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

• Citation: 7 CFR Part 3430
• Sections: 145

§ 3430.1 Applicability of regulations.

(a) General. This part provides agency specific regulations regarding the application for, and evaluation, award, and post-award administration of, National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) awards, and is supplementary to the USDA uniform assistance regulations at 2 CFR part 200, as applicable. These regulations apply to the following types of Federal assistance awards: Grants and cooperative agreements.

(b) Competitive programs. This part applies to all agricultural research, education, and extension competitive and related programs for which NIFA has administrative or other authority, as well as any other Federal assistance program delegated to the NIFA Director . In cases where regulations of this part conflict with existing regulations of NIFA in Title 7 ( i.e., 7 CFR parts 3400 through 3499) of the Code of Federal Regulations, regulations of this part shall supersede. This part does not apply to the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program (7 CFR part 3403) and the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP) authorized under section 1415A of the National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 (NARETPA) (7 U.S.C. 3151a).

(c) Noncompetitive programs. Subparts A, B, D, and E, as well as § 3430.35 of subpart C, apply to all noncompetitive agricultural research, education, and extension programs administered by NIFA, as well as any other Federal assistance program delegated to the NIFA Director.

(d) Federal assistance programs administered on behalf of other agencies. Subparts A through E, as appropriate, apply to competitive and noncompetitive grants and cooperative agreements administered on behalf of other agencies of the Federal Government. Requirements specific to these Federal assistance programs will be included in the program solicitations or requests for applications (RFAs).

(e) Federal assistance programs administered jointly with other agencies. Subparts A through E, as appropriate, apply to competitive and noncompetitive grants and cooperative agreements administered jointly with other agencies of the Federal Government. Requirements specific to these Federal assistance programs will be included in the appropriate program solicitations or RFAs published by both or either agency.

(f) Formula fund grants programs. This part does not apply to any of the formula grant programs administered by NIFA. Formula funds are the research funds provided to 1862 Land-Grant Institutions and agricultural experiment stations under the Hatch Act of 1887 (7 U.S.C. 361a, et seq. ); extension funds provided to 1862 Land-Grant Institutions under sections 3(b) and 3(c) of the Smith-Lever Act (7 U.S.C. 343(b) and (c)) and section 208(c) of the District of Columbia Public Postsecondary Education Reorganization Act, Public Law 93-471; agricultural extension and research funds provided to 1890 Land-Grant Institutions under sections 1444 and 1445 of NARETPA (7 U.S.C. 3221 and 3222); expanded food and nutrition education program funds authorized under section 3(d) of the Smith-Lever Act (7 U.S.C. 343(d)) to the 1862 Land-Grant Institutions and the 1890 Land-Grant Institutions; extension funds under the Renewable Resources Extension Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 1671, et seq. ) for the 1862 Land-Grant institutions and the 1890 Land-Grant Institutions; research funds provided to the 1862 Land-Grant Institutions, 1890 Land-Grant Institutions, and forestry schools under the McIntire-Stennis Cooperative Forestry Act (16 U.S.C. 582a, et seq. ); and animal health and disease research funds provided to veterinary schools and agricultural experiment stations under section 1433 of NARETPA (7 U.S.C. 3195).

§ 3430.2 Definitions.

As used in this part:

1862 Land-Grant Institution means an institution eligible to receive funds under the Act of July 2, 1862, as amended (7 U.S.C. 301, et seq. ). Unless otherwise stated for a specific program, this term includes a research foundation maintained by such an institution.

1890 Land-Grant Institution means one of those institutions eligible to receive funds under the Act of August 30, 1890, as amended (7 U.S.C. 321, et seq. ), including Tuskegee University and West Virginia State University. Unless otherwise stated for a specific program, this term includes a research foundation maintained by such an institution.

1994 Land-Grant Institution means one of those institutions as defined in section 532 of the Equity in Educational Land-Grant Status Act of 1994, as amended (7 U.S.C. 301 note). These institutions are commonly referred to as Tribal Colleges or Universities.

Advisory Board means the National Agricultural Research, Extension, Education, and Economics Advisory Board (as established under section 1408 of NARETPA (7 U.S.C. 3123).

Agricultural research means research in the food and agricultural sciences.

Applied research means research that includes expansion of the findings of fundamental research to uncover practical ways in which new knowledge can be advanced to benefit individuals and society.

Authorized Departmental Officer or ADO means the Secretary or any employee of the Department with delegated authority to issue or modify award instruments on behalf of the Secretary.

Authorized Representative or AR means the President or Chief Executive Officer of the applicant organization or the official, designated by the President or Chief Executive Officer of the applicant organization, who has the authority to commit the resources of the organization to the project.

Award means financial assistance that provides support or stimulation to accomplish a public purpose. Awards may be grants or cooperative agreements.

Budget period means the interval of time (usually 12 months) into which the project period is divided for budgetary and reporting purposes.

Cash contributions means the recipient's cash outlay, including the outlay of money contributed to the recipient by non-Federal third parties.

Center of Excellence in food and agricultural research, extension, and education is a grantee whose application was not only found to be highly meritorious by a peer panel, but met additional criteria ( see § 3430.17(c)) to receive the designation. This designation is specific to a grant application.

Certification of Non-Land-Grant College of Agriculture status means an institution that followed NIFA's Process for Non-Land Grant College of Agriculture (NLGCA) Designation and received a certification of NLGCA designation from NIFA ( see § 3430.16(c)).

College or university means, unless defined in a separate subpart, an educational institution in any State which:

(1) Admits as regular students only persons having a certificate of graduation from a school providing secondary education, or the recognized equivalent of such a certificate;

(2) Is legally authorized within such State to provide a program of education beyond secondary education;

(3) Provides an educational program for which a bachelor's degree or any other higher degree is awarded;

(4) Is a public or other nonprofit institution; and

(5) Is accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency or association. Unless otherwise stated for a specific program, this term includes a research foundation maintained by such an institution.

Cooperative agreement means the award by the Authorized Departmental Officer of funds to an eligible awardee to assist in meeting the costs of conducting for the benefit of the public, an identified project which is intended and designed to accomplish the purpose of the program as identified in the program solicitation or RFA, and where substantial involvement is expected between NIFA and the awardee when carrying out the activity contemplated in the agreement.

Department means the United States Department of Agriculture.

Director means the Director of NIFA and any other officer or employee of NIFA to whom the authority involved is delegated.

Education activity or teaching activity means formal classroom instruction, laboratory instruction, and practicum experience in the food and agricultural sciences and other related matters such as faculty development, student recruitment and services, curriculum development, instructional materials and equipment, and innovative teaching methodologies.

Established and demonstrated capacity means that an organization has met the following criteria:

(1) Conducts any systematic study directed toward new or fuller knowledge and understanding of the subject studied; or,

(2) Systematically relates or applies the findings of research or scientific experimentation to the application of new approaches to problem solving, technologies, or management practices; and

(3) Has facilities, qualified personnel, independent funding, and prior projects and accomplishments in research or technology transfer.

Extension means informal education programs conducted in the States in cooperation with the Department.

Extension activity means an act or process that delivers science-based knowledge and informal educational programs to people, enabling them to make practical decisions.

Food and agricultural sciences means basic, applied, and developmental research, extension, and teaching activities in food and fiber, agricultural, renewable energy and natural resources, forestry, and physical and social sciences, including activities relating to the following:

(1) Animal health, production, and well-being.

(2) Plant health and production.

(3) Animal and plant germ plasm collection and preservation.

(4) Aquaculture.

(5) Food safety.

(6) Soil, water, and related resource conservation and improvement.

(7) Forestry, horticulture, and range management.

(8) Nutritional sciences and promotion.

(9) Farm enhancement, including financial management, input efficiency, and profitability.

(10) Home economics.

(11) Rural human ecology.

(12) Youth development and agricultural education, including 4-H clubs.

(13) Expansion of domestic and international markets for agricultural commodities and products, including agricultural trade barrier identification and analysis.

(14) Information management and technology transfer related to agriculture.

(15) Biotechnology related to agriculture.

(16) The processing, distributing, marketing, and utilization of food and agricultural products.

Fundamental research means research that increases knowledge or understanding of the fundamental aspects of phenomena and has the potential for broad application, and has an effect on agriculture, food, nutrition, or the environment.

Graduate degree means a Master's or doctoral degree.

Grant means the award by the Authorized Departmental Officer of funds to an eligible grantee to assist in meeting the costs of conducting for the benefit of the public, an identified project which is intended and designed to accomplish the purpose of the program as identified in the program solicitation or RFA.

