ACF’s Office of Community Services Grant: Assets for Independence (AFI) Individual Development Accounts

In the Overview, Executive Summary and in Section IV.3. Submission Dates and Times, the Due Date for Applications field reflects that the 10/27/2014 due date will be the final due date for this announcement. After the 10/27/2014 due date, this FOA will be cancelled. A new announcement is expected in FY 2015.
ACF seeks to fund AFI projects with solid non-federal cash commitments that will support successful project implementation. Requirements for the documentation of non-federal cash commitments have been updated in Section IV.2, Content and Form of Application Submission, The Project Description, Additional Eligibility Documentation. Applications without sufficient acceptable documentation of non-federal cash commitments will be disqualified from review, as detailed in Section III.3, Other, Application Disqualification Factors, Requirements for Acceptable Documentation of Non-Federal Cash Commitment. Additional information related to this requirement can also be found in Sections I, The Program Description; III.1, Eligibility Information; and III.2, Cost Sharing or Matching; and an Appendix has been added with common unacceptable errors in non-federal cash commitment documentation for AFI applications.
Updates and clarifications have been made in the Executive Summary and in Section I, The Program Description, including changes to the description of the Reserve Fund and the Limitation on Uses of Funds. These changes were primarily made to better align the announcement language with the AFI Act.
The page limitation for the Appendices has been increased to 150 in Section IV.2, Content and Form of Application Submission, Page Limitations and Content for All Submission Formats.
Language in Section IV.2, Content and Form of Application Submission, The Project Budget and Budget Justification has been updated to provide clarification for applicants and to better align with other sections of the announcement.
Section V.1, Criteria, has been updated. The available standard points now total 100 and the Approach sub-criterion on subrecipient activities has been updated to include project partners. The Bonus Points criterion for Community Development has been changed to Federal Place-based Initiatives, and additional definitions have been added to Section I, The Program Description related to this change. The Bonus Points criterion for Key Collaborations has also been revised to clarify ACF expectations in this area.
The AFI program resources in Section VIII, Other Information have been updated.
An Appendix has been added with common unacceptable errors in non-federal cash commitment documentation for AFI applications.

The Office of Community Services (OCS) within the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) announces that competing applications will be accepted for grants to administer projects for the national Assets for Independence (AFI) demonstration of Individual Development Accounts (IDAs). The projects will provide IDAs and related services to low-income individuals.
A primary feature of each AFI project is that participants save earned income in an IDA to purchase a home, capitalize or expand a business, or fund postsecondary education or training.
As a condition of their federal AFI grant, grantees must provide non-federal funds to support their AFI project in an amount at least equal to the Federal AFI grant amount.
The 10/27/2014 application due date for FY 2015 funding will be the last application due date for this FOA. After the 10/27/2014 due date, this FOA will be cancelled. Please check the HHS Forecast website for more information on when the new AFI FOA will be estimated to be published in FY 2015: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/hhsgrantsforecast/.

In the Overview, Executive Summary and in Section IV.3. Submission Dates and Times, the Due Date for Applications field reflects that the 10/27/2014 due date will be the final due date for this announcement. After the 10/27/2014 due date, this FOA will be cancelled. A new announcement is expected in FY 2015.
ACF seeks to fund AFI projects with solid non-federal cash commitments that will support successful project implementation. Requirements for the documentation of non-federal cash commitments have been updated in Section IV.2, Content and Form of Application Submission, The Project Description, Additional Eligibility Documentation. Applications without sufficient acceptable documentation of non-federal cash commitments will be disqualified from review, as detailed in Section III.3, Other, Application Disqualification Factors, Requirements for Acceptable Documentation of Non-Federal Cash Commitment. Additional information related to this requirement can also be found in Sections I, The Program Description; III.1, Eligibility Information; and III.2, Cost Sharing or Matching; and an Appendix has been added with common unacceptable errors in non-federal cash commitment documentation for AFI applications.
Updates and clarifications have been made in the Executive Summary and in Section I, The Program Description, including changes to the description of the Reserve Fund and the Limitation on Uses of Funds. These changes were primarily made to better align the announcement language with the AFI Act.
The page limitation for the Appendices has been increased to 150 in Section IV.2, Content and Form of Application Submission, Page Limitations and Content for All Submission Formats.
Language in Section IV.2, Content and Form of Application Submission, The Project Budget and Budget Justification has been updated to provide clarification for applicants and to better align with other sections of the announcement.
Section V.1, Criteria, has been updated. The available standard points now total 100 and the Approach sub-criterion on subrecipient activities has been updated to include project partners. The Bonus Points criterion for Community Development has been changed to Federal Place-based Initiatives, and additional definitions have been added to Section I, The Program Description related to this change. The Bonus Points criterion for Key Collaborations has also been revised to clarify ACF expectations in this area.
The AFI program resources in Section VIII, Other Information have been updated.
An Appendix has been added with common unacceptable errors in non-federal cash commitment documentation for AFI applications.

