[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 90 (Wednesday, May 9, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21269-21272]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-09867]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Commodity Credit Corporation

Foreign Agricultural Service


Notice of Funding Availability: Inviting Applications for the 
Foreign Market Development Cooperator Program

SUMMARY: The Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) announces that it is 
inviting proposals for the 2019 Foreign Market Development Cooperator 
(Cooperator) program. The Cooperator program is administered by 
personnel of the Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) on behalf of CCC. 
The intended effect of this notice is to solicit applications from 
eligible applicants for fiscal year 2019 and to set out criteria for 
the awarding of funds under the program.

DATES: All applications must be received by 5 p.m. Eastern Daylight 
Time, on Friday, June 8, 2018. Applications received after this date 
will not be considered. FAS anticipates that the initial funding 
selections will be made by the end of October 2018, with the initial 
award dates estimated to be by the end of December 2018.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Applicants needing assistance should 
contact the Program Operations Division, Office of Trade Programs, 
Foreign Agricultural Service by courier: Room 6512, 1400 Independence 
Ave SW, Washington, DC 20250, or by phone: (202) 720-4327, or by fax: 
(202) 720-9361, or by email: [email protected]. Information, 
including a copy of the program regulations, is also available on the 
FAS website at the following URL address: http://www.fas.usda.gov/programs/foreign-market-development-program-fmd.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

A. Funding Opportunity Description

    Announcement Type: New.
    Award Instrument: Grant.
    Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 10.600.
    Authority: The Cooperator program is authorized by Title VII of the 
Agricultural Trade Act of 1978 (7 U.S.C. 5722), as amended. Cooperator 
program regulations appear at 7 CFR part 1484.
    Purpose: The Cooperator program is designed to maintain and develop 
foreign markets for United States agricultural commodities and products 
through cost-share assistance. Financial assistance under the 
Cooperator program will be made available on a competitive basis and 
applications will be reviewed against the evaluation criteria contained 
herein and in the Cooperator program regulations. All

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U.S. agricultural commodities, except tobacco, are eligible for 
consideration.
    FAS allocates funds in a manner that effectively supports the 
strategic decision-making initiatives of the Government Performance and 
Results Act (GPRA) of 1993. In deciding whether a proposed project will 
contribute to the effective creation, expansion, or maintenance of 
foreign markets, FAS considers whether the applicant provides a clear, 
long-term agricultural trade strategy and an effective program time 
line against which results can be measured at specific intervals using 
quantifiable product or country goals. FAS also considers the extent to 
which a proposed project targets markets with the greatest growth 
potential. These factors are part of the FAS resource allocation 
strategy to fund applicants who can demonstrate performance and address 
the objectives of the GPRA.
    Funding Available: The Agricultural Trade Act of 1978, as amended, 
provided up to $34.5 million annually for the Cooperator program 
through FY 2018. Congress has not yet determined funding levels for FY 
2019. This NOFA is being released prior to Congress appropriating 
funding for the Cooperator program for FY 2019. USDA makes no 
commitment to fund any particular application or to make a specific 
number of awards regardless of whether or at what level program funding 
for FY 2019 is provided.

