Next Generation Child Support Employment Services Demonstration | HHS 2024 ACF OCSS FD 0015

Opportunity Information: Apply for HHS 2024 ACF OCSS FD 0015

The Next Generation Child Support Employment Services Demonstration (NextGen) is a discretionary federal grant from the Administration for Children and Families Office of Child Support Services (OCSS) that funds state and tribal child support programs to strengthen employment-focused services for noncustodial parents. It is structured as a cooperative agreement, which generally means OCSS will stay actively involved through technical assistance, evaluation support, and ongoing collaboration rather than simply issuing funds with minimal federal engagement. The program is explicitly built on lessons from the earlier National Child Support Noncustodial Parent Employment Demonstration, with the central aim of expanding and improving child support-led approaches that help noncustodial parents find work, increase earnings, and better meet their child support obligations in a way that supports family stability.

Eligibility is limited to state governments and federally recognized tribal governments operating comprehensive Title IV-D child support programs (including state Title IV-D agencies or the umbrella agency, and tribal Title IV-D agencies). Individuals, sole proprietorships, and foreign entities are not eligible and will be disqualified if they apply. A key feature of this opportunity is that applicants must place themselves into one of three mutually exclusive categories: (1) tribal child support agencies; (2) state child support agencies where at least one participating local jurisdiction does not currently operate an employment and training program, or has operated one for less than five years; or (3) state child support agencies where all participating local jurisdictions have operated an employment and training program for at least five years. Even though these groups reflect different starting points and levels of experience, each is expected to implement services aligned with OCSS program design elements. If an applicant wants to deviate from those elements, it can do so, but it must clearly justify the changes and explain how the design requirements will still be addressed.

At the program level, NextGen is designed to integrate employment services with child support case practice so that participation in employment and training is paired with practical child support actions that reduce barriers and make obligations more manageable. For noncustodial parents who receive employment and training services, grantees are expected to provide a set of child support and related services, including initiating and expediting child support order review and modification when appropriate, suspending certain enforcement tools while the participant is engaged in the program (including steps like lifting license suspensions and addressing bench warrants), offering debt reduction when permitted under state law, and assisting with parenting time orders. The model encourages supportive, problem-solving case management that recognizes how enforcement burdens, unmanageable arrears, and unstable employment can reinforce each other. Wraparound supports such as fatherhood or parenting classes, substance use services, and mental health services are described as beneficial but not required, signaling that OCSS values broader family-stability supports while keeping the core program focus on employment and child support alignment.

OCSS expects grantees to use partnerships to deliver employment, training, and many wraparound services rather than trying to build all of that capacity inside the child support agency. The child support agency is expected to serve as the fiscal agent and manage day-to-day operations, while partner organizations with workforce expertise deliver employment and training and, where applicable, additional supportive services. This division of labor reflects the program’s underlying principle that initiatives work best when each partner sticks to core competencies: child support agencies manage child support policy levers and case processing, while workforce and community partners handle job readiness, placement, training pathways, and supportive service connections. Grant funds can pay for these partner-delivered services, but OCSS signals that delivery will typically sit with the partner agencies rather than child support staff.

The grant period lasts 60 months and is organized into five 12-month budget periods with a planned arc for development, service delivery, and wrap-up. Year 1 is focused on start-up and program design, including setting up partnerships, workflow, participant recruitment/referral processes, and implementation readiness. Years 2 through 4 are the primary service delivery years when noncustodial parents receive employment and training supports alongside the required child support-related interventions. Year 5 centers on evaluation activities, close-out tasks, and sustainability planning so that successful components can continue beyond the federal demonstration period. Throughout the project, grantees will receive technical assistance and evaluation support from a separate, companion-funded technical assistance and evaluation provider, and they will also participate in peer-to-peer learning opportunities designed to help sites share implementation lessons and troubleshoot common challenges.

Funding ranges from $350,000 to $2,102,941 total per recipient over the full five-year period, with annual award ceilings and floors that reflect heavier investment early and somewhat lower levels in later years. The yearly limits are: Year 1 ceiling $588,235 with a $100,000 floor; Year 2 ceiling $588,235 with a $100,000 floor; and Years 3, 4, and 5 each with a $308,824 ceiling and a $50,000 floor. OCSS notes that budgets are expected to scale based on the number of participants served, implying that applications should justify staffing, partner costs, supportive services, and operational expenses in relation to projected enrollment and service intensity. OCSS anticipated making about 12 awards under this opportunity. The application closing date listed for this funding opportunity was June 3, 2024, and the opportunity reflects a modification tied to policy guidance in ACF-OCSS-AT-24-02 concerning the Final Rule that eliminated the tribal non-federal share requirement, with changes specifically noted in the federal award information and budget criteria sections of the notice.

• The Administration for Children and Families - OCSS in the income security and social services sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Next Generation Child Support Employment Services Demonstration" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.564.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2024-02-02.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-06-03. (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 $588,235.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 12 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized).

Apply for HHS 2024 ACF OCSS FD 0015

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