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Farm Business Management and Benchmarking (FBMB) Competitive Grants Program

FY 2015 Request for Applications (RFA)

APPLICATION DEADLINE: May 27, 2015

ELIGIBILITY: See Part III, A of RFA

APPROXIMATE AMOUNT AVAILABLE FOR AWARDS: $1.35 million

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURE; U.S. DEPARTMENT OF

AGRICULTURE

FARM BUSINESS MANAGEMENT AND BENCHMARKING COMPETITIVE

GRANTS PROGRAM (FBMB)

INITIAL ANNOUNCEMENT

CATALOG OF FEDERAL DOMESTIC ASSISTANCE: This program is listed in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance under 10.319.

DATES: Applications must be received by 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on May 27, 2015.

Applications received after this deadline will normally not be considered for funding (see Part IV, C. of this RFA). Comments regarding this request for applications (RFA) are requested within 6 months from the issuance of this notice. Comments received after that date will be considered to the extent practicable.

STAKEHOLDER INPUT: The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) seeks your comments about this RFA. We will consider the comments when we develop the next RFA for the program, if applicable, and we’ll use them to meet the requirements of section 103(c)(2) of the Agricultural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998 (7 U.S.C. 7613(c)(2)).

Submit written stakeholder comments by the deadline set forth in the DATES portion of this Notice via e-mail to: Policy@nifa.usda.gov. (This e-mail address is intended only for receiving comments regarding this RFA and not requesting information or forms.) In your comments, please state that you are responding to the Farm Business Management and Benchmarking Competitive Grants Program RFA.

NIFA offered outreach webinars on its center of excellence implementation February 26th and March 12th, 2015. A recording can be accessed on the NIFA website or http://nifa.usda.gov/resource/february-26-2015-centers-excellence-webinar.

In the coming months, NIFA will be holding additional webinars to collect stakeholder input about our center of excellence implementation strategy. Details and access information will be posted on the NIFA website. Comments and suggestions relative to centers of excellence should be sent to Policy@nifa.usda.gov by September 30th, 2015.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: NIFA requests applications for the Farm Business Management and Benchmarking (FBMB) Competitive Grants Program for fiscal year (FY) 2015 to improve the farm management knowledge and skills of agricultural producers, and maintain the national, publicly available farm financial management database to support improved farm management. The amount available for support of this program in FY 2015 is approximately $1.35 million.

This notice identifies the objectives for FBMB projects, the eligibility criteria for projects and applicants, and the application forms and associated instructions needed to apply for a FBMB grant.

mailto:Policy@nifa.usda.gov http://www.nifa.usda.gov/ http://nifa.usda.gov/resource/february-26-2015-centers-excellence-webinar http://www.nifa.usda.gov/ mailto:Policy@nifa.usda.gov

Table of Contents

PART I—FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION

A. Legislative Authority and Background B. Purpose and Priorities C. Program Area Description

PART II—AWARD INFORMATION

A. Available Funding B. Types of Applications C. Project Types D. Responsible and Ethical Conduct of Research

PART III—ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION

A. Eligible Applicants B. Cost Sharing or Matching C. Centers of Excellence

PART IV—APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION

A. Electronic Application Package B. Content and Form of Application Submission C. Submission Dates and Times D. Funding Restrictions E. Other Submission Requirements

PART V—APPLICATION REVIEW REQUIREMENTS

A. General B. Evaluation Criteria C. Conflicts of Interest and Confidentiality D. Organizational Management Information E. Application Disposition

PART VI—AWARD ADMINISTRATION

A. General B. Award Notice C. Administrative and National Policy Requirements D. Expected Program Outputs and Reporting Requirements

PART VII—AGENCY CONTACTS

PART VIII—OTHER INFORMATION

A. Access to Review Information B. Use of Funds; Changes C. Confidential Aspects of Applications and Awards D. Regulatory Information E. Definitions F. Materials Available on the Internet

PART I—FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION

A. Legislative Authority and Background

The authority for this program is under section 1672D of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation and Trade Act of 1990, 7 U.S.C. 5925f, as amended by section 7208 of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (Pub. L 110 – 246), which authorizes the Secretary, acting through the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, to establish a competitive research and extension grants program to improve farm management.

