[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 249 (Monday, December 29, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 79448-79451]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-30770]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[Docket No. 0809261277-81614-02; I.D. GF001]


Cooperative Institute for Satellite Climate Studies

AGENCY: National Environmental Satellite Data and Information Service 
Program Office (NESDISPO), National Environmental Satellite Data and 
Information Service (NESDIS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of rescission and of revised funding availability.

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SUMMARY: On October 7, 2008, the National Environmental Satellite Data 
and Information Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce (hereinafter, ``NESDIS'') 
published a notice of availability of funds (Docket No. 0809261277-
81278-01, I.D. GF001) to establish a NOAA Cooperative Institute for 
Satellite Climate Studies (73 FR 58560). That notice is hereby 
rescinded and is replaced with the following revised notice of funding 
availability.
    NESDIS invites applications for a Cooperative Institute (CI) that 
will focus on (1) climate and satellite research and applications, (2) 
climate and satellite observations and monitoring, and (3) climate 
research and modeling. Through this competition, NOAA intends to 
establish competitively a new CI according to the policy and procedures 
described in NOAA Administrative Order 216-107 and the Cooperative 
Institute Interim Handbook both available at www.nrc.noaa.gov/ci. The 
proposed CI should be composed of two or more member institutions 
(e.g., multiple universities). At least one research institution should 
be in Maryland, Washington DC or the adjacent states (Delaware, 
Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Virginia). At least one research 
institution should be in North Carolina or the bordering states 
(Tennessee, South Carolina and Georgia) and have a presence in 
Asheville, North Carolina. NOAA has identified three research themes 
that will address specific needs within the NOAA Mission Support 
Satellite Service program and the NOAA Climate Goal that would benefit 
from collaborations with the CI. The CI should possess outstanding 
capabilities to work in the three research themes summarized below, as 
well as possess the capability to conduct outreach and education 
activities in support of these research themes. I. Climate and 
Satellite Research and Applications: Research conducted under this 
theme is associated with the development of new and innovative uses of 
non-NOAA satellite assets that can ultimately be transitioned into NOAA 
operations to support climate information needs. This theme also 
includes performing research and development aimed at improving the 
utilization of a long time series of satellite measurements that will 
offer NOAA scientists a homogeneous record of satellite radiances. II. 
Climate and Satellite Observations and Monitoring: Research conducted 
under this theme involves (1) designing indices and applications that 
incorporate satellite observations to detect, monitor and investigate 
climatic changes and their impacts on coastal and open ocean 
ecosystems, (2) identifying and meeting the satellite climate needs of 
a wide variety of users, including research, business and industry, and 
government and private sector users, and (3) contributing significantly 
to climate reanalysis projects when satellite data is a key input. III. 
Climate Research and Modeling: Research conducted under this theme is 
focused on improving climate forecasts on mesoscale, regional and 
global scales when satellite data is a key input, and developing 
regional ecosystem models that can incorporate satellite observations 
to predict the impact of climate change on these ecosystems, 
particularly those located in the Mid-Atlantic region. The CI is also 
expected to play a significant role in National Centers for 
Environmental Prediction (NCEP) Climate Test Bed projects when 
satellite data is a key input. This announcement provides requirements 
for the proposed CI and includes details for the technical program, 
evaluation criteria, and competitive selection procedures. Applicants 
should review the NOAA Administrative Order 216-107 and CI Interim 
Handbook prior to preparing a proposal for this announcement.

DATES: Proposals must be received by NESDIS no later than February 3, 
2009, 5 p.m., E.T. Proposals submitted after that date will not be 
considered.

