[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 171 (Tuesday, September 4, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46260-46264]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-22142]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[Docket No. 010813205-1205-01]
RIN 0648-XA74


NOAA Ocean Exploration Initiative

AGENCY: Office of Ocean Exploration, National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In June 2000, a U.S. panel of ocean scientists, explorers, and 
educators convened to create a National Strategy for Ocean Exploration. 
Their final report, ``Discovering Earth's final Frontier: A U.S. 
Strategy for Ocean Exploration'', is a plan to undertake new activities 
in ocean exploration. NOAA is embarking on this new strategy through 
its Ocean Exploration Program, and desires to partner with public, 
private, and academic ocean exploration programs outside of NOAA.
    The purpose of this notice is to advise the public, academic 
institutions, and private sector and government entities that the NOAA 
Office of Ocean Exploration (OE) is soliciting proposals in support of 
its mission to expand knowledge of the ocean's physical, chemical and 
biological environments, processes, characteristics, and resources by 
means of interdisciplinary expeditious to unknown, or poorly known, 
regions and through innovative experiments.

DATES: Proposals must be submitted to the Office of Ocean Exploration 
no later than 1 p.m. EST on November 7, 2001. Applications received 
after that time will not be considered for funding. Facsimile 
applications will not be accepted.

ADDRESSES: Send proposals to Katherine Croff, NOAA, Office of Ocean 
Exploration, Bldg. SSMC3, 11th Floor, 1315 East West Highway, Silver 
Spring, MD 20910 or via email to: [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information, applicants 
and other interested parties are encouraged to contact the Office by 
phone at 301-713-9444 x-139 or via email at [email protected] or by 
letter (see ADDRESSES). A copy of this notice, as well as ancillary 
information, will be posted on the OE Program webpage which can be 
found at: http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Program Authority

    Authority: 33 U.S.C. 883d.

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number: 11.460

II. Program Description

A. Mission and Background

    The OE Program's mission is to search and investigate the oceans 
for the purpose of discovery and the advancement of knowledge of the 
ocean's physical, chemical and biological environments, processes, 
characteristics, and resources by means of interdisciplinary 
expeditious to unknown, or poorly known, regions and through innovative 
experiments. The Program advocates discovery-based science and 
collaboration between multiple partners and disciplines. Education and 
outreach are also important OE Program components.
    NOAA's OE Program is viewed as a component of an envisioned larger 
National Ocean Exploration Program which is described in Discovering 
Earth's Final Frontier: A U.S. Strategy for Ocean Exploration http://oceanpanel.nos.noaa.gov. As envisioned, it would seek to bring the best 
of our Nation's ocean scientists to ocean science and technological 
frontiers for the purposes of discovering more about life in the 
oceans, discovering new oceans processes, learning more about maritime 
cultural resources and heritage, and prospecting for biological and 
mineral resources. The NOAA OE Program will thereby support NOAA's role 
as the Nation's agency for ocean stewardship.
    In order to facilitate pathfinding oceanic research and technology 
development, the OE Program will invest in well-justified projects that 
will expand our knowledge of the ocean's physical, chemical and 
biological environments as well as its processes,

[[Page 46261]]

characteristics, and resources. The OE Program will achieve these 
goals, in part, by means of interdisciplinary expeditions to unknown, 
or poorly known, regions and by means of innovative experiments. The 
Program also will seek to expand the Nation's maritime cultural 
heritage through support of ocean archeological expeditions.
    A major commitment will be devoted to data dissemination and timely 
communication of the Program's achievements to a broad audience. 
Participants in the program are anticipated to include the public, 
private entities, and academic scientists.

B. Notice Objectives

    The purpose of this announcement is to invite the submission of 
research proposals to explore and discover fundamental, new knowledge 
about the ocean and the organisms that live within it, to pursue the 
advancement of ocean technology and to develop teaching tools and 
innovative means for disseminating results and data.