Grantee means the organization designated in the grant award document as the responsible legal entity to which a grant is awarded.

Insular area means the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Republic of Palau, and the Virgin Islands of the United States.

Integrated project means a project incorporating two or three components of the agricultural knowledge system (research, education, and extension) around a problem area or activity.

Land-grant Institutions means the 1862 Land-Grant Institutions, 1890 Land-Grant Institutions, and 1994 Land-Grant Institutions.

Matching or cost sharing means that portion of allowable project or program costs not borne by the Federal Government, including the value of in-kind contributions.

Merit review means an evaluation of a proposed project or elements of a proposed program whereby the technical quality and relevance to regional or national goals are assessed.

Merit reviewers means peers and other individuals with expertise appropriate to conduct merit review of a proposed project.

Methodology means the project approach to be followed.

Mission-linked research means research on specifically identified agricultural problems which, through a continuum of efforts, provides information and technology that may be transferred to users and may relate to a product, practice, or process.

National laboratories include Federal laboratories that are government-owned contractor-operated or government-owned government-operated.

Non-citizen national of the United States means the award by the Authorized Departmental Officer of funds to an eligible awardee to assist in meeting the costs of conducting for the benefit of the public, an identified project which is intended and designed to accomplish the purpose of the program as identified in the program solicitation or RFA, and where substantial involvement is expected between NIFA and the awardee when carrying out the activity contemplated in the agreement.

Peer reviewers means experts or consultants qualified by training and experience to give expert advice on the scientific and technical merit of applications or the relevance of those applications to one or more of the application evaluation criteria. Peer reviewers may be adhoc or convened as a panel.

Prior approval means written approval by an Authorized Departmental Officer evidencing prior consent.

Private research organization means any non-governmental corporation, partnership, proprietorship, trust, or other organization.

Private sector means all non-public entities, including for-profit and nonprofit commercial and non-commercial entities, and including private or independent educational associations.

Program announcement (PA) means a detailed description of the RFA without the associated application package(s). NIFA will not solicit or accept applications in response to a PA.

Program Officer means a NIFA individual (often referred to as a National Program Leader) who is responsible for the technical oversight of the award on behalf of the Department.

Project means the particular activity within the scope of the program supported by an award.

Project Director or PD means the single individual designated by the awardee in the application and approved by the Authorized Departmental Officer who is responsible for the direction and management of the project, also known as a Principal Investigator (PI) for research activities.

Project period means the total length of time, as stated in the award document and modifications thereto, if any, during which Federal sponsorship begins and ends.

Research means any systematic study directed toward new or fuller knowledge and understanding of the subject studied.

Scientific peer review means an evaluation of the technical quality of a proposed project and its relevance to regional or national goals, performed by experts with the scientific knowledge and technical skills to conduct the proposed research work.

Secretary means the Secretary of Agriculture and any other officer or employee of the Department to whom the authority involved is delegated.

Under Secretary means the Under Secretary for Research, Education, and Economics.

United States means the several States, the District of Columbia, and the insular areas.

Units of State government means all State institutions, including the formal divisions of State government ( i.e. , the official State agencies such as departments of transportation and education), local government agencies (e.g., a county human services office), and including State educational institutions (e.g., public colleges and universities).

§ 3430.3 Deviations.

Any request by the applicant or awardee for a waiver of or deviation from any provision of this part shall be submitted to the ADO identified in the agency specific requirements. NIFA shall review the request and notify the applicant/awardee, within 30 calendar days from the date of receipt of the deviation request, whether the request to deviate has been approved. If the deviation request is still under consideration at the end of 30 calendar days, NIFA shall inform the applicant/awardee in writing of the date when the applicant/awardee may expect the decision.

§ 3430.4 Other Federal statutes and regulations that apply.

(a) The Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) issued guidance on Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards at 2 CFR part 200 on December 26, 2013. In 2 CFR 400.1, the Department adopted OMB's guidance in subparts A through F of 2 CFR part 200, as supplemented by 2 CFR part 400, as the Department's policies and procedures for uniform administrative requirements, cost principles, and audit requirements for federal awards. As a result, this regulation contains references to 2 CFR part 200 as it has regulatory effect for the Department's programs and activities.”

(b) Several other Federal statutes and/or regulations apply to grant proposals considered for review or to research project grants awarded under this part. These include but are not limited to:

2 CFR part 200—Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, And Audit Requirements For Federal Awards.

2 CFR part 180 and Part 417—OMB Guidelines to Agencies on Government-Wide Debarment and Suspension (Nonprocurement) and USDA Nonprocurement Debarment and Suspension

7 CFR part 1c—USDA Implementation of the Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects.

7 CFR 1.1—USDA Implementation of Freedom of Information Act.

7 CFR part 3—USDA Implementation of OMB Circular A-129 Regarding Debt Collection.

7 CFR part 15, subpart A—USDA implementation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

7 CFR part 3407—NIFA Procedures to Implement the National Environmental Policy Act;

29 U.S.C. 794 (section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973) and 7 CFR part 15B (USDA implementation of statute)—prohibiting discrimination based upon physical or mental handicap in Federally assisted programs; and

35 U.S.C. 200 et seq. —Bayh-Dole Act, controlling allocation of rights to inventions made by employees of small business firms and domestic nonprofit organizations, including universities, in Federally assisted programs (implementing regulations are contained in 37 CFR part 401).

§ 3430.11 Competition.

(a) Standards for competition. Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, NIFA will enter into grants and cooperative agreements, unless restricted by statute, only after competition.

(b) Exception. The NIFA ADO and the designated Agency approving official may make a determination in writing that competition is not deemed appropriate for a particular transaction. Such determination shall be limited to transactions where it can be adequately justified that a noncompetitive award is in the best interest of the Federal Government and necessary to the goals of the program.

§ 3430.12 Requests for applications.

(a) General. For each competitive and noncompetitive non-formula program, NIFA will prepare a program solicitation (also called a request for applications (RFA)), in accordance with appendix I to 2 CFR part 200, establishing a standard format for Federal agency announcements ( i.e. , program solicitations or RFAs) of funding opportunities under programs that award discretionary grants or cooperative agreements. This policy directive requires the content of the RFA to be organized in a sequential manner beginning with overview information followed by the full text of the announcement and will apply unless superseded by statute or another OMB policy directive. The RFA may include all or a portion of the following items:

(1) Contact information.

(2) Directions for interested stakeholders or beneficiaries to submit written comments in a published program solicitation or RFA.

(3) Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) number.

(4) Legislative authority and background information.

(5) Purpose, priorities, and fund availability.

(6) Program-specific eligibility requirements.

(7) Program-specific restrictions on the use of funds, if Applicable.

(8) Matching requirements, if applicable.

(9) Acceptable types of applications.

(10) Types of projects to be given priority consideration, including maximum anticipated awards and maximum project lengths, if applicable.

(11) Program areas, if applicable.

(12) Funding restrictions, if applicable.

(13) Directions for obtaining additional requests for applications and application forms.

(14) Information about how to obtain application forms and the instructions for completing such forms.

(15) Instructions and requirements for submitting applications, including submission deadline(s).

(16) Explanation of the application evaluation Process.

(17) Specific evaluation criteria used in the review Process.

(18) Type of Federal assistance awards ( i.e. , grants and/or cooperative agreements).

(b) RFA variations. Where program-specific requirements differ from the requirements established in this part, program solicitations will also address any such variation(s). Variations may occur in the following:

(1) Award management guidelines.

(2) Restrictions on the delegation of fiscal responsibility.

(3) Required approval for changes to project plans.

(4) Expected program outputs and reporting requirements, if applicable.

(5) Applicable Federal statutes and regulations.

(6) Confidential aspects of applications and awards, if applicable.

(7) Regulatory information.

(8) Definitions.

(9) Minimum and maximum budget requests, and whether applications outside of these limits will be returned without further review.

(c) Program announcements. Occasionally, NIFA will issue a program announcement (PA) to alert potential applicants and the public about new and ongoing funding opportunities. These PAs may provide tentative due dates and are released without associated application packages. Hence, no applications are solicited under a PA. PAs are announced in the Federal Register or on the NIFA Web site.

(d) If applicants choose to address center of excellence criteria, they must do so in their project narrative, subject to any page limitations on that section of the application.

§ 3430.13 Letter of intent to submit an application.

(a) General. NIFA may request or require that prospective applicants notify program staff of their intent to submit an application, identified as “letter of intent”. If applicable, the request or requirement will be included in the RFA, along with directions for the preparation and submission of the letter of intent, the type of letter of intent, and any relevant deadlines. There are two types of letters of intent: optional and required.

