Administrative and National Policy Requirements

Current as of:

Awards issued through Notices of Funding Opportunities are subject to 45 CFR Part 75 - Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for HHS Awards .

An application funded with the release of federal funds through a grant award does not constitute, or imply, compliance with federal regulations. Funded organizations are responsible for ensuring that their activities comply with all applicable federal regulations.

Non-Discrimination Legal Requirements for Recipients of Federal Financial Assistance

Recipients of federal financial assistance (FFA) from HHS are required to complete an HHS Assurance of Compliance form in which you agree, as a condition of receiving the award, to administer your programs in compliance with federal civil rights laws that prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, sex, and disability, and agree to comply with federal conscience laws, where applicable. FFA recipients must comply with applicable laws that prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex, which includes discrimination on the basis of gender identity, sexual orientation, and pregnancy. Compliance with these laws require taking reasonable steps to provide meaningful access to persons with limited English proficiency and providing programs that are accessible to and usable by persons with disabilities. The HHS Office for Civil Rights provides guidance on complying with civil rights laws enforced by HHS. See For Providers of Health Care and Social Services  and HHS Nondiscrimination Notice for more information.

The HHS Assurance of Compliance can be found at HHS 690  (PDF) (hard copy) or on the OCR online portal (electronic version).

Prohibition Against Profit

Unless exempted by 45 CFR §75.101 , program regulations, and/or the terms and conditions of the award:

  • Recipients are subject to the limitations set forth in 45 CFR §75.216 , Special provisions for awards to commercial organizations as recipients (45 CFR §75.216(b) Prohibition against profit), which states that, "...no HHS funds may be paid as profit to any recipient even if the recipient is a commercial organization. Profit is any amount in excess of allowable direct and indirect costs."
  • Recipients are subject to the limitations under 45 CFR §75.400 , Policy Guide (45 CFR §75.400(g)), which states “The non-Federal entity may not earn or keep profit resulting from Federal financial assistance, unless explicitly authorized by the terms and conditions of the Federal award. See also §75.307 .”

Award Term and Condition under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000

Awards issued under this announcement are subject to the requirements of Section 106 (g) of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000, as amended (22 U.S.C. § 7104).  View the full text of the award term.

Equal Treatment for Faith-Based Organizations

Recipients are subject to the requirements of 45 CFR §87, Equal Treatment for Faith-Based Organizations.

Pro-Children Act

The Pro-Children Act of 2001, 20 U.S.C. §§ 7181 through 7184, imposes restrictions on smoking in facilities where federally funded children's services are provided. HHS grants are subject to these requirements only if they meet the Act's specified coverage. The Act specifies that smoking is prohibited in any indoor facility (owned, leased, or contracted for) used for the routine or regular provision of kindergarten, elementary, or secondary education or library services to children under the age of 18.  In addition, smoking is prohibited in any indoor facility or portion of a facility (owned, leased, or contracted for) used for the routine or regular provision of federally funded health care, day care, or early childhood development, including Head Start services to children under the age of 18. The statutory prohibition also applies if such facilities are constructed, operated, or maintained with federal funds. The statute does not apply to children's services provided in private residences, facilities funded solely by Medicare or Medicaid funds, portions of facilities used for inpatient drug or alcohol treatment, or facilities where WIC coupons are redeemed. Failure to comply with the provisions of the law may result in a civil monetary penalty of up to $1,000 per violation and/or the imposition of an administrative compliance order on the responsible entity.

Requirements for Drug-Free Workplace

The Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988 (41 U.S.C. §§ 8101-8106) requires that all organizations receiving grants from any federal agency agree to maintain a drug-free workplace. By signing the application, the Authorizing Official agrees that the recipient will provide a drug-free workplace and will comply with the requirement to notify ACF if an employee is convicted of violating a criminal drug statute. Failure to comply with these requirements may be cause for debarment. Government-wide requirements for Drug-Free Workplace for Financial Assistance are found in 2 CFR Part 182; HHS implementing regulations are set forth in 2 CFR Part 382.400. All recipients of ACF grant funds must comply with the requirements in Subpart B - Requirements for Recipients Other Than Individuals 2 CFR § 382.225. View the rule.

