Your latest Coronavirus (COVID-19) updates.
FAS Assistance
Financial Aid Services, Inc, and Genesis Software will:
- Continue to operate during this Pandemic / State of Emergency with normal operating hours. We have made arrangements to be able to process and communicate with our client institutions should any or all of our team have to remain at home for a period of time.
- Send updates directly to client schools on what to do next via email. Watch your inbox for these updates including how to obtain funds from the CARES Act Stimulus relief package.
- Create a COVID-19 landing page on the website to display all important updates higher education institutions need to be aware of.
- Continue to make technical updates in its software and service adjustments and enhancements to allow remote working and distance learning.
- Work with client schools during the Coronavirus challenges. Help us Help YOU! Please call and ask for any assistance you can think of and we will discuss openly.
May 25, 2021
May 17, 2021
FAS Cares! We Are In This Together!
Good Afternoon FAS Clients,
This update applies to Proprietary Schools that wish to receive emergency grant funds for students
under HEERF III/ARP and did not receive emergency grant funds for students under HEERF II/CRRSAA.
Your school will still need to apply on grants.gov, however, the Grant Opportunity Number has
changed. You will need to search under the following:
ED-GRANTS-051321-003
Feel free to reach out to the Compliance Team with
questions!
May 11, 2021
FAS Cares! We Are In This Together!
Good Afternoon FAS Clients!
Today, ED made additional HEERF Grants available under the American Rescue Plan (HEERF III/ARP).
Eligibility and awarding requirements are similar to those of the HEERF II/CRRSAA grant, however,
the newest Q&A indicates that undocumented and international students ARE eligible.
Please refer to the following based on your school type for more information and instructions for
applying:
>> Click HERE for Proprietary Schools
>> Click HERE for Public and Private Nonprofit Schools
Feel free to reach out to the Compliance Team with any questions!
FAS Compliance Team
May 10, 2021
FAS Cares! We Are In This Together!
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT: Lump Sum Reporting Tool for COVID Waived Refunds Now Available on COD
Good Afternoon FAS Clients,
We hope you all had a lovely weekend!
When ED announced the ability for schools to waive the return of unearned funds when a student withdrew due to COVID, they indicated that schools would eventually have to report this data to them. COD has been updated to collect this information. It will be reported as a lump sum per fund source by award year.
Per earlier guidance, schools should have been tracking this information as they received R2T4 calculations for COVID related withdrawals. If FAS performs the R2T4 calculations for your school and you indicated a relation to COVID for that student, you will find the unearned funds amounts on the Waived Refund Tab under Title IV Refund Request in FASLine. You can save this list in excel format and easily filter by fund source and award year to get your totals.
FAS has created this instruction sheet to walk you through this reporting in COD.
Please note that the deadline for reporting for all award years through 20/21 is September 30, 2021.
Feel free to reach out to the Compliance Team with questions.
December 29, 2020
Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security
Act (CARES Act) Revised!
On Tuesday, December 22, 2020, the United States Congress passed an omnibus spending bill (the
December relief bill) that included significant revisions and additions to the Paycheck Protection Program
(PPP) established by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), and
previously amended by the Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act (PPP Flexibility Act). President
Trump signed the bill on December 27, 2020.
ELIGIBILITY
Small businesses that have no more than 300 employees and can demonstrate at least a 25%
reduction in gross revenues between comparable quarters in 2019 and 2020 are eligible for PPP
funds.
PPP eligibility is expanded for certain 501(c)(6) nonprofits and Destination Marketing
Organizations with 300 or fewer employees that do not receive more than 15% of their revenue
from lobbying, and the program includes set-asides to support first-time borrowers with 10 or
fewer employees, second-time borrowers with 10 or fewer employees, first-time PPP borrowers
who have been made newly eligible and second-time returning PPP borrowers.
Returning businesses must have used or will use the full amount of their first loan.
LOAN SIZE & FORGIVENESS
Maximum loan size is 2.5 times average monthly payroll costs, up to $2 million (3.5 times average
monthly payroll costs for Accommodation and Food Services businesses).
Borrowers receive full forgiveness by spending at least 60% of PPP second draw loan on payroll
costs over a time period of either eight weeks or 24 weeks.
IMPROVEMENTS
PPP allowable and forgivable expenses are expanded to include supplier costs on existing
contracts and purchase orders, including costs for perishable goods, worker protective equipment
and adaptive measures, and technology operations expenditures. Borrowers can include
additional group insurance payments when calculating payroll costs, including plans such as
vision, dental, disability and life insurance.
Borrowers can select their loan forgiveness covered period of either eight weeks or 24 weeks.
The forgiveness application process is simplified for smaller loans of up to $150,000 and
increases SBA’s ability to audit and review forgiven loans.
Borrowers who returned all or part of their loans can reapply for the maximum amount applicable.
Lenders can also recalculate loan amounts due to changes in regulations regardless of whether
SBA Form 1502 has been submitted.
Measures for transparency and accountability in the PPP program have been increased.