This program contributes to Objective 1.2 Create Thriving Communities, of the USDA Strategic Plan for FY 2010-2015. The program also focuses on the following Goals of the 2012 USDA’s Research, Education, and Economics (REE) Action Plan: Goal 7- Rural-Urban Interdependence and Prosperity (Strategy 2: Support information and technology transfer and translational research, “transformational extension,” to inform citizens and enable and support vibrant and resilient communities; Strategy 3: Establish the determinants of rural prosperity and develop indicators to measure regional assets and performance; and Strategy 4: Build new partnerships with underserved and non-traditional populations.) The program also contributes to NIFA’s Strategic Goal 1: Science: Catalyze exemplary and relevant research, education, and extension programs.

B. Purpose and Priorities

As specified in 7 U.S.C. 5925f, NIFA is soliciting applications for the FBMB under the following areas:

• Improving the farm management knowledge and skills of agricultural producers; and

• Establishing and maintaining a national, publicly available farm financial management database.

The assistance provided by these programs, to the extent practicable, shall be coordinated with and delivered in cooperation with similar services or assistance by other Federal Agencies or programs supporting improved farm management.

The Secretary may give priority to applicants that:

• Demonstrate an ability to work directly with agricultural producers;

• Collaborate with farm management and producer associations;

• Address the farm management needs of a variety of crops and regions of the United

States; AND

• Use and support the national farm financial management database http://www.finbin.umn.edu/default.aspx

The goal of the Farm Business Management and Benchmarking (FBMB) Competitive Grant Program is to strongly support the intellectual talent and collaborative efforts to maintain the national, publicly available farm financial management database needed to meet the challenges facing the nation’s agriculture and food systems. Meeting these challenges will require innovative approaches that foster multi-disciplinary projects. This means that farm management http://www.finbin.umn.edu/default.aspx producers must be educated and prepared to work effectively across disciplines in order to work to solve agricultural and educational challenges. The goal of this program is to engage producers in improving the United States farm management knowledge and skills by encompassing the USDA/NIFA’s food, agriculture, natural resources, and human sciences.

C. Program Area Description

The Farm Business Management and Benchmarking Program outlined in this RFA seeks to expand upon work begun in FY 2010 to improve the farm management knowledge and skills of individuals directly involved in the production agriculture. Specifically, FY 2015 applications are being solicited to address one (1) or more of the following objectives:

1. Maintain and expand the already established national, publicly available farm financial management database to support improved farm management for producers of a variety of crops and livestock throughout multiple regions of the United States.

2. Establish or expand collaborative farm management and producer association partnerships with the existing national farm financial management and benchmarking database to improve the farm management knowledge and skills of agricultural producers.

In addition, applications may address one (1) or more of the following objectives:

1. Advance data gathering and conduct research on cost of production, farm profitability factors, and farm policy.

2. Develop or expand cooperation and data sharing among existing farm management associations and farm business management education programs across the nation to convert their financial analysis activities to a uniform system.

3. Provide training, assistance, and software to states with farm management associations to facilitate uniform financial procedures and software.

4. Improve the profitability and competitiveness of small and medium-sized farms and ranches by providing access to high quality, uniform farm business management benchmarking information.

5. Improve producers’ abilities to successfully manage their agricultural operations through periods of high risk, volatility, and financial stress.

FBMB encourages projects that develop content and programs suitable for delivery through the Cooperative Extension System’s eXtension Initiative. You may use funds to contribute to existing Communities of Practice (CoP) focused on FBMB. Projects must align with the eXtension vision, mission, and values. You must have a letter of acknowledgement from eXtension; you may also need a letter of support from one (1) or more of the Communities of Practice. For detailed guidance on how to partner with eXtension, go to http://create.extension.org/node/2057.

http://create.extension.org/node/2057

PART II—AWARD INFORMATION

A. Available Funding

The amount available for NIFA support of this program in FY 2015 is approximately $1.35 million. Proposed project budgets may not exceed $500,000. The funds will be awarded through a grant. There is no commitment by USDA to fund any particular application or to make a specific number of awards.

Awards issued as a result of this RFA will have designated the Automated Standard Applications for Payment System (ASAP), operated by the Department of Treasury’s Bureau of the Fiscal Service, as the payment system for funds. For more information see http://fms.treas.gov/index1.html.

B. Types of Applications

In FY 2015 you may submit applications to the FBMB Program as one (1) of the following types of requests:

(1) New application. This is a project application that has not been previously submitted to the FBMB Program. We will review all new applications competitively using the selection process and evaluation criteria described in Part V—Application Review Requirements.

