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Payment Information for Grants and Fellowships

Payment Information for Grants and Fellowships
Each fiscal year, the Environmental Protection Agency awards over $4 billion in funding for grants and cooperative agreements. The Las Vegas Finance Center (LVFC) supports payments for all of the 11 Grant Award Offices. The LVFC also supports the fellowship program by making all fellowship payments as well as providing additional services such as maintaining completion of studies and payment enrollments.

Responsible Office:  Las Vegas Finance Center, Nevada

Mailing Address:
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
LVFC
P.O. Box 98515
Las Vegas, NV 89193-8515
Courier Address: UPS, Federal Express, or Overnight Mail
USEPA LVFC
4220 S Maryland Parkway, Bldg C, Rm. 503
Las Vegas, NV 89119
Phone:  
Operator: (702) 798-2485    
Fax: (702) 798-2423

 

You will need Adobe Reader to view some of the files on this page. See EPA's PDF page to learn more.

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Grant Payments

Once a grant/cooperative agreement has been signed by an EPA award official and accepted by the recipient organization, recipients are then able to request funds.  There are two approved methods by which the recipient may receive funds: via Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) or through the Department of Treasury's Automated Standard Application for Payments (ASAP) system. 

Please see Cash Management Requirements prior to submitting requests for payment.

For EFT transactions, recipients:

The LVFC will review each request.  When the request is approved for payment, EPA will electronically transfer the funds through the U.S. Department of Treasury and the Federal Reserve for credit to the recipient's account at their designated financial institution within 3 to 5 business days following receipt and approval of the request.  If the entire request or a portion of the request is rejected, the recipient will be notified by the LVFC no later than 1 workday following receipt of the request.

For ASAP transactions, recipients:

The LVFC enters spending authorizations into the recipient's ASAP accounts in accordance with their program needs and schedules. The recipient can then initiate payment requests through ASAP to meet immediate cash needs. This is done primarily through the internet. Please refer to www.asap.gov for additional information or click here.

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Automated Standard Application for Payments (ASAP)

Overview
ASAP is an all-electronic payment and information system developed jointly by the Financial Management Service (FMS) and the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond.  ASAP, which functions much like “on-line banking”, is a system through which grantee organizations receiving Federal funds can draw from accounts pre-authorized by Federal Agencies. ASAP is also being used to make timely payments to financial agents that are performing financial services for FMS and other Federal Agencies.   The ASAP system is the preferred method of payment for EPA grantees.

How does ASAP work?
In short, ASAP operates as follows: Federal Agencies and organizations receiving Federal funds enroll one time to use ASAP. Federal Agencies establish and maintain accounts in ASAP to control the flow of funds to organizations. Federal Agencies enter spending authorizations into their ASAP accounts in accordance with their program needs and schedules. Payment Requestors at organizations initiate payment requests through ASAP to meet cash needs. This is done primarily through on-line connections that organizations have with ASAP. In a case where a financial institution is acting as an agent of the organization, a request for funds can be made via the Federal Reserve's FEDWIRE system. Approved requests for next day or future day (up to 32 calendar days from the date of the payment request) payments are paid via the Automated Clearing House (ACH) system or by FEDWIRE if same day payment is required.

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Enroll in ASAP Banner

FELLOWSHIPS

The Las Vegas Finance Center (LVFC) ensures stipends, tuition & fees, and expense allowances are processed in a timely manner.  Additionally, the LVFC establishes and maintains fellowship stipend payment enrollment and completion of studies forms.

STIPENDS:  Stipends are paid directly to the students on a monthly basis.  Payments by check are usually delivered by the 5th day of each month.  For those with direct deposit, funds will be credited to the student's bank account 1 to 2 days prior to the end of the previous month.

TUITION & FEES:  Tuition and Fees are paid directly to the educational institution by check.  Depending on the payment plan prepared by the student's Project Officer, this payment is usually paid out in semesters.  Payments made to the student's educational institution are as follows:

FALL: 1 September SPRING: 1 December SUMMER: 1 May

EXPENSE ALLOWANCES:  An Expense Allowance is also paid directly to the educational institution.  It is usually paid in full in the FALL Semester.  This money belongs to the student but is maintained by the institution.  Please refer to your Fellowship Agreement under Fellowship Conditions for further explanation on what these funds are intended for.

FELLOWSHIP STIPEND PAYMENT ENROLLMENT FORM:  This form is strictly used for fellowships to be paid via direct deposit.  Your monthly stipend will be deposited into your personal banking account.  This method is highly recommended as it decreases chances of lost or delayed payment.  This form must be faxed to the LVFC at (702) 798-2423 or mailed to the following address:

U.S. EPA
Las Vegas Finance Center
P.O. Box 98515
Las Vegas, Nevada 89193-8515

COMPLETION OF STUDIES NOTICE:  The student must complete this form and submit it to the LVFC either immediately before or within 90 days after the termination date of the fellowship or the student is in violation of the terms of the agreement.  SEE FELLOWSHIP CONDITIONS.

