To improve the administration of these Runaway and Homeless Youth Programs by increasing the capacity of Runaway and Homeless Youth projects to deliver services, by improving their performance in delivering services, and by providing for the evaluation of performance:

(a) Grantees shall participate in technical assistance, monitoring, and short-term training as a condition of funding, as determined necessary by HHS, in such areas as: Aftercare services and counseling; background checks; core competencies of youth workers; core support services; crisis intervention techniques; culturally and linguistically sensitive services; participation in or development of coordinated networks of private nonprofit agencies and/or public agencies to provide services; ethics and staff safety; fiscal management; low cost community alternatives for runaway or otherwise homeless youth; positive youth development; program management; risk and protective factors related to youth homelessness; screening and assessment practices; shelter facility staff development; special populations (tribal youth; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning (LGBTQ), and intersex youth; youth with disabilities; youth victims of trafficking, sexual exploitation or sexual abuse); trauma and the effects of trauma on youth; use of evidence-based and evidence-informed interventions; and youth and family counseling. It is not a requirement that every staff person receives training in every subject but all staff members who work directly with youth should receive training sufficient to meet the stated core-competencies of youth workers.

(b) Grantees shall coordinate their activities with the 24-hour National toll-free and Internet communication system, which links Runaway and Homeless Youth projects and other service providers with runaway or otherwise homeless youth, as appropriate to the specific activities provided by the grantee.

(c) Grantees shall submit statistical reports profiling the clients served and providing management and performance information in accordance with guidance provided by HHS.

(d) Grantees shall perform outreach to locate runaway and homeless youth and to coordinate activities with other organizations serving the same or similar client populations, such as child welfare agencies, juvenile justice systems, schools, and Continuums of Care, as defined by HUD.

(e) Grantees shall develop and implement a plan for addressing youth who have run away from foster care placement or correctional institutions, in accordance with federal, state, or local laws or regulations that apply to these situations. In accordance with section 312(b)(4) of the Act, Basic Center grantees must also develop a plan that ensures the return of runaway and homeless youth who have run away from the correctional institution back to the correctional institution.

(f) Grantees shall take steps to ensure that youth who are or should be under the legal jurisdiction of the juvenile justice or child welfare systems obtain and receive services from those systems until such time as they are released from the jurisdiction of those systems.

(g) Grantees shall develop and document plans that address steps to be taken in case of a local or national situation that poses risk to the health and safety of staff and youth. Emergency preparedness plans should, at a minimum, include routine preventative maintenance of facilities as well as preparedness, response, and recovery efforts. The plan should contain strategies for addressing evacuation, security, food, medical supplies, and notification of youths' families, as appropriate. In the event of an evacuation due to specific facility issues, such as a fire, loss of utilities, or mandatory evacuation by the local authorities, an alternative location needs to be designated and included in the plan. Grantees must immediately provide notification to their project officer and grants officer when evacuation plans are executed.

(h) Grantees shall ensure that all shelters that they operate are licensed and determine that any shelters to which they regularly refer clients have evidence of current licensure, in states or localities with licensure requirements. Grantees shall promptly report to HHS instances in which shelters are cited for failure to meet licensure or related requirements, or lose licensure. For grantee-operated facilities, failure to meet any applicable state or local legal requirements as a condition of operation may be grounds for grant termination.

(i) Grantees shall utilize and integrate into the operation of their projects the principles of positive youth development, including healthy messages, safe and structured places, adult role models, skill development, and opportunities to serve others.

(j) No later than October 1, 2017, grantees shall have a plan, procedures, and standards for ensuring background checks on all employees, contractors, volunteers, and consultants who have regular and unsupervised private contact with youth served by the grantee, and on all adults who reside in or operate host homes. The plans, procedures, and standards must identify the background check findings that would disqualify an applicant from consideration for employment to provide services for which assistance is made available in accordance with this part.

(1) Required background checks include:

(i) State or tribal criminal history records, including fingerprint checks;

(ii) Federal Bureau of Investigation criminal history records, including fingerprint checks, to the extent FSYB determines this to be practicable and specifies the requirement in a Funding Opportunity Announcement that is applicable to a grantee's award;

(iii) Child abuse and neglect state registry check, to the extent FSYB determines this to be practicable and specifies the requirement in a Funding Opportunity Announcement that is applicable to a grantee's award;

(iv) Sex offender registry check; and,

(v) Any other checks required under state or tribal law.

(2) Programs must document the justification for any hire where an arrest, pending criminal charge or conviction, is present.

(k) Grantees shall provide such other services and meet such additional requirements as HHS determines are necessary to carry out the purposes of the statute, as appropriate to the services and activities for which they are funded. These services and requirements are articulated in the funding opportunity announcements and other instructions issued by the Secretary or secretarial designees. This includes operational instructions and standards of execution determined by the Secretary or secretarial designees to be necessary to properly perform or document meeting the requirements applicable to particular programs or projects.