(b) Optional letter of intent. Entities interested in submitting an application for a NIFA award should complete and submit a “Letter of Intent to Submit an Application” by the due date specified in the RFA. This does not obligate the applicant in any way, but will provide useful information to NIFA in preparing for application review. Applicants that do not submit a letter of intent by the specified due date are still allowed to submit an application by the application due date specified in the RFA, unless otherwise specified in the RFA.

(c) Required letter of intent. Certain programs may require that the prospective applicants submit a letter of intent for specific programs. This type of letter is evaluated by the program staff for suitability to the program and in regard to program priorities, needs, and scope. Invitations to submit a full application will be issued by the Program Officer or his or her representative. For programs requiring a letter of intent, applications submitted without prior approval of the letter of intent by the program staff will be returned without review. Programs requiring a specific letter of intent will be specified in the RFA.

§ 3430.14 Types of applications; types of award instruments.

(a) Types of applications. The type of application acceptable may vary by funding opportunity. The RFA will stipulate the type of application that may be submitted to NIFA in response to the funding opportunity. Applicants may submit the following types of applications as specified in the RFA.

(1) New. An application that is being submitted to the program for the first time.

(2) Resubmission. This is a project application that has been submitted for consideration under the same program previously but has not been approved for an award under the program. For competitive programs, this type of application is evaluated in competition with other pending applications in the area to which it is assigned. Resubmissions are reviewed according to the same evaluation criteria as new applications. In addition, applicants must respond to the previous panel review summaries, unless waived by NIFA.

(3) Renewal. An application requesting additional funding for a period subsequent to that provided by a current award. For competitive programs, a renewal application competes with all other applications. Renewal applications must be developed as fully as though the applicant is applying for the first time. Renewal applicants also must have filed a progress report via Current Research Information System (CRIS), unless waived by NIFA.

(4) Continuation. A noncompeting application for an additional funding/budget period within a previously approved project.

(5) Revision. An application that proposes a change in the Federal Government's financial obligations or contingent liability from an existing obligation; or, any other change in the terms and conditions of the existing award.

(6) Resubmitted renewal. This is a project application that has been submitted for consideration under the same program previously. This type of application has also been submitted for renewal under the same program but was not approved. For competitive programs, this type of application is evaluated in competition with other pending applications in the area to which it is assigned. Resubmitted renewal applications are reviewed according to the same evaluation criteria as new applications. Applicants must respond to the previous panel review summaries and file a progress report via CRIS, unless waived by NIFA.

(b) Types of award instruments. The following is a list of corresponding categories of award instruments issued by NIFA.

(1) Standard. This is an award instrument by which NIFA agrees to support a specified level of effort for a predetermined project period without the announced intention of providing additional support at a future date.

(2) Renewal. This is an award instrument by which NIFA agrees to provide additional funding under a standard award as specified in paragraph (b)(1) of this section for a project period beyond that approved in an original or amended award, provided that the cumulative period does not exceed any statutory time limitation of the award.

(3) Continuation. This is an award instrument by which NIFA agrees to support a specified level of effort for a predetermined period of time with a statement of intention to provide additional support at a future date, provided that performance has been satisfactory, appropriations are available for this purpose, and continued support would be in the best interest of the Federal Government and the public.

(4) Supplemental. This is an award instrument by which NIFA agrees to provide small amounts of additional funding under a standard, renewal, or continuation award as specified in paragraphs (b)(1), (b)(2), and (b)(3) of this section and may involve a short-term (usually six months or less) extension of the project period beyond that approved in an original or amended award, but in no case may the cumulative period of the project, including short term extensions, exceed any statutory time limitation of the award.

(c) Obligation of the Federal Government. Neither the acceptance of any application nor the award of any project shall commit or obligate the United States in any way to make any renewal, supplemental, continuation, or other award with respect to any approved application or portion of an approved application.

§ 3430.15 Stakeholder input.

Section 103(c)(2) of the Agricultural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998 (AREERA) (7 U.S.C. 7613(c)(2)) requires the Secretary to solicit and consider input on each program RFA from persons who conduct agricultural research, education, and extension for use in formulating future RFAs for competitive programs. NIFA will provide instructions for submission of stakeholder input in the RFA. NIFA will consider any comments received within the specified timeframe in the development of the future RFAs for the program.

§ 3430.16 Eligibility requirements.

(a) General. Program-specific eligibility requirements appear in the subpart applicable to each program and in the RFAs.

(b) Foreign entities —(1) Awards to institutions. Unless specifically allowed, foreign commercial and non-profit institutions are not considered eligible to apply for and receive NIFA awards.

(2) Awards to individuals. Unless otherwise specified, only United States citizens, non-citizen nationals of the United States, and lawful permanent residents of the United States are eligible to apply for and receive NIFA awards.

(c) Responsibility determination. In addition to program-specific eligibility requirements, awards will be made only to responsible applicants. Specific management information relating to an applicant shall be submitted on a one-time basis, with updates on an as-needed basis, as part of the responsibility determination prior to an award being made under a specific NIFA program, if such information has not been provided previously under this or another NIFA program. NIFA will provide copies of forms recommended for use in fulfilling these requirements as part of the pre-award process. Although an applicant may be eligible based on its status as one of these entities, there are factors that may exclude an applicant from receiving Federal financial and nonfinancial assistance and benefits under a NIFA program (e.g., debarment or suspension of an individual involved or a determination that an applicant is not responsible based on submitted organizational management information).

(d) Certification of NLGCA status. NIFA will make publically available ( e.g., Federal Register ) the process through which institutions may apply for designation as a NLGCA. The public notice will, at a minimum, include NLGCA criteria, instructions on how to request designation, information about how NIFA will respond to requests, and termination of NLGCA status.

(e) Center of Excellence. (1) To be considered as a center of excellence, a center of excellence must be one of the following entities that provides financial or in-kind support to the center being proposed:

(i) State agricultural experiment stations;

(ii) Colleges and universities;

(iii) University research foundations;

(iv) Other research institutions and organizations;

(v) Federal agencies;

(vi) National laboratories;

(vii) Private organizations, foundations, or corporations;

(viii) Individuals; or

(ix) A group consisting of two or more of the entities described in paragraphs (e)(1)(i) through (viii) of this section.

(2) Only standard grant and coordinated agricultural project (CAP) grant applicants may be considered for center of excellence designation.

§ 3430.17 Content of an application.

(a) The RFA provides instructions on how to access a funding opportunity. The funding opportunity contains the application package, which includes the forms necessary for completion of an application in response to the RFA, as well as the application instructions. The application instructions document, “NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide: A Guide for Preparation and Submission of NIFA Applications via Grants.gov,” is intended to assist applicants in the preparation and submission of applications to NIFA. It is also the primary document for use in the preparation of NIFA applications via Grants.gov.

(b) Center of Excellence: In addition to meeting the other requirements detailed in the request for application (RFA), eligible applicants who wish to be considered as a center of excellence must provide a brief justification statement at the end of their project narrative and within the page limits provided for the project narrative, describing how they meet the standards of a center of excellence, based on the following criteria:

(1) The ability of the center of excellence to ensure coordination and cost effectiveness by reducing unnecessarily duplicative efforts regarding research, teaching, and extension in the implementation of the proposed research and/or extension activity outlined in this application;

(2) In addition to any applicable matching requirements, the ability of the center of excellence to leverage available resources by using public- private partnerships among agricultural industry groups, institutions of higher education, and the Federal Government in the implementation of the proposed research and/or extension activity outlined in this application. Resources leveraged should be commensurate with the size of the award;

(3) The planned scope and capability of the center of excellence to implement teaching initiatives to increase awareness and effectively disseminate solutions to target audiences through extension activities in the implementation of the proposed research and/or extension activity outlined in this application; and

(4) The ability or capacity of the center of excellence to increase the economic returns to rural communities by identifying, attracting, and directing funds to high-priority agricultural issues in support of and as a result of the implementation of the proposed research and/or extension activity outlined in this application.

(5) Additionally, where practicable (not required), center of excellence applicants should describe proposed efforts to improve teaching capacity and infrastructure at colleges and universities (including land-grant colleges and universities, cooperating forestry schools, certified Non-Land Grant Colleges of Agriculture (NLGCA) (list of certified NLGCA is available at http://www.nifa.usda.gov/funding/pdfs/nlgca_colleges.pdf ), and schools of veterinary medicine).

§ 3430.18 Submission of an application.

