2018 SBDC Clearinghouse NOFO.docx

U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Small Business Development Centers

The SBDC National Information Clearinghouse

FY 2019

FUNDING OPPORTUNITY NO. OSBDC -2019-03

The purpose of this Funding Opportunity is to invite proposals from entities currently funded by SBA as a Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Lead Center. Only applications that are submitted by SBDC Lead Centers will be considered for funding. For profit businesses are not eligible for this award.

Proposals responding to this program announcement must be posted to www.grants.gov by 11:59 PM EDT on Friday November 30, 2018. No other methods of submission will be permitted. Proposals submitted after the stipulated deadline will be rejected without being evaluated.

U.S. SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

OFFICE OF SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTERS

Contents

1.0 FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION

1.1 Program Overview

1.2 Purpose

The SBDC National Information Clearinghouse (“Clearinghouse”) serves as a centralized information resource within the SBDC network as well as a library and distribution center for information, media, marketing materials and technology for access by any SBDC service center. The Clearinghouse provides business related informational support for the SBDCs and facilitates ever greater exchange of information between SBDCs employing its collection and accessing its business data.

The Clearinghouse serves as a resource to the SBA by providing materials, reports, and publications of interest to entrepreneurs, small business owners, business development specialists and program analysts.

Funding Opportunity for the Small Business Development Center Clearinghouse Funding Opportunity Number OSBDC-2019-03

The Clearinghouse must serve as the SBDC network’s “Tech Forward” flagship by gathering advancements in the use of technology (technological innovations) developed throughout the network and enabling the transfer, duplication or deployment of those innovations. To accomplish this, the recipient of the Clearinghouse grant must:

a. report quarterly on new or ongoing technology initiatives, via website

b. create and maintain the SBDC Network’s National Blog

c. organize and facilitate an SBDC Clearinghouse workshop at the Association of Small Business Development Centers’ (ASBDC) Annual conference showcasing the best technology accomplishments

d. Maintain a presence on the ASBDC committees related to technology and/or research and development

e. conduct an Annual Needs Assessment, refer to Section 6.5 The Clearinghouse grant recipient will have the opportunity to expand its capabilities and increase its network-wide footprint by allowing the program to generate income. Fees may be charged by the Clearinghouse when using its creativity in developing and offering income-generating products ranging from marketing materials to professional market analysis reports for SBDC clients through their local service center. These activities are beyond those services required under the grant funding.

1.3 Background

The Clearinghouse is funded via an SBA grant. The grant is for $300,000/year. In FY 2019, the grant will run from December 1, 2018 through September 30, 2019, with four option years. Thereafter, each option year will run from October 1 through September 30. In FY 2019, the grant amount will be prorated to reflect the 10-month period of performance.

1.4 Legislation

The Small Business Act (the Act) states in §21(c)(8)(15 U.S.C.§648(c)(8)) that:

The Associate Administrator for Small Business Development Centers, in consultation with the Small Business Development Centers, shall develop and implement an information sharing system.

Subject to amounts approved in advance in appropriations Acts, the Administration may make grants or enter into cooperative agreements with one or more centers to carry out the provisions of this paragraph. Said grants or cooperative agreements shall be awarded for periods of no more than five years duration. The matching fund provisions of subsection (a) shall not be applicable to grants or cooperative agreements under this paragraph. The system shall (A) allow Small Business Development Centers participating in the program to exchange information about their programs; and (B) provide information central to technology transfer.

2.0 AWARD INFORMATION

2.1 Requirements for the Clearinghouse

The Clearinghouse shall consist of the following four components, which operate together to assist an SBDC requesting materials and/or information:

a. Inquiry-Response and Communications Channels – the Clearinghouse must be capable of responding to an SBDC seeking information via mail, a toll-free number, email, webpage, fax, or in person. The Clearinghouse will also have a system for delivering applicable materials to SBDC counselors electronically. The choice of means of communication/transmission of information will be at the discretion of the requestor or the Clearinghouse, based on factors such as urgency of request, amount of information requested, etc.

b. Resources and Holdings – the Clearinghouse must stock and provide the following documents, publications, and resources:

· The Clearinghouse must maintain SBDC and SBA publications, research papers, reports, etc., and keep them on file electronically for access by the SBDC network and the SBA. The Clearinghouse must maintain an accessible link to the SBA website on its webpage.

