[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 152 (Monday, August 8, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52467-52478]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-18758]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION


Agency Information Collection Activities: Comment Request

AGENCY: National Science Foundation

ACTION: Submission for OMB review; comment request.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The National Science Foundation (NSF) has submitted the 
following information collection requirement to OMB for review and 
clearance under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Pub. L. 104-13. 
This is the second notice for public comment; the first was published 
in the Federal Register at 81 FR 30348, and 50 comments were received. 
NSF is forwarding the proposed renewal submission to the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) for clearance simultaneously with the 
publication of this second notice. The full submission may be found at: 
http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain.
    The National Science Foundation (NSF) is announcing plans to 
request renewed clearance of this collection. The primary purpose of 
this revision is to implement changes described in the Supplementary 
Information section of this notice. Comments regarding (a) whether the 
collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of 
the functions of the agency, including whether the information will 
have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of 
burden including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; 
(c) ways to enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the information 
to be collected; (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of 
information on those who are to respond, including through the use of 
appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological 
collection techniques or other forms of information technology should 
be addressed to: Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs of OMB, 
Attention: Desk Officer for National Science Foundation, 725-17th 
Street NW., Room 10235, Washington, DC 20503, and to Suzanne H. 
Plimpton, Reports Clearance Officer, National Science Foundation, 4201 
Wilson Boulevard, Suite 1265, Arlington, Virginia 22230 or send email 
to [email protected]. Individuals who use a telecommunications device 
for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay Service 
(FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339, which is accessible 24 hours a day, 7 days a 
week, 365 days a year (including federal holidays).
    Comments regarding these information collections are best assured 
of having their full effect if received within 30 days of this 
notification. Copies of the submission(s) may be obtained by calling 
703-292-7556.
    NSF may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information unless 
the collection of information displays a currently valid OMB control 
number and the agency informs potential persons who are to respond to 
the collection of information that such persons are not required to 
respond to the collection of information unless it displays a currently 
valid OMB control number.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Summary of Comments on the National Science Foundation Proposal and 
Award Policies and Procedures Guide and NSF's Responses

    The draft NSF PAPPG was made available for review by the public on 
the NSF Web site at http://www.nsf.gov/bfa/dias/policy/. In response to 
the Federal Register notice published May 16, 2016, at 81 FR 30348, NSF 
received 50 comments from eight different institutions/individuals; 36 
comments were in response to the Proposal and Award Policies and 
Procedures Guide, Part I, and 14 were in response to the Proposal and 
Award Policies and Procedures Guide, Part II. Following is the table 
showing the summaries of the comments received on the PAPPG sections, 
with NSF's response.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                              Topic & PAPPG
                No.                    Comment source            Section                      Comment                            NSF Response
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.                                  Penn State            Introduction,         Facilitation Awards for Scientists   Facilitation Awards for Scientists
                                     University.           Section A.            and Engineers with Disabilities      and Engineers with Disabilities
                                                                                 provide funding for special          provide funding for special
                                                                                 assistance or equipment to enable    assistance or equipment to enable
                                                                                 persons with disabilities to work    persons with disabilities to work
                                                                                 on NSF-supported projects. See       on NSF-supported projects. See
                                                                                 Chapter II.E.7 for instructions      Chapter II.E.7 for instructions
                                                                                 regarding preparation of these       regarding preparation of these
                                                                                 types of proposals. We believe the   types of proposals. We believe the
                                                                                 above should reference Chapter II.   above should reference Chapter II.
                                                                                 E. 6.                                E. 6.

[[Page 52468]]

 
2.                                  Penn State            Introduction,         Part II of the NSF Proposal & Award  It is not NSF's intent to
                                     University.           Section B.            Policies & Procedures Guide sets     incorporate NSF FAQs into the
                                                                                 forth NSF policies regarding the     award terms and conditions. OMB
                                                                                 award, and administration, and       has stated that their FAQs on 2
                                                                                 monitoring of grants and             CFR Sec.   200 have the full force
                                                                                 cooperative agreements. Coverage     and effect of the Uniform
                                                                                 includes the NSF award process,      Guidance, but this has no impact
                                                                                 from issuance and administration     on the PAPPG.
                                                                                 of an NSF award through closeout.
                                                                                 Guidance regarding other grant
                                                                                 requirements or considerations
                                                                                 that either is not universally
                                                                                 applicable or which do not follow
                                                                                 the award cycle also is provided.
                                                                                 Part II also implements other
                                                                                 Public Laws, Executive Orders
                                                                                 (E.O.) and other directives
                                                                                 insofar as they apply to grants,
                                                                                 and is issued pursuant to the
                                                                                 authority of Section 11(a) of the
                                                                                 NSF Act (42 USC Sec.   1870). When
                                                                                 NSF Grant General Conditions or an
                                                                                 award notice reference a
                                                                                 particular section of the PAPPG,
                                                                                 then that section becomes part of
                                                                                 the award requirements through
                                                                                 incorporation by reference. If the
                                                                                 intent of this edit is to
                                                                                 incorporate NSF FAQ's in the award
                                                                                 terms and conditions, we would
                                                                                 recommend further clarification to
                                                                                 spell this out in greater detail.
3.                                  Penn State            Letter of Intent,     We propose an overall change to the  Given the variance in the types of
                                     University.           Chapter I.D.1.        LOI process (for the purpose/sake    proposals that use the LOI
                                                                                 of consistency), to make all LOI     mechanism, a change in this
                                                                                 submission's mandatory from an AOR   process would not be appropriate.
                                                                                 (not the PI).
4.                                  Penn State            Who May Submit        Recommend an inclusion statement to  While there is a standard
                                     University.           Proposals, Chapter    address Universities and Colleges    definition of what constitutes a
                                                           I.E.1 (Universities   with multi-campus locations and      college or university, the PAPPG
                                                           and Colleges).        academic focus. ie. Main campus as   is indeed silent on how multi-
                                                                                 PhD awarding institution, while      campus locations should be
                                                                                 branch campus as PUI. This           addressed. Various NSF program
                                                                                 clarification would be useful for    solicitations do address this
                                                                                 program solicitations with           issue and vary according to
                                                                                 submission limitations.              programmatic intent regarding how
                                                                                                                      such satellite campuses should be
                                                                                                                      treated. As such, a statement in
                                                                                                                      the PAPPG would not be able to
                                                                                                                      capture these variances. The PAPPG
                                                                                                                      however does address the vast
                                                                                                                      majority of the programs at NSF.
                                                                                                                      For those programs that limit such
                                                                                                                      eligibility, there are definitions
                                                                                                                      provided in the applicable Program
                                                                                                                      Solicitation.
5.                                  Penn State            When to Submit        Include guidance that the name of    Thank you for your comment. The
                                     University.           Proposals, Chapter    the NSF Program Officer that         PAPPG states that if written
                                                           I.F (Special          granted the special exception to     approval is available, it should
                                                           Exceptions).          the deadline date policy. Either     be uploaded. The email should
                                                                                 with a new fill in the blank box     contain the name of the cognizant
                                                                                 on the NSF Cover Sheet or as a       Program Officer, so an additional
                                                                                 Single Copy Documents in FastLane.   space for this information on the
                                                                                                                      Cover Sheet is not necessary.
                                                                                                                      Additional guidance, however,
                                                                                                                      regarding this process has been
                                                                                                                      provided.
6.                                  Penn State            Format of the         We believe references 6-10 need to   References were accurate, as
                                     University.           Proposal, Chapter     be updated as follows: 9. Center     stated.
                                                           II.B.                 Proposal (see Chapter II.E.10 and
                                                                                 relevant funding opportunity); 10.
                                                                                 Major Research Equipment and
                                                                                 Facility Construction Proposal
                                                                                 (see Chapter II.E.11 and relevant
                                                                                 funding opportunity).
7.                                  Penn State            Collaborators &       Please add that this section must    Instructions to order the list
                                     University.           Other Affiliations    be alphabetical order by last        alphabetically by last name have
                                                           Information,          name. In general, it should be       been included. No format for the
                                                           Chapter II.C.1.e.     clarified if this list should be     list is specified in the PAPPG,
                                                                                 set up much like the templates       although some programs may specify
                                                                                 provided by NSF (columns), or if a   a specific format in the
                                                                                 running list like the biosketch      applicable program solicitation.
                                                                                 format is acceptable. Our hope is
                                                                                 that one day the file upload can
                                                                                 be an excel sheet template that
                                                                                 lists this information and becomes
                                                                                 sortable for NSF.
8.                                  Penn State            Sections of the       Please add ``k. Single Copy          Comment incorporated.
                                     University.           Proposal, Chapter     Documents--Collaborators & Other
                                                           II.C.2.               Affiliations.''.
9.                                  Penn State            Cover Sheet, Chapter  Please add clarification that the    Part I of the PAPPG provides policy
                                     University.           II.C.2.a.             title is limited to 180              and procedural guidance for
                                                                                 characters, per the FastLane         preparation of proposals. Issues
                                                                                 system.                              such as field length should be
                                                                                                                      articulated in the relevant NSF
                                                                                                                      system.

