Opportunity Information: Apply for HHS 2016 ACF OPRE YE 1177
Apply for HHS 2016 ACF OPRE YE 1177
- The HHS-ACF-OPRE in the income security and social services sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) Implementation Research and Evaluation Planning Grants" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.575.
- This funding opportunity was created on May 09, 2016 and posted on May 09, 2016.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Jul 08, 2016. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $75,000.00 in funding.
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 15 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: State governments, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized).
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Opportunity Summary:
The Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) Implementation Research and Evaluation Planning Grants opportunity is a federal funding announcement from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Administration for Children and Families (ACF), specifically through the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE). It is designed to help Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) Lead Agencies move beyond day-to-day program administration and build strong, practical plans for studying how recent child care policy changes are being put into practice. The focus is not on running a full evaluation immediately, but on creating a rigorous, high-quality research and evaluation blueprint that could later be used to conduct a larger implementation study if follow-on funding becomes available.
At its core, these awards support planning work tied to the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) Act of 2014. That law made significant changes aimed at improving the stability, quality, and accessibility of child care for families, especially those receiving subsidies. Under this grant, Lead Agencies would select one or more key provisions of the law and develop a detailed research plan to evaluate how those provisions are implemented on the ground. The emphasis is on implementation research, meaning the work should dig into how policies are adopted, operationalized, and experienced by families and providers, rather than only measuring end outcomes. Applicants are encouraged to use innovative and rigorous methods, which could include mixed-method designs, quasi-experimental approaches where appropriate, strong qualitative components, or improved administrative data strategies to understand policy roll-out and effects.
The topics of interest are flexible but clearly aligned with prominent CCDBG priorities. The announcement highlights several example areas, including strategies to expand the supply of and access to family child care, infant and toddler care, and care during non-traditional hours (evenings, nights, weekends). It also points to work around building state systems that support career pathways and professional development for both center-based and family child care providers. Another major area is the full implementation of 12-month eligibility policies, which are intended to reduce churn in subsidy eligibility and promote continuity of care for children by limiting disruptions caused by frequent re-determinations. While these are called out explicitly, the opportunity leaves room for Lead Agencies to select other CCDBG-related provisions that matter most in their context.
A key structural feature is that projects must be led by CCDF Lead Agencies, which reinforces that the work should be grounded in real state or tribal policy decisions and administrative realities. At the same time, the opportunity expects grantees to involve research expertise, either internally or through partnerships with external researchers such as universities, research firms, or other qualified organizations. Importantly, external partnerships do not need to be fully formalized at the time of application, which lowers a common barrier for agencies that may still be identifying the best research collaborators. Even so, awardees must demonstrate the capacity to produce high-quality research plans during the performance period, meaning they need to show they can manage the planning process, define feasible research questions, identify credible methods, and lay out data and operational steps.
Because these are cooperative agreements rather than standard grants, applicants should expect substantial federal involvement and collaboration during the project. Awardees will participate in a consortium with other grantees, with at least monthly phone meetings and an annual in-person meeting. This consortium model is meant to accelerate learning across states and tribes, encourage consistent quality in research planning, and ensure that lessons learned are shared beyond individual jurisdictions. The broader intent is capacity building: strengthening CCDF Lead Agencies ability to design and use research and evaluation, improving the link between research, policy, and practice, and ultimately generating knowledge that benefits other Lead Agencies and the public.
The opportunity also sits within a longer federal commitment to child care research. The description notes that from 2000 to 2015, Congress provided about $10 million per year from CCDF discretionary funds for research, demonstration, and evaluation, and that the 2014 law created a permanent set-aside of roughly $14 million for research and evaluation. OPRE frames this funding as a tool to help decision makers craft policies that improve outcomes for children and families, build research capacity across national, state, and local levels, and deepen understanding of what subsidy policies and quality initiatives actually achieve in practice. Prior CCDF-supported research has contributed to evidence on how subsidy programs affect employment and economic self-sufficiency for low-income families, as well as how quality improvements in early care and education settings can support childrens learning and development.
In terms of basic application facts, this is a discretionary funding opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number: HHS-2016-ACF-OPRE-YE-1177) using the cooperative agreement instrument. Eligible applicants include state governments and federally recognized Native American tribal governments, reflecting the structure of CCDF administration. The award ceiling is $75,000, with an expected 15 awards, indicating modest, targeted planning support rather than large programmatic funding. The original and current closing date listed is July 8, 2016, and the posting date is May 9, 2016. As with many federal opportunities, awards are explicitly subject to the availability of funds and the federal governments determination of what best serves its interests.
For further background, the notice points applicants to ACF resources on CCDF law and OPRE research. The referenced links include information on the CCDF/CCDBG legal framework and examples of OPRE-funded work that can help applicants understand federal expectations for rigor, relevance, and usefulness in child care research planning.
CCDBG Implementation Research and Evaluation Planning Grants (HHS-2016-ACF-OPRE-YE-1177) FAQs
1. What is the CCDBG Implementation Research and Evaluation Planning Grants opportunity?
This is a federal funding opportunity from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Administration for Children and Families (ACF), through the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE). It supports Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) Lead Agencies in creating strong, practical plans for implementation research and evaluation related to recent child care policy changes under the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) Act of 2014.