(a) When to submit. The RFA will provide deadlines for the submission of letters of intent, if requested and required, and applications. NIFA may issue separate RFAs and/or establish separate deadlines for different types of applications, different award instruments, or different topics or phases of the Federal assistance programs. If applications are not received by applicable deadlines, they will not be considered for funding. Exceptions will be considered only when extenuating circumstances exist, as determined by NIFA, and justification and supporting documentation are provided to NIFA.

(b) What to submit. The contents of the applicable application package, as well as any other information, are to be submitted by the due date.

(c) Where to submit. The RFA will provide addresses for submission of letters of intent, if requested or required, and applications. It also will indicate permissible methods of submission ( i.e., electronic, e-mail, hand-delivery, U.S. Postal Service, courier). Conformance with preparation and submission instructions is required and will be strictly enforced unless a deviation had been approved. NIFA may establish additional requirements. NIFA may return without review applications that are not consistent with the RFA instructions.

§ 3430.19 Resubmission of an application.

(a) Previously unfunded applications. (1) Applications that are resubmitted to a program, after being previously submitted but not funded by that program, must include the following information:

(i) The NIFA-assigned proposal number of the previously submitted application.

(ii) Summary of the previous reviewers' comments.

(iii) Explanation of how the previous reviewers' comments or previous panel summary have been addressed in the current application.

(2) Resubmitting an application that has been revised based on previous reviewers' critiques does not guarantee the application will be recommended for funding.

(b) Previously funded applications. (1) NIFA competitive programs are generally not designed to support multiple Federal assistance awards activities that are essentially repetitive in nature. PDs who have had their projects funded previously are discouraged from resubmitting relatively identical applications for further funding. Applications that are sequential continuations or new stages of previously funded projects must compete with first-time applications, and should thoroughly demonstrate how the proposed project expands substantially on previously funded efforts and promotes innovation and creativity beyond the scope of the previously funded project.

(2) An application may be submitted only once to NIFA. The submission of duplicative or substantially similar applications concurrently for review by more than one program will result in the exclusion of the redundant applications from NIFA consideration.

§ 3430.20 Acknowledgment of an application.

The receipt of all letters of intent and applications will be acknowledged by NIFA. Applicants who do not receive an acknowledgement within a certain number of days (as established in the RFA, e.g., 15 and 30 days) of the submission deadline should contact the program contact. Once the application has been assigned a proposal number by NIFA, that number should be cited on all future correspondence.

§ 3430.21 Confidentiality of applications and awards.

(a) General. Names of submitting institutions and individuals, as well as application contents and evaluations, will be kept confidential, except to those involved in the review process, to the extent permissible by law.

(b) Identifying confidential and proprietary information in an application. If an application contains proprietary information that constitutes a trade secret, proprietary commercial or financial information, confidential personal information, or data affecting the national security, it will be treated in confidence to the extent permitted by law, provided that the information is clearly marked by the proposer with the term “confidential and proprietary information” and that the following statement is included at the bottom of the project narrative or any other attachment included in the application that contains such information: “The following pages (specify) contain proprietary information which (name of proposing organization) requests not to be released to persons outside the Government, except for purposes of evaluation.”

(c) Disposition of applications. By law, the Department is required to make the final decisions as to whether the information is required to be kept in confidence. Information contained in unsuccessful applications will remain the property of the proposer. However, the Department will retain for three years one file copy of each application received; extra copies will be destroyed. Public release of information from any application submitted will be subject to existing legal requirements. Any application that is funded will be considered an integral part of the award and normally will be made available to the public upon request, except for designated proprietary information that is determined by the Department to be proprietary information.

(d) Submission of proprietary information. The inclusion of proprietary information is discouraged unless it is necessary for the proper evaluation of the application. If proprietary information is to be included, it should be limited, set apart from other text on a separate page, and keyed to the text by numbers. It should be confined to a few critical technical items that, if disclosed, could jeopardize the obtaining of foreign or domestic patents. Trade secrets, salaries, or other information that could jeopardize commercial competitiveness should be similarly keyed and presented on a separate page. Applications or reports that attempt to restrict dissemination of large amounts of information may be found unacceptable by the Department and constitute grounds for return of the application without further consideration. Without assuming any liability for inadvertent disclosure, the Department will limit dissemination of such information to its employees and, where necessary for the evaluation of the application, to outside reviewers on a confidential basis. An application may be withdrawn at any time prior to the final action thereon.

§ 3430.31 Guiding principles.

The guiding principle for Federal assistance application review and evaluation is to ensure that each proposal is treated in a consistent and fair manner regardless of regional and institutional affiliation. After the evaluation process by the review panel, NIFA, through the program officer, ensures that applicants receive appropriate feedback and comments on their proposals, and processes the awards in as timely a manner as possible.

§ 3430.32 Preliminary application review.

Prior to technical examination, a preliminary review will be made of all applications for responsiveness to the administrative requirements set forth in the RFA. Applications that do not meet the administrative requirements may be eliminated from program competition. However, NIFA retains the right to conduct discussions with applicants to resolve technical and/or budget issues, as deemed necessary by NIFA.

§ 3430.33 Selection of reviewers.

(a) Requirement. NIFA is responsible for performing a review of applications submitted to NIFA competitive award programs in accordance with section 103(a) of AREERA (7 U.S.C. 7613(a)). Reviews are undertaken to ensure that projects supported by NIFA are of high quality and are consistent with the goals and requirements of the funding program. Applications submitted to NIFA undergo a programmatic evaluation to determine the worthiness of Federal support. The scientific peer review or merit review is performed by peer or merit reviewers and also may entail an assessment by Federal employees.

(b) NIFA Peer Review System. The NIFA Application Review Process is accomplished through the use of the NIFA Peer Review System (PRS), a Web-based system which allows reviewers and potential reviewers to update personal information and to complete and submit reviews electronically to NIFA.

(c) Relevant training and experience. Reviewers will be selected based upon training and experience in relevant scientific, extension, or education fields taking into account the following factors:

(1) Level of relevant formal scientific, technical education, and extension experience of the individual, as well as the extent to which an individual is engaged in relevant research, education, or extension activities.

(2) Need to include as reviewers experts from various areas of specialization within relevant scientific, education, and extension fields.

(3) Need to include as reviewers other experts (e.g., producers, range or forest managers/operators, and consumers) who can assess relevance of the applications to targeted audiences and to program needs.

(4) Need to include as reviewers experts from a variety of organizational types (e.g., colleges, universities, industry, State and Federal agencies, private profit and nonprofit organizations) and geographic locations.

(5) Need to maintain a balanced composition of reviewers with regard to minority and female representation and an equitable age distribution.

(6) Need to include reviewers who can judge the effective usefulness to producers and the general public of each application.

(d) Confidentiality. The identities of reviewers will remain confidential to the maximum extent possible. Therefore, the names of reviewers will not be released to applicants. If it is possible to reveal the names of reviewers in such a way that they cannot be identified with the review of any particular application, this will be done at the end of the fiscal year or as requested. Names of submitting institutions and individuals, as well as application content and peer evaluations, will be kept confidential, except to those involved in the review process, to the extent permitted by law. Reviewers are expected to be in compliance with NIFA Confidentiality Guidelines. Reviewers provide this assurance through PRS.

(e) Conflicts of interest. During the evaluation process, extreme care will be taken to prevent any actual or perceived conflicts of interest that may impact review or evaluation. For the purpose of determining conflicts of interest, the academic and administrative autonomy of an institution shall be determined. Reviewers are expected to be in compliance with NIFA Conflict-of-Interest Guidelines. Reviewers provide this assurance through PRS.

§ 3430.34 Evaluation criteria.

(a) General. To ensure any project receiving funds from NIFA is consistent with the broad goals of the funding program, the content of each proposal/application submitted to NIFA will be evaluated based on a pre-determined set of review criteria. It is the responsibility of the Program Officer to develop, adopt, adapt, or otherwise establish the criteria by which proposals are to be evaluated. It may be appropriate for the Program Officer to involve other scientists or stakeholders in the development of criteria, or to extract criteria from legislative authority or appropriations language. The review criteria are described in the RFA and shall not include criteria concerning any cost sharing or matching requirements per section 103(a)(3) of AREERA (7 U.S.C. 7613(a)(3)).

(b) Guidance for reviewers. In order that all potential applicants for a program have similar opportunities to compete for funds, all reviewers will receive from the Program Officer a description of the review criteria. Reviewers are instructed to use those same evaluation criteria, and only those criteria, to judge the merit of the proposals they review.

