COMPETITIVE TRAINING GRANTS PROGRAM (CTGP)

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1 FEMA GRANTS AND PROGRAMS COMPETITIVE TRAINING GRANTS PROGRAM (CTGP) The primary purpose of the Competitive Training Grants Program (CTGP) is to foster the development and delivery of training to first responders, which addresses emerging national preparedness risks, vulnerabilities, and trends. This training has relevance for a significant number of communities and States across the Nation. The emphasis this year is on managementlevel training. Eligible training audiences include key personnel, supervisors, managers, and executives in State and local emergency management, public health, clinical care, public works, public safety, the private sector, nonprofits, and faith-based and community organizations. Summary of Findings The Analysis of Federal Requirements Team conducted cooperative discussions with seven States regarding their perceptions of the CTGP. The majority of the respondents believed the CTGP is a positive program and the training program provides first responders with common standards that support improvement in preparedness and response. Each of the jurisdictions were asked to reply to a series of questions pertaining to reporting requirements, timeline requirements, grant guidance, grant approval process, resource requirements, and program summary issues. Reporting Requirements Of the States responding, three of the seven respondents reported they did not have a concern over the reporting requirements, nor did they believe there were unnecessary reporting requirements associated with the CTGP. All of those who responded had concerns with the electronic reporting system largely because the system is not available at all times. Timeline Requirements All of the responding States believed the timeframe to apply for these grants is totally inadequate and that advanced notice and draft guidance should be provided as early as possible. One State reported the short timelines discourage State/local relationships because local government applicants do not have enough time to develop a quality application. This same State also recommended a list/library of previously successful project applications be posted. Grant Guidance All of the responding States agreed the guidance was not overly lengthy. Four of the five responding States found the guidance is understandable. One half of the States believed the guidance was consistent, while the other half were critical of the annual changes appearing in the CTGP grant guidance. The issue of timeliness was an issue for all of the States who responded, and they were unanimous in their desire to get the grant guidance earlier. AFR Final Report CTGP 1 Impact of Federal Program Requirements October 2007 FEMA Grants and Programs

2 Grant Approval Process Most of the States did not answer the question about concerns regarding the length of the grant approval process. One State reported they did not understand the CTGP grant approval process and wanted to know how it worked. Another State wanted to know what decision criteria is used for approving CTGP grants. Resource Requirements State personnel assigned to this program ranged from 0 to 2 full-time equivalents (FTEs). All States believed they need additional staff to sufficiently administer the program. CTGP funding goes to exercises, not to personnel costs. States believed that without a guarantee of a steady Federal funding level, the personnel to support the program cannot be justified. This recognition is based on the States inability to hire full-time personnel to support this Federal program from year to year if the funding is erratic. States must use staff from other programs to offset the administrative workload of this program. Program Summary Issues When asked if the CTGP improved State levels of preparedness, 57% of the States said it did, but there were mixed reactions to the benefit of this program. One State said they were hopeful the CTGP would improve State preparedness, but expressed concerns over the sustainability of the program. One State commented this program helped indirectly, given its stated goal of fostering the development and delivery of training, which addresses emerging National Preparedness risks, vulnerabilities, and trends. Another comment was that training, in general, encourages a common standard and supports improvement in preparedness and response. Program Requirements Impacting State Emergency Management/Homeland Security Agencies 1. Reporting Requirements a. Is the frequency of the reporting requirements a concern of the State? Yes 1 No 3 Unanswered 3 In this grant program, none of the States elected to go beyond their Yes/No answer within the Reporting Requirements section. b. Are there any unnecessary reporting requirements? Yes 1 No 3 Unanswered 3 No additional response given. Impact of Federal Program Requirements CTGP 2 AFR Final Report FEMA Grants and Programs October 2007

3 c. Are any of these reporting requirements covered in other Federal program requirements? Yes No 1 Unanswered 6 No additional response given. d. Is the electronic reporting submittal process for this program a concern? Yes 4 No Unanswered 3 The assessment tool collected data in four categories: 14% of the respondents said it takes too long to input data. 43% indicated they had system availability issues. 0% indicated they have lost data previously entered. 0% have experienced the system timing out during use. e. Suggested improvements. None were offered for CTGP. 2. Timeline Requirements a. Are timeline requirements acceptable for submitting the program application? Yes No 6 Unanswered 1 The States felt strongly that the timeframe to apply for grants is totally inadequate. More time is needed for preparation of the application, and advanced notice and draft guidance should be provided as soon as possible. b. Are timeline requirements acceptable for Investment Justification plans? Yes No 1 Unanswered 3 N/A 3 No comments for Investment Justification timeline requirements were received. c. Are timeline requirements acceptable for financial reporting? Yes 3 No Unanswered 4 No comments for timeline requirements of financial reporting were received. AFR Final Report CTGP 3 Impact of Federal Program Requirements October 2007 FEMA Grants and Programs

4 d. Are timeline requirements acceptable for program reporting? Yes 2 No Unanswered 5 No comments for timeline requirements of program reporting were received. e. Are there other timeline issues? One State reported the short timelines discourage State/local relationships because local government applicants do not have enough time to develop a quality application. f. What recommended improvements do you have regarding the timeline requirements? The States recommend that: More notice be given for the grant and more time be allowed for the application. Provide a list/library of previously successful project applications. 3. Grant Guidance a. Is the grant guidance too lengthy? Yes No 5 Unanswered 2 All States that responded indicated no difficulty with the length of the guidance. b. Is the grant guidance understandable? Yes 4 No 1 Unanswered 2 Four of the five States answering found no issue with the understandability of the guidance. The single State replying in the negative had no other comment. c. Is the grant guidance consistent? Yes 3 No 2 Unanswered 2 The States were almost evenly split regarding guidance consistency. Of the two States critical of the consistency, one mentioned that the criteria changes every year. Impact of Federal Program Requirements CTGP 4 AFR Final Report FEMA Grants and Programs October 2007

