ACL Awards $675,000 for National Information and Referral Support Center

ACL's Administration on Aging is awarding a new cooperative agreement to ADvancing States to support the National Information and Referral Support Center (National I&R Support Center). The three-year award provides $225,000 per year, for a total of $675,000, to strengthen the quality, capacity, and professionalism of aging and disability information, referral, and assistance (I&R/A) programs nationwide. The National I&R Support Center advances ACL's strategic priority of connecting people to services by helping older adults, people with disabilities, caregivers, and families connect with information, services, and supports.

The National I&R Support Center will focus on:

• Training to strengthen the capacity and professionalism of aging and disability I&R/A programs, including promoting national standards and professional certification
• Technical assistance and consultation to aging and disability I&R/A programs to facilitate peer learning
• Partnership and stakeholder development to advance aging and disability I&R/A programs
• Replicable model, promising practice, and innovation identification to disseminate strategies for effective use of technology and supporting emergency preparedness
• Improving access to aging and disability programs and services
• Coordinating with national organizations, federal agencies, ACL resource centers, aging and disability resource centers, centers for independent living, 211 programs, and other partners to better serve older adults, people with disabilities, and caregivers

The center will provide national technical assistance to state units on aging, area agencies on aging, tribal organizations, Native Hawaiian organizations, urban Indian organizations, centers for independent living, and nonprofit and community-based organizations serving older adults, people with disabilities, and their families. Training and educational activities may include webinars, toolkits, issue briefs, learning collaboratives, peer exchanges, conference presentations, and implementation resources.

The center also supports the ongoing implementation, operation, and enhancement of the Eldercare Locator and provides associated technical assistance. As a nationwide entry point to community-based services and resources, the Eldercare Locator connects people to services, while the National I&R Support Center helps strengthen the aging and disability networks by promoting consistency, quality, and accessibility in state and local information and referral services.

Through this award, ACL seeks measurable improvements in the ability of I&R/A professionals to connect people to services; increased exposure to evidence-based, evidence-informed, and exemplary practices; and sustained increases in the competency and capacity of I&R/A specialists to serve older adults, people with disabilities, caregivers, and their families.

See Notice of Funding Opportunity: HHS-2026-ACL-AOA-EESC-0037,"National Information and Referral Support Center," posted June 22, 2026.