[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 235 (Friday, December 5, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 74146-74148]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-28749]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Telecommunications and Information Administration
Docket No. 0811251525-81526-01
Pan-Pacific Education and Communications Experiments by Satellite
(PEACESAT): Closing Date
AGENCY: National Telecommunications and Information Administration
(NTIA), U.S. Department of Commerce
ACTION: Notice of Closing Date for Solicitation of Applications.
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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance,
and Continuing Appropriations Act, 2009, Public Law 110-329 (2008), the
U.S. Department of Commerce announces the solicitation of applications
for a grant for the Pan-Pacific Education and Communications
Experiments by Satellite (PEACESAT) Program. Projects funded pursuant
to this Notice are intended to support the PEACESAT Program's
acquisition of satellite communications to service Pacific Basin
communities and to manage the operations of this network. Applications
for the PEACESAT Program grant will compete for funds from the Public
Broadcasting, Facilities, Planning and Construction Funds account.
DATES: Applications must be received on or before 5 p.m. Eastern
Standard Time, January 15, 2009. Applications submitted by facsimile
are not acceptable. NTIA will not accept applications received after
the deadline. However, if an application is received after the Closing
Date due to (1) carrier error, when the carrier accepted the package
with a guarantee for delivery by the Closing Date and Time, or (2)
significant weather delays or natural disasters, NTIA will, upon
receipt of proper documentation, consider the application as having
been received by the deadline.
ADDRESSES: To obtain a printed application package, submit completed
applications, or send any other correspondence, write to: NTIA/PTFP,
Room H-4812, U.S. Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue,
N.W., Washington, DC 20230. Application materials may be obtained
electronically via the Internet at www.grants.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William Cooperman, Director, Public
Broadcasting Division, telephone: (202) 482-5802; fax: (202) 482-2156.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Electronic Access
The full funding opportunity announcement for the PEACESAT Fiscal
Year (FY) 2009 grant cycle is available through www.grants.gov or by
contacting the PTFP office at the address noted above. Application
materials may be obtained electronically via the Internet
www.grants.gov.
Funding Availability
Issuance of grants is subject to the availability of FY 2009 funds.
At this time, the Congress has passed the Consolidated Security,
Disaster Assistance, and Continuing Appropriations Act, 2009, Public
Law No. 110-329 (2008), to fund operations from the Public
Broadcasting, Facilities, Planning and Construction Funds account
through March 6, 2009. Further notice will be made in the Federal
Register about the final status of funding for this program at the
appropriate time. Funding for the PEACESAT Program is authorized by
Public Law 106-113, ``The Consolidated Appropriations Act, Fiscal Year
2000.'' Public Law 106-113 provides ``That, hereafter, notwithstanding
any other provision of law, the Pan-Pacific Education and
Communications Experiments by Satellite (PEACESAT) Program is eligible
to compete for Public Broadcasting Facilities, Planning and
Construction funds.''
NTIA anticipates making a single award for approximately $500,000
for the PEACESAT Program in FY 2009. For FY 2008, NTIA issued one award
for the PEACESAT project in the amount of $499,677.
Statutory and Regulatory Authority
The PEACESAT Program was authorized under Public Law 100-584 (102
Stat. 2970) and also Public Law 101-555 (104 Stat. 2758) to acquire
satellite communications services to provide educational, medical, and
cultural needs of Pacific Basin communities. The PEACESAT Program has
been operational since 1971 and has received funding from NTIA for
support of the project since 1988.
Applications submitted in response to this solicitation for
PEACESAT applications are not subject to the PTFP regulations at 15 CFR
Part 2301.
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance
N/A
Eligibility
Eligible applicants will include any for-profit or non-profit
organization, public or private entity, other than an agency or
division of the Federal government. Individuals are not eligible
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to apply for the PEACESAT Program funds.
Evaluation and Selection Process
Each eligible application is evaluated by three independent
reviewers who have demonstrated expertise in the programmatic and
technological aspects of the application. The reviewers will evaluate
applications according to the criteria in the following section and
provide individual written ratings of each application. No consensus
advice will be provided by the reviewers.
