Notice of Interpretation Regarding Period of Allowable Expenses for Funds Administered Under the Higher Education Emergency Relief (HEERF) Program
| Citation | 86 FR 15208 |
| Record Number | 2021-05849 |
| Published date | 22 March 2021 |
| Section | Notices |
| Court | Education Department |
Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 53 (Monday, March 22, 2021)
[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 53 (Monday, March 22, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15208-15209]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-05849]
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Notice of Interpretation Regarding Period of Allowable Expenses
for Funds Administered Under the Higher Education Emergency Relief
(HEERF) Program
AGENCY: Office of Postsecondary Education, Department of Education.
ACTION: Notice of interpretation.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Education (Department) is issuing this
notice of interpretation regarding the allowable time period for which
grantees may charge costs and lost revenue to their HEERF grant. That
period is from March 13, 2020 onward.
DATES: This interpretation is effective March 22, 2021.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Karen Epps, U.S. Department of
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, Room 250-64, Washington, DC 20202.
Telephone: The Department of Education HEERF Call Center at (202) 377-
3711. Email: [email protected]. Please also visit our HEERF II website at:
www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/crrsaa.html.
If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) or a text
telephone (TTY), call the Federal Relay Service (FRS), toll free, at 1-
800-877-8339.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Full Text of Announcement
On March 13, 2020, President Trump declared a national emergency to
respond to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, under section
501(b) of the Stafford Act. Declaring a National Emergency Concerning
the Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19), 85 FR 15337. Soon thereafter,
on March 27, 2020, Congress enacted the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and
Economic Security (CARES) Act, Public Law 116-136, to help Americans
during the economic and health crises created by the COVID-19 outbreak.
Among its many provisions, the CARES Act provided the Department with a
$14.2 billion appropriation designated as the Higher Education
Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) to be distributed to eligible
institutions of higher education (IHEs) to ``prevent, prepare for, and
respond to coronavirus.''
In the midst of this continued crisis, on December 27, 2020,
President Trump signed into law the Coronavirus Response and Relief
Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2021 (CRRSAA) (Pub. L. 116-260). This
law made available an additional $22.7 billion for IHEs under the HEERF
programs, with funding appropriated for the existing (a)(1), (a)(2),
and (a)(3) programs previously authorized under the CARES Act, as well
as funding for a new (a)(4) program authorized under the CRRSAA.
Section 314(c) of the CRRSAA provides the following allowable uses
for funds made available through that appropriation:
(1) Defray expenses associated with coronavirus (including lost
revenue, reimbursement for expenses already incurred, technology costs
associated with a transition to distance education, faculty and staff
trainings, and payroll);
(2) Carry out student support activities authorized by the Higher
Education Act of 1965, as amended, that address needs related to
coronavirus; or
(3) Provide financial aid grants to students.
Additionally, section 314(d)(2) of the CRRSAA extended the
allowable use provisions listed above to any of an IHE's unspent CARES
Act funds.
In its initial analysis regarding the allowability of pre-award
costs for grants made newly available under the CRRSAA, the Department
took the position that obligations under CRRSAA grants needed to have
been incurred on or after December 27, 2020, the date of the enactment
of the CRRSAA. For new or supplemental funding awarded under CRRSAA,
this position was memorialized in the IHE's Certification and Agreement
or Supplemental Agreement, respectively, as well as the Grant Award
Notification document connected with the obligation of such funds.
The Department is committed to extending all available
flexibilities that may be authorized by law to grantees under the HEERF
programs as IHEs continue to grapple with the financial consequences of
COVID-19. Many IHEs are facing severe budget shortfalls as a result of
decreased enrollment, tuition discounting, declining international
student enrollment, and the loss of revenue from food service and
dormitories.\1\ These shortfalls are forcing IHEs to consider hiring
freezes, layoffs, operating budget cuts, and suspending certain degree
programs.\2\
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\1\ www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2021/02/09/colleges-could-lose-183-billion-during-pandemic.
\2\ www.cbpp.org/research/state-budget-and-tax/states-can-choose-better-path-for-higher-education-funding-in-COVID;
www.nytimes.com/2020/10/26/us/colleges-coronavirus-budget-cuts.html.
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In recognition of the considerable financial strain faced by the
higher education community, the Department is issuing this notice of
interpretation to allow IHEs to charge pre-award costs for their
unspent CARES Act and CRRSAA funds back to March 13, 2020, for expenses
associated with COVID-19. The Department finds textual support for
revisiting its position within the allowable uses enumerated within
CRRSAA section 314(c)(1), which explicitly include ``lost revenue'' and
``reimbursement for expenses already incurred.'' The Department
believes that allowing grantees to recover pre-award costs back to
March 13, 2020, is consistent with the intent of Congress and
authorized by the law, and this will allow IHEs to target their areas
of financial need more directly with HEERF program funding.
This notice of interpretation supersedes in part all previous
guidance, agreements, and grant award documents to provide IHEs with
the expanded flexibility to charge pre-award costs back to March 13,
2020. To further provide flexibility to IHEs, the Department also
concurrently waives the requirement for prior written approval of pre-
award costs, in accordance with 2 CFR 200.407. We will also issue
letters through our G5 system to directly notify grantees of this
change of interpretation. Grantees are not required to take any action
to take advantage of this expanded period of expenditures flexibility
but are encouraged to maintain a copy of this notice within your HEERF
grant files as additional support for auditing purposes. The Department
will make publicly available any additional guidance on this topic on
its CRRSAA: Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF II)
website(https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/crrsaa.html).
The Department continues to encourage IHEs to focus on the needs of
their students in assessing how best to utilize HEERF funding. While
some IHEs may need to use their HEERF grant to pay for expenses
incurred earlier in the pandemic, other IHEs may look forward and focus
on how best to provide student support to keep their students enrolled
and academically engaged throughout the pandemic. The Department hopes
that the expanded flexibilities announced in this notice
[[Page 15209]]
will help all IHEs to best serve the needs of their students, faculty,
and staff. Accessible Format: On request to the program contact person
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, individuals with
disabilities can obtain this document in an accessible format. The
Department will provide the requestor with an accessible format that
may include Rich Text Format (RTF) or text format (txt), a thumb drive,
an MP3 file, braille, large print, audiotape, or compact disc, or other
accessible format.
Electronic Access to This Document: The official version of this
document is the document published in the Federal Register. You may
access the official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of
Federal Regulations at www.govinfo.gov. At this site you can view this
document, as well as all other documents of this Department published
in the Federal Register, in text or Portable Document Format (PDF). To
use PDF, you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at
the site.
You may also access documents of the Department published in the
Federal Register by using the article search feature at
www.federalregister.gov. Specifically, through the advanced search
feature at this site, you can limit your search to documents published
by the Department.
Tiwanda Burse,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Management & Planning, Office of
Postsecondary Education. Delegated authority to perform functions and
duties of the Assistant Secretary for the Office of Postsecondary
Education.
[FR Doc. 2021-05849 Filed 3-19-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P
