ConApp Part I 2011-12 Cover Letter

May 11, 2011

Dear Categorical Programs Directors, Categorical Programs Cooperative Directors, and Consolidated Application Contacts:

2011-12 CONSOLIDATED APPLICATION FOR FUNDING CATEGORICAL AID PROGRAMS, PART I

This letter provides information related to the completion of the 2011-12 Consolidated Application (ConApp) for Funding Categorical Aid Programs, Part I, due June 30, 2011 and highlights the most notable changes in the ConApp and its categorical programs. For other related information, such as the software for the Consolidated Application Data System (CADS) and the instructions for completing the ConApp, visit the California Department of Education (CDE) Web page. Using the contact information provided to us through last year’s ConApp, we will notify you by e-mail when the ConApp is available on the CDE Web page.

Records Retention

Per the U.S. Code, Title 20, Section 1232f(a) , each recipient of Federal funds under any applicable program through any grant, subgrant, cooperative agreement, loan, or other arrangement shall keep records which fully disclose the amount and disposition by the recipient of those funds, the total cost of the activity for which the funds are used, the share of that cost provided from other sources, and such other records as will facilitate an effective financial or programmatic audit.

The recipient shall maintain such records for three years after the completion of the activity for which the funds are used. The Secretary and the Comptroller General of the United States, or any of their duly authorized representatives, shall have access, for the purpose of audit examination, to any records maintained by a recipient that may be related, or pertinent to, grants, subgrants, cooperative agreements, loans, or other arrangements to which reference is made in subsection (a) of this section, or which may relate to the compliance of the recipient with any requirement of an applicable program. (Outside Source)

CADS - Electronic Submission of the ConApp

The CADS is the electronic version of the ConApp. The CADS should run on any version of Windows. In order to obtain access to the CADS, you must use your unique data access password previously assigned to your local educational agency (LEA). In addition to the data access password, each LEA has been assigned a unique certification password. This password is used to certify that the LEA has read and agrees to the conditions set forth in the legal assurances and that all required signatures have been obtained, are on file in the LEA office, and will be available to the CDE upon request. The certification password is to be used only by the person designated by the LEA as its authorized representative. If you have questions related to either the data access or certification passwords, please contact the ConApp Support Desk at 916-319-0297 or conappsupport@cde.ca.gov. In your e-mail correspondence, please include your LEA name and complete County/District/School (CDS) code.

All ConApps must be submitted electronically through the CADS. No paper copies of the ConApp will be accepted. Any subsequent revisions to the ConApp must also be submitted electronically through the CADS. However, LEAs are required to obtain original signatures on page 1 to certify compliance with all laws and regulations related to the ConApp programs. These original signatures on page 1 must be kept on file at the LEA and be available during a compliance review, complaint investigation, or an audit. It is not necessary to mail or fax this page to the CDE, unless requested. The due date for submission of the 2011-12 ConApp, Part I, is June 30, 2011.

Funding Opportunities

The LEAs, including direct-funded charter schools, may review a funding profile for each program on the CDE Web page. Each funding profile contains a brief description of the program, eligibility criteria, funding information and the CDE contacts for additional program or fiscal information.

Categorical Program Provisions in SBx3 4 2008 Budget Act Changes (Flexibility)

Section 15 of SBX3 4 (California Education Code (EC) Section 42605) authorizes complete flexibility in the use of funds appropriated in 39 budget act items. For 2008-09 through 2012-13, school districts, county offices of education, and charter schools may use funds from these 39 items for any educational purpose. The funds are therefore unrestricted; program or funding requirements, as otherwise provided in statute, regulation, and budget act provisional language associated with the funding, are not in effect. The following five programs from the ConApp are specifically listed in the flexibility provision:

• School Safety and Violence Prevention
• California School Age Families Education (Cal-SAFE)
• Peer Assistance and Review (PAR)
• Middle and High School Supplemental Counseling Program
• California High School Exit Exam (CAHSEE) Intensive Instruction

Since these programs are specifically listed in the flexibility provision, there is no need for LEAs to apply for funding or report the results of these programs. The legal assurances for these programs have been removed from the ConApp since the LEA may use these funds for any educational purpose. The LEAs will automatically receive funding if they participated previously in these programs. More information on the flexibility provisions can be found on the CDE Web page.

