COVID-19 Relief and School Reopening Grants

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The California Legislature provided $6.6 billion in the Assembly Bill 86 COVID-19 relief package , including $2 billion for In-Person Instruction (IPI) Grants and $4.6 billion for Expanded Learning Opportunities (ELO) Grants. Governor Newsom signed AB 86 on March 5, 2021. The IPI and ELO Grant parameters were amended by AB 130 and AB 167 , signed by the Governor on July 9, 2021 and September 23, 2021, respectively.

In-Person Instruction and Expanded Learning Opportunities Funding Results

IPI and ELO Grants Frequently Asked Questions (Updated 29-Dec-2021)

Instructional Time and Distance Learning Requirements

Although in-person instruction for the purposes of the In-Person Instruction and Expanded Learning Opportunities Grants has been expanded to include hybrid models, instructional time requirements for the 2020-21 school year have not changed. Instructional time calculations continue to be based on time under the immediate physical supervision and control of a certificated employee for in-person instruction and time value of assignments made by and certified to by a certificated employee for distance learning.

Similarly, although under some circumstances a week of hybrid instruction can be considered in-person instruction for the purposes of the In-Person Instruction and Expanded Learning Opportunities Grants, LEAs must continue to meet distance learning requirements for all students that are assigned distance learning for any part of the instructional day. For more information on the instructional time and distance learning requirements, please see the 2020-21 Instructional Time FAQs.

In-Person Instruction Grants

To be eligible for full funding, LEAs must offer in-person instruction, as defined in Education Code (EC) Section 43520.5, including hybrid models, by April 1, 2021 for specified student groups. IPI Grants are reduced by one percent for each calendared instructional day that an LEA did not offer in-person instruction for all required groups. IPI Grants are forfeited if an LEA did not offer in-person instruction for all required groups by May 15, 2021; if in-person instruction was not offered continuously through the end of the scheduled 2020–21 school year, unless otherwise ordered by a state or local health officer; or if an LEA did not complete the IPI Grant LEA Certification Form required by EC Section 43521(c)(5).

Every eligible LEA can reference the data provided on their IPI Grant LEA Certification Form using the link below. The California Department of Education (CDE) used this data, certified by LEAs, to calculate the revised IPI Grant allocation posted on the In-Person Instruction and Expanded Learning Opportunities Funding Results page.

IPI Grant LEA Certification Form – Data (XLSX; Added 29-Dec-2021)

IPI Grants may be used for any purpose consistent with providing in-person instruction for any pupil participating in in-person instruction, including, but not limited to, COVID-19 testing, cleaning and disinfection, personal protective equipment, ventilation and other schoolsite upgrades necessary for health and safety, salaries for certificated or classified employees providing in-person instruction or services, and social and mental health support services provided in conjunction with in-person instruction.

For questions about IPI Grants, please contact InPersonGrants@cde.ca.gov

Expanded Learning Opportunities Grants

To be eligible for funding, LEAs must implement a learning recovery program, that at a minimum, provides supplemental instruction, support for social and emotional well-being, and, to the maximum extent permissible under the guidelines of the United States Department of Agriculture, meals and snacks to specified student groups, as defined in Education Code Section 43522, who have faced adverse learning and social-emotional circumstances.

ELO Grants shall be expended only for any of the following purposes: extending instructional learning time, accelerating progress to close learning gaps, integrated pupil supports, community learning hubs, supports for credit deficient pupils, additional academic services, and training for school staff. LEAs are encouraged to engage, plan, and collaborate on program operation with community partners and expanded learning programs, and leverage existing behavioral health partnerships and Medi-Cal billing options, in the design and implementation of services.

Plan

LEA Template for the Plan (DOCX; Added 25-Mar-2021)
The Expanded Learning Opportunities Grant Plan must be completed by LEAs as a condition for receiving an ELO Grant. The Expanded Learning Opportunities Grant Plan must be adopted by the local governing board or body of the LEA at a public meeting on or before June 1, 2021, and must be submitted to the county office of education, the CDE, or the chartering authority within five days of adoption, as applicable. County Offices of Education and school districts in a single-district county must submit their plans to the CDE by email at LCAPReview@cde.ca.gov.

Errata to LEA Template for the Plan

Expanded Learning Opportunities Grants Strategies
In order for LEAs to utilize ELO Grant funds, they must apply it toward seven supplemental and support strategies. This page provides additional information about each of the seven supplemental and support strategies.