B. Eligibility Information

    1. Eligible Organizations: To participate in the Cooperator 
program, an applicant must be a nonprofit U.S. agricultural trade 
organization. Funding priority is given to organizations that have the 
broadest possible producer representation of the commodity being 
promoted and that are nationwide in membership and scope.
    2. Eligible Activities: Under the Cooperator program, FAS enters 
into agreements with eligible nonprofit U.S. trade organizations to 
share the cost of certain overseas marketing and promotion activities. 
Cooperators may receive assistance only for generic activities that do 
not involve promotions targeted directly to consumers purchasing in 
their individual capacity. The Cooperator program generally operates on 
a reimbursement basis.
    3. Limits on Activities: Cooperator program activities are approved 
for a single program year, with the approval dates specified in the 
allocation approval letter that is provided as part of the award 
approval package. Only those Cooperator program activities that are 
approved in each applicant's allocation approval letter may be 
implemented, and those activities must be implemented during the 12-
month program year specified in the allocation approval letter. 
Requests for activity changes during the program year must be approved 
in advance by FAS. Cooperator program participants must re-apply for 
the program every year.
    4. Funding Restrictions: Certain types of expenses are not eligible 
for reimbursement by the program, and there are limits on other 
categories of expenses. FAS also will not reimburse unreasonable 
expenditures or expenditures made prior to approval. Full details are 
available in sections 1484.54 and 1484.55 of the Cooperator program 
regulations.
    5. Cost-Sharing: To participate in the Cooperator program, an 
applicant must agree to contribute resources to its proposed 
promotional activities. The Cooperator program is intended to 
supplement, not supplant, the efforts of the U.S. private sector. The 
contribution must be at least 50 percent of the value of resources 
provided by FAS for activities conducted under the project agreement.
    The degree of commitment of an applicant to the promotional 
strategies contained in its application, as represented by the cost-
share contributions specified therein, is considered by FAS when 
determining which applications will be approved for funding. Cost-share 
may be actual cash invested or in-kind contributions, such as 
professional staff time spent on the design and implementation of 
activities. The Cooperator program regulations, including sections 
1484.50 and 1484.51, provide detailed discussion of eligible and 
ineligible cost-share contributions.
    6. Other: Applications should include a justification for funding 
assistance from the program--an explanation as to what specifically 
could not be accomplished without federal funding assistance and why 
participating organization(s) are unlikely to carry out the project 
without such assistance.
    7. Intergovernmental Review: An intergovernmental review may be 
required. Applicants must contact their state's Single Point of Contact 
(SPOC) to comply with their state's process under Executive Order 12372 
(see http://www.fws.gov/policy/library/rgeo12372.pdf). To ensure 
currency, the names and addresses of the SPOCs are maintained at the 
Office of Management and Budget's home page at http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/grants_spoc.

C. Award Information

    It is anticipated that FAS will award approximately 25 awards under 
the 2019 Cooperator program, subject to programmatic approval and 
available funding. In general, all qualified proposals received before 
the submission deadline will compete for funding. FAS will review all 
proposals against the evaluation criteria contained in the program 
regulations.
    Funding for successful proposals will be provided through specific 
agreements. FAS must approve in advance any subsequent changes to the 
agreement. FAS or another Federal agency may be involved in the 
implementation of approved agreements.
    Once an award reaches its completion date, FAS will confirm that 
the participant has provided all of the required reports and will 
review the reports for completeness and content. Once the required 
reports are approved, FAS will prepare a closeout letter that advises 
the participant of the award closeout procedures. Once the closeout 
procedures have been completed, any remaining funding on the agreement 
will be deobligated.

D. Application and Submission Information

    1. Address to Submit Application Package: Organizations should 
submit their Cooperator program applications to FAS through the web-
based Unified Export Strategy (UES) system. The UES allows applicants 
to submit a single consolidated and strategically coordinated proposal 
that incorporates requests for funding under all of the FAS market 
development programs. The suggested UES format encourages applicants to 
examine the constraints or barriers to trade that they face, identify 
activities that would help overcome such impediments, consider the 
entire pool of complementary marketing tools and program resources, and 
establish realistic export goals. Applicants planning to use the UES 
must first contact FAS' Program Operations Division to obtain site 
access information. The web-based application may be found at the 
following URL address: https://www.fas.usda.gov/ues/webapp/.
    Applicants experiencing difficulty or otherwise needing assistance 
applying to the program should contact the Program Operations Division, 
Office of Trade Programs, Foreign Agricultural Service by courier: Room 
6512, 1400 Independence Ave. SW, Washington, DC 20250, or by phone: 
(202) 720-4327,

