FY 2014 Amendments Instructional Guide for Recipients

Transcription

1 e-snaps Training Series FY 2014 Amendments Instructional Guide for Recipients Completing e-snaps step C1.9b 2015, Version 1

2 Table of Contents Introduction... 2 Objectives... 2 Overview of the Amendment Process... 2 Overview of this Instructional Guide... 3 What s New in e-snaps in Accessing e-snaps... 5 Existing Users... 5 New e-snaps Users... 5 Accessing the Amendment Request Form... 6 Submissions Screen... 6 Completing the ARF... 8 Before Starting the Amendment Request Form... 8 Reference Submissions... 8 Grant Consolidation... 9 Attachments Amendments Submitting Amendments An Incomplete Submission Summary Screen A Complete Submission Summary Screen Exporting to PDF Guide Completion Appendix A: Adding, Deleting, and Editing Users (Registrants) Add a User (Registrant) Delete a User (Registrant) Edit User (Registrant) Information Amendments Page 1 of 20

3 Introduction Welcome to the FY 2014 Amendments Instructional Guide. This guide covers important information about accessing and completing grant agreement amendments (GAA) to existing Continuum of Care (CoC) Program projects in e-snaps. This document only applies to renewal grants awarded and executed through the FY 2014 CoC Program Competition. For amendments to grants executed through previous competitions, please contact your local HUD CPD field office and review the guidance provided for that specific fiscal year. HUD refers to the organization that signed the FY 2014 grant agreement as the recipient. Prior to using this guide, recipients must contact their local HUD CPD field office representative and communicate their desire to amend an existing grant agreement. The amendment process described in this document must be initiated by HUD before it becomes visible and available for recipients to access. Recipients should review 24 CFR part 578, the FY FY 2014 Continuum of Care Program Competition NOFA, and the FY 2014 Funding Notice for relevant program rules and regulations. Objectives By the end of this guide, recipients should be able to do the following: 1. Access e-snaps 2. Enter the Amendments form, step C1.9b, from the Submissions screen 3. Complete and submit the Amendments form, step C1.9b, to HUD in e-snaps Overview of the Amendment Process Following the execution of a grant awarded through the FY 2014 CoC Program Competition, recipients may at any time submit a request to HUD to amend certain project details. Examples may include but are not limited to a change of grant recipient, number of units, or population served, or moving more than 10 percent of funds from one budget line item to another. GAAs are also necessary to complete grant consolidations, which include a process for both surviving and terminating grants. The amendment process cannot, however, be used to create a new project when compared with the original award. For a more detailed explanation of when a grant agreement amendment is required, please refer to 24 CFR , Grant and project changes. To initiate the GAA process, recipients must notify HUD of the desire to amend their grant via mail, , fax, or over the phone. The GAA request will then be officially completed using e-snaps, a webbased portal accessible at Recipients that were originally awarded under the SHP or S+C programs should be aware that making substantial changes to a grant may impact the applicability of CoC regulations that were not in effect under SHP and/or S+C regulations. To help you determine what changes are considered Substantial Grant Amendments, please review the Homeless Programs: Transition Policies and Changes Webinar, which can found at Amendments Page 2 of 20

