Grant Accountability & Transparency Act (GATA) Illinois ...



Process QuestionsQuestion: Will the new process delay issuance of fiscal year 2017 grants?Answer: The uniform grant application in the GATA presentations will not be used by ISBE as we utilize a different grant application design within the electronic Grants Management System (eGMS).? Our eGMS continues to work through the process of publishing FY 2017 grants in eGMS as normal.? We already collect most of the data elements from the Uniform Application, but in a different format.? Further enhancements will be forthcoming to incorporate elements we currently do not have in our grants, such as a new Indirect Cost Worksheet.? All grantees need to complete the prequalification process at Grants. and submit other required materials; specifically, the Fiscal Internal Control Questionnaire (ICQ) and the Programmatic Risk Assessment Questionnaire.? These steps, along with the grantee agreeing to the conditions outlined in the Notice of State Award (NOSA), must be completed before ISBE can approve a FY 2017 grant.?Question: What is involved with the prequalification process?Answer: The grantee prequalification registration portal is now active and may be accessed directly on the Grant Accountability and Transparency Act (GATA) website at . All grantees must complete the registration process and be qualified to do business with the State of Illinois. To be qualified for a fiscal year 2017 grant award, an entity must Have a current active DUNS number. (Click HERE to view instructions on obtaining a DUNS number.)Have a current active SAM CAGE Code. (Click HERE to view instructions on obtaining a SAM CAGE Code.)Not be on the Federal Excluded Parties List. (Click HERE to verify utilizing the Quick Search.) Be in good standing with the Illinois Secretary of State (if applicable). (Click HERE to verify.) NOTE: The following types of organizations have been deemed EXEMPT from this requirement: school districts, colleges, universities, Regional Offices of Education, special education joint agreements and education for employment consortiums.?Grantees will receive an automated email once initial registration is submitted. Grantees will be notified of any deficiencies that can be remediated. Remediation cannot be obtained if the grantee appears on the Federal Excluded Parties List. Once the grantee registration is approved, a separate email will be sent that indicates that the GATA registration process is complete and that the organization is in good standing. ?Grantee registration is completed one time and is good for one year.?Question: How do I register in the System for Award Management? Answer: : Currently, the NCLB grant is filled out online and then submitted to ISBE for approval.? Is this going to change now with GATA?? If so, will the grant application (Title I and II) be the same or a complete new format?? Answer: The NCLB grant will still be filled out online.? The format will be the same with some additional steps:IWAS will have an ICQ and a Programmatic Risk Assessment Questionnaire.Registration will be required through the GATA website/portal.Additional screens in eGMS will be created for notice of award and grant agreement.Question: When amendments are made throughout the year, will they go through ISBE or GATA?? How will expenditure reports be handled each month?? Will all expenditures have to go through a thorough process with GATA prior to purchasing items or will districts continue to purchase items according to what is in the approved budget detail pages?Answer: Expenditure reports will be handled the same way they have been handled in the past. Expenditures will not go through a process with GATA; the process will be the same as it has been in previous years.Question: How will the ICQ be completed?Answer: All grantees will be required to complete a questionnaire that will compute the fiscal and administrative risk profile of the grantee. Specific conditions will be imposed if the grantee is determined to be medium or high risk. The ICQ will be completed on a centralized system at the State of Illinois and not through ISBE’s Risk Assessment System. ?After a grantee completes the registration process at the GATA website (), an automated email will be generated with a link to access the grantee’s State of Illinois ICQ form to complete. ?The ICQ is required to be completed one time by each grantee and is good for one year. ISBE encourages grantees to complete the registration, ICQ, and Programmatic Risk Assessment Questionnaire as soon as possible.? Question: How will the Programmatic Risk Assessment Questionnaire be completed? Answer: The GATA risk assessment is open and can be accessed by logging into the IWAS portal.?? All ISBE grantees must submit a completed Programmatic Risk Assessment Questionnaire for ISBE review and approval.? An automated IWAS email will be returned to the grantee after approval.? Specific conditions will be imposed if the grantee is determined to be medium or