2. What is the main purpose of these awards?
The main purpose is to help CCDF Lead Agencies move beyond day-to-day administration and develop a rigorous, high-quality research and evaluation blueprint focused on how CCDBG policy provisions are being implemented in practice. The grant is for planning work, not for immediately running a full-scale evaluation.
3. Is this funding meant to pay for a full evaluation study?
No. The focus is on planning for a future implementation study, not on conducting the full evaluation immediately. The goal is to produce a high-quality plan that could later be used if follow-on funding becomes available.
4. What kind of research is emphasized: outcomes or implementation?
The emphasis is on implementation research. That means the planning should focus on how policies are adopted, operationalized, and experienced by families and providers, rather than only measuring end outcomes.
5. What law or policy changes is this opportunity tied to?
The planning work is tied to the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) Act of 2014, which made significant changes intended to improve the stability, quality, and accessibility of child care, particularly for families receiving subsidies.
6. Who is eligible to apply?
Eligible applicants include state governments and federally recognized Native American tribal governments. Projects must be led by CCDF Lead Agencies.
7. Does the project have to be led by a CCDF Lead Agency?
Yes. A key requirement is that projects must be led by CCDF Lead Agencies, reflecting that the planning work should be grounded in real state or tribal policy decisions and administrative realities.
8. Are research partnerships required?
The opportunity expects grantees to involve research expertise, either internally within the Lead Agency or through partnerships with external researchers (for example, universities, research firms, or other qualified organizations).
9. Do external research partnerships need to be fully formalized at the time of application?
No. External partnerships do not need to be fully formalized at the time of application, which is intended to reduce barriers for agencies still identifying the best research collaborators.
10. What does OPRE expect awardees to demonstrate during the performance period?
Awardees must demonstrate capacity to produce high-quality research plans, including the ability to manage the planning process, define feasible research questions, identify credible methods, and lay out data and operational steps.
11. What topics can the research and evaluation plan focus on?
Lead Agencies may select one or more key provisions of the CCDBG Act of 2014 to study. The opportunity provides examples of priority areas but also leaves room for other CCDBG-related provisions that are most important in a given state or tribal context.
12. What are some example topic areas highlighted in the announcement?
Examples include: strategies to expand the supply of and access to family child care; infant and toddler care; care during non-traditional hours (evenings, nights, weekends); building systems that support career pathways and professional development for center-based and family child care providers; and full implementation of 12-month eligibility policies.
13. What is meant by 12-month eligibility, and why is it highlighted?
12-month eligibility policies are intended to reduce churn in subsidy eligibility and promote continuity of care for children by limiting disruptions caused by frequent re-determinations. The opportunity highlights planning around the full implementation of these policies as one of the major areas of interest.
14. What kinds of methods are encouraged for the research planning?
Applicants are encouraged to use innovative and rigorous methods. Examples mentioned include mixed-method designs, quasi-experimental approaches where appropriate, strong qualitative components, and improved administrative data strategies to understand policy roll-out and effects.
15. What does it mean that this is a cooperative agreement rather than a standard grant?
It means applicants should expect substantial federal involvement and collaboration during the project, rather than operating with minimal federal interaction.
16. What coordination or meetings are required for awardees?
Awardees will participate in a consortium with other grantees. The announcement specifies at least monthly phone meetings and an annual in-person meeting.
17. What is the purpose of the grantee consortium model?
The consortium model is intended to accelerate learning across states and tribes, promote consistent quality in research planning, and ensure lessons learned are shared beyond individual jurisdictions.
18. What is the broader intent of this funding beyond a single plan?
The broader intent is capacity building: strengthening CCDF Lead Agencies ability to design and use research and evaluation, improving the link between research, policy, and practice, and generating knowledge that can benefit other Lead Agencies and the public.
19. How much funding is available per award?
The award ceiling is $75,000, indicating modest, targeted support for planning rather than large-scale program funding.
20. How many awards are expected?
The announcement indicates an expected 15 awards.
21. What is the Funding Opportunity Number (FON)?
The Funding Opportunity Number is HHS-2016-ACF-OPRE-YE-1177.
22. When was the opportunity posted, and what was the closing date?
The posting date listed is May 9, 2016, and the original and current closing date listed is July 8, 2016.
23. Is funding guaranteed if an application meets the requirements?
No. As with many federal opportunities, awards are subject to the availability of funds and the federal governments determination of what best serves its interests.
24. How does this opportunity fit into longer-term federal child care research efforts?
The description notes that from 2000 to 2015, Congress provided about $10 million per year from CCDF discretionary funds for research, demonstration, and evaluation. It also notes that the 2014 law created a permanent set-aside of roughly $14 million for research and evaluation.
25. What kinds of impacts has prior CCDF-supported research explored?
Prior CCDF-supported research has contributed evidence on how subsidy programs affect employment and economic self-sufficiency for low-income families, and how quality improvements in early care and education settings can support childrens learning and development.
26. Where does the announcement point applicants for additional background?
The notice points applicants to ACF resources on CCDF law and OPRE research, including information on the CCDF/CCDBG legal framework and examples of OPRE-funded work that illustrate expectations for rigor, relevance, and usefulness in child care research planning.
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