This weekly update is targeted towards the SSVF Grantees and shared with valuable partners for awareness.          

February 23, 2024   

DUE NOW: FY 2025 Notice of Funding Due Date TODAY!

NEW: SSVF Veteran Satisfaction Survey Quarter 1 Reports Sent to Grantee Point of Contact on February 20, 2024   

REMINDER: UPDATED Payment Management System Access Process 

REMINDER: Veteran Status Interim Guidance

RESOURCE: Cleland-Dole Act Section 313 - Veteran Financial and Credit Counseling Services Study 

DUE NOW: FY 2025 Notice of Funding Due Date TODAY!

Please ensure that all grantees seeking to renew their grant in FY25 complete the competitive application process or intent to operate in UDPaaS before the deadline of February 23, 2024, at 4pm EST.  

THERE ARE NO EXCEPTIONS TO THIS DEADLINE.  

Please review the NOFA and all related materials on our website. 

Direct all questions to ssvf@va.gov .    ALL CURRENT GRANTEES MUST RE-APPLY IF THEY WISH TO CONTINUE SERVICES IN FY2025. 

NEW: SSVF Veteran Satisfaction Survey Quarter 1 Reports Sent to Grantee Point of Contact on February 20, 2024

· If your agency has not received your Quarter 1 Satisfaction Survey Report, please request your copy by emailing Team Aptive at benjamin.knudsen@va.gov. Include your grant number on the subject line of your email, and cc your Regional Coordinator.

· All grantees are required to review their Satisfaction Survey Reports to monitor for improving data, including increases in survey registration, survey completion, and satisfaction scores. 

· If you previously completed a required Corrective Action Plan (CAP) to address low numbers, please ensure your staff are fully trained on performance improvement action steps, and those steps are positively affecting your results. 

REMINDER: UPDATED Payment Management System Access Process

The Payment Management System (PMS) provides grant payment and cash management services to all U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) agencies and several major non-HHS agencies on a fee-for-service basis. PMS is a full-service, centralized grants payment and cash management system, supporting over 30,000 Grant Recipient Accounts worldwide, including SSVF Grantees. PMS is the largest grants payment and cash management system in the federal government.

In response to the recent incidents of fraudulent activity, PMS is changing its login process to implement improved identity assurance in conjunction with multi-factor authentication. Starting February 10, 2024, SSVF Grantees MUST register and enable multi-factor authentication with ID.me in order to log into PMS: https://pms.psc.gov/system-alerts/system-alerts-xms.html. 

If you have any questions or concerns, contact PMSSupport@psc.hhs.gov or (877) 614-5533.

REMINDER: Veteran Status Interim Guidance

The SSVF Program Office would like to provide further guidance to grantees in regard to Veteran status and eligibly. Recent guidance from the Health Eligibility Office, indicates:  

A service member (Active/Guard/Reserve) is NOT eligible for VHA homelessness program services, for themselves or their family, while they are on active-duty service.

Our office is seeking further clarification on the definition of “active-duty service” while also understanding the need to ensure grantees have sufficient information to move forward with new and current enrollments.  

At this time, if a Veteran has a DD214 with an eligible service and discharge type from the National Guard or Reserves, while still enlisted or has reenlisted, and attending weekend/annual trainings only, may be served.  The household must meet all other eligibly criteria at time of enrollment. 

RESOURCE: Cleland-Dole Act Section 313 - Veteran Financial and Credit Counseling Services Study

Veteran Financial and Credit Counseling Services Study.

Your Feedback Please.

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is continuously enhancing its services, including its financial and credit counseling services for Veterans.

Would you please consider completing a survey to help VA better meet the financial and credit counseling needs of Veterans experiencing homelessness or housing instability.

Survey can be accessed here: VFCCSS Survey

We would greatly appreciate it if you would please complete this survey within 4 weeks of this email being sent. 

We have also asked Veterans to complete a similar survey. 

Thank you in advance for your time and insights.

Dina Hooshyar, MD

Director, VA National Center on Homelessness among Veterans