Debarment and Suspension

HHS regulations published in 2 CFR Part 376 implement the government-wide debarment and suspension system guidance (2 CFR Part 180) for HHS' non-procurement programs and activities. "Non-procurement transactions" include, among other things, grants, cooperative agreements, scholarships, fellowships, and loans. ACF implements the HHS Debarment and Suspension regulations as a term and condition of award. Recipients may decide the method and frequency by which this determination is made and may check the Excluded Parties List System (EPLS) located at https://www.sam.gov , although checking the EPLS is not required.

Stevens Amendment

Beginning in 1989, the United States Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) annual appropriations included a provision known as the “Stevens Amendment” to ensure transparency and accountability in federal spending. The Stevens Amendment requires all HHS grant and cooperative agreement recipients to acknowledge federal funding when publicly communicating projects or programs funded through the HHS annual appropriation.

When issuing statements, press releases, publications, requests for proposal, bid solicitations and other documents --such as tool-kits, resource guides, websites, and presentations (hereafter “statements”) -- describing the projects or programs funded in whole or in part with HHS federal funds, the recipient must clearly state:

  1. the percentage and dollar amount of the total costs of the program or project funded with federal money; and,
  2. the percentage and dollar amount of the total costs of the project or program funded by non-governmental sources.

When issuing statements resulting from activities supported by HHS financial assistance, the recipient entity must include an acknowledgement of federal assistance using one of the following or a similar statement.

If the HHS Grant or Cooperative Agreement is NOT funded with other non-governmental sources:

"This [project/publication/program/website, etc.] [is/was] supported by the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) of the United States (U.S.) Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award totaling $XX with 100 percent funded by ACF/HHS. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by ACF/HHS, or the U.S. Government. For more information, please visit the ACF website, Administrative and National Policy Requirements."

The HHS Grant or Cooperative Agreement IS partially funded with other nongovernmental sources:

"This [project/publication/program/website, etc.] [is/was] supported by the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) of the United States (U.S.) Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award totaling $XX with XX percentage funded by ACF/HHS and $XX amount and XX percentage funded by non-government source(s). The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by ACF/HHS, or the U.S. Government. For more information, please visit the ACF website, Administrative and National Policy Requirements."

The federal award total must reflect total costs (direct and indirect) for all authorized funds (including supplements and carryover) for the total competitive segment up to the time of the public statement.  Any amendments by the recipient to the acknowledgement statement must be coordinated with the HHS Awarding Agency.  If the recipient plans to issue a press release concerning the outcome of activities supported by HHS financial assistance, it should notify the HHS Awarding Agency in advance to allow for coordination.  For examples of applicability for the Stevens Amendment, please review Examples of Stevens Amendment Documents or Other Publications. (PDF)

Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)

Applications funded by federal grant programs are subject to disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. § 552. Each released application will receive appropriate redaction of specific information to protect personal privacy and competitively sensitive commercial information. Learn more about filing a FOIA request.

Award Term and Condition for Unpaid Federal Tax Liability

Recipients are subject to the requirement contained in Section 744 of the “Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2022,” (Division E-Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2022, Title VII, General Provisions — Government-Wide), which says “None of the funds made available by this or any other Act may be used to enter into a contract, memorandum of understanding, or cooperative agreement with, make a grant to, or provide a loan or loan guarantee to, any corporation that has any unpaid Federal tax liability that has been assessed, for which all judicial and administrative remedies have been exhausted or have lapsed, and that is not being paid in a timely manner pursuant to an agreement with the authority responsible for collecting the tax liability, where the awarding agency is aware of the unpaid tax liability, unless a Federal agency has considered suspension or debarment of the corporation and has made a determination that this further action is not necessary to protect the interests of the Government."