C. Research Proposal Focus

    Proposals should address pathfinding research within the themes and 
regions listed below. Research within areas of U.S. legal jurisdiction 
is encouraged.
    Generalized thematic focuses for Ocean Exploration proposals 
include: (1) Exploring unknown or poorly known ocean regions; (2) 
exploring ocean dynamics and interactions at new time scales; (3) 
developing new sensors and systems; (4) exploring the Nation's maritime 
heritage; (5) exploring the ocean using remote sensing techniques, 
especially passive acoustics; and (6) exploring for living and 
nonliving ocean resources.
    Areas of geographic interest include (but are not necessarily 
limited to) the: (1) Eastern Pacific (from the Baja peninsula to the 
Bering Sea and including the Gulf of Alaska); (2) Northwest Hawaiian 
Islands; (3) Arctic; (4) Antarctic; (5) Gulf of Mexico; (6) Gulf of 
Maine; (7) South Atlantic Bight.
    The scope of proposals is left to the proposer's discretion, e.g., 
a proposal may be for a specific task or a large-scale, multi-
institutional interdisciplinary expedition. Proposals may include costs 
for ship time and other facilities, including ROVs, etc.
    All funded Principal Investigators (PIs) will be required to 
cooperate with the OE Program staff in facilitating education and 
outreach activities, which are major priorities for the program. These 
activities may entail such things as accommodation of a teacher/
educator-at-sea or at-sea media participation. Proposals should 
specifically address these priorities.
    NOAA's Ocean Explorer website (http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov) is 
the principle vehicle for chronicling and documenting missions 
supported by the OE Program. PIs and mission participants will be 
required to provide materials for this site. Mechanisms to do this, 
e.g., coordination with the NOAA Ocean Explorer website team (see 
Ancillary Information at: http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov), should be 
described in the proposal, and costs for accomplishing this goal should 
be included in the budget.
    PIs must also be willing to cooperate with OE to ensure that data 
acquired through their grants are compatible with the OE data/
information system currently under development. All funded proposals 
will be required to provide OE with metadata (via the Internet) 
pertaining to all research data sets within 90 days of their 
collection. In keeping with OE's education and outreach goals, the 
Internet databases also should be friendly to users from a wide 
spectrum of abilities and backgrounds. Because of the anticipated wide 
diversity in kinds of data to be acquired, dates for access to specific 
datasets (by the OE Program, relevant data repositories, and other 
requesters) will be individually established prior to each proposal 
award.

III. Funding Availability

    This solicitation announces that approximately $14M may be 
available in FY 2002, in award amounts to be determined by the 
proposals and available funds. Applicants are hereby given notice that 
funds have not yet been appropriated for this program.
    There is no guarantee that sufficient funds will be available to 
make awards for all qualified projects. Publication of this notice does 
not oblige NOAA to award any specific project or to obligate any 
available funds. If one incurs any costs prior to receiving an award 
agreement signed by an authorized NOAA official, one would do so solely 
at one's own risk of these costs not being included under the award. 
Notwithstanding any verbal or written assurance that one may have 
received, pre-award costs are not allowed under the award unless the 
Grants Officer approves them in accordance with 15 C.F.R. 14.28.

IV. Matching Requirements

    Applications must reflect the total budget necessary to accomplish 
the project, including contributions and/or donations. However, 
applicants are not required to seek matching funds to qualify for this 
award. If an applicant chooses to cost-share, and if that application 
is selected for funding, the applicant will be bound by the percentage 
of the cost-share reflected in the award.

V. Type of Funding Instrument

    The type of a funding instrument (either grant or cooperative 
agreement) that NOAA will use will be determined by the NOAA Grants 
Office in consultation with the NOAA OE Program Office. Mechanism for 
actual transfer of funds will depend on the specific agency or 
institution and its relationship to NOAA. Note: Grants or cooperative 
agreements will not be used in the case of funding for other Federal 
agencies. Such agencies will be funded through an inter-agency transfer 
(see Section IX for additional information).

IV. Duration of Funding and Award Period

    Proposals may request funding for up to three years. Funding in 
out-years will be contingent on successful accomplishment of prior-year 
objectives and the level of the program's overall funding. A year-end 
report of accomplishments will be required for multi-year proposals.

VII. Eligibility

    Institutions of higher education, nonprofit organizations, 
commercial organizations, foreign governments, organizations under the 
jurisdiction of foreign governments, international organizations, 
state, local and Indian tribal governments, and Federal agencies are 
eligible to apply and be awarded funds. Note: Before other Federal 
applicants may be funded, they must demonstrate that they have legal 
authority to receive funds for the purpose of this program in excess of 
their appropriation; see Section IX for more details on this point. 
Because this announcement is not proposing to procure goods or services 
from applicants, the Economy Act (31 U.S.C. 1535) is not an appropriate 
legal basis.

VIII. Project Funding Considerations

    NOAA encourages proposals that are interdisciplinary and involve 
legitimate collaborations with more than one institution or agency.

IX. Application Forms and Format

    All applications must include the forms listed in section IX(A) and 
a proposal that conforms to the specifications in section IX(B). For 
other federal agencies wishing to apply, please contact the OE Program 
Director at 301-713-9444 or via email at

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[email protected] prior to the development of any research proposals 
to discuss the legal authority for receiving these funds.