[[Page 52469]]

 
10.                                 Penn State            Project Summary,      ``Each proposal must contain a       This was a known defect in FastLane
                                     University.           Chapter II.C.2.b.     summary of the proposed project      that has now been addressed. The
                                                                                 not more than one page in            Project Summary is limited to 1
                                                                                 length.'' This requirement is not    page as stated in the PAPPG.
                                                                                 just one page in length BUT 4,600
                                                                                 characters. Please clarify that
                                                                                 the on-line text boxes only permit
                                                                                 this count.
11.                                 Penn State            Cover Sheet, Chapter  If the proposal includes use of      References were accurate, as
                                     University.           II.C.2.a              vertebrate animals, supplemental     stated.
                                                           (Footnotes).          information is required. See GPG
                                                                                 Chapter II.D.7 for additional
                                                                                 information. If the proposal
                                                                                 includes use of human subjects,
                                                                                 supplemental information is
                                                                                 required. See GPG Chapter II.D.8
                                                                                 for additional information. We
                                                                                 believe the above should reference
                                                                                 Chapter II. D. 4 and Chapter
                                                                                 II.D.5.
12.                                 Penn State            References Cited,     We request clarification be added    Thank you for your comment. The
                                     University.           Chapter II.C.2.e.     for references of large              norms of the discipline should be
                                                                                 collaborative group, i.e. CREAM      followed when preparing the
                                                                                 and ICE CUBE. There are hundreds     References Cited. Given that each
                                                                                 of authors and collaborators to      discipline may have different
                                                                                 list. Should these be listed in      practices, it is not appropriate
                                                                                 their entirety or are et. al's       to include additional instructions
                                                                                 acceptable? Should a full list be    in this section.
                                                                                 loaded into supplemental documents
                                                                                 or single documents?
13.                                 Penn State            Senior Personnel      As a general policy, NSF limits the  NSF concurs with the portion of the
                                     University.           Salaries and Wages,   salary compensation requested in     comment regarding the ability to
                                                           Chapter               the proposal budget for senior       rebudget. However, this policy
                                                           II.C.2.g.(i)(a).      personnel to no more than two        relates to budgeting salary for
                                                                                 months of their regular salary in    senior personnel in both the
                                                                                 any one year. This limit includes    budget preparation and award
                                                                                 salary compensation received from    phases of the process. NSF plans
                                                                                 all NSF-funded grants. This effort   to maintain its long-standing
                                                                                 must be documented in accordance     policy regarding senior personnel
                                                                                 with 2 CFR Sec.   200, Subpart E.    salaries and wages in these phases
                                                                                 If anticipated, any compensation     of the process, reflecting the
                                                                                 for such personnel in excess of      assistance relationship between
                                                                                 two months must be disclosed in      NSF and grantee institutions.
                                                                                 the proposal budget, justified in
                                                                                 the budget justification, and must
                                                                                 be specifically approved by NSF in
                                                                                 the award notice budget.12 Under
                                                                                 normal rebudgeting authority, as
                                                                                 described in Chapters VII and X, a
                                                                                 recipient can internally approve
                                                                                 an increase or decrease in person
                                                                                 months devoted to the project
                                                                                 after an award is made, even if
                                                                                 doing so results in salary support
                                                                                 for senior personnel exceeding the
                                                                                 two month salary policy. No prior
                                                                                 approval from NSF is necessary as
                                                                                 long as that change would not
                                                                                 cause the objectives or scope of
                                                                                 the project to change. NSF prior
                                                                                 approval is necessary if the
                                                                                 objectives or scope of the project
                                                                                 change. We ask that the 2 month
                                                                                 rule described above be removed
                                                                                 from the proposal budget
                                                                                 requirements. Given that
                                                                                 rebudgeting authority can allow
                                                                                 for internal approvals of
                                                                                 increased or decreases, we do not
                                                                                 understand why this requirement is
                                                                                 still part of the NSF PAPPG.

