[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 166 (Friday, August 26, 2016)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 58809-58811]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-18422]



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 Rules and Regulations
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  Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 166 / Friday, August 26, 2016 / Rules 
and Regulations  

[[Page 58809]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

National Institute of Food and Agriculture

7 CFR Part 3430

RIN 0524-AA67


Agriculture and Food Research Initiative Competitive Federal 
Grants Program--General Administration Provisions

AGENCY: National Institute of Food and Agriculture, USDA.

ACTION: Final rule with request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) is 
publishing as a final rule a revision to the general administrative 
guidelines applicable to the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative 
(AFRI) competitive grant program. The purpose of this final rule is to 
implement the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative commodity board 
provision added by section 7404 of the Agricultural Act of 2014 making 
it necessary to modify the AFRI regulations.

DATES: This final rule becomes effective on August 26, 2016. NIFA is 
requesting comments for 30 days until September 26, 2016.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by Agriculture and Food 
Research Initiative Competitive Federal Grants Program--General 
Administration Provisions, by any of the following methods:
    Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 
instructions for submitting comments.
    Email: [email protected]. Include Agriculture and Food 
Research Initiative Competitive Federal Grants Program--General 
Administration Provisions in the subject line of the message.
    Instructions: All comments received must include the agency name 
and reference to Agriculture and Food Research Initiative Competitive 
Federal Grants Program--General Administration Provisions. All comments 
received will be posted to http://www.regulations.gov, including any 
personal information provided.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Maria Koszalka, Division Director, 
Policy and Oversight Division, Phone: 202-401-4325, Email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background and Summary

Authority

    This rulemaking is authorized by section 2(b) of the Competitive, 
Special, and Faculties Research Grant Act 7 U.S.C. 450i(b).

Organization of 7 CFR Part 3430

    A primary function of NIFA is the fair, effective, and efficient 
administration of Federal assistance programs implementing agricultural 
research, education, and extension programs. The awards made under the 
above authority are subject to the NIFA assistance regulations at 7 CFR 
part 3430, Competitive and Noncompetitive Non-formula Federal 
Assistance Programs--General Award Administrative Provisions. NIFA's 
development and publication of this regulation for its non-formula 
Federal assistance programs enhances its accountability and 
standardizes procedures across the Federal assistance programs it 
administers while providing transparency to the public. NIFA published 
7 CFR part 3430 with subparts A through F as a final rule on September 
4, 2009 [74 FR 45736-45752]. These regulations apply to all Federal 
assistance programs administered by NIFA except for the formula grant 
programs identified in 7 CFR 3430.1(f), the Small Business Innovation 
Research programs with implementing regulations at 7 CFR part 3403, and 
the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP), with 
implementing regulations at 7 CFR part 3431.
    NIFA organized the regulation as follows: Subparts A through E 
provide administrative provisions for all competitive and 
noncompetitive non-formula Federal assistance programs. Subparts F and 
thereafter apply to specific NIFA programs.
    NIFA is, to the extent practical, using the following subpart 
template for each program authority: (1) Applicability of regulations, 
(2) purpose, (3) definitions (those in addition to or different from 
Sec.  3430.2), (4) eligibility, (5) project types and priorities, (6) 
funding restrictions, (7) matching requirements, and (8) duration of 
grant. Subparts F and thereafter contain the above seven components in 
this order. Additional sections may be added for a specific program if 
there are additional requirements or a need for additional rules for 
the program (e.g., additional reporting requirements).
    Through this rulemaking, NIFA is making minor additions to Subpart 
G--Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) in order to 
implement the AFRI commodity board provision from section 7404 of the 
Agricultural Act of 2014 (Pub. L. 113-79).

Subpart G of 7 CFR 3430

    Subpart G contains the administrative provisions for the 
Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI). The purpose of AFRI is 
to make competitive grants for fundamental and applied research, 
extension, and education to address food and agricultural sciences, as 
defined under section 1404 of the National Agriculture Research, 
Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977, as amended (7 U.S.C. 3103).

II. Revisions Included in the Final Rule

Subpart G

    Section 7404 of the Agricultural Act of 2014 amended the general 
administration, special considerations, and eligible entities 
subsections for the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) 
program, and added a special contributions requirement making it 
necessary to modify the program's administrative provisions.
    With this rule, NIFA makes clear that it will solicit funding ideas 
under this subpart from statutorily defined national and state 
commodity boards for research topics that the commodity boards are 
willing to co-fund equally with NIFA under the AFRI competitive grant 
program. If the ideas are evaluated and found to be consistent with the 
AFRI statutory priorities and priorities noted in the President's 
budget request related to NIFA, the topics will be

[[Page 58810]]

incorporated in existing program areas in the relevant AFRI Request for 
Applications (RFA(s)). Researchers wishing to submit a proposal on a 
topic suggested by a commodity board will be required to obtain a 
letter of support from the co-funding commodity board. The applications 
submitted in response to a commodity board co-funded topic will compete 
against all proposals submitted in the same RFA program area. Supported 
applications will receive no preference regarding the evaluation of 
their scientific merit. Letters of commodity board support will be used 
by NIFA solely to determine that the application fits within the 
commodity board co-funded topic and the commodity board is willing to 
co-fund that application, if it is evaluated by the review panel as 
being meritorious and recommended for award.