4 The GAA process includes the following: 1. HUD receives an official request outside of e-snaps from the recipient for a GAA 2. HUD notifies the recipient when the Amendment Request Form (ARF) is ready in e-snaps. 3. The recipient will adjust project information, as necessary, in e-snaps at step C1.9b. This will serve as the formal GAA request. 4. The recipient will attach supporting documentation in e-snaps to justify the GAA, including HUD s approval of grant consolidations, as applicable. 5. The GAA request will be reviewed in e-snaps by the local HUD CPD field office for approval. Note HUD reserves the right to reject any GAA that does not comply with 24 CFR part 578, the FY 2013 FY 2014 CoC Program Competition NOFA, or the FY 2014 Funding Notice, or that significantly alters the project such that it qualifies as an entirely new project. Overview of this Instructional Guide The organization of materials in this instructional guide corresponds with the different parts of the amendment process, and the instructional steps follow the progression of screens in e-snaps. Accessing e-snaps. All e-snaps users must have a username and password in order to log into e- snaps. In order to see a project s AFR, the e-snaps user needs to be associated as a "registrant" with the organization's e-snaps account. The Accessing e-snaps section of this guide highlights key information for existing registered users and for the addition and removal of registered users. Accessing the ARF. The steps discussed in this section allow recipients to access the GAA screens at step C1.9b in e-snaps. The steps include filtering projects and form types, and identifying the correct form for the correct project under the Submissions folder. Amendments. After accessing the ARF in e-snaps, recipients will review and complete four sections: Reference Submissions, Grant Consolidation, Amendments, and Attachments. o Reference Submissions. The recipient will be able to access and review the existing executed grant details. The forms are read only. o Grant Consolidation. The recipient will be able to indicate an intention to consolidate, identify the project as either the surviving or a terminating grant, and enter the details of the grants being terminated into the surviving grant. o Amendments. The recipient will be able to request changes to the existing project details in order to reflect the GAA request, including grant consolidations. o Attachments. Provides an opportunity to attach documentation, as necessary, to justify the requested GAA. Recipients requesting a grant consolidation will be required to attach a letter of prior approval from the local HUD CPD field office. After providing all of the required information, the recipient will submit the form in e-snaps to the local HUD CPD field office for review. Amendments Page 3 of 20

5 What s New in e-snaps in 2014 In FY 2014 the amendment process has been updated to include new fields and/or labels in e-snaps, as well as other very minor technical updates that are referenced in the body of this guide. The Amendments screen at step C1.9b has been dramatically simplified. The checkboxes that were previously used to unlock project information screens brought forward from the current grant have been removed and replaced by a single textbox. Recipients will be asked to provide a brief list of project information changes before navigating to the appropriate screens to complete the formal GAA request. The Consolidation screen at step C1.9b has been modified to capture the operating start and end dates for each project involved in the consolidation. This allows the screen to automate the one year reduction in funding that occurs when grant start dates are staggered and there is a funding overlap that must be addressed. The process for entering terminating grant information has also changed slightly. Recipients will now use individual detailed screens for each terminating grant to enter budget line item detail. This extra detail helps with the automation process described above. The Summary Budget screen at step C1.9b has also been changed to capture the automation incorporated into the Consolidation screen. For consolidations only, this screen now shows the budget summary totals for the surviving grant, the terminating grants, the full consolidated amounts, and the one year adjusted amounts. The one year adjusted amounts on this screen can be edited in the event that the GAA request also includes a budget change greater than 10 percent. Throughout the guide you will see frequent reference to the following terms: ARF: The Amendment Request Form, formerly known as the Amendment Form, is the name of the form, step C1.9b, used for the GAA e-snaps process. Form: An entire submission in e-snaps equivalent to a complete paper form in the real world. Most of the forms have codes associated with them, such as C1.10b, and C1.11b. GAA: A Grant Agreement Amendment occurs when a recipient requests a significant change to an executed grant agreement. A GAA will be issued that reflects the change in the original grant agreement upon approval from the local HUD CPD field office. Screen: One single page within a form that takes up one physical screen in e-snaps. Screens have titles that can either be a name (the Attachments Screen) or a name and an alphanumeric title code (Screen 3B. Project ). A group of screens makes up one form. : One of a sequence of e-snaps forms and submissions necessary for the completion of the grant s management process. The recipient will only complete step C1.9b for a GAA. Submission: Anything (often a form) that can be submitted in e-snaps. Used on the left menu as Submissions, but also within certain forms as in Reference Submissions. If a submission is in ready status, it has not yet been opened, in progress, it has been opened but not submitted, and complete, it has been submitted and can no longer be edited. Amendments Page 4 of 20