(2) Renewal application. This is a project application that requests additional funding for a project beyond the period that was approved in an original or amended award. Applications for renewed funding must contain the same information as required for new applications; they also must contain a Progress Report (see Project Narrative, Part IV). Failure to submit a Progress Report may disqualify your application for renewal. Renewal applications must be received by the relevant due dates, will be evaluated in competition with other pending applications in the area to which they are assigned, and will be reviewed according to the same evaluation criteria as new applications.

C. Project Types

In response to the FY 2015 FBMB RFA, integrated, multistate, and/or multi-functional proposals can be submitted.

Integrated proposals:

Integration of research and extension is regularly assessed as part of NIFA's portfolio review process. An integrated project might have as a goal of increasing farm production through a community-based program that includes research and extension components. Integrated projects are expected to generate new knowledge and/or apply existing knowledge quickly through the dissemination of information on specific issues where results may be visible in the short term.

http://fms.treas.gov/index1.html

Multistate proposals:

Teams formed throughout multi-state groups can include eligible applicants (see Part III. A.of this RFA) working together to carry out a multistate project. These groups provide cooperative, coordinated approaches to problems of regional and national interest.

Multi-functional proposals:

An interactive group of individuals brought together from more than one functional area of a business to work on a problem or process, which requires the knowledge, training and capabilities across the areas to successfully complete the work. Multifunctional teams typically comprise individuals with a functional home base (e.g. R&D, marketing, production, personnel), but who work collaboratively on issues or processes requiring diverse resources. Consider working with other Farm Commodity groups and USDA Agencies including Economic Research Service (ERS);

Rural Development (RD); Farm Service Agency (FSA); Agricultural Research Service (ARS); and Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS).

Project periods cannot exceed the statutory time limit of five (5) years.

D. Responsible and Ethical Conduct of Research

The responsible and ethical conduct of research (RCR) is critical for excellence, as well as public trust, in science and engineering. Consequently, we consider education in RCR essential to the preparation of future scientists. In accordance with sections 2, 3, and 8 of 2 CFR Part 422, institutions that conduct USDA-funded extramural research must foster an atmosphere conducive to research integrity, bear primary responsibility for prevention and detection of research misconduct, and maintain and effectively communicate and train their staff regarding policies and procedures. In the event an application to NIFA results in an award, the Authorized Representative (AR) assures, through acceptance of the award that the institution will comply with the above requirements. Per award terms and conditions, grant recipients shall, upon request, make available to NIFA the policies, procedures, and documentation to support the conduct of the training.

Note that the training referred to herein shall be either on-campus or off-campus training. The general content of the ethics training will, at a minimum, emphasize three key areas of research ethics: authorship and plagiarism, data and research integration, and reporting misconduct. Each institution will be responsible for developing its own training system, as schools will need flexibility to develop training tailored to their specific student needs. Grantees should consider the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) program for RCR (https://www.citiprogram.org/rcrpage.asp). Typically this RCR education addresses the topics of:

Data Acquisition and Management - collection, accuracy, security, access; Authorship and Publication; Peer Review; Mentor/Trainee Responsibilities; Collaboration; Conflict of Interest;

Research Misconduct; Human Subject Research; and Use of Animals in Research.

https://www.citiprogram.org/rcrpage.asp

PART III—ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION

A. Eligible Applicants

Applications may be submitted by numerous entities. Pursuant to 7 U.S.C. 450i(b)(7), eligible applicants means:

(A) State agricultural experiment stations;

(B) Colleges and universities;

(C) University research foundations;

(D) Other research institutions and organizations;

(E) Federal agencies;

(F) National laboratories;

(G) Private organizations or corporations:

(H) Individuals; or

(I) Any group consisting of two (2) or more of the entities described in subparagraphs (A) through (H).

Award recipients may subcontract to organizations not eligible to apply provided such organizations are necessary for the conduct of the project. Failure to meet an eligibility criterion by the time of application deadline may result in the application being excluded from consideration or, even though an application may be reviewed, will preclude NIFA from making an award.

B. Cost Sharing or Matching

The 2014 Farm Bill contains a new matching 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 from the Farm Business Management and Benchmarking (FBMB) Competitive Grants program 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. Note that NIFA included information at http://www.nifa.usda.gov/business/awards/matching_require.html to further assist you in determining if you must meet the new matching requirement.

The matching funds requirement does not apply to grants awarded:

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

2. 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 (see Part VIII, E. Definitions for definition of partnership) of such an entity.

http://www.nifa.usda.gov/business/awards/matching_require.html

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. Recipients 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. Recipients 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. Recipients of 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).

