3230 - Federal Grant Funds - Procedure

Prior to obligating or spending any federal grant funds, the Superintendent or designee shall determine whether a proposed purchase is an allowable expenditure of federal funds in accordance with 2 CFR 200.400-200.475 and the terms and conditions of the federal grant award. He/she shall also determine whether the expense is a direct or indirect cost as defined in 2 CFR 200.413 and 200.414 and, if the purchase will benefit other programs not included in the grant award, the appropriate share to be allocated to the federal grant.

The Superintendent or designee shall review and approve all transactions involving federal grant funds and shall ensure the proper coding of expenditures consistent with the California School Accounting Manual.

All obligations of federal funds shall occur on or between the beginning and ending dates of the grant project and shall be paid no later than 90 days after the end of the funding period, unless specifically authorized by the grant award to be carried over beyond the initial term of the grant. (2 CFR 200.77, 200.308, 200.309, 200.343)

On or before July 1, 2017, or such later date as may be approved in the Uniform Guidance, the Superintendent or designee shall comply with the standards specified in 2 CFR 200.317-200.326 and Appendix II of Part 200 when procuring goods and services needed to carry out a federal grant as well as any more restrictive state laws and organization policies concerning the procurement of goods and services.

As appropriate to encourage greater economy and efficiency, the Superintendent or designee shall avoid acquisition of unnecessary or duplicative items, give consideration to consolidating or breaking out procurements, analyze lease versus purchase alternatives, consider entering into an interagency agreement for procurement of common or shared goods and services, and/or use federal excess or surplus property. (2 CFR 200.318)

The procurement of goods or services with federal funds shall be conducted in a manner that provides full and open competition in accordance with state laws and organization regulations and the following requirements:

1. Any purchase of supplies or services that does not exceed the "micro-purchase" threshold specified in 48 CFR 2.101 may be awarded without soliciting competitive quotes, provided that the organization considers the price to be reasonable and maintains written evidence of this reasonableness in the record of all micro-purchases. (2 CPR 200.67, 200.320)

2. For any purchase that exceeds the micro-purchase threshold but is less than the bid limit required by Public Contract Code 20111, the Superintendent or designee shall utilize "small-purchase" procedures that include obtaining price or rate quotes from an adequate number of qualified sources. (2 CFR 200.320)

3. Contracts for goods or services over the bid limits required by Public Contract Code 20111 shall be awarded pursuant to California law and AR 3311 - Bids, unless exempt from bidding under the law.

4. If a purchase is exempt from bidding and the organization's solicitation is by a request for proposals, the award may be made by either a fixed-price or cost-reimbursement type contract awarded to the entity whose proposal is most advantageous to the program, with price and other factors considered. (2 CFR 200.320)

5. Procurement by noncompetitive proposals (sole sourcing) may be used only when the item is available from a single source, the need or emergency will not permit a delay resulting from competitive solicitation, the awarding agency expressly authorizes sole sourcing in response to the organization's request, and/or competition is determined inadequate after solicitation of a number of sources. (2 CFR 200.320)

6. Time and materials type contracts may be used only after a determination that no other contract is suitable and if the contract includes a ceiling price that the contractor exceeds at its own risk. Time and materials type contract means a contract whose cost is the sum of the actual cost of materials and direct labor hours charged at fixed hourly rates that reflect wages, general administrative expenses, and profit. (2 CFR 200.328)

For any purchase of $25,000 or more, the Superintendent or designee shall verify that any vendor which is used to procure goods or services is not excluded or disqualified by the federal government. (2 CFR 180.220, 200.213)

All solicitations shall incorporate a clear and accurate description of the technical requirements for the material, product, or service to be procured. Such description shall not, in competitive procurements, contain features which unduly restrict competition. The description shall avoid detailed product specifications to the extent possible, but may include a statement of the qualitative nature of the material, product, or service to be procured and, when necessary, shall set forth those minimum essential characteristics and standards to which it must conform if it is to satisfy its intended use. When it is impractical or not economical to make a clear and accurate description of the technical requirements, a brand name or equivalent description may be used to define the performance or other salient requirements of procurement, clearly stating the specific features of the named brand which must be met by offers. In addition, every solicitation shall identify all requirements which the offer must fulfill and any other factors to be used in evaluating bids or proposals. (2 CFR 200.319)

