Formula Funding Available

May 6, 2011

TO THE ADMINISTRATOR ADDRESSED:

SUBJECT:  2010–2012 Education Jobs Fund Grant

The Texas Education Agency (TEA) is pleased to announce the availability of funds under the Education Jobs (Ed Jobs) Fund for all local educational agencies (LEAs). The project period for the grant is August 10, 2010–September 30, 2012.

Eligible Applicants
All LEAs in Texas are eligible to receive Ed Jobs Funds. LEAs that received an SFSF grant award in 2009–2010 or 2010–2011 do not need to take any action to receive the Ed Jobs funds. An application is not required to be completed in this case.  A Notice of Grant Award (NOGA) and NOGA transmittal letter will be emailed on May 9, 2011, to the grantee official and to the primary and secondary contacts named on the LEA’s SFSF grant application.  LEAs that were eligible but did not apply for SFSF funds in either year must submit a two-page application for the Ed Jobs Fund grant.  The Ed Jobs Fund application will be emailed directly to those LEAs.

Allocations
Allocations for the 2010–2012 Ed Jobs Fund grant are based on weighted average daily attendance (WADA) state funding formulas.  The allocations can be viewed at http://www.tea.state.tx.us/index4.aspx?id=5040&menu_id=2147483678. Eligible LEAs will receive an allocation and a NOGA.  If your LEA will not use or does not want the Ed Jobs funds awarded to your LEA, please inform TEA’s Division of Formula Funding as soon as possible by rescinding your NOGA in writing.

Federal Requirements for Use of Funds

Please refer to US Department of Education (USDE) Guidance on the Education Jobs Fund Program at http://www.tea.state.tx.us/WorkArea/linkit.aspx?LinkIdentifier=id&ItemID=2147500372&libID=2147500369.  This federal guidance is also summarized below.

Federal Required Use of Funds:  Pursuant to the authorizing statute, Public Law 111-226, LEAs must use the Ed Jobs Fund grant for compensation and benefits and other expenses, such as support services, necessary to retain existingschool-level employees, to recall or rehire former school-level employees, and to hire new school-level employees, in order to provide early childhood, elementary, or secondary educational and related services. Allowable expenditures include, among other things, salaries, performance bonuses, health insurance, retirement benefits, incentives for early retirement, pension fund contributions, tuition reimbursement, student loan repayment assistance, transportation subsidies, and reimbursement for child-care expenses. All expenditures must support school-level employees. No funds may be expended for central office employees or for district-wide employees.

Federal Permissible Use of Funds:  LEAs may use the Ed Jobs Fund grant to pay the salaries of teachers and other employees who provide school-level educational and related services. In addition to teachers, school-level employees supported with program funds may include, but are not limited to, principals, assistant principals, academic coaches, in-service teacher trainers, classroom aides, counselors, librarians, secretaries, social workers, psychologists, interpreters, physical therapists, speech therapists, occupational therapists, information technology personnel, nurses, athletic coaches, security officers, custodians, maintenance workers, bus drivers, and cafeteria workers.

For an individual with both LEA-level and school-level responsibilities, an LEA may use the Ed Jobs Fund grant to pay only that portion of the employee’s salary and benefits associated with the time spent on allowable (i.e., school-level) activities. The LEA must maintain documentation (i.e., time and effort records) substantiating that amount of time.  Employees paid from Ed Jobs funds who work 100% of their time on school-level activities are not required to maintain time and effort records.

An LEA may use the Ed Jobs Fund grant to restore reductions in salaries and benefits and to implement salary increases for the 2010–2011 or 2011–2012 school years.  In addition, an LEA may use the funds for any additional salary and benefits costs associated with the elimination of furlough days that had been scheduled for the 2010–2011 or 2011–2012 school years. 

Federal Statutory Prohibitions on Use of Funds: (1) LEAs may not use the Ed Jobs Fund grant for general administrative expenses related to the operation of the superintendent's office or the LEA's board of education, including the salaries and benefits of LEA-level administrative employees. (2) Funds may not be used for payment of expenditures for fiscal services, LEA program planners and researchers, and human resource services.  Funds may also not be used for construction, renovation, remodeling, or repairs.

In addition, the following federal restrictions on uses of funds apply: 

•  An LEA may not use the Ed Jobs Fund grant to compensate employees for any period prior to August 10, 2010, the date of enactment of the act. 
• An LEA may not use the funds to pay for contractual school-level services by individuals who are not employees of an LEA (e.g., janitors employed by an outside firm).  However, an LEA that contracts with another LEA to provide educational and related services may use the Ed Jobs Fund grant to pay that portion of the contract associated with the salaries and benefits of the employees of the LEA providing the services.  
• An LEA may not use the Ed Jobs Fund grant to meet pension obligations incurred in prior school years.  However, an LEA may use its funds for pension obligations accruing on the basis of services that an employee performs during the 2010–2011 or 2011–2012 school years. 

Ed Jobs and American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) Federal Requirements

Ed Jobs, like ARRA, is accompanied by unprecedented levels of federal oversight and accountability. Please be reminded of the significant federal compliance obligations, additional federal reporting requirements, and potentially increased audit exposure related to these funds. As such, LEAs should retain accurate records related Ed Jobs funds. 

Federal Requirement for ARRA Section 1512 Quarterly Reporting:
Section 101 of the Ed Jobs Fund statute, P.L. 111-226, requires that the fund be administered under the terms and conditions of Title XV of ARRA. Therefore, LEAs must report quarterly on the use of these funds as is required for all ARRA grants pursuant to the requirements in Section 1512 of ARRA, including reporting jobs funded with Ed Jobs funds. Those reports will be cumulative and made available to the public at http://www.recovery.gov. TEA will submit the required federal reports and coordinate with recipient LEAs to obtain the necessary information for funds distributed by TEA. Guidance related to ARRA Section 1512 quarterly reporting is available at http://www.tea.state.tx.us/index4.aspx?id=7860&menu_id=934&menu_id2=941 .

The following table summarizes the ARRA Section 1512 quarterly reporting dates that are applicable to the Ed Jobs Fund grant:

Expenditure Reporting Deadlines
The following table lists reporting deadlines for the 2010–2012 Ed Jobs Fund grant.  LEAs that are awarded grants are responsible for meeting all required deadlines. Failure to meet deadlines may result in loss of funds and could cause the LEA to be identified as “high risk.”

Information and Assistance 
For additional information about Ed Jobs Fund requirements and guidance from the USDE, please refer to TEA’s Education Jobs Fund website at http://www.tea.state.tx.us/index4.aspx?id=%202147500359&menu_id=934&menu_id2=941.

For questions on ARRA Section 1512 Quarterly Reporting, contact the Fiscal Accountability and Federal Reporting Unit in the Office of the Chief Grants Administrator at (512) 936-3647, or arrastimulus@tea.state.tx.us.

For assistance in expenditure reporting or for fiscal-related questions, contact the Division of Formula Funding at (512) 463-8525, or Formulafunds@tea.state.tx.us.

Sincerely,

Yolanda Cantu
Senior Director, Division of Formula Funding