[[Page 52470]]

 
14.                                 Penn State            Participant Support   This budget category refers to       Reference should be Chapter II.E.7.
                                     University.           (Line F on the        direct costs for items such as       Comment incorporated.
                                                           Proposal Budget),     stipends or subsistence
                                                           Chapter               allowances, travel allowances, and
                                                           II.C.2.g.(v).         registration fees paid to or on
                                                                                 behalf of participants or trainees
                                                                                 (but not employees) in connection
                                                                                 with NSF-sponsored conferences or
                                                                                 training projects. Any additional
                                                                                 categories of participant support
                                                                                 costs other than those described
                                                                                 in 2 CFR Sec.   200.75 (such as
                                                                                 incentives, gifts, souvenirs, t-
                                                                                 shirts and memorabilia), must be
                                                                                 justified in the budget
                                                                                 justification, and such costs will
                                                                                 be closely scrutinized by NSF.
                                                                                 (See also GPG Chapter II.E.10D.9)
                                                                                 For some educational projects
                                                                                 conducted at local school
                                                                                 districts, however, the
                                                                                 participants being trained are
                                                                                 employees. In such cases, the
                                                                                 costs must be classified as
                                                                                 participant support if payment is
                                                                                 made through a stipend or training
                                                                                 allowance method. The school
                                                                                 district must have an accounting
                                                                                 mechanism in place (i.e., sub-
                                                                                 account code) to differentiate
                                                                                 between regular salary and stipend
                                                                                 payments. We believe the above
                                                                                 should reference is pointing to
                                                                                 the incorrect area but we're not
                                                                                 sure what reference to suggest in
                                                                                 its place.
15.                                 Penn State            Voluntary Committed   While voluntary uncommitted costs    A description of the resources
                                     University.           and Uncommitted       share is not auditable by NSF, if    provided in the Facilities,
                                                           Cost Sharing,         included in the Facilities and       Equipment and Other Resources
                                                           Chapter               Other Resources section of a         document are reviewable, however,
                                                           II.C.2.g.(xii).       proposal, will it be REVIEWABLE by   per NSF instructions, these
                                                                                 NSF and external reviews? Our        resources should not be
                                                                                 concern is that this sort of         quantified. A reviewer needs to be
                                                                                 institutional contribution will      able to assess all resources
                                                                                 still impact reviewers and           available to the project in order
                                                                                 application that are selected.       to consider whether sufficient
                                                                                                                      resources are available to carry
                                                                                                                      out the project as proposed. NSF's
                                                                                                                      cost sharing policy was not
                                                                                                                      directed at voluntary uncommitted
                                                                                                                      cost sharing.
16.                                 Penn State            Collaborative         Table of Documents for Lead and Non- Comment incorporated.
                                     University.           Proposals, Chapter    Lead Organization documents:
                                                           II.D.3.               Please add the Collaborators &
                                                                                 Other Affiliations Information
                                                                                 under each Organizations column.
                                                                                 This will clarify where it belongs
                                                                                 in a Collaborative proposal.
17.                                 Penn State            GOALI, Chapter        We believe the sentence should       Comment incorporated.
                                     University.           II.E.4.b.             read: ``Supplemental funding to
                                                                                 add GOALI elements to a currently
                                                                                 funded NSF research project should
                                                                                 be submitted by using the
                                                                                 ``Supplemental Funding Request''
                                                                                 function in FastLane.''.
18.                                 Penn State            Conference            We believe the sentence should       Comment incorporated.
                                     University.           Proposals, Chapter    read: ``A conference proposal will
                                                           II.E.7.               be supported only if equivalent
                                                                                 results cannot be obtained by
                                                                                 attendance at regular meetings of
                                                                                 professional societies. Although
                                                                                 requests for support of a
                                                                                 conference proposal ordinarily
                                                                                 originates with educational
                                                                                 institutions or scientific and
                                                                                 engineering societies, they also
                                                                                 may come from other groups.''.
19.                                 Penn State            Travel Proposals,     We believe the sentence should       Comment incorporated.
                                     University.           Chapter II.E.9.       read: ``A proposal for travel,
                                                                                 either domestic and/or
                                                                                 international, support for
                                                                                 participation in scientific and
                                                                                 engineering meetings are handled
                                                                                 by the NSF organization unit with
                                                                                 program responsibility for the
                                                                                 area of interest.''.
20.                                 Penn State            Proposal Preparation  We believe the sentence should       Comment incorporated.
                                     University.           Checklist, Exhibit    read: ``Results from Prior NSF
                                                           II-1 (Project         Support have been provided for PIs
                                                           Description).         and co-PIs who have received NSF
                                                                                 support within the last five
                                                                                 years. Results related to
                                                                                 Intellectual Merit and Broader
                                                                                 Impacts are described under two
                                                                                 separate, distinct headings and
                                                                                 are limited to five pages of the
                                                                                 project description.''.

[[Page 52471]]

