Administration and planning council

Assistance made available under grants awarded under this subpart shall be directed to the chief elected official of the city or urban county that administers the public health agency that provides outpatient and ambulatory services to the greatest number of individuals with AIDS, as reported to and confirmed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in the eligible area that is awarded such a grant. To receive assistance under section 300ff–11(a) of this title, the chief elected official of the eligible area involved shall— establish, through intergovernmental agreements with the chief elected officials of the political subdivisions described in subparagraph (B), an administrative mechanism to allocate funds and services based on— The political subdivisions referred to in subparagraph (A) are those political subdivisions in the eligible area— To be eligible for assistance under this subpart, the chief elected official described in subsection (a)(1) shall establish or designate an HIV health services planning council that shall reflect in its composition the demographics of the population of individuals with HIV/AIDS in the eligible area involved, with particular consideration given to disproportionately affected and historically underserved groups and subpopulations. Nominations for membership on the council shall be identified through an open process and candidates shall be selected based on locally delineated and publicized criteria. Such criteria shall include a conflict-of-interest standard that is in accordance with paragraph (5). The HIV health services planning council shall include representatives of— In providing for a council for purposes of paragraph (1), a chief elected official receiving a grant under section 300ff–11(a) of this title may establish the council directly or designate an existing entity to serve as the council, subject to subparagraph (B). In making a determination of whether to establish or designate a council under subparagraph (A), a chief elected official receiving a grant under section 300ff–11(a) of this title shall give priority to the designation of an existing entity that has demonstrated experience in planning for the HIV health care service needs within the eligible area and in the implementation of such plans in addressing those needs. Any existing entity so designated shall be expanded to include a broad representation of the full range of entities that provide such services within the geographic area to be served. The planning council established or designated under paragraph (1) shall— determine the needs of such population, with particular attention to— establish priorities for the allocation of funds within the eligible area, including how best to meet each such priority and additional factors that a grantee should consider in allocating funds under a grant based on the— develop a comprehensive plan for the organization and delivery of health and support services described in section 300ff–14 of this title that— The planning council under paragraph (1) may not be directly involved in the administration of a grant under section 300ff–11(a) of this title. With respect to compliance with the preceding sentence, the planning council may not designate (or otherwise be involved in the selection of) particular entities as recipients of any of the amounts provided in the grant. An individual may serve on the planning council under paragraph (1) only if the individual agrees that if the individual has a financial interest in an entity, if the individual is an employee of a public or private entity, or if the individual is a member of a public or private organization, and such entity or organization is seeking amounts from a grant under section 300ff–11(a) of this title, the individual will not, with respect to the purpose for which the entity seeks such amounts, participate (directly or in an advisory capacity) in the process of selecting entities to receive such amounts for such purpose. The following applies regarding the membership of a planning council under paragraph (1): A planning council under paragraph (1) shall develop procedures for addressing grievances with respect to funding under this subpart, including procedures for submitting grievances that cannot be resolved to binding arbitration. Such procedures shall be described in the by-laws of the planning council and be consistent with the requirements of subsection (c). With respect to a planning council under paragraph (1), the following applies: In accordance with criteria established by the Secretary: The Secretary shall, through a process that includes consultations with grantees under this subpart and public and private experts in grievance procedures, arbitration, and mediation, develop model grievance procedures that may be implemented by the planning council under subsection (b)(1) and grantees under this subpart. Such model procedures shall describe the elements that must be addressed in establishing local grievance procedures and provide grantees with flexibility in the design of such local procedures. The Secretary shall review grievance procedures established by the planning council and grantees under this subpart to determine if such procedures are adequate. In making such a determination, the Secretary shall assess whether such procedures permit legitimate grievances to be filed, evaluated, and resolved at the local level. To be eligible to receive funds under this subpart, a grantee shall develop grievance procedures that are determined by the Secretary to be consistent with the model procedures developed under paragraph (1)(A). Such procedures shall include a process for submitting grievances to binding arbitration. Promptly after the date of the submission of the report required in section 501(b) of the Ryan White CARE Act Amendments of 2000 (relating to the relationship between epidemiological measures and health care for certain individuals with HIV/AIDS), the Secretary, in consultation with planning councils and entities that receive amounts from grants under section 300ff–11(a) or 300ff–21 of this title, shall develop epidemiologic measures— The Secretary shall provide to each chief elected official receiving a grant under section 300ff–11(a) of this title guidelines and materials for training members of the planning council under paragraph (1) regarding the duties of the council.