[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 228 (Tuesday, November 29, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 71469-71471]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E5-6660]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[Docket No. [051121306-5306-01]]


Announcement of Funding Opportunity for the Coastal and Estuarine 
Land Conservation Program

AGENCY: Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management (OCRM), the 
National Ocean Service (NOS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Announcement of funding opportunity for financial assistance 
for project grants.

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SUMMARY: NOS/OCRM is soliciting coastal and estuarine land conservation 
acquisition projects from eligible coastal states. The Coastal and 
Estuarine Land Conservation Program (CELCP) was established ``for the 
purpose of protecting important coastal and estuarine areas that have 
significant conservation, recreation, ecological, historical, or 
aesthetic values, or that are threatened by conversion from their 
natural or recreational state to other uses.'' This announcement 
solicits proposals for land acquisition projects, up to 3 years in 
duration, with the purpose of protecting important coastal and 
estuarine areas. Project proposals should reflect priorities identified 
in an approved state CELC plan or, if a state plan has not been 
completed, by the state's approved coastal management program. This 
solicitation will result in a prioritized list of projects that will be 
submitted to Congress in March 2006 for consideration in the FY 2007 
appropriations process. Proposals should be prepared assuming a cost of 
no more than $3,000,000 per project and three projects per eligible 
applicant.

DATES: Proposals must be received by the NOS/OCRM no later than 5 p.m. 
e.s.t., December 30, 2005.

ADDRESSES: It is strongly preferred that you submit your application 
through Grants.gov at the Internet site: http://www.grants.gov. You may 
access, download, and submit an electronic grant application through 
Grants.gov.

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The full funding announcement is available via the grants.gov Web site: 
http://www.grants.gov. The announcement will also be available at the 
NOAA Web site http://www.ago.noaa.gov/ad/solindex.shtml or by 
contacting the program officials identified below. Applicants must 
comply with all requirements contained in the full funding opportunity 
announcement. NOAA strongly recommends that you do not wait until the 
application deadline date to begin the application process through 
Grants.gov. Paper applications, a signed original and 4 copies, may be 
submitted to Attn: Elaine Vaudreuil, NOAA, Ocean and Coastal Resource 
Management, National Policy and Evaluation Division (N/ORM7), 1305 
East-West Highway, SSMC4, 10th Floor Station 10657, Silver Spring, MD 
20910. The closing deadline for applying through grants.gov is the same 
as for the paper submission noted in this announcement.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: CELCP Program Managers: Elaine 
Vaudreuil, OCRM, 301-713-3155 ext 103; via Internet: 
[email protected] or Elisabeth Morgan, OCRM, 301-713-3155 ext 
166; via Internet at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Summary Description

    The Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Program (CELCP) was 
established ``for the purpose of protecting important coastal and 
estuarine areas that have significant conservation, recreation, 
ecological, historical, or aesthetic values, or that are threatened by 
conversion from their natural or recreational state to other uses.'' 
This announcement solicits proposals for land acquisition projects up 
to 3 years in duration with the purpose of protecting important coastal 
and estuarine areas. Project proposals should be based upon a state's 
coastal and estuarine land acquisition priorities as outlined in 
approved state CELC plans or as part of an approved state coastal 
management program. The state's designated lead agency for implementing 
the CELCP may solicit, and include in their application, project 
proposals from additional state agencies, or local governments as 
defined at 15 CFR 24.3, or entities eligible for assistance under 
Section 306A(e) of the CZMA (16 U.S.C. 1455a(e)), provided that each 
has the authority to acquire and manage land for conservation purposes. 
For this solicitation, the requirement that states must have an 
approved CELC plan will be waived. Coastal states may select and submit 
up to three projects. Grants will be given for up to $3,000,000 for 
each project.
    Project proposals should identify and discuss the project's primary 
focus and in addition describe all other relevant conservation, 
recreation, ecological, historical, and aesthetic values, and discuss 
threats of conversion of the project from its natural or recreational 
state to other uses. The proposals should also detail how the project 
will be completed in a timely manner, existing and proposed uses of the 
property, and how the project site will be managed in the future for 
long-term qualifications.
    The CELCP Guidelines, published in the Federal Register on June 17, 
2003, establish the eligibility, procedural and programmatic 
requirements for participation in the CELCP, including the criteria for 
financial assistance awards under the program. The guidelines outline 
the criteria and process for eligible coastal states to develop a state 
coastal and estuarine land conservation plan, nominate land 
conservation projects to a national competitive process, and for NOAA 
to select projects at the national level for funding. All applications 
submitted pursuant to this notice must be consistent with the 
requirements and guidelines implementing the CELCP published in the 
Federal Register (68 FR 35860-35869), on June 17, 2003, except that for 
this solicitation NOS waives the requirement for states to have an 
approved CELC plan. The Coastal and Estuarine Land Program Final 
Guidelines, June 2003 can be found at http://coastalmanagement.noaa.gov/pdf/CELCPfinal02Guidelines.pdf.

Funding Availability

    Funding is dependent upon 2007 appropriations. It is anticipated 
that up to $60,000,000 in projects will be recommended to Congress for 
funding in FY 2007. This solicitation announces that award amounts to 
be determined by the proposals and available funds not to exceed 
$3,000,000 per project with a project duration from 1-3 years. It is 
anticipated that approximately 20-60 projects will be recommended for 
funding in FY 2007.
    Statutory Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1456d.
    CFDA: 11.419, Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Program.