(c) Center of Excellence status. All eligible applicants will be competitively peer reviewed (as described in Part V, A. and B. of the RFA), and ranked in accordance with the evaluation criteria. Those that rank highly meritorious and requested to be considered as a center of excellence will be further evaluated by the peer panel to determine whether they have met the criteria to be a center of excellence. In instances where they are found to be equally meritorious with the application of a non-center of excellence, based on peer review, selection for funding will be weighed in favor of applicants meeting the center of excellence criteria. NIFA will effectively use the center of excellence prioritization as a “tie breaker”. Applicants that rank highly meritorious but who did not request consideration as a center of excellence or who are not deemed to have met the center of excellence standards may still receive funding.

§ 3430.35 Review of noncompetitive applications.

(a) General. Some projects are directed by either authorizing legislation and/or appropriations to specifically support a designated institution or set of institutions for particular research, education, or extension topics of importance to the nation, a State, or a region. Although these projects may be awarded noncompetitively, these projects or activities are subject to the same application process, award terms and conditions, Federal assistance laws and regulations, reporting and monitoring requirements, and post-award administration and closeout policies and procedures as competitive Federal assistance programs. The only difference is these applications are not subject to a competitive peer or merit review process at the Agency level.

(b) Requirements. All noncompetitive applications recommended for funding are required to be reviewed by the program officer and, as required, other Departmental and NIFA officials; and the review documented by the NIFA program officer. For awards recommended for funding at or greater than $10,000, an independent review and a unit review by program officials are required.

§ 3430.36 Procedures to minimize or eliminate duplication of effort.

NIFA may implement appropriate business processes to minimize or eliminate the awarding of NIFA Federal assistance that unnecessarily duplicates activities already being sponsored under other awards, including awards made by other Federal agencies. Business processes may include the review of the Current and Pending Support Form; documented CRIS searches prior to award; the conduct of PD workshops, conferences, meetings, and symposia; and agency participation in Federal Government-wide and other committees, taskforces, or groups that seek to solve problems related to agricultural research, education, and extension and other activities delegated to the NIFA Director.

§ 3430.37 Feedback to applicants.

Copies of individual reviews and/or summary reviews, not including the identity of reviewers, will be sent to the applicant PDs after the review process has been completed.

§ 3430.41 Administration.

(a) General. Within the limit of funds available for such purpose, the NIFA ADO shall make Federal assistance awards to those responsible, eligible applicants whose applications are judged most meritorious under the procedures set forth in the RFA. The date specified by the NIFA ADO as the effective date of the award shall be no later than September 30th of the Federal fiscal year in which the project is approved for support and funds are appropriated for such purpose, unless otherwise permitted by law. It should be noted that the project need not be initiated on the award effective date, but as soon thereafter as practical so that project goals may be attained within the funded project period. All funds awarded by NIFA shall be expended solely for the purpose for which the funds are awarded in accordance with the approved application and budget, the regulations, the terms and conditions of the award, the applicable Federal cost principles, and the Department's assistance regulations (e.g., 2 CFR part 200).

(b) Notice of Award. The notice of award document ( i.e., Form NIFA-2009, Award Face Sheet) will provide pertinent instructions and information noted in 2 CFR 200.211.

(c) Center of Excellence. Applicant's Notice of Award will reflect that, for that particular grant program, the applicant meets all of the requirements of a center of excellence. Entities recognized as a center of excellence will maintain that distinction for the duration of their award or as identified in the terms and conditions of that award.

§ 3430.42 Special award conditions.

(a) General. NIFA may, with respect to any award, impose additional conditions prior to or at the time of any award when, in the judgment of NIFA, such conditions are necessary to ensure or protect advancement of the approved project, the interests of the public, or the conservation of grant or cooperative agreement funds. NIFA may impose additional requirements if an applicant or recipient has a history of poor performance; is not financially stable; has a management system that does not meet prescribed standards; has not complied with the terms and conditions of a previous award; or is not otherwise responsible.

(b) Notification of additional requirements. When NIFA imposes additional requirements, NIFA will notify the recipient in writing as to the following: The nature of the additional requirements; the reason why the additional requirements are being imposed; the nature of the corrective actions needed; the time allowed for completing the corrective actions; and the method for requesting reconsideration of the additional requirements imposed.

(c) Form NIFA-2009, Award Face Sheet. These special award conditions, as applicable, will be added as a special provision to the award terms and conditions and identified on the Form NIFA-2009, Award Face Sheet, for the award.

(d) Removal of additional requirements. NIFA will promptly remove any additional requirements once the conditions that prompted them have been corrected.

§ 3430.51 Payment.

(a) General. All payments will be made in advance unless a deviation is accepted (see § 3430.3) or as specified in paragraph (b) of this section. All payments to the awardee shall be made via the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Payment Management System (DHHS-PMS), U.S. Department of the Treasury's Automated Standard Application for Payments (ASAP) system, or another electronic funds transfer (EFT) method, except for awards to other Federal agencies. Awardees are expected to request funds via DHHS-PMS, ASAP, or other electronic payment system for reimbursement basis in a timely manner.

(b) Reimbursement method. NIFA shall use the reimbursement method if it determines that advance payment is not feasible and that the awardee does not maintain or demonstrate the willingness to maintain written procedures that minimize the time elapsing between the transfer of funds and disbursement by the awardee, and financial management systems that meet the standards for fund control and accountability.

§ 3430.52 Cost sharing and matching.

(a) General. Awardees may be required to match the Federal funds received under a NIFA award. The required percentage of matching, type of matching (e.g., cash and/or in-kind contributions), sources of match (e.g., non-Federal), and whether NIFA has any authority to waive the match will be specified in the subpart applicable to the specific Federal assistance program, as well as in the RFA.

(1) A recipient of a NIFA competitive grant programs that are awarded under a covered law provided in section 3371 of under the National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 must provide funds, in-kind contributions, or a combination of both, from sources other than funds provided through such grant in an amount that is at least equal to the amount awarded by NIFA unless an exception applies. NIFA will determine program applicability of this match and include in the RFA for those programs: The match requirement, exceptions, waivers, and any other information necessary to determine applicability of the match requirement. In accordance with section 1492 of the National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 3371), as added by section 7128 of the Agricultural Act of 2014 (Pub. L. 113-79), for grants awarded after October 1, 2014, the recipient of an award must provide funds, in-kind contributions, or a combination of both, from sources other than funds provided through such grant in an amount that is at least equal to the amount awarded by NIFA unless one of the exemptions described herein is applicable.

(2) The matching funds requirement does not apply to grants awarded:

(i) To a research agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA); or

(ii) To an entity eligible to receive funds under a capacity and infrastructure program (as defined in section 251(f)(1)(C) of the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994, 7 U.S.C. 6971(f)(1)(C)), including a partner of such an entity. Entities eligible to receive funds under a capacity and infrastructure program and exempt from the matching funds requirement include:

(A) 1862 Land-grant Institutions, including State Agricultural Experiment Stations receiving funding under the Hatch Act of 1887;

(B) 1890 Land-grant Institutions;

(C) 1994 Land-grant Institutions;

(D) Entities eligible to receive funds under the of Continuing Animal Health and Disease, Food Security, and Stewardship Research, Education, and Extension Program Funds—Capacity and Infrastructure Program (CIP);

(E) Hispanic-Serving Agricultural Colleges and Universities (HSACU);

(F) Insular Area Schools Eligible to Receive Funds from the Distance Education/Resident Instruction Grant Programs;

(G) Entities eligible to receive funds under the of McIntire-Stennis Cooperative Forestry Program Funds;

(H) Non-Land Grant Colleges of Agriculture (NLGCA)—(for exemption from the new matching requirement, these applications must include NLGCA certification, see instructions for requesting certifications at http://www.nifa.usda.gov/form/form.html, and for attaching the certification in Part IV, B. of this RFA);

(I) Entities eligible to receive funds under a program established under section 1417(b) of the National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 3152(b)), including:

( 1 ) 1890 Institution Teaching, Research, and Extension Capacity Building Grants Program;

( 2 ) Higher Education Challenge Grants Program;

( 3 ) Higher Education Multicultural Scholars Program; and

( 4 ) Food and Agricultural Sciences National Needs Graduate and Postgraduate Fellowship Grants Program.

(J) Individual public or private, nonprofit Alaska Native-Serving and Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions of higher education (see 20 U.S.C. 1059d).