State Single Point of Contact (SPOC) offices, per Executive Order
12372, may provide recommendations on applications under consideration.
The Public Broadcasting Division (PBD) administers the PEACESAT
Program and places a summary of applications received on the Internet.
Listing an application merely acknowledges receipt of an application to
compete for funding with other applications. Listing does not preclude
subsequent return of the application or disapproval of the application,
nor does it assure that the application will be funded. The listing
will also include a request for comments on the applications from any
interested party.
The reviewer's ratings are provided to the PBD staff and a rank
order is prepared according to score. The PBD program staff prepares
summary recommendations for the Director of the Public Broadcasting
Division. These recommendations incorporate the outside reviewers'
ratings and incorporate analysis based on the degree to which a
proposed project meets the PEACESAT Program purposes and cost
eligibility. Staff recommendations also consider (1) project impact,
(2) the cost/benefit of a project, and (3) whether the reviewers
consistently applied the evaluation criteria. The analysis by program
staff is provided to the Director of the Public Broadcasting Division
in writing.
The Director considers the summary recommendations prepared by
program staff in accord with the funding priorities and selection
factors referenced in the next section and recommends the funding order
of the applications for the PEACESAT Program in three categories:
``Recommended for Funding,'' ``Recommended for Funding If Funds Are
Available,'' and ``Not Recommended for Funding.'' The Director presents
recommendations to the Associate Administrator, Office of
Telecommunications and Information Applications (OTIA), for review and
approval.
Upon review and approval based on the funding priorities and
selection factors referenced in the next section by the Associate
Administrator of the Office of Telecommunications and Information
Applications (OTIA), the Associate Administrator's and the Director's
recommendations are presented to the Selecting Official, the Assistant
Secretary for Communications and Information, who is the NTIA
Administrator. The NTIA Administrator selects the applications to be
negotiated for possible grant award, taking into consideration the
outside reviewers' ratings, the Director's recommendations, and the
degree to which the slate of applications, taken as a whole, satisfies
the PEACESAT Program's stated purposes.
The selected applications are negotiated between NTIA staff and the
applicant. The negotiations are intended to resolve whatever
differences might exist between the applicant's original request and
what NTIA is considering funding. Negotiation does not ensure that an
award will be made. When the negotiations are completed, the Director
recommends final selections to the NTIA Administrator, applying the
same selection factors described above. The Administrator then makes
the final award selections from the negotiated applications taking into
consideration the Director's recommendations and the degree to which
the slate of applications, taken as a whole, satisfies the stated
purposes for the PEACESAT Program.
Funding Priorities and Selection Factors
The PBD Director will consider the summary evaluations prepared by
program staff, rank the applications, and present recommendations to
the OTIA Associate Administrator for review and approval. The
Director's recommendations and the OTIA Associate Administrator's
review and approval will take into account the following selection
factors:
(1) The program staff evaluations, including the outside reviewers;
(2) Whether the applicant has any current NTIA grants;
(3) The geographic distribution of the proposed grant awards; and
(4) The availability of funds.
Upon approval by the OTIA Associate Administrator, the Director's
recommendations will then be presented to the Selecting Official, the
NTIA Administrator.
The Administrator makes final award selections taking into
consideration the Director's recommendations and the degree to which
the slate of applications, taken as a whole, satisfies the program's
stated purposes.
No grant will be awarded until confirmation has been received from
the Federal Communications Commission that any necessary authorization
will be issued.
After final award selections have been made, the Agency will notify
the applicant of one of the following actions:
(1) Selection of the application for funding, in whole or in part;
(2) Deferral of the application for subsequent consideration; or
(3) Rejection of the application with an explanation and the
reason, if an applicant is not eligible or if the proposed project does
not fall within the purposes of the PEACESAT program.
Evaluation Criteria
Each eligible application that is timely received, is materially
complete, and proposes an eligible project will be considered under the
evaluation criteria described here. The first three criteria 1. Meeting
the Purposes of the PEACESAT Program, 2. Extent of Need for the
Project, and 3. Plan of Operation for the Project are each worth 25
points. Criterion 4, Budget and Cost Effectiveness, is worth 20 points.
