Over 90% of ESSER I and GEER funds have been claimed to date however, the period of performance came to end on September 30, 2022. So what does this mean for your LEA? Well, final claims for GEER are due to DPI on December 15 2022, ESSER I claims are due to DPI on December 30, 2022. We are requesting that GEER claims be submitted to DPI slightly before ESSER due to the financial set up of the GEER grant program, where DPI has to draw down from DOA, and then DOA has to draw down from USDE where as ESSER, DPI draws down directly from USDE.
I also want to cover the timeline that final claims would be submitted. Your funds should be Obligated by September 30, 2022 so you final claim should have a report period end date of September 30, 2022. For example, your LEA has a purchase order for computers for students. That purchase order qualifies as an obligation, but then your vendor reaches out and states that they will not be able to get you the materials until October 2022. Once you receive the materials and the final invoice you can submit a claim for September 30, 2022.
With final claims being due mid December, DPI is cognizant of the Equitable Participation provision under ESSER and GEER - funds for private school students - we have made some resources available to you. The first resource we have is General Disposition Guidance, which states that Equipment and Supplies purchased on behalf of private schools may be used for the authorized purposes of the CARES Act through September 30, 2022 or until the equipment and supplies are no longer needed for the purposes of the program;
Consult with private school(s) to determine if the materials are still needed after the CARES Act program ends, if so, the LEA may continue to allow the private school(s) to utilize the materials for other federal education programs (i.e. IDEA, ESEA) Or, LEA may dispose of the materials in accordance with the Uniform Grant Guidance
The second resource that we have available to you all is the CARES Act Partial Refusal of Funds Guidance. Private schools can chose to no longer participate in ESSER I and/or GEER. If the private school determines that their needs have been met and no longer needs services, LEAs should follow the guidance provided in the CARES Act Partial Refusal of Funds Guidance document. In that case, the LEA will need to maintain records that adequate consultation between the LEA and private school has occurred. This should include a list of meetings with the private school and any corresponding meeting or agenda note. The LEA should also maintain an email or written notification from the pirate that includes:
Verification of timely and meaningful consultation. A statement certifying that the private school is refusing partial services for the amount that is remaining. Acknowledgement that by refusing partial services, the private school will no longer have access to their remaining funds under the grant and that the funds will be returned to the remaining participating private schools or LEA, if there are no longer participating private schools. The LEA should upload this documentation to the WISEgrants portal, where DPI will review the materials and send an email notification to the LEA. At that point, the LEA should notify the other private schools of an increase in their allocation amount. The explainer video linked on the slide provides step by step instructions and additional information.