Requirements for Recipient Electronic and Information Technology

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794(a)), states that no otherwise qualified individual with a disability in the United States shall, solely by reason of her or his disability, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity for which the Applicant receives Federal financial assistance from the Department. To assist recipients in these compliance obligations, HHS suggests implementing the Section 508 standards when the recipient anticipates public use of its electronic and information technology. Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794d(a)(1)(A)) requires that when Federal agencies develop, procure, maintain, or use electronic and information technology, individuals with disabilities have access to and use of information and data that is comparable to that provided to the public who are not individuals with disabilities.

Award Term for System Award Management and Unique Entity Identifier

This award is subject to requirements as set forth in System Award Management (SAM) and Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) Requirements. (2 CFR § 25.110).

Appendix A to Part 25

1. SAM and UEI Requirements

a. Requirement for SAM

Unless you are exempted from this requirement under 2 CFR 25.110, you as the recipient must maintain current information in the SAM. This includes information on your immediate and highest level owner and subsidiaries, as well as on all of your predecessors that have been awarded a Federal contract or Federal financial assistance within the last three years, if applicable, until you submit the final financial report required under your Federal award or receive the final payment, whichever is later. This requires that you review and update the information at least annually after the initial registration, and more frequently if required by changes in your information or another Federal award term.

b.  Requirement for UEI

If you are authorized to make subawards under this award, you:

  1. Must notify potential subrecipients that no entity (see definition in paragraph C of this award term) may receive a subaward from you unless the entity has provided its UEI to you.
  2. May not make a subaward to an entity unless the entity has provided its UEI to you. Subrecipients are not required to obtain an active SAM registration, but must obtain a UEI.

c.  Definitions

For purposes of this award term:

  1. SAM means the Federal repository into which a recipient must provide information required for the conduct of business as a recipient. Additional information about registration procedures may be found at the SAM website.
  2. UEI means the identifier assigned by SAM to uniquely identify business entities.
  3. Entity includes non-Federal entities as defined at 2 CFR 200.1 and also includes all of the following, for purposes of this part:
    • A foreign organization;
    • A foreign public entity;
    • A domestic for-profit organization; and
    • A Federal agency.
  4. Subaward has the meaning given in 2 CFR 200.1 .
  5. Subrecipient has the meaning given in 2 CFR 200.1 .

Federal Financial Accountability and Transparency Act (FFATA) Subaward and Executive Compensation Reporting Requirement (2 CFR Part 170)

For more information, please review the Award Term for FFATA.

Award Term and Condition for Recipient Integrity and Performance Matters (Commonly referred to as FAPIIS)

For more information on FAPIIS, please review Award Term and Condition for Recipient Integrity and Peformance Matters.

Award Term and Condition on Subawards

This term and condition applies to all Administration for Children and Families (ACF) discretionary grant recipients except as noted otherwise within this term and condition. The following types of ACF programs are exempt from this term and condition: programs where subawards are prohibited by statute or regulation and mandatory grant programs. However, please note that all mandatory programs at ACF are subject to 45 CFR §§ 75.351-.353 . Should any of the requirements in this term and condition conflict with a statute or regulation, the requirements in the statute or regulation must be followed.

According to 45 CFR § 75.2 , “Subaward means an award provided by a pass-through entity to a subrecipient for the subrecipient to carry out part of a Federal award received by the pass-through entity. It does not include payments to a contractor or payments to an individual that is a beneficiary of a Federal program. A subaward may be provided through any form of legal agreement, including an agreement that the pass-through entity considers a contract.” A subaward is determined by the substance of the agreement and characteristics specified in 45 CFR § 75.351 . Subawards also do not include consultant agreements (see 45 CFR § 75.459 ) or unfunded collaborators. Unfunded collaborators are individuals involved in collaborations on the grant project, but not funded through the grant; typically, this may occur on research grants.

