Single Point of Contact (SPOC)
All Applicants requesting Federal grant funds from any source are required by State Act 498 of 1983 and Federal Executive Order 12372 of 1982 to submit a copy of their complete application to the State Clearinghouse for review and comment.
The process has been created to allow those who were not in the planning stages of the application to be able to voice an opinion or make recommendations about a project, should they so desire, to eliminate the duplication of effort by more than one agency and to be a mechanism that informs the public of project activity throughout the state.
State Clearinghouse works closely with the fourteen Regional Clearinghouses that conduct reviews of grant applications on a local level.
The State Clearinghouse has the responsibility of coordinating the review of the various Public notice’s on activities that affect waterways either in or bordering the State of Arkansas, along with other activities such as land exchanges between the federal government and private landowners, the sale of government property, government facilities and surplus property and the construction of new postal facilities.
Applicants should also be aware that the Environmental Policy Act of 1969 may require the preparation of an Environmental Assessment (EA) or an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) in order to evaluate any environmental concerns. If this is the case, the State Clearinghouse would coordinate these activities with the Technical Review Committee, which is made up of representatives from the State Agencies below.
Review Procedures of Grant Applications
Upon the receipt of an application and the assignment of a State Application Identifier Number (SAI Number) , a thirty-day review period begins. The Project Summary is included in the Weekly Project Notification and Review System (PNRS) Project Activity Report and circulated to all parties on the PNRS mailing list.
All state-level applications are reviewed on a monthly basis by the Governor’s Office through the Governor’s Executive Review & Comment (GERC) process. State-level applications are also reviewed by the Review Sub-committee of the Arkansas Legislative Council.
In either of the review phases the reviewer may request a delay of the application's funding until any differences are resolved or questions answered.
Grant Award Notification
State-level organizations, local level and non-profit organizations are to transmit to the State Clearinghouse a completed Notification of Grant Award if their application is funded. Applicants should use the blank Grant Award Notification Form which will have been forwarded to the applicant along with the State Clearinghouse sign-off letter.
Material to be Submitted by State Agencies
One (1) copy of the complete Grant Application to include the (SF 424 Form) Application for Federal Assistance, Supplementary Grant Information Form, Clearinghouse Application Supplement Form, Project Budget and Narrative Information about project and all required assurances.
Material to be Submitted by City, County, Non-profit and Individuals
One (1) copy of the complete Grant Application to include the (SF 424 Form) Application for Federal Assistance, Budget, Narrative Information about the Project. Site location maps (if construction project) maps and drawings (if water and/or sewer project)and all required assurances, by-laws, etc.