Vendor-portal tools: XML and CSV import options to streamline CSBG OLDC uploads
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Summary
Tiffany Jarvis walked attendees through the vendor portal documents (additional fields, data dictionary/validations) and demonstrated the SmartForms import button and CSV import template that let states import XMLs or bulk CSVs into SmartForms to speed internal review and OLDC uploads.
Tiffany Jarvis, research director, reviewed the vendor portal resources and demonstrated import tools that the Office of Community Services and its vendor have added to ease state uploads to OLDC.
Tiffany said the vendor portal hosts an 'additional fields' document that defines XML header fields and that "for successful OLDC uploading, the XML headers must match exactly with what is on the additional fields document." She walked through the combined data dictionary and validations spreadsheet—now a single Excel file with section-header tabs, section-specific validation rules, XML field labels and notes—and explained how the file supports both SmartForms users and states using their own systems.
She introduced the SmartForms 'import into smart form' button, which has two purposes: recover data from a broken SmartForm and allow states to import completed XML files so they can populate the SmartForms outstanding errors-and-warnings tab without manually re-entering data. Tiffany described the import steps (click import, select file, confirm), noted that XML imports require separate uploads for module 2 and module 4 XML files, and said the vendor will post a blank SmartForm and agency-specific updated SmartForms by the end of the week to support year-to-year validations.
Tiffany also explained a CSV import option that requires the vendor's CSV import tool and a correctly formatted CSV template; while CSV import may require more programming up front, it allows creating SmartForms for multiple agencies at once—unlike the XML import, which must be repeated per agency. She said the CSV import tool and template will be uploaded to the vendor portal by the end of the week.
Monique Alcantara closed the session by listing technical assistance contacts (federal program specialists and data-and-evaluation specialists) and the CSBG annual report toolkit and reminding participants to consult the FY25 action transmittal for current deadlines.