 
21.                                 Cal Tech............  Senior Personnel      The PAPPG states that ``NSF limits   Much like guidance contained in the
                                                           Salaries and Wages,   the salary compensation requested    Uniform Guidance, NSF policies are
                                                           Chapter               in the proposal budget for senior    written to allow awardees maximum
                                                           II.C.2.g.(i)(a).      personnel to no more than two        flexibility in the development of
                                                                                 months of their regular salary in    their internal controls to ensure
                                                                                 any one year.'' (emphasis added).    compliance with NSF and federal
                                                                                 The policy is very clear that the    requirements. As a result the NSF
                                                                                 focus is on compensation             policy on senior personnel
                                                                                 requested, and not on salary         salaries and wages requires
                                                                                 expenditures. We agree with and      awardees to determine for
                                                                                 are supportive of that               themselves the best approach for
                                                                                 distinction. Our concern here is     ensuring compliance.
                                                                                 largely a mechanical one. When we
                                                                                 submit a proposal to NSF, how
                                                                                 should we determine whether the
                                                                                 amount of salary support being
                                                                                 requested is ``more than two
                                                                                 months of their regular salary in
                                                                                 any one year?'' The answer is very
                                                                                 simple if we are dealing with an
                                                                                 investigator who has only one NSF
                                                                                 grant. It gets much more
                                                                                 complicated for investigators with
                                                                                 multiple NSF grants, with widely
                                                                                 overlapping performance periods.
                                                                                 Should we be looking at currently
                                                                                 active NSF awards and trying to
                                                                                 determine that if the current
                                                                                 proposal is funded, will there be
                                                                                 a one-year period in which the
                                                                                 amount of salary requested will
                                                                                 exceed two months of salary?
                                                                                 Should we look at currently funded
                                                                                 NSF proposals or also take into
                                                                                 account pending proposals, as
                                                                                 well? We are seeking guidance in
                                                                                 the PAPPG that provides some
                                                                                 concrete steps to be followed to
                                                                                 meet the policy requirement. In
                                                                                 the absence of this guidance, we
                                                                                 are never quite sure if the
                                                                                 approach we are taking is or is
                                                                                 not consistent with the policy.
22.                                 Cal Tech............  Voluntary Committed   The discussion of voluntary          Thank you for your comment.
                                                           and Uncommitted       committed and uncommitted cost
                                                           Cost Sharing,         sharing is very clear. The
                                                           Chapter               revisions to this section of the
                                                           II.C.2.g.(xii).       PAPPG have definitely improved the
                                                                                 clarity.
23.                                 Cal Tech............  High Performance      The information in this section is   Thank you for your comment.
                                                           Computing, Chapter    helpful for investigators who
                                                           II.D.7.               require high-performance computing
                                                                                 resources, etc. It is good that
                                                                                 the PAPPG has identified specific
                                                                                 facilities that can provide
                                                                                 advanced computational and data
                                                                                 resources.
24.                                 Cal Tech............  Indirect Costs, NSF   The statement that continuing        Thank you for your comment.
                                                           Policy, Chapter       increments and supplements will be
                                                           X.D.1.                funded using the negotiated
                                                                                 indirect cost rate in effect at
                                                                                 the time of the initial award is
                                                                                 improved over the previous edition
                                                                                 of the PAPPG. That clarity is very
                                                                                 helpful and should reduce any
                                                                                 confusion or misunderstanding
                                                                                 about the intentions of NSF in
                                                                                 these situations.
25.                                 University of         Definitions of        Our office has reviewed the          Comment incorporated.
                                     Louisiana at          Categories of         proposed changes to the PAPPG and
                                     Lafayette.            Personnel, Exhibit    all seem to add clarity and better
                                                           II-7.                 organization to the document. We
                                                                                 do have a comment regarding
                                                                                 Section II-61: Definition of
                                                                                 senior personnel Faculty Associate
                                                                                 (Faculty member) (or equivalent):
                                                                                 Defined as an individual other
                                                                                 than the Principal Investigator
                                                                                 considered by the performing
                                                                                 institution to be a member of its
                                                                                 Faculty (or equivalent) or who
                                                                                 holds an appointment as a Faculty
                                                                                 member at another institution and
                                                                                 who will participate in the
                                                                                 project being supported. We
                                                                                 recommend adding `or equivalent'
                                                                                 to the definition (see red text
                                                                                 above) for clarity, since certain
                                                                                 Center staff across our campus are
                                                                                 not Faculty members but are
                                                                                 eligible to submit proposals.

[[Page 52472]]

 
26.                                 University of         NSF-NIH/OLAW MOU....  Relevant to the complications posed  Updated link has been incorporated.
                                     Arkansas at Little                          by the NSF-NIH/OLAW MOU regarding
                                     Rock.                                       animal oversight, the latest
                                                                                 revision of the Guidelines of the
                                                                                 American Society of Mammologists
                                                                                 for the use of wild mammals in
                                                                                 research and education has just
                                                                                 been published and is available at
                                                                                 http://www.mammalsociety.org/uploads/committee_files/CurrentGuidelines.pdf. This
                                                                                 document does a good job of
                                                                                 explaining the enormous gulf that
                                                                                 exists between effective and
                                                                                 appropriate oversight of
                                                                                 activities involving wild
                                                                                 vertebrates and those using
                                                                                 typical laboratory animals.
                                                                                 Additionally, the ASM and Oxford
                                                                                 University Press have collaborated
                                                                                 on and are advertising a
                                                                                 collection of papers that address
                                                                                 these same concerns. That
                                                                                 collection is available at http://jmammal.oxfordjournals.org/page/Guidelines Guidelines.
27.                                 Kansas State          Project Summary,      The GPG really needs to be updated   This was a known defect in FastLane
                                     University.           Chapter II.C.2.b.     with the same information that is    that has now been addressed. The
                                                                                 contained in FastLane on the         Project Summary is limited to 1
                                                                                 Project Summary instructions.        page as stated in the PAPPG.
                                                                                 Specifically, the GPG doesn't tell
                                                                                 the faculty the 4600 character
                                                                                 limit.
28.                                 Cornell University..  Cancelling            Thanks for making the draft FY17     Your understanding is accurate.
                                                           Appropriations,       PAPPG available. I noted the         FastLane or other mechanisms will
                                                           Chapter VIII.E.6.     additional clarity surrounding       prevent an NCE that goes beyond
                                                                                 cancelled funds, and appreciate      the appropriation's life.
                                                                                 things being made clearer. My
                                                                                 understanding--but please correct
                                                                                 me if I am wrong--is that the
                                                                                 period of performance can never go
                                                                                 beyond the life of the underlying
                                                                                 appropriation. The question has
                                                                                 been raised as to how one knows
                                                                                 what year's funds were used for an
                                                                                 award, and whether FASTLANE or
                                                                                 other mechanisms will prevent a
                                                                                 grantee-approved NCE that goes
                                                                                 beyond the appropriation's life.
29.                                 Boise State           Collaborators &       NSF currently requires               Additional scrutiny will be given
                                     University.           Other Affiliations    ``Collaborators & Other              in the review of NSF Program
                                                           Information,          Affiliations'' as a single-copy      Solicitations to ensure that: (1)
                                                           Chapter II.C.1.e.     document. It is not unusual for      Any requirements that are
                                                                                 specific RFPs to require a second    supplemental to the COI
                                                                                 collaborators document in various    requirements specified in the
                                                                                 formats. This is a time-consuming    PAPPG receive an additional level
                                                                                 process for what is essentially      of review; and (2) that the COI
                                                                                 duplicate information. My comment/   information is provided only once
                                                                                 request is that NSF have a single    in a given proposal.
                                                                                 ``Collaborators & Other
                                                                                 Affiliations'' document that is in
                                                                                 the same format for all RFPs.

