Important Annual Report 3.0 Transition Information - Information Due April 1, 2026!

The Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) Annual Report is changing—and now is the time to prepare.

On January 28, OEO hosted the Annual Report 3.0 Transition Webinar, the first session in a planned series designed to support agencies as they shift to the new CSBG reporting requirements. The recorded webinar is now available on LearnWorlds.

Beginning October 1, 2026, the CSBG Annual Report 3.0 will transition to the Federal Fiscal Year (FFY), while CSBG and TANF contracts will continue to operate on the State Fiscal Year (SFY).

To support this transition, agencies will complete a one‑time 15‑month annual report covering July 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026, which includes an extended fourth‑quarter report and a revised 2025–2026 CAP Plan due April 1, 2026. Agencies received budget numbers for the 2026–2027 contract year on February 13, and budgets are also due April 1, 2026.

Additional key deadlines include fiscal forms due May 1, 2026, the new FY27 CAP Plan due August 1, 2026, and the launch of the new FFY‑aligned reporting cycle on October 1, 2026. More details will be shared in the coming months, including webinars on the new CAP Plan requirements and reporting expectations.

Check out the new Annual Report 3.0 transition hub on LearnWorlds. This page is your central resource for Virginia-specific guidance, tools, and training materials to support local agencies during this change. Here you’ll find resources tailored for Virginia’s network, including helpful tools and recordings of webinars. Check back frequently—new updates and webinars will be added over the coming weeks to ensure a smooth transition for all Virginia CSBG partners.

Transforming Virginia's CAA's - Goal 7

Over the course of the next several months we will be reintroducing the Transforming Virginia goals through newsletter articles, trainings and webinars.

This month we are going to focus on Goal 7: Most agency focus is on addressing the conditions of poverty → Major focus is on eliminating the causes of poverty - CAAs are encouraged to focus on the root causes of poverty, not just the symptoms, aiming for sustainable change.

Virginia’s Community Action Agencies (CAAs) have long been committed to helping families meet their immediate needs—food, housing stability, transportation, and everyday essentials.

These services remain vital. Yet as part of Transforming Virginia’s Community Action Network, Goal 7 calls on agencies to take an even deeper step: shifting from addressing the conditions of poverty to tackling the root causes.

This shift encourages agencies to look beyond emergency relief and expand efforts that create long-term, generational change. Instead of only treating the symptoms—such as lack of housing, low wages, or food insecurity—CAAs are being empowered to address the systems, barriers, and inequities that produce those conditions in the first place.

What This Means for CAAs

• Designing programs that increase family economic mobility rather than temporary stability
• Expanding community partnerships to address systemic issues such as workforce access, early childhood education, transportation gaps, or digital barriers
• Using data to identify patterns and understand the underlying drivers of poverty in each community
• Elevating lived experience and resident leadership to shape solutions from within
• Embedding long-term strategies into agency planning, not just short-term services

Why This Matters: Addressing root causes is about more than improving current conditions—it’s about creating pathways so families do not return to crisis and future generations can thrive. By working upstream, CAAs can help transform communities, influence policy change, and strengthen the systems that support economic mobility.

Virginia’s CAAs already play a powerful role in lifting families out of poverty. Goal 7 calls on all of us to build on that foundation and create lasting change that goes beyond today’s emergencies—toward a future where every Virginian has the opportunity to succeed.

CSBG State Plan - Comment Period Now Open

The Virginia 2026-28 CSBG State Plan is available for review by Virginia Community Action Agencies. The first comment period is currently active through March 13, 2026. Any comments, questions, or feedback can be submitted by using our comment form. A new dedicated page on LearnWorlds contains the CSBG State Plan document as well as the comment form. f you have any questions or have trouble accessing the documents please do not hesitate to reach out to csbg@dss.virginia.gov.

2026 Federal Poverty Guidelines Now Available



The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) annually revises the Federal Poverty Guidelines and publishes that update in the Federal Register. On January 13, 2026, HHS published the 2026 Federal Poverty Guidelines. Grantees may begin using the 2026 federal poverty guidelines for determining client eligibility immediately. HHS has also made available a chart showing the different multiples of the poverty guidelines for 2026 in PDF.  

Organizational Standards Reminders

As a reminder, agencies should review and upload their Organizational Standards documentation in CSBG Reporter throughout the year to ensure all standards are current ahead of the annual fall review. A recorded webinar on Organizational Standards—including helpful resources and guidance for uploading documentation—is available here: https://vacsbg.learnworlds.com/course/quality-org-standards