5 d. Is the grant guidance timely? Yes No 6 Unanswered 1 The issue of timeliness was an issue for all States responding, and they were clear that they need the guidance earlier to perform successfully. e. Are there other grant guidance issues? None reported. f. Any recommended changes for grant guidance improvement? Continue to work on providing timely grant guidance. 4. Grant Approval Process a. Do you have any concerns regarding the length of the grant approval process? Yes 1 No 3 Unanswered 3 None of the States with CSEPP programs stated any concerns regarding the length of the grant approval process. b. If used, is the Peer Review an acceptable process? Yes 1 No Unanswered 6 One State indicated they would be interested in knowing if a Peer Review process is used for the CTGP. c. Are there other grant approval process issues? One State indicated they would like to know the decision criteria for the CTGP grant approval process. d. Do you have any recommended improvements to the grant approval process for the program? No recommended improvements were offered for CTGP. AFR Final Report CTGP 5 Impact of Federal Program Requirements October 2007 FEMA Grants and Programs

6 5. Resource Requirements a. How many full-time equivalents (FTEs) are required to administer this program? The FTE numbers below summarize the range of personnel requirements identified by State population. FTE for the one large population State (greater than 10 million): None FTE for the two medium population States (3 to 10 million): Range 1 to 2 FTE for the four small population States (less than 3 million): Range 0 to 2 b. Number of FTEs currently assigned to this program. The FTE numbers below summarize the range of personnel currently assigned to this program by population size. FTE for the one large population State (greater than 10 million): None FTE for the two medium population States (3 to 10 million): Range 0.1 to 0.5 FTE for the four small population States (less than 3 million): Range 0 to 2 All of the States identified a need for more personnel to administer the CTGP program. c. If the FTEs required to administer this program are less than the FTEs currently assigned, why is there a difference? In the States that had a requirement for additional personnel, the primary reasons are noted below. Some States provide all of the program funding to exercises and none to personnel costs. Without a guarantee of a steady Federal funding level for the State, the personnel to administer the program cannot be justified or secured by States. Funding is not available for personnel under this program. d. Are additional non-personnel resources needed to accomplish this program? Yes No 2 Unanswered 5 Most States felt that, at this time, the number of additional non-personnel was unknown due to the little overall understanding of the program. Impact of Federal Program Requirements CTGP 6 AFR Final Report FEMA Grants and Programs October 2007

7 e. Other issues related to the personnel/resources for this program. The States have no other related issues that affect and are related to the program. f. Recommended improvements for the personnel/resources for this program. The States had no recommendations for the CTGP program that could improve personnel and other resourcing. 6. Program Summary Issues a. Does this program improve preparedness in your State? Yes 4 No 1 Unanswered 2 While most States answered Yes, there were mixed reactions to the benefit of this program. One State said they were hopeful the program would develop and offer meaningful training in their State, but saw little sustainability either in funding or convenient course offerings. b. Does this program support your State s Homeland Security Strategy? Yes 3 No 3 Unanswered 1 One State commented that this program helped indirectly. Another comment was that training in general encourages a common standard and supports improvement in preparedness and response. c. Does the program support the National Preparedness Goal? Yes 5 No 1 Unanswered 1 The majority of States answered Yes without further comment. d. Are there any program requirements or items related to this program not previously discussed? Yes 2 No 3 Unanswered 2 One State commented that the program appeared to be for predetermined entities such as academic institutions and should not even be offered to States to compete since it does not appear to be meant for individual State training course development and delivery. They questioned the return to the States in viable courses and meaningful long-term training availability. AFR Final Report CTGP 7 Impact of Federal Program Requirements October 2007 FEMA Grants and Programs

8 e. What recommendations for improvement does the State have for this program? Provide guidance in a timelier manner. f. Has the State identified any other requirements from Federal agencies other than DHS and FEMA that can be associated with or related to this program? No. Impact of Federal Program Requirements CTGP 8 AFR Final Report FEMA Grants and Programs October 2007

9 CTGP PROGRAM Y/N COUNT SUMMARY WORKSHEET Summary Small States (8 Sites Surveyed) Medium States (7 Sites Surveyed) Large States (5 Sites Surveyed) # AFR Impact/Response (Template 3) Y/N Criteria Yes No N/A U Yes No N/A U Yes No N/A U Yes No N/A U 10. Reporting Requirements A. Is the frequency of the reporting requirements a concern of the State? C. Are there any unnecessary reporting requirements? E. Are any of these reporting requirements covered in other Federal Program requirements? G. Is the electronic reporting submittal process for this program a concern? Are Timeline Requirements acceptable for submitting: A. The application for this program? C. Investment Justification plan? E. Financial reporting? G. Program reporting? Is the Grant Guidance: A. Too lengthy? C. Understandable? E. Consistent? G. Timely? Grant Approval Process: A. Do you have any concerns regarding the length of the Grant approval process? C. Is used, is the Peer Review an acceptable process? Resource Requirements: E. Are additional non-personnel resources needed to accomplish this program? Program Summary Issues: A. Does this program improve preparedness in your State? C. Does this program support your State s Homeland Security Strategy? E. Does this program support the National Preparedness Goal? G. Are there any program requirements or items related to this program not previously discussed? TOTALS AFR Final Report CTGP 9 Impact of Federal Program Requirements October 2007 FEMA Grants and Programs

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