Jobs and Housing Program Grants - CLOSED

Grants to provide jobs and housing for individuals experiencing homelessness. 

King County is providing up to $8.5 million in grants to support individuals experiencing homelessness stabilize their lives by providing a steady place to live, an interim job, and access to supportive services and career navigation. The goal of this RFP is to identify agencies/firms that can help in the provision of jobs to program participants and, either provide directly or coordinate with other program supports (housing, transportation, etc.) to further program goals.

King County has long faced unacceptable levels of homelessness, and currently, the County is experiencing record level of homelessness. Like the rest of the country, the COVID-19 pandemic and associated recession has had significant impacts on employment. Job loss and homelessness have been especially significant in certain sectors of the economy such as food service and hospitality because of COVID-19 restrictions.

This RFP solicits proposals to provide jobs to individuals experiencing homelessness that enable program participants to gain skills and experience to support future stable employment. Program participants will be drawn from the current population of people who are experiencing homelessness in King County and who have been negatively impacted by COVID-19. Preference will be given to proposals that include a minimum of 25 participants.

Housing supports will primarily be offered through King County’s contracted Rapid Re-housing (RRH) providers to connect program participants with housing and subsidies. In addition to housing services through the RRH program, Jobs and Housing participants are also eligible to receive support services (ORCA passes, attire, equipment, etc.), and career navigation and wrap-around support services.

Grant sizes:   The funding amount of each award will be determined by the amount requested by applicants, the number of successful applications, and the applicant’s evaluation score.

Allowable Use of Funds:  Eligible expense and activities include, but are not limited to:

• Wages and benefits for participant, staff, and trainers
• Tuition, books, fees, etc. for education and training programs
• Incentives and stipends for education and training
• Supplies, tools, equipment, attire, etc. required for employment

Application Instructions:  The application window is now open. Complete the application via the link below:

• Apply here.
• Review the full RFA, including a preview of the application questions here.
• 1/11/22 Info Session Powerpoint, Q&A Responses Round 1 and Round 2.
  
• Email questions to Sasha Gourevitch at agourevitch@kingcounty.gov

Federal Grant Documentation and Requirements

Federally funded contracts require a variety of documentation. The requirements below highlight some of the documentation and record keeping required for most COVID relief grants and contracts.  Each RFP/RFA will outline the required documentation to meet federal requirements – please find a sample contract agreement for the Jobs & Housing grant program here. 

Accounting Methods

Expenditures must be recorded and documented using the cash or accrual basis of accounting using Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP).

System for Award Management Registration

Organizations receiving federal funds must maintain active registration with the System for Award Management (SAM) for aggregate federal award amounts exceeding $50,000. All award recipients must be verified using the Exclusions section of SAM.gov as being not suspended or debarred. Refer to this guide for assistance requesting your Sam.gov Unique ID.

Monthly Documentation and Verification Paperwork

• General ledger/expenditure detail reports for the payment period
• Hourly timesheets for employees charged to the contract, including those who are salaried
• Client proof of program eligibility, such as self-certification of COVID impact form
• Agency and client attestation forms certifying nonduplication of benefits
• Detailed proof of expenses and payment, such as receipts, cash value card tracking form, payroll items (payroll reports, paystubs, hourly timesheets) and justification of expense
• Proof of activities/events, such as sign-in sheets, meeting agendas, etc.

Demographic and Outcome Data Collection Reporting
King County is required to provide regular performance reporting and may ask organizations to provide information to support the following requirements:

• Output measurement for programs in certain expenditure categories.
• Annual performance reporting for major programs including output and outcome measures. The federal government encourages programs to provide data broken down by age, race, ethnicity, gender identity, and possibly other demographic information.