The prime recipient is the entity that receives a Federal award directly from ACF. The prime recipient is responsible for oversight of all programmatic, financial, and administrative matters, including reporting, related to the grant. This responsibility includes oversight of these matters as they relate to the subrecipient(s). Prime recipients opting to use subawards are required to adhere to the requirements noted in 45 CFR § 75.352 and be in compliance with 45 CFR § 75.351 and § 75.353 .

In addition, the prime recipient must maintain a substantive role in the project. ACF defines a substantive role as conducting activities and/or providing services funded under the award that are necessary and integral to the completion of the project. Subrecipient monitoring activities alone as specified in 45 CFR § 75.352 do not constitute a substantive role.

ACF does not fund awards where the role of the applicant is primarily to serve as a conduit for passing funds to other organizations unless that arrangement is authorized by statute. In the absence of such statutory authority, each prime recipient’s primary role must be to ensure the delivery of the statutorily authorized services, whether provided directly or through collaborative involvement with their subrecipient(s). Per 42 USC 9832(3), Head Start or Early Head Start agencies with delegate agencies are exempt from the requirements in this paragraph.

Subrecipient(s) must meet the eligibility requirements identified in the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), Section III.1. Eligible Applicants, or as otherwise specified in the NOFO. Additionally, all subrecipient(s) must obtain a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number assigned by the System for Award Management (SAM), if they do not already have one. Prime recipients are required to check the SAM to verify that the subrecipient(s) is/are not debarred, suspended, or ineligible.

If the grant program requires cost sharing or matching, subrecipients may provide cost sharing or matching towards the prime recipient’s requirement, if their contribution meets requirements at 45 CFR § 75.306 .

The prime recipient must conduct a risk assessment of subrecipient(s) in accordance with 45 CFR § 75.352(b). Prime recipients may be required to report under the Federal Financial Accountability and Transparency Act (FFATA). Please refer to FFATA for more information.

Should a subrecipient perform unsatisfactorily, the prime recipient is responsible for remedying subrecipient issues. Prime recipients of an award will be legally accountable to ACF for performance of the project or program. Prime recipients will be held solely responsible in the event of non-compliance by a subrecipient. The prime recipient will be held accountable for cost disallowances regarding subawarded funds. Subrecipient performance will also be considered during review of applications for non-competing continuations. If requirements of the program cannot be met due to subrecipient issues, ACF may need to take one or more of the actions listed under 45 CFR § 75.371-.375 .

Prime recipients who propose to issue subaward(s), but had not yet identified the subrecipient organization(s) by the time of application submission must submit a prior approval request with the name of the subrecipient organization(s), updated description(s) of the work to be performed, and updated subaward budget(s) and budget justification(s). This information must be submitted within 90 days from the start date of the grant or as otherwise specified in the award-specific terms and conditions. If a subaward was not originally proposed in the application, but later becomes necessary, ACF prior approval is required before any activities in the subaward request begin.

Prohibition on Expending HHS Award Funds for Covered Telecommunications Equipment or Services as Per 2 CFR 200.216

Effective August 13, 2020

"Prohibition on certain telecommunications and video surveillance services or equipment."

(a) As described in CFR 200.216, recipients and subrecipients are prohibited to obligate or spend grant funds (to include direct and indirect expenditures as well as cost share and program) to:

(1) Procure or obtain,

(2) Extend or renew a contract to procure or obtain; or

(3) Enter into contract (or extend or renew contract) to procure or obtain equipment, services, or systems that use covered telecommunications equipment or services as a substantial or essential component of any system, or as critical technology as part of any system. As described in Pub. L. 115-232, section 889, covered telecommunications equipment is telecommunications equipment produced by Huawei Technologies Company or ZTE Corporation (or any subsidiary or affiliate of such entities).

i.  For the purpose of public safety, security of government facilities, physical security surveillance of critical infrastructure, and other national security purposes, video surveillance and telecommunications equipment produced by Hytera Communications Corporation, Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Company, or Dahua Technology Company (or any subsidiary or affiliate of such entities).

ii. Telecommunications or video surveillance services provided by such entities or using such equipment.

iii. Telecommunications or video surveillance equipment or services produced or provided by an entity that the Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the Director of the National Intelligence or the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, reasonably believes to be an entity owned or controlled by, or otherwise, connected to the government of a covered foreign country.

