[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 227 (Friday, November 27, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 62283-62285]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-28419]



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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

[Docket No. 0911161405-91405-01]


New NOAA Cooperative Institute (CI): A CI To Support Satellite 
Meteorology

AGENCY: National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service 
(NESDIS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 
Department of Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of funding availability.

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SUMMARY: The National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information 
Service (NESDIS) publishes this notice to provide the general public 
with a consolidated source of program and application information 
related to a single competitive cooperative agreement award offering. 
NOAA is accepting applications for a CI to Support Satellite 
Meteorology. Applicants should review the CI Interim Handbook prior to 
preparing a proposal for this announcement (http://www.nrc.noaa.gov/ci).

DATES: Proposals must be received no later than February 25, 2010, 5 
p.m., E.T. Proposals submitted after that date will not be considered.

ADDRESSES: Applicants are strongly encouraged to apply online through 
the Grants.Gov Web site (http://www.grants.gov). Paper submissions are 
acceptable only if Internet access is not 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].
    If a hard copy application is submitted, the original and two 
unbound copies of the proposal should be included. Paper submissions 
should be sent to: Ms. Ingrid Guch, NOAA/NESDIS, 5200 Auth Road, Room 
701, Camp Springs, MD 20746; telephone (301) 763-8127 ext. 152. No e-
mail or facsimile proposal submissions will be accepted.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information, please 
contact Ms. Ingrid Guch, NOAA/NESDIS, 5200 Auth Road, Room 701, Camp 
Springs, MD 20746; telephone: (301) 763-8127 ext. 152; e-mail: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Applicants must comply with all requirements 
contained in the Federal Funding Opportunity (FFO) announcement for 
this CI.
    CI Concept/Program Background: A CI is a NOAA-supported, nonfederal 
organization that has established an outstanding research program in 
one or more areas that are relevant to the NOAA mission. CIs are 
established at research institutions with outstanding graduate degree 
programs in NOAA-related sciences. CIs provide significant coordination 
of resources among all non-government partners and promote the 
involvement of students and postdoctoral scientists in NOAA-funded 
research. The CI provides mutual benefits with value provided by all 
parties. For each CI, NOAA has identified the need to establish a CI to 
focus on scientific research associated in support of NOAA's Strategic 
Plan, NOAA's 5-year Research Plan, and NOAA's 20-year Research Vision. 
(All documents are available at http://www.nrc.noaa.gov/plans.html).

CI To Support Satellite Meteorology

    The proposed Satellite Meteorology CI should possess outstanding 
capabilities to provide research under four themes: (1) Satellite 
Meteorology Research and Applications, (2) Satellite Sensors and 
Techniques, (3) Environmental Models and Data Assimilation, and (4) 
Outreach and Education. The CI's primary sponsor will be the NESDIS 
Center for Satellite Applications and Research (STAR), formerly known 
as the Office of Research and Applications. Research and development 
entities with which the proposed CI may work include NOAA programs, 
laboratories, science centers, other CI and NOAA-owned facilities, Sea 
Grant Colleges, other extramural NOAA partners, other Federal agencies, 
academia, and the private sector. The new CI will be expected to work 
closely with STAR's Advanced Satellite Products Branch currently 
located in Madison, WI, with seven federal employees. It is NOAA's 
intent to move these employees to the new CI as funding allows. The CI 
should have the capacity (computers and technical support, phones, 
office space) to host these individuals, as they will be a necessary 
component for successful CI collaborations with NOAA/NESDIS.
    A CI may partner with one or more research institutions that 
demonstrate outstanding performance within one or more established 
research programs in NOAA-related sciences, including Minority Serving 
Institutions and universities that can contribute to the proposed 
activities of the CI. If a CI is awarded to a consortium of 
institutions, the consortium must propose a governance structure that 
includes a single director and one award.
    CIs will conduct research under approved scientific research 
themes, listed in this notice and described in detail in Section I.B of 
the Federal Funding Opportunity announcement. Activities of the CI are 
usually organized into three Tasks (additional tasks can be proposed by 
the CI).
    i. 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's mission goals.
    ii. 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.
    iii. Task III activities require minimal collaboration with NOAA 
scientists and may include research funded by other NOAA competitive 
grant programs.
    Base funding for Task 1 is provided annually by NOAA to the CI, 
contingent upon the availability of Federal appropriations. Throughout 
the award period, funding for additional Task I activities, as well as 
Task II and III (or other tasks by a particular CI) activities, is 
added to the CI award as research project proposals are submitted by 
the CI and approved by NOAA.

