§ 796f–2 — Grants To Centers For Independent Living In States In Which State Funding Equals Or Exceeds Federal Funding

(i) The director of a designated State unit, as provided in paragraph (2), or the Administrator, as provided in paragraph (3), shall award grants under this section for an initial fiscal year if the Administrator determines that the amount of State funds that were earmarked by a State for a preceding fiscal year to support the general operation of centers for independent living meeting the requirements of this subpart equaled or exceeded the amount of funds allotted to the State under subsection (c) or (d) of section 796f of this title for such year. (ii) The director of a designated State unit or the Administrator, as appropriate, shall award such grants, from the amount of funds so allotted for the initial fiscal year, to eligible agencies in the State for the planning, conduct, administration, and evaluation of centers for independent living that comply with the standards and assurances set forth in section 796f–4 of this title. (iii) The Administrator shall by regulation specify the preceding fiscal year with respect to which the Administrator will make the determinations described in clause (i) and subparagraph (B), making such adjustments as may be necessary to accommodate State funding cycles such as 2-year funding cycles or State fiscal years that do not coincide with the Federal fiscal year. (B) For each year subsequent to the initial fiscal year described in subparagraph (A), the director of the designated State unit shall continue to have the authority to award such grants under this section if the Administrator determines that the State continues to earmark the amount of State funds described in subparagraph (A)(i). If the State does not continue to earmark such an amount for a fiscal year, the State shall be ineligible to make grants under this section after a final year following such fiscal year, as defined in accordance with regulations established by the Administrator, and for each subsequent fiscal year. (2) In order for the designated State unit to be eligible to award the grants described in paragraph (1) and carry out this section for a fiscal year with respect to a State, the designated State agency shall submit an application to the Administrator at such time, and in such manner as the Administrator may require, including information about the amount of State funds described in paragraph (1) for the preceding fiscal year. If the Administrator makes a determination described in subparagraph (A)(i) or (B), as appropriate, of paragraph (1), the Administrator shall approve the application and designate the director of the designated State unit to award the grant and carry out this section. (3) If the designated State agency of a State described in paragraph (1) does not submit and obtain approval of an application under paragraph (2), the Administrator shall award the grant described in paragraph (1) to eligible agencies in the State in accordance with section 796f–1 of this title. (b) In any State in which the Administrator has approved the State plan required by section 796c of this title, the director of the designated State unit may award a grant under this section to any eligible agency that— (1) has the power and authority to carry out the purpose of this subpart and perform the functions set forth in section 796f–4 of this title within a community and to receive and administer funds under this subpart, funds and contributions from private or public sources that may be used in support of a center for independent living, and funds from other public and private programs; (2) is determined by the director to be able to plan, conduct, administer, and evaluate a center for independent living, consistent with the standards and assurances set forth in section 796f–4 of this title; and (3) submits an application to the director at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the head of the designated State unit may require. (c) In the administration of the provisions of this section, the director of the designated State unit shall award grants for a fiscal year under this section to any eligible agency that has been awarded a grant under this subpart for the preceding fiscal year, unless the director makes a finding that the agency involved fails to comply with the standards and assurances set forth in section 796f–4 of this title. (1) If there is no center for independent living serving a region of the State or the region is unserved or underserved, and the increase in the allotment of the State is sufficient to support an additional center for independent living in the State, the director of the designated State unit may award a grant under this section from among eligible agencies, consistent with the provisions of the State plan under section 796c of this title setting forth the design of the State for establishing a statewide network of centers for independent living. (2) In selecting from among eligible agencies in awarding a grant under this subpart for a new center for independent living— (A) the director of the designated State unit and the chairperson of, or other individual designated by, the Statewide Independent Living Council acting on behalf of and at the direction of the Council, shall jointly appoint a peer review committee that shall rank applications in accordance with the standards and assurances set forth in section 796f–4 of this title and criteria jointly established by such director and such chairperson or individual; (B) the peer review committee shall consider the ability of each such applicant to operate a center for independent living, and shall recommend an applicant to receive a grant under this section, based on— (i) evidence of the need for a center for independent living, consistent with the State plan; (ii) any past performance of such applicant in providing services comparable to independent living services; (iii) the plan for complying with, or demonstrated success in complying with, the standards and the assurances set forth in section 796f–4 of this title; (iv) the quality of key personnel of the applicant and the involvement of individuals with significant disabilities by the applicant; (v) the budgets and cost-effectiveness of the applicant; (vi) the evaluation plan of the applicant; and (vii) the ability of such applicant to carry out the plans; and (C) the director of the designated State unit shall award the grant on the basis of the recommendations of the peer review committee if the actions of the committee are consistent with Federal and State law. (3) Notwithstanding paragraphs (1) and (2), a center for independent living that receives assistance under subpart 2 for a fiscal year shall be eligible for a grant for the subsequent fiscal year under this subsection. (e) Unless the director of the designated State unit and the chairperson of the Council or other individual designated by the Council acting on behalf of and at the direction of the Council jointly agree on another order of priority, the director shall be guided by the following order of priorities in allocating funds among centers for independent living within a State, to the extent funds are available: (1) The director of the designated State unit shall support existing centers for independent living, as described in subsection (c), that comply with the standards and assurances set forth in section 796f–4 of this title, at the level of funding for the previous year. (2) The director of the designated State unit shall provide for a cost-of-living increase for such existing centers for independent living. (3) The director of the designated State unit shall fund new centers for independent living, as described in subsection (d), that comply with the standards and assurances set forth in section 796f–4 of this title. (f) A center that provides or manages residential housing after October 1, 1994, shall not be considered to be an eligible agency under this section. (1) The director of the designated State unit shall periodically review each center receiving funds under this section to determine whether such center is in compliance with the standards and assurances set forth in section 796f–4 of this title. If the director of the designated State unit determines that any center receiving funds under this section is not in compliance with the standards and assurances set forth in section 796f–4 of this title, the director of the designated State unit shall immediately notify such center that it is out of compliance. (2) The director of the designated State unit shall terminate all funds under this section to such center 90 days after— (A) the date of such notification; or (B) in the case of a center that requests an appeal under subsection (i), the date of any final decision under subsection (i), (h) The director of the designated State unit shall annually conduct onsite compliance reviews of at least 15 percent of the centers for independent living that receive funding under this section in the State. Each team that conducts onsite compliance review of centers for independent living shall include at least one person who is not an employee of the designated State agency, who has experience in the operation of centers for independent living, and who is jointly selected by the director of the designated State unit and the chairperson of or other individual designated by the Council acting on behalf of and at the direction of the Council. A copy of this review shall be provided to the Administrator. (i) If the director of the designated State unit proposes to take a significant adverse action against a center for independent living, the center may seek mediation and conciliation to be provided by an individual or individuals who are free of conflicts of interest identified by the chairperson of or other individual designated by the Council. If the issue is not resolved through the mediation and conciliation, the center may appeal the proposed adverse action to the Administrator for a final decision.