Reporting

The ELO Grant assurance portal will close on June 1, 2022. If assurances are not submitted, LEAs will lose the Expanded Learning Opportunities Grant (ELO-G) federal allocation.

Expanded Learning Opportunities Grant Assurances
The Expanded Learning Opportunities Grant (ELO-G) Assurances must be completed by LEAs as a condition of receiving funding. To access the assurances, LEAs must use the same login information for other federal stimulus funding (Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund, Governor's Emergency Education Relief Fund etc.).

LEAs may reference the ELO-G Search which will display the assurance submission status of LEAs for the ELO-G funds.

ELO-G Expenditure Report Submission
The ELO-G will follow the same reporting process as the federal stimulus funding. All LEAs that receive ELO-G funds must submit quarterly reports which include fiscal and programmatic information for federal funding. LEAs can report on their ELO-G funds at the Federal Stimulus Funding Reporting Application. For additional information and assistance with reporting, please access the Federal Stimulus Quarterly Reporting Help Page.

LEAs will report expenditures for each funding resource and by the specific allowable strategies of the ELO-G. Please see ELO-G Frequently Asked Questions #7-Use of Funds for allowable expenditures.

Additional information about ELO-G, including final allocations, may be found at the ELO-G Main Page.

Quarterly Expenditure Reports

The ELO-G Quarterly Expenditure Report data reported by LEAs is available in the spreadsheets below.

Resource 3216 ESSER II State Reserve (March 13, 2020 – December 31, 2022) (XLSX)

Resource 3217 GEER II (March 13, 2020 – December 31, 2022) (XLSX)

Resource 3218 ESSER III, State Reserve Emergency Needs (March 13, 2020 – December 31, 2022) (XLSX)

Resource 3219 ESSER III, State Reserve Learning Loss (March 13, 2020 –December 31, 2022) (XLSX)

Fund Overview

This section contains general information related to the ELO-G funds available and funds expended.

Total Allocated Amount

This amount is prepopulated based on the allocations the CDE calculated the LEA is eligible to receive. This displays the total funds that will be available when all funds are disbursed and is consistent with the information provided on the Funding Results ELO-G web page.

Total Received Amount

This amount is prepopulated based on the funding the CDE has disbursed to the LEA. This number will be updated as additional apportionments are made.

Previous Expended Amount

This amount is prepopulated based all previous reports submitted by the LEA. It is the cumulative total of expenditures reported to the CDE.

Current Expended Amount

LEAs are required to report the amount of funds they have expended during the current reporting period. LEAs do not need to include amounts reported during previous reporting periods. The amount reported should be based on the final day of the reporting period, and should capture only that reporting period. For example, for the period between April 1, 2022, and June 30, 2022, this amount would capture all expenditures that occurred between April 1 and June 30. The timeline for the ELO-G is available below.

The number reported must be a whole number, and may range from 0 to the Total Allocated Amount (minus any amount previously reported as expended [Previous Expended Amount]). In addition, an LEA may enter a negative number to reflect any net adjustment, such as transferring costs to a different funding source. In this instance, the negative number can be no greater the Previous Expended Amount. For example, if Previous Expended Amount is $10, the LEA may enter -$10, but not -$11.

Funds Expended

In this portion of the report, LEAs are required to provide the CDE with information that details how they have spent their ELO-G funds. This is accomplished by indicating the total percentage, in whole numbers, expended that has been used in each of the 7 Strategies. Please report totals in whole numbers without decimals, commas, or other punctuation.

The following are the reporting categories. These align with the allowable uses described in EC Section 43522(b).