(b) Indirect Costs as in-kind matching contributions. Indirect costs may be claimed under the Federal portion of the award budget or, alternatively, indirect costs may be claimed as a matching contribution (if no indirect costs are requested under the Federal portion of the award budget). However, unless explicitly authorized in the RFA, indirect costs may not be claimed on both the Federal portion of the award budget and as a matching contribution, unless the total claimed on both the Federal portion of the award budget and as a matching contribution does not exceed the maximum allowed indirect costs or the institution's negotiated indirect cost rate, whichever is less. An awardee may split the allocation between the Federal and non-Federal portions of the budget only if the total amount of indirect costs charged to the project does not exceed the maximum allowed indirect costs or the institution's negotiated indirect cost rate, whichever is less. For example, if an awardee's indirect costs are capped at 22 percent pursuant to section 1462(a) of NARETPA (7 U.S.C. 3310(a)), the awardee may request 11 percent of the indirect costs on both the Federal portion of the award and as a matching contribution. Or, the awardee may request any similar percentage that, when combined, does not exceed the maximum indirect cost rate of 22 percent.

§ 3430.53 Program income.

(a) General. NIFA shall apply the standards set forth in this subpart in requiring awardee organizations to account for program income related to projects financed in whole or in part with Federal funds.

(b) Addition method. Unless otherwise provided in the authorizing statute, in accordance with the terms and conditions of the award, program income earned during the project period shall be retained by the awardee and shall be added to funds committed to the project by NIFA and the awardee and used to further eligible project or program objectives. Any specific program deviations will be identified in the individual subparts.

(c) Award terms and conditions. Unless the program regulations identified in the individual subpart provide otherwise, awardees shall follow the terms and conditions of the award.

§ 3430.54 Indirect costs.

Indirect cost rates for grants and cooperative agreements shall be determined in accordance with 2 CFR part 200, unless superseded by another authority. Any restriction on indirect costs is to be identified in the request for applications as appropriate. Use of indirect costs as in-kind matching contributions is subject to § 3430.52(b).

§ 3430.55 Technical reporting.

(a) Requirement. All projects supported with Federal funds under this part must be documented in the Current Research Information System (CRIS).

(b) Initial Documentation in the CRIS Database. Information collected in the “Work Unit Description” (Form AD-416) and “Work Unit Classification” (Form AD-417) is required upon project initiation for all new awards in CRIS ( i.e. , prior to award).

(c) Annual CRIS Reports. Unless stated differently in the award terms and conditions, an annual “Accomplishments Report” (Form AD-421) is due 90 calendar days after the award's anniversary date ( i.e. , one year following the month and day on which the project period begins and each year thereafter up until a final report is required). An annual report covers a one-year period. In addition to the Form AD-421, the following information, when applicable, must be submitted to the programmatic contact person identified in block 14 of the Award Face Sheet (Form NIFA-2009): a comparison of actual accomplishments with the goals established for the reporting period (where the output of the project can be expressed readily in numbers, a computation of the cost per unit of output should be considered if the information is considered useful); the reasons for slippage if established goals were not met; and additional pertinent information including, when appropriate, analysis and explanation of cost overruns or unexpectedly high unit costs. The annual report of “Funding and Staff Support” (Form AD-419) is due February 1 of the year subsequent to the Federal fiscal year being reported.

(d) CRIS Final Report. The CRIS final report, “Accomplishments Report” (Form AD-421), covers the entire period of performance of the award. The report should encompass progress made during the entire timeframe of the project instead of covering accomplishments made only during the final reporting segment of the project. In addition to providing the information required under paragraph (c) of this section, the final report must include the following when applicable: a disclosure of any inventions not previously reported that were conceived or first actually reduced to practice during the performance of the work under the award; a written statement on whether or not the awardee elects (or plans to elect) to obtain patent(s) on any such invention; and an identification of equipment purchased with any Federal funds under the award and any subsequent use of such equipment.

(e) CRIS Web Site Via Internet. The CRIS database is available to the public on the worldwide web. CRIS project information is available via the Internet CRIS Web site at http://cris.nifa.usda.gov. To submit forms electronically, the CRIS forms Web site can be accessed through the CRIS Web site or accessed directly at http://cwf.uvm.edu/cris.

(f) Additional reporting requirements. Awardees may be required to submit other technical reports or submit the CRIS reports more frequently than annually. Additional requirements for a specific Federal assistance program are described in the applicable subpart after subpart E and are identified in the RFA. The Award Face Sheet (Form NIFA-2009) also will specify these additional reporting requirements as a special provision to the award terms and conditions.

§ 3430.56 Financial reporting.

(a) SF-269, Financial Status Report. Unless stated differently in the award terms and conditions, a final SF-269, Financial Status Report, is due 90 days after the expiration of the award and should be submitted to the Awards Management Branch (AMB) at Awards Management Branch; Office of Extramural Programs, NIFA; U.S. Department of Agriculture; STOP 2271; 1400 Independence Avenue, SW.; Washington, DC 20250-2271. The awardee shall report program outlays and program income on the same accounting basis ( i.e. , cash or accrual) that it uses in its normal accounting system. When submitting a final SF-269, Financial Status Report, the total matching contribution, if required, should be shown in the report. The final SF-269 must not show any unliquidated obligations. If the awardee still has valid obligations that remain unpaid when the report is due, it shall request an extension of time for submitting the report pursuant to paragraph (c) of this section; submit a provisional report (showing the unliquidated obligations) by the due date; and submit a final report when all obligations have been liquidated, but no later than the approved extension date. SF-269, Financial Status Reports, must be submitted by all awardees, including Federal agencies and national laboratories.

(b) Awards with Required Matching. For awards requiring a matching contribution, an annual SF-269, Financial Status Report, is required and this requirement will be indicated on the Award Face Sheet, Form-2009, in which case it must be submitted no later than 45 days following the end of the budget or reporting period.

(c) Requests for an extension to submit a final SF-269, Financial Status Report —(1) Before the due date. Awardees may request, prior to the end of the 90-day period following the award expiration date, an extension to submit a final SF-269, Financial Status Report. This request should include a provisional report pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section, as well as an anticipated submission date and a justification for the late submission. Subject to § 3430.63 or other statutory or agency policy limitations, funds will remain available for drawdown during this period.

(2) After the due date. Requests are considered late when they are submitted after the 90-day period following the award expiration date. Requests to submit a final SF-269, Financial Status Report, will only be considered, up to 30 days after the due date, in extenuating circumstances. This request should include a provisional report pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section, as well as an anticipated submission date, a justification for the late submission, and a justification for the extenuating circumstances. However, such requests are subject to § 3430.63 or any other statutory or agency policy limitations. If an awardee needs to request additional funds, procedures in paragraph (d) of this section apply.

(d) Overdue SF-269, Financial Status Reports. Awardees with overdue SF-269, Financial Status Reports, or other required financial reports (as identified in the award terms and conditions), will have their applicable balances at DHHS-PMS, ASAP, or other electronic payment system restricted or placed on “manual review,” which restricts the awardee's ability to draw funds, thus requiring prior approval from NIFA. If any remaining available balances are needed by the awardee (beyond the 90-day period following the award expiration date) and the awardee has not requested an extension to submit a final SF-269, Financial Status Report, the awardee will be required to contact AMB to request permission to draw any additional funds and will be required to provide justification and documentation to support the draw. Awardees also will need to comply with procedures in paragraph (c) of this section. AMB will approve these draw requests only in extenuating circumstances, as determined by NIFA.

(e) SF-272, Federal Cash Transactions Report. Awardees receiving electronic payments through DHHS-PMS are required to submit their SF-272, Federal Cash Transactions Report, via the DHHS-PMS by the specified dates. Failure to submit this quarterly report by the due date may result in funds being restricted by DHHS-PMS. Awardees not receiving payments through DHHS-PMS may be exempt from this reporting requirement.

(f) Additional reporting requirements. NIFA may require additional financial reporting requirements as follows: NIFA may require forecasts of Federal cash requirements in the “Remarks” section of the report; and when practical and deemed necessary, NIFA may require awardees to report in the “Remarks” section the amount of cash advances received in excess of three days ( i.e. , short narrative with explanations of actions taken to reduce the excess balances). When NIFA needs additional information or more frequent reports, a special provision will be added to the award terms and conditions and identified on the Form NIFA-2009, Award Face Sheet. Should NIFA determine that an awardee's accounting system is inadequate, additional pertinent information to further monitor awards may be requested from the awardee until such time as the system is brought up to standard, as determined by NIFA. This additional reporting requirement will be required via a special provision to the award terms and conditions and identified on the Form-2009, Award Face Sheet.

§ 3430.57 Project meetings.

In addition to reviewing (and monitoring the status of) progress and final technical reports and financial reports, NIFA Program Officers may use regular and periodic conference calls to monitor the awardee's performance as well as PD conferences, workshops, meetings, and symposia to not only monitor the awards, but to facilitate communication and the sharing of project results. These opportunities also serve to eliminate or minimize NIFA funding unneeded duplicative project activities. Required attendance at these conference calls, conferences, workshops, meetings, and symposia will be identified in the RFA and the awardee should develop a proposal accordingly.