The Superintendent or designee shall maintain sufficient records to document the procurement, including, but not limited to, the rationale for the method of procurement, selection of the contract type, contractor selection or rejection, and the basis for the contract price. (2 CFR 200.318)

The Superintendent or designee shall ensure that all contracts for purchases using federal grant funds contain the applicable contract provisions described in Appendix II to Part 200 - Contract Provisions for Non-Federal Entity Contracts Under Federal Awards. (2 CFR 200.326)

The Superintendent or designee shall obtain prior written approval from the awarding agency before using federal funds to make capital expenditures, including the acquisition of land, facilities, equipment, and intellectual property and expenditures to make additions, improvements, modifications, replacements, rearrangements, reinstallations, renovations, or alterations to capital assets that materially increase their value or useful life. (2 CFR 200.12, 200.13, 200.20, 200.33, 200.48, 200.58, 200.89, 200.313, 200.439)

No Governing Board member, organization employee, or organization representative shall participate in the selection, award, or administration of a contract supported by federal funds if he/she has a real or apparent conflict of interest, such as when he/she or a member of his/her immediate family, his/her partner, or an organization which employs or is about to employ any of them has a financial interest in or a tangible personal benefit from a firm considered for a contract. Such persons are prohibited from soliciting or accepting gratuities, favors, or anything of monetary value from contractors or subcontractors unless the gift is an unsolicited item of nominal value. (2 CFR 200.318)

Employees engaged in the selection, award, and administration of contracts shall also comply with SBCSS Policy 2135 - Conflict of Interest Reporting.

The Superintendent or designee shall ensure the organization's compliance with 2 CFR 200.305 pertaining to payments and cash management, including compliance with applicable methods and procedures that minimize the time elapsing between the transfer of funds to the organization and the organization's disbursement of funds. (2 CFR 200.305)

When authorized by law, the organization may receive advance payments of federal grant funds, limited to the minimum amounts needed and timed in accordance with the actual immediate cash requirements of the organization for carrying out the purpose of the program or project. Except under specified conditions, the organization shall maintain the advance payments in an interest-bearing account. The organization shall remit interest earned on the advanced payment to the awarding agency on an annual basis, but may retain interest amounts specified in 2 CFR 200.305 for administrative expenses. (2 CFR 200.305)

When required by the awarding agency, the organization shall instead submit a request for reimbursement of actual expenses incurred. The organization may also request reimbursement as an alternative to receiving advance payments. (2 CFR 200.305)

The Superintendent or designee shall maintain source documentation supporting the expenditure of federal funds, such as invoices, time sheets, payroll stubs, or other appropriate documentation.

All organization employees who are paid in full or in part with federal funds, including employees whose salary is paid with state or local funds but is used to meet a required match or in-kind contribution to a federal program, shall document the amount of time they spend on grant activities. (2 CFR 200.430)

Except as otherwise provided in 2 CFR 200.333, or where state law or organization policy requires a longer retention period, financial records, supporting documents, statistical records, and all other organization records related to a federal award shall be retained for a period of three years from the date of submission of the final expenditure report or, for a federal award that is renewed quarterly or annually, from the date of the submission of the quarterly or annual financial report. (2 CFR 200.333)

Whenever the organization expends $750,000 or more in federal grant funds during a fiscal year, it shall arrange for either a single audit or a program-specific audit in accordance with 2 CFR 200.507 or 200.514. (2 CFR 200.501)

The Superintendent or designee shall ensure that the audit meets the requirements specified in 2 CFR 200.500- 200.521.

Specified records pertaining to the audit of federal funds expended by the organization shall be transmitted to the clearinghouse designated by the federal Office of Management and Budget and shall be made available for public inspection. Such records shall be transmitted within 30 days after receipt of the auditor's report or within nine months after the end of the audit period, whichever is sooner, unless a longer period is agreed to in advance by the federal agency or a different period is specified in a program-specific audit guide. (2 CFR 200.512)

In the event that the audit identifies any deficiency, the Superintendent or designee shall promptly act to either correct the identified deficiency, produce recommended improvements, or demonstrate that the audit finding is invalid or does not warrant action. (2 CFR 200.26, 200.508, 200.511)

Approved: March 07, 2017