Code of Maine Rules, Chapter 43, Section 498-43-1 - PROGRAM OVERVIEW | Code of Maine Rules

A. CDBG OBJECTIVES

All CDBG funded activities must meet one of three National Objectives of the program. These objectives are:

*Benefit to low and moderate income persons;

* Prevention and/or elimination of slum and blight conditions; and

*Meeting community development needs having a particular urgency.

The Maine CDBG Program serves as a catalyst for local governments to implement programs which meet one of the three National Objectives, and:

* Are part of a long-range community strategy;

* Improve deteriorated residential and business districts and local economic conditions;

* Provide the conditions and incentives for further public and private investments;

* Foster partnerships between groups of municipalities, state and federal entities, multi-jurisdictional organizations, and the private sector to address common community and economic development problems; and

* Minimize development sprawl consistent with the State of Maine Growth Management Act and support the revitalization of downtown areas.

B. METHOD OF DISTRIBUTION:

DECD, through the Office of Community Development (OCD), offers programs to assist municipalities to achieve their community and economic development objectives. The 2015 Program Statement provides a description of the selection criteria that OCD will use to allocate CDBG funds among communities. Programs are grouped under the threecategories listed below.

1. Community Development

a. Housing Assistance Grants

b. Home Repair Network

c. Public Infrastructure Grants

d. Public Facilities Grants

e. Downtown Revitalization Grants

f. Maine Downtown Center Assistance

g. Workforce Development Grants

h. Urgent Need Grants

i. Special Projects

2. Economic Development

a. Grants to Municipalities for Direct Business Support

b. Micro-Enterprise Grants

3. Technical Assistance

C. STATE ADMINISTRATION:

1. General Administration Allocation: Pursuant to Section 106(d) (3) (A) of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974, as amended (the Act), the DECD will utilize $100,000 plus 2% of its allocation from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to administer Maine's CDBG Program in accordance with Federal and State requirements.

2. Technical Assistance Administration Allocation: Pursuant to Section 106(d) (5) of the Act, DECD will utilize up to 1% of its allotment from HUD to provide technical assistance in accordance with Federal and State requirements.

3. Exclusion of Entitlement Communities and Counties: The entitlement communities of Auburn, Bangor, Biddeford, Lewiston, Portland and all of Cumberland County with the exception of Brunswick and Frye Island, are not eligible to receive State CDBG program funds.

4. Grant Administration Requirement:

Grantees must employ or contract with, a certified CDBG Grant Administrator and in the case of Housing Rehabilitation a qualified Rehabilitation Technician (as employees or consultants). The Office of Community Development must approve waivers of this requirement in writing. All planning activities are exempt from this requirement.

D. PROGRAM TIMEFRAME

Application deadlines - All applications and Letters of Intent must be received at the physical location of the Office of Community Development on or before 4:00 PM EST on the dates listed below. Faxed copies will not be accepted.

Program	Letter of Intent Due Date	Application Due DateBy Invitation Only
Downtown Revitalization	January 30, 2015	April 17, 2015
Economic Development	1st Friday of January, February and March**	April 24, 2015
*	1st Friday of May, June and July**	July 31, 2015
*	1st Friday of August, September & October**	November 20, 2015
Housing Assistance	March 13, 2015	May 1, 2015
Micro-Enterprise Assistance and	1st Friday of January, and February **	March 28, 2015
*	1st Friday of March and April**	May 29, 2015
*	1st Friday of May and June**	July 31, 2015
*	1st Friday of July and August**	September 25, 2015
Public Facilities	January 16, 2015	TBD*
Public Infrastructure	January 16, 2015	March 6, 2015
Special Projects *	N/A	TBD*
Urgent Need	N/A	TBD
Workforce Development	1st Friday of January and February**	March 28, 2015
*	1st Friday of March and April**	May 29, 2015
*	1st Friday of May and June	July 31, 2015
*	1st Friday of July and August**	September 25, 2015

*Subject to availability of funds.

** If the first Friday of the month falls on a holiday the Economic Development ,Workforce Development and Micro-Enterprise Assistance Letter(s) of Intent will be due by 4:00 pm on the next business day.

E. 2015 PROGRAM BUDGET

FY 2015 CDBG Budget $10,581,799

Administration 311,635

Technical Assistance Administration 105,817

Regional Council Planning Assistance 114,347

Community Development

Downtown Revitalization Grants 400,000

Home Repair Network Program 1,700,000

Housing Assistance Grants 1,000,000

Maine Downtown Center Assistance 100,000

Public Facilities Grants* 0

Public Infrastructure Grants 2,700,000

Special Projects * 0

Urgent Need Grants* 0

Workforce Development Grants 750,000

Economic Development

Business Assistance Grants 2,700,000 Micro-Enterprise Assistance Grants 700,000

TOTAL Estimated 2015 CDBG Funds (final amount determined by HUD) 10,581,799

Funding for individual categories may change based on actual HUD award .