ADDRESSES: The standard application package is available at http://www.grants.gov. For applicants without Internet access, an application 
package may be requested from Ingrid Guch, NOAA/NESDIS, 5200 Auth Road, 
Room 701, Camp Springs, Maryland 20746. Applicants are strongly 
encouraged to apply online through the Grants.gov Web site. Paper 
submissions are acceptable only if Internet access is not

[[Page 79449]]

available. Grants.gov requires applicants to register with the system 
prior to submitting an application. This registration process can take 
several weeks, involving multiple steps. In order to allow sufficient 
time for this process, you should register as soon as you decide that 
you intend to apply, even if you are not yet ready to submit your 
proposal. If an applicant has problems downloading the application 
package from Grants.gov, contact Grants.gov Customer Support at (800) 
518-4726 or [email protected]. For non-Windows computer systems, 
please see www.grants.gov/Mac Support for information on how to 
download and submit an application through Grants.gov. If a hard copy 
application is submitted, please include an original of two unbound 
copies of the proposal. Paper submissions should be submitted to Ms. 
Guch at the above-listed address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For a copy of the Federal Funding 
Opportunity announcement and/or application package, please access 
grants.gov; the NOAA Cooperative Institute Web site (http://www.nrc.noaa.gov/ci) or contact Ingrid Guch, NOAA/NESDIS; 5200 Auth 
Road, Room 701; Camp Springs, Maryland 20746, or by phone at (301) 763-
8282 ext. 152, or fax to (301) 763-8108, or via internet at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: One of NOAA's strategic goals is to 
``understand and describe climate variability and change to enhance 
society's ability to plan and respond.'' The Satellite Climate Studies 
CI will provide strong and sustained academic partners towards 
realizing this goal. It is essential for NOAA federal scientists to 
substantially collaborate with outstanding researchers in academia in 
order to produce climate information and services that are based on 
satellite data and knowledge from many disciplines (physics, chemistry, 
biology, geography, earth science, oceanography, meteorology and 
sociology, etc.). The sustained nature of a Satellite Climate Studies 
CI (5-10 years) will provide significant opportunity to enhance NOAA's 
operational decision support tools to provide climate services for 
national socioeconomic benefits, a key goal area of research specified 
by NOAA's 5-year Research Plan and 20-year Research Vision. 
Additionally, the Satellite Climate Studies CI will also serve another 
important function in support of NOAA's ongoing research: Educating, 
training and sustaining a world class workforce. These goals will be 
accomplished through NOAA-academia projects in which the research 
institution brings a strong heritage in satellite remote sensing and 
climate applications. CI Concept/Program Background: A CI is a NOAA-
supported, non-Federal organization that has established an outstanding 
research program in one or more areas that are relevant to the NOAA 
mission to understand and predict changes in the Earth's environment 
and conserve and manage coastal and marine resources to meet our 
Nation's economic, social, and environmental needs. The CI is 
established at research institutions that also have a strong education 
program with established graduate degree programs in NOAA-related 
sciences. The CI provides significant coordination of resources among 
all non-government partners and promotes the involvement of students 
and post-doctoral scientists in NOAA-funded research. The CI provides 
mutual benefits with value provided by all parties. NOAA establishes a 
new CI competitively when it identifies a need to sponsor a long-term 
(5-10 years) collaborative partnership with one or more outstanding 
non-Federal, non-profit research institutions. For NOAA, the purpose of 
this long-term collaborative partnership is to promote research, 
education, training, and outreach aligned with the NOAA mission; to 
obtain research capabilities that do not exist internally; and/or to 
expand research capacity in NOAA-related sciences to: Conduct 
collaborative, long-term research that involves NOAA scientists and 
those at the research institution(s) from one or more scientific 
disciplines of interest to NOAA; utilize the scientific, education, and 
outreach expertise at the research institution(s) that, depending on 
NOAA's research needs, may or may not be located near a NOAA facility; 
support student participation in NOAA-related research studies; and 
strengthen or expand NOAA-related research capabilities and capacity at 
the research institution(s) that complements and contributes to the 
NOAA ability to reach its mission goals. A CI will consist of one or 
more research institutions that demonstrate outstanding performance 
within one or more established research programs in NOAA-related 
sciences. These institutions may include Minority Serving Institutions 
and universities with strong departments that can contribute to the 
proposed activities of the CI. CIs conduct research under approved 
scientific research themes (see Section I.B of the Full Funding 
Opportunity announcement) and Tasks (additional tasks can be proposed 
by the CI): Task I activities are related to the management of the CI, 
as well as general education and outreach activities. This task also 
includes support of postdoctoral and visiting scientists conducting 
activities within the research themes of the CI that are approved by 
the CI Director, in consultation with NOAA, and are relevant to NOAA 
and the CI mission goals. Task II activities usually involve on-going 
direct collaboration with NOAA scientists. This collaboration typically 
is fostered by the collocation of Federal and CI employees. Task III 
activities require minimal collaboration with NOAA scientists and may 
include research funded by other NOAA competitive grant programs.
    Electronic Access: The full text of the full funding opportunity 
announcement for this program can be accessed via the Grants.gov Web 
site at http://www.grants.gov. The announcement will also be available 
by contacting the program officials identified under FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT. Applicants must comply with all requirements 
contained in the full funding opportunity announcement.
    Statutory Authority: 15 U.S.C. 313, 49 U.S.C. 44720(b), 15 U.S.C. 
2901, 15 U.S.C. 1540, 33 U.S.C. 883d, 118 Stat. 71.
    CFDA: 11.440, Environmental Sciences, Applications, Data, and 
Education.
    Funding Availability: NOAA expects that approximately $13M will be 
available for the CI in the first year of the award. The Task I budget 
should not exceed $400,000. The final amount of funding available for 
Task I will be determined during the negotiation phase of the award 
based on availability of funding. Funding for subsequent years is 
expected to be constant throughout the period and will depend on the 
quality of the research, the satisfactory progress in achieving the 
stated goals described in the proposal, continued relevance to program 
objectives, and the availability of funding.
    Eligibility: Eligibility is limited to non-Federal public and 
private non-profit universities, colleges and research institutions 
that offer accredited graduate level degree-granting programs in NOAA-
related sciences, as described in the CI Interim Handbook.
    Cost Sharing Requirements: To stress the collaborative nature and 
investment of a CI by both NOAA and the research institution, cost 
sharing is required. There is no minimum cost sharing requirement; 
however, the amount of cost sharing will be considered when determining 
the level of the CI commitment under the NOAA standard

