Fiscal Year (FY) 1997 Funding Opportunities for Knowledge Development and Application Cooperative Agreements

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration

Fiscal Year (FY) 1997 Funding Opportunities for Knowledge

Development and Application Cooperative Agreements

AGENCY: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, HHS.

ACTION: Notice of funding availability.

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SUMMARY: The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services

Administration's (SAMHSA) Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS),

Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP), and Center for Substance

Abuse Treatment (CSAT) announce the availability of FY 1997 funds for

Knowledge Development and Application cooperative agreements for the

following activity. This activity, a collaborative effort of SAMHSA and

The Casey Family Program, is discussed in more detail under Section 4

of this notice. This notice is not a complete description of the

activity; potential applicants must obtain a copy of the Guidance for

Applicants (GFA) before preparing an application.

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Estimated

Application funds Estimated Project

Activity deadline available number of period

(million) awards (years)

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Starting Early Starting Smart............................... 04/17/97 $6.4 11 4

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Note: SAMHSA published notices of available funding

opportunities in FY 1997 in the Federal Register (Vol. 62, No. 16)

on Friday, January 24, 1997, and in (Vol. 62, No. 27) on Monday,

February 10, 1997. It anticipates publishing additional notices of

available funding opportunities in the coming weeks.

The actual amount available for awards and their allocation may

vary, depending on unanticipated program requirements and the volume

and quality of applications. Awards are usually made for grant periods

from one to three years in duration. FY 1997 funds for activities

discussed in this announcement were appropriated by the Congress under

Pub. L. 104-208. SAMHSA's policies and procedures for peer review and

Advisory Council review of grant and cooperative agreement applications

were published in the Federal Register (Vol. 58, No. 126) on July 2,

1993.

The Public Health Service (PHS) is committed to achieving the

health promotion and disease prevention objectives of Healthy People

2000, a PHS-led national activity for setting priority areas. The

SAMHSA Centers' substance abuse and mental health services activities

address issues related to Healthy People 2000 objectives of Mental

Health and Mental Disorders; Alcohol and Other Drugs; Clinical

Preventive Services; HIV Infection; and Surveillance and Data Systems.

Potential applicants may obtain a copy of Healthy People 2000 (Full

Report: Stock No. 017-001-00474-0) or Summary Report: Stock No. 017-

001-00473-1) through the Superintendent of Documents, Government

Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402-9325 (Telephone: 202-512-1800).

GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS: Applicants must use application form PHS 5161-1

(Rev. 5/96; OMB No. 0937-0189). The application kit contains the GFA

(complete programmatic guidance and instructions for preparing and

submitting applications), the PHS 5161-1 which includes Standard Form

424 (Face Page), and other documentation and forms. Application kits

may be obtained from the organization specified in Section 4.

When requesting an application kit, the applicant must specify the

particular activity for which detailed information is desired. This is

to ensure receipt of

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all necessary forms and information, including any specific program

review and award criteria.

The PHS 5161-1 application form is also available electronically

via SAMHSA's World Wide Web Home Page (address: http://www.samhsa.gov).

Click on SAMHSA Funding Opportunities for instructions. You can also

click on the address of the forms distribution Web Page for direct

access.

The full text of the activity (i.e., the GFA) described in Section

4 is available electronically via the following:

SAMHSA's World Wide Web Home Page (address: http://www.samhsa.gov)

and SAMHSA's Bulletin Board (800-424-2294 or 301-443-0040).

APPLICATION SUBMISSION: Applications must be submitted to: SAMHSA

Programs, Division of Research Grants, National Institutes of Health,

Suite 1040, 6701 Rockledge Drive MSC-7710, Bethesda, Maryland 20892-

7710*

(* Applicants who wish to use express mail or courier service should

change the zip code to 20817.)

APPLICATION DEADLINES: The deadline for receipt of applications is

listed in the table above.

Competing applications must be received by the indicated receipt

date to be accepted for review. An application received after the

deadline may be acceptable if it carries a legible proof-of-mailing

date assigned by the carrier and that date is not later than one week

prior to the deadline date. Private metered postmarks are not

acceptable as proof of timely mailing.

