Cover Letter

Dear College and University Presidents,

We have identified your institution as potentially eligible to receive a grant under Section 18004(a)(3) of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. Today, we are releasing additional information on the rubric and supplemental reporting requirements that the Department will use to verify eligibility and the amount of funding for each institution.

As a matter of due diligence, the Department is requiring the attached prerequisite reporting for any institution of higher education that falls into any of the following categories:

• Subject to Heightened Cash Monitoring (that is, HCM1, HCM2 or Reimbursement) as of June 1, 2020;

• Slated to receive a Section 18004(a)(3) award of $400,000 or more;

• Slated to receive an award that is larger than its Title IV aid in the prior year; or

• Reports full-time equivalent enrollment of 100 or fewer students.

The Department has determined that your institution falls into one or more of these categories. As a result, before the Department will obligate your grant award, you will need to complete the attached Budget and Expenditure Reporting form no later than August 30, 2020. This form should be submitted via e-mail to HEERF@ed.gov.

You will also need to complete the previously released Certificate and Agreement for the 18004(a)(3) funds by August 1, 2020. All institutions must submit the required Certificate and Agreement as part of your Grants.gov application package.

Please complete both tables in the attached Budget and Expenditure Reporting form. In the first table, please provide an estimate of losses or expenditures that your institution has incurred or expects to incur because of COVID-19 disruptions between March 13, 2020 and the beginning of the fall 2020 term. Institutions that did not experience expenses or losses in a particular category can simply indicate that the category is not applicable. In the second table, please provide an estimate of the proposed uses of funds at your institution in response to the national emergency. Please note that this template is meant to serve as a guide, and therefore, IHEs are not required to propose amounts in every category.

Please also note that the CARES Act prohibits the use of funding for the provision of pre-enrollment recruitment activities; endowments; or capital outlays associated with facilities related to athletics, sectarian instruction, or religious worship.

After your institution has completed and submitted the required forms, the Department will review them and verify your award amount. The funds will then be obligated so that permit institutions can drawdown funds, as needed, using the Department’s G5 system. If you have any questions about the attached documents or the process as described above, please contact our CARES Act team in the Office of Postsecondary Education at HEERF@ed.gov or 202-377-3711.

Thank you for your continued efforts to serve our nation’s students during these unique circumstances. I look forward to continuing to work with you on behalf of America’s students.

Sincerely,

Betsy DeVos