Streamlined Program Passed Its Independent Audit with Flying Colors and Surpassed Larger Counties and States in Its Efficiency.
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act brought tremendous opportunity, but also a daunting challenge. Like many other counties across the country, New Castle County was awarded nine figures’ worth of federal aid to address pandemic-induced problems across a broad assortment of policy areas, including health equity, food insecurity, emergency response, and education. New Castle County had never encountered compliance requirements of the magnitude mandated by the CARES Act. Prior to this legislation, the largest grant it had ever administered was around $20 million. Now, the county was looking at distributing more than 10 times that amount.
“From an outsider’s perspective, it wasn’t unreasonable to wonder if our staff would have the bandwidth and capability to administer this amount of money while keeping these comprehensive guidelines straight.”
“Managing a grant of this magnitude without a centralized digital hub for all activity and documents would be virtually impossible. At best, we would have dealt with a recurring headache of lost applications, files buried in individual email inboxes, and miscommunications between the various parties, all of which could have proved costly for us.”
“Thanks to SimpliGov, we could support our constituents
and our state within the parameters laid out by the federal government. More important, we are more nimble than ever, able to evolve our community funding operation to meet new federal legislation and ever-hanging community needs.”
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- $322.8 Million
- Two Days
- Government Audit Passed
Challenge
- Manage distribution of a grant 10 times larger than any it had ever implemented
- Process had to adhere to voluminous CARES Act grant requirements
- Federal guidance underwent major changes on a frequent basis
- Reimbursements had to be tracked well after initial grant award
Solution
- Customizable fields helped tailor digital application forms for a wide variety of unique services
- A variety of internal departments, citizens, and CBOs could complete and submit applications remotely from any device
- Workflow automation streamlined and recorded extensive correspondence between finance, legal, and applicants in evaluation of complex submissions
- “Certification letters” automatically generated and delivered to approved applicants
- Dashboard enabled internal managers and external auditors to easily retrieve all correspondence, documentation, and budget information for each grant award
Results
- $322.8 million distributed to the community over a two-year period
- More than 1,000 grants issued to internal agencies and residents
- Partnership with the state resulted in delivery of critical emergency services during the pandemic
- County passed rigorous federal government audit
Population
575,494
Use Case
Grant Distribution
Department
Finance, Legal
Municipality
County
