[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 142 (Wednesday, July 28, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 40494-40496]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-16012]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[RTID 0648-XB263]


Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council; Federal Funding 
Opportunity

AGENCY:  National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council is requesting 
proposals from highly-qualified contractors to organize and expand a 
vessel position monitoring system for the federally permitted Gulf of 
Mexico shrimp industry.

DATES: This will be a 12-18 month project and a maximum $350,000 is 
available to fund the work. Proposal Submission Deadline: August 20, 
2021 by 11:59 p.m. EST.

ADDRESSES: Council address: Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council, 
4701 W Spruce Street, Suite 200, Tampa, FL 33607; telephone: (813) 348-
1630.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Carrie Simmons, Executive 
Director, Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council; 
[email protected]; telephone: (813) 348-1630.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Proposal Submission Deadline Friday, August 20, 2021 by 11:59 p.m. EST

    The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council) seeks a 
highly-qualified contractor to organize and expand a vessel position 
monitoring system for the federally permitted Gulf of Mexico shrimp 
industry. The current Gulf of Mexico electronic logbook (ELB) program 
that utilized a 3G cellular network to transmit data is no longer 
supported, and the server became unviable for data storage in December 
2020. Approximately \1/3\ of the vessels in the shrimp industry have 
been selected by the Science and Research Director to participate in 
the ELB monitoring program.\1\ After transmission of the data from the 
shrimp vessels, vessel position monitoring data are securely housed by 
the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Southeast Fisheries 
Science Center (Science Center) and used for assessment and monitoring 
efforts including bycatch of finfish and interactions with protected 
resources across the Gulf of Mexico.
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    \1\ https://ecfr.io/Title-50/Section-622.51.
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    The Council, in coordination with NMFS, is seeking to develop a new 
program that will provide for continued collection, storage, and 
transmission of shrimp vessel position data that are used to estimate 
shrimping effort. This new program is intended to replace the recently 
discontinued shrimp ELB program. In the interim, the Council is 
developing a document to require the owner or operator of a vessel with 
a valid federal shrimp permit to install an approved vessel monitoring 
system that archives vessel location and automatically transmits this 
data to NMFS. In addition, the newly developed program will be required 
to meet NMFS hardware/software type approval.\2\ Thus, the intent and 
need for this study is to test the P-Sea WindPlot \3\ software program 
with a portion of the shrimp fleet in the near term to determine if it 
meets the needs of industry, Council, and NMFS.
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    \2\ https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/retrieveECFR?gp=&SID=40795e9b7e80ab071d63d0f076d60d11&mc=true&r=SUBPART&n=sp50.12.600.q.
    \3\ http://www.p-sea.com/.
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    Proposals should identify by region/state the number of vessels 
that will volunteer to participate in the proposed pilot program for 
vessel position monitoring in the Gulf of Mexico. The proposed work 
should clearly define methodology and intent for meeting the NMFS 
software and hardware requirements while documenting the estimated 
costs to the industry. The proposal should detail the methodology 
proposed for archiving the vessel location, data retention, and 
automatic transmission of the data to NMFS when within cellular/
satellite range of land.
    A team will establish selection criteria and review the proposals 
after the proposal submission deadline. The Council will develop an 
agreement with the selected contractor(s) with milestones and 
deliverables after the review and selection process. The selected 
contractor(s) will work with Council staff.

[[Page 40495]]

Background

    During its January 2021 meeting, the Council identified unspent 
Council funds from the 2020 fiscal year. The Council is considering 
funding an expanded study that utilizes P-Sea WindPlot software as a 
replacement for the recently discontinued shrimp ELB program. 
Preliminary meetings with industry, such as the Shrimp Advisory Panel 
meeting \4\ suggest that a majority of the shrimp fleet currently use 
the P-Sea WindPlot software program, which is installed on a desktop or 
laptop computer housed onboard the vessel; thus, the learning curve and 
potential annual cellular/satellite expenses are anticipated to be 
minimal. Further, leaders in the Gulf of Mexico shrimp industry support 
using this type of software program.
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    \4\ https://gulfcouncil.org/wp-content/uploads/D-8-Shrimp-AP-Summary-March-2021_final_revised.pdf.
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Scope of Work

