Current through September 24, 2024
A. "Community Foundations Act" means Sections
2(j)-(l) of House Bill 1782, 2020 Reg. Session, as amended by Senate Bill 3063,
2020 Reg. Session and Senate Bill 2221, 2021 Reg. Session.
B. "Program" means the "Community Foundations
COVID-19 Grant Program" which was established by the Community Foundations
Act.
C. "COVID-19" means the
Coronavirus Disease 2019.
D. "CARES
Act" means the "Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act" (H.R.
748).
E. "MDA" means the
Mississippi Development Authority, as established by Miss. Code Ann.
§§
57-1-1,
et seq. (Rev. 2019).
F. "Community Foundations" mean:
1. The CREATE Foundation, Inc., a nonprofit
corporation formed with the Mississippi Secretary of State's Office, being
Business Identification Number 630002 with that office and having a
jurisdiction that consists of the Counties of Alcorn, Benton, Calhoun,
Chickasaw, Choctaw, Clay, Itawamba, Lafayette, Lee, Lowndes, Monroe,
Montgomery, Noxubee, Oktibbeha, Pontotoc, Prentiss, Tippah, Tishomingo, Union,
Webster, and Winston;
2. The
Community Foundation of Northwest Mississippi, Inc., a nonprofit corporation
formed with the Mississippi Secretary of State's Office, being Business
Identification Number 711372 with that office and having a jurisdiction that
consists of the Counties of Bolivar, Carroll, Coahoma, DeSoto, Grenada,
Leflore, Marshall, Panola, Quitman, Sunflower, Tallahatchie, Tate, Tunica, and
Yalobusha;
3. The Community
Foundation of Washington County, a nonprofit corporation formed with the
Mississippi Secretary of State's Office, being Business Identification Number
1008905 with that office and having a jurisdiction that consists of the
Counties of Humphreys, Issaquena, Sharkey, and Washington;
4. The Community Foundation of Mississippi
(previously known as the "Community Foundation of Greater Jackson, Inc."), a
nonprofit corporation formed with the Mississippi Secretary of State's Office,
being Business Identification Number 701100 with that office and having a
jurisdiction that consists of the Counties of Adams, Amite, Attala, Claiborne,
Copiah, Franklin, Hinds, Holmes, Jefferson, Lawrence, Leake, Lincoln, Madison,
Pike, Rankin, Scott, Simpson, Smith, Walthall, Warren, Wilkerson, and
Yazoo;
5. The Community Foundation
of East Mississippi, Inc., a nonprofit corporation formed with the Mississippi
Secretary of State's Office, being Business Identification Number 8702972 with
that office and having a jurisdiction that consists of the Counties of Clarke,
Kemper, Lauderdale, Neshoba, and Newton;
6. The Greater Pinebelt Community Foundation
(previously known as "The Greater Hattiesburg Community Foundation"), a
nonprofit corporation formed with the Mississippi Secretary of State's Office,
being Business Identification Number 645508 with that office and having a
jurisdiction that consists of the Counties of Covington, Forrest, Jasper,
Jefferson Davis, Jones, Lamar, Marion, Perry, and Wayne; and
7. The Gulf Coast Community Foundation, Inc.,
a nonprofit corporation formed with the Mississippi Secretary of State's
Office, being Business Identification Number 566743 with that office and having
a jurisdiction that consists of the Counties of George, Greene, Hancock,
Harrison, Jackson, Pearl River, and Stone.
G. "The North Mississippi Education
Consortium" ("Consortium") is a nonprofit corporation formed with the
Mississippi Secretary of State's Office, being Business Identification Number
632231 with that office and, according to the Act, has statewide
jurisdiction.
H. "Eligible
Grantees" mean the following:
1. "Nonprofit
Entity" means an entity which provides services to the public and which is a
nonprofit corporation where no part of the assets, income or profit is
distributed to or enures to the benefit of its members, directors or officers,
per Miss. Code Ann. §
79-11-127(z)(Rev.
2006); thus, to qualify for the Program, the Nonprofit Entity must be legally
formed and registered with the Mississippi Secretary of State's Office. In
addition to these entities, a nonprofit entity will include, but not be limited
to, volunteer fire departments, rural community development organizations, and
civic clubs (such as Civitan clubs. Rotary clubs. Exchange clubs, Kiwanis
clubs. Boys and Girls clubs, and Lions clubs) that operate and provide services
in the State of Mississippi.
2.
"Food Pantry" means an organization, including, but not limited to Nonprofit
Entities, not for profit entities, other tax exempt agencies, churches,
schools, junior colleges, universities and such entities which distribute food
to low-income and unemployed individuals and households, including food from
sources other than the Department of Agriculture, to relieve situations of
emergency and distress in the distribution of food to low-income and unemployed
individuals and households. The Food Pantry shall distribute food or provide
services at no cost to the recipient. For purposes of this Program, a Food
Pantry which operates at more than a single location may qualify each location
as an Eligible Grantee if it can be shown that each separate location serves a
different geographical area (such as a different county, city, or town) and
population.
3. "Child Care
Facility" means those entities defined in Miss. Code Ann. §
43-20-5(a)
(Rev. 2008) and licensed by the Mississippi
State Department of Health.