III. Administrative Requirements for the Rulemaking

    While the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), 5 U.S.C. 553(a)(2), 
specifically exempts rules that involve public property, loans, grants, 
benefits, or contracts from notice-and-comment requirements, NIFA is 
issuing this rule as final with request for comments. Accordingly, NIFA 
is allowing 30 days for the submission of comments.
    If upon consideration of the comments received in response to this 
notice NIFA decides to amend the AFRI final rule, NIFA will issue a 
subsequent final rule that includes an explanation of any changes made 
in response to the comments.

Executive Order 12866 and Executive Order 13563

    Executive Orders 12866 and 13563 direct agencies to assess all 
costs and benefits of available regulatory alternatives and, if 
regulation is necessary, to select regulatory approaches that maximize 
net benefits (including potential economic, environmental, public 
health and safety effects, distributive impacts, and equity). Executive 
Order 13563 emphasizes the importance of quantifying both costs and 
benefits, of reducing costs, of harmonizing rules, and of promoting 
flexibility. This rule has been determined to be not significant.

Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980

    This final rule has been reviewed in accordance with the Regulatory 
Flexibility Act of 1980, as amended by the Small Business Regulatory 
Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, (5 U.S.C. 601-612). The Director 
certifies that this final regulation will not have a significant 
economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. This final 
regulation will affect institutions of higher education receiving 
Federal funds under this program. The U.S. Small Business 
Administration Size Standards define institutions as ``small entities'' 
if they are for-profit or nonprofit institutions with total annual 
revenue below $5,000,000 or if they are institutions controlled by 
governmental entities with populations below 50,000. The rule does not 
involve regulatory and informational requirements regarding businesses, 
organizations, and governmental jurisdictions subject to regulation.

Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA)

    The Department certifies that this final rule has been assessed in 
accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 
U.S.C. 3501 et seq. (PRA). The Department concludes that this final 
rule does not impose any new information requirements or increase the 
burden hours. In addition to the SF-424 form families (i.e., Research 
and Related and Mandatory) and the SF-425 Federal Financial Report 
(FFR) No. 0348-0061, NIFA has three currently approved OMB information 
collections associated with this rulemaking: OMB Information Collection 
No. 0524-0042, NIFA REEport; No. 0524-0041, NIFA Application Review 
Process; and No. 0524-0026, Organizational Information.

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance

    This final regulation applies to the following Federal financial 
assistance programs administered by NIFA including CFDA No. 10.310, 
Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI).

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 and Executive Order 13132

    The Department has reviewed this final rule in accordance with the 
requirements of Executive Order No. 13132 and the Unfunded Mandates 
Reform Act of 1995, 2 U.S.C. 1501 et seq., and has found no potential 
or substantial direct effects on the States, on the relationship 
between the national government and the States, or on the distribution 
of power and responsibilities among the various levels of government. 
As there is no Federal mandate contained herein that could result in 
increased expenditures by State, local, or tribal governments, or by 
the private sector, the Department has not prepared a budgetary impact 
statement.

Clarity of This Regulation

    Executive Order 12866 and the President's Memorandum of June 1, 
1998, require each agency to write all rules in plain language. The 
Department invites comments on how to make this final rule easier to 
understand.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 3430

    Administrative practice and procedure, Agricultural research, 
Education, Extension, Federal assistance.

    Accordingly, the Department of Agriculture, National Institute of 
Food and Agriculture, adopts the final rule amending 7 CFR part 3430 
which was published at 75 FR 54759 on September 9, 2010, and amends 7 
CFR part 3430 as set forth below:

PART 3430--COMPETITIVE AND NONCOMPETITIVE NON-FORMULA FEDERAL 
ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS--GENERAL AWARD ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS

0
1. The authority citation for part 3430 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 3316; Pub. L. 106-107 (31 U.S.C. 6101 note).

Subpart G--Agriculture and Food Research Initiative

0
2. Add Sec.  3430.313 to read as follows:


Sec.  3430.313  Inclusion of research topics proposed by national and 
state commodity boards in request for applications.

    NIFA will solicit funding ideas under this subpart from statutorily 
defined national and state commodity boards for research topics that 
the commodity boards are willing to co-fund equally with NIFA under the 
AFRI competitive grant program. If the ideas are evaluated and found to 
be consistent with the AFRI statutory priorities and priorities noted 
in the President's budget request related to NIFA, the topics will be 
incorporated in existing program areas in the relevant AFRI Request for 
Applications (RFA(s)). Researchers wishing to submit a proposal on a 
topic suggested by a commodity board will be required to obtain a 
letter of support from the co-funding commodity board. The applications 
submitted in response to a commodity board co-funded topic will compete 
against all proposals submitted in the same RFA program area. Supported 
applications will receive no preference regarding the evaluation of 
their scientific merit. Letters of commodity board support will be used 
by NIFA solely to determine that the application fits within the 
commodity board co-funded topic and

[[Page 58811]]

the commodity board is willing to co-fund that application, if it is 
evaluated by the review panel as being meritorious and recommended for 
award.

    Done at Washington, DC, this 29 day of July, 2016.
Robert E. Holland,
Associate Director for Operations, National Institute of Food and 
Agriculture.
[FR Doc. 2016-18422 Filed 8-25-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3410-22-P