Section 363.10  Purpose

 

The purpose of this Part is to describe Residential Services Construction Grants that may be offered by the Department, how to apply for a Residential Services Construction Grant from the Department, what information is considered when deciding whether a grant application will be approved, post‑grant‑award requirements, allowable and disallowable costs, and required record keeping.

 

Section 363.20  Definitions

 

"Board" means the Illinois Capital Development Board [20 ILCS 530/5].

 

"Department" means the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services [20 ILCS 530/5].

 

"Residential services" means child care institution care, group home care, independent living services, and transitional living services that are licensed and purchased by the Department on behalf of children under the age of 22 years who are served by the Department and who need 24 hour residential care due to emotional and behavior problems and that are services for which the Department has rate setting authority [20 ILCS 530/5].

 

Section 363.30  Operation of the Grant Program

 

a)         The Department, in consultation with the Board, shall establish the DCFS Residential Services Construction Grant Program and, pursuant to the Department's resource allocation management plan determined in consultation with eligible providers, may make grants to eligible licensed residential services providers, subject to appropriations, out of funds reserved for capital improvements or expenditures as provided for in this Part.  The Program shall operate in a manner so that the estimated cost of the Program during the fiscal year will not exceed the total appropriation for the Program.  The grants shall be for the purpose of constructing new residential services sites, renovating existing residential services sites, and supporting capital rate enhancements for residential services sites' capital projects.  [20 ILCS 530/10]

 

b)         The Department shall develop criteria and issue policy guidance each year for assessing grant requests.  Requests will be evaluated based on the Department's strategic direction, the overall residential needs for the children being served at any given time, and the Department's current and anticipated levels of funding.  The criteria will include specific requirements that demonstrate the agency's performance and financial status.  The criteria will be analyzed, discussed and updated from time to time, in collaboration with representatives of the provider community.

 

Section 363.40  Eligibility for Grant

 

a)         To be eligible for a grant under this Part, a recipient must be a residential services provider with which the Department contracts for residential services [20 ILCS 530/15].

 

b)         All grant requests shall be submitted, in writing, to the Department's Deputy Director of Budget and Finance, and must be received by the Department during March 1 through March 31 of the current State fiscal year in order to be considered for the subsequent fiscal year.  Requests shall be mailed to:

 

Department of Children and Family Services

Division of Budget and Finance

Attn: Residential Service Construction Grant Committee

406 East Monroe, Station 440

Springfield, Illinois  62701

 

c)         To be considered, a request shall include at least the following information:

 

1)         A certified audit report for the provider's most recent (prior) fiscal year;

 

2)         A clear, concise statement explaining and justifying the request;

 

3)         A detailed statement of financial, statistical and related program information in support of the request;

 

4)         Description of the expected client benefits and outcomes;

 

5)         Data identifying the individual cost of each item for which the grant is being sought, and a cost schedule for any viable options that could be included or excluded from an award;

 

6)         A detailed explanation of why the costs cannot be funded within the agency's current financing;

 

7)         The number of Department clients that will be served if the grant is awarded; and

 

8)         Certification, under penalty of perjury, by the chief executive officer and the financial officer of the provider that the application and all the information reports, schedules, budgets, and records submitted are true, correct and accurate.

 

d)         Review Process

 

1)         Within 30 days after receipt of a request, designated staff of the Department's Division of Budget and Finance shall acknowledge, in writing, that the request has been received and forward the request to the chairperson of the Residential Service Construction Grant Committee.

 

2)         The committee shall include representatives of the Department and may include, by invitation of the Director, representatives of the provider community.  When providers serve on the committee, they must be able to accept the current criteria established pursuant to Section 363.30(b) and serve with objectivity.  Once a grant request is submitted, no member of the committee can be approached by the requesting agency or its representatives to discuss the proposal in any way.  No committee member may discuss the individual requests from agencies outside the committee process.

 

3)         The committee shall review each request for adequacy of documentation, appropriateness of the request, and the agency's fiscal stability, and shall consider the requesting agency's performance history for the current and preceding two fiscal years.

 

4)         The committee shall assess each request in relation to the Department's resource allocation management plan, and shall also consider fiscal efficiency and the best use of resources for the greatest number of Department clients.

 

5)         A request submitted by March 31 of the current State fiscal year shall be reviewed by the committee within 90 days after that date. 

 

e)         On or before June 30 of the current State fiscal year, the Department shall advise each grant applicant, in writing, whether the request has been approved or denied for the upcoming fiscal year.  This notification timeframe is subject to a signed budget.  All decisions are considered final and are not subject to appeal.

 

Section 363.50  Use of Grant Moneys

 

a)         A recipient of a grant under this Part may use the grant moneys to do any one or more of the following to improve services for Department clients:

 

1)         Acquire a new physical location for the purpose of delivering licensed residential services.

 

2)         Construct or renovate new or existing licensed residential services sites.

 

3)         Support capital rate enhancements for licensed residential services sites' capital projects.  [20 ILCS 530/20]

 

b)         Disallowable costs for which grant monies may not be used are the same as the disallowable costs set forth in 89 Ill. Adm. Code 356.60 (Rate Setting).

 

Section 363.60  Reporting

 

Within 60 days after the first year of a grant under this Part, the grant recipient must submit a progress report to the Department.  The Department may assist each grant recipient in meeting the goals and objectives stated in the original grant proposal submitted by the recipient, in ensuring that grant moneys are being used for appropriate purposes, and in ensuring that residents of the community are being served by the new residential services sites established with grant moneys.  [20 ILCS 530/25]