[[Page 52473]]

 
30.                                 NSF Office of the     Introduction,         ``When NSF Grant General Conditions  In large part, the PAPPG provides
                                     Inspector General.    Section B.            or an award notice reference a       guidance and explanatory material
                                                                                 particular section of the PAPPG,     to proposers and awardees.
                                                                                 then that section becomes part of    Therefore, it would be
                                                                                 the award requirements through       inappropriate to impose on NSF
                                                                                 incorporation by reference.'' This   awardee organizations the
                                                                                 sentence is confusing in light of    requirement to comply with all
                                                                                 the preceding sentences, which       such guidance and explanatory
                                                                                 state, ``Part II of the NSF          material as terms and conditions
                                                                                 Proposal & Award Policies &          of an NSF award. NSF strongly
                                                                                 Procedures Guide sets forth NSF      believes that the articles
                                                                                 policies regarding the award,        specified in the General
                                                                                 administration, and monitoring of    Conditions clearly articulate the
                                                                                 grants and cooperative agreements.   parts of the PAPPG that are indeed
                                                                                 Coverage includes the NSF award      requirements imposed on a
                                                                                 process, from issuance and           recipient, and, for which they
                                                                                 administration of an NSF award       will be held responsible.
                                                                                 through closeout. Guidance
                                                                                 regarding other grant requirements
                                                                                 or considerations that either is
                                                                                 not universally applicable or
                                                                                 which do not follow the award
                                                                                 cycle also is provided.'' NSF
                                                                                 General Grant Conditions require
                                                                                 recipients to comply with NSF
                                                                                 policies (NSF General Grant
                                                                                 Conditions, Article 1.d.2), which
                                                                                 are set forth in this document.
                                                                                 The sentence in question could
                                                                                 wrongly lead one to believe that
                                                                                 only sections of the PAPPG
                                                                                 specifically mentioned in award
                                                                                 terms and conditions need to be
                                                                                 followed. We strongly suggest that
                                                                                 this sentence be removed.
31................................  NSF Office of the     Introduction,         ``The PAPPG does not apply to NSF    Language has been revised to
                                     Inspector General.    Section B.            contracts.'' We suggest expanding    address issue.
                                                                                 this to include language that
                                                                                 appeared in prior versions of the
                                                                                 AAG: ``The PAPPG is applicable to
                                                                                 NSF grants and cooperative
                                                                                 agreements, unless noted otherwise
                                                                                 in the award instrument. This
                                                                                 Guide does not apply to NSF
                                                                                 contracts.''.
32................................  NSF Office of the     Special Exceptions    ``If available, written approval     The ability to receive verbal
                                     Inspector General.    to NSF's Deadline     from the cognizant NSF Program       approval only is absolutely vital
                                                           Date Policy,          Officer should be uploaded with      in cases of natural or
                                                           Chapter I.F.2.        the proposal as a Single Copy        anthropogenic events. We have
                                                                                 Document in FastLane. Proposers      received numerous complaints from
                                                                                 should then follow the written or    PIs who did not even have access
                                                                                 verbal guidance provided by the      to a computer during the natural
                                                                                 cognizant NSF Program Officer.''     event, but wanted NSF to be aware
                                                                                 We suggest that approval for         that their proposal would not be
                                                                                 exceptions to the deadline date      able to be submitted on time. We
                                                                                 policy only be provided in writing   believe that it is vital to retain
                                                                                 rather than also allowing for the    such flexibility in cases of
                                                                                 option of verbal approval.           natural or anthropogenic events.
33................................  NSF Office of the     Contingency and       General comment: We suggest that an  A reference to the Large Facilities
                                     Inspector General.    Management Fees,      explicit reference be made to the    Manual has been incorporated into
                                                           Chapter II.           appropriate NSF guides and/or        the opening of the budget section.
                                                                                 manuals that contain information
                                                                                 related to the proper budgeting
                                                                                 and expenditure of management fees
                                                                                 and contingency funds.
34................................  NSF Office of the     Senior Personnel      ``This effort must be documented in  Section 2 CFR 200.430(i) is
                                     Inspector General.    Salaries and Wages,   accordance with 2 CFR Sec.   200,    specifically relevant to
                                                           Chapter               Subpart E.'' We suggest that the     documentation of personnel
                                                           II.C.2.g.(i)(a).      third sentence of the second         expenses. This reference has been
                                                                                 paragraph be modified to add         incorporated.
                                                                                 references to specific sections of
                                                                                 the Uniform Guidance, as follows
                                                                                 (new text in red): ``This effort
                                                                                 must be documented in accordance
                                                                                 with 2 CFR Sec.   200, Subpart E,
                                                                                 including Sec.  Sec.   200.430 and
                                                                                 200.431.'' Adding a reference to
                                                                                 specific sections of the Uniform
                                                                                 Guidance will allow users to more
                                                                                 easily identify and understand the
                                                                                 regulations that govern their
                                                                                 awards.

[[Page 52474]]

 
35................................  NSF Office of the     Senior Personnel      ``Under normal rebudgeting           In accordance with final decisions
                                     Inspector General.    Salaries and Wages,   authority, as described in           issued by the NSF Audit Followup
                                                           Chapter               Chapters VII and X, a recipient      Official on this audit matter, by
                                                           II.C.2.g.(i)(a).      can internally approve an increase   the nature of assistance awards,
                                                                                 or decrease in person months         awardees have the responsibility
                                                                                 devoted to the project after an      to determine how best to achieve
                                                                                 award is made, even if doing so      stated goals within project
                                                                                 results in salary support for        objective or scope. Research often
                                                                                 senior personnel exceeding the two   requires adjustments, and NSF
                                                                                 month salary policy. No prior        permits post-award re-budgeting of
                                                                                 approval from NSF is necessary as    faculty compensation. NSF is
                                                                                 long as that change would not        aligned with federal guidelines
                                                                                 cause the objectives or scope of     and regulations in allowing re-
                                                                                 the project to change.'' We          budgeting of such compensation
                                                                                 suggest that the indicated           without prior Agency approval,
                                                                                 sentences be removed. Allowing       unless it results in changes to
                                                                                 awardees to exceed the general two   objectives or scope.
                                                                                 month salary limit without NSF
                                                                                 approval contradicts the prior
                                                                                 paragraph in section
                                                                                 II.C.2.g.(i)(a) that states, ``NSF
                                                                                 regards research as one of the
                                                                                 normal functions of faculty
                                                                                 members at institutions of higher
                                                                                 education. Compensation for time
                                                                                 normally spent on research within
                                                                                 the term of appointment is deemed
                                                                                 to be included within the faculty
                                                                                 member's regular organizational
                                                                                 salary.'' By allowing awardees to
                                                                                 unilaterally rebudget salary above
                                                                                 the two-month limit, NSF runs the
                                                                                 risk of reimbursing the very
                                                                                 compensation costs that it deems
                                                                                 ``to be included within the
                                                                                 faculty member's regular
                                                                                 organizational salary.''.
36................................  NSF Office of the     Administrative and    ``Conditions (i) (ii) and (iv)       NSF does not find this language
                                     Inspector General.    Clerical Salaries     above are particularly relevant      confusing as (i), (ii) and (iv)
                                                           and Wages Policy,     for consideration at the budget      are the only conditions that are
                                                           Chapter               preparation stage.'' As revised,     relevant at the proposal
                                                           II.C.2.g.(i)(b).      the last sentence of this page       preparation stage. That is why a
                                                                                 highlights 3 of the 4 conditions     similar sentence is not included
                                                                                 as ``particularly relevant.'' The    in Chapter X.b.2. of the PAPPG.
                                                                                 fourth condition, which is not
                                                                                 highlighted as ``particularly
                                                                                 relevant,'' is the requirement
                                                                                 that such costs be included in the
                                                                                 approved budget or have prior
                                                                                 written approval of the cognizant
                                                                                 NSF Grants Officer--a requirement
                                                                                 that is explicitly stated in
                                                                                 Chapter X, Sec.   A.3.b.2 of the
                                                                                 proposed PAPPG. We suggest
                                                                                 deleting the sentence,
                                                                                 ``Conditions (i) (ii) and (iv)
                                                                                 above are particularly relevant
                                                                                 for consideration at the budget
                                                                                 preparation stage.'' If desired,
                                                                                 an alternative sentence such as
                                                                                 the following could replace it:
                                                                                 ``These conditions are
                                                                                 particularly relevant for
                                                                                 consideration at the budget
                                                                                 preparation stage.''
37................................  NSF Office of the     Equipment, Chapter    ``Any request to support such items  2 CFR 200.313 will be incorporated.
                                     Inspector General.    II.C.2.g.(iii)(d).    must be clearly disclosed in the
                                                                                 proposal budget, justified in the
                                                                                 budget justification, and be
                                                                                 included in the NSF award
                                                                                 budget.'' We suggest including the
                                                                                 following sentence at the end of
                                                                                 the section on Equipment: ``See 2
                                                                                 CFR Sec.  Sec.   200.310 and
                                                                                 200.313 for additional
                                                                                 information.'' Adding a reference
                                                                                 to specific sections of the
                                                                                 Uniform Guidance will allow users
                                                                                 to more easily identify and
                                                                                 understand the regulations that
                                                                                 govern their awards.