6 Accessing e-snaps Recipients complete and submit the ARF using a web-based grant management system called e-snaps. Log in here If new to e-snaps, create a user profile here Note Each e-snaps user must have his or her unique log-in credentials. Preferably, each organization will have two people with access to e-snaps the Authorized Representative and one or more additional staff. Existing Users 1. Direct your Internet browser to 2. On the left menu bar, enter your username and password. After you successfully log in to e-snaps, you will arrive at the "Welcome" screen. 3. If you forgot your password, select "Forgot your password?" under the "Login" button. New e-snaps Users 1. Create an e-snaps username and password by selecting the "Create Profile" link. 2. Log in as instructed under Existing Users above. Note For a refresher on how to navigate through the e-snaps system, the "Introduction to e- snaps Features and Functions" training guide is available on the HUD Exchange. If guidance is needed for Adding, Deleting, or Editing Users (Registrants) see Appendix A or review the guidance at: Amendments Page 5 of 20

7 Accessing the Amendment Request Form After receiving an from the local HUD CPD field office alerting you that the ARF is ready, and after successfully logging in to e-snaps, recipients are ready to access the ARF, C1.9b. This section identifies the steps for accessing the ARF from the Submissions screen. Note An "Applicant" dropdown menu is located at the top left side of the screen for applicants with both a CoC Applicant Profile (for the Collaborative Applicant) and Project Application Profile (for project applicants), or for users with multiple Project Applicant Profiles. This identifies the name and type of Applicant Profile in which you are working. You must be working in the Project Applicant Profile associated with your project. Submissions Screen Recipients must access the ARF, step C1.9b, from the "Submissions" screen. Make sure to select the Project Applicant in the Applicant field Select Submissions. Select the project name 1. Confirm that the correct project applicant name is selected in the dropdown menu located at the top left side of the screen. 2. Select "Submissions" on the left menu bar. 3. The "Submissions" screen appears. 4 Locate the project that is under the current grant agreement. Option 1: Use the "Submissions Filters" on the top half of the screen and select the appropriate project from the Applicant Project Name dropdown menu. Click the "Filter" button to find your project and look under the "Funding Opportunity Name / Name" column to identify the ARF that includes Project Application FY2014 and "C1.9b Option 2: Click Clear Filters on the top left of the Submissions Filters box. Identify the project under the Project Name/ Project Number column and/or under the Funding Opportunity Name / Name column in the submissions in list. Identify the ARF that includes Project Application FY2014 and C1.9b Amendments Page 6 of 20

8 Access the Amendment Request Form b 4 5. Click on the orange folder Name "C1.9b". to the left of the Project Name you established with the Amendments Page 7 of 20

9 Completing the ARF This section identifies the steps for completing the screens that make up the ARF. Note Some data will automatically populate from the Project Applicant Profile. Review the populated data and, if it is not correct, edit the Project Applicant Profile. To edit the Project Applicant Profile, exit the ARF by clicking the Back to Submissions List at the bottom of the left menu and select Applicant from the left menu of e-snaps home screen. For more information on how to edit the Project Applicant Profile, please review the Project Applicant Profile instructional guide located on the e-snaps training page. Whatever the required edit, remember to select the "Complete" button after making changes so that the data can be pulled forward again. Before Starting the Amendment Request Form Review the information on the "Before Starting" screen before you begin the GAA process. This screen highlights important GAA information and contains quick links to HUD's Continuum of Care based listserv, the FY 2013 FY 2014 CoC Program Competition NOFA, the FY 2014 Funding Notice and the HUD Exchange Ask a Question help desk. Reference Submissions This section identifies the steps for reviewing Reference Submission." Reference submissions are provided for reference only and recipients are not required to review them. 1 Click on the orange folder under the View column to open each submission. The Reference Submission selected will open in the same active window.. 2. After completing a review of a reference submission, click the Back to Recipient Amendments at the bottom of the left menu to return to the ARF. The following two reference submissions are available for review: Renewal Project Application A copy of the application that was submitted by the project applicant during the FY 2014 CoC Program Competition and reviewed and approved by HUD C1.9a Renewal Application Issues and Conditions The C1.9a Issues and Conditions form represents the most up to date contract information captured in e-snaps before grant agreement. In most cases, this information has been used to populate the screens that appear later in e-snaps. If this is not the first time that the project has been amended, the amended information will populate the screens that follow. Amendments Page 8 of 20