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evaluation criteria for overall qualifications of applicants. 
Acceptable cost-sharing proposals include, but are not limited to, 
offering a reduced indirect cost rate against activities in one or more 
Tasks, waiver of indirect costs assessed against base funds and/or Task 
I activities, waiver or reduction of any costs associated with the use 
of facilities at the CI, and full or partial salary funding for the CI 
director, administrative staff, graduate students, visiting scientists, 
or postdoctoral scientists.
    Evaluation And Selection Procedures: The general evaluation 
criteria and selection factors that apply to full applications to this 
funding opportunity are summarized below. The evaluation criteria for 
full applications will have different weights and details. Further 
information about the evaluation criteria and selection factors can be 
found in the full funding opportunity announcement.
    Evaluation Criteria For Projects: Proposals will be evaluated using 
the standard NOAA evaluation criteria. Various questions under each 
criterion are provided to ensure that the applicant includes 
information that NOAA will consider important during the evaluation, in 
addition to any other information provided by the applicant.
    i. Importance and/or relevance and applicability of proposed 
project to the program goals (25 percent): This criterion ascertains 
whether there is intrinsic value in the proposed work and/or relevance 
to NOAA, Federal, regional, state, or local activities.

--Does the proposal include research goals and projects that address 
the critical issues identified in the NOAA 5-year Research Plan, the 
NOAA Strategic Plan, and the priorities described in the program 
priorities section (see section I.B. of the Full Funding Opportunity 
announcement)?
--Is there a demonstrated commitment (in terms of resources and 
facilities) to enhance existing NOAA and CI resources to foster a long-
term collaborative research environment/culture?
--Will most of the staff at the CI be located near one of two NOAA 
facilities, the National Center for Weather and Climate Prediction in 
Riverdale Park, Maryland, or the National Climatic Data Center in 
Asheville, North Carolina, to enhance collaborations with NOAA? 
Examples include (1) Academic institution of higher learning in 
Asheville, North Carolina metropolitan area and/or Washington, DC 
metropolitan area; and/or (2) Office space located in Asheville, North 
Carolina metropolitan area and/or Washington, DC metropolitan area 
hosting at least 20 institute/consortium personnel; and/or (3) 
Willingness to allow at least 20 students or professors to work at the 
NOAA site in Asheville, North Carolina metropolitan area and/or 
Washington, DC metropolitan area.

    ii. Technical/scientific merit (30 percent): This criterion 
assesses whether the approach is technically sound and/or innovative, 
if the methods are appropriate, and whether there are clear project 
goals and objectives.