Request for Applications

    Generally, applications must include all relevant Federal Standard 
Forms, a project description that includes sufficient information to 
address all the evaluation criteria identified in the FFO announcement, 
a budget, and a budget justification. The project description must 
include a thorough explanation of all themes and Tasks. The application 
should also identify the capability and the capacity of the CI to 
conduct research in the themes described in the FFO, as well as a 
summary of clearly stated goals to be achieved, reflecting NOAA's 
strategic goals and vision. Additional elements may also be requested. 
Applicants are directed to the FFO for all application information and 
requirements.
    Funding Availability: The award period will be 5 years, and may be 
renewed for up to an additional 5 years based on the outcome of a CI 
review in the fourth year. All funding is contingent upon the 
availability of

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Federal appropriations. NOAA anticipates that up to approximately $12M 
will be available annually for this CI. Of that amount, approximately 
$290,000 will be available per year for Task I. The final amount of 
funding available for Task I will be determined during the negotiation 
phase of the award based on availability of funding. The actual annual 
funding that the CI receives may be less than the anticipated amount 
and will depend on the actual projects that are proposed by the CI and 
approved by NOAA after the main CI award begins, the availability of 
funding, the quality of the research, the satisfactory progress in 
achieving the stated goals described in project proposals, and 
continued relevance to program objectives.
    Electronic Access: Applicants can access, download, and submit 
electronic grant applications, including the full funding opportunity 
announcement, for NOAA programs at the Grants.gov Web site: http://www.grants.gov. The closing date will be 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 through 
Grants.gov. Registration may take up to 10 business days.
    Proposals must include elements requested in the FFO announcement 
on the grants.gov portal. If a hard copy application is submitted, NOAA 
requests that the original and two unbound copies of the proposal be 
included. Proposals, electronic or paper, should be no more than 75 
pages (numbered) in length, excluding budget, investigators, vitae, and 
all appendices. Federally mandated forms are not included within the 
page count. Facsimile transmissions and electronic mail submission of 
full proposals will not be accepted.

    Authorities: 15 U.S.C. 313, 15 U.S.C. 1540; 15 U.S.C. 2901 et 
seq., 16 U.S.C. 753a, 33 U.S.C. 1442, Stat. 71 (January 23, 2004).

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance: 11.440, National 
Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS) 
Joint and Cooperative Institutes)

    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. The lead institution applying for the award is where 
the CI will be established.
    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's commitment under NOAA's standard 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 
any indirect costs assessed by the awardee on subawards, 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 Criteria and Review 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 official full Federal Funding 
Opportunity announcement which is only available through the Grants.gov 
Web site (http://www.grants.gov).
    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.
    1. 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 NOAA's 5-year Research Plan, 
NOAA's Strategic Plan, and program priorities (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?
     Is there a strong education program with established 
graduate degree programs in NOAA-related sciences that also encourage 
student participation in NOAA-related research studies?
     Does the proposal include plans for working closely with 
NOAA's Advanced Satellite Products Branch (currently located in 
Madison, Wisconsin) before, during, and after the Branch's transition 
to the new CI?
    2. 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 
NOAA's strategic plan and goals?
     Does the CI involve partnerships with other universities 
or research institutions, including Minority Serving Institutions and 
universities that can contribute to the proposed activities of the CI?
    3. 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 principal investigators 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?
    4. Project costs (5 percent): The budget is evaluated to determine 
if it is realistic and commensurate with the project needs and time-
frame.
    5. 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.
    Review and Selection Process: An initial administrative review/
screening is conducted to determine compliance with requirements/
completeness. All

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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. The Selecting Official makes the 
final award recommendation to the Grants Officer authorized to obligate 
funds.
    Selection Factors: 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 upon one or more of 
the following factors:
    1. Availability of funding.
    2. Balance/distribution of funds:
    (a) Geographically;
    (b) By type of institutions;
    (c) By type of partners;
    (d) By research areas;
    (e) By project types.
    3. Whether this project duplicates other projects funded or 
considered for funding by NOAA or other Federal agencies.
    4. Program priorities and policy factors.
    5. Applicant's prior award performance.
    6. Partnerships and/or 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 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 not oblige 
NOAA to award any specific project or to obligate any available funds.
    National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA): National Environmental 
Policy Act (NEPA). NOAA must analyze the potential environmental 
impacts, as required by 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 NOAA NEPA Web site, 
http://www.nepa.noaa.gov, including our NOAA Administrative Order 216-6 
for NEPA, http://www.corporateservices.noaa.gov/%7Eames/NAOs/Chap_216/naos_216_6.html, and the Council on Environmental Quality 
implementation regulations, http://www.nepa.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 has been approved 
by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under the respective 
control numbers 4040-004, 4040-006, 0348-0040, and 0348-0046. 
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.

Mary E. Kicza,
Assistant Administrator for Satellite and Information Services.
[FR Doc. E9-28419 Filed 11-25-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-HR-P