A. Forms

    Standard Forms 424, Application for Federal Assistance, 424A, 
Budget Information-Non-Construction Programs, 424B, Assurances-Non-
Construction Programs, SF-LLL, Disclosure of Lobbying Activities (Rev. 
7-97) (if applicable); DOC forms, CD-346, Applicant for Funding 
Assistance, CD-511, Certifications Regarding Debarment, Suspension and 
Other Responsibility Matters: Drug-Free Workplace Requirements and 
Lobbying, and CD-512, Certifications Regarding Debarment, Suspension, 
Ineligibility and Voluntary Exclusion-Lower Tier Covered Transactions 
and Lobbying shall be used in applying for financial assistance. All 
necessary forms may be obtained via the OE Internet site (see: OE 
Application Kit) at http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov. For hard copies, see 
ADDESSES and/or FOR FURTHER INFORMATION.

B. Proposal Format

    The proposal should be self-contained. The proposal must clearly 
delineate each partner's efforts and the associated requests for OE 
funds, as well as any cost-sharing. The same proposal will be used to 
implement funding of all partners in the proposed effort, if selected. 
Thus, separate budgets within the single proposal will be required if 
more than one funding action is needed..
    All proposals/applications must include the following: (a) 
Completed cover page; (b) a maximum half-page executive summary; (c) a 
maximum 20-page description of the entire project (including 
collaborations, period of performance, and work plan); (d) budget 
narrative (including proper budget justification for non-standard 
items); (e) a summary of relevant current funding support; (f) a short 
Principal Investigator resume, including recent relevant publication 
references,and (g) all government forms required for submission.
    The entire package must make 40 pages or less. Proposals must be 
stapled or bound in the uppermost left-hand corner. Margins should be 
one inch on all four sides and the font size should be at least 10 
point. A copy of the proposal on floppy diskette or Zip disk in Adobe 
Acrobat PDF or Microsoft Word format is requested, but not required.

X. Proposal/Application Submission Procedure

    Investigators/applicants may submit hard copies or electronic 
copies (via email) of their proposals. Applicants submitting hard 
copies must submit three hard copies of the proposal. While extra 
copies are not required, submission of an extra twelve copies will 
expedite the review process. Although electronic submissions are 
welcomed, the forms, identified in Section IX(A), must be submitted in 
hard copy with original signatures in conjunction with any electronic 
submissions by the closing date/time. Three original copies of the 
forms, identified in section IX(A), are needed. Failure to submit the 
required forms may result in a proposal being rejected. Please send 
electronic submissions to the following email address: 
[email protected]. For further information, see Announcement 
of Opportunity: Application Kit at 
http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/ or see ADDRESSES and/or FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION.

XI. Evaluation Criteria

    Each proposal should take into consideration all of the following 
criteria. Listed in order of importance, these criteria will be used by 
independent peer mail reviewers and an independent peer review panel to 
assist in their evaluations of proposals submitted to the OE Program:

Scientific and Technical Merit

    The scientific and/or technical context and value of the work 
proposed, and the probability of success.

Relevance of the Proposal to OE Program Objectives

    The capacity for the proposal to address and support Ocean 
Exploration's missions and objectives (see: Section II., Parts A, B, 
and C).

Usability of Results

    The anticipated or potential scientific and/or technical importance 
of project results.

Other Requirements

    All proposals must provide sufficient information to demonstrate 
the applicant's scientific and/or technical capability to successfully 
undertake the proposed work. All proposals must also provide a complete 
and detailed budget, which includes supporting narratives for unusual 
and/or unusually costly items.
    The proposals will be judged, in accordance with these evaluation 
criteria, on a adjectival scale ranging in order of decreasing merit, 
as follows:
    Excellent: Comprehensive, thorough and of exceptional merit, one or 
more major strengths, no major weaknesses, and any minor weaknesses 
easily correctable.
    Very Good: Competent, one or more major strengths, strengths 
outweigh weaknesses, and major weaknesses correctable.
    Good: Reasonable, may be strengths and/or weaknesses, weaknesses do 
not significantly detract from the proposal's viability, any major 
weaknesses are correctable.
    Fair: One or more major weaknesses, weaknesses outweigh strengths, 
major weaknesses may possibly be corrected or minimized.
    Poor: One or more major weaknesses which will be difficult to 
correct or may not be correctable.