§ 3430.58 Prior approvals.

(a) Subcontracts. No more than 50 percent of the award may be subcontracted to other parties without prior written approval of the ADO except contracts to other Federal agencies. Any subcontract awarded to a Federal agency under an award must have prior written approval of the ADO. To request approval, a justification for the proposed subcontractual arrangements, a performance statement, and a detailed budget for the subcontract must be submitted to the ADO.

(b) No-cost extensions of time —(1) General. Awardees may initiate a one-time no-cost extension of the expiration date of the award of up to 12 months unless one or more of the following conditions apply: the terms and conditions of the award prohibit the extension; the extension requires additional Federal funds; and the extension involves any change in the approved objectives or scope of the project. For the first no-cost extension, the awardee must notify NIFA in writing with the supporting reasons and revised expiration date at least 10 days before the expiration date specified in the award.

(2) Additional requests for no-cost extensions of time before expiration date. When more than one no-cost extension of time or an extension of more than 12 months is required, the extension(s) must be approved in writing by the ADO. The awardee should prepare and submit a written request (which must be received no later than 10 days prior to the expiration date of the award) to the ADO. The request must contain, at a minimum, the following information: the length of the additional time required to complete the project objectives and a justification for the extension; a summary of the progress to date; an estimate of the funds expected to remain unobligated on the scheduled expiration date; a projected timetable to complete the portion(s) of the project for which the extension is being requested; and signature of the AR and the PD.

(3) Requests for no-cost extensions of time after expiration date. NIFA may consider and approve requests for no-cost extensions of time up to 120 days following the expiration of the award. These will be approved only for extenuating circumstances, as determined by NIFA. The awardee's AR must submit the requirements identified under paragraph (b)(2) of this section as well as an “extenuating circumstance” justification and a description of the actions taken by the awardee to minimize these requests in the future.

(4) Other requirements. No-cost extensions of time may not be exercised merely for the purpose of using unobligated balances. All extensions are subject to any statutory term limitations as well as any expiring appropriation limitations under § 3430.63.

§ 3430.59 Review of disallowed costs.

(a) Notice. If the NIFA determines that there is a basis for disallowing a cost, NIFA shall provide the awardee written notice of its intent to disallow the cost. The written notice shall state the amount of the cost and the factual and legal basis for disallowing it.

(b) Awardee response. Within 60 days of receiving written notice of NIFA's intent to disallow the cost, the awardee may respond with written evidence and arguments to show the cost is allowable, or that , for equitable, practical, or other reasons, shall not recover all or part of the amount, or that the recovery should be made in installments. The 60-day time period may be extended for an additional 30 days upon written request by the awardee; however, such request for an extension of time must be made before the expiration of the 60-day time period specified in this paragraph. An extension of time will be granted only in extenuating circumstances.

(c) Decision. Within 60 days of receiving the awardee's written response to the notice of intent to disallow the cost, NIFA shall issue a management decision stating whether or not the cost has been disallowed, the reasons for the decision, and the method of appeal that has been provided under this section. If the awardee does not respond to the written notice under paragraph (a) of this section within the time frame specified in paragraph (b) of this section, NIFA shall issue a management decision on the basis of the information available to it. The management decision shall constitute the final action with respect to whether the cost is allowed or disallowed. In the case of a questioned cost identified in the context of an audit2 CFR 200.521, the management decision will constitute the management decision under 7 CFR 3052.405(a).

(d) Demand for payment. If the management decision under paragraph (c) of this section constitutes a finding that the cost is disallowed and, therefore, that a debt is owed to the Government, NIFA shall provide the required demand and notice pursuant to 7 CFR 3.11.

(e) Review process. Within 60 days of receiving the demand and notice referred to in paragraph (d) of this section, the awardee may submit a written request to the NIFAOffice of Grants and Financial Management (OGFM) Deputy Director for a review of the final management decision that the debt exists and the amount of the debt. Within 60 days of receiving the written request for a review, the NIFA Deputy Administrator (or other senior NIFA official designated by the NIFA Office of Grants and Financial Management (OGFM) Deputy Director) will issue a final decision regarding the debt. Review by the NIFA Office of Grants and Financial Management (OGFM) Deputy Director or designee constitutes, and will be in accordance with, the administrative review procedures provided for debts under 7 CFR part 3, subpart F.

§ 3430.60 Suspension, termination, and withholding of support.

(a) General. If an awardee has failed to materially comply with the terms and conditions of the award, NIFA may take certain enforcement actions, including, but not limited to, suspending the award pending corrective action, terminating the award for cause, and withholding of support.

(b) Suspension. NIFA generally will suspend (rather than immediately terminate) an award to allow the awardee an opportunity to take appropriate corrective action before NIFA makes a termination decision. NIFA may decide to terminate the award if the awardee does not take appropriate corrective action during the period of suspension. NIFA may terminate, without first suspending, the award if the deficiency is so serious as to warrant immediate termination. Termination for cause may be appealed under the NIFA award appeals procedures specified in § 3430.62.

(c) Termination. An award also may be terminated, partially or wholly, by the awardee or by NIFA with the consent of the awardee. If the awardee decides to terminate a portion of the award, NIFA may determine that the remaining portion of the award will not accomplish the purposes for which the award was originally made. In any such case, NIFA will advise the awardee of the possibility of termination of the entire award and allow the awardee to withdraw its termination request. If the awardee does not withdraw its request for partial termination, NIFA may initiate procedures to terminate the entire award for cause.

(d) Withholding of support. Withholding of support is a decision not to make a non-competing continuation award within the current competitive segment. Support may be withheld for one or more of the following reasons: Adequate Federal funds are not available to support the project; an awardee failed to show satisfactory progress in achieving the objectives of the project; an awardee failed to meet the terms and conditions of a previous award; or for whatever reason, continued funding would not be in the best interests of the Federal Government. If a non-competing continuation award is denied (withheld) because the awardee failed to comply with the terms and conditions of a previous award, the awardee may appeal that determination under § 3430.62.

§ 3430.61 Debt collection.

The collection of debts owed to NIFA by awardees, including those resulting from cost disallowances, recovery of funds, unobligated balances, or other circumstances, are subject to the Department's debt collection procedures as set forth in 7 CFR part 3, and, with respect to cost disallowances, § 3430.59.

§ 3430.62 Award appeals procedures.

(a) General. NIFA permits awardees to appeal certain post-award adverse administrative decisions made by NIFA. These include: termination, in whole or in part, of an award for failure of the awardee to carry out its approved project in accordance with the applicable law and the terms and conditions of award or for failure of the awardee otherwise to comply with any law, regulation, assurance, term, or condition applicable to the award; denial (withholding) of a non-competing continuation award for failure to comply with the terms of a previous award; and determination that an award is void ( i.e., a decision that an award is invalid because it was not authorized by statute or regulation or because it was fraudulently obtained). Appeals of determinations regarding the allowability of costs are subject to the procedures in § 3430.59.

(b) Appeal Procedures. The formal notification of an adverse determination will contain a statement of the awardee's appeal rights. As the first level in appealing an adverse determination, the awardee must submit a request for review to the NIFA official specified in the notification, detailing the nature of the disagreement with the adverse determination and providing supporting documents in accordance with the procedures contained in the notification. The awardee's request to NIFA for review must be received within 60 days after receipt of the written notification of the adverse determination; however, an extension may be granted if the awardee can show good cause why an extension is warranted.

(c) Decision. If the NIFA decision on the appeal is adverse to the awardee or if an awardee's request for review is rejected, the awardee then has the option of submitting a request to the NIFA Office of Grants and Financial Management (OGFM) Deputy Director for further review. The decision of the NIFA Office of Grants and Financial Management (OGFM) Deputy Director is considered final.

§ 3430.63 Expiring appropriations.

(a) NIFA awards supported with agency appropriations. Most NIFA awards are supported with annual appropriations. On September 30th of the 5th fiscal year after the period of availability for obligation ends, the funds for these appropriations accounts expire per 31 U.S.C. 1552 and the account is closed, unless otherwise specified by law. Funds that have not been drawn through DHHS-PMS, ASAP, or other electronic payment system by the awardee or disbursed through any other system or method by August 31st of that fiscal year are subject to be returned to the U.S. Department of the Treasury after that date. The August 31st requirement also applies to awards with a 90-day period concluding on a date after August 31st of that fifth year. Appropriations cannot be restored after expiration of the accounts. More specific instructions are provided in the NIFA award terms and conditions.