--Does the project description include a summary of clearly stated 
goals to be achieved during the five-year period that reflect the NOAA 
strategic plan and goals?
--Does the CI involve partnerships with other universities or research 
institutions, including Minority Serving Institutions and universities 
with strong departments that can contribute to the proposed activities 
of the CI?

    iii. Overall qualifications of applicants (30 percent): This 
criterion ascertains whether the applicant possesses the necessary 
education, experience, training, facilities, and administrative 
resources to accomplish the project.

--If the institution(s) and/or PIs have received current or recent NOAA 
funding, is there a demonstrated record of outstanding performance 
working with NOAA and/or NOAA scientists on research projects?
--Is there nationally and/or internationally recognized expertise 
within the appropriate disciplines needed to conduct the collaborative/
interdisciplinary research described in the proposal?
--Is there a well-developed business plan that includes fiscal and 
human resource management, as well as strategic planning and 
accountability?
--Are there any unique capabilities in a mission-critical area of 
research for NOAA?
--Has the applicant shown a substantial investment to the NOAA 
partnership, as demonstrated by the amount of the cost sharing 
contribution?

    iv. Project costs (5 percent): The budget is evaluated to determine 
if it is realistic and commensurate with the project needs and 
timeframe.
    v. Outreach and education (10 percent): NOAA assesses whether this 
project provides a focused and effective education and outreach 
strategy regarding NOAA's mission to protect the Nation's natural 
resources.

--Is there a strong education program with established graduate degree 
programs in NOAA-related sciences that also encourages student 
participation in NOAA-related research studies?
    Review And Selection Process: An initial administrative review/
screening is conducted to determine compliance with requirements/
completeness. All proposals will be evaluated and individually ranked 
in accordance with the assigned weights of the above-listed evaluation 
criteria by an independent peer review panel. 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, each expert will 
submit an individual review and there will be no consensus opinion. The 
merit reviewers ratings are used to produce a rank order of the 
proposals. The Selecting Official selects proposals after considering 
the peer reviews and selection factors listed below. In making the 
final selections, the Selecting Official will award in rank order 
unless the proposal is justified to be selected out of rank order based 
upon one or more of the selection factors.
    Selection Factors For Projects: The merit review ratings shall 
provide a rank order to the Selecting Official for final funding 
recommendations. The Selecting Official shall award in the rank order 
unless the proposal is justified to be selected out of rank order based 
on one or more of the following factors: 1. Availability of funding 2. 
Balance and distribution of funds a. By research area b. By project 
type c. By type of institutions d. By type of partners e. 
Geographically 3. Duplication of other projects funded or considered 
for funding by NOAA/federal agencies. 4. Program priorities and policy 
factors. 5. Applicant prior award performance. 6. Partnerships with/
Participation of targeted groups. 7. Adequacy of information necessary 
for NOAA staff to make a National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) 
determination and draft necessary documentation before recommendations 
for funding are made to the NOAA Grants Officer.
    Intergovernmental Review: Applications under this program are not 
subject to Executive Order 12372, ``Intergovernmental Review of Federal 
Programs.''
    Limitation Of Liability: In no event will NOAA or the Department of 
Commerce be responsible for proposal preparation costs if these 
programs fail to receive funding or are cancelled because of other 
agency priorities. Publication of this announcement does

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not oblige NOAA to award any specific project or to obligate any 
available funds.
    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 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.
    The Department Of Commerce 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 February 11, 2008 (73 FR 
7696), are applicable to this solicitation.
    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, and 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, nor shall a 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.
    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 
for the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) are 
inapplicable. Therefore, a regulatory flexibility analysis has not been 
prepared.

Charles S. Baker,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Satellite and Information Services.
 [FR Doc. E8-30770 Filed 12-24-08; 8:45 am]
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