American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 Supplemental Agreement (ALN 84.425F) — Supplemental Grant Funds for Institutions

Summary

This is the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 Supplemental Agreement (ALN 84.425F) ((a)(1) Institutional Portion), Supplemental Grant Funds for Institutions, from the U.S. Department of Education. It says the terms govern an institution's use of supplemental grant funds awarded pursuant to section 2003 of the American Rescue Plan Act and section 314 of the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2021, and that by drawing down the funds the institution agrees to be bound. It says a recipient may use the funds for institutional costs to defray expenses associated with coronavirus and make additional emergency financial grants to students. It also says a recipient must use a portion of its institutional funds to implement evidence-based practices to monitor and suppress coronavirus and to conduct outreach to financial aid applicants.

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                                 Supplemental Grant Funds for Institutions Agreement – Page 1


                          American Rescue Plan Act of 2021
           Supplemental Agreement (ALN 84.425F) ((a)(1) Institutional Portion)

                SUPPLEMENTAL GRANT FUNDS FOR INSTITUTIONS

The terms, conditions, and requirements governing your institution’s (Recipient’s) use of these
supplemental grant funds awarded pursuant to section 2003 of the American Rescue Plan Act of
2021 (ARP) (Pub. L. 117-2) (supplemental award or grant) by the U.S. Department of Education
(Department) are governed by section 2003 of the ARP and section 314 of the Coronavirus
Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2021 (CRRSAA) (Pub. L. 116-260) and
the following terms and conditions of this Supplemental Agreement.

BY DRAWING DOWN THESE GRANT FUNDS, YOU AGREE TO BE BOUND BY THE
CONDITIONS SET FORTH ON BEHALF OF THE INSTITUTION YOU REPRESENT,
AND YOU WARRANT THAT YOU HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO BIND THE
INSTITUTION TO THE FOLLOWING CONDITIONS:

Use of Supplemental Grant Funds:

   1. Under section 314(c) of the CRRSAA, Recipient, an institution of higher education as
      defined in section 101 or 102(c) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended
      (HEA), 20 USC § 1001 or 1002(c), may use these supplemental grant funds for
      Recipient’s Institutional Costs to defray expenses associated with coronavirus (including
      lost revenue, reimbursement for expenses already incurred, technology costs associated
      with a transition to distance education, faculty and staff trainings, and payroll) and make
      additional emergency financial grants to students, which may be used for any component
      of the student’s cost of attendance or for emergency costs that arise due to coronavirus,
      such as tuition, food, housing, health care (including mental health care), or child care.

   2. Under section 2003(5) of the ARP, Recipient must use a portion of their institutional
      funds received under this supplemental award to (a) implement evidence-based practices
      to monitor and suppress coronavirus in accordance with public health guidelines and (b)
      conduct direct outreach to financial aid applicants about the opportunity to receive a
      financial aid adjustment due to the recent unemployment of a family member or
      independent student, or other circumstances, described in section 479A of the HEA (20
      USC § 1087tt).

   3. Recipient may, but is not required to, use funds designated for Recipient’s Institutional
      Costs to provide additional emergency financial aid grants to students. If Recipient
      chooses to use these grant funds designated for Recipient’s Institutional Costs to provide
      additional emergency financial aid grants to students, then those funds are subject to the
      requirements described in the ARP Supplemental Grant Funds for Students Agreement.

   4. The Secretary urges Recipient to devote the maximum amount of funds possible to
      emergency financial aid grants to students, including some or all of the funds allocated
      for Recipient’s Institutional Costs. The Secretary urges Recipient to take strong measures
                                  Supplemental Grant Funds for Institutions Agreement – Page 2


      to ensure that emergency financial aid grants to students are made to the maximum extent
      possible.

   5. Recipient acknowledges that no supplemental grant funds may be used to fund
      construction; acquisition of real property; contractors for the provision of pre-enrollment
      recruitment activities; marketing or recruitment; endowments; capital outlays associated
      with facilities related to athletics, sectarian instruction, or religious worship; senior
      administrator or executive salaries, benefits, bonuses, contracts, incentives; stock
      buybacks, shareholder dividends, capital distributions, and stock options; or any other
      cash or other benefit for a senior administrator or executive.

   6. Recipient acknowledges that it may voluntarily decline all or a portion of its ARP (a)(1)
      institutional funds. The recipient may indicate this by submitting the Voluntary Decline
      of HEERF form (OMB Control Number 1840-0856) to the Department by August 11,
      2021. Recipient further acknowledges if it submits this form, it will be ineligible for the
      future redistribution of ARP HEERF grant funds to other institutions with greater needs
      due to the coronavirus.

Grant Administration:

   7. Recipient acknowledges that consistent with 2 CFR § 200.305, it must minimize the time
      between drawing down funds from G5 and paying incurred obligations (liquidation).
      Recipient further acknowledges that if it draws down funds and does not pay the incurred
      obligations (liquidates) within 3 calendar days it may be subject to heightened scrutiny by
      the Department, Recipient’s auditors, and/or the Department’s Office of the Inspector
      General (OIG). Recipient further acknowledges that returning funds pursuant to mistakes
      in drawing down excessive grant funds in advance of need may also be subject to
      heightened scrutiny by the Department, Recipient’s auditors, and/or the Department’s
      OIG. Finally, Recipient acknowledges that it must maintain drawn down grant funds in
      an interest-bearing account, and any interest earned on all Federal grant funds above $500
      (all Federal grants together) during an institution’s fiscal year must be returned (remitted)
      to the Federal government via a process described here:
      https://www2.ed.gov/documents/funding-101/g5-returning-interest.pdf.