A proposal submitted in response to this RFA may indicate that the work will be completed by multiple entities as a collaborative partnership. All partners must have a substantial involvement in the project throughout the life of the project. If a partnership among multiple entities is proposed, the proposal must clearly identify the following:

1) A narrative of each entity’s clearly established role in the project;

2) How each entity involved as a partner on the project will contribute to execution of project objectives, determination of experimental design, development of the project work plan and time table, and submission of collaborative, timely reports; and

3) A comprehensive project budget that reflects each entity’s financial or third party in-kind contribution (see 7 CFR § 3430.2 or 2 CFR § 200. 96) to the total project budget costs.

If a proposal indicates that the work on the project will be completed by multiple entities as partners, and at least one entity is exempt from the matching requirement under #2 above, the entire project will be exempt from the matching requirement regardless of whether all entities involved are otherwise exempt. Any partner entity can serve as the lead entity on the project. All partners must be significantly involved in the project.

http://www.nifa.usda.gov/form/form.html

After proposals have been recommended for award, NIFA will determine if the submitted proposal and proposed division of work reflects substantial involvement of all entities involved.

If a proposal is recommended for award to a lead entity not otherwise exempt from the matching requirement and the proposal does not reflect substantial involvement of at least one partner that is exempt under #2 above, then the matching requirement will apply. Exemption from the matching requirement for an entity not otherwise exempt is limited to the project for which it is a partner.

Waiver of Match - NIFA may waive the matching funds requirement for a recipient for one year with respect to a competitive grant that involves research or extension activities that are consistent with the priorities established by the National Agricultural Research, Education, Extension and Economics Advisory Board (NAREEEAB) for the year involved. To determine whether proposed activities are consistent with the priorities of the NAREEEAB, please refer to the 2014 Research, Education and Economics Action Plan. Instructions for requesting a waiver are included in Part IV, C. of this RFA.

C. Centers of Excellence

Pursuant to Section 7214 of the Agricultural Act of 2014 (Pub. L. 113-79), beginning in Fiscal Year 2015, for applicable competitive research and extension programs, NIFA will be recognizing and providing priority in the receipt of funding to applications from “centers of excellence” that have been established for purposes of carrying out research, extension, and education activities relating to the food and agricultural sciences. In July of 2014, NIFA held listening sessions and accepted written comments from stakeholders to inform NIFA’s implementation of the centers of excellence provision. Information from the webinars and a summary of the input gathered are available on NIFA’s website at http://www.nifa.usda.gov/about/offices/legis/cntr_ex_webinar_documents.html.

A center of excellence is composed of 1 or more of the following entities that provide financial or in-kind support to the center of excellence. Therefore, an eligible applicant who wishes to be considered as a center of excellence must be one of the following entities that provides financial or in-kind support to the Center being proposed, as described in the grant application.

(A) State agricultural experiment stations;

(B) colleges and universities;

(C) university research foundations;

(D) other research institutions and organizations;

(E) Federal agencies;

(F) national laboratories;

(G) private organizations, foundations, or corporations;

(H) individuals; or

(I) any group consisting of 2 or more of the entities described in (A) through (H).

http://www.ree.usda.gov/ree/news/USDA_REE_Action_Plan_03-2014.pdf http://www.nifa.usda.gov/about/offices/legis/cntr_ex_webinar_documents.html

Only standards grant applicants may be considered for COE designation. Standard grants will be awarded in response to this RFA.

See Part IV, B. of this RFA for additional requirements that eligible applicants must meet to be considered a center of excellence.

PART IV—APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION

A. Electronic Application Package

Only electronic applications may be submitted via Grants.gov to NIFA in response to this RFA.

We urge you to submit early to the Grants.gov system. For an overview of the Grants.gov application process see http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/grant-application-process.html

New Users of Grants.gov

Prior to preparing an application, we recommend that the Project Director/Principal Investigator (PD/PI) first contact an Authorized Representative (AR, also referred to as Authorized Organizational Representative or AOR) to determine if the organization is prepared to submit electronic applications through Grants.gov. If not (e.g., the institution/organization is new to the electronic grant application process through Grants.gov), then the one-time registration process must be completed PRIOR to submitting an application. It can take as long as 2 weeks to complete the registration process so it is critical to begin as soon as possible. In such situations, the AR should go to “Register” in the top right corner of the Grants.gov web page (or go to http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/register.html) for information on registering the institution/organization with Grants.gov. Part II.1. of the NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide contains detailed information regarding the registration process. Refer item 2. below to locate the “NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide”.

