Senior Farmers' Market Nutrition Program

The Illinois Department of Human Services, Division of Family and Community Services, Office of Family Wellness, is offering the Senior Farmers' Market Nutrition Program under funding opportunity number 27-444-80-0170-01. IDHS administers the Senior Farmers' Market Nutrition Program in coordination with the Illinois Department on Aging for participating counties, while this funding opportunity specifically seeks a provider to administer the program for the City of Chicago. The program is supported with Federal or Federal Pass-Through funds associated with Assistance Listing numbers 10.576, Senior Farmers' Market Nutrition Program, and 93.667, Social Services Block Grant. The program is intended to improve the nutritional status of low-income seniors while increasing consumption of locally grown agricultural products and supporting farmers' markets, roadside stands, and related local food systems. The selected grantee must have a physical presence in Cook County and sufficient capacity to administer the SFMNP for the City of Chicago, including serving the existing caseload of approximately 12,000 individuals immediately upon receipt of the award. Program beneficiaries must be at least 60 years old, have household income at or below 185 percent of the Federal Poverty Income Guidelines, and reside in a participating Illinois county. The provider will coordinate distribution of SFMNP benefits through issuing partners, train partners, conduct program outreach, provide nutrition education, make referrals to other nutrition assistance programs, maintain participant data, prevent and address dual participation, reconcile benefits, and comply with applicable USDA Food and Nutrition Service requirements. Up to $50 in SFMNP benefits may be distributed per eligible participant per season. The Department expects to award approximately one grant for the City of Chicago service area. The stated estimated total program funding is a minimum of $13,500 for State Fiscal Year 2027, and the expected individual grant award is also described as a minimum of $13,500. No maximum award amount is provided. Cost sharing or matching is not required. Indirect costs are allowable subject to applicable requirements, including use of an approved negotiated indirect cost rate, an applicable de minimis rate, or an election not to claim indirect costs. The NOFO identifies a 15 percent indirect cost limitation while also noting that some federally funded programs remain subject to a 10 percent de minimis rate. Pre-award costs are allowable. Equipment and building or facility improvements are specifically identified as unallowable program costs. Sub-recipient agreements and budgets must receive Department pre-approval, and the grantee retains responsibility for sub-recipient performance and monitoring. Eligible applicants include community organizations and local government entities, including for-profit, public, and private nonprofit organizations, that have a physical presence in Cook County and the organizational capacity required to operate the Chicago SFMNP. Applicants must be able to serve the current caseload, maintain strong financial and program reporting systems, conduct effective outreach, collect and report race and ethnicity information, manage data received from multiple issuing partners, and use or develop a real-time system to identify and prevent dual participation. Applicants also must satisfy Illinois Grant Accountability and Transparency Act registration and prequalification requirements, possess a valid Unique Entity Identifier, maintain active SAM.gov registration, be in good standing with the Illinois Secretary of State when applicable, and not appear on applicable stop-payment, SAM.gov exclusion, or Medicaid sanctions lists. Agencies are limited to one application for the City of Chicago service area. Applications must contain all required materials because the Department states that it will not contact applicants to obtain missing required items. The complete package includes the Uniform Application for State Grant Assistance, Grantee Conflict of Interest Disclosure, completed and signed Form W-9, proposal narrative, PDF of the electronically submitted CSA budget and budget narrative, and signed SFMNP NOFO Application Checklist. The proposal narrative has a five-page total limit consisting of a one-page Executive Summary, one-page Need section, two-page Capacity section, and one-page Quality section. Applicants must also enter the budget electronically in the IDHS CSA Tracking System and obtain the required electronic signature from the provider's Chief Executive Officer and/or Chief Financial Officer. Proposal files must be saved as PDFs and named using the specified SFMNP 444-80-0170 naming convention. The complete application must be emailed to DHS.OFWNOFO@illinois.gov with the NOFO number and agency name in the subject line. Applications sent to another address or by fax, hard copy, disk, or thumb drive will not be considered. Applications are evaluated on a 100-point scale. Executive Summary is worth 5 points, Need 20 points, Capacity 40 points, Quality 30 points, and Budget Narrative 5 points. Merit review teams of up to three internal and/or external reviewers will independently score applications and then collectively review their scores and comments. The Department may also consider factors such as geographic distribution, demonstrated need, and past performance as an Illinois grantee, and it retains final authority over award decisions. Prior to award, IDHS conducts fiscal, administrative, and programmatic risk assessments. Successful applicants receive a Notice of State Award through the Illinois GATA Grantee Portal, but performance may begin only after execution of the Uniform Grant Agreement. Subject to appropriation, the initial grant period begins no sooner than July 1, 2026 and continues through June 30, 2027. Successful grantees may be eligible for two subsequent one-year renewals at the Department's discretion based on appropriations, satisfactory performance, timely reporting, and continued good standing. The application was posted February 20, 2026 and the full application deadline was April 10, 2026 at 12:00 PM CST. No letter of intent, pre-application, white paper, or other preliminary submission was required. The anticipated award date was listed as TBD. Questions about the NOFO may be directed to Melanie Kluzek at Melanie.M.Kluzek@illinois.gov or 217-720-9111, and technical submission issues may also be directed to that contact. Questions submitted up to two business days before the end of the NOFO posting period were eligible to be posted on the Department's question-and-answer page. Applicants that submitted an application but did not receive an acknowledgment were required to notify the Department within 48 hours of the deadline. The NOFO does not state that this competitive solicitation itself recurs annually; the two possible one-year renewals apply to a successful award rather than establishing a recurring application cycle.

Prioritize the 40-point Capacity section and clearly demonstrate immediate readiness to serve approximately 12,000 Chicago participants. Address each scored narrative criterion directly and remain within the prescribed page limits. Explain partner networks, staffing, training, financial and program reporting systems, data collection, dual-participation controls, outreach, and quality assurance. Provide a credible plan to issue at least 95% of the allocated caseload by September 30. Ensure the CSA budget ties costs to program objectives and deliverables and is electronically signed and submitted. Verify GATA prequalification and SAM.gov status before the deadline. Include every mandatory form and the signed checklist because IDHS will not request missing items. Submit to the exact required email address before the deadline and retain proof of timely submission.