Legal Assurances

Legal assurances for programs funded through the ConApp are located on the CDE Web page. In the event an LEA cannot agree to specific assurances as a condition for receiving funds and operating programs, the issues must be identified and resolved prior to the submission of the ConApp.

LEA Plan

As a condition of receiving federal funds from the ConApp, each LEA, including direct-funded charter schools and county offices of education, must have an approved LEA Plan. The ConApp is the annual fiscal companion to the LEA Plan.

The State Board of Education approves initial LEA plans and subsequent ConApp submissions. LEAs must have an approved LEA Plan, including any required Plan Addenda, and a ConApp, before federal funds can be apportioned to LEAs. Additional information about the LEA Plan is located at the CDE LEA Plan Web page.

All LEAs are required by federal law to periodically review and, as necessary, revise its LEA Plan. CDE defines this as, at minimum, an annual review and update.

All LEAs that receive Title III funds and any LEA that receives Title I funds and is in Program Improvement Corrective Action, must certify on its ConApp that its LEA Plan, including any Addenda to the Plan, is current and provide the local online Web address for the LEA Plan.

For questions about the LEA Plan or the status of your LEA Plan, please contact either Cheryl Tiner, Assistant Education Programs Consultant, District and School Improvement Division by phone, at 916-319-0414 or by e-mail at ctiner@cde.ca.gov; or Laura Wagner, Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) Liaison, District and School Improvement Division, by phone at 916-319-0789 or by email at lwagner@cde.ca.gov.

Charter Schools

Direct-funded charter schools that are interested in receiving funds covered by the ConApp funds must submit their own separate application. Information from locally funded charter schools will be included in their authorizing LEA’s application.

Every direct-funded charter school, regardless of its interest in any state or federal funding, is required to complete the following three pages to fulfill school, district and state reporting responsibilities under ESEA.

• Page 18 – LEA Reporting Form for ESEA Title I, Part A and Homeless Education
  
  
• Page 20 – School Reporting Form for the Uniform Management Information Reporting System (UMIRS)
  
  
• Page 21 – School Reporting Form for Teacher and Paraprofessional Requirements

Direct-funded charter schools that are not interested in receiving funds through the ConApp will obtain access to the above pages, and instructions on how to complete and submit the pages, when completing the annual charter school funding survey. Charter schools may also submit these pages by submitting the ConApp electronically, if they prefer.

Charter schools may not apply for Economic Impact Aid if they receive funding for the Charter School Categorical Block Grant EC Section 47634.4. Charter schools receive an amount in-lieu of Economic Impact Aid funding as a component of the block grant.

Consultation with Private Schools

Page 4 continues to list private schools and non-public, non-sectarian schools to which consultation must be offered under federal mandate. The instructions for Page 4 detail how to make adjustments to the private school list. The guidance document for Page 4 provides support regarding the ESEA mandate for private school consultation.

Column F, which was new last year, requires the local educational agency (LEA) to report the number of private school English Learners (EL) receiving Title III programs and services from the LEA during fiscal year 2010-11. The LEA will be reimbursed for providing these services on its Title III 2011-12 apportionment. This column replaced the annual paper report submitted each spring to the Language Policy and Leadership Office entitled “Title III LEP Private School Report”.

Elementary and Secondary Education Act, Title III, Part A, New Pages

Local educational agencies (LEAs) will now report obligations for three fiscal years on page 23 for the Immigrant Education Student Sub-grant Program, and page 24 for the Limited English Proficient (LEP) Student Sub-grant Program.

Page 23 (2011–12 Title III Immigrant Actual and Proposed Expenditure Report) is new in 2011–12. The LEA will use this page to report total obligations for 2009–10; actual obligations for 2010–11; and proposed obligations for 2011–12 for the Title III Immigrant Education Student Sub-grant program entitlement. Each LEA that will receive a sub-grant for Title III must complete this page. LEAs are not required to report by object code for FY 2009–10.