1. Extending instructional learning time
   
   
2. Accelerating progress to close learning gaps through the implementation, expansion, or enhancement of learning supports
   
   
3. Integrated student supports to address other barriers to learning
   
   
4. Community learning hubs that provide students with access to technology, high-speed internet, and other academic supports
   
   
5. Supports for credit deficient students to complete graduation or grade promotion requirements and to increase or improve students’ college eligibility
   
   
6. Additional academic services for students
   
   
7. Training for school staff on strategies to engage students and families in addressing students’ social-emotional health and academic needs

Here is an ELO-G Sample Report Format:

• Please report totals in whole numbers without decimals, commas, or other punctuation.
• Reported totals should be for the period [insert month/date/year] to [insert month/date/year]
  

Total Allocated Amount: $ Pre-populated

Total Received Amount: $ Pre-populated

Previous Expended Amount: $ Pre-populated

Current Expended Amount: $ [LEA insert amount]

Funds Expended Guidelines

Please use the following guidelines to report the funds expended:

• Report your expenditures based on the total expended by the end of the reporting period, including any amount expended during previous reporting periods (i.e. Previous Expended Amount + Current Expended Amount)
• Do not factor in any amount obligated, but not expended.
• Please use whole numbers to indicate approximate percentage of funds expended for each strategy.
• Please add “0” for any category where funds were not expended.
• The Total Percentage value should equal 100% (or 0% if the expended total is 0) when you are finished.
• Reminder: A LEA must use at least 85% of its apportionment for expenditures related to providing in-person services allowable pursuant to California Education Code (EC) Section 43522(b). An LEA may use up to 15 percent (15%) of its apportionment to increase or improve services for students participating in distance learning or to support activities intended to prepare the LEA for in-person instruction, before in-person instructional services are offered.

1. Extending instructional learning time
   [LEA inserts percent] %
   
   
2. Accelerating progress to close learning gaps through the implementation, expansion, or enhancement of learning supports
   [LEA inserts percent] %
   
   
3. Integrated student supports to address other barriers to learning
   [LEA inserts percent] %
   
   
4. Community learning hubs that provide students with access to technology, high-speed internet, and other academic supports
   [LEA inserts percent] %
   
   
5. Supports for credit deficient students to complete graduation or grade promotion requirements and to increase or improve students’ college eligibility
   [LEA inserts percent] %
   
   
6. Additional academic services for students
   [LEA inserts percent] %
   
   
7. Training for school staff on strategies to engage students and families in addressing students’ social-emotional health and academic needs
   [LEA inserts percent] %
   
   Total Percentage
   [Pre-populated Total] %

Contact Information

Please provide the first and last name, title, email address, telephone number, and telephone extension (if applicable) of the individual completing the report. If the CDE has a question concerning the report, the CDE will first attempt to contact the individual listed.

Finishing the Report

Once the report is complete, an LEA must save the report by clicking the “Save Data” button at the bottom of the page. If there is an issue, the reporting portal will indicate there are errors to be reviewed at the top of the webpage. If there are no errors (or any errors have been resolved), you will see the message “Your data have been saved.” At that point, the report is complete (there is no submittal button/process).

It is possible to confirm if a complete report was saved at any time by confirming there is a “Date Submitted” to the far right of the reporting link on the main page of the reporting application.

Timeline

Federal Resource Reporting: ESSER II, GEER II, ESSER III-Emergency Needs, ESSER III-Learning Loss

*Dates subject to change

Additional dates will be added for subsequent reporting windows.

• Resource 3216, Expanded Learning Opportunities (ELO) Grant: ESSER II State Reserve – available for obligation through September 30, 2023
• Resource 3217, Expanded Learning Opportunities (ELO) Grant: GEER II – available for obligation through September 30, 2023
• Resource 3218, Expanded Learning Opportunities (ELO) Grant: ESSER III State Reserve Emergency Needs – available for obligation through September 30, 2024
• Resource 3219, Expanded Learning Opportunities (ELO) Grant: ESSER III State Reserve Learning Loss – available for obligation through September 30, 2024
  

Information about obligations for federal grants can be found in the California School Accounting Manual (CSAM), Procedure 765, Recognition of Legal Obligations in Reporting for Federal Grants.

State Resource Reporting: Resource 7425 and Resource 7426

*Dates subject to change

• Resource 7425, Expanded Learning Opportunities (ELO) Grant
• Resource 7426, Expanded Learning Opportunities (ELO) Grant: Paraprofessional Staff

Resources 7425 and 7426 are subject to ending fund balances and available for expenditures through September 30, 2024. Carryovers of unexpended balances in these resources are reported as restricted ending balances (Object 9740).

ELO Grant Final Updated Plan Submission and Final Expenditure Report (Coming Soon)

Accounting Guidance

ELO-G Accounting Guidance
Accounting guidance to assist LEAs with accounting for the ELO-G.

For questions about ELO Grants, please contact ELOGrants@cde.ca.gov