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Forms

You will need Microsoft Excel to view a number of files on this site. A free Excel viewer is available for download from Microsoft here. Exit Disclaimer

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Las Vegas Finance Center
Points of Contact

Name Function Phone # Email
Customer Service Main Phone Line 702-798-2485  
Dany Lavergne Director 702-798-2483 Lavergne.Dany@EPA.gov
Art Weiss Accounts Receivable 702-798-2491 Weiss.Arthur@EPA.gov
Bill Pumphrey East Branch Chief 702-798-2493 Pumphrey.William@EPA.gov
Vivian Rice-Smuin Headquarters/International 702-798-2467 Rice-Smuin.Vivian@EPA.gov
Jim Gombarcik Headquarters/International 702-798-2457 Gombarcik.James@EPA.gov
Colleen Garis Region 1 and 7 702-798-2406 Garis.Colleen@EPA.gov
Luis (Rick) Rivera Region 2 & Fellowships 702-798-2495 Rivera.LuisE@EPA.gov
Peter Puglisi  Region 3 702-798-2426 Puglisi.Peter@EPA.gov
Sharen Rheinhardt Region 4 702-798-2471 Rheinhardt.Sharen@epa.gov
Rich Sherburne Region 5 702-798-2494 Sherburne.Richard@EPA.gov
Eileen Brasier Region 6 702-798-2409 Feaster.Anedia@EPA.gov
Howard Garis Region 8 702-798-2431 Garis.Howard@EPA.gov
Anna Woods Region 9 702-798-2496 Woods.Anna@EPA.gov
Marge Pumphrey Region 10 702-798-2492 Pumphrey.Margaret@EPA.gov
Peyton Keesee Financial Assurance Analyst 702-798-2453 Keesee.Peyton@EPA.gov
Shelly Norland Systems Accountant/Asbestos 702-798-2499 Norland.Shelly@EPA.gov
Pete Boudreau Systems/LAN 702-798-2414 Boudreau.Peter@EPA.gov
Martina Powell Administrative Support 702-798-2498 Powell.Martina@EPA.gov
Christina Soto Financial Support Technician 702-798-2470 Soto.Chirstina@EPA.gov

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EPA Payment Request Instruction
EPA 190-F-04-001

Recipient Name: Your organization.
Contact Person: Your name or someone who should be contacted if LVFC personnel have questions regarding your payment request.
Phone #: Recipient point of contact phone number.
Fax #: Recipient fax number.
Email Address: Email of recipient point of contact.
EFT#: Use your assigned EFT number.  If you do not know your assigned EFT number, please contact your LVFC regional contact.
Request#: Sequential number, 1, then 2, 3, 4, etc. for each request you submit from your organization. This is a transmittal number between your office and the LV Finance Center.
Cash on Hand $: Indicate the amount of EPA funds you have on hand from previous request. If you do not have any EPA funds on hand, then you would enter 0; or if you have already incurred expenses against the agreement you would show a negative amount, i.e. ($3,000.00), representing amount owed to you (reimbursement to you). NOTE: Funds should be disbursed within 3-5 business days if you are requesting an advance.
Assistance Agreement Number: Your grant number, to include the alpha prefix (if you have multiple agreements you may list up to 12 agreements on this form per request).
Account No/Activity Code: Used when you have a superfund, LUST, or state revolving fund agreement to identify specific site/job.
Amount: Indicate the amount of funds you are requesting from each grant listed on the request.
Mark (X) if Credit: Do not use unless you are transferring funds between two agreements.
Total Amount Requested: Total amount of all grants requesting funds from.
Approvals: Authorized recipient signature only for “Recipient Approving Official's Signature.”
Date Approved: Date signed.

The other information is internal to the EPA.  Upon completion, fax signed request form to U.S. EPA LVFC at 702-798-2423.  Request forms not fully completed may be rejected.

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Cash Management Requirements

The EPA payment process is designed to provide federal funds to a recipient organization within 5 days (within 48 hours for ASAP recipients and within 3-5 days for EPA-EFT recipients) of the approved payment request.  Therefore, the recipient organization should request only those funds required to meet immediate disbursement requirements, and should disburse funds as soon as possible to minimize the Federal cash on-hand in accordance with policies established in Treasury Department Circular 1075, “ Withdrawal of Cash from the Treasury for Advances under Federal Grant and Other Programs”.

