Section 2030.115  Award Process

a)         General – As and when public (Federal, State or other) money is made available to the Department for disbursement, the Department shall seek to award the money consistent with the purposes of the Act, taking into account applicable and appropriate State plans and long-term goals and the public health, safety and welfare, data and statistics reported to and collected by the Department, ongoing evaluation of current programs and services, evaluation of projected or unmet needs statewide, geographical or cultural demands and other appropriate factors.  Awards shall be made based on:

1)         An assessment of need for services in order to carry out the purposes and duties of the Department;

2)         An assessment of the efficacy, cost effectiveness, and practicality of awarding the money in alternative ways;

3)         An assessment of adequacy or inadequacy of existing services (taking into account the evaluative provisions in (a)(4) below as to existing services in relationship to statewide needs);

4)         An assessment of the quality of services of potential recipients (including such things as history or compliance with licensure rules and regulations, history or compliance with previous or current contract terms, previous performance in programmatic, fiscal and clinical areas, or other indicators of the quality of service for new and/or unproven recipients);

5)         Any limitations or criteria placed by the source of the money to be awarded.

b)         Request for Applications

1)         If, pursuant to criteria in subsection (a), it is deemed to be in the best interests of the State to solicit proposals regarding the award of money, the Department shall issue a request for application describing the services required, imposing any appropriate limitations and specifications consistent with subsection (a) above, setting forth a specific response date, and describing the form and substance of the application requested.

2)         The Department may reject any and all applications or any part thereof, may waive immaterial technicalities, may negotiate individually after applications have been examined and evaluated and may accept applications deemed most favorable to the interests and needs of the Department and the people of the State.

c)         Negotiation with Selected Recipients – If, after an assessment of the factors in subsection (a), the Department determines that a negotiated award to a selected recipient is the most advantageous and practical method of achieving the purpose of the disbursement and meeting Department goals and public needs, the Department may so award the money.

d)         Recipients who will operate funded programs in geographic areas having mental health boards established pursuant to the Community Mental Health Act [405 ILCS 20] (sometimes referred to as "708 boards") and/or public health boards established pursuant to Section 5 of the Counties Code [55 ILCS 5/5] (sometimes referred to as "553 boards") shall submit a copy of their application for Department funding to such local boards for their review and comments at the time their application is submitted to the Department.  Community mental health boards shall submit to the Department their written review and comments within sixty (60) days after receipt of the application.

e)         Would-be award recipients may request to be placed on a mailing list maintained by the Department.  Persons on the list shall receive information regarding new and/or current money available for services provided or contemplated by the would-be recipient.  The Department will also provide guidelines and advisory materials to potential recipients regarding preparation of financial and program reports for all awards.