Grants Ontario - Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ s) Deadline 1. What is the deadline to submit Infrastructure Survey applications through the Grants Ontario System for 2018-19? The deadline is May 3, 2018 by 5 p.m. Applications for all categories (i.e., Partner Facility Renewal, Fire Code and Agency Asset Information) for both MCSS and MCYS are due by this date. 2. What is the process to apply for urgent projects after May 3, 2018? While the system is intended to be closed for a brief period after May 3, 2018, should there be a need to submit an emergency project (one that threatens program delivery), the agency should immediately contact their regional office. The regional office will work together with the Capital Planning and Delivery Branch to allow for case submission within the GOS. Registration 3. Is the ONe-Key registration completed at an individual or organizational level? ONe-Key is specific to an individual. Multiple users can access organizational data through ONe-Key. Conversely, the Transfer Payment Common Registration (TPCR) system is for the organization. 4. Is there a limit to the number of users per agency? There is no limit to the number of users per agency in the TPCR system. However, agencies are advised to keep the number of users to a manageable level. 5. Who has GO Secure access already? Some organizations (such as municipalities) may have access to GO Secure already, however, most users will access Grants Ontario via ONe-Key. 6. Once an organization is registered to the TPCR system, how long does it take for a Grants Ontario enrolment request to be approved? Grants Ontario has a team of individuals who are constantly monitoring access requests. The response time is fairly quick, however, in some cases it can take up to 5 business days. We recommend that you plan for this approval time prior to submitting your Infrastructure Surveys. 1
7. I have attempted to create a new TPCR registration and was notified that my organization is already registered and someone else in my agency is the program administrator. Who am I waiting for authorization from? Agencies that have already registered in the TPCR system will have an administrator user for the organization. The administrator user has the ability to approve any requests on behalf of the organization and edit organization profile information. Once a request has been sent to access the organization s registration, the administrator will be notified and must go into TPCR to approve. Once approved, organization contacts will have access to their organization s TPCR registration and the Grants Ontario System. If the administrator is no longer a valid employee (i.e. they have retired or have left the organization), agencies must contact the help desk to have a new employee promoted to the administrator position. Application 8. Are the new application forms the same as the old Infrastructure Surveys? Can the old Excel Infrastructure Surveys be used? Both MCSS and MCYS are transitioning away from the old Excel-based surveys to electronic forms using the GOS. Although the platform for submitting applications has changed, the questions themselves remain largely the same. Agencies cannot use the old Excel-based template in conjunction with Grants Ontario. Applications in the old Excel template will not be accepted. 9. Is an application required for each project request? If a site requires several projects, is a separate application required for each project? Yes. Agencies are required to submit an application for each project request. If agencies are submitting multiple requests for the same application category and same site, the pre-population feature should be leveraged. The pre-population feature allows agencies to auto populate all site-specific fields in a new application form using information from a previously submitted form. As a result, for new applications under the same application category and site location, only project-specific fields will need to be updated. 10. Is a separate application required for each inter-connected project? Generally, all projects require a separate application (i.e. one project per application). However, inter-connected projects should be submitted using one application. Please select the largest component cost driver to reflect the Category of Minor Capital Request and Project Name fields. The description field should be used to provide additional project scope and cost details. 2
More details on this issue are provided on page 12 of the 'Program Guidelines'. 11. While completing applications, can other members of the organization access/ edit these applications? Yes, applications can be shared amongst multiple members of the organization once they are downloaded offline. Agencies may share the PDF application forms across the organization to work offline on application forms. Alternatively, if multiple members of the organization are registered with ONe-Key, they can download, complete, and upload application forms. We suggest that agencies limit the number of users to a manageable level. 12. For sites which do not have an identified project, is an application submission still required? What is the deadline of that application? Yes, an annual application is required for each site, even for sites which do not have a project request. There is a separate application category labelled 'Agency Asset Information', which is to be used ONLY by sites which do not have a project request. The Ministry uses this information for planning and strategic decision making purposes. Note: for sites which submit a project request (PFR or FC), the submission of an Agency Asset Information form is not required. The deadline for the Agency Asset Information form is also May 3, 2018, 5:00 PM. 13. What if a site does not have a project request at this time but is in need of a project at a later time? A site that does not have a project request at present must submit an Agency Asset Information form by May 3, 2018. If the same site has a project request after the initial submission, the relevant project application (PFR or FC) should be resubmitted. The project will have a new identifiable number. Note: The prepopulation feature cannot be used to populate information from the Agency Asset Information form to either the PFR or FC form. Please use the already submitted application to repopulate the new form manually. 14. How should multiple project applications be tracked? Currently, multiple project applications must be tracked outside of the system. Agencies are encouraged to save all application files to a specific folder on their device, enabling them to work offline and share forms across their organization. Agencies are also encouraged to use custom file naming conventions to better manage and track applications. A suggested naming convention is: Application# - Site Address - Project Type. For the time being, all organizations with multiple project applications are strongly encouraged to maintain a spreadsheet outside of the system to track individual 3