XII. Selection Process

    Proposals will be evaluated by an independent peer mail review, 
i.e., each proposal will be reviewed, by three qualified scientific 
and/or technical peers drawn from government, academia, and/or industry 
(working independently). These reviewers will be required to certify 
that they do not have a conflict of interest and that they will 
maintain confidentiality concerning the application(s) they are 
reviewing. The peer reviewers will (1) assign adjectival ratings to 
each proposal based on the evaluation criteria described in section XI, 
and (2) compose written assessments.
    Proposals and the accompanying written mail reviews will be sent to 
OE, who will make them available to the peer review panel. Panel 
members may include relevant NOAA and non-NOAA experts. As a group, the 
panel members will discuss the scientific merits of each proposal and 
the contents of the written assessments composed during the peer mail 
reviews process. After the discussion, each peer review panel member 
will individually rate each proposal using the evaluation criteria 
listed in this announcement. There will be no consensus advice or 
evaluation.
    Following the panel meeting, the proposals, the written reviews, 
and ratings of each panelist then will be sent to the OE Program's 
Chief Scientist. The Chief Scientist will compile the individual 
ratings for each proposal, and, after taking into account the extent to 
which the proposals meet OE's funding considerations, will group all of 
the proposals into the following fundable categories: Highest Priority 
For Funding, Merits Funding, or Decline.

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    The Director of the NOAA OE Program will have the final authority 
and responsibility for decisions regarding proposal acceptance or 
rejection. The Director, in making his/her final decisions, will 
consider: (1) Individual peer reviews, (2) the peer review panel 
evaluations, ratings and Chief Scientist groupings; (3) the avoidance 
of duplication with other projects funded by NOAA or other Federal 
Agencies; (4) the extent to which the proposals meet the funding 
considerations in Section VIII; and (5) availability of funding. 
Therefore, the highest proposal rating may not ultimately determine 
funding. Investigators may be asked to modify objectives, work plans, 
or budgets prior to approval of the award. Subsequent administrative 
processing will be in accordance with current NOAA grants procedures.

XIII. Other NOAA Affiliations

    Other NOAA agencies and programs also have mission objectives which 
involve ocean research and technology development. Examples include, 
the National Undersea Research Program, the National Sea Grant College 
Program, the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research Office's Arctic 
Research Office, NMFS and the National Ocean Service. The OE Program 
anticipates and encourages collaborative efforts between itself and 
these agencies and programs. Investigators who wish to work with the OE 
Program through any of these other entities should contact them 
directly. Prospective collaborative projects facilitated by these other 
programs will be subject to the OE Program's proposal review and 
decision-making process. For additional details about these other 
programs, see: http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov.

XIV. Federal Policies and Procedures Applicable to OE

A. Environmental Impact

    If a proposed project might have an environmental impact, the 
proposal should furnish sufficient information to assist proposal 
reviewers in assessing the environmental consequences of supporting the 
project.

B. ESA/MMPA Permits and Authorizations

    Where relevant, proposals with the potential to impact marine 
mammals and/or other protected species must comply with the Marine 
Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (MMPA), (16 U.S.C. 1361-1421h) and the 
Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA), (16 U.S.C. 1531-1544).
    For further information about permits, authorizations or viewing 
marine mammals and other protected species in the wild please visit the 
following NMFS websites:
http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/prot res/overview/permits.html
http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/prot res/MMWatch/MMViewing.html.

XV. Other Requirements

A. Federal Policies and Procedures

    Recipients and subrecipients are subject to all Federal laws and 
Federal and DOC policies, regulations and procedures applicable to 
Federal financial assistance awards. Women and minority individuals and 
groups are encouraged to submit applications under this program.
    DOC/NOAA is strongly committed to broadening the participation of 
Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU), Hispanic Serving 
Institutions (HSI), and Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCU) in its 
educational and research programs. The DOC/NOAA vision, mission, and 
goals are to achieve full participation by Minority Serving 
Institutions (MSI) in order to advance the development of human 
potential, to strengthen the Nation's capacity to provide high-quality 
education, and to increase opportunities for MSIs to participate in and 
benefit from Federal Assistance programs. DOC/NOAA encourages all 
applicants to include meaningful participation of MSIs.

B. Past Performance

    Any first-time applicant for Federal grant funds is subject to a 
pre-award accounting survey prior to execution of the award. 
Unsatisfactory performance under prior Federal awards may result in an 
application not being considered for funding.

C. Pre-Award Activities

    If applicants incur any costs prior to an award being made, they do 
so solely at their own risk of not being reimbursed by the Government. 
Notwithstanding any verbal or written assurance that they may have 
received, there is no obligation on the part of DOC to cover pre-award 
costs.