   8. Recipient may charge indirect costs to supplemental funds made available under this
      award consistent with its negotiated indirect cost rate agreement. If Recipient does not
      have a current negotiated indirect cost rate with its cognizant agency for indirect costs, it
      may appropriately charge the de minimis rate of ten percent of Modified Total Direct
      Costs (MTDC) under 2 CFR § 200.414. Recipient may also charge reasonable direct
      administrative costs to the supplemental funds made available under this award.

   9. Recipient acknowledges that any obligation under this grant (pre-award costs pursuant to
      2 CFR § 200.458) must have been incurred on or after March 13, 2020, the date of the
      declaration of a National Emergency Concerning the Novel Coronavirus Disease
      (COVID-19) Outbreak (85 FR 15337).
                                  Supplemental Grant Funds for Institutions Agreement – Page 3


   10. Recipient must promptly and to the greatest extent practicable expend all grant funds
       from this award within the one-year period of performance (2 CFR § 200.77) specified in
       Box 6 of this Grant Award Notification (GAN).

   11. Recipient must, to the greatest extent practicable, continue to pay its employees and
       contractors during the period of any disruptions or closures related to coronavirus
       pursuant to section 315 of the CRRSAA.

   12. Recipient acknowledges that its failure to draw down any amount ($1 or more) of its
       supplemental grant funds within 90 days of the date of this supplemental award will
       constitute nonacceptance of the terms, conditions, and requirements of this Supplemental
       Agreement and of these supplemental grant funds. In such event, the Department, in its
       sole discretion, may choose to deobligate these supplemental grant funds or take other
       appropriate administrative action, up to and including terminating the grant award
       pursuant to 2 CFR § 200.340.

Reporting and Accountability:

   13. Recipient must promptly and timely provide a detailed accounting of the use and
       expenditure of the funds provided by this supplemental award in such manner and with
       such frequency as the Secretary may require.

   14. Recipient must comply with all requirements of the Single Audit Act Amendments of
       1996, 31 USC § 7501, et seq. (Single Audit Act) and all applicable auditing standards.
       Considering that the HEERF grant program is a new program not previously audited or
       subjected to Department oversight, and the inherent risk that comes with a new program,
       the Department strongly suggests that the HEERF grant program be audited as a major
       program in the first fiscal year(s) that the institution received a HEERF grant.

   15. Recipient acknowledges it is under a continuing affirmative duty to inform the
       Department if Recipient is to close or terminate operations as an institution or merge with
       another institution. In such cases, Recipient must promptly notify in writing the assigned
       education program officer contact in Box 3. Additionally, Recipient must promptly notify
       the assigned education program officer if the Recipient’s Authorized Representative
       changes.

   16. Recipient must cooperate with any examination of records with respect to the advanced
       funds by making records and authorized individuals available when requested, whether
       by (a) the Department and/or its OIG; or (b) any other Federal agency, commission, or
       department in the lawful exercise of its jurisdiction and authority. Recipient must retain
       all financial records, supporting documents, statistical records, and all other non-Federal
       entity records pertinent to a Federal award for a period of three years from the date of
       submission of the final expenditure report pursuant to 2 CFR § 200.334.

   17. Recipient acknowledges that failure to comply with this Supplemental Agreement, its
       terms and conditions, and/or all relevant provisions and requirements of the CRRSAA or
                                  Supplemental Grant Funds for Institutions Agreement – Page 4


      ARP or any other applicable law may result in Recipient’s liability under the False
      Claims Act, 31 USC § 3729, et seq.; OMB Guidelines to Agencies on Governmentwide
      Debarment and Suspension (Nonprocurement) in 2 CFR part 180, as adopted and
      amended as regulations of the Department in 2 CFR part 3485; 18 USC § 1001, as
      appropriate; and all of the laws and regulations referenced in the “Applicable Law”
      section of this Supplemental Agreement, below.

Applicable Law:

   18. Recipient must comply with all applicable assurances in OMB Standard Forms (SF) SF-
       424B and SF-424D (Assurances for Non-Construction and Assurances for Construction
       Programs), including the assurances relating to the legal authority to apply for assistance;
       access to records; conflict of interest; nondiscrimination; Hatch Act provisions; labor
       standards; Single Audit Act; and the general agreement to comply with all applicable
       Federal laws, executive orders, and regulations.

   19. Recipient certifies that with respect to the certification regarding lobbying in Department
       Form 80-0013, no Federal appropriated funds have been paid or will be paid to any
       person for influencing or attempting to influence an officer or employee of any agency, a
       Member of Congress, an officer or employee of Congress, or an employee of a Member
       of Congress in connection with the making or supplementing of Federal grants under this
       program; Recipient must complete and submit Standard Form-LLL, “Disclosure Form to
       Report Lobbying,” when required (34 CFR part 82, Appendix B).

   20. Recipient must comply with the provisions of all applicable acts, regulations and
       assurances; the following provisions of Education Department General Administrative
       Regulations (EDGAR) 34 CFR parts 75, 77, 81, 82, 84, 86, 97, 98, and 99; the OMB
       Guidelines to Agencies on Governmentwide Debarment and Suspension
       (Nonprocurement) in 2 CFR part 180, as adopted and amended as regulations of the
       Department in 2 CFR part 3485; and the Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost
       Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards in 2 CFR part 200, as adopted
       and amended as regulations of the Department in 2 CFR part 3474.


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