10 Grant Consolidation The Grant Consolidation screen allows recipients to enter information from active executed grant agreements that are consolidating. The Surviving grant MUST be the grant with the earliest expiration, and the Terminating grants being consolidated into the surviving grant MUST have expiration dates that are equal to or later than the surviving grant. Projects must also have the same recipient and the same component type to consolidate. This MUST be in place before submitting a consolidation request. The local HUD CPD field office must confirm the alignment and approve the request in the form of an official communication before a consolidation can be completed. A copy of the communication must be uploaded to the Grant Consolidation Attachment screen. Both surviving grants and terminating grants must complete the ARF. Surviving grants will be required to list the operating start dates, grant numbers, and budget line item amounts for each terminating grant. Surviving grants must then update the details on the project information screens so that they reflect the total capacity of the newly consolidated grant. Terminating grants must indicate and then confirm their status as terminating grants so that e-snaps will have a record of the grants that are no longer operating. No additional processing is required Does the current, expiring grant represent a grant consolidation approved by the field office? If the grant is part of a consolidation, select Yes from the drop down menu. Both surviving and terminating grants must select Yes The drop down default setting is No. If the grant is NOT part of a consolidation, you may skip this section and move on to Amendments, on page 19. If Yes, click Save and an additional question will automatically appear. Surviving Grant Amendments Page 9 of 20

11 3 4. Is the project the surviving grant into which other grants are being consolidated, or is the grant being terminated? If the grant is a terminating grant, select Terminating Grant from the drop down menu If the grant is the surviving grant, select Surviving Grant from the drop down menu Click Save and additional field(s) will automatically appear. Terminating grants should continue to 5a Surviving grant should continue to 5b Terminating Grant Terminating Grants 5a Please confirm your understanding that this grant is being terminated and is not going to grant agreement: Click the check box to confirm your selection of Terminating Grant. 6a Click Save and Next. Skip to the Summary Submission Screen section of this document and to complete your submission of the ARF. Surviving Grant Important: This field calculates the new total amount available to the consolidated grant The surviving grant information will automatically populate Surviving Grants 5b 6b Enter the Operating Start Date for the Surviving Grant using the available calendar icon Review the information populated in the Surviving Grant Number and HUD Approved Renewal Amount fields. Confirm the grant number, operating start and end date and the renewal amount Amendments Page 10 of 20

12 7b 8b 9b Locate and click on the Add Terminating Grant icon above the list at the bottom of the screen. On the detail screen that opens, add the following detail: Operating Start Date Grant Number Budget Line Item budget totals equivalent to the values on the current executed grant. Click Save and then repeat for each of the terminating grants until all of them appear in the list at the bottom of the screen. Review and verify the calculated consolidated budget; including the 1 year adjusted amounts which automatically account for difference in the operating start date of the surviving grant and the operating start dates of the terminating grants. Click Next once you have confirmed that the information is correct. 10b 11b Click on the link Field Office Approval for Consolidation and follow the instructions to upload and save your approval from the local HUD CPD office. For more detailed instructions concerning attachments, review the steps on the next page. Click Next to continue on the Summary Budget screen. Attachments The Attachments screen allows the recipient to attach up to ten (10) documents. These items are available for the recipient to upload documentation for the local HUD CPD field office to review for the purpose of justifying requested amendments. Documents should both detail the changes and confirm stakeholder agreement at the local level. Select one of the available links 1. Select the document name under Document Type. 2. The "Attachment Details" screen appears. Note If there are more than 10 documents to attach, zip several files together and upload them to the same Attachment link. Amendments Page 11 of 20