[[Page 21271]]

or by fax: (202) 720-9361, or by e-mail: [email protected].
    2. Content and Form of Application Submission: To be considered for 
the Cooperator program, an applicant must submit to FAS the information 
required by section 1484.20 of the Cooperator program regulations. 
Incomplete applications or applications that do not otherwise conform 
to this announcement or the Cooperator program regulations will not be 
accepted for review.
    3. Other Required Information: In accordance with the Office of 
Management and Budget's policy (68 FR 38402 (June 27, 2003)) regarding 
the need to identify entities that are receiving government awards, all 
applicants must submit a Dun and Bradstreet Data Universal Numbering 
System (DUNS) number. An applicant may request a DUNS number at no cost 
by calling the dedicated toll-free DUNS number request line at (866) 
705-5711.
    In addition, in accordance with 2 CFR part 25, each entity that 
applies to the Cooperator program and does not qualify for an exemption 
under 2 CFR 25.110 must:
    (i) Be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) prior to 
submitting an application or plan; and
    (ii) Maintain an active SAM registration with current information 
at all times during which it has an active Federal award or an 
application or plan under consideration by FAS; and
    (iii) Provide its DUNS number in each application or plan it 
submits to FAS.
    FAS may not make an award to an applicant until the applicant has 
complied with all applicable unique entity identifier and SAM 
requirements, and, if an applicant has not fully complied with the 
requirements by the time FAS is ready to make the award, FAS may 
determine that the applicant is not qualified to receive an award and 
use that determination as a basis for making an award to another 
applicant.
    Similarly, in accordance with 2 CFR part 170, each entity that 
applies to the Cooperator program and does not qualify for an exception 
under 2 CFR 170.110(b) must ensure it has the necessary processes and 
systems in place to comply with the applicable reporting requirements 
of 2 CFR part 170 should it receive funding under the Cooperator 
program.
    4. Submission Dates and Times: All applications must be received by 
5 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time, on Friday, June 8, 2018. By the 
application deadline, all Cooperator program applicants must also 
submit to FAS a signed certification statement as specified in 7 CFR 
1484.20(a)(14). The completed certification statements can be sent via 
courier/delivery service to the Program Operations Division, Office of 
Trade Programs, Foreign Agricultural Service, U.S. Department of 
Agriculture, Room 6512, 1400 Independence Ave. SW, Washington, DC 
20250. Applicants can also send a scanned copy of the signed 
certification statement via e-mail to: [email protected]. 
Applications or certifications received after the deadline will not be 
considered.

E. Application Review Information

    1. Criteria and Review and Selection Process: A description of the 
FAS process for reviewing applications and the criteria for allocating 
available Cooperator program funds is as follows:

(1) Phase 1--Sufficiency Review and FAS Divisional Review

    Applications received by the closing date will be reviewed by FAS 
to determine the eligibility of the applicants and the completeness of 
the applications. These requirements appear in sections 1484.14 and 
1484.20 of the Cooperator program regulations as well as in this 
Notice. Applications that meet the requirements will be further 
evaluated by the appropriate Commodity Branch office of FAS' Cooperator 
Programs Division. The Commodity Branch will review each application 
against the criteria listed in section 1484.21 of the Cooperator 
program regulations as well as in this Notice. The purpose of this 
review is to identify meritorious proposals. The Commodity Branch then 
recommends an appropriate funding level for each application for 
consideration by the Office of the Deputy Administrator, Office of 
Trade Programs.