*Funding for these programs may be available based upon redistribution, reallocation and/oradditional allocation from HUD.

F. CERTIFICATIONS

All communities applying for CDBG funds must certify that they will:

* Minimize displacement and adhere to a locally adopted displacement policy in compliance with section 104(d) of the Housing and Community Development Act, 24 CFR part 42;

* Take action to affirmatively further fair housing and comply with the provisions of Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and 1968;

* Not attempt to recover certain capital costs of improvements funded in whole or in part with CDBG funds;

* Establish a community development plan;

* Meet all required State and Federal public participation requirements;

* Comply with the Federal requirements of Section 319 of Public Law 101-121, codified at 31 U.S.C. Section 1352, regarding government-wide restriction on lobbying;

* With the exception of administrative or personnel costs, verify that no person who is an employee, agent, consultant, officer, elected officer, or appointed official of State or local government or of any designated public agencies, or sub-recipients which are receiving CDBG funding may obtain a financial interest or benefit, have an interest in or benefit from the activity, or have an interest in any contract, subcontract, or agreement with respect to CDBG activities;

* Any person or firm associated with the administration of the CDBG program award is not on the U.S. Department of Labor's Debarred and Suspended Contractor's List; and

* Review the project proposed in the application to ensure it complies with the community's comprehensive plan and/or applicable state and local land use requirements.

G. GENERAL REQUIREMENTS:

1. Eligible Applicants: All units of general local government in Maine, including plantations, except for the entitlement communities of Auburn, Bangor, Biddeford, Lewiston, Portland and all of Cumberland County with the exception of Brunswick and Frye Island are eligible to apply for and receive State CDBG program funds. County governments may apply on behalf of the UnorganizedTerritory. Groups of local governments may apply for multi-jurisdictional or joint projects. Multi-jurisdictional applications require designation of one local government as the lead applicant and consent for that designation by each participating local government. Counties may apply for the Economic Development or Workforce Development programs on behalf of a collaboration of communities. Eligible applicants, including counties as defined above may apply for CDBG assistance on behalf of the five Maine Indian Tribes.Maine Indian Tribes are not themselves eligible applicants. Eligible applicants applying on behalf of a Maine Indian Tribe are permitted to apply in the same 2015 CDBG funding category as long as the eligible applicant will not directly benefit from the tribal CDBG project.

2. Eligible Activities: Applications will be reviewed to determine that the activities proposed are eligible under Section 105(a) of the Act. Ineligible activities will not be considered.

3. Project Benefit: Letters of Intent and/or required documentation for all programs will be reviewed to verify that the proposed activities meet at least one of the CDBG Program national objectives pursuant to section 104(b) 3 of the Act. If the activity does not meet a national objective the application will not be considered for funding.

4. "Growth Related" Preference: In accordance with M.R.S.A Title 30-A section 4349-A (3-A), OCD is required to give preference in the award of grants to capital investments defined as "growth related" in section 4301(5-B) to communities with certified growth management programs or that have adopted a comprehensive plan and implementation strategy consistent with the goals and guidelines of the subchapter. A municipality that does not obtain a certificate or finding of consistency within 4 years after receipt of the first installment of a financial assistance grant or rejection of an offer of financial assistance will receive a low priority.

5. Repayment of Grant Funds: Recipients must repay on demand to the State of Maine all funds expended if CDBG program benefits are not achieved as specified in their contract with the DECD.

6. Application Threshold: Incomplete and/or non-conforming applications which do not meet the specifications set forth in the 2015 Program Statement and 2015 CDBG Application Packages will be removed from the scoring process during the threshold review.

7. Financial Commitments: Applications for projects not demonstrating a firm financial commitment as required in the application materials will be removed from the scoring process during the threshold review.

8. Restriction of Grant Awards: OCD may deny or restrict the award of grants to communities with outstanding audit(s), monitoring findings, or a record of administrative misconduct.

9. Past Performance: In order to be eligible to apply for a 2015 Community Development Block Grant program, communities that received CDBG grants in or prior to 2011 must have finally closed out their grants prior to application due date. Communities that received CDBG grants in 2012 must have conditionally closed their grants prior to application due date. Communities that received CDBG grants in 2013 must have expended 50% of their benefit activity funds prior to application due date. Communities that received 2014 CDBG grants must be under contract with DECD. All Past Performance Criteria will be strictly enforced; however these criteria may be waived for just cause by the Director of OCD.

