mission and the vision, and the wanting to address the needs in your area, but that you also have the infrastructure as well as the capability to handle those funds.

Grants Policy, they provide the agency’s interpretation of the Grants Policy. Once again, as I mentioned earlier that four different grants offices had four different interpretations of the Grants Policy. Now, we have a single voice, the Division of Grants Policy indicates that this is the correct interpretation, this is the interpretation that we will follow. They’re also responsible for reviewing and approving and monitoring the application guidance process for the agency to assure consistency. So, that when you pick up an announcement for a program within Maternal and Child Health Bureau, and you pick up a guidance for the Bureau of Health Professions that they have very similar and common sections and features. How is the Grants Office structured? Now, we mentioned that we have over 7,000 grants that we issue each year. Those 7,000 grants actually translates into about approximately 15,000 actions, because each grant on an average has approximately one to two actions associated with that one grant. So, it’s much greater than the seven or 8,000 actual grant awards, but within our structure, I am also a believer that you surround yourself with people they know. That way you succeed.

And, I have a very excellent E Grants Operations Officer who knows all of the ins and outs, all of the quirks and qualms of every automated system, every grants requirement that there is and the name of Pam Hilton. And, she’s my Grants Operation Officer, E Grants Operation Officer, and she provides assurance that our branch chiefs, Grant Management Officers for each of our branches apply consistent procedures and processes, as well as that the funds that are awarded actually end up in your account. But we’re broken into three branches, health services branch, government and special focus branch, and research and training branch. So, we’re organized obviously by function. So, if the basic function of your grant is research, then you would be placed under the research or you would be assigned a specialist under the research and training branch. Health services is responsible obviously for the provision of health care actual patient services. Government and special focus, majority of the programs under Maternal and Child Health fall under this branch through state agencies and local agencies. As well as special focus type grants, such as your construction grants, and many of you are *(inaudible) grants that Dr. van Dyck talked about earlier. Than the research and training obviously as the name implies, focuses on your research and training grants. So, theoretically, you will cross all three branches, but hopefully within the focus of that branch there would be consistent interpretation of the various requirements. Example of as it relates to Maternal and Child Health, Healthy Start, Title V, okay, Title V, I believe that’s wrong. Title V is a Block grant, right doctor? Okay.

There’s an arrow on the slide, that Title V is incorrect, but basically the Healthy Start Program is the major program under health services. Under the government and special focus you have your Title V Block grants, your poison control, your emergency medical services for children, and then the R40 Grants that was mentioned earlier, your research grants are, as well as training grants are under the research and training branch. And, keep in mind that these branches also service the other bureaus and offices within the agency. A couple of things I wanted to touch on, oh, I have two minutes to go. Normally, I can talk about grants for eight hours, okay, believe me, I’m serious. And, I could make you love it after the end of that eight hours. But we won’t go that far tonight. Okay. Quickly, you had a very outstanding overview of the electronic application process this afternoon that is truly exciting. And, you should take advantage of that, in fact, I’m going to go even further and say that all Maternal and Child Health grantees are required to submit their applications electronically. Now, when I say they are required, okay, that’s not with the force of law, this is Larry Pool talking, but in the 99% of your budgets I can guarantee you if you’re a funded organization you have purchased equipment, you purchased elaborate laptops, you purchased desk tops, you purchase all kind of equipment. So, the argument that I do not have the capability goes on deaf ears. Okay. Make the attempt, there are issues with our handbook system that you all have experienced over this past year, we are trying to work those out. And, many of those issues have been resolved. But it is very important if we’re going to move forward and survive that we all try to communicate electronically and submit electronically. Okay. I think I may have even one minute now.

And, Grant Application Center is our contract that receives all of our grant applications. Hopefully, that contract will be reduced because we all are going to be submitting electronic applications, correct? Come on, talk to me people. All right. Okay. Okay. Website, website is for submission of all applications, it’s through https://Grants.hrsa.gov web external. From that website and system you can access the system and complete the applications and progress reports, and performance measures that was described earlier. It’s also a help desk, 877GOFORHRSA in case you run in to problems. In fact the contractors will be here at this conference, and I invite you to go by their area and have a very detailed and intimate discussion regarding the electronic systems for submitting applications, in fact, it’s quite exciting how. In applying electronically, make sure that you register with the central contractor registry, as well as obtain the duns number. You cannot submit an application through the electronic hand built system unless you are registered. Also, notices of grant awards are sent to the business official and/or the persons that you identify in your applications. We will no longer mail paper applications, so it’s imperative that you make sure that your e-mail addresses are correct, and then if you get it electronically and you can’t read it, obviously, you know, call us and we’ll try to remedy that, but they will be submitted electronically. Another important note, budget period start dates will always start on the first of the month with few exceptions.

Major exceptions will be projects funded at the end of the fiscal year, but when we consolidated we filed grants that started on the 12th of the month, the 8th of the month, the 22nd of the month, it was all over God’s country, and my time is up, but in any event, also your budget period will always end at the end of the month, the 30 or the 31st, or the 28th, unless once again--so in some cases, new grantees will have 11 months to spend 12 months’ money, but we will try to get everyone on end of the month cycle. And, then word that I want to say and I think this is in parting, read your Notice of Grant Award. Don’t just look at the dollars, don’t just check the payment management system and see that the money is in your account, do that, but read your award that is your contract with the Federal government. And, believe me, if there are requirements on there that you do not fulfill, we will more than happily remind you of them. And, you know, they’re being put on there for a reason, there are program improvements that have to be made because of program legislation requirements, pay attention to them, address them, deal with them, because we all are in this together, if you don’t succeed, we don’t succeed. We don’t succeed in grants. Dr. van Dyck doesn’t succeed in his program mission and objectives. Nobody wins. And, most importantly, the people that you serve do not win. And, that’s why we’re all here. Hopefully this will be on the website eventually, but wanted to give some key contacts and their e-mail addresses if you run into problems. Thank you very much and keep up the good word, and remember why you are here.