Steps to Obtain Application Package Materials

To receive application materials:

1. You must download and install a version of Adobe Reader compatible with Grants.gov to access, complete, and submit applications. For basic system requirements and download instructions, see http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/support/technical-support/software/adobe-reader-compatibility.html. Grants.gov has a test package that will help you determine whether your current version of Adobe Reader is compatible.

2. To obtain the application package from Grants.gov, go to http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/apply-for-grants.html. Under Step 1 click on “Download a Grant Application Package,” and enter the funding opportunity number

Funding Opportunity Number: USDA-NIFA-FBMB-005115 in the appropriate box and click “Download Package.” From the search results, click “Download” to access the application package.

Contained within the application package is the “NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide.”

This guide contains an introduction and general Grants.gov instructions, information about how to use a Grant Application Package in Grants.gov, and instructions on how to complete the application forms.

http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/grant-application-process.html http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/grant-application-process.html http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/register.html http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/support/technical-support/software/adobe-reader-compatibility.html http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/support/technical-support/software/adobe-reader-compatibility.html http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/apply-for-grants.html

If you require assistance to access the application package (e.g., downloading or navigating Adobe forms) or submitting the application, refer to resources available on the Grants.gov website (http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/applicant-resources.html). Grants.gov assistance is also available at:

Grants.gov customer support 800-518-4726 Toll-Free or 606-545-5035

Business Hours: 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Closed on federal holidays.

Email: support@grants.gov

Grants.gov iPortal (see https://grants-portal.psc.gov/Welcome.aspx?pt=Grants):

Top 10 requested help topics (FAQs), Searchable knowledge base, self-service ticketing and ticket status, and live web chat (available 7 a.m. - 9 p.m. ET). Get help now!

Have the following information available when contacting Grants.gov:

• Funding Opportunity Number (FON)

• Name of agency you are applying to

• Specific area of concern

B. Content and Form of Application Submission

You should prepare electronic applications following Parts V and VI of the NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide. This guide is part of the corresponding application package (see Section A.

of this Part). The following is additional information needed to prepare an application in response to this RFA. If there is discrepancy between the two documents, the information contained in this RFA is overriding.

Note the attachment requirements (e.g., PDF) in Part III section 3. of the guide. ANY PROPOSALS THAT ARE NON-COMPLIANT WITH THE REQUIREMENTS (e.g., content format, PDF file format, file name restrictions, and no password protected files) WILL BE AT RISK OF BEING EXCLUDED FROM NIFA REVIEW. Grants.gov does not check for NIFA required attachments or that attachments are in PDF format; see Part III section 6.1 of the guide for how to check the manifest of submitted files. Partial applications will be excluded from NIFA review. We will accept subsequent submissions of an application until close of business on the closing date in the RFA (see Part V, 2.1 of the NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide for further information).

For any questions related to the preparation of an application, review the NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide and the applicable RFA. If assistance is still needed for preparing application forms content, contact:

• Email: electronic@nifa.usda.gov

• Phone: 202-401-5048

• Business hours: Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. – 5 p.m. ET, excluding federal holidays.

http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/applicant-resources.html http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/applicant-resources.html http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/snow-dismissal-procedures/federal-holidays/ mailto:support@grants.gov https://grants-portal.psc.gov/Welcome.aspx?pt=Grants https://grants-portal.psc.gov/Welcome.aspx?pt=Grants https://grants-portal.psc.gov/Welcome.aspx?pt=Grants mailto:electronic@nifa.usda.gov

1. SF 424 R&R Cover Sheet Information related to the questions on this form is dealt with in detail in Part V, 2. of the NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide.

2. SF 424 R&R Project/Performance Site Location(s) Information related to the questions on this form is dealt with in detail in Part V, 3. of the NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide.

3. R&R Other Project Information Form Information related to the questions on this form is dealt with in detail in Part V, 4. of the NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide.

a. Field 7. Project Summary/Abstract. The summary should also include the relevance of the project to the goals of FBMB. See Part V. 4.7 of NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide for further instructions and a link to a suggested template.

b. Field 8. Project Narrative.

NOTE: The Project Narrative shall not exceed 15 pages of written text regardless of whether it is single- or double-spaced and up to five (5) additional pages for figures and tables. We have established this maximum (20 pages) to ensure fair and equitable competition. Applicants requesting consideration of center of excellence status must include their justification within the 15 page limit of the project narrative.

