[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 238 (Wednesday, December 11, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 76161-76164]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-31195]



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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[Docket No.021202295-2295-01]


Global Ocean Data Assimilation Experiment (GODAE)

AGENCY: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of 
Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of request for proposals.

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SUMMARY: The purpose of this notice is to advise the public that the 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), on behalf of 
the National Oceanographic Partnership Program (NOPP), is entertaining 
preliminary proposals (Letters of Intent) and subsequently full 
proposals for implementing the initial, pre-operational U.S. 
contribution(s) to the Global Ocean Data Assimilation Experiment. These 
efforts are a Pilot Project under Ocean.US, the National Office for 
Integrated and Sustained Ocean Observations, intended to lead to 
sustained operational efforts supported by U.S. agencies such as NOAA 
and the U.S. Navy. The NOPP was established by 10 U.S.C. 7902 et seq. 
to (1) promote the national goals of assuring national security, 
advancing economic development, protecting quality of life, and 
strengthening science education and communication through improved 
knowledge of the ocean; and (2) coordinate and strengthen oceanographic 
efforts in support of those goals by identifying and carrying out 
partnerships among Federal agencies, academia, industry, and other 
members of the oceanographic scientific community in the areas of data, 
resources, education, and communication. In FY 2003, NOPP intends to 
begin a program to demonstrate the value of near-real-time, ocean data 
assimilation. Contingent on the availability of appropriated funds, 
this program is expected to continue for three to five years. The level 
of funding available each year will be dependent on appropriations. It 
is expected that approximately $1,500,000 will be available for the 
first year of the project, approximately $2,500,000 for the second 
year, and up to $4,500,000 for the third year. It is expected that the 
level of funding for the third year will continue for two additional 
years, depending on progress. Proposals should be written as three-year 
efforts with options to continue in years four and five should progress 
be satisfactory.

DATES: January 10, 2003, 5 pm (EST)--Letter of Intent in electronic, 
facsimile, or hard copy form due. Letters of Intent are used for 
assessment purposes only and are not a requirement for proposal 
submission.
    February 24, 2003, 5 pm (EST)--Full proposal in electronic or hard 
copy form due. The proposal must clearly delineate each partner's 
efforts and the associated request(s) for NOPP funds as well as any 
cost-sharing that may be offered. (Cost- or resource-sharing is not 
required in any response to this announcement.) The same proposal will 
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.
    Unsuccessful applications will be destroyed.
    June 1, 2003 (approximate)--Funds awarded to selected recipients. 
Program begins.

ADDRESSES: Because of potential delays and/or damage in mailing or 
shipment of hard copy submissions, electronic submissions of Letters of 
Intent (LOI) and Proposals are strongly encouraged. Electronic 
submissions must be in PDF format. Electronic submissions in other than 
PDF format will not be accepted. Electronic submissions must be 
directed to the National Oceanographic Partnership Program at http://www.onr.navy.mil/sci_tech/ocean/GODAE--NOAA.htm; ATTN: Stephen R. 
Piotrowicz. Letters of Intent submitted by facsimile must be directed 
to Ocean.US, ATTN: Stephen R. Piotrowicz at 703-588-0872. Letters of 
Intent and Proposals submitted in hard copy form must be submitted to: 
Ocean.US, 2300 Clarendon Blvd., Suite 1350, Arlington, VA 22201; ATTN: 
Dr. Stephen R. Piotrowicz. Proposals submitted in hard copy form should 
contain one original plus two copies of the full proposal. If color 
and/or grayscale graphics are included in the proposal, and offerer 
feels that color or grayscale graphics would be necessary for the 
review process, the offerer may submit twelve additional copies of the 
graphics.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Stephen R. Piotrowicz, telephone: 
(703) 588-0850; facsimile: (703) 588-0872; internet: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Program Authority

    Authority: 49 U.S.C. 44720 (b); 33 U.S.C. 883d; 15 U.S.C. 2904; 
15 U.S.C. 2934, (CFDA No. 11.431)--Climate and Atmospheric Research.