[[Page 52475]]

 
38................................  NSF Office of the     Entertainment,        ``Costs of entertainment,            A reference to the relevant Uniform
                                     Inspector General.    Chapter               amusement, diversion and social      Guidance section will be added and
                                                           II.C.2.g.(xiii)(a).   activities, and any costs directly   the first stricken sentence
                                                                                 associated with such activities      identified will be kept. However,
                                                                                 (such as tickets to shows or         the second sentence will be
                                                                                 sporting events, meals, lodging,     removed to ensure clarity on the
                                                                                 rentals, transportation and          intended topic which is
                                                                                 gratuities) are unallowable.         ``Entertainment Costs``. NSF
                                                                                 Travel, meal and hotel expenses of   believes that the search tools/
                                                                                 grantee employees who are not on     options available in the PAPPG are
                                                                                 travel status are unallowable.       sufficient to provide awardees
                                                                                 Costs of employees on travel         quick and direct access to
                                                                                 status are limited to those          specific topics on items of costs,
                                                                                 specifically authorized by 2 CFR     including travel and entertainment
                                                                                 Sec.   200.474.'' We suggest         costs.
                                                                                 keeping the two sentences that are
                                                                                 proposed to be stricken at the end
                                                                                 of this section (in addition to
                                                                                 having this text also included in
                                                                                 Chapter II.C.2.g.(iv)), as it is
                                                                                 useful and applicable guidance to
                                                                                 grantees looking up the rules in
                                                                                 both sections. We also recommend
                                                                                 adding an explicit reference to 2
                                                                                 CFR Sec.   200.438 at the end of
                                                                                 the Entertainment paragraph so the
                                                                                 last three sentences read:
                                                                                 ``Travel, meal and hotel expenses
                                                                                 of grantee employees who are not
                                                                                 on travel status are unallowable.
                                                                                 Costs of employees on travel
                                                                                 status are limited to those
                                                                                 specifically authorized by 2 CFR
                                                                                 Sec.   200.474. See 2 CFR Sec.
                                                                                 200.438 for additional information
                                                                                 about entertainment costs.''
                                                                                 Adding a reference to specific
                                                                                 section of the Uniform Guidance
                                                                                 will allow users to more easily
                                                                                 identify and understand the
                                                                                 regulations that govern their
                                                                                 awards.
39................................  NSF Office of the     NSF Award             ``When these conditions reference a  See NSF Response to Comment 30.
                                     Inspector General.    Conditions, Chapter   particular PAPPG section, that
                                                           VI.C.                 section becomes part of the award
                                                                                 requirements through incorporation
                                                                                 by reference.'' Please see our
                                                                                 suggestions outlined in comment
                                                                                 number 1.
40................................  NSF Office of the     NSF-Approved          ``The request should be submitted    NSF believes that the revised
                                     Inspector General.    Extension, Chapter    to NSF at least 45 days prior to     language is appropriate. Requests
                                                           VI.D.3.c(ii)(a).      the end date of the grant.'' We      must be submitted at least 45 days
                                                                                 believe that this alteration fully   prior to the end date of the
                                                                                 changes the guidance rather than     grant. If submitted late, the
                                                                                 simply updating it for clarity. We   request must include a strong
                                                                                 suggest returning the sentence       justification as to why it was not
                                                                                 back to the way it was originally    submitted earlier. That provides
                                                                                 written to state, ``The request      the necessary ability for the
                                                                                 must be submitted to NSF at least    Foundation to appropriately
                                                                                 45 days prior to the end date of     respond to situations where a
                                                                                 the grant.'' This will allow         compelling rationale is provided.
                                                                                 responsible NSF officials adequate
                                                                                 time to fully review the request.
41................................  NSF Office of the     Changes in            ``The objectives or scope of the     Rather than develop a listing of
                                     Inspector General.    Objectives or         project may not be changed without   potential ``indicators'' of a
                                                           Scope, Chapter        prior NSF approval. Such change      change in scope, NSF prefers to
                                                           VII.B.1(a).           requests must be signed and          continue use of Article 2 to
                                                                                 submitted by the AOR via use of      identify areas that require NSF
                                                                                 NSF's electronic systems.'' We       prior approval.
                                                                                 suggest adopting similar guidance
                                                                                 to the National Institutes of
                                                                                 Health that defines change of
                                                                                 scope and provides potential
                                                                                 indicators. This guidance can be
                                                                                 found in section 8.1.2.5 of the
                                                                                 NIH Grants Policy Statement.
                                                                                 Alternatively, we suggest adding a
                                                                                 list of circumstances that could
                                                                                 be considered a change of scope.
                                                                                 For example, significant increase/
                                                                                 decrease in a PI's effort
                                                                                 allocated to the project, a
                                                                                 significant decrease in research
                                                                                 opportunities for graduate and
                                                                                 undergraduate students, and
                                                                                 significant (>25%) rebudgeting of
                                                                                 costs among budget categories,
                                                                                 which indicates a material change
                                                                                 in the research methodology.