applications and their submission status (see below). As per feedback provided by our partners, the ministry is engaging with the Grants Ontario team to explore the feasibility of enhancing the external agency view to better support managing information at a project level within the GOS. 15. What is the process for applying for seasonal projects? The approval of funds is tied to a fiscal year, rather than a particular season. The ministry is exploring avenues of using the Grants Ontario System to launch the minor capital process at an earlier date in the future to allow agencies to obtain additional time to complete seasonal projects. 16. Are the application forms digitally signed or do they have to be printed off, signed and then sent in for processing? If the signing authority is someone else do they have to access the Grants Ontario System? The application forms do not need to be printed off as they accept digital signatures. The signing authority is not required to access the GOS. Once the forms have been completed, they can be electronically sent to the employee with signing authority within the organization. To update the signing authority contact information, navigate into the Site Contact Information Section. You can edit all the fields in that section to reflect correct information and add and remove contacts. When you check the Sign Authority box, the contact will appear in the Declaration/Signing section. The employee with signing authority must click on the Sign Document and the I Agree buttons in the form. By doing so, the Executive Director (or equivalent) affirms that he/she agrees with the Declaration and Statement included in each form (see screen capture below). The contact with access to the GOS can upload the completed application form once it has been digitally signed. Note: The process of obtaining digital signatures can vary based on organizational policy and practices of delegation of authority. 4
17. Are agencies able to revise application forms once they have been submitted? If an agency wishes to edit an application which has been already submitted, they can request their regional office to push back the application. A push back allows agencies to edit and resubmit their original applications. Note: Agencies must provide the regional office with the application number to be pushed back to initiate this process. Instructions on this process will be included on the MCSS and MCYS program portals. We recommend that before submitting an application, agencies carefully review information to avoid frequent pushbacks. The pushback process may delay project approval. 18. For question # 11 in the Project Assessment tab of the application form, how should we respond if our site has not undergone a major renovation/addition? This is a known issue in the application forms. In such a scenario, for the dropdown in question 11 please select the range associated with the year of construction (from question 9). As an example, if the 1981 1990 range is selected for the year of construction in question 9, the 1981 1990 range should also be selected for question 11. This will indicate to the ministry that the site has not undergone a major renovation/addition since the year of original construction. 19. For question #5b in the Project Assessment tab of the application form, how should we respond if our site has 0 ministry funded beds? Currently there is no 0 value in the list of values for question #5b. This is a known issue in the application forms. In such a scenario, please select 1 as the number of ministry funded beds from the dropdown in question 5b to submit the application form. Pre-Population Feature 20. Can the new GOS application forms be pre-populated from previous Excel Infrastructure Surveys? No. There is no interface between previous Excel Infrastructure Surveys and the GOS database. As this is the first year using the Grants Ontario System, the information must be manually entered to be registered in the database. Once you have completed and submitted the first application, the pre-population feature can be used to auto-populate site information in all subsequent forms for the same application category and site location. 5
21. Can the pre-population feature be used across different grant categories? No, the pre-population feature is limited to the same grant category for the same site location. For example, a PFR form cannot be used to pre-populate a Fire Code Application. 22. Can information provided be pre-populated across fiscal years? No. Currently, information is not pre-populated across fiscal years. The ministry is engaging with the Grants Ontario team to explore the feasibility of creating a process to carry over information across fiscal years. Program Inquires 23. Who is eligible to receive minor capital funding? The primary criteria for being eligible for funding is that the agency must have a direct and active funding relationship with the ministry (MCSS and/or MCYS) and the site is being used to deliver ministry programs. 24. What is the difference between minor and major capital? Is there a threshold? The ministry has both major and minor capital programs available, where agencies may request for capital funding. The ministry does not use monetary thresholds to identify major or minor capital, but rather the project scope. The scope of a minor capital project is to repair, renovate or upgrade an existing site to keep the site safe and secure and to keep the site in suitable condition to continue program delivery. The scope of a major capital project includes obtaining a new site or expanding the current site significantly to add capacity and serve additional clients. Note: GOS applications are to be used for minor capital requests only. There is a separate process for major capital requests. 25. The TPL number associated with our site that has been provided through the Excel worksheet is incorrect. Should we wait to fix the issue first and then submit applications in GOS? The TPL listing provided through the GOS is a data extract from the regional SMIS system, where site information is recorded based on budget package submission. If the TPL number provided does not match with your information, please verify with your regional office to have this fixed in the SMIS system. However, you should not delay your application in the GOS. Provide the most upto-date (correct) TPL number in the application while working with your regional office to fix the issue. 6
26. Our agency has acquired a new site, which does not yet have a TPL#. As the TPL # is mandatory in the application, how should this field be completed? For new sites, the ideal method would be to work with your regional office to create the TPL number in SMIS and use that number to complete the application form in Grants Ontario. However, in scenarios with tight deadlines, a missing TPL number should not delay the submission of an application. As a workaround, please use TBD as a placeholder in the TPL # field to indicate to the ministry that a TPL# is required. In such a scenario you are encouraged to work closely with regional offices to generate and update TPL numbers. 27. What is the scope of a site? Is an apartment building considered a site on its own or are the individual units in the building considered a site? As a general guiding principle if the units of the apartment are used separately, an application should be completed for each unit. However, if those units function as one location, they should be treated as a single unit and complete one application. Specifically, if the two units are delivering two different programs and have two separate TPL numbers (as per the regional office s SMIS System), the units are considered separate sites and require separate applications. Additional information on this issue are provided on page 8 of the 'Program Guidelines'. Project Approvals 28. How will agencies be notified of project approvals? The GOS will indicate all approved projects with the status active. Currently, a communication will be sent to agencies approved for funding outside of the system. The ministry is engaging with the Grants Ontario team to explore the feasibility of additional system generated notifications to facilitate the approval process. Technical Issues 29. Timing out while navigating the Grants Ontario System The system times out users after 15 minutes of inactivity and at this point may not allow you to download or upload forms correctly. To troubleshoot, please log out, close the browser (including all windows and tabs), and start a new session to log back in. This will resolve the issue. Note: We recommend that you complete applications offline and once ready, log into Grants Ontario to upload them. 7