(b) NIFA awards supported with funds from other Federal agencies (reimbursable funds). NIFA may require that all draws and reimbursements for awards supported with reimbursable funds (from other Federal agencies) be completed prior to June 30th of the 5th fiscal year after the period of availability for obligation ends to allow for the proper billing, collection, and close-out of the associated interagency agreement before the appropriations expire. The June 30th requirement also applies to awards with a 90-day period concluding on a date after June 30th of that fifth year. Appropriations cannot be restored after expiration of the accounts. More specific instructions are provided in the NIFA award terms and conditions.

§ 3430.200 Applicability of regulations.

The regulations in this subpart apply to the program authorized under section 412 of the Agricultural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998 (7 U.S.C. 7632).

§ 3430.201 Purpose.

(a) Focus areas. The purpose of this program is to address the critical needs of the specialty crop industry by developing and disseminating science-based tools to address needs of specific crops and their regions, including the following five focus areas:

(1) Research in plant breeding, genetics, genomics, and other methods to improve crop characteristics, such as—

(i) Product, taste, quality, and appearance;

(ii) Environmental responses and tolerances;

(iii) Nutrient management, including plant nutrient uptake efficiency;

(iv) Pest and disease management, including resistance to pests and diseases resulting in reduced application management strategies; and

(v) Enhanced phytonutrient content.

(2) Efforts to identify and address threats from pests and diseases, including threats to specialty crop pollinators.

(3) Efforts to improve production efficiency, handling and processing, productivity, and profitability over the long term (including specialty crop policy and marketing).

(4) New innovations and technology, including improved mechanization and technologies that delay or inhibit ripening.

(5) Methods to prevent, detect, monitor, control, and respond to potential food safety hazards in the production and processing of specialty crops, including fresh produce.

(b) Other. NIFA will award research and extension, including integrated, grants to eligible institutions listed in § 3430.203. In addition to the focus areas identified in this section, NIFA may include additional activities or focus areas that will further address the critical needs of the specialty crop industry. Some of these activities or focus areas may be identified by stakeholder groups or by NIFA in response to emerging critical needs of the specialty crop industry.

(c) In addition to SCRI grants, NIFA will make competitive research and extension grants under the Emergency Citrus Disease Research and Extension program (see § 3430.209).

§ 3430.202 Definitions.

(a) The definitions applicable to the program under this subpart include:

Integrated project means a project that incorporates the research and extension components of the agricultural knowledge system around a problem area or activity.

Specialty crop means fruits and vegetables, tree nuts, dried fruits, and horticulture and nursery crops (including floriculture).

Trans-disciplinary means a multi-discipline approach that brings biological and physical scientists together with economists and social scientists to address challenges in a holistic manner.

(b) The following definitions apply to § 3430.209:

Citrus means edible fruit of the family Rutaceae, including any hybrid of such fruits and products of such hybrids that are produced for commercial purposes in the United States.

Citrus producer means any person that is engaged in the domestic production and commercial sale of citrus in the United States.

§ 3430.203 Eligibility.

Eligible applicants for the grant program implemented under this subpart include: Federal agencies, national laboratories; colleges and universities (offering associate's or higher degrees); research institutions and organizations; private organizations or corporations; State agricultural experiment stations; individuals; and groups consisting of 2 or more entities identified in this sentence.

§ 3430.204 Project types and priorities.

(a) For each RFA, NIFA may develop and include the appropriate project types and focus areas (in addition to the five focus areas identified in § 3430.201) based on the critical needs of the specialty crop industry as identified through stakeholder input and deemed appropriate by NIFA. In making awards for this program, NIFA will give higher priority to projects that are multistate, multi-institutional, and multidisciplinary; and include explicit mechanisms to communicate the results to producers and the public.

(b) In awarding grants under § 3430.208, priority will be given to grants that address the research and extension priorities established pursuant to section 1408A of the National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 3123a).

§ 3430.205 Funding restrictions.

(a) Prohibition against construction. Funds made available under this subpart shall not be used for the construction of a new building or facility or the acquisition, expansion, remodeling, or alteration of an existing facility (including site grading and improvement, and architect fees).

(b) Indirect costs. Subject to § 3430.54, indirect costs are allowable.

§ 3430.206 Matching requirements.

(a) Requirement. Grantees are required to provide funds or in-kind support from non-Federal sources in an amount that is at least equal to the amount provided by the Federal government. The matching contribution must be provided from non-Federal sources except when authorized by statute. The matching requirements under this subpart cannot be waived.

(b) Indirect costs. Use of indirect costs as in-kind matching contributions is subject to § 3430.52.

§ 3430.207 Duration of awards.

The term of a grant under this subpart shall not exceed 10 years.

§ 3430.208 Review of applications.

In addition to the scientific peer review ( see § 3430.33), NIFA will regularly conduct a panel of specialty crop industry representatives to review and rank applications for merit, relevance and impact.

§ 3430.209 Emergency Citrus Disease Research and Extension Program.

The purpose of this program is to award competitive grants to:

(a) Conduct scientific research and extension activities, technical assistance, and development activities to combat citrus diseases and pests, both domestic and invasive, which pose imminent harm to the United States citrus production and threaten the future viability of the citrus industry, including huanglongbing and the Asian Citrus Psyllid; and

(b) Provide support for the dissemination and commercialization of relevant information, techniques, and technologies discovered pursuant to research and extension activities funded through—

(1) The emergency citrus disease research and extension program; or

(2) Other research and extension projects intended to solve problems caused by citrus production diseases and invasive pests.

§ 3430.300 Applicability of regulations.

The regulations in this subpart apply to the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) authorized under section 2(b) of the Competitive, Special, and Facilities Research Grant Act (7 U.S.C. 450i(b)).

§ 3430.301 Purpose.

The purpose of this program 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 Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 3103).

§ 3430.302 Definitions.

The definitions applicable to the competitive grant programs under this subpart include:

Food and Agricultural Science Enhancement (FASE) awards means funding awarded to eligible applicants to strengthen science capabilities of Project Directors, to help institutions develop competitive scientific programs, and to attract new scientists into careers in high-priority areas of National need in agriculture, food, and environmental sciences. FASE awards may apply to any of the three agricultural knowledge components ( i.e., research, education, and extension). FASE awards include Pre- and Postdoctoral Fellowships, New Investigator grants, and Strengthening grants.

Limited institutional success means institutions that are not among the most successful universities and colleges for receiving Federal funds for science and engineering research. A list of successful institutions will be provided in the RFA.

Minority means Alaskan Native, American Indian, AsianAmerican, African-American, Hispanic American, Native Hawaiian, or Pacific Islander. The Secretary will determine on a case-by-case basis whether additional groups qualify under this definition, either at the Secretary's initiative, or in response to a written request with supporting explanation.

Minority-serving institution means an accredited academic institution whose enrollment of a single minority or a combination of minorities exceeds fifty percent of the total enrollment, including graduate and undergraduate and full- and part-time students. An institution in this instance is an organization that is independently accredited as determined by reference to the current version of the Higher Education Directory, published by Higher Education Publications, Inc., 6400 Arlington Boulevard, Suite 648, Falls Church, Virginia 22042.

Multidisciplinary project means a project on which investigators from two or more disciplines collaborate to address a common problem. These collaborations, where appropriate, may integrate the biological, physical, chemical, or social sciences.

Small and mid-sized institutions means academic institutions with a current total enrollment of 17,500 or less, including graduate and undergraduate as well as full- and part-time students. An institution, in this instance, is an organization that possesses a significant degree of autonomy. Significant degree of autonomy is defined by being independently accredited as determined by reference to the current version of the Higher Education Directory, published by Higher Education Publications, Inc., 6400 Arlington Boulevard, Suite 648, Falls Church, Virginia 22042 (703-532-2300).

Strengthening grants means funds awarded to institutions eligible for FASE grants to enhance institutional capacity, with the goal of leading to future funding in the project area, as well as strengthening the competitiveness of the investigator's research, education, and/or extension activities. Strengthening grants consist of standard and Coordinated Agricultural Project (CAP) grant types as well as seed grants, equipment grants, and sabbatical grants.

USDA EPSCoR States (Experimental Program for Stimulating Competitive Research) means States which have been less successful in receiving funding from AFRI, or its predecessor, the National Research Initiative (NRI), having a funding level no higher than the 38th percentile of all States based on a 3-year rolling average of AFRI and/or NRI funding levels, excluding FASE Strengthening funds granted to EPSCoR States, and small, mid-sized, and minority-serving degree-granting institutions. The most recent list of USDA EPSCoR States will be provided in the RFA.