· The Clearinghouse must maintain a general reference library of pertinent books, directories, handbooks, needs analysis (updated by the Clearinghouse staff) and appropriate online subscriptions. It must also maintain standard business information reference materials of the type held in special or public library collections. Such materials should focus, at minimum, on the small business sector with an emphasis on home-based businesses, startups, rural small business, veterans, and manufacturers on issues such as energy efficiency, international trade, legal considerations, business plans, marketing plans/data, science and technology, electronic commerce and website design. These materials should also include demographic reference materials from government and private sources, including (but not limited to) the U.S. Census Bureau. The Clearinghouse staff must update all materials on a timely and appropriate basis.

· Geographic Information System (GIS) services for small business clients. The Clearinghouse must provide ring studies and other market area analysis for small business clients. It will maintain a database of 2010 and (2020 once available) Census demographic variables at the Census Block Group or Census Tract geographic levels. It must also provide an update to the demographic estimates and projections from private vendors at least every two years.

· A website designed to assist SBDC counselors. The site must include numerous organized resources for use in business and industry research as well as a link with SBA information and SBA’s website. The site will serve as a major source for small business information on the Internet. Specifically, the site should provide: (a) small business resources information; (b) an online form for submitting research requests; (c) an electronic newsletter for keeping SBDC counselors current with the latest small business resources; (d) a searchable database of counselor developed documents, such as checklists, forms and worksheets to share with colleagues: and (e) the SBDC National Blog.

c. Cataloging and Indexing – The Clearinghouse must ensure that publications and other research materials are cataloged and indexed in conformance with the Library of Congress standards and practices. The Clearinghouse must also maintain a continuously updated database of requests received from SBDC counselors. This database must include the counselors’ names, the requesting SBDCs, the resources referenced, and researcher time needed to complete each request.

d. Clearinghouse Staff – The Clearinghouse must retain sufficient personnel to provide the services required under this award. Personnel providing services must possess the necessary experience and ability to perform the following tasks:

· Administration of the day-to-day activities of this project or similar programs, oversight of other staff members in the performance of their duties, and overall project coordination as required;

· Develop, maintain and update a comprehensive procedures manual for the Clearinghouse, as necessary;

· Timely compilation of all required reports;

· Weekly Blog updates;

· Responding to research requests using Internet search engines and traditional library search methodology in a timely manner;

· Maintenance of accurate and timely accounting records in accordance with general accepted accounting standards;

· Updating of Clearinghouse resources in accordance with Library of Congress standards

e. Anything in addition to these services or any product that contains added value from the Clearinghouse may generate program income.

f. All requirements in this section must be funded by the Clearinghouse grant and are to be provided to the SBDC network at no cost or fee.

2.2 Program Income

Program income must be used to further the objectives of the Clearinghouse program and cannot be used for other purposes. Additional requirements for program income include:

· Program income may be charged as a fee for services provided outside the requirements listed under section 2.1.

· Any activities that generate program income may never take priority over the functions of the Clearinghouse listed in section 2.1.

· Program income activities that are not contained in the applicant’s proposal will require approval of the OSBDC on a case-by-case basis during the year or during the review of the annual renewal application.

· All fees collected as program income must be spent on activities in furtherance of the mission of the Clearinghouse, e.g., hiring additional personnel; expanding access to small business information; generating more robust and professionally published reports and other products for SBDC counselors; travel for the Director to other SBDC networks and other marketing concepts; etc.

· Program income which exceeds 25 percent of the Clearinghouse’s total budget (SBA federal funds and matching funds) must be spent by year end. Any remaining program income may be carried over to subsequent budget periods to be utilized to further program objectives.

· The SBA is currently not placing limits on the amount of program income that the Clearinghouse may generate; however, the SBA reserves the right to place such limits in future budget years.