D. No Obligation of Future Funding

    If an application is selected for funding, DOC has no obligation to 
provide any additional future funding in connection with the award. 
Renewal of an award to increase funding or extend the period of 
performance is at the total discretion of DOC.

E. Delinquent Federal Debt

    No Federal funds will be awarded to an applicant or to its 
subrecipients who have any outstanding debt until either:
    1. The delinquent account is paid in full;
    2. A negotiated repayment schedule is established and at least one 
payment is received; or
    3. Other arrangements satisfactory to DOC are made.

F. Name Check Review

    All non-profit and for-profit applicants are subject to a name-
check review process. Name checks are intended to reveal if any key 
individuals associated with the applicant have been convicted of or are 
presently facing criminal charges such as fraud, theft, perjury, or 
other matters which significantly reflect on the applicant's management 
honesty or financial integrity.

G. False Statements

    A false statement on an application is grounds for denial or 
termination of funds and grounds for possible punishment by a fine or 
imprisonment as provided in 18 U.S.C. 1001.

H. Primary Applicant Certifications

    All primary applicants must submit a completed Form CD-511, 
``Certifications Regarding Debarment, Suspension and Other 
Responsibility Matters; Drug-Free Workplace Requirements and 
Lobbying,'' and the following explanations are hereby provided.
    1. Nonprocurement Debarment and Suspension. Prospective 
participants (as defined at 15 CFR Part 26, Section 105) are subject to 
15 CFR Part 26, ``Nonprocurement Debarment and Suspension'' and the 
related section of the certification form prescribed above applies;
    2. Drug-Free Workplace. Grantees (as defined at 15 CFR Part 26, 
Section 605) are subject to 15 CFR Part 26, Subpart F, ``Governmentwide 
Requirements for Drug-Free Workplace (Grants)'' and the related section 
of the certification form prescribed above applies;
    3. Anti-Lobbying. Persons (as defined at 15 CFR Part 28, Section 
105) are subject to the lobbying provisions of 31 U.S.C. 1352, 
``Limitation on use of appropriated funds to influence certain Federal 
contracting and financial transactions,'' and the lobbying section of 
the certification form prescribed above applies to applications/bids 
for grants, cooperative agreements, and contracts for more than 
$100,000, and loans and loan guarantees for more then $150,000, or the 
single family maximum

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mortgage limit for affected programs, whichever is greater; and
    4. Anti-Lobbying Disclosures. Any applicant that has paid or will 
pay for lobbying using any funds must submit an SF-LLL ``Disclosure of 
Lobbying Activities,'' as required under 15 CFR Part 28, Appendix B.

I. Lower Tier Certifications

    Recipients shall require applicants/bidders for subgrants, 
contracts, subcontracts, or other lower tier covered transactions at 
any tier under the award to submit, if applicable, a completed Form CD-
512. ``Certifications Regarding Debarment, Suspension, Ineligibility 
and Voluntary Exclusion-Lower Tier Covered Transactions and Lobbying'' 
and disclosure form, SF-LLL, ``Disclosure of Lobbying Activities.'' 
Form CD-512 is intended for the use of recipients and should not be 
transmitted to DOC. SF-LLL submitted by any tier recipient or 
subrecipient should be submitted to DOC in accordance with the 
instructions contained in the award document.

J. Intergovernmental Review

    Applicants under this program are subject to Executive Order 12372, 
``Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs.''

K. Purchase of American-Made Equipment and Products

    Applicants are hereby notified that they will be encouraged to the 
greatest extent practicable, to purchase American-made equipment and 
products with funding provided under this program.

Classification

    Prior notice and an opportunity for public comments are not 
required by the Administration Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 553(a)(2)) or 
any other law for this notice concerning grants, benefits, and 
contracts.
    Therefore, a regulatory flexibility analysis is not required for 
purposes of the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. Sec. 601 et. seq.)
    This action has been determined to be not significant for purposes 
of Executive Order 12866.
    This notice contains collection-of-information requirements which 
are subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act. The use of Standard Forms 
424, 424A, 424B, SF-LLL and CD-346 have been approved by OMB under the 
respective control numbers 0348-0043, 0348-0044, 0348-0040, 0348-0046, 
and 0605-0001. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person is 
required to respond to, nor shall any person be subject to a penalty 
for failure to comply with, a collection of information subject to the 
Paperwork Reduction Act, unless that collection of information displays 
a currently valid OMB control number.

    Dated: August 29, 2001.
Louisa Koch,
Deputy Assistant Administrator, Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Research, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
[FR Doc. 01-22142 Filed 8-31-01; 8:45 am]
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