CBRA Program FAQs

What is the Clackamas County Nonprofit Capacity Building Recovery Assistance Program (CBRA)?

Clackamas Women’s Services (CWS), Mercy Corp Northwest, and Clackamas Workforce Partnership were selected by Clackamas County’s Equity and Inclusion Office to serve as subrecipients for the Clackamas County Nonprofit Capacity Building Recovery Assistance Program (CBRA).

As subrecipients, these three agencies will use the funding to respond to the negative economic impacts faced by nonprofit/ community-based organizations (CBO) with operations located in Clackamas County to aid in their recovery, resiliency, and sustainability. Subrecipients will provide capacity-building technical assistance and/or pandemic-related recovery payments through their own programming to community-based organizations supporting increased pandemic-related service needs and will provide mitigation of negative economic impacts experienced by these community-based organizations resulting from COVID-19 and its after-effects.

Subrecipients are prohibited from receiving pandemic-related recovery payments or capacity-building funds for their own needs.

Clackamas Workforce Partnership- https://www.clackamasworkforce.org/our-impact/capacity-building-recovery-assistance/
Mercy Corps Northwest- https://nw.mercycorps.org/clackamas-county
Clackamas Women’s Services- https://www.cwsor.org/clackamas-county-cbra-program/

What is a CBO?

CBO stands for Community Based Organization. This program serves nonprofits/CBOs. Please see the eligibility criteria for more information. For this program, a nonprofit/CBO that receives assistance is referred to as a beneficiary.

What is a NAICS?

The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) is the standard used by Federal statistical agencies in classifying business establishments for the purpose of collecting, analyzing, and publishing statistical data related to the U.S. business economy. If you need help identifying your code please visit https://www.census.gov/naics/ and select a code that most relates to your work.

What type of funding is available through the Clackamas County Nonprofit Capacity Building Recovery Assistance Program (CBRA)?

Funding is available in two categories through the CWS program:

Capacity Building and technical consultation services oriented toward capacity building for beneficiaries (nonprofits/CBOs).
Recovery Assistance Payments directly to qualifying beneficiaries which have demonstrated negative or disproportionately negative economic harm resulting from the pandemic or its after-effects. Beneficiaries must provide sufficient documentation to justify payments in proportion to the harm, insecurity, or challenge listed below:
- Decreased total unrestricted revenue, using annual figures from prior to the pandemic as compared to a year during or subsequent to the pandemic (unrestricted revenue does not include grant revenue or revenue intended for a specific purpose by the donor).
- Beneficiaries with operations located within a 2023 Qualified Census Tract.
- Financial insecurity (e.g. very low cash reserves, etc.).
- Increased costs (e.g., uncompensated increases in service need, etc.).
- Capacity to weather hardship, defined as insufficient reserves to sustain the organization during financial downturns.
- Challenges covering payroll, rent or mortgage, and other operating costs.

Is there help available to fill out the application?

YES! Help is not only available, but it is also preferred. Subrecipients are required to provide technical assistance support to CBOs in applying. We encourage every CBO to schedule a time to meet with any/all of the subrecipients for this assistance.

How many nonprofits/CBOs will CWS select to receive funding?

CWS will serve a minimum of 8 and a maximum of 15 nonprofits/CBOs.

Can we just request financial assistance?

Yes, CWS does not have a requirement to apply for both financial assistance and capacity building/technical assistance.

If selected, what is the maximum amount of Assistance Payment my nonprofit/CBO can expect from CWS?

CWS is contracted to provide assistance payment amounts that will not exceed $100,000 to any individual beneficiary; however, we anticipate that the ceiling will be at $80,000 to align with the other two subrecipients (Mercy Corps Northwest and Clackamas Workforce Partnership) and to maximize the number of CBOs we can serve.

Are there restrictions on what my nonprofit/CBO can claim as COVID-19 impact within this program?

Yes, there are restrictions on what your organization can claim as COVID-19 impact, according to this Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF) program authorized by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).

For all recipients EXCEPT for Tribal governments; No extraordinary contributions to a pension fund for the purpose of reducing an accrued, unfunded liability may be claimed.
For all recipients: No payments for debt service and replenishment of rainy-day funds; no satisfaction of settlements and judgments; no uses that contravene or violate the American Rescue Plan Act, Uniform Guidance conflicts of interest requirements, and other federal, state, and local laws and regulations may be claimed.

If selected as a beneficiary, when can my nonprofit/CBO expect the cash assistance payment?

CWS plans to disburse cash assistance payments to selected nonprofits/CBOs by the end of July 2023. The following details our intended timeline for processing payments once the application period is closed.

May 31: Applications Due
June 1 – June 23: CWS evaluates applications and determines final CBOs.
Week of June 26: CWS sends Award Letters & Memoranda of Understanding outlining technical assistance engagement expectations to CBOs.
June 21 – July 14: Clackamas County processes advanced payments to CWS.
By the end of July 2023: CWS disburses the initial payment to CBOs.

Which nonprofits/CBOs are prioritized by CWS to receive a beneficiary payment?

CWS will prioritize nonprofits/CBOs that:

Are determined as disproportionately impacted by the U.S. Treasury.
Operate within (physically located in) and serve a population residing predominantly in Clackamas County.
Demonstrate funding need due to the negative financial impact of COVID-19, specifically between March 3, 2021 – May 11, 2023, in a narrative and with supporting financial documents.
Have not received prior County, State, or Federal funding to mitigate the harm.
Represent, serve, and/or be led by persons within disproportionately impacted communities:
- People of color
- Members of religious minorities
- LGBTQIA+
- Persons with disabilities
- Persons who live in rural areas
- Persons adversely affected by persistent poverty or inequality.
- Organizations serving children and youth impacted by abuse, trauma, or violence.

The list above reflects prioritization criteria only, which will increase the chances that CWS will select your organization for the award. All organizations that have the basic eligibility criteria are encouraged to apply.

Which nonprofits/CBOs are prioritized by CWS to receive funding and/or services for capacity building?