3.0 ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

3.1 Eligible Applicants

A potential applicant may submit only one proposal in response to this Announcement. Any additional applications from the same organization will automatically be rejected during evaluation. To be eligible for this funding opportunity an applicant, as of the date of its application, must:

a. be an accredited SBDC under §21(k)(2) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C § 648(k)(2)); and

b. be currently funded as an SBDC Lead Center by SBA.

3.2 Ineligible Applicants

The following will automatically qualify an applicant as ineligible and their applications will not be evaluated:

a. Any organization NOT currently funded and/or not an accredited SBDC Lead Center;

b. Any organization currently having an outstanding, unresolved financial obligation to any federal agency;

c. Any organization that is currently suspended, debarred or otherwise prohibited from receiving awards of contracts or grants from the Federal government

d. Any organization with an outstanding and unresolved material deficiency reported under the requirements of the Single Audit or 2 CFR Part 200 Subpart F within the past three years;

e. Any organization having at least one substantially non-compliant condition within SBA program guidelines occurring while administering or implementing any SBA program;

f. Any organization that has had an SBDC grant or cooperative agreement involuntarily terminated or non- renewed by SBA for cause within the past year;

g. Any organization that has filed for bankruptcy within the past five years;

h. Any organization that proposes to serve as a pass-through and permit another organization to manage the day-to-day operations of the project; and/or

i. Any organization that was convicted, or had an officer or agent acting on its behalf convicted, of a felony criminal violation under any Federal law within the past two years.

3.3 Cost Sharing and Matching

There is no matching fund requirement.

4.0 APPLICATION

4.1 General Instructions

All forms contained in the application must bear original signatures. In the event the applicant’s proposal contains confidential data, the applicant must follow Part 102 of SBA’s regulations (see 13 CFR Part 102). Applications must consist of the following elements: Table of Contents, a technical proposal, budget information, certifications, forms and assurances; and attachments and exhibits. Many of these forms can be retrieved from the OSBDC website.

4.2 Technical Proposal – Program Narrative

a. The technical proposal must be double-spaced and should not exceed 50 pages excluding exhibits and appendices.

b. The proposal must have a Table of Contents and the pages should be numbered.

c. The technical proposals must also respond to the evaluation criteria set forth in section 2.0.

4.3 Cost Proposal – Federal Budget

The budget proposal must show the total cost of the program as proposed in Section B of the SF424A. Such costs include personnel, fringe benefits, travel, consultants, equipment, supplies and contractual costs.

Budget information must be provided through the completion and submission of the following:

a. Standard Form (SF) 424, Application for Federal Assistance

b. SF-424A, Budget Information (Non-construction Programs)

c. Budget Detail Worksheets which consists of (Budget Justification Worksheet, Key Personnel List, and Indirect Cost Worksheet

d. Budget narrative providing a brief, detailed explanation of the components of each cost element listed in the SF-424A

e. A copy of the applicant’s current indirect cost rate agreement (if the applicant’s budget includes indirect costs). If the applicant does not have such an agreement, it must propose an indirect cost rate in accordance with the procedures set forth in the applicable cost principles circular.

f. The cost proposal should assume a $300,000 annual funding level.

g. A total of eighty percent (80%) of the federal funding must be allocated to direct costs.

h. The cost proposal should not include any technical information.

i. The applicant must return the following pages from the Announcement as part of its cost proposal: (1) the application package: SF424, SF424A, and Budget Justification Worksheet; and

(2) Assurances and Certifications.

4.4 Cost Proposal – Program Income

Although an area for “Program Income” appears on the SF-424 (Application for Federal Assistance) it is not added into the “Total Estimated Funding”, line f, of the SF-424 and should be left blank. Also leave blank the “Program Income” line on the SF-424A (Budget Information – Non-construction Programs) as it is not to be added into 6k. Additionally, program income costs must not be included with costs totaled within the budget narrative. Program income should be addressed in the proposal’s program narrative.

a. The proposal should consist of a narrative detailing how the applicant intends to generate program income

b. The narrative must describe how these activities are outside the requirement set forth in Section 2.1.

c. The program income narrative should show estimates of how much income will be generated annually over a five year time horizon.

d. The narrative should show how the program income will be allocated for special projects (using the above estimate).

e. The narrative should show how these projects further the objectives of the Clearinghouse.

f. The program income proposal must include budget justification worksheets for the forecasted estimates allocating the funds into object class categories.

