With the New Year, the CDFI Fund has begun preparing for the upcoming fiscal year (FY) 2018 funding rounds of the Community Development Financial Institutions Program (CDFI Program) and Native American CDFI Assistance Program (NACA Program). To help you prepare, we wanted to pass along some key steps that will ensure a smooth application process.
To successfully submit a funding application, your organization will need to have key information on hand and account access for several different government websites. You can act now to speed things up for your organization when the application period opens. At this time, the CDFI Fund anticipates that the Notice of Funding Availability, which officially opens the FY 2018 application process, will be published in the Federal Register in early February 2018.
These pre-application steps may take 30 days or longer to complete. If you are interested in applying for FY 2018 funding, we suggest that you get started as soon as possible. In order for your application to considered for an award, all of these steps must be completed by the stated deadlines in the (soon-to-be published) NOFA.
Completing the following will ensure that you will be able to access required forms and information in SAM.gov, Grants.gov, and the CDFI Fund's Awards Management Information System (AMIS). Please note that while we have done our best to compile useful links to help you, the CDFI Fund is not responsible for maintaining links or the accuracy of the information on other organizations' websites.
STEP 1: OBTAIN YOUR DUNS AND EIN NUMBERS
Each Applicant must provide, as part of its application submission, a Dun and Bradstreet Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number. applicants without a DUNS number will not be able to register in SAM.gov and Grants.gov, nor submit an application in the Grants.gov system. Please allow sufficient time for Dun and Bradstreet to respond to inquiries and/or requests for DUNS numbers.
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Estimated time: One week or more.*
applicants must also have an Employer Identification Number (EIN) to register in SAM.gov, which is a prerequisite to submit a funding application via Grants.gov. applicants that do not have an EIN number must apply to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to obtain the number.
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Estimated time: Two weeks or more.*
STEP 2: CREATE OR UPDATE YOUR SAM.GOV ACCOUNT
The System for Award Management (SAM) is a web-based, government-wide application that collects, validates, stores, and disseminates business information about the federal government's trading Partners'in support of the contract awards, grants, and electronic payment processes.
Registration in SAM is required as part of the Grants.gov registration process. For new applications, the SAM registration process can take two weeks or longer to complete.
applicants that have previously registered with SAM must verify their accounts are current and active, as they need to be renewed annually. If your SAM.gov account is not active, you will be unable to submit the Grants.gov portion of your application. Additionally, if your application is successful, the funds from your award will be paid to the bank account you have on file with SAM.gov.
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Estimated time: Two weeks or more.*
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Here's a useful link on how to register a new entity with SAM.gov.
STEP 3: CREATE OR UPDATE YOUR GRANTS.GOV ACCOUNT
In order to apply for a CDFI Program or NACA Program award, applicants must have a Grants.gov account and submit the Standard Form (SF)-424 by the deadline listed in the NOFA.
The SF-424 must be completed and submitted electronically to the CDFI Fund via Grants.gov 30 days before the application materials are due in the AMIS system. You will not be able to submit the SF-424 to the CDFI Fund directly. If you upload the SF-424 to your AMIS account, it will not be reviewed.
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Estimated Time: One week or more, assuming an existing SAM.Gov account.*
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Here's a useful link on how to register for a Grants.gov account.
STEP 4: CREATE OR UPDATE YOUR AMIS ACCOUNT
Make sure your Awards Management Information System (AMIS) account is up-to-date: verify the contacts for your organization are current, and assign them the proper permissions. Only a user designated as an Authorized Representative in AMIS can submit an application. Make sure that the person with the "Authorized Representative"permission is allowed to sign legal documents on behalf of your organization; consultants working on behalf of your organization cannot be designated as Authorized Representatives. Be sure to include e-mail addresses and phone numbers for each contact. Also, make sure that your organization's mailing address is correct.
If you do not have an AMIS account, one must be established within 30 days of the NOFA?s release or your application will be considered ineligible.
In addition, your organization must have an EIN/Tax ID number recorded in AMIS in order to submit your application when the FY 2018 Funding Round is opened.
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Estimated Time: 1-2 business days.*
Please note:
*applicants are advised that the stated durations are estimates only and represent minimum timeframes. Actual timeframes may take longer.
KNOW WHERE TO GO FOR HELP
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For assistance with AMIS functionality, contact the CDFI Fund's AMIS Support: AMIS@cdfi.treas.gov or 202-653-0422.
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For assistance with the SF-424 or Grants.gov accounts, contact Grants.gov: support@grants.gov or 1-800-518-4726.
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For assistance updating or creating your SAM.gov account, contact SAM.gov: Federal Service Desk (www.fsd.gov) or 1-866-606-8220.
Now you should feel prepared to start your pre-application process for the FY 2018 Application round! Be mindful of key due dates for each item as they are announced.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
To learn more about the CDFI Fund and its programs, please visit www.cdfifund.gov.