Page 24 (2011–12 Title III LEP Actual and Proposed Expenditure Report) is new in 2011–12. The LEA will use this page to report total obligations for 2009–10; actual obligations for 2010–11; and proposed obligations for 2011–12 for the Title III LEP Student Sub-grant program entitlement. Each LEA that will receive a sub-grant for Title III must complete this page. LEAs are not required to report by object code for FY 2009–10.

Expenditures (Obligations) by the LEA may include costs of administration, indirect costs, and any repayment of funds. According to the California State Accounting Manual, “Legal obligations are commitments made by an LEA to purchase goods or services immediately or in a future period.” To determine whether a financial commitment should be reported as an obligation, please refer to Title 34, Part 76, Section 707 from the Code of Federal Regulations: Retrieve by CFR Citation .

Elementary and Secondary Education Act, Title III, Part A, Immigrant Education Student Sub-grant Program Costs

Administrative costs include both direct and indirect costs. Administrative costs are any costs, indirect or direct, that are administrative in nature and support the management of a program (California School Accounting Manual Procedure 915).

Costs must be necessary and reasonable for proper and efficient performance and administration of Federal awards (Appendix A subsection C.1(a) and C.2(a) of 2 CFR part 225, Cost Principles for State, Local, and Indian Tribal Governments [OMB Circular A–87, Revised ].

For LEAs that consolidate administrative funds, the maximum amount available for administrative costs is what is reasonable and necessary for the proper and efficient administration of the programs provided that the LEA budgets and expends at least 85 percent of the grant amounts at school sites for direct services to pupils (California School Accounting Manual Procedure 780).

Title IV Part A, Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Program (SDSFC)

Under the federal budget for the 2010-11 fiscal year, new funding for the Title IV, Part A, SDSFC program has been eliminated effective June 30, 2010.

As with previous years, LEAs may continue to participate in Title IV, Part A, by using carryover funds from the 2009-10 year for activities conducted in the following fiscal year. If LEAs carryover Title IV funds, they must continue to adhere to all program assurances agreed to as a condition of accepting these funds.

All fiscal year 2009-10 SDFSC funds previously apportioned to LEAs must be expensed by September 30, 2011.

Tobacco-Use Prevention Education (TUPE)

County offices of education, districts, and direct-funded charter schools that serve students in grades four through eight no longer receive an annual entitlement for funds for TUPE. All TUPE local assistance funds are now focused on grades six through twelve and are allocated through a competitive grant process. Additional information regarding this grant application opportunity is available on the CDE Available Funding Web page.

LEAs that received TUPE entitlement funds for fiscal year 2008-09 can carryover those funds into the 2010-11 fiscal year. LEAs choosing to carryover 2008-09 funds must still abide by the program assurances as provided in the ConApp Part I. The expenditure and carryover of 2008-09 TUPE funds must be reported by LEAs on the ConApp, Part II. TUPE funds for fiscal year 2008-09 not expensed by June 30, 2011, as reported on the 2011-12 ConApp Part II, will result in a billing request to the LEA.

Title I, Part A Parental Involvement ESEA Section 1118

Page 26 is added to the Con App to meet the requirements of ESEA Section 1118(h) to review school level parental involvement policies to determine that these policies include the four required elements:

1. Involvement of parents in the policy
2. School-parent compacts
3. Building of capacity for involvement of parents
4. Accessibility and opportunities for parents with limited English proficiency, parents with disabilities and parents of migratory students.

This page also asks for the school level contact for parental involvement.

If you require additional assistance related to this subject, please contact Karen Neilsen, Education Programs Consultant, Title I Accountability and Partnerships Office, at 916-319-0946 or kneilsen@cde.ca.gov.

Documents Available on the CDE Web Page

The following documents can be found on the CDE Web page:

• 2011-12 ConApp Cover Letter
• 2011-12 ConApp Instructions
• 2011-12 ConApp Legal Assurances
• Installation program for the CADS
• CADS User Guide
  

CADS User Guide

The CADS User Guide should answer your questions on how to access, complete, and submit your ConApp. If you require additional assistance related to the CADS after reviewing the guide, please contact the ConApp Support Desk, at 916-319-0297 or by e-mail at conappsupport@cde.ca.gov.

Sincerely,

Keric Ashley, Director
Finance, Technology and Administration Branch
Data Management Division
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