I. "Grant" means an award by a Community
Foundation and the Consortium to an Eligible Grantee to reimburse Eligible
Expenditures in accordance with the Community Foundations Act.
J. "Application" means the form that the
Community Foundations and the Consortium shall establish which each potential
Eligible Grantee must complete and submit to demonstrate eligibility for a
Grant. This document will also bind the Eligible Grantee to all terms and
conditions of the Program.
K.
"Reimbursement Request" means the form that the Community Foundations and the
Consortium shall establish which each Eligible Grantee must complete and submit
to receive reimbursement for Eligible Expenditures, along with required
supporting documentation for Eligible Expenditure.
L. "Duplication of Benefits" ("DOB") means
benefits under this Program reimbursed from any other source. Charitable
contributions, donations, and donations in kind are not considered DOB. Each
Eligible Grantee must comply by obtaining an executed certification to meet
this requirement or complete a written DOB analysis to be retained in its files
and the files of the Community Foundation or the Consortium.
M. "Eligible Expenditure" means, per the
CARES Act and the guidelines issued by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, a
cost necessarily incurred due to COVID-19 and during the period that begins on
March 1, 2020 and ends on December 31, 2021. In this regard, the CARES Act
guidelines provide that an Eligible Expenditure is one used to address the
direct health concerns of the pandemic or to address the secondary impacts of
the pandemic (such as economic impacts). The Eligible Grantee must submit
documentation as to how a submitted cost meets both the necessary connection to
the pandemic and the time period requirement. Eligible Expenditures shall
include, but not be limited to, the following:
1. Costs to create social distancing
measures;
2. Costs to clean or
disinfect areas due to COVID-19, including, but not limited to, sanitizing
products and cleansers;
3.
"Personal Protective Equipment" ("PPE"), which means those items identified by
the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ("CDC") in its "Interim
Infection Prevention and Control Recommendations for Healthcare Personnel
During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Pandemic Infection Control
Guidance" (Updated July 15, 2020):
a.
Respirators (N95 or higher);
b.
Facemasks;
c. Goggles;
d. Face shields;
e. Protective eyewear without gaps between
glasses and face;
f. Gloves;
and
g. Gowns;
4. "COVID-19 testing," which means those
medical tests administered for staff and employees of the Eligible Grantee
which are recommended by the CDC in its guidance entitled "Testing for
COVID-19" (Updated June 24, 2020) which include the following:
a. Viral tests which inform an individual
that he/she is currently infected with the COVID-19 virus, and
b. Antibody tests which may inform an
individual that he/she has had a past infection of COVID-19;
5. "COVID-19 screenings" means
those tests of individuals who are attempting to enter the facilities, clinics,
or vehicles of Eligible Grantees which are designed to detect possible COVID-19
infection and protect the Eligible Grantee and his/her/its staff and employees
from exposure to COVID-19;
6.
Expenses for technical assistance concerning mitigation of COVID-19 related
threats to public health and safety;
7. Contactless equipment;
8. Equipment or items designed to track
employees or customers who have tested positive for COVlD-19;
9. Expenses for quarantining
individuals;
10. Necessary
re-opening expenses specifically to address COVID-19 issues;
11. Expenses to facilitate teleworking to
enable compliance with COVID-19 public health precautions;
12. Expenses to facilitate distance learning,
including technological improvements, in connection with closings to enable
compliance with COVID-19 precautions;
13. Expenses for additional food delivery
costs and expenses, including the purchase of food, to individuals and
households, such as to senior citizens and other vulnerable populations, to
enable compliance with COVID-19 public health precautions;
14. Expenses for care for homeless
populations provided to mitigate COVlD-19 effects and enable compliance with
COVID-19 public health precautions;
15. Individual grants to prevent evictions or
foreclosure and to otherwise assist in preventing homelessness which are
necessary expenses incurred due to the COVID-19 public health
emergency;
16. Individual
assistance to individuals and households who have been directly impacted by a
loss of income due to the COVID-19 public health emergency for necessary
expenses;
17. Expenses for
employment and training programs for individuals who have lost employment or
have been furloughed due to the COVID-19 public health emergency;
18. Expenses incurred directly due to the
interruption of the Eligible Grantee's business due to COVID-19, including:
a. Mortgage interest;
b. Rent;
c. Payroll; or
d. Utilities;
19. Eligible Expenditures shall not include
the following;
a. Damages that have been or
will be covered by insurance;
b.
Costs that have been or will be reimbursed by any other federal or state
program;
c. Reimbursement to donors
for donated items or services;
d.
Workforce bonuses other than Hazard Pay or overtime;
e. Severance pay;
f. Legal settlements;
g. Payments to cover or reimburse individuals
and entities for property taxes; and
h. Other costs deemed ineligible expenditures
under the guidelines, guidance, rules, regulations and/or other criteria, as
may be amended from time to time, of the United Stales Department of the
Treasury regarding the use of monies from the "Coronavirus Relief
Fund."
N.
"Rules" means these rules as authorized by the Community Foundations
Act.
Senate Bill
2221, 2021 Regular Legislative Session; Senate Bill 3063, 2020 Regular
Legislative Session; House Bill 1782, 2020 Regular Legislative Session. Miss.
Code Ann. §
43-20-5