[[Page 52476]]

 
42................................  NSF Office of the     Award Financial       ``NSF will notify grantees of any    A reference to the section on
                                     Inspector General.    Reporting             canceling appropriations on open     grantee payments has been
                                                           Requirements and      awards in order for grantees to      incorporated into the paragraph on
                                                           Final                 properly expend and draw down        cancelling appropriations.
                                                           Disbursements,        funds before the end of the fiscal
                                                           Chapter VIII.E.6.     year.'' We suggest adding a
                                                                                 sentence that reminds awardees
                                                                                 that funds must still be used on
                                                                                 allowable, allocable, and
                                                                                 reasonable costs, and that the
                                                                                 drawdown must be related to
                                                                                 expenses that have already been
                                                                                 incurred or will be incurred
                                                                                 within 3 days of the drawdown, per
                                                                                 NSF policy. In the past, awardees
                                                                                 have misconstrued NSF's guidance
                                                                                 and have drawn down funds for
                                                                                 expenditures that had not been
                                                                                 incurred and were not anticipated
                                                                                 to be incurred within 3 days.
43................................  NSF Office of the     Conflict of Interest  ``Guidance for development of such   NSF defers to grantee organizations
                                     Inspector General.    Policies, Chapter     polices has been issued by           regarding the provision of
                                                           IX.A.                 university associations and          examples in their policies that
                                                                                 scientific societies. In addition    are most applicable to their
                                                                                 to the stated language, we suggest   organization.
                                                                                 that NSF also provide examples of
                                                                                 key components of an effective
                                                                                 policy.
44................................  NSF Office of the     Conflict of Interest  ``significant financial interest''   NSF believes that there is value in
                                     Inspector General.    Policies, Chapter     does not include ``any ownership     having a consistent SBIR exclusion
                                                           IX.A.                 in the organization, if the          between NSF and NIH. Excluding
                                                                                 organization is an applicant under   SBIR awards from NSF's policy
                                                                                 the [SBIR/STTR programs]?'' What     reflects the fact that limited
                                                                                 is intended regarding IX.A.2.b,      amounts of funding are provided
                                                                                 that the term ``significant          for SBIR Phase I awards and an
                                                                                 financial interest'' does not        ownership interest in an SBIR
                                                                                 include ``any ownership in the       institution at this phase is not
                                                                                 organization, if the organization    likely to create a bias in the
                                                                                 is an applicant under the [SBIR/     outcome of the research. This
                                                                                 STTR programs]?'' In the instance    exclusion takes into consideration
                                                                                 of a professor being proposed as     the fact that potentially biasing
                                                                                 co-PI for a university for a         financial interests will be
                                                                                 subcontract through an SBIR award,   assessed during submission of SBIR
                                                                                 where that professor is also an      Phase II proposals. Moreover, in
                                                                                 owner of an SBIR applicant, this     order for an institution to
                                                                                 section may be interpreted to mean   receive the designation as being
                                                                                 that professor does not have to      eligible for the SBIR program,
                                                                                 disclose her ownership interest in   this information is collected
                                                                                 the SBIR company. We suggest         through the SBIR Company Registry
                                                                                 adding language to make this more    by the Small Business
                                                                                 clear and to remove any potential    Administration and identified in
                                                                                 loop holes.                          the supplemental SBIR document
                                                                                                                      provided by SBA. Further, we note
                                                                                                                      that the OMB Uniform
                                                                                                                      Administrative Requirements, Cost
                                                                                                                      Principles, and Audit Requirements
                                                                                                                      for Federal Awards (September 10,
                                                                                                                      2015), require a Federal awarding
                                                                                                                      agency to have an awardee conflict
                                                                                                                      of interest policy and require the
                                                                                                                      awardee to report conflicts of
                                                                                                                      interest to the Federal awarding
                                                                                                                      agency. (2 CFR 200.112) NSF's
                                                                                                                      policy complies with the uniform
                                                                                                                      standards.
45................................  NSF Office of the     Conflict of Interest  ``an equity interest that, when      NSF's thresholds reflect language
                                     Inspector General.    Policies, Chapter     aggregated for the investigator      agreed upon in 1995, as a result
                                                           IX.A.                 and the investigator's spouse and    of close coordination between NSF
                                                                                 dependent children, meets both of    and NIH. At the time, both
                                                                                 the following tests: (i) Does not    agencies' policies went through
                                                                                 exceed $10,000 in value as           extensive public comment periods.
                                                                                 determined through reference to
                                                                                 public prices or other reasonable
                                                                                 measures of fair market value; and
                                                                                 (ii) does not represent more than
                                                                                 a 5% ownership interest in any
                                                                                 single entity;'' How were the
                                                                                 thresholds of $10,000 or a 5%
                                                                                 ownership interest in IX.A.2.e
                                                                                 determined? How is 5% ownership
                                                                                 interest defined and how is an
                                                                                 individual supposed to determine
                                                                                 if he/she has a 5% ownership
                                                                                 interest? It may require knowledge
                                                                                 outside of their control, for
                                                                                 instance, knowledge of all owners
                                                                                 and the total assets of the
                                                                                 company in order to calculate
                                                                                 their share. We suggest erring on
                                                                                 the side of more disclosure as
                                                                                 opposed to less, and simply
                                                                                 requiring individuals with
                                                                                 ownership interests to make
                                                                                 disclosures so that it is more
                                                                                 clear.

