[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 147 (Tuesday, August 1, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43448-43450]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-12286]



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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[Docket No. 060724199-6199-01]


Virginia Sea Grant Institutional Program

AGENCY: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 
Department of Commerce (DOC).

ACTION: Notice of availability of funds.

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SUMMARY: NOAA's Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR), 
National Sea Grant College Program invites applications to establish an 
Institutional Sea Grant Program for the Commonwealth of Virginia 
beginning in FY 2007. Anticipated start date is February 1, 2007. 
Applicants should provide a four-year plan for an institutional program 
that will be part of the larger National Sea Grant network, a 
partnership between the federal government and universities to conduct 
integrated research, education and outreach in fields related to ocean, 
coastal and Great Lakes resources. Applicants must comply with all 
requirements contained in the full funding opportunity announcement.

DATES: Proposals must be received no later than 5 p.m. Eastern Standard 
Time, September 15, 2006.

ADDRESSES: Proposals should be submitted through Grants.Gov, following 
the directions in Electronic Access, below. Proposals from those that 
do not have access to Internet should be sent to: Geraldine Taylor, 
NOAA R/SG; 1315 East-West Highway, Bldg SSMC 3, Room 11828, Silver 
Spring, MD 20910-3283, tel. 301-713-2435.
    This Federal Register notice may be found at the Grants.gov Web 
site, http://www.grants.gov, and at the NOAA Sea Grant Web site (http://www.seagrant.noaa.gov) by clicking on the ``View Requests for 
Proposals'' button.
    No e-mail or facsimile proposal submissions will be accepted.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For a copy of the full funding 
opportunity announcement and/or application kit, access it at 
Grants.gov, via NOAA Sea Grant's Web site, or by contacting Ms. Jamie 
Krauk, NOAA R/SG, 1315 East West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910-3283, 
telephone: 301-713-2431 x129, e-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Applicants must comply with all requirements 
contained in the full funding opportunity announcement. This notice 
describes funding opportunities for the NOAA Office of Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Research, National Sea Grant College Program.

Background

    The National Sea Grant College Program (NSGCP) was established by 
Congress to promote responsible use and conservation of the nation's 
marine and Great Lakes resources by conducting integrated research and 
outreach through a stable national infrastructure of state Sea Grant 
programs. The mission of the NSGCP is to ``Enhance the practical use 
and conservation of coastal, marine and Great Lakes resources to create 
a sustainable economy and environment.'' To accomplish this mission, 
the NSGCP is soliciting applications for a new Sea Grant institutional 
program for the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Electronic Access

    As has been the case since October 1, 2004, applicants can access, 
download and submit electronic grant applications for NOAA Programs 
through the Grants.gov Web site at http://www.Grants.gov. Applicants 
without Internet access may contact program officials for applications 
and submission instructions. The closing dates for applications filed 
through Grants.gov are the same as for the paper submissions noted in 
this announcement. For applicants filing through Grants.gov, NOAA 
strongly recommends that you do not wait until the application deadline 
date to begin the application process. Registration may take up to 10 
business days.

Funding Availability

    NOAA expects that about $1.4M will be available from the NSGCP to 
establish a new Sea Grant institutional program for the Commonwealth of 
Virginia beginning in FY 2007. NOAA anticipates continuing support at 
that level from FY 2008-FY 2010 if funds are available.
    Funding Opportunity Number: OAR-SG-2007-2000807.
    Statutory Authority: 33 U.S.C. 1121-1131.
    CFDA: 11.417, Sea Grant Support.

Eligibility

    Proposals may be submitted by institutions of higher education, or 
confederations of such institutions in the state of Virginia.

Cost Sharing Requirements

    To be eligible for the NSGCP funds, a match of 50% of the requested 
Federal funds (direct and indirect costs) is needed. Sea Grant requires 
that funds be matched with at least one non-Federal dollar for every 
two Federal dollars.

Intergovernmental Review

    Applications under this program are not subject to Executive Order 
12372, ``Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs.''