The Project Narrative must include all of the following:

• A Summary Statement of the applicant’s Intentions in submitting a proposal that addresses the purpose and priorities of the Farm Business Management and Benchmarking Grants Program based on one (1) of the five (5) objectives listed under Part I, C. of this RFA.

• A clear Statement of Purpose, along with Goals and Objectives for the proposal enhancing the already established Farm Business Management & Benchmarking National Database, hereafter referred to as “FBMB National Database.”

• A Discussion of the relevant Body of Knowledge sufficient to demonstrate the applicant’s understanding of the needs of agricultural producers for farm financial management and benchmarking capabilities. The discussion should include estimates of the relative importance of the issues to stakeholders and to ongoing State-Federal food and agricultural research, education and extension programs.

• A Description of Planned Data Management and Coordination Efforts and Mechanisms to achieve them, sufficient to demonstrate the applicant’s proficiency administering a database. This description should include discussion of any relevant past activities.

• A Plan of Work, including Methods and Procedures for maintaining the FBMB National Database, and Action Steps for establishment and implementation of a farm financial management database, collaboration with farm management and producer associations, and direct work with agricultural producers. This plan of work should provide a description of the Facilities in which the FBMB National Database will operate, along with Personnel Needs, Assignments, and the Division of Labor anticipated for implementation of the proposed plan. The methods and procedures section of the plan of work should include but not necessarily be limited to:

a. A description of the proposed project activities in the sequence in which it is planned to carry them out;

b. Techniques to be employed, including their feasibility and rationale for their uses in program implementation;

c. Kinds of results expected;

d. Means by which data will be collected, analyzed, interpreted, and used;

e. Details of plans to communicate programming and results to stakeholders and the public;

f. Pitfalls that might be encountered and how they might be overcome;

g. Limitations of the proposed project; and

h. A project timetable outlining all important phases as a function of time, year by year, for the entire project, including, if appropriate, periods beyond the grant funding period.

• A Description of Prospective Partners for collaboration and the role each will play in the FBMB National Database’s efforts. The description should include the role of stakeholders in problem identification, planning, implementation, and evaluation, as appropriate.

• A Description of the Evaluation Component to assess the effectiveness of the FBMB National Database’s coordination efforts and database management and benchmarking outcomes.

• Evidence and Discussion of Past Experience and Compliance with Federal Reporting Requirements.

• Bibliography & References Cited – PDF Attachment. No Page Limit. Title the attachment as ‘Bibliography & References Cited’ in the document header and save file as ‘Bibliography’.

Center of Excellence Justification

Only standards grant applicants may be considered for COE designation. Standard grants will be awarded in response to this RFA.

Applicants who wish to be considered as centers of excellence must provide a brief justification statement, as part of their Project Narratives and within the page limits provided, describing how they meet the standards of a center of excellence, based on the following criteria:

(A) 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;

(B) 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;

(C) 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

(D) 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.

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).

4. R&R Senior/Key Person Profile (Expanded) Information related to the questions on this form is dealt with in detail in Part V, 5. of the NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide. This section of the Guide includes information about the people who require a Senior/Key Person Profile, and details about the Biographical Sketch and the Current and Pending Support, including a link to a suggested template for the Current and Pending Support.

5. R&R Personal Data – As noted in Part V, 6. of the NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide, the submission of this information is voluntary and is not a precondition of award.

6. R&R Budget Information related to the questions on this form is dealt with in detail in Part V, 7. of the NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide.

The 2014 Farm Bill contains a new matching requirement.

Applicants must complete one SF 424 (R&R) Budget (Total Fed + Non-Fed form) for each 12-month period, plus a cumulative budget form for the entire project.

http://www.nifa.usda.gov/funding/pdfs/nlgca_colleges.pdf

Matching Funds

If you conclude that matching funds are not required as specified under Part III, B. Cost-Sharing or Matching, you must include a justification in the Budget Narrative. We will consider this justification when ascertaining final matching requirements or in determining if required matching can be waived. NIFA retains the right to make final determinations regarding matching requirements.