[[Page 52477]]

 
46................................  NSF Office of the     Allowability of       General comment: We suggest that     A hypertext link to 2 CFR Sec.
                                     Inspector General.    Costs, Chapter X.     any references to 2 CFR Sec.   200   200 already appears in the html
                                                                                 include a hyperlink directly to      version of the PAPPG.
                                                                                 the regulation to help facilitate
                                                                                 better understanding by the user.
47................................  NSF Office of the     Pre-Award (Pre-Start  We suggest language reinforcing the  Comment incorporated.
                                     Inspector General.    Date) Costs,          policy in Chapter VI, Sec.   E.2.
                                                           Chapter X.A.2.b.      that costs incurred under an ``old
                                                                                 grant cannot be transferred to the
                                                                                 new grant'' in the case of a
                                                                                 renewal grant. The 90-day preaward
                                                                                 cost allowability provision should
                                                                                 not apply to renewal grants, even
                                                                                 if the ``old'' award has been
                                                                                 fully expended. This would
                                                                                 constitute a transfer of a loss on
                                                                                 the ``old'' grant to the ``new''
                                                                                 grant, which is unallowable under
                                                                                 2 CFR Sec.   200.451.
48................................  NSF Office of the     Salaries and Wages,   ``Compensation paid or accrued by    NSF believes that incorporation of
                                     Inspector General.    Chapter X.B.1.a.      the organization for employees       the entire Uniform Guidance into
                                                                                 working on the NSF-supported         the PAPPG is not prudent. The
                                                                                 project during the grant period is   PAPPG would then become incredibly
                                                                                 allowable, in accordance with 2      lengthy and unhelpful to users.
                                                                                 CFR Sec.   200.430'' We suggest      Rather, a hypertext link is
                                                                                 including additional narrative       provided to each of the applicable
                                                                                 here summarizing the requirements    references in the Uniform
                                                                                 that are specified in 2 CFR Sec.     Guidance.
                                                                                 200.430 (similar to what is
                                                                                 included at Chapter II.C.2.g.(i))
                                                                                 as opposed to relying solely on
                                                                                 awardees pulling up the reference
                                                                                 to the Uniform Guidance. This will
                                                                                 allow users to better understand
                                                                                 the guidance and regulations
                                                                                 applicable to their awards.
49................................  NSF Office of the     Administrative and    ``Such costs are explicitly          This recommendation is inconsistent
                                     Inspector General.    Clerical Salaries     included in the approved budget or   with the approach established in 2
                                                           and Wages, Chapter    have the prior written approval of   CFR Sec.   200. Throughout the
                                                           X.B.2.                the cognizant NSF Grants             document, regular reference is
                                                                                 Officer;'' We suggest that for       made to ``are explicitly included
                                                                                 direct charging of administrative/   in the budget.'' Such inclusion in
                                                                                 clerical salaries and wages to be    the budget serves to explicitly
                                                                                 allowable, they must be explicitly   document agency approval of
                                                                                 approved in the award notice. This   specific cost categories at the
                                                                                 is consistent with section           time of the award.
                                                                                 X.A.3.b.2, which states that
                                                                                 salaries of administrative and
                                                                                 clerical staff must receive
                                                                                 written prior approval from the
                                                                                 Grants and Agreements Officer.
50................................  NSF Office of the     Intra-University      ``If anticipated, any compensation   Comment incorporated.
                                     Inspector General.    (IHE) Consulting,     for such consulting services
                                                           Chapter X.B.3.        should be disclosed in the
                                                                                 proposal budget, justified in the
                                                                                 budget justification, and included
                                                                                 in the NSF award budget.'' We
                                                                                 suggest including the following
                                                                                 sentence at the end of this
                                                                                 section: ``See 2 CFR Sec.
                                                                                 200.430(h)(3) for additional
                                                                                 information.'' Adding a reference
                                                                                 to specific section of the Uniform
                                                                                 Guidance will allow users to more
                                                                                 easily identify and understand the
                                                                                 regulations that govern their
                                                                                 awards.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Title of Collection: ``National Science Foundation Proposal & Award 
Policies & Procedures Guide.''
    OMB Approval Number: 3145-0058.
    Type of Request: Intent to seek approval to extend with revision an 
information collection for three years.
    Proposed Project: The National Science Foundation Act of 1950 
(Public Law 81-507) sets forth NSF's mission and purpose:
    ``To promote the progress of science; to advance the national 
health, prosperity, and welfare; to secure the national defense. . . 
.''
    The Act authorized and directed NSF to initiate and support:
     Basic scientific research and research fundamental to the 
engineering process;
     Programs to strengthen scientific and engineering research 
potential;
     Science and engineering education programs at all levels 
and in all the various fields of science and engineering;
     Programs that provide a source of information for policy 
formulation; and
     Other activities to promote these ends.
    NSF's core purpose resonates clearly in everything it does: 
Promoting achievement and progress in science and engineering and 
enhancing the potential for research and education to contribute to the 
Nation. While NSF's vision of the future and the mechanisms it uses to 
carry out its charges have evolved significantly over the last six 
decades, its ultimate mission remains the same.
    Use of the Information: The regular submission of proposals to the 
Foundation is part of the collection of information and is used to help 
NSF fulfill this responsibility by initiating and supporting merit-
selected research and education projects in all the scientific and 
engineering disciplines. NSF receives more than 50,000 proposals 
annually for new projects, and makes approximately 11,000 new awards.
    Support is made primarily through grants, contracts, and other 
agreements

[[Page 52478]]

awarded to approximately 2,000 colleges, universities, academic 
consortia, nonprofit institutions, and small businesses. The awards are 
based mainly on merit evaluations of proposals submitted to the 
Foundation.
    The Foundation has a continuing commitment to monitor the 
operations of its information collection to identify and address 
excessive reporting burdens as well as to identify any real or apparent 
inequities based on gender, race, ethnicity, or disability of the 
proposed principal investigator(s)/project director(s) or the co-
principal investigator(s)/co-project director(s).

Burden on the Public

    It has been estimated that the public expends an average of 
approximately 120 burden hours for each proposal submitted. Since the 
Foundation expects to receive approximately 52,000 proposals in FY 
2017, an estimated 6,240,000 burden hours will be placed on the public.
    The Foundation has based its reporting burden on the review of 
approximately 52,000 new proposals expected during FY 2017. It has been 
estimated that anywhere from one hour to 20 hours may be required to 
review a proposal. We have estimated that approximately 5 hours are 
required to review an average proposal. Each proposal receives an 
average of 3 reviews, resulting in approximately 780,000 burden hours 
each year.
    The information collected on the reviewer background questionnaire 
(NSF 428A) is used by managers to maintain an automated database of 
reviewers for the many disciplines represented by the proposals 
submitted to the Foundation. Information collected on gender, race, and 
ethnicity is used in meeting NSF needs for data to permit response to 
Congressional and other queries into equity issues. These data also are 
used in the design, implementation, and monitoring of NSF efforts to 
increase the participation of various groups in science, engineering, 
and education. The estimated burden for the Reviewer Background 
Information (NSF 428A) is estimated at 5 minutes per respondent with up 
to 10,000 potential new reviewers for a total of 833 hours.
    The aggregate number of burden hours is estimated to be 7,020,000. 
The actual burden on respondents has not changed.

    Dated: August 3, 2016.
Suzanne H. Plimpton,
Reports Clearance Officer, National Science Foundation.
[FR Doc. 2016-18758 Filed 8-5-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7555-01-P