E. REPORTING RESPONSIBILITIES

Requirement to Submit Reports on Grant Activities

The LITC Program Office requires the timely submission of two reports for each grant year – an Interim Report and a Year-End Report. The LITC Program Office uses the reports to assess the grant recipient’s progress in meeting its stated goals and objectives and to measure the quality of clinic operations, including the services provided to lowincome and ESL taxpayers. Quality of operations is measured by determining how well grant recipients support the three prongs of the LITC mission and the related performance measures. The LITC Program Office also compiles and analyzes data from the reports to assess the overall success of the LITC Program. Data is then incorporated into Publication 5066, LITC Program Report, which reports the activities of the LITCs to internal and external stakeholders, including Congress, and highlights the important work that LITCs perform to protect the rights of America’s taxpayers. Thus, it is important that grant recipients provide accurate and complete reports.

Submission of Reports and Other Documents

Grant recipient Interim and Year-End Reports are submitted online through the LITC Grants Portal. The LITC Program Office provides annual training on using the LITC Grants Portal. These training sessions are announced on the LITC Toolkit.

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Award Administration

Completing the Application Amendment

Application amendments are completed and submitted in the LITC Grants Portal. An application amendment is required by all grant recipients, even if the grant recipient is not changing the budget or program performance plan.

If the notice of funding issued by the LITC Program Office is other than what the applicant expected ( e.g. reduction in award, special conditions) and the applicant has questions or anticipates a need to change the program plan due to the award amount or conditions, it is strongly recommended that the recipient select the option to “Request for Conference” in lieu of “Start Application Amendment.” This will allow an opportunity for dialogue and resolution of questions or concerns and proposed changes to the program plan. This option should also be selected when the applicant is proposing substantial changes to the program, that were not anticipated when the application was submitted.

An award of less than the applicant’s requested funding amount is based on several factors, including the proposed goals in the application, risk assessment, and history of returning unexpended funds.

Applicants that are ready to proceed will select “Start Application Amendment.” This will un-submit the original application and allow for updates. The grantee should address any comments shared by the LITC Program Office in the Notice of Funding regarding needed corrections to the budget or plan as well as special conditions such as adjustment of goals. For narrative sections, a clinic will identify changes in narrative answer by inserting “Change” at the very beginning of the entry followed by and explanation of what is changing. For fields where the changes are to drop down or numeric fields simply make the needed updates.

The application amendment may also need to be revised during the grant year if there are certain enumerated changes discussed in Section V I.E.i, Events Requiring Notification to the LITC Program Office. The Program Office will offer a training session about the application amendment process; the date and time will be announced on the LITC Toolkit and in connection with award notifications.

i. Events Requiring Notification to the LITC Program Office

Some anticipated changes should be discussed with the LITC Program Office as far in advance of as possible, as some changes may not be allowable and may affect the clinic’s eligibility to draw down further grant funds. Changes may also impact funding decisions for a pending LITC grant application. This section discusses some changes that a clinic may experience. To report changes or anticipated changes requiring advanced notice, grant recipients should email their assigned Advocacy Analyst, copying the LITC Program Office at LITCGrants@treasury.gov. Sending an email through the portal will open a case and signal our system administrator that the application amendment may need to be returned for updates. The Advocacy Analyst will respond, request a time to discuss the matter with the grant recipient, and coordinate with our system administrator as needed.

Changes in Entity of Sponsoring Organization

Grant recipients must notify the LITC Program Office if the clinic or the clinic’s sponsoring organization plans to change its type of entity, including a merger with another clinic or organization. This notification shall inform the LITC Program Office of the planned entity changes or merger event, including the name and identifying information of any new organization involved or being formed, a timeline for the change or merger, and the name and contact information for the person the LITC Program Office should contact with questions.

If a merger occurs, the LITC Program Office may substitute another organization for the original sponsoring organization but not before confirming that the substitute organization has received the original sponsoring organization’s assets, the substitute organization’s clinic will provide the same scope of services to the same population as serviced or proposed to be serviced in the grant recipient’s application, and the substitute organization is qualified under the relevant statutes and regulations to be an LITC grant recipient. The LITC Program Office may not be deemed as approving any entity change or merger until such approval is received in writing from the Director of the LITC Program. The grant recipient is encouraged to notify the LITC Program Office as early in the entity change or merger process as possible so the two can timely work through the issues and, hopefully, limit any lapse in funding.

Failure to timely notify the LITC Program Office of a potential entity change or merger may result in restriction of funds or suspension or termination of the grant, see Section VIII, Award Modification, Suspension, Termination, or Withdrawal.

Significant Changes in Clinic Operations

Grant recipients must notify the LITC Program Office with problems, delays, or adverse conditions that significantly affect operations of the clinic or materially impair its ability to meet the objectives of the award. This notification shall inform the LITC Program Office of events, such as those described in this section, that may significantly affect operations and include a statement of the action taken or contemplated to address the situation, and whether any assistance from the LITC Program Office is needed to resolve the situation. Failure to notify the LITC Program Office may result in restriction of funds or suspension or termination of the grant, see Section VIII, Award Modification, Suspension, Termination, or Withdrawal.

Changes in Clinic or Key Personnel Contact Information

Grant recipients must immediately notify the LITC Program Office about proposed changes in contact information for the following:

n Key personnel, including the Clinic Director, QTE, or QBA (including their telephone number, mailing

address, or email address); and

n Clinic address (both the physical address and the mailing address), telephone number, or fax number.