10. Grant Termination: OCD will terminate a community's grant if progress on the project is not apparent within 6 months, or 3 months in the case of Economic Development Program and Workforce Development Grants, from the date of contract signing. The Office of Community Development may grant waivers for just cause.

H. EXCLUSIONS:

1. Multiple Grants: Except for the Economic Development grants-Business Assistance Grants and Micro-Enterprise Assistance Grants-, eligible applicants may not apply for, or benefit from, more than one grant per program category in any grant year. Communities participating in multi-jurisdictional applications may submit their own applications for the same program as long as they demonstrate that there will not be a duplication of program activity/benefit.

2. Subsequent Year Award: Except for the Economic Development Program-Business Assistance Grants, Micro-Enterprise Assistance Grants-, and project specific Housing Grants units of general local government and Unorganized Territory that benefited from a 2014 award may not apply again in that specific program until the 2016 program. This exclusion may be waived by the Director of OCD with cause.

3. Micro-Enterprise Assistance: Communities applying for a Micro-Enterprise Assistance (MEA) grant may not apply for, receive, or benefit from a Downtown Revitalization (DR) grant in the same program year.

4. Downtown Revitalization Program - Communities applying for a Downtown Revitalization (DR) grant may not apply for, receive, or benefit from a Micro-Enterprise Assistance (MEA) grant in the same program year.

5. Downtown Revitalization (DR) Grantees: Communities may not submit a DR application if they have received or benefited from two (2) DR awards within the five (5) year period prior to the CDBG program year for which applications are being accepted. Applications for multi-jurisdictional Downtown Revitalization projects will only be eligible if the downtowns are contiguous and each meets the definition of a downtown as defined in PL 1999 Ch. 776 (codified at 30-A M.R.S.A. § 4301(5-A)).

6. Housing Assistance Grant Program (HA) Past Performance Requirement: Communities are not eligible to apply for a HA grant unless all prior HA grants are 100% expended and conditionally closed out. 100% expended also requires that no HA funds exist in the housing escrow account.

7. Housing Assistance (HA) Grantees: Communities may not submit a HA application for single family rehabilitation if they have received or benefited from two (2) HA awards within the five (5) year period prior to the CDBG program year for which applications are being accepted.

I. AWARD PROCESS:

1. Scoring:

Applicants will be placed in rank order from highest to lowest according to the final scores determined by the OCD Review Team. All program applications with the exception of the Urgent Need Grants and the Home Repair Network will be scored on a 100-point maximum scoring basis with allowance for bonus points where applicable. Final scores will be determined by averaging the scores assigned by members of the Review Team and adding any applicable bonus point. Starting at the top of the scoring list, applicants will be invited to proceed to the Project Development Phase as funds allow. In the event of a tie in any CDBG program scoring process, consideration will be given to the community that is listed as a Service Center. An invitation into the Project Development Phase is not a guarantee of funding or permission to obligate funds. Successful communities will receive an amount determined by the OCD for their project.

2. Project Development Phase:

a. Project Planning: Details of the project including pre-engineering, bid requirements, budget, and/or grant administration.

b. Acceptance of Funds: Public Hearing and Legislative Body Approval for the acceptance of funds.

c. Local Certifications:Local adoption of State and Federal regulations..

d. Project Benefit: Verification that proposed activities meet or will meet one of the CDBG Program National Objectives.

e. Environmental Review: Review of project for compliance with State and Federal Environmental Regulations.

3. Project Development Time frame and Assistance:

The goal of the Project Development Phase is a grant contract for CDBG funds. An OCD Development Program Manager will be assigned to work closely with each community to finalize their project. OCD will rescind the CDBG program award offer if the community is not under contract within six months of the date of the award offer and invitation into the project development phase process. For the Economic Development programs OCD will rescind the CDBG program award offer if the community is not under contract within three months of the date of the award offer and invitation into the project development phase process. The Office of Community Development may grant waivers for just cause.

Code of Maine Rules19 - DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMIC AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT498 - OFFICE OF TOURISM AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENTChapter 43 - COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT (CDBG) PROGRAM 2015 PROGRAM STATEMENTSection 498-43-1 - PROGRAM OVERVIEW

Code of Maine Rules
19 - DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMIC AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
498 - OFFICE OF TOURISM AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
Chapter 43 - COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT (CDBG) PROGRAM 2015 PROGRAM STATEMENT
Section 498-43-1 - PROGRAM OVERVIEW