November 30 UPDATE:
After initial approval of the Vaccine Incentive Program (VIP), The U.S. Department of Education (USDE) is not refusing to cover them. WCRIS and the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) are appealing the Department’s decision. Schools reach out to CESA 6 at eans@cesa6.org if they are planning to do a VIP.
See the latest on VIP on our VIP page located under the COVID-19 tab.
After creating the idea to use EANS funds for Vaccine Incentive Programs (VIP), WCRIS has been working mightily to help WCRIS schools facilitate the programs.
WCRIS member schools should use the following tools and information for an orderly administration of a VIP:
1. VIP Forms: Private schools will need to document the collection of people’s proof of vaccination status and proof that the recipient received the incentive. Here are forms to accomplish that, which have been vetted by WCRIS legal counsel Husch Blackwell.
2. Federal Financial Assistance: WCRIS reviewed the U.S. Department of Education’s (USED) FAQ guidance on the Emergency Assistance to Non-Public Schools Program (EANS), which was issued on September 17, 2021.
Most notably, the FAQ response to question D-12 states in part, “[a] non-public school whose students and teachers receive services or assistance under the EANS program, even if such services or assistance are delivered through reimbursement, is not a ‘recipient of Federal financial assistance’. As a result, certain Federal requirements that apply to a recipient of Federal financial assistance are not directly applicable to a non-public school whose students or teachers receive services or assistance under the program, unless the school receives Federal financial assistance for other purposes.” (emphasis added).
3. Grantee status: WCRIS notes that it is important that any documentation referring to non-public schools not inadvertently characterize the non-public school as a sub-recipient or subgrantee. Legal Counsel periodically sees this mistake in administration of such grants by SEAs and LEAs and flagged that for WCRIS schools’ awareness.
4. Purchases for Vaccine Incentive Programs: Notably, the FAQs discuss how EANS funds may be allocated to private schools as reimbursements for future purchases of other supplies, such as for Vaccine Incentive Programs, when those supplies are not firm pieces of equipment for which the SEA can retain the title.
The typical example used is a laptop since the SEA can allocate disbursements to private schools for the purchase of the laptops ahead of the devices actually being purchased, then receive the title of the devices once purchased and simply allow the private school to continue to use the devices. However, the FAQs recognize that the requirement that a SEA retains title over these “other supplies” is complicated in the case of supplies that are perishable or not the type of supply that it would be practical to retain ownership of, such as personal protective equipment. These materials are called consumables.
The FAQs describe a workaround for this scenario (in the answer to question E-3 found on pages 24-25 of the FAQs). For these types of supplies “retaining documentation that the public agency provided such consumable supplies to a given non-public school would be sufficient to meet the public control requirement. If such supplies are not consumed during the period of performance of the EANS program, a public agency must retrieve them for other allowable uses.”
This is notable because it indicates that if EANS funds are issued to a private school to support a Vaccine Incentive Program, but not all of the funds are actually utilized as part of the program by the recipient school (i.e., not many people participated and the amount of incentives paid out is lower than had been planned when the funds were allocated), those incentives will need to be returned to the SEA at the appropriate time.