4.5 Treatment of Proposal Information

a. If the SBDC’s proposal contains confidential data, the SBDC must follow SBA regulations found in 13 CFR Part 102 (Record Disclosure and Privacy). This can be found online at http://www.sba.gov/about-sba-services/7591/13757#

b. Unless otherwise specified, all financial, statistical, personnel and/or technical information and data which are furnished, produced or otherwise made available to the SBDC by its small business customers during the performance of this Agreement shall not be used for purposes other than performance of work under this Agreement. The above information received by the SBDC may be privileged and must not be released or disclosed by the SBDC without the prior written consent of the client unless otherwise required by law. If such information is requested in a legal proceeding, the SBDC must take the necessary precautions and legal recourse to protect privileged information.

c. Public Law 108-447, approved December 8, 2002, provides that client information can only be made available to SBA for legal enforcement action and financial audits. However, SBA is also allowed access to client data for obtaining program activity information or conducting client surveys.

d. No files or records will be removed from the premises of any government agency with which the recipient may work without the approval of the agency in possession of such documents. Publication of any information will be in accordance with 2 CFR Part 215 (OMB Circular A-110).

e. Applications may be withdrawn by written, faxed or telegraphic notice. The notice must be received by the designated office at any time prior to award. Applications may also be withdrawn in person by an applicant or his/her authorized representative, provided his/her identity is made known and he/she signs a receipt for the application.

4.6 Proposal Submission

a. Each SBDC applicant is required to submit its proposal electronically via www.grants.gov. Because there are some pre-conditions for submitting applications via grants.gov, applicants are advised to allow for sufficient time to register their organization, if they are not currently registered. Specific instructions are provided on grants.gov for registering.

b. Submission via other electronic media will not be accepted. Hard copies will also not be accepted.

c. Specific application instructions, including those for file formatting, are provided at grants.gov. Some forms as noted in the description of attachments below are provided in the grants.gov application package for this funding opportunity. Others, as indicated, are available as SBDC Forms and Worksheets.

4.7 Award Notification: Ineligible Applicants

Applicants not meeting the eligibility requirements will not be considered and will not receive notification from the SBA about their ineligibility.

4.8 Award Notification: Unsuccessful Applicants

After a decision has been reached, eligible applicants who were not selected will be notified. This written notice will be SBA’s final response to this Funding Opportunity.

4.9 Cancellation

SBA reserves the right to cancel this announcement at the Agency’s sole discretion, in whole or in part, at any time prior to award.

5.0 APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION

5.1 General

Applications will first be screened to determine if the applicant meets stated mandatory eligibility requirements. SBA will not evaluate applicants that do not document in their application that they meet the requirements for participation in the Clearinghouse program. Submissions will only be accepted via Grants.gov.

5.2 Technical and Cost Evaluation Criteria

All relevant, technically-acceptable proposals will be graded on the basis of the evaluation criteria listed below. Only those applications deemed to be relevant and technically-acceptable will be evaluated as to cost. Applicants must adhere to the following outline in preparing the technical proposal. Incomplete or illegible applications will not be evaluated. An applicant’s total score will consist of the sum of its technical and cost scores.

5.2.1 Technical (75 points total)

In assessing the technical merit of an application, SBA will consider:

a. (30 points): An applicant’s experience in providing services as described in section 2.1 and more specifically the applicant’s past performance of other SBA grants. The applicant must provide documentation and a description of the organizations past experience in a similar type service as described for this proposed grant.

b. (15 points): An applicant’s organizational structure, technical and administrative resources, and staff qualifications. An applicant must submit the following documentation under this scoring area:

· An organizational chart for all proposed full-time and part-time project staff and the amount of time each will devote to the project. A full time project director is required. Grant funds (federal and program income) cannot be used to pay for fundraising efforts.