These notifications ensure that the LITC Program Office has the most up-to-date information for each clinic and can also update information in IRS and TAS online resources and printed publications.

Changes in Program Plan or Budget Under 2 CFR § 200.308

Grant recipients are expected to spend grant funds and matching funds in accordance with the program plan and budget submitted with their application or as later revised and approved. Grant recipients must request approval from the LITC Program Office for any substantial change in the program plan or budget. A substantial change in the program plan or budget includes a change to:

n The scope or objective of the program;

n The days and hours of operation;

n The beginning and ending dates clinic services will be provided;

n Key personnel or time devoted to the LITC by key personnel; and

n The amount or composition of matching funds (cash or third-party in-kind match).

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Award Administration

Grant recipients are responsible for monitoring the use of LITC grant funds throughout the year to ensure that all grant funds awarded will be expended. If a grant recipient determines that it will have unused grant funds ( i.e., not spend its entire award), the grant recipient should immediately notify the assigned Advocacy Analyst in writing. The notification should contain the following information:

n The amount of grant funds being returned;

n The reason for the return of funds; and

n The impact the return of funds will have on future operations ( e.g., this is a one-time occurrence or the grant

recipient anticipates a permanent reduction in its future funding needs).

A grant recipient that does not expect to use its entire grant award must contact the LITC Program Office immediately so the office will have sufficient time to reobligate the funds to another clinic by September 30, the end of the federal government’s fiscal year. Grant recipients should also include this information in the Interim Report if they become aware that they will not use all funds prior to submitting the report.

Withdrawal From the LITC Program

A grant recipient that wishes to withdraw from the LITC Program or terminate operations of its LITC must notify the LITC Program Office prior to the date of withdrawal or termination. Notice should be given as far in advance as possible. Advance notice will allow the LITC Program Office to contact community partners where the clinic was located to find an alternate organization to apply for grant funding and hopefully ensure the ongoing availability of LITC services in that community.

NOTE: Upon withdrawal from the LITC Program, an organization may no longer refer to itself as an LITC. Failure to abide by this prohibition could lead to civil/criminal penalties or imprisonment. See 31 U.S.C. § 333.

ii. Submitting the Interim Report

An Interim Report must be submitted through LITC Grants Portal by July 30, 2027. The Interim Report covers the first half of the grant year (January 1, 2027, through June 30, 2027) and consists of:

n Form 13424-R, Low Income Taxpayer Clinic Program Report; and

n Form 13424-L, Detailed Budget Worksheet.

iii. Submitting the Year-End Report

A Year-End Report must be submitted online through LITC Grants Portal by March 30, 2028. The Year-End Report covers the entire grant year (January 1, 2027, through December 31, 2027).

n Form 13424-R, Low Income Taxpayer Clinic Program Report,

n Form 13424-L, Detailed Budget Worksheet, and

n Standard Form 425 Federal Financial Report.

Subject to OMB approval, the LITC Program Office may require additional reporting information from LITCs. Grant recipients should refer to the LITC Toolkit for updates on reporting requirements prior to submitting their reports. Training sessions will be offered to all grant recipients in advance of when each report is due, and details for the sessions will be announced on the LITC Toolkit.

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Late Submissions

In certain instances, grant recipients may request an extension of time to submit the Interim or Year-End Report. A report will still be considered late if submitted after the due date, but it is preferable to receive an extension. The request must be submitted in writing to the LITC Program Office before the due date of the report and must include an explanation justifying the extension and the date by which the report will be submitted. Grant recipients should submit the extension request via email to their assigned Advocacy Analyst and copy to LITCGrants@treasury.gov. Failure to timely submit required reports to the LITC Program Office may result in any or all the following:

n Restricted access to grant funds,

n Suspension or termination of the grant, or

n Reduction of any future award amount.

iv. Grant Closeout

The LITC Program Office will close out the LITC grant award when it determines that all applicable administrative actions and activities related to the grant have been completed by the grant recipient. Before a grant may be closed out, the following actions must be completed per 2 CFR § 200.344:

n Submission by the grant recipient of all required Interim and Year-End Report forms;

n Liquidation by the grant recipient of all obligations incurred under the award no later than 120 calendar days

(unless the LITC Program Office authorizes an extension) after the end date of the period of performance;

n Draw down by the grant recipient of payment for all allowable reimbursable costs;

n Repayment by the grant recipient of any balances of unobligated cash drawn down by the grant recipient; and

n Settlement of any adjustments to the grant award to account for any shortfall in the dollar-for-dollar matching

funds requirement.

The LITC Program Office must make every effort to complete closeout actions no later than one year after the end of the period of performance. If the grant recipient fails to complete the requirements to close out, the LITC Program Office will close out the award with the information available. If the grant recipient does not submit all required reports and forms within one year of the period of performance end date, the LITC Program Office must report the grant recipient’s material failure to comply with the terms and conditions of the award with the OMBdesignated integrity and performance system (FAPIIS). Per 2 CFR § 200.339, other enforcement actions may also be pursued at the discretion of the LITC Program Office.

By accepting the NOA, the grant recipient authorizes the LITC Program Office to take steps to deobligate funds without the need for the grant recipient to execute a new NOA, budget, or reporting forms if the amount involved is less than $25. The LITC Program Office will notify the clinic via email of the planned action 30 days prior to taking the action.

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LIT C Progr am Offic e Responsibiliti es and Contac