Applications received after the deadline date and those sent to an

address other than the address specified above will be returned to the

applicant without review.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for activity-specific

technical information should be directed to the program contact person

identified in Section 4.

Requests for information concerning business management issues

should be directed to the grants management contact person identified

in Section 4.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: To facilitate the use of this Notice of

Funding Availability, information has been organized as outlined in the

Table of Contents below. For each activity, the following information

is provided.

Application Deadline.

Purpose.

Priorities.

Eligible Applicants.

Grants/Cooperative Agreements/Amounts.

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number.

Contacts.

Application Kits.

Table of Contents

1. Program Background and Objectives

2. Special Concerns

3. Criteria for Review and Funding

3.1 General Review Criteria

3.2 Funding Criteria for Scored Applications

4. Special FY 1997 Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services

Administration Activities

4.1 Cooperative Agreements

4.1.1 Cooperative Agreements for Integrating Mental Health and

Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Services with Primary

Health Care Service Setting or with Early Childhood Service

Settings, for Children Ages Birth to 7 and their Families/Caregivers

(Short Title: Starting Early Starting Smart)

5. Public Health System Reporting Requirements

6. PHS Non-use of Tobacco Policy Statement

7. Executive Order 12372

1. Program Background and Objectives

SAMHSA's mission within the Nation's health system is to improve

the quality and availability of prevention, early intervention,

treatment, and rehabilitation services for substance abuse and mental

illnesses, including co-occurring disorders, in order to improve health

and reduce illness, death, disability, and cost to society.

Reinventing government, with its emphases on redefining the role of

Federal agencies and on improving customer service, has provided SAMHSA

with a welcome opportunity to examine carefully its programs and

activities. As a result of that process, SAMHSA is moving assertively

to create a renewed and strategic emphasis on using its resources to

generate knowledge about ways to improve the prevention and treatment

of substance abuse and mental illness and to work with State and local

governments as well as providers, families, and consumers to

effectively use that knowledge in everyday practice. As part of this

reinvention effort, SAMHSA has also explored collaborating with other

organizations which share our interest in funding the development of

knowledge in which we share a mutual interest. In the instant case,

SAMHSA is engaging in a limited collaborative effort with The Casey

Family Program to fund, monitor, and evaluate the projects funded under

this GFA. The Casey Family Program has provided a portion of the funds

SAMHSA will use in making awards under this GFA. In addition, The Casey

Family Program may decide to select several of the projects funded by

this program to assist in supporting program operations beyond the life

of Federal support. The selection of these grantees will be solely

within The Casey Family Program's discretion.

The agency has transformed its demonstration grant programs from

service-delivery projects to knowledge acquisition and application. For

FY 1997, SAMHSA has developed an agenda of new programs designed to

answer specific important policy-relevant questions. These questions,

specified in this and subsequent Notices of Funding Availability, are

designed to provide critical information to improve the Nation's mental

health and substance abuse treatment and prevention services.

The agenda is the outcome of a process whereby providers, services

researchers, consumers, National Advisory Council members and other

interested persons participated in special meetings or responded to

calls for suggestions and reactions. From this input, each SAMHSA

Center developed a ``menu'' of suggested topics. The topics were

discussed jointly and an agency agenda of critical topics was agreed

to. The selection of topics depended heavily on policy importance and

on the existence of adequate research and practitioner experience on

which to base studies. While SAMHSA's FY 1997 programs will sometimes

involve the evaluation of some delivery of services, they are services

studies and application activities, not merely evaluation, since they

are aimed at answering policy-relevant questions and putting that

knowledge to use.

SAMHSA differs from other agencies in focusing on needed

information at the services delivery level, and in its question-focus.

Dissemination and application are integral, major features of the

programs. SAMHSA believes that it is important to get the information

into the hands of the public, providers, and systems administrators as

effectively as possible. Technical assistance, training, preparation of

special materials will be used, in addition to normal communications

means.