For grants that require matching funds as specified under Part III, B., the Budget Narrative should include written verification of commitments of matching support (including both cash and in-kind contributions) from third parties. Written verification means:

(a) For any third party cash contributions, a separate pledge agreement for each donation, signed by the authorized representatives of the donor organization (and the applicant organization ONLY if provided after submission of the application), must include: (1) The donor’s name, address, and telephone number; (2) the name of the applicant organization; (3) the title of the project; (4) the dollar amount of the cash donation (the budget narrative must describe how the cash donation will be used); (5) a statement that the donor will pay the cash contribution during the grant period; and (6) whether the applicant can designate cash as the applicant deems necessary or the cash contribution has been designated to a particular budget item.

(b) For any third party in-kind contributions, a separate pledge agreement for each contribution, signed by the authorized representatives of the donor organization (and the applicant organization ONLY if provided after submission of the application), must include: (1) The donor’s name, address, and telephone number; (2) the name of the applicant organization; (3) the title of the project; (4) a good faith estimate of the current fair market value of the third party in-kind contribution and a description of how the fair market value was determined; and (5) a statement that the donor will make the contribution during the grant period.

Summarize on a separate page the sources and amount of all matching support from outside the applicant institution and place that information in the proposal as part of the Budget Narrative.

You must place all pledge agreements in the proposal immediately following the summary of matching support.

Establish the value of applicant contributions in accordance with applicable cost principles.

Refer to 2 CFR Part 200, “Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards”, for further guidance and other requirements relating to matching and allowable costs.

7. Supplemental Information Form Information related to the questions on this form is dealt with in detail in Part VI, 1. of the NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide.

a. Field 2. Program to which you are applying. Enter the program code name (i.e., enter

“Farm Business Management and Benchmarking”) and the program code (i.e., enter

“FBMB”). Note that accurate entry of the program code is very important for proper and timely processing of an application.

b. Field 8. Conflict of Interest List. See Part VI, 1.8 of the NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide for further instructions and a link to a suggested template.

C. Submission Dates and Times

Prior to electronic submission of the application via Grants.gov, it is strongly recommended that an administrative review be conducted to ensure that an application complies with all application preparation instructions. An application checklist is included in Part VII of the NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide to assist with this review.

Instructions for submitting an application are included in Part IV, Section 1.9 of the NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide.

Applications must be received by Grants.gov by 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on May 27, 2015.

Applications received after this deadline will normally not be considered for funding.

If you have trouble submitting an application to Grants.gov, you should FIRST contact the Grants.gov Help Desk to resolve any problems. Keep a record of any such correspondence.

See Part IV. A. for Grants.gov contact information.

We send email correspondence to the AR regarding the status of submitted applications.

Therefore, applicants are strongly encouraged to provide accurate e-mail addresses, where designated, on the SF-424 R&R Application for Federal Assistance.

If the AR has not received correspondence from NIFA regarding a submitted application within 30 days of the established deadline, contact the Agency Programmatic Contact identified in Part VII of the applicable RFA and request the proposal number assigned to the application. Failure to do so may result in the application not being considered for funding by the peer review panel. Once the application has been assigned a proposal number, this number should be cited on all future correspondence.

D. Funding Restrictions

Section 715 of the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015 (Pub. L. 113-

235) limits indirect costs to 30 percent of the total Federal funds provided under each award.

When preparing budgets, you should limit your request for the recovery of indirect costs to the lesser of your institution’s official negotiated indirect cost rate or the equivalent of 30 percent of total Federal funds awarded. See Part V section 7.9 of the NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide for further indirect cost information.

When NIFA is not the cognizant Federal agency. The applicant should use the current negotiated indirect cost rate established by its cognizant Federal agency (the agency that provides the most funds). If awarded, the applicant will be required to produce a negotiated indirect cost rate agreement from the cognizant agency in order to recover indirect costs. Applicants may request (i.e., budget) indirect costs using the lesser of: (a) the negotiated rate; or (b) the maximum statutory rate stated in the Request for Application, if any. If unable to obtain a negotiated rate from its cognizant agency, the applicant is not permitted indirect cost reimbursement. Rather, the applicant may only be reimbursed for allowable direct costs. Violation of Cost Accounting Standards is not permitted when re-budgeting or charging costs to awards.

Effective 12/26/2014, applicants new to Federal awards, and applicants who have never received a negotiated rate, may request a 10% de minimus indirect cost rate. If awarded, and the cognizant agency has not provided a negotiated rate, the awardee can receive the 10% de minimus indirect cost rate. The 10% de minimus rate should be applied to modified total direct costs (MTDC).

