- NOTIFICATION AND PAYMENT
- ALLOWABLE COSTS AND FUNDING RESTRICTIONS
- CONDITIONS OF FUNDING AND GRANT RESCINDMENT
NOTIFICATION AND PAYMENT
CAH will notify applicants of this grant program as to the results of their application on or about March 2025, via (1) letter of conditional grant award, (2) letter of intention to award, (3) letter of ineligibility, or (4) letter of denial.
For award recipients, the date of CAH grant award payment disbursement(s) is subject to the availability of funds and the processing of required documentation. CAH does not disburse grant award payments through its office. However, in collaboration with other District of Columbia government agencies, and in a timely manner, CAH processes the grant award payment requests for grantees.
ALLOWABLE COSTS AND FUNDING RESTRICTIONS
As an agency of the Government of the District of Columbia, CAH ensures that its grantmaking funds are expended in a fiscally responsible manner. CAH grant-related “allowable costs” are those costs that the District Government (through its subordinate agency, CAH) has determined, in its sole discretion, to be valid expenditures.
Examples of “Allowable Costs”:
- Artist fee (not to exceed 20% of grant budget).
- Equipment, technological resources, materials, supplies, and services directly related to the fabrication of the design proposal.
- Supplies purchased for the in-class student engagement.
- General Liability Insurance.
- Travel related to implementation of deliverables.
- Photographic and video documentation of the design proposal.
Examples of “Unallowable Costs”:
- Food and beverages.
- Sub-granting or re-granting of funds from CAH.
- Tuition and scholarships.
- College tuition expenses.
- Funds that are provided to universities, service organizations, foreign governments, or District of Columbia government agencies, including DC Public Schools.
- Costs related to fundraisers and off-site special events.
- Travel or other expenses not directly related to executing the proposed project.
All expenses must be documented by the grantee within the grant agreement. The grant program manager reviews and approves all proposed expenses before the grant agreement is processed for payment. Grantees with questions regarding allowable costs may contact CAH’s grant program manager. The grantee will be responsible for demonstrating the cash expenses and a final report.
The grant period is from October 1, 2024, to September 30, 2025. CAH restricts a grantee’s grant-funded activity expenses that are beyond the grant period.
CONDITIONS OF FUNDING AND GRANT RESCINDMENT
CAH reserves the right to rescind any and all grant awards for non-compliance with CAH’s RFQ guidelines, policies, or regulations, at any time. Fiscal Year 2025 grantees with unmet reporting obligations regarding previous CAH funding programs as of close of business on Wednesday, December 31, 2025, are ineligible to receive additional awards from CAH.
Grant Management and Rescindment
The grantee agrees that it will include a CAH logo and a credit line in all of its grant-related announcements and promotional material and that it will make its best efforts to publicly credit CAH’s support for the project in all related public events. CAH has the right to withhold, reduce or rescind a grant award according to the terms and provisions of the grant agreement or if the grantee exercises any of the following:
- Fails to notify CAH of changes in project collaborators or other significant management changes or changes in the project scope without advance approval.
- Refuses to provide access to monitoring.
- Fails to comply with the terms of the grant award contract requirements.
- Fails to demonstrate adequate financial management and oversight of the project; and/or,
- Fails to properly publicly credit CAH’s support of the funded project.
Citywide Clean Hands (CCH)
All applicants must submit a current “Citywide Clean Hands Certification,” from the District of Columbia’s Office of Tax and Revenue at the time of application. A current CCH should also be submitted prior to any grant award disbursement throughout the grant period. The CCH website application supports the “Clean Hands” Mandate (D.C. Code § 47-2862), which stipulates that individuals and businesses are to be denied District goods or services if there is a debt owed to the District of Columbia of more than one thousand dollars ($1000.00) for fees, fines, taxes, or penalties. Applicants may visit the following site to obtain more information: Certificate of Clean Hands | otr
Legal Compliance
Federal and District of Columbia law requires all grant applicants to comply with all applicable laws and regulations that regard non-discrimination. The list of those laws and regulations include:
Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (which provides that grantees must take adequate steps to ensure that people with limited English proficiency receive the language assistance necessary to afford them meaningful access to grant-related programs, activities, and services). Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (P.L. 88-352) (which prohibits discrimination based on race, color, or national origin). Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, as amended (20 U.S.C. §§ 1681- 1686) (which prohibits discrimination based on sex). Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended (29 U.S.C. § 794). The DC Human Rights Act of 1977; and The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. §§ 12101 – 12213) (which prohibits discrimination on the basis of disabilities).
Americans with Disabilities Act
CAH is committed to ensuring that all grantees comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990. The ADA provides civil rights protection to individuals with disabilities in the areas of employment, services rendered by state and local government, places of public accommodation, transportation, and telecommunication services. Organizations funded by CAH must make reasonable accommodations to ensure that people with disabilities have equal physical and communications access, as defined by federal law.
Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access (I.D.E.A.)
CAH has placed an increased focus on utilizing an Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access (I.D.E.A.) lens in its grantmaking, with the goal of creating a more equitable arts and humanities landscape in the District. In addition to detailed plans for its compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) (42 U.S.C. §§ 12101 et seq.), each applicant must demonstrate how its programming and services will be inclusive, diverse, equitable, and accessible throughout the District of Columbia, beyond participants with disabilities. Applicants should consider a broad definition of “accessibility” by addressing financial, geographic, demographic, cultural, and developmental access. For more information, see the Americans with Disabilities Act section of these RFA guidelines (see page 15). For reference, applicants may use this link to access the text of the ADA: https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/42/12101). Notwithstanding the fact that it has shared hyperlinks attached immediately above and later below, the District government does not represent that shared text of the ADA (or any other text) is the latest version of the subject law.
I.D.E.A. DEFINITIONS
Below are definitions used by CAH of each component of I.D.E.A. CAH encourages applicants to develop short- and long-term plans to ensure each of these components is realized in their processes and programs
INCLUSION
Inclusion authentically welcomes and intentionally brings traditionally excluded individuals and/or groups into processes, activities, and decision/policymaking in a way that shares power.
DIVERSITY
Diversity refers to the various backgrounds and races that comprise a community, nation, or other grouping. In many instances, the term diversity does not only acknowledge the existence of diversity of background, race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, etc., but applies a recognition of the value of these differences. Diversity enriches policies and practices by bringing people of diverse backgrounds and experiences together to inform, shape, and enrich these policies and practices.
EQUITY
Equity is giving everyone what they need to be successful. Equity is different from treating everyone the same. Equity operates from the understanding that people and groups enter given situations from very different starting points. These starting points are often determined by certain social hierarchies such as race, class, gender, age, sexual identity, etc. An equitable framework centers awareness of these hierarchies and creates systems that are actively anti- racist, anti-classist, anti-sexist, and anti-homophobic.
ACCESS
Access is defined in the broadest definition of the term as a means of ensuring individuals and/or groups are given financial, geographic, demographic, cultural, and developmental access to programming, services, and other opportunities.
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