Evaluation Criteria and Review and Selection Procedures

A. Evaluation Criteria

    Applicants must be rated highly (7 or greater on a scale of 1-10) 
in each of the following qualifying areas:
    (1) Leadership. Is the candidate an intellectual and practical 
leader in marine science, engineering, education, and advisory service 
in its state and region? (10 points)
    (2) Organization. Has the candidate created the necessary 
management organization to carry on a viable and productive Sea Grant 
Program, and does the candidate have backing of its administration at a 
sufficiently high level to fulfill its multidisciplinary and 
multifaceted mandate? (10 points)
    (3) Relevance. Is the candidate's program relevant to local, State, 
regional, or National opportunities and problems in the marine 
environment? Important factors in evaluating relevance are the presence 
of an emphasis on marine resources, and the extent to which 
capabilities have been developed to be responsive to that need. (10 
points)
    (4) Programmed team approach. Does the candidate have a programmed 
team approach to solving marine problems, which includes relevant, high 
quality, multidisciplinary research with associated educational and 
advisory services capable of producing identifiable results? (10 
points)
    (5) Education and training. Is education and training clearly 
relevant to National, regional, State and local needs in fields related 
to ocean, Great Lakes, and coastal resources? (Education may include 
pre-college, college, post-graduate, public and adult levels.) (10 
points)
    (6) Advisory services. Does the candidate have a strong program 
through which information, techniques and research results from any 
reliable source, domestic or international, are communicated to, and 
utilized by, user communities? In addition to the educational and 
information dissemination role, does the advisory service program aid 
in the identification and communication of user communities' research 
and educational needs? (10 points)

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    (7) Relationships. Does the candidate have close ties with Federal 
agencies, State agencies and administrations, local authorities, 
business and industry, and other educational institutions? Do these 
ties: (i) Ensure the relevance of its programs, (ii) give assistance to 
the broadest possible audience, (iii) involve a broad pool of talent in 
providing assistance and (iv) assist others in developing research and 
management competence? (The extent and quality of an institution's 
relationships are critical factors in evaluating the institutional 
program) (10 points)
    (8) Productivity. Does the candidate have substantial strength in 
the three basic Sea Grant activities: Research, education and training, 
and advisory services? (10 points)
    (9) Support. Does the candidate have the ability to obtain matching 
funds from non-Federal sources, such as state legislatures, university 
management, state agencies, business, and industry? A diversity of 
matching fund sources is encouraged as a sign of program vitality and 
the ability to meet the Sea Grant requirement that funds for the 
general programs be matched with at least one non-Federal dollar for 
every two Federal dollars. (10 points)
    (10) Continuity of high performance. Does the candidate demonstrate 
the ability to continue the pursuit of excellence and sustain the 
following? (i) high performance in marine research, education, 
training, and advisory services; (ii) leadership in marine activities 
including coordinated planning and cooperative work with local, state, 
regional, and Federal agencies, other Sea Grant programs, and non-Sea 
Grant universities; (iii) effective management framework and 
application of institutional resources to the achievement of Sea Grant 
objectives; (iv) long-term plans for research, education, training, and 
advisory services consistent with Sea Grant goals and objectives; (v) 
furtherance of the Sea Grant concept and the full development of its 
potential within the institution and the state; (vi) adequate and 
stable matching financial support for the program from non-Federal 
sources; and (vii) effective system to control the quality of its Sea 
Grant programs. (10 points)

B. Review and Selection Process

    An initial administrative review/screening will be conducted to 
determine compliance with requirements/completeness. All proposals will 
be evaluated and individually ranked in accordance with the assigned 
scale of the above evaluation criteria by an independent peer panel 
review. At least three experts, who may be Federal or non-Federal, will 
be used in this process. If non-Federal experts participate in the 
review process, all panelists will submit individual reviews and not a 
consensus opinion. The reviewers' ratings will be used to rank the 
proposals in order. The Director of the NSGCP will make the final 
selection after considering the panel reviews. If an award is made, the 
Director will award in rank order.

Universal Identifier

    Applicants should be aware that they are required to provide a Dun 
and Bradstreet Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number during the 
application process. See the October 30, 2002 Federal Register, (69 FR 
66177) for additional information. Organizations can receive a DUNS 
number at no cost by calling the dedicated toll-free DUNS Number 
request line at 1-866-705-5711 or via the Internet http://www.dunandbradstreet.com.

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 that 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 
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/toclceq.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 and implementing 
feasible measures to reduce or avoid any identified adverse 
environmental impacts of their proposal. The failure to do so shall be 
grounds for the denial of 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 programs listed in this notice is contingent upon the 
availability of fiscal year 2007 appropriations. In no event will NOAA 
or the Department of Commerce be responsible for application 
preparation costs if these programs fail to receive funding or are 
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

    This document contains collection-of-information requirements 
subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). The use of Standard Forms 
424, 424A, 424B, SF-LLL, and CD-346 has been approved by the Office of 
Management and Budget (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 requirements of the PRA unless 
that collection of information displays a currently valid OMB control 
number.

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.

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Administrative Procedure Act/Regulatory Flexibility Act

    Prior notice and an 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 comment 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: July 27, 2006.
Mark E. Brown,
Chief Financial Officer, Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
[FR Doc. E6-12286 Filed 7-31-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P