(2) Phase 2--Competitive Review

    Meritorious applications are passed on to the Office of the Deputy 
Administrator, Office of Trade Programs, for the purpose of allocating 
available funds among those applicants. Applicants will compete for 
funds on the basis of the following allocation criteria as appropriate 
(the number in parentheses represents the percentage weight factor):
    (a) Applicant's Contribution Level (40): The applicant's 6-year 
average share (2014-2019) of all contributions under the Cooperator 
program compared to the applicant's 6-year average share (2014-2019) of 
the funding level for all Cooperator program participants.
    (b) Past U.S. Export Performance (20): The 6-year average share 
(2013-2018) of the value of U.S. exports promoted by the applicant 
compared to the applicant's 6-year average share (2013-2018) of the 
funding level for all Cooperator participants plus, for those groups 
participating in the MAP program, the 6-year average share (2013-2018) 
of all MAP budgets.
    (c) Past Demand Expansion Performance (20): The 6-year average 
share (2013-2018) of the total value of world trade of the commodities 
promoted by the applicant compared to the applicant's 6-year average 
share (2013-2018) of all Cooperator program expenditures plus, for 
those groups participating in the MAP program, a 6-year average share 
(2013-2018) of all MAP expenditures.
    (d) Future Demand Expansion Goals (10): The total dollar value of 
projected world trade of the commodities being promoted by the 
applicant for the year 2024 compared to the applicant's requested 
funding level.
    (e) Accuracy of Past Demand Expansion Projections (10): The actual 
dollar value share of world trade of the commodities being promoted by 
the applicant for the year 2017 as reported in the 2019 Cooperator 
program application compared to the projection of world trade of the 
commodities being promoted by the applicant for 2017 as specified in 
the applicant's 2014 Cooperator program application.
    The Commodity Branches' recommended funding levels for each 
applicant are adjusted by each weight factor as described above to 
determine the amount of funds allocated to each applicant.
    In addition, FAS, prior to making a Federal award with a total 
amount of Federal share greater than the simplified acquisition 
threshold, is required to review and consider any information about the 
applicant that is in the designated integrity and performance system 
accessible through SAM (currently FAPIIS) (see 41 U.S.C. 2313). An 
applicant, at its option, may review information in the designated 
integrity and performance systems accessible through SAM and comment on 
any information about itself that a Federal awarding agency previously 
entered and is currently in the designated integrity and performance 
system accessible through SAM. FAS will consider any comments by the 
applicant, in addition to the other information in the designated 
integrity and performance system, in making a judgment about the 
applicant's integrity, business ethics, and record of performance under 
Federal awards when completing the review of risk posed by applicants 
as described in 2 CFR 200.205 ``Federal awarding agency review of risk 
posed by applicants.''

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F. Award Administration Information

    1. Award Notices: FAS will notify each applicant in writing of the 
final disposition of its application. FAS will send an approval letter 
and project agreement to each approved applicant. The approval letter 
and project agreement will specify the terms and conditions applicable 
to the project, including the levels of Cooperator program funding and 
cost-share contribution requirements. All successful applicants for all 
grant and cooperative agreements are required to comply with the 
Standard Administrative Terms and Conditions, which are available 
online at: https://www.fas.usda.gov/grants/general_terms_and_conditions/default.asp. The applicable Standard 
Administrative Terms and Conditions will be for the last year specified 
at that URL, unless the application is to continue an award first 
awarded in an earlier year. In that event, the terms and conditions 
that apply will be those in effect for the year in which the award was 
originally made unless explicitly stated otherwise in subsequent 
mutually-agreed amendments to the award.
    Before accepting the award the potential awardee should carefully 
read the approval letter and program agreement for instructions on 
administering the grant award and the terms and conditions associated 
with responsibilities under Federal Awards. Recipients must accept all 
conditions in this NOFA as well as any special terms and conditions in 
the approval letter and program agreement to receive an award under 
this program.
    2. Reporting: FAS requires various reports and evaluations from 
Cooperators. Required reports include an annual contributions report 
that identifies contributions made by the Cooperator and the U.S. 
industry during that marketing plan year. All Cooperators must also 
complete at least one program evaluation each year and must provide 
program success stories on an annual basis, or more often when 
appropriate or required by FAS. There are additional reporting 
requirements for trip reports, evaluation reports, and research 
reports. Reporting requirements are detailed in the Cooperator program 
regulations in sections 1484.53, 1484.70, and 1484.72.

G. Agency Contact(s)

    1. Application Submission Contact(s) and Program Support: For 
additional information and assistance, contact the Program Operations 
Division, Office of Trade Programs, Foreign Agricultural Service, U.S. 
Department of Agriculture by courier: Room 6512, 1400 Independence Ave. 
SW, Washington, DC 20250, or by phone: (202) 720-4327, or by fax: (202) 
720-9361, or by e-mail: [email protected].
    2. Grants Management Contact(s): Eric Bozoian, Grants Management 
Specialist, Foreign Agricultural Service, United States, Department of 
Agriculture, Email: [email protected], Office: (202) 378-1054.

    Signed at Washington, DC on the 26th of April, 2018.
James Higgiston
Acting Administrator, Foreign Agricultural Service, and Acting Vice 
President, Commodity Credit Corporation.
[FR Doc. 2018-09867 Filed 5-8-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-10-P