II. Program Description

Background

    The Global Ocean Data Assimilation Experiment (GODAE) is a one-time 
pilot project to demonstrate the feasibility and practicality of near 
real-time global ocean data assimilation and numerical modeling for: 
(a) Short range open ocean forecasts; (b) boundary conditions to extend 
predictability of coastal regimes; (c) initialize climate forecast 
models; and (d) research during the period 2003 to 2007. GODAE has been 
in planning for at least five years. Within the international community 
this has culminated in the preparation of both a Strategic Plan and an 
Implementation Plan (http://www.bom.gov.au.GODAE/IP/Plan.htm). NOPP has 
provided substantial funding for a number of U.S. GODAE-preparatory and 
GODAE-related activities, which have established a foundation upon 
which we now wish to build as GODAE moves into its demonstration phase 
as a Pilot Project under Ocean.US. Elements of the international 
community are in the process of organizing GODAE. Demonstrating the 
utility of near-real-time data assimilation in an operational setting 
would provide critical feedback needed to justify the continuance of 
basin-scale ocean observing and prediction/estimation systems over the 
long term.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Items (a) or (b) or (c) above must be the 
primary focus of this effort.

Funding Availability

    Actual funding levels will depend upon the final budget 
appropriations. This Program Announcement is for a program to be 
conducted over a three (nominal) to five (with options) year period, by 
investigators both inside and outside the Federal Government. It is 
expected, though not certain, that two or more programs involving 
multiple investigators will be funded, with possible coalescence or 
down-selection for the Option years 4 and 5. In accordance with the 
NOPP, team efforts among academia, industry, and government 
participants are very strongly encouraged; the degree of inter-sector 
teaming is a selection criteria. For Federal Government investigators, 
funding will be provided through intra- or interagency transfers, as 
appropriate. The funding instrument for extramural awards will be a 
grant unless it is anticipated that NOAA will be substantially involved 
in the implementation of the project, in which case the funding 
instrument could be a cooperative agreement. Examples of substantial 
NOAA involvement may

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include, but are not limited to, proposals for collaboration between 
NOAA or NOAA scientists and a recipient scientist or technician and/or 
contemplation by NOAA of detailing Federal personnel to work on 
proposed projects. NOAA will make decisions regarding the use of a 
cooperative agreement on a case-by-case basis.

III. Eligibility

    Extramural eligibility is not limited. Eligible applicants include 
institutions of higher education, other non-profits, commercial 
organizations, international organizations, state, local and Indian 
tribal governments. Applications from non-Federal and Federal 
applicants will be competed against each other.

    Please Note: Before non-NOAA Federal applicants may be funded, 
they must demonstrate that they have legal authority to receive 
funds from another Federal agency in excess of their appropriation. 
The only exception to this is governmental research facilities for 
awards issued under the authority of 49 U.S.C. 44720. 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.

IV. Evaluation Criteria

    Evaluations of the proposals will use the following selection 
criteria:
    1. Relevance of the proposed program to NOPP objectives, including 
(30%):
    a. Support of critical research objectives or operational goals 
that meet NOPP and participating federal agency requirements,
    b. Broad participation within the oceanographic community,
    c. Partners with a long-term commitment to the proposed objectives,
    d. Resources are shared among partners, and
    e. Active involvement of one or more operational centers.
    2. Overall technical merits of the proposal (30%), including:
    a. Demonstration of the utility of near-real-time data assimilation 
in operational settings;
    b. Coordination and/or collaboration with existing operationally 
oriented efforts;
    c. Feedback mechanisms between assimilation efforts and data set 
providers;
    d. Collaborative activities with international efforts providing 
mutual benefits to both.
    3. The offeror's capabilities, related experience, and facilities 
or unique combinations of these that are critical to the program's 
objectives (10%).
    4. The qualifications and experience of the proposed principal 
investigator(s) and key personnel (10%).
    5. The degree of significant partnering among at least two of the 
following parties, academia, industry or government (10%).
    6. Realism and duration of the proposed costs (10%).
    The proposed program shall produce substantive results in no more 
than three years to allow review and decisions on any proposed options 
for extension to years four and five. Non-productive programs will be 
considered for termination at the end of three years, regardless of any 
options.

