§1397n–3 Feasibility Study Funding

Summary

The Secretary must set aside part of the program money to help States or local governments pay for feasibility studies to apply for social impact partnership grants. To get money, a State or local government must apply and describe the project’s goals, the program plan (who it will serve, how, and where), evidence it will work, possible measures to track progress, expected benefits, estimated project costs, expected federal and local savings if it succeeds, a timeline no longer than 10 years, any needed partnerships or an intermediary, and the resources needed to finish the study. The Secretary must pick which applications to fund within 6 months, working with the Federal Interagency Council on Social Impact Partnerships and relevant agency heads, and using the Commission on Social Impact Partnerships’ recommendations and factors like likelihood of success, value of outcomes, and potential savings. The Secretary must post on the Council’s website within 30 days why each winner was chosen. The Secretary cannot pay more than 50% of any study’s estimated cost and cannot spend more than $10,000,000 in total for these studies. The Secretary may also decide to award no funding. A recipient must finish and send the completed study to the Federal Interagency Council on Social Impact Partnerships within 9 months after getting the money. The Secretary can give these authorities and funds to the head of another federal agency.