Module 6: No Cost Extension Amendments

How to File a No Cost Extension (NCE) Amendment

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Are you in the final year of your project and could use more time to complete delayed activities? Then you may want to file a No Cost Extension amendment.

A No Cost Extension (NCE) can be requested near the close of a project in order to extend the grant period by up to 12 months to complete project activities. ANA awards funding to a grantee with the intention that all objectives will be completed within the approved time frame; therefore, requests for an NCE must be strongly justified by the grantee in order to be approved. If grantees are behind on project activities and spending, ANA can provide technical assistance during the project period that can help grantees overcome project challenges that are causing the delays.

Note that an NCE will not be granted simply to spend unspent grant funds; all extensions must be justified by their being delayed activities remaining. In exceptional cases, ANA can approve a NCE to allow grantees extra time to complete the project objectives successfully.

  • Speaker 1 (00:02):
  • No cost Extensions. ANA Grant Recipients, behind onactivities in the final year of their project can request an extension periodof up to 12 months through a No cost Extension amendment. Remember to submityour request at least 45 days prior to the end of your final project year. Assuch, you may have to project whether or not activities will be completed atthe end of the project period. Remember before filing an NCE Amendment, contactyour Program Specialist to give them a heads-up and coordinate on details.There are a few things you'll need to file an NCE. First, a Workplan,indicating which activities still need to be completed. Next, your SF-424A andyour SF-424 Standard Budget Forms, which are filled out online in GrantSolutions. Your SF-425 indicates remaining funds for the extension period. Ifyou are proposing revisions, you'll need to submit a Line Item Budget. Andfinally, you'll need to submit a Cover Letter, summarizing the need for your Nocost Extension.
  • Speaker 1 (01:11):
  • We'll go over each of these items in more detail in thisvideo. All ANA Grant Amendments are filed in the online grant solution systemat grantsolutions.gov. Log in using your unique username and password. The newGrant Solutions interface is optimized for user experience but for filingamendments, we recommend the classic experience. To switch back to Classicview, click the dropdown menu on the top-right corner of your screen and click,Switch Back to Classic. The survey is optional. From your Grants List, find thegrant you'd like to amend and click Manage Amendment. If you've filedamendments in the past, you'll see a list of them here. Scroll down and clickon the button that says New, to start a new amendment. From the list ofamendment types, select, No cost Extension and click the button that saysCreate Amendment.
  • Speaker 1 (02:11):
  • The Grant Solutions Amendment Application ControlChecklist, is where you'll upload all of the required elements needed to fileyour No cost Extension amendment. Let's begin with how to prepare are yourWorkplan for an NCE. ARP Grant Recipients were allowed to submit customWorkplans but for amendments, ANA recommends using the standard Objective WorkPlan template or OWP, indicating the activities that still need to becompleted, the revised end date and which staff will be responsible for theircompletion. From the ANA website, click on the Resources tab, search by keywordfor objective work plan and from the list of results find the Resource LibraryPost that says Objective Work Plan. Click the link at the end of the firstparagraph to download the template. Open the Word-Doc you just downloaded.Here, we'll be using an example from the NCE Toolkit, which you can find in thelinks accompanying this video. At the top of the document, list your projecttitle, project goal and the final project year.
  • Speaker 1 (03:20):
  • If your project is a one-year project, then you'll listProject Year: 1. Next, type your project objective and the accompanyingoutcome. You'll fill out one of these work plans for each objective that stillhas delayed activities that need to be completed during the extension period.In the Activities column, list each activity that you'll need some extra timeto complete. For each activity, list the corresponding output. This is whatwill be generated as a result of completing the activity. Next, list theProject Staff that will be responsible for ensuring that each activity iscompleted. Enter the original Start Date and most importantly, enter the newdate when you expect your activity will be completed, which can be up to 12months after your original End Date.
  • Speaker 1 (04:11):
  • Now let's take a look at the SF-424A and SF-424 BudgetForms. Your standard budget forms are filled online in Grant Solutions, usingthe same numbers you submitted for your Final Year Budget. Start with theSF-424A, which will auto-fill some fields in the 424. To get started, clickEnter Online. Let's start with Section A. We're going to manually change therow headings. In column A, row 1, type "Federal Share". You'll seethat this will automatically change the column heading in Section B. In row 2,type Non-Federal Share and in column B, select the grant that you hold. Next,we're going to provide the budget numbers for your final year. In row 1, columnE, indicate the total Federal Funds for your Final Year Budget. In row 2,column F, indicate the Non-Federal funds. Section B, itemizes these values byobject-class categories.
  • Speaker 1 (05:10):
  • In column 1, are Federal Share and in column 2, areNon-Federal Share. Before moving on to the next section, make sure that thetotal sums of each column equal the values you inputted it in Section A.Section C asks only for Non-Federal Share. In row 9, enter the various sourcesof your Non-Federal Funds. The total should equal the amount you indicated inSection A. Section D, has you define how you intended your reward to be spentin each quarter of your final year? This may require more precision than simplydividing by four. If applicable, indicate your Indirect Cost Rate in row 22,then click Save. Click "Yes", in the pop-up to automatically transfersome info to the SF-424 and then click "Close" to return to the mainchecklist. Back in the Grant Solutions control checklist, you'll know that the424 A is complete. If you see a check mark in the status column, click enteronline to work on the 424. Your NCE 424 should be an application revision.Under type of revision, we're going to choose "Other" and specify, Nocost Extension.