V. Selection Procedures

    The review process will be conducted by the NOPP Program Office on 
behalf of the NOPP agencies. A description of the NOPP Proposal Review 
Process can be found at: http://www.nopp.org/Dev2Go.web?id=236688&rnd=31591. All proposals, including those 
submitted by NOAA employees, will be evaluated similarly. The process 
uses peer reviews solicited by mail and/or a panel. Federal conflict of 
interest rules are followed. The individuals who provide peer review 
are scientists drawn from academic, government, and industrial/
commercial communities. Mail reviews require a scoring in accordance 
with the criteria presented in Section IV, Evaluation Criteria, as well 
as a narrative assessment. If a panel is convened along with soliciting 
mail reviews, it will take the results of the mail reviews and rate the 
proposals into three Tiers (1--Strong Proposal, fundable with no 
significant issues; 2--Strong Proposal, fundable with issues to be 
resolved; 3--Not Recommended). The ratings will be determined by a vote 
of the Panel on each proposal individually with the Tier assigned 
according to the highest number of votes received.
    In the event of a tie between two or three tiers, the proposal will 
be assigned to the highest rated Tier of the Tiers that tied for the 
highest number of votes. If only a panel is convened, it will both 
score the proposals numerically in accordance with the criteria in 
Section IV and rate the proposals into tiers. No consensus advice will 
be given by the Panel (unless the panel is composed entirely of Federal 
employees.) The recommendations and evaluations of the panel will be 
considered by the NOPP Interagency Working Group along with the 
following program policy factors:
    a. Availability of funding;
    b. Duplication of on-going Federal support;
    c. Duplication with other applications in the solicitation;
    d. Geographic diversity;
    e. Diversity among the types of institutions receiving awards;
    f. Collaboration among multiple jurisdictions; and
    g. Subject area diversity within the competition.
    The recommendations of the participating funding agencies will be 
forwarded to the National Ocean Research Leadership Council for final 
selection(s) based on the program policy factors given above. Any 
proposal within Tier One or Tier Two may be selected for award. The 
Program Manager(s) in the agencies will also recommend the total 
duration of funding and the amount of funding for each partner in the 
proposal. Unsatisfactory performance by a recipient under prior Federal 
awards may result in an application not being considered for funding.

VI. Instruction for Application

What To Submit

Letter of Intent (LOI)
    To prevent the expenditure of effort that may not be successful, it 
is in the best interest of applicants to submit letters of intent, 
however, it is not a requirement. Letters of Intent (LOI) must be sent 
by electronic mail. The following information should be included:
    (1) The LOI should clearly identify the program area being 
addressed by starting the project title with ``U.S. GODAE:'' Principal 
Investigators and collaborators should be identified by affiliation and 
contact information. The total amount of Federal funds being requested 
should be listed for each budget year for each collaborator's 
institution.
    (2) A concise (2-page limit) description of the program including a 
brief summary of the work to be completed, methodology to be used, 
approximate costs of the major elements (salaries and benefits, direct 
costs, and travel). Evaluation will be by NOPP agency program 
management. Projects deemed suitable during Letters of Intent (LOI) 
review will be encouraged within 15 days to submit full proposals; 
projects may also be discouraged from submitting full proposals, but 
investigators may still do so if they wish.
    (3) Resumes (1-page limit each) of the Principal Investigators.
Full Proposal Guidelines
    Each full proposal must include the first seven items listed below; 
the standard forms included as Item 8 will only be required for 
proposal(s) selected for funding. All pages should be single-