The Las Vegas Finance Center (LVFC) continually monitors payment requests to ensure that recipients are maintaining minimal balances of federal funds.  Each payment request is reviewed to ensure payments to the recipient will not result in excessive funds on-hand or are in violation of award authority.

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Required Reports

Financial Status Report, SF269 (long form) / SF269A (short form)
A final SF269 (used by recipients with program income or as required by the assistance agreement) or SF269A report must be submitted within 90 days after the budget period end date.  The report must be prepared in accordance with instructions and forwarded to the Las Vegas Finance Center (LVFC), PO Box 98515, Las Vegas, NV 89193 or faxed to 702-798-2423.  Additionally, generally applicable reporting requirements may be found in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFRs).  For example:

Upon receiving the final FSR, LVFC will complete the following actions:

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Required Reports

Federal Cash Transaction Report, SF272(PDF) or SF272(MS Word) and Continuation Form for Multiple Grants SF272A(PDF) or SF272A(MS Word).
This report must be submitted annually within 15 working days following the end of each calendar year for the reporting period January 1 ending December 31 (Not required for International Recipients).   It is reviewed by LVFC to ensure that not only federal funds received are in balance with EPA records, but also, to ensure that recipients do not have excessive cash on-hand.  Recipients found to have excessive cash on-hand will be contacted and required to be remit funds back to the EPA.  Completed reports must be forwarded to the Las Vegas Finance Center (LVFC), PO Box 98515, Las Vegas, NV 89193 or faxed to 702-798-2423.  Additional instructions on how to complete this form are as follows:

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International Payments

Once a grant/cooperative agreement has been signed by an EPA award official and affirmed by the recipient organization, recipients are then able to request funds.  International recipients receive funds via Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT).   

To initiate EFT payment transactions, International Recipients:

  1. Must have a currently accepted/active grant with the EPA.

  2. Are required to have their organization’s banking data on file with the Las Vegas Finance Center (LVFC).  This is done by completing the Electronic Payment Designation Form and faxing this document to the LVFC at (702)-798-2423.

  3. Must complete the EPA payment request form EPA form 190-F-04-001 and fax the document to LVFC at (702)-798-2423.  For instructions on how to complete this form, please click Here 

The LVFC will review each request.  When the request is approved for payment, EPA will electronically transfer the funds through the U.S. Department of Treasury and the Federal Reserve for credit to the recipient’s account at their designated financial institution. If the request is rejected, the recipient will be notified by the LVFC immediately.

New International Recipients

  Congratulations on your EPA Cooperative Agreement award! This webpage is intended to provide you with important information and instructions on how to request payment from EPA.  These items are outlined below:

1.         Signing your Assistance Agreement
Before EPA can process any payment to your organization, you must sign and return the EPA Assistance Agreement/Amendment referenced above to:

Jeff Meetre/U.S. EPA
Grants Operations Branch (3903R)
Room 51288
Washington, DC  20460

Your signature implies that you have read the entire agreement and attachments, understand your responsibilities and requirements, and accept the project.  Similarly, any amendments to the agreement must also be signed and returned.  If you need assistance understanding your assistance agreement, you may call us at the telephone number in item 2 below.  Your prompt attention to this matter will help ensure payments are issued to you without delay.

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2.         Questions Regarding Payment of your Assistance Agreement - Communication
If you require assistance with your agreement and/or payments, please contact the LVFC by phone, fax, mail, or e-mail using the information listed below.  In addition, please remember to send payment request documentation using the most efficient method for your organization (fax, mail, e-mail) for timely processing.

Mailing Address Courier Address
Eileen Brasier/U.S. EPA Eileen Brasier/U.S. EPA
Las Vegas Finance Center Las Vegas Finance Center (dial ext. 2485)
P.O. Box 98515 4220 S. Maryland Parkway, Bldg. C
Las Vegas, NV  89193-8515 Las Vegas, NV  89119
   
Telephone:     (702) 798-2409  
Telefax:          (702) 798-2423  
Office Hours: 8:00am to 4:30pm  
Pacific Time
 
   
E-mail:  Brasier.Eileen@EPA.gov  

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3.         Electronic Payment Designation
The most effective and reliable method to receive your payment is through electronic payment processing.  This processing method will electronically transmit your payment request from the U.S. Treasury to your local bank in U.S. Currency.  To use this mechanism, complete the Electronic Payment Designation Form and submit it with our EPA Form 190-F-04-001 Payment Request form (PDF) (1p, 16K).  Ensure all the information on the Electronic Payment Designation form is complete to include all the banking information of your local bank, to include: name and address, the SWIFT code (your bank can provide) of your local bank, exact name on your account, and your account number.  Once we have all the information, we will test the transaction on your first payment request by submitting a $5,001 partial payment to ensure all the information is correct.  You will be notified once this transaction is complete.  Upon verification that the funds were deposited into your account, we will submit the remainder of your request.