Eligibility

    Coastal states with Coastal Zone Management Programs or National 
Estuarine Research Reserves approved under the Coastal Zone Management 
Act of 1972 are eligible to participate. Each state's CELCP lead agency 
will be responsible for: soliciting projects that are consistent with 
priorities outlined in the state's approved CELC plan or if a CELC plan 
has not yet been approved, a state's coastal management program. A list 
of state lead agency contacts for the CELCP can be found at: http://coastalmanagement.noaa.gov/landconservation.html. The state's lead 
agency may solicit, and include in their application, project proposals 
from additional state agencies, or local governments as defined at 15 
CFR 24.3, or entities eligible for assistance under section 306A(e) of 
the CZMA (16 U.S.C. 1455a(e)), provided that each has the authority to 
acquire and manage land for conservation purposes. Up to three project 
proposals may be submitted. The state will be responsible for ensuring 
that allocated funds are used for the purposes of and in a manner 
consistent with this program.

Cost Sharing Requirements

    All funds under this program are to be matched with non-federal 
funds at a ratio of 1:1.

Intergovernmental Review

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

Proposal Review and Selection Process for Projects

    NOAA published its agency-wide solicitation entitled ``Omnibus 
Notice Announcing the Availability of Grant Funds for Fiscal Year 
2006'' for projects for Fiscal Year 2006 in the Federal Register on 
June 30, 2005 (70 FR 37766). The evaluation and selection criteria and 
procedures for projects contained in that omnibus notice are applicable 
to this notice. Copies of this notice are available on the Internet at 
http://www.ofa.noaa.gov/%7Eamd/SOLINDEX.HTML. Further details on 
evaluation and selection criteria and procedures applicable to this 
notice can be found in the full funding opportunity announcement.

National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)

    NOAA must analyze the potential environmental impacts, as required 
by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), for applicant projects 
or proposals which are seeking NOAA federal funding opportunities. 
Detailed information on NOAA compliance with NEPA can be found at the 
following NOAA NEPA Web site: http://www.nepa.noaa.gov/, including our

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NOAA Administrative Order 216-6 for NEPA, http://www.nepa.noaa.gov/
NAO216--6--TOC.pdf, and the Council on Environmental Quality 
implementation regulations, http://ceq.eh.doe.gov/nepa/regs/ceq/toc_ceq.htm. Consequently, as part of an applicant's package, and under 
their description of their program activities, applicants are required 
to provide detailed information on the activities to be conducted, 
locations, sites, species and habitat to be affected, possible 
construction activities, and any environmental concerns that may exist 
(e.g., the use and disposal of hazardous or toxic chemicals, 
introduction of non-indigenous species, impacts to endangered and 
threatened species, aquaculture projects, and impacts to coral reef 
systems). In addition to providing specific information that will serve 
as the basis for any required impact analyses, applicants may also be 
requested to assist NOAA in drafting of an environmental assessment, if 
NOAA determines an assessment is required. Applicants will also be 
required to cooperate with NOAA in identifying feasible measures to 
reduce or avoid any identified adverse environmental impacts of their 
proposal. The failure to do so shall be grounds for not selecting an 
application. In some cases if additional information is required after 
an application is selected, funds can be withheld by the Grants Officer 
under a special award condition requiring the recipient to submit 
additional environmental compliance information sufficient to enable 
NOAA to make an assessment on any impacts that a project may have on 
the environment.

Pre-Award Notification Requirements for Grants and Cooperative 
Agreements

    The Department of Commerce Pre-Award Notification Requirements for 
Grants and Cooperative Agreements contained in the Federal Register 
notice of December 30, 2004 (69 FR 78389) are applicable to this 
solicitation.

Limitation of Liability

    Funding for the program listed in this notice is contingent upon 
the availability of Fiscal Year 2007 appropriations. In no event will 
NOAA be responsible for proposal preparation costs if this program 
fails to receive funding or is cancelled because of other agency 
priorities. Publication of this announcement does not oblige NOAA to 
award any specific project or to obligate any available funds.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    Applications involve collection-of-information requirements subject 
to the Paperwork Reduction Act. 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 requirement of the Paperwork Reduction Act, 
unless that collection displays a currently valid OMB control number.
    The following requirements have been approved by OMB under control 
number 0648-0459: a Project Proposal and Project Application Checklist 
(up to five copies per project), including project budget and 
justification or proposed costs, site maps, and supporting information 
such as appraisal, title opinion, documentation of compliance with 
Federal laws, regulations, policies etc.; and documentation of 
landowner's willingness to sell.

Executive Order 12866

    This notice has been determined to be not significant for purposes 
of Executive Order 12866.

Executive Order 13132 (Federalism)

    It has been determined that this notice does not contain policies 
with Federalism implications as that term is defined in Executive Order 
13132.

Administrative Procedure Act/Regulatory Flexibility Act

    Prior notice and opportunity for public comment are not required by 
the Administrative Procedure Act or any other law for rules concerning 
public property, loans, grants, benefits, and contracts (5 U.S.C. 
553(a)(2)). Because notice and opportunity for comments are not 
required pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553 or any other law, the analytical 
requirements of the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) 
are inapplicable. Therefore, a regulatory flexibility analysis has not 
been prepared.

    Dated: November 22, 2005.
Charles Challstrom,
Acting Assistant Administrator, National Ocean Service, National 
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
[FR Doc. E5-6660 Filed 11-28-05; 8:45 am]
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