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38 3. What Happens if I’m Not Awarded The IRS will email a letter explaining that your organization was not awarded a grant. The TCE Program is categorized as a discretionary grant program, therefore the necessity for renegotiation, suspension, or termination of a Cooperative Agreement will be determined the Treasury, Assistant Secretary for Management (ASM), or Treasury ASM designee, and will not be subject to appeal. A Cooperative Agreement remains in effect for one fiscal year. Even if a multi-year grant is awarded, a new cooperative agreement would be enacted for Year 2 and 3 of the grant period. The Cooperative Agreement expires annually on September 30 unless a the grant recipient organization withdraws from the TCE Program or the IRS terminates the Cooperative Agreement. Cooperative Agreements and its associated terms and conditions within Publication 5245, Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) Terms and Conditions, include: 1. the roles and responsibilities to be performed by the IRS, and by the grant recipient, 2. the maximum amount of the award available to the grant recipient, 3. the services and return preparation goal to be provided and 4. other requirements as specified in the application package, Publication 1101. The requirements of Section 163 of the Revenue Act of 1978 shall be considered to be incorporated into all Cooperative Agreements between the IRS and grant recipient organizations. Sixty-five percent of tax return preparation assistance should be provided to elderly taxpayers during the usual period for filing Federal income tax returns, which is from January 1 to April 15 each year. However, the program activities required to ensure that elderly taxpayers receive efficient and quality tax assistance can be conducted year-round. NOTE: A Cooperative Agreement period may change if the grant recipient withdraws from the TCE Program or if the IRS terminates the grant recipient’s cooperative agreement. The necessity for renegotiation, suspension, or termination of a Cooperative Agreement will be determined solely by the Internal Revenue Service and will not be subject to appeal. Notification of Award Decisions