2. Special Concerns

SAMHSA's FY 1997 Knowledge Development and Application activities

discussed below do not provide funds for mental health and substance

abuse treatment and prevention services except for costs required by

the particular activity's study design. Applicants are required to

propose true knowledge application or knowledge development and

application projects. Applications seeking funding for

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services projects will be considered nonresponsive. Applications that

are incomplete or nonresponsive to the GFA will be returned to the

applicant without further consideration.

3. Criteria for Review and Funding

Consistent with the statutory mandate for SAMHSA to support

activities that will improve the provision of treatment, prevention and

related services, including the development of national mental health

and substance abuse goals and model programs, competing applications

requesting funding under the specific project activity in Section 4

will be reviewed for technical merit in accordance with established

PHS/SAMHSA peer review procedures.

3.1 General Review Criteria

As published in the Federal Register on July 2, 1993 (Vol. 58, No.

126), SAMHSA's ``Peer Review and Advisory Council Review of Grant and

Cooperative Agreement Applications and Contract Proposals,'' peer

review groups will take into account, among other factors as may be

specified in the application guidance materials, the following general

criteria:

Potential significance of the proposed project;

Appropriateness of the applicant's proposed objectives to

the goals of the specific program;

Adequacy and appropriateness of the proposed approach and

activities;

Adequacy of available resources, such as facilities and

equipment;

Qualifications and experience of the applicant

organization, the project director, and other key personnel; and

Reasonableness of the proposed budget.

3.2 Funding Criteria for Scored Applications

Applications will be considered for funding on the basis of their

overall technical merit as determined through the peer review group and

the appropriate National Advisory Council (if applicable) review

process.

Other funding criteria will include:

Availability of funds.

Additional funding criteria specific to the programmatic activity

may be included in the application guidance materials.

4. Special FY 1997 Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services

Administration Activities

4.1 Cooperative Agreements

A major SAMHSA cooperative agreement program is discussed below.

Substantive Federal programmatic involvement is required in cooperative

agreement programs. Federal involvement will include planning,

guidance, coordination, and participating in programmatic activities

(e.g., participation in publication of findings and on steering

committees). Periodic meetings, conferences and/or communications with

the award recipients may be held to review mutually agreed-upon goals

and objectives and to assess progress. Additional details on the degree

of Federal programmatic involvement will be included in the application

guidance materials.

4.1.1 Cooperative Agreements for Integrating Mental Health and

Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Services With Primary Health

Care Service Settings or With Early Childhood Service Settings, for

Children Ages Birth to 7 and Their Families/Caregivers (Short Title:

Starting Early Starting Smart)

Application Deadline: April 17, 1997

Purpose: Cooperative agreements will be awarded to support

knowledge development and application (KDA) efforts to generate new

knowledge about and test the effectiveness for children ages birth to 7

and their families/caregivers, of integrating mental health and

substance abuse prevention and treatment services (behavioral health

services), with primary health care service settings and/or with early

childhood service settings, and to synthesize the results of this

effort, and compare it to the usual standard of community care.

Cooperative agreements will be awarded for two kinds of

applications: Knowledge Development Starting Early Starting Smart

(SESS) sites and a data coordinating center.

The primary goal of this program is to provide answers to the

following questions:

(1) Will the integration of behavioral health services with a

primary health care or early childhood service site lead to higher

rates of entry into prevention, early intervention or treatment of

children/families identified as in need of behavioral health services

as compared to children/families served in primary health care or early

childhood service settings where no such integration or services takes

place?

(2) Will the integration of behavioral health services with a

primary health care or early childhood service site promote and sustain

measurable improvements (social, emotional, and cognitive) in children

and families served, compared to children and families in primary

health care or early childhood service settings where no such

integration of services takes place?

Priorities: None.

Eligible Applicants: Applications for either SESS sites or

the data coordinating center may be submitted by units of State or

local governments and by domestic private nonprofit and for-profit

organizations such as community-based organizations, universities,

colleges, and hospitals.

Each SESS site proposal must include documentation regarding the

existence of an infra-structure and two years of experience providing

behavioral health and other relevant services to the target population.