Mandatory Disclosures

Recipients are subject to the requirements in 41 U.S.C. §2313 , and provisions found in Federal regulations at 45 CFR §75.113 and Appendix XII of Part 75 - Award Term and Condition for Recipient Integrity and Performance Matters . Applicants and recipients must disclose, in a timely manner, in writing to Office of Grants Management (OGM), with a copy to HHS Office of Inspector General (OIG), all information related to violations of Federal criminal law involving fraud, bribery, or gratuity violations potentially affecting the Federal award. Subrecipients must disclose, in a timely manner, in writing to the prime recipient and the HHS OIG, all information related to violations of federal criminal law involving fraud, bribery, or gratuity violations potentially affecting the Federal award. Disclosures must be sent in writing to the OGM and the HHS OIG at the following addresses:

The Administration for Children and Families

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Office of Grants Management

ATTN: [Insert Name of assigned Grants Management Specialist]

330 C Street, SW., Switzer Building Corridor 3200

Washington, DC 20201

AND

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Office of Inspector General

ATTN: Mandatory Grant Disclosures, Intake Coordinator

330 Independence Avenue, SW., Cohen Building

Room 5527

Washington, DC 20201

Fax: (202) 205-0604 (Include “Mandatory Grant Disclosures” in subject line) or

Email: MandatoryGranteeDisclosures@oig.hhs.gov

Failure to comply may result in any noncompliance remedies in accordance with 45 CFR §75.371 , including debarment and suspension. (See also 2 CFR Parts 180 and 376 , and 31 U.S.C. 3321 ).  For more information on FAPIIS, please see the Appendix XII of Part 75 - Award Term and Condition for Recipient Integrity and Performance Matters .

Salary Limitation – Federal Executive Level II

Annual appropriations law provides that no part of any funds awarded “shall be used to pay the salary of an individual, through a grant or other extramural mechanism,” which includes non-federal share, “at a rate in excess of” Federal Executive Level II salary for that calendar year. This amount is published annually by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and can be found on their Pay & Leave website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/salaries-wages/ , specifically under the subheading “Executive & Senior Level Employee Pay Tables: Rates of Pay for the Executive Schedule.” This amount reflects an individual's base salary exclusive of fringe benefits and any income that an individual may be permitted to earn outside of the duties of the non-Federal entities’ organization. This salary limitation also applies to subawards, contracts, and subcontracts under an ACF grant or cooperative agreement. Please see the Federal Funds Accountability and Transparency Act (FFATA) Requirement Subaward and Executive Compensation Reporting Requirement.

Whistleblower Protections

As a recipient of this award you must comply with the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2013 (Pub. L. 112-239, 41 U.S.C. § 4712) “Enhancement of contractor protection from reprisal for disclosure of certain information,” and 48 CFR part 3 subpart 3.9, “Whistleblower Protections for Contractor Employees.”  For more information see:  https://oig.hhs.gov/fraud/whistleblower/  and Whistleblower Notice to HHS Contractors, Subcontractors, Grantees, Subgrantees or Personal Services Contractors  (PDF)

Termination Provisions

If you receive an award, HHS may terminate it if any of the conditions in 45 CFR 75.372(a)(1)-(4) are met. Should HHS not award continuation funding, or terminate an award for convenience, that action will be treated as a termination, and appeal rights are afforded per 45 CFR 75.374 .

Programs that are exempt from Subpart D as described under 45 CFR 75.101  should reference the program-specific statute and regulations, if applicable. Additional termination provisions may be included in the terms and conditions of the award.