Note: Please take into account the bank in your country (where you hold your account), may initiate a fee for processing the electronic transfer of funds.  This fee is generally taken from the total amount of the transfer.  The fee may vary from bank to bank.  Please inquire as to whether your bank charges these types of fees, as EPA can not compensate for the charge.

4.         Importance of Communication
It is extremely important that you notify us immediately if you have moved, not received payment, changed banks, or any other reasons that may affect payments on your Assistance Agreement/Amendment from EPA.  If you fail to notify us promptly, your payments could be delayed.

5.         Requesting Payment From EPA

To request payment on your agreement, you must complete the EPA Form 190-F-04-001 Payment Request form.  To eliminate mail delays, you may consider faxing your Request Form to our office (702) 798-2423.  Otherwise, please mail your request to the address as specified in item 2. above.  Also, it would be beneficial to provide an e-mail address, if applicable, in order to inform you of payment, or any problems/ issues regarding your payment request.

6.        Reporting Requirements

Your organization is required to submit SF269, Financial Status Report.  This report must be submitted within 90 days from your budget period end date.  This report should only be submitted as a final report to financially close out your EPA Assistance Agreement.  Please be aware of the dates covered in the budget period on your Assistance Agreement.  Once it expires, you can no longer incur expenses on this agreement.  If an extension of time is necessary, notify your EPA Project Officer.  Ensure you review your agreement prior to completion of the SF269.

Instructions for International Recipients
Completion of the U.S. EPA Payment Request

The following detailed instructions are provided for completing the U. S. EPA Payment Request Form.  You must use the Payment Request Form to request payment on your Assistance Agreements from EPA.  You may request funds as often as required by your organization.  This form can be used to request advance funds and/or reimbursement.  However if you are requesting advance funds, these funds must be disbursed as soon as possible to minimize Federal Cash on Hand, as required by the U S Treasury.  Please note that EPA does not issue payment of the entire award amount at once.  You may type or write the information on the request form.  Please ensure the information is legible and easy to read.  For a copy of the payment request form, please refer to the FORMS portion of this website.

Once you obtain the U S EPA Payment Request Form, please complete the following:

(1) Recipient Name: Enter the recipient name exactly as stated on your EPA Assistance Agreement/ Amendment or contract award.  
(2) Contact Person: Enter the name of a person to contact to resolve any problems on this request.
(3) Phone #: Enter a telephone number for the contact person.
(4) Fax #:   Enter the recipient organization’s fax number if available.
(5) ACH #: Not applicable to International Recipients.
(6) Request #: Enter the number assigned to this request.  The requests are to be numbered consecutively starting with 0001.  If a request is rejected, the next request is assigned the next consecutive number.
(7) Cash on Hand:  Enter the total amount of unspent EPA cash currently in your bank account, at the time of submission of the request.  If you are requesting reimbursement, the cash on hand should represent the deficit amount as a negative figure.  
(8) Assistance Agreement: Enter the assistance agreement number as indicated on your Assistance Agreement Document.
(9) Account Number/ Activity Code:  This item is not applicable to International Recipients.  
(10) Dollar ($) Amount: Enter the dollar amount requested for your assistance agreement. Remember, we do not pay the entire amount of the grant at one time.  If you are in need of a large advance of funds, you will need to provide a narrative of your estimated budget outlays for a period of no more than 90 days for approval.  We can reimburse you for the total of any debts your organization has already incurred against the agreement.
(11) Mark (X) if Credit: Not applicable unless you are returning excess funds.  If you do return funds, please notify your EPA Accounting Technician and they will assist you with your transfer.
(12) For EPA Use Only: This block is reserved for EPA use.
(13) Total Amount Requested: Enter the total dollar amount of EPA funds requested.
(14) Recipient Approving Official’s Signature: The request should be signed by an authorized representative who has authority for making financial decisions within the organization.
(15) Date Approved: The date the request is signed by the recipient’s approving official.
(16) EPA CertifyingOfficer Approval: This block is reserved for EPA use.
(17) Date Approved: This block is reserved for EPA use.
(18) EPA Approved: This block is reserved for EPA use.
(19) Amount: This block is reserved for EPA use.
     
NOTE: Failure to complete this form correctly could result in your payment request being rejected or delayed.  If you have questions on completion of this form, contact your EPA Accounting Technician for assistance. 

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Remitting Payments Back to EPA

To remit payment back to the U.S. EPA via check, please send your check as well as pertinent information regarding the grant or fellowship number and reason for returning funds to the following address:  

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Las Vegas Finance Center
P.O. Box 979087
St. Louis, MO 63197-9000

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