August CSBG Newsletter

August 5, 2020 | Issue 52

4th Quarter Report

This is a reminder the 2019-2020 CSBG 4th Quarter Report is Due August 15th. The 4th quarter report has not changed from last year, we do not plan to conduct a training this year since there are no changes. If you would like to view last year's webinar it is available here. If you need any assistance in completing the report please let your program consultant know and we can schedule one on one call's to review the report.

As a reminder these are the components to the 4th quarter report (all are in CSBG Reporter):

Progress Report
ROMA Implementer Actual Activities
Family NPI
Community NPI (If Applicable)
Demographics (both individual and family)
Capacity Building Form
Expenditures
CSBG Resources

Community Action Updates

CSBG State Plan

As you probably remember we have been working on our 2020-2022 CSBG State Plan for several months. The CSBG State Plan had three comment periods, two just for Virginia CAA input and one that was open to the public. The full state plan is now complete and will be submitted by the deadline of September 1, 2020. The last step in the State Plan process includes a Legislative Hearing. That hearing is scheduled for August 19th at 1pm. It will be a virtual hearing. The Department of Social Services Commissioner will be speaking during the hearing along with CAA representatives. If you have any questions regarding the state plan process or the legislative hearing please contact csbg@dss.virginia.gov.

CSBG Supplemental State Plan

The Federal Office of Community Services released Action Transmittal 2020-05 on July 15th. This Action Transmittal required states to complete a Supplemental State Plan Application for the CARES Act Funding. The Virginia CSBG Office is currently in the process of completing that Supplemental State Plan, which is essentially an update to our 2018-2020 State Plan Document. Areas we need to complete include: State Use of Funds, State Training and TA, State Linkages and Communication, Monitoring, and Income Eligibility. The completed plan will be available for a 10-day public inspection period beginning on August 10th. It will then be submitted by the deadline of September 1, 2020. At this time we are able to use information provided by Virginia CAA's in their supplemental plan from CSBG Reporter to help inform our Supplemental State Plan. If you have any questions on this process please email csbg@dss.virginia.gov.

VACAP Board Peer Group

The VACAP Board Peer Group is scheduled to meet virtually on Thursday, August 6th at 3pm. This meeting will focus on training priorities for CAA boards and how/when that should be provided. Please remember that this group is also a place we can provide peer to peer support. All Executive Directors and Board Chairs should have received the link to join the meeting. If you need the link please email Abby at Abigail.hanks@dss.virginia.gov.

CSBG Fiscal Update

Violet sent an email to Finance Directors in July please be sure it was received by the Finance Director at your agency, here are a few items from the email:

Record keeping and reporting - since the agencies are now receiving "regular CSBG funds" and "supplemental CSBG funds", these two funding streams must be tracked separately,
OMB Memorandum 20-26 was issued on June 18. Please look it over carefully as it addresses several areas that affect your agency. Appendix A, Item #1 addresses Allowability of Salaries and Other Project Activities and Item #2 addresses Extension of Single Audit Submission and COVID-19 Emergency Acts Fund Reporting - https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/M-20-26.pdf

If you would like the entire message please email Violet at violet.peyton@dss.virginia.gov.

Community Action Resources

Find and Share Resources on Samepage

Samepage has been in use for several months now, and we hope each agency has at least one representative on Samepage. Samepage is collaboration software that makes team communication and online project management easy. Recently we have been posting sample emergency plans that have been shared with our office. We encourage you to post resources, samples and templates your agency has found that might be helpful to other agencies. You also can use the chat feature if you are looking for information or insight on any relevant topic area. If you or someone at your agency wants to be added to Samepage please email Abby at Abigail.hanks@dss.virginia.gov and she will set you up with an account.

To Reopen or Not to Reopen? How COVID-19 Impacts Nonprofits' Decision to Return to the Office

Presented by: Venable LLP

Date: Thursday, August 6, 2020

Time: 12:30 PM - 1:30 PM ET

As the country begins to reopen, many nonprofits are considering whether to reopen or already have begun to reopen their physical workspaces. Given the COVID-19-related risks associated with such reopenings, taking steps to maintain a safe and healthy workplace for employees and ensuring compliance with applicable laws are paramount. This program will cover what nonprofits should think about when making the decision to reopen their office and, if they choose to reopen, the measures they should take to minimize potential liability.