13 Enter a and select Choose File. 1. Enter the name of the document in the "Document " field (e.g., HUD form 2880). 2. Select "Choose File" to the right of the "File Name" label to upload the file. The allowable formats are: zip, xls, xlsx, tif, jpeg, wpd, pdf, img, rtf, pptx, ppt, txt, bmp, jpg, png, zipx, doc, docx, ZIP*, gif, tiff 3. Select "Save & Back to List" to return to the "Attachments" screen. 4. On the "Attachments" screen, select "Next." The maximum file size is 5 MB. Amendments The Amendments screen allows recipients to indicate their intent to amend project information that was executed with the existing grant agreement. A selection of Yes on this screen, accompanied with a brief description of the changes entered into an on screen text box will make the project information screens visible on the left menu available for edit. Recipients may only select Yes if proposed changes have been provisionally approved by HUD. New amendment requests that have not been discussed with the local HUD CPD field office should not be included. HUD will review all requests and will reject those requests that have not been provisionally approved. 1. Use the dropdown menu to answer Yes or No to the question, Do you request a change to project information on the screens listed in the left menu? If Yes is selected, a text box will appear. Enter a brief description of the changes that you will be making. Bullets or short hand that identifies the appropriate screens and fields is sufficient for completing the text box. Click Save at the Amendments Page 12 of 20

14 bottom of the screen. Amendments If No is selected, move to step 2 2. At the bottom of the "Adjustments" screen, select "Next." The project information screens available in the left menu below the Amendments link are identical to the screen names used in the project application and post award process. When step C1.9b is first opened, these screens are visible but read-only and cannot be edited. The screens can only be edited if Yes is selected on the Amendments screen. The rows, columns, and fields are also identical to the project application with the following general exceptions: The recipient will not be able to adjust all of the fields on the visible screens. HUD identified the fields that may be changed through a grant amendment and has prevented some fields from being edited. Some fields in sections 3, 4, 5 and 6 contain open number and text boxes that can be amended by directly editing the text brought forward from the application. Fields in section 7, the budget section, and some important fields in the preceding sections are presented in two columns. The first is read-only and represents data from the Current grant agreement. The third can be edited to represent the amended value requested and provisionally approved by the local HUD CPD field office. The Summary Budget Screen for consolidating grants will include four columns. The first is read-only and represents data from the Surviving or Current grant agreement. The second is read-only and represents data from the Terminating grants. The third is read-only and represents data from the Consolidated grant agreement and represents the data updated on the budget detail screens. The one exception in this column is the Admin Costs field which populates with the full consolidation value from the Grants Consolidation screen and can be edited to account for a request to shift grant funds. The fourth column initially represents the 1 year amounts from the Grants Consolidation Screen and can be edited to reflect budget line item shift amendment requests. The screens follow the same rules as they did during the project application process. If one screen is adjusted it may affect the visibility of the fields available on other screens. As a reminder, if the local HUD CPD field office representative identifies an amendment that has not been previously approved, the representative will reject the change and send step C1.9b back to the recipient, which will cause a delay in the issuance of the GAA. Submitting Amendments Once the required information has been entered, including required attachments, the recipient must select the "Submit" button on the Submission Summary screen. The Submission Summary screen shows all of the screens associated with the ARF. In the "Last Updated" column, the system will identify the following: A date if the screen is complete. "No Input Required" if there is no input required. "Please Complete" if more information is needed. Amendments Page 13 of 20

15 Recipients will be able to go back to any screen by clicking on the screen name on the left menu or on the screen name in the Submissions list. Remember to select "Save" after making changes or those changes will be lost. The "Submit" button is located at the bottom of the screen. Once the ARF has been submitted, recipients must notify the local HUD CPD field office by . Sample to the local HUD field office Dear [insert local HUD CPD field office representative s name], I have completed the Amendment Form, C1.9b Renewal Application Grant Agreement Amendment, in e- snaps for project number [insert grant number]. The form is now available in e-snaps for your review. Sincerely, [insert your name] Amendments Page 14 of 20