FAS understands this program can provide much needed relief we also recommend you reach out to your
financial advisors to fully understand the facts before applying and to ensure complete/accurate
forgiveness documents are submitted.
December 14, 2020
FAS Cares! We Are In This Together!
On Friday, 12/11/20, ED issued a Federal Register extending the end dates of the COVID-19 related flexibilities. The new end date is the end of the payment period AFTER the date that the COVID-19 national emergency is rescinded.
Important Notes:
Extended LOA’s are only valid through 12/31/20.
Schools that closed due to COVID-19 will not be subject to loss of eligibility, however, ED expects that these schools will re-open no later than the start of the payment period that falls one payment period after the date that the COVID-19 national emergency is rescinded.
FWS community service spending requirement is waived through the end of the award year that begins after the COVID-19 national emergency is rescinded.
Federal Student Loan interest and payment suspension is extended through January 31, 2021.
New Waivers:
ED is waiving the requirement that credit balances paid via EFT be made through direct deposit.
Institutions on HCM1 can submit for payment of disbursements prior to paying credit balances to students through the end of the waiver period. ED has waived the 70% placement requirement for short term programs for all award years in which the COVID-19 national emergency was in place for at least 1 day.
Feel free to reach out to the Compliance Team with any questions. Have a great week!
November 13, 2020
Do the COVID-19 Verification Flexibilities Apply To the 2021-22 Award Year?
No. The verification flexibilities related to COVID-19 do not yet apply to verifications being completed for the 2021-22 award year.
According to resources at NASFAA and ED, “For the 2019–2020 and 2020–2021 award years, the Secretary has issued and continues to issue guidance that provides flexibilities to the verification regulations to help institutions and applicants deal with the challenges resulting from the novel coronavirus disease (COVID–19) pandemic. The Secretary will extend the effective period of its guidance to include the 2021–2022 award year if circumstances warrant an extension and will inform the public of such an extension at the appropriate time."
If and when the U.S. Department of Education (ED) extends these flexibilities to 2021-22, FAS will provide additional updates. Until that time, consider these flexibilities not to be extended to 2021-22.
Please contact the Verification Team at verification@fasinc.net with further questions or inquires. Thank you.
November 6, 2020
HEERF REPORTING TIMELINE
STUDENT & INSTITUTIONAL FUNDS
Complete by Student & Institutional Reporting Due Dates – Annual Reporting Due Dates
October 10, 2020 Most recent Student HEERF Funds quarterly reporting due
January 10, 2021 Quarterly reporting due for Student & Institutional Funds
February 1, 2021 First annual reporting due
April 10, 2021 Quarterly reporting due for Student & Institutional Funds
July 10, 2021 Quarterly reporting due for Student & Institutional Funds
October 10, 2021 Quarterly reporting due for Student & Institutional Funds
January 10, 2022 Quarterly reporting due for Student & Institutional Funds
February 1, 2022 Annual reporting due
April 10, 2022 Quarterly reporting due for Student & Institutional Funds
July 10, 2022 Last quarterly reporting due for Student & Institutional Funds
February 1, 2023 Last annual reporting due
HEERF REPORTING REQUIREMENTS
QUARTERLY REPORTING
(2 Separate reports)
1) Reporting of Students share funding which includes:
-An acknowledgement that the institution signed and returned the Certification and Agreement form & the assurance that the institution has used, or intends to use, no less than 50% of the funds received under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act to provide HEERF grants to students.
-The total amount of HEERF grants distributed to students.
-The estimated total number of students at the institution eligible to participate in programs under Section 484 in Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 and thus eligible to receive HEERF Student Funds.
-The total number of students who have received a HEERF grant.
-The method(s) used by the institution to determine which students receive HEERF grans and how much they would receive.
-Any instructions, directions, or guidance provided by the institution to students concerning the HEERF grants.
2) Posting of the Quarterly Budget and Expenditure form (QBER) for institutional share reporting which can be found here: https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/heerf-quarterly-reporting-v131.pdf
ANNUAL REPORTING Submission of a form through ED portal of Institutional and student share HEERF spending. (currently in notice and comment phase; final expected in December).
AFTER FUNDS ARE FULLY SPENT STUDENT FUNDS: Indicate on primary institutional website that the final quarterly posting is the final report that covers all remaining HEERF fund expenditures for Section 18004(a)(1) Student Portion funds. After posting that report, no more quarterly public reporting of Section 18004(a)(1) Student portion funds is required.
INSTITUTIONAL FUNDS: Check the box on the quarterly budget and expenditure form that it is the “final report" that covers all remaining HEERF fund expenditures for 18004(a)(1) Institutional Portion, (a)(2), and (a)(3) funds. After posting that report, no more quarterly reporting for 18004(a)(1) Institutional Portion, (a)(2), and (a)(3) funds are required.
ANNUAL: Institutions that received any HEERF award must submit an annual report to ED until the reporting period after the one in which they expended all their HEERF funds.
Resources
- U.S. Department of Education:
- National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA):
- American Association of Cosmetology Schools (AACS):
- Center for Disease Control (CDC):
- World Health Organization (WHO):