The Office of Community Services (OCS) within the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) announces that competing applications will be accepted for grants to administer projects for the national Assets for Independence (AFI) demonstration of Individual Development Accounts (IDAs). The projects will provide IDAs and related services to low-income individuals.
A primary feature of each AFI project is that participants save earned income in an IDA to purchase a home, capitalize or expand a business, or fund postsecondary education or training.
As a condition of their federal AFI grant, grantees must provide non-federal funds to support their AFI project in an amount at least equal to the Federal AFI grant amount.
The 10/27/2014 application due date for FY 2015 funding will be the last application due date for this FOA. After the 10/27/2014 due date, this FOA will be cancelled. Please check the HHS Forecast website for more information on when the new AFI FOA will be estimated to be published in FY 2015: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/hhsgrantsforecast/.

The Office of Community Services (OCS) within the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) announces that competing applications will be accepted for grants to administer projects for the national Assets for Independence (AFI) of Individual Development Accounts (IDAs). The projects will provide IDAs and related services to individuals and families with low incomes.
A primary feature of each AFI project is that participants save earned income in an IDA to purchase a home, capitalize or expand a business for self-employment, or attend postsecondary education or training. Projects also ensure that participants have access to financial education training and coaching, including family budgeting, debt and credit counseling, using mainstream financial products, and accessing refundable tax credits.
As a condition of their federal AFI grant, grantees must provide non-federal funds to support their AFI project in an amount at least equal to the Federal AFI grant amount.
This is a standing announcement. For the next three Fiscal Years (2014, 2015, 2016), there will be multiple application due dates during each year. The due dates are as follows:
FY 2014: 05/07/2014 and 07/14/2014
FY 2015: 10/27/2014 and 04/20/2015
FY 2016: 10/19/2015 and 04/18/2016

The Grants.gov Synopsis/HHS Forecast Description and Executive Summary have been updated to reflect all application due dates for this announcement.
In Section IV.3. Submission Dates and Times, the application due date of 10/25/2014 has been changed to 10/27/2014.
In Section VI.2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements, a new award term and condition has been added titled: Award Term and Condition for Federal Recognition of Same-Sex Spouses/Marriage.

The Office of Community Services (OCS) within the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) announces that competing applications will be accepted for grants to administer projects for the national Assets for Independence (AFI) of Individual Development Accounts (IDAs). The projects will provide IDAs and related services to individuals and families with low incomes.
A primary feature of each AFI project is that participants save earned income in an IDA to purchase a home, capitalize or expand a business for self-employment, or attend postsecondary education or training. Projects also ensure that participants have access to financial education training and coaching, including family budgeting, debt and credit counseling, using mainstream financial products, and accessing refundable tax credits.
As a condition of their federal AFI grant, grantees must provide non-federal funds to support their AFI project in an amount at least equal to the Federal AFI grant amount.
This is a standing announcement. For the next three Fiscal Years (2014, 2015, 2016), there will be multiple application due dates during each year. The due dates are as follows:
FY 2014: 05/07/2014 and 07/14/2014
FY 2015: 10/27/2014 and 04/20/2015
FY 2016: 10/19/2015 and 04/18/2016