16 An Incomplete Submission Summary Screen The following image shows the Submission Summary screen with items that still need to be completed. Note that the "Submit" button is grey-shaded and cannot be selected. Review "Last Updated" column Inactive Submit button 1. For item(s) that state "Please Complete, either select the link under the "Page" column or select the appropriate screen line from the left menu. 2. Complete the required information on the screen and be sure to click Save before navigating off the page. 3. When the "Submit" button is active (no longer grey shaded) you will be able to click Submit. Amendments Page 15 of 20

17 A Complete Submission Summary Screen The following image shows the Submission Summary screen with all items completed. Note that the "Submit" button is active and can be selected. Review "Last Updated" column Active "Submit" button 1. If you are not already on the "Submission Summary" screen, select it on the left menu. 2. Select the "Submit" button. 3. The "Submit" button will be grey. Below it there will be text stating, "This e. Form has been submitted". 4. Important: Send an to your local HUD CPD representative as soon as you have submitted the form notifying him/her that you have completed step C1.9b. Amendments Page 16 of 20

18 Exporting to PDF Recipients can obtain a hard copy of the amendment forms using the "Export to PDF" button located at the bottom of the Submission Summary screen under the navigation buttons Back and Next. Click to obtain a PDF copy of the Amendment Form 1. Click on "Export to PDF." 2. On the "Configure PDF Export" screen, select the screen you would like included. 3. Click "Export to PDF. Guide Completion Congratulations! You have completed the e-snaps FY 2014 Amendments Instructional Guide for Recipients. Additional instructional guides are available to assist recipients in logging into and completing forms in e-snaps. Please check the e-snaps CoC Program Competition Resources page at for these guides. Amendments Page 17 of 20

19 Appendix A: Adding, Deleting, and Editing Users (Registrants) Having a user profile enables a person to access e-snaps. However, only people who have been setup ( associated ) as registrants (also referred to as registered users) have the ability to enter information in the Project Applicant Profile and the post-award forms associated with the organization. Anyone who currently has access to an organization s e-snaps account (i.e., who can see the organization s Project Applicant Profile, prior years project applications, APRs, etc.) can add or remove other registrants by following the instructions provided below. NOTE NOTE Before anyone can be added as a registrant in e-snaps, the individual must have an e-snaps user profile with a username and password. The person responsible for adding the new registrant will use the person s username and address to register or associate the new user with the project applicant s records in e-snaps. If there are no current users to add or delete a registrant, or if a new organization has taken over the grant and needs to connect their applicant profile to this or any other e-snaps screens related to a project, please the organization name, new user name(s) and new user (s) to the local HUD CPD field office. HUD may contact you and the Collaborative Applicant for confirmation of the submitted information and need for access. Second, select Registrant First, Select Applicants 1. Select "Applicants" on the left menu bar. 2. On the "Applicants" screen, click "Registrant" located to the left of the Applicant Name. Amendments Page 18 of 20

20 Add a User (Registrant) Add a Registrant 1. Select the "Add Registrant" at the top left of the list. Enter username and address 2. Enter the username and address of the registrant. There is a "Group" field. This item is NOT being used this year. You do not need to do anything with this field. 3. Select the "Add Registrant" button. 4. Select the "Back to List" button to return to the "Registrants" screen, where you will see the name of the person added. 5. On the "Registrants" screen, select the "Back to List" button to return to the "Applicants" screen. Amendments Page 19 of 20

21 Delete a User (Registrant) Deleting the user will remove that user from the Project Applicant Profile. This person will still be able to access e-snaps, but he/she will no longer be able to access the organization s Project Applicant Profile, project applications, and APRs. 1. Select "Delete" next to the person's name. 2. Select the "Back to List" button to return to the "Applicants" screen. Edit User (Registrant) Information To edit a registrant's information, delete the person first, have the user edit their information, and then add the person again. 1. Select "Delete" next to the person's name. 2. Follow the instructions above for adding the person again with the correct information. Amendments Page 20 of 20