  • Speaker 1 (06:25):
  • After filling out the SF-424A, you'll notice that mostfields on the SF-424 have been pre-populated for your convenience. Just makesure that everything looks okay and you'll be good to move on. Section 16, asksfor the congressional districts of your applicant organization and your projectin a specific format. Start with the two character state abbreviation, then ahyphen, then your district number in a three digit format for some grantrecipients, your project and your applicant headquarters might not be in thesame congressional district. Section 18 has been prepopulated with values. Youput into the SF-424A, just double check that everything looks okay beforemoving on. Verify that your responses to questions 19 and 20 are correct. Andcheck the check box in question 21, to certify that the information youprovided is accurate. Your SF 424 should be submitted by an authorizedrepresentative of your organization.
  • Speaker 1 (07:28):
  • Double check the contact info and if everything lookscorrect, click save. Verify that your saves been successful. Then click theclose button to return to the application control checklist. If you see a checkmark in the status column, then congratulations, you are ready to move on tothe next step. The next item to include in your NCE amendment package is yourSF-425 federal financial report. You can retrieve your latest SF-425 from thepayment management system @pms.psc.gov. Log using the same username andpassword that you used to file your financial reports and draw down funds. Ifyou have trouble logging in or need help locating your latest SF-425, werecommend contacting your PMs Liaison Accountant. Use the built in search toolto find the liaison accountant assigned to your organization. A sample SF-425is included in the sample NCE Toolkit Portfolio, which you can download fromthe links accompanying this video. To upload your SF-425 from the applicationcontrolled checklist, click uploaded files.
  • Speaker 1 (08:42):
  • We're going to upload the SF-425 as an attachment. First,give it a description name, something simple. Next, click "choosefile" and find the SF-425 file on your computer. Click "open"and then click "attach". Verify that the number of attachments saysone and then click close. If you've uploaded the SF-425 correctly, you'll see acheckbox in the status column on the main control checklist. If you have grantfunds remaining and would like to revise how they'll be spent during theextension period, you'll need to submit a revision to your existing line itembudget. We recommend using the Budget Revision Template, which you can downloadfrom the links accompanying this video. This Excel worksheet is set up withyour standard object class categories. But in addition to the standard FederalShare and Non-Federal Share columns, you'll find a column for revisions andanother for what the final request will be.
  • Speaker 1 (09:43):
  • Keep in mind that no additional funds may be granted forthe extension period. Finally, you'll prepare a cover letter to accompany yourNCE amendment submission, prepare and upload a PDF or word DOC Cover Letter onorganization letterhead. Describe the rationale for why the amendment is neededand list your incomplete activities along with your anticipated completiondates and how you expect to complete them. Your Cover Letter should be signedby an authorized official of your organization. Back on the application controlchecklist, upload your OWP Cover Letter. And if applicable, budget through themiscellaneous information line, name and upload each of these two or threeattachments using the same method we covered for the SF-425 earlier in thisvideo. Check to make sure all three attachments have been successfullyuploaded, then click close to return to the main checklist. If you see a checkmark in the miscellaneous information row, then you're done.
  • Speaker 1 (10:47):
  • And if you see a check marks in all four content rows,then you're ready to submit. Click "verify submission" and verifythat all items required for your NCE are listed. When ready, click "finalsubmission" and congrats! The confirmation page means your amendment hasbeen submitted. Click to return to the main control checklist. And you should nowsee that your amendment has been assigned an application number. Also confirmthat the submitted date matches up to when you submitted. When ready, click"close". On the main manage amendments page, you'll notice the statushas changed to submitted, congratulations! You've just filed an application fora No Cost Extension amendment. For real time updates on the status of yourpending amendment. Check, The Manage Amendment section of your Grant Solutionsaccount. If you have any questions or just need some help with this process,reach out to your local TTA center for free technical assistance.

Up next

Module 7: Change in Key Personnel Amendments

How to File a Change in Key Personnel Amendment

Training Videos

Module 1: Getting Started – ARP Grant Recipient Orientation
Module 1: Getting Started – ARP Grant Recipient Orientation
Module 3: Due Semi-Annually (and Annually) – Financial Financial Report (FFR) (a.k.a. FSR)
Module 3: Due Semi-Annually (and Annually) – Financial Financial Report (FFR) (a.k.a. FSR)
Module 4: GrantSolutions Overview
Module 4: GrantSolutions Overview
Module 5: Budget Revision Amendments
Module 5: Budget Revision Amendments
Module 6: No Cost Extension Amendments
Module 6: No Cost Extension Amendments
Module 7: Change in Key Personnel Amendments
Module 7: Change in Key Personnel Amendments
Module 8: HHS Cost Principles and 45 CFR Part 75
Module 8: HHS Cost Principles and 45 CFR Part 75
Module 9: Semi-Annual ARP Progress Report
Module 9: Semi-Annual ARP Progress Report
Module 10: Final ARP Post-Project Progress Report
Module 10: Final ARP Post-Project Progress Report

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