high risk. The questionnaire is entity-specific and required to be submitted annually.Question: How will the NOSA acceptance be processed?Answer: A new eGMS page will be created. All grantees will receive a NOSA that is grant-specific along with a final grant agreement. The NOSA will reflect grantee information, program name, and funding amount, along with specific terms and conditions. The terms and conditions will be fed from the grantee responses to the ICQ and Programmatic Risk Assessment Questionnaire. Grantees can elect to accept or not accept. An award cannot be granted without acceptance. If the grantee chooses not to accept, the award will not be made. Applicability QuestionsQuestion: Do all school districts have to do prequalification?Answer: Yes, all entities that apply for a grant must be prequalified.Question: Since we have already released our application, does GATA apply?Answer: GATA applies to all grants for FY 2017 even if they have already been released.Question: Does a continuation grant have to do this??? Answer: Yes, all grants disbursed in FY 2017 must follow GATA.Question: Does this apply to all Title grants? For example, ELL Bilingual grants from the state? ?Answer: Yes, this applies to all Title and ELL grants.? Question: Do Title III grants fall under these new requirements?Answer: Yes, GATA is applicable to Title III grants.Question: Do member districts in a coop need to secure a CAGE code if their IDEA Part B grants flow- through the coop?Answer: Yes, as recipients of federal funds member districts need to secure and/or use their existing CAGE code.Question: Do all applicants have to fill out the Programmatic Risk Assessment Questionnaire?Answer: Yes, all applicants will have to fill out a Programmatic Risk Assessment Questionnaire before awards are made.Question: Does GATA apply to the technology loan program?Answer: Loan programs are exempt from some parts of GATA such as the cost principles, but are NOT exempt from the requirements for public notice of financial assistance, award monitoring, and audit.Staffing & Definition QuestionsQuestion: Who at the district is the best person to fill out the ICQ and Programmatic Risk Assessment Questionnaire?Answer: Someone who is familiar with the district’s administration and financial operations should fill out the ICQ. Someone familiar with the district’s programmatic policies and procedures should complete the Programmatic Risk Assessment Questionnaire.Question: The registration form has a question that asks what form of government the entity is. Are public schools considered local or state government?Answer: Public schools would be a form of local government.Question: When questions arise, will we still contact our principal consultants or someone with GATA??Answer: Questions should be directed to the ISBE program area or GATA@.? Question: Each district will have a DUNS, FEIN, and CAGE code for that entity. If a district has a business manager and three additional people, each of whom is responsible for a different grant, does the business manager file once in the Illinois Grantee Portal for the entire entity? Or will each individual person who handles a grant need to file in the Grantee Portal?Answer: The entity only has to register once through the Grantee Portal no matter how many grants it receives.Question: If a grantee has more than one location with multiple DUNS numbers, which one should they use?Answer: It would be most practical to use the number for the location with the central administration or where most of the business processes are located.Specific Component QuestionsQuestion: Is the NOSA in place of Assurances or an add-on? Answer: The NOSA is additional to and separate from the Certifications and Assurances. The NOSA is prepared at the time the grant is awarded and contains some of the grant/grantee-specific terms and requirements, including F&A and programmatic-specific conditions.Question: If ISBE uses our AFR to calculate a restricted and unrestricted indirect cost rate for the school district, will this be given to GATA to use as our indirect cost rate?Answer: Yes, your indirect rate determined through ISBE on behalf of the U.S. Department of Education will be communicated to the Grant Accountability and Transparency Unit (GATU).Additional Training & Resource QuestionsQuestion: Where can I find additional information?Answer: ISBE GATA website at : Will there be an informational webinar?? Answer: There are informational webinars and PowerPoint presentations available at grants.. It takes several presentations to take in all that GATA encompasses. Question: How can we request customized presentations? Answer: Additional informational presentations will be added as new components are created. Specific requests can be emailed to GATA@ Question: Who is a contact person for additional information?Answer: Please contact your program contact at ISBE for additional information or email GATA@. ................
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