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or double-spaced, typewritten in at least a 10-point font, and printed 
on metric A4 (210 mm x 297 mm) or 8\1/2\'' x 11'' paper. Brevity will 
assist reviewers and program staff in dealing effectively with 
proposals, therefore, the Program Description may not exceed 15 pages. 
Tables and visual materials, including figures, charts, graphs, maps, 
photographs and other pictorial presentations are included in the 15-
page limitation; literature citations and letters of support, if any, 
are not included in the 15-page limitation. Conformance to the 15-page 
limitation will be strictly enforced. All information needed for review 
of the proposal should be included in the main text; no appendices, 
other than support letters, if any, are permitted. Failure to adhere to 
the above limitations will result in the proposal being rejected 
without review.
    (1) Signed Title Page: The title page should be signed by the 
Principal Investigator(s) and the institutional representative and 
should clearly identify program by starting the title ``U.S. GODAE:'' 
The Principal Investigator and institutional representative should be 
identified by full name, title, organization, telephone number, and 
address. The total amount of Federal funds being requested should be 
listed for each year of the program; the total should include all 
collaborator's budgets on projects involving multiple institutions, 
even if one of the collaborators is a Federal institution.
    (2) Abstract: An abstract must be included and should contain an 
introduction of the problem, rationale and a brief summary of work to 
be completed. The abstract should appear on a separate page, headed 
with the proposal title, institution(s) investigator(s), total proposed 
cost and budget period.
    (3) Program Description/Work Statement (15-page limit): The Program 
Description should include identification of the problem, objectives of 
the work, relevance to the operational prediction mission, proposed 
implementation strategy, and proposed methodology. The following 
elements should be described in detail:
    (a) Approach: The Project should demonstrate the implications of 
real-time ocean data assimilation into operational analysis and 
forecast models, or into analysis and forecast systems that are running 
in an operational mode. It should facilitate the process of acceptance 
of such assimilation by one or more operational entities, entraining 
the operational entity(ies) working on a 24/7 basis. Approaches that 
propose work independent of operational activities, such that a ``hand-
off'' is proposed at the end of the project will not be deemed 
responsive to this call.
    (b) Data Management: It should illustrate how real-time (within 24 
hour) delivery of products will be achieved, although longer-delivery 
times (with, for example, more quality control) may be acceptable in 
addition but not instead, for some products.
    (4) Budget and Budget Justification: There should be a separate 
budget for each year of the project as well as a cumulative annual 
budget for the entire project. Subcontracts should have a separate 
budget page. Applicants should provide justification for all budget 
items in sufficient detail to enable the reviewers to evaluate the 
appropriateness of the funding requested.
    (5) Current and Pending Support: Information on the number of 
person-months per year devoted to this project and ongoing projects 
regardless source of support (Federal, State, or local government 
agencies, private foundations, industrial or other commercial 
organizations) by the Principal Investigator and other senior personnel 
must be listed. Similar information must be provided for all proposals 
already submitted or submitted concurrently to other possible sponsors, 
including those within NOAA.
    (6) Vitae (2 pages maximum per investigator): Abbreviated 
curriculum vitae are sought with each proposal. Reference lists should 
be limited to all publications in the last three years with up to five 
other relevant papers.
    (7) Results from prior research: The results of related projects 
supported by NOAA and other agencies should be described, including 
their relation to the currently proposed work. Reference to each prior 
research award should include the title, agency, award number, 
Principal Investigators, and total award. The section should be a brief 
summary and should not exceed two pages total.
    (8) Standard Application Forms: For proposal(s) selected for 
funding, the following forms must also be submitted: Standard Forms 
424, Application for Federal Assistance, and 424B, Assurances-Non-
Construction Programs, (Rev 4-88). Please note that both the Principal 
Investigator and an administrative contact should be identified in 
Section 5 of the SF424. For Section 10, for proposals selected for 
funding by NOAA, applicants should enter ``11.431''' for the CFDA 
Number and ``Climate and Atmospheric Research'' for the title. The form 
must contain the original signature(s) of an authorized representative 
of the applying institution(s).
    (DOC/NOAA) is strongly committed to broadening the participation of 
Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU), Hispanic Serving 
Institutions (HIS), 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 Financial Assistance programs. DOC/NOAA encourages 
all applicants to include meaningful participation of MSIs. 
Institutions eligible to be considered MSIs are listed at the following 
Internet Web site: http://www.ed.gov/offices/OCR/99minin.html.
    The Department of Commerce Pre-Award Notification of Requirements 
for Grants and Cooperative Agreements contained in the Federal Register 
notice of October 1, 2001 (66 FR 49917), as amended by the Federal 
Register notice published on October 30, 2002 (67 FR 66109), is 
applicable to this solicitation.
    Applications under this program are not subject to Executive Order 
(EO) 12372, ``Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs.
    This notice has been determined to be not significant for purposes 
of E.O. 12866.
    It has been determined that this notice does not contain policies 
with Federalism implications as that term is defined in EO 13132.
    Notice and comment are not required under 5 U.S.C. 553(a)(2), or 
any other law, for notices relating to public property, loans, grants, 
benefits or contracts. Because notice and comment are not required, a 
Regulatory Flexibility Analysis, 5 U.S.C. 601 et seq., is not required 
and has not been prepared for this notice.
    This documents contains collection-of-information requirements 
subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). The use of Standard Forms 
424 and 424B have been approved by OMB under the respective control 
numbers 0348-0043 and 0348-0040.
    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

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collection displays a currently valid OMB Control Number.

Louisa Koch,
Acting Assistant Administrator, Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Research, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
[FR Doc. 02-31195 Filed 12-10-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-KD-P