    The contractor will be responsible for all data products outlined 
below and is encouraged to contribute additional products and 
suggestions in the proposal for this work. The selected contractor will 
also be responsible for presenting the mid-term and final project 
summary report to the Council's Scientific and Statistical Committees 
and to the Council. The proposed scope of work should include the 
following:
     The proposal must consider the use of P-Sea WindPlot 
software to collect the vessel position data for shrimp vessels, as 
this is the preferred software by industry. However, the contractor may 
also propose testing other hardware/software options simultaneously 
that meet the needs of industry, Council, and NMFS. The proposal should 
include the rationale and viability of any other hardware-software 
options proposed.
     The proposal should detail the methodology proposed for 
archiving the vessel position location, data retention, security, and 
automatic transmission of the data to a secure server when within 
cellular/satellite range of land.
     The proposal should identify, by state, the number of 
shrimp vessels actively participating in the fishery that will 
volunteer to participate in the proposed work in the Gulf of Mexico. 
This should be a representative subsample of the fleet using a random 
stratified approach.
     The proposed work should clearly define methodology and 
intent for meeting the NMFS software and hardware requirements approval 
process. For example, outline the methodology proposed to automatically 
transmit vessel position data, from the hardware/software device(s) 
onboard the shrimp vessel to a secure server when within cellular/
satellite range.
     The proposal should detail the estimated costs to the 
industry for hardware/software, vessel position data storage, and 
monthly cellular/satellite transmission fees. The proposal should 
outline details about analysis of data from individual position points 
per vessel in the program that will be synthesized into vessel effort 
monitoring on a monthly basis.
    Results and outcomes from this work will be provided to the Council 
and NMFS Southeast Fisheries Science Center.

Application Process

    Contractor Qualifications: The successful applicant or applicant 
team will have demonstrable experience in fisheries, marine ecology, 
spatial management, or related field.
    How to Apply: Applicants should submit a proposal to Gulf of Mexico 
Fishery Management Council by email 
([email protected]) by 11:59 p.m. EST on August 20, 
2021. Requests for additional information can also be accepted at this 
email address. Proposals should include the following elements and 
should not exceed 25 pages, excluding the Qualifications of Applicant 
and Letters of Support:
    Executive Summary: A summary of the work proposed, including a 
brief summary of the applicant's qualifications.
    Proposed Scope of Work: See bulleted list above.
    Qualifications of Applicant: A summary of the qualifications of the 
applicant and other team members, if applicable. A curriculum vitae 
should be included for each individual who is expected to work on the 
project.
    Proposed Budget: A detailed budget, including the basis for the 
charges (e.g., hourly rates, fixed fees, approved federally negotiated 
overhead rate and other costs consistent with federally allowable costs 
for sub-contractors). Travel costs for meeting with industry volunteers 
should be detailed. The proposal should also budget for traveling to 
SSC and Council meetings to present a mid-term and a final report, for 
an approximate total of four in-person meetings.
    Letters of Support: Letters demonstrating collaboration with shrimp 
industry leaders will be ranked higher.
    Proposed Timeline: A detailed timeline for working with industry 
representatives, testing of hardware/software devices, data 
transmission testing, data analyses, and mid-term and final reports 
should be provided.
    Applicant References: Names, titles, full addresses, email 
addresses, and phone numbers for three clients for whom the applicant 
has provided similar services to those requested or are familiar with 
the applicant's work and the quality of the applicant's work products.

Proposal Evaluation Criteria and Next Steps

    Proposals will be evaluated based on methodology and scope outlined 
in the proposed work plan including but not limited to the ability to 
deliver, in a timely manner a quality work product, references, 
timeline, and budget. The Council may request additional information as 
deemed necessary or negotiate modifications prior to providing support 
for a proposal. Once a proposal is selected for funding, a formal 
contract will be developed with the applicants.

Disclaimer

    1. This project is being funded by federal funding authorized under 
the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act through 
NOAA Fisheries Service and the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management 
Council NOAA award number: NA20NMF4410011. Compliance with the 
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Pub. L. 104-
208 as amended), the current requirements of the Federal Office of 
Management and Budget, the Department of Commerce financial assistance 
standard terms and conditions, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
financial assistance administrative terms, all special award conditions 
specific to this award and all parts of the Uniform Guidance at Title 2 
of the Code of Federal Regulations must be maintained.
    2. The contractor is responsible for all costs conducting the work 
and presenting the mid-term and final results to the Scientific and 
Statistical Committees and Council.
    3. Proposals and their accompanying documentation will not be 
returned, but retained as part of the Council's administrative 
documents.
    4. All applicants included in the proposal must disclose any 
conflicts of interest and/or pending civil/criminal/fishery legal 
actions.
    5. The Council reserves the right to accept or reject any or all 
applications received, negotiate with all qualified applicants, cancel 
or modify this request for proposals in part or in its entirety,

[[Page 40496]]

or change the application guidelines, when it is in the best interests 
of the Council.
    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.

    Dated: July 22, 2021.
Tracey L. Thompson,
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National 
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2021-16012 Filed 7-27-21; 8:45 am]
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