(A) As used in sections 5101.21 to 5101.212 of the Revised Code:

(1) "County grantee" means all of the following:

(a) A board of county commissioners;

(b) A county children services board appointed under section 5153.03 of the Revised Code;

(c) A county elected official that is a child support enforcement agency.

(2) "County subgrant" means a grant that a county grantee awards to another entity.

(3) "County subgrant agreement" means an agreement between a county grantee and another entity under which the county grantee awards the other entity one or more county subgrants.

(4) "Fiscal biennial period" means a two-year period beginning on the first day of July of an odd-numbered year and ending on the last day of June of the next odd-numbered year.

(5) "Grant" means an award for one or more family services duties of federal financial assistance that a federal agency provides in the form of money, or property in lieu of money, to the department of job and family services and that the department awards to a county grantee. "Grant" may include state funds the department awards to a county grantee to match the federal financial assistance. "Grant" does not mean either of the following:

(a) Technical assistance that provides services instead of money;

(b) Other assistance provided in the form of revenue sharing, loans, loan guarantees, interest subsidies, or insurance.

(6) "Grant agreement" means an agreement between the department of job and family services and a county grantee under which the department awards the county grantee one or more grants.

(B) Effective July 1, 2008, the director of job and family services may award grants to counties only through grant agreements entered into under this section.

(C) The director shall enter into one or more written grant agreements with the county grantees of each county. If a county has multiple county grantees, the director shall jointly enter into the grant agreement with all of the county grantees. The initial grant agreement shall be entered into not later than January 31, 2008, and shall be in effect for fiscal year 2009. Except as provided in rules adopted under this section, subsequent grant agreements shall be entered into before the first day of each successive fiscal biennial period and shall be in effect for that fiscal biennial period or, in the case of a grant agreement entered into after the first day of a fiscal biennial period and except as provided by section 5101.211 of the Revised Code, for the remainder of the fiscal biennial period. A grant agreement shall do all of the following:

(1) Comply with all of the conditions, requirements, and restrictions applicable to the family services duties for which the grants included in the agreement are awarded, including the conditions, requirements, and restrictions established by the department, federal or state law, state plans for receipt of federal financial participation, agreements between the department and a federal agency, and executive orders issued by the governor;

(2) Establish terms and conditions governing the accountability for and use of the grants included in the grant agreement;

(3) Specify both of the following:

(a) The family services duties for which the grants included in the agreement are awarded;

(b) The private and government entities designated under section 307.981 of the Revised Code to serve as the county family services agencies performing the family services duties;

(4) Provide for the department of job and family services to award the grants included in the agreement in accordance with a methodology for determining the amount of the award established by rules adopted under this section;

(5) Specify the form of the grants which may be a cash draw, reimbursement, property, advance, working capital advance, or other forms specified in rules adopted under this section;

(6) Provide that the grants are subject to the availability of federal funds and appropriations made by the general assembly;

(7) Specify annual financial, administrative, or other incentive awards, if any, to be provided in accordance with section 5101.23 of the Revised Code;

(8) Include the assurance of each county grantee that the county grantee will do all of the following:

(a) Ensure that the grants included in the agreement are used, and the family services duties for which the grants are awarded are performed, in accordance with conditions, requirements, and restrictions applicable to the duties established by the department, a federal or state law, state plans for receipt of federal financial participation, agreements between the department and a federal agency, and executive orders issued by the governor;

(b) Utilize a financial management system and other accountability mechanisms for the grants awarded under the agreement that meet requirements the department establishes;

(c) Do all of the following with regard to a county subgrant:

(i) Award the subgrant through a written county subgrant agreement that requires the entity awarded the county subgrant to comply with all conditions, requirements, and restrictions applicable to the county grantee regarding the grant that the county grantee subgrants to the entity, including the conditions, requirements, and restrictions of this section;

(ii) Monitor the entity that is awarded the subgrant to ensure that the entity uses the subgrant in accordance with conditions, requirements, and restrictions applicable to the family services duties for which the subgrant is awarded;

(iii) Take action to recover subgrants that are not used in accordance with the conditions, requirements, or restrictions applicable to the family services duties for which the subgrant is awarded.

(d) Promptly reimburse the department the amount that represents the amount the county grantee is responsible for, pursuant to action the department takes under division (C) of section 5101.24 of the Revised Code, of funds the department pays to any entity because of an adverse audit finding, adverse quality control finding, final disallowance of federal financial participation, or other sanction or penalty;

(e) Take prompt corrective action, including paying amounts resulting from an adverse finding, sanction, or penalty, if the department, auditor of state, federal agency, or other entity authorized by federal or state law to determine compliance with the conditions, requirements, and restrictions applicable to a family services duty for which a grant included in the agreement is awarded determines compliance has not been achieved;

(f) Ensure that any matching funds, regardless of the source, that the county grantee manages are clearly identified and used in accordance with federal and state laws and the agreement.

(9) Provide for the department taking action pursuant to division (C) of section 5101.24 of the Revised Code if authorized by division (B)(1), (2), (3), or (4) of that section;

(10) Provide for timely audits required by federal and state law and require prompt release of audit findings and prompt action to correct problems identified in an audit;

(11) Provide for administrative review procedures in accordance with section 5101.24 of the Revised Code;

(12) Establish the method of amending or terminating the agreement and an expedited process for correcting terms or conditions of the agreement that the director and each county grantee agree are erroneous.

(D) A grant agreement does not have to be amended for a county grantee to be required to comply with a new or amended condition, requirement, or restriction for a family services duty established by federal or state law, state plan for receipt of federal financial participation, agreement between the department and a federal agency, or executive order issued by the governor.

(E) The department shall make payments authorized by a grant agreement on vouchers it prepares and may include any funds appropriated or allocated to it for carrying out family services duties for which a grant included in the agreement is awarded, including funds for personal services and maintenance.

(F)

(1) The director shall adopt rules in accordance with section 111.15 of the Revised Code governing grant agreements. The director shall adopt the rules as if they were internal management rules. Before adopting the rules, the director shall give the public an opportunity to review and comment on the proposed rules. The rules shall establish methodologies to be used to determine the amount of the grants included in the agreements. The rules also shall establish terms and conditions under which an agreement may be entered into after the first day of a fiscal biennial period. The rules may do any or all of the following:

(a) Govern the award of grants included in grant agreements, including the establishment of, and restrictions on, the form of the grants and the distribution of the grants;

(b) Specify allowable uses of the grants included in the agreements;

(c) Establish reporting, cash management, audit, and other requirements the director determines are necessary to provide accountability for the use of the grants included in the agreements and determine compliance with conditions, requirements, and restrictions established by the department, a federal or state law, state plans for receipt of federal financial participation, agreements between the department and a federal agency, and executive orders issued by the governor.

(2) A requirement of a grant agreement established by a rule adopted under this division is applicable to a grant agreement without having to be restated in the grant agreement. A requirement established by a grant agreement is applicable to the grant agreement without having to be restated in a rule.

Effective Date: 06-26-2003; 06-30-2005; 2007 HB119 09-29-2007 .