Criterion 5, Quality of Key Personnel, is worth 5 points.
Criterion 1. Meeting the Purposes of the PEACESAT Program,
including (i) how well the proposal meets the objectives of the
PEACESAT Program and (ii) how the objectives of the proposal further
the purposes of the PEACESAT Program.
Criterion 2. Extent of Need for the Project. The extent to which
the project meets the needs of the PEACESAT Program, including
consideration of: (i) the needs addressed by the project; (ii) how the
applicant identifies those needs; (iii) how those needs will be met by
the project; and (iv) the benefits to be gained by meeting those needs.
Criterion 3. Plan of Operation for the Project, including (i) the
quality of the design of the project; (ii) the extent to which the plan
of management is effective and ensures proper and efficient
administration of the project; (iii) how well the objectives of the
project relate to the purposes of the PEACESAT Program; (iv) the
quality of the applicant's plan to use its resources and personnel to
achieve each objective; and (v) how the applicant will ensure that
project participants who are otherwise eligible to participate are
selected without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, age,
or handicapped condition.
Criterion 4. Budget and Cost Effectiveness. The extent to which (i)
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the budget is adequate to support the project; and (ii) costs are
reasonable in relation to the objectives of the project.
Criterion 5. Quality of Key Personnel the applicant plans to use on
the project, including (i) the qualifications of the project director
if one is to be used; (ii) the qualifications of each of the other key
personnel to be used in the project; (iii) the time that each person
will commit to the project; and (iv) how the applicant, as part of its
nondiscriminatory employment practices, will ensure that its personnel
are selected for employment without regard to race, color, national
origin, gender, age, or handicapped condition. In this section,
``qualifications'' refers to experience and training in fields related
to the objectives of the project, and any other qualifications that
pertain to the quality of the project.
Cost Sharing Requirements
Grant recipients under this program will not be required to provide
matching funds toward the total project cost.
The costs allowable under this Notice are not subject to the
limitation on costs contained in the October 20, 2008, Notice regarding
the PTFP Program, see 73 FR 62258 (2008).
Intergovernmental Review
PEACESAT applications are subject to Executive Order 12372,
``Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs,'' if the state in which
the applicant organization is located participates in the process.
Usually submission to the State Single Point of Contact (SPOC) needs to
be only the first two pages of the Application Form, but applicants
should contact their own SPOC offices to find out about and comply with
its requirements. The names and addresses of the SPOC offices are
listed on the PTFP website and at the Office of Management and Budget's
home page at http://www.whitehouse.gov/ omb/grants/spoc.html.
Universal Identifier
All applicants (nonprofit, state, local government, universities,
and tribal organizations) will be required to provide a Dun and
Bradstreet Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number during the
application process. See the October 30, 2002 (67 FR 66177) and April
8, 2003 (68 FR 17090) Federal Register notices for additional
information. Organizations can receive a DUNS number at no cost by
calling the dedicated toll-free DUNS Number request line 1-866-705-5711
or via the Internet at www.dnb.com/us/.
The Department of Commerce Pre-Award Notification Requirements for
Grants and Cooperative Agreements
The Department of Commerce Pre-Award Notification of Requirements
for Grants and Cooperative Agreements contained in the Federal Register
notice of February 11, 2008 (73 FR 7696), is applicable to this
solicitation.
Limitation of Liability
In no event will the Department of Commerce 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 the agency to award any specific project
or to obligate any available funds.
Paperwork Reduction Act
Notwithstanding any other provision of the 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 Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA), unless that
collection displays a currently valid Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) control number. The PEACESAT application package requires the use
of the following forms: SF-424, SF-424A, SF-424B, SF-LLL. These forms
have been approved under OMB Control Nos. 4040-0004, 4040-0006, 4040-
007, and 0348-0046.
Executive Order 13132
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
grants, benefits, and contracts (5 U.S.C. 553(a). 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: December 1, 2008.
Dr. Bernadette McGuire-Rivera,
Associate Administrator, Office of Telecommunications and Information
Applications.
[FR Doc. E8-28749 Filed 12-4-08; 8:45 am]
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