Cooperative Agreements/Amounts: Approximately $5.9 million

will be available to support approximately 10 SESS site awards and

$500,000 to support one data coordinating center award under this GFA

in FY 1997. Actual funding levels will depend upon the availability of

appropriated funds.

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number: 93.230

Program Contact: For programmatic or technical assistance,

contact:

Rose C. Kittrell, MSW, Starting Early--Starting Smart, Early Childhood

Collaboration, Substance Abuse and Mental health Services

Administration, Rockwall II, Room 1075, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville,

MD 20857, (301) 443-0354 or (301) 443-9110.

Grants Management Contact: For business management

assistance, contact: Mary Lou Dent, Division of Grants Management, OPS,

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Rockwall II,

Room 640, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD 20857, (301) 443-5702.

Application Kits: Application kits are available from:

National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information, PO Box 2345,

Rockville, MD 20847-2345, 1-800-729-6686; 1-800-487-4889 TDD, Via

Internet: www.health.org (go into Forum Section of the web site, click

on ``CSAP FY 97 grant opportunities'').

Visually impaired: disk versions of the application may be

requested.

5. Public Health System Reporting Requirements

The Public Health System Impact Statement (PHSIS) is intended to

keep State and local health officials apprised of proposed health

services grant and cooperative agreement applications submitted by

community-based nongovernmental organizations within their

jurisdictions.

Community-based nongovernmental service providers who are not

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transmitting their applications through the State must submit a PHSIS

to the head(s) of the appropriate State and local health agencies in

the area(s) to be affected not later than the pertinent receipt date

for applications. This PHSIS consists of the following information:

a. A copy of the face page of the application (Standard form 424).

b. A summary of the project (PHSIS), not to exceed one page, which

provides:

(1) A description of the population to be served.

(2) A summary of the services to be provided.

(3) A description of the coordination planned with the appropriate

State or local health agencies.

State and local governments and Indian Tribal Authority applicants

are not subject to the Public Health System Reporting Requirements.

Application guidance materials will specify if the FY 1997 activity

described above is/is not subject to the Public Health System Reporting

Requirements.

6. PHS Non-Use of Tobacco Policy Statement

The PHS strongly encourages all grant and contract recipients to

provide a smoke-free workplace and promote the non-use of all tobacco

products. In addition, Pub. L. 103-227, the Pro-Children Act of 1994,

prohibits smoking in certain facilities (or in some cases, any portion

of a facility) in which regular or routine education, library, day

care, health care, or early childhood development services are provided

to children. This is consistent with the PHS mission to protect and

advance the physical and mental health of the American people.

Specific application guidance materials may include more detailed

guidance as to how a Center will implement SAMHSA's policy on promoting

the non-use of tobacco.

117. Executive Order 12372

Applications submitted in response to the FY 1997 activity listed

above are subject to the intergovernmental review requirements of

Executive Order 12372, as implemented through DHHS regulations at 45

CFR part 100. E.O. 12372 sets up a system for State and local

government review of applications for Federal financial assistance.

Applicants (other than Federally recognized Indian tribal governments)

should contact the State's Single Point of Contact (SPOC) as early as

possible to alert them to the prospective application(s) and to receive

any necessary instructions on the State's review process. For proposed

projects serving more than one State, the applicant is advised to

contact the SPOC of each affected State. A current listing of SPOCs is

included in the application guidance materials. The SPOC should send

any State review process recommendations directly to: Office of

Extramural Activities Review, Substance Abuse and Mental Health

Services Administration, Parklawn Building, Room 17-89, 5600 Fishers

Lane, Rockville, Maryland 20857.

The due date for State review process recommendations is no later

than 60 days after the specified deadline date for the receipt of

applications. SAMHSA does not guarantee to accommodate or explain SPOC

comments that are received after the 60-day cut-off.

Dated: February 10, 1997.

Richard Kopanda,

Executive Officer, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration.

[FR Doc. 97-3713 Filed 2-13-97; 8:45 am]

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