MTDC means total direct costs related to the award, such as direct labor, fringe benefits, materials and supplies, publications, consultant services and travel costs. MTDC excludes the following costs: equipment, capital expenditures, participant support costs and the portion of each subaward and subcontract in excess of $25,000. The 10% de minimus rate is only available to awards made on or after 12/26/2014. Violation of cost accounting principles is not permitted when charging costs to awards. Rather, costs must be consistently charged as either indirect or direct costs.

If the cognizant agency issues a negotiated rate subsequent to award, the negotiated rate may not be retroactively applied.

When NIFA is the cognizant Federal agency. If the applicant does not have a negotiated rate, and NIFA is the cognizant agency, the applicant must calculate an indirect cost rate in order to request indirect costs. NIFA’s indirect cost website provides several sample indirect cost rate calculations. NIFA’s website is found at:

http://nifa.usda.gov/business/indirect_cost_process.html.

During the application process, the applicant is not required to complete the entire indirect cost package identified on NIFA’s website. Rather, the applicant need only calculate an indirect cost rate to serve as a basis for requesting indirect costs. If awarded, the applicant will be required to submit a complete Indirect Cost Proposal (ICP) package as explained on NIFA’s indirect cost website.

Effective 12/26/2014, applicants new to Federal awards, and applicants who have never received a negotiated rate, may elect to forgo calculation of an indirect cost rate during the application process and request a 10% de minimus indirect cost rate. If awarded, a complete ICP package is required to establish a negotiated rate as explained above. However, an awardee may elect to forgo pursuit of a negotiated rate and receive the 10% de minimus indirect cost rate. The 10% de minimus rate should be applied to modified total direct costs (MTDC). MTDC means total direct costs related to the award, such as direct labor, fringe benefits, materials and supplies, publications, consultant services and travel costs. MTDC excludes the following costs:

equipment, capital expenditures, participant support costs and the portion of each subaward and subcontract in excess of $25,000. The 10% de minimus rate is only available to awards made on or after 12/26/2014.

http://nifa.usda.gov/business/indirect_cost_process.html

Violation of cost accounting principles is not permitted when charging costs to awards. Rather, costs must be consistently charged as either indirect or direct costs.

The awardee may request a negotiated rate subsequent to award. If so, NIFA will revisit its cognizant agency responsibilities. If cognizant, NIFA will establish a negotiated rate. The negotiated rate may not be retroactively applied.

See Part V.7, of the NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide for further details.

E. Other Submission Requirements

You should follow the submission requirements noted in Part IV, section 1.9 in the document entitled “NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide.”

For information about the status of a submitted application, see Part III., section 6. of the NIFA Grants.gov Application Guide.

PART V—APPLICATION REVIEW REQUIREMENTS

A. General

We evaluate each application in a 2-part process. First, we screen each application to ensure that it meets the administrative requirements as set forth in this RFA. Second, a technical review panel will evaluate applications that meet the administrative requirements.

We select reviewers based upon their training and experience in relevant scientific, extension, or education fields, taking into account the following factors: (a) The level of relevant formal scientific, technical education, or extension experience of the individual, as well as the extent to which an individual is engaged in relevant research, education, or extension activities; (b) the need to include as reviewers experts from various areas of specialization within relevant scientific, education, or extension fields; (c) the 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; (d) the need to include as reviewers experts from a variety of organizational types (e.g., colleges, universities, industry, state and federal agencies, and private profit and non-profit organizations) and geographic locations; (e) the need to maintain a balanced composition of reviewers with regard to minority and female representation and an equitable age distribution; and (f) the need to include reviewers who can judge the effective usefulness of each application to producers and the general public.

When each peer review panel has completed its deliberations, the responsible program staff of FBMB will recommend that the project: (a) be approved for support from currently available funds or (b) be declined due to insufficient funds or unfavorable review.

FBMB reserves the right to negotiate with the PD/PI and/or with the submitting organization or institution regarding project revisions (e.g., reductions in the scope of work, funding level, period, or method of support) prior to recommending any project for funding.

B. Evaluation Criteria

We will use the evaluation criteria below to review applications submitted in response to this

RFA:

• Advance data gathering and conduct research on cost of production, farm profitability factors, and farm policy.

• Develop or expand cooperation and data sharing among existing farm management associations and farm business management education programs across the nation to convert their financial analysis activities to a uniform system.

• Provide training, assistance, and software to states with farm management associations to facilitate uniform financial procedures and software.

• Improve the profitability and competitiveness of small and medium-sized farms and ranches by providing access to high quality, uniform farm business management benchmarking information.

• Improve producers’ abilities to successfully…