· A description of at least one staff or consultant function to handle ongoing program data collection and electronic reporting to SBA (include the time to be devoted to this task as well as the staff member’s expertise with computers);

· A description of who will be responsible for financial record keeping on the receipt and expenditure of program funds. Applicants must state how and by whom staff will be hired, employed and administered. The applicant must identify the key management, staff and grantors/consultants;

· Résumés and position descriptions for the project director and other staff;

· Experience relevant to this proposed grant staff, volunteers and consultants; employees should have experience in some sort of functions relevant to the Clearinghouse such as being a researcher, librarian, IT specialist, etc.

c. (25 points): An applicant’s operational controls. The applicant must provide an evaluation design and method for measuring the outcomes of the project’s objectives and complying with all required financial, performance, and follow-up reporting. The applicant must also provide a plan to measure program effectiveness from year to year. The follow-up plan must be able to provide SBA with information regarding the applicant’s role in:

· Distributing SBA-produced materials and program information;

· Distributing SBDC-developed materials and exchange of information and experience regarding client assistance and training, SBDC management and staff training, and special program development;

· Answering inquiries from SBDC counselors on business, industry, and market-related topics;

· Acting as an efficient information locator for referral services; and

· Acting as a point-of-contact locator service.

d. (5 points): An applicant’s understanding of the project and its proposed approach for performing this award.

5.2.2 Cost (25 points)

In assessing the financial merit of an applicant, SBA will consider:

a. (15 points): An applicant’s ability to meet the requirements at the lowest price.

b. (10 points): An applicant’s proposed methods to substantially grow the program, including the ability to generate additional program income.

5.2.3 Additional Points (15 points)

Although applicants are not required to match federal funds for awards made under this Announcement, up to 15 additional points will be awarded based upon the level of non-federal funds made available by the host institution to support the costs of this activity. These points will be awarded as follows:

a. If there are more than 15 eligible applications with additional funding, then the applicant with the most additional funding will receive 15 points, the second most 14 points, the third most 13 points, and so on.

b. If there are less than 15 eligible applicants with additional funding, then the points will be awarded proportionally. For example, if there are three eligible applications with additional funding, the applicant with the most additional funding will receive 15 points, the second most 10 points, and the third most 5 points.

5.3 Review and Selection Process

Proposals will first be screened to determine if the applicant meets the eligibility requirements enumerated in Section III. SBA will not consider materially incomplete applications, even if submitted by otherwise eligible entities. Submissions will only be accepted via www.grants.gov. Submission via other electronic mediums will not be accepted, nor will hard copy submissions. SBA officials will form a Technical Evaluation Committee to review accepted proposals based on the evaluation criteria identified in paragraph 5.2. Each accepted proposal will be individually scored and ranked. Proposals falling outside the competitive range will not be considered for funding. Where all other factors are equal, order of submission will be used as a final determining factor when selecting proposals for funding.

5.3.1 The review and selection process will proceed as follows:

a. An initial review of proposals for eligibility, sufficiency and completeness will be conducted by the Office of Grants Management (OGM) staff;

b. Evaluations of the technical merits of each accepted proposal (the Technical Review) will be conducted by the Technical Evaluation Committee.

c. Evaluations of the cost components of each accepted proposal (the Budget Review) will be conducted by the Technical Evaluation Committee;

d. Proposals recommended for award by OSBDC and which pass the Budget Review will be forwarded by the Review Panel to SBA’s Office of General Counsel (OGC) for a legal sufficiency review;

e. Proposals deemed legally sufficient by OGC will be funded via Notices of Award issued to applicants by OSBDC.

6.0 AWARD ADMINISTRATION

6.1 Forms

Refer to 4.3 Cost Proposal for additional instructions on how these forms are to be completed. OSBDC will provide SBDCs with projected funding levels to be used in budget preparation.

Include a list of key SBDC personnel and identify non-key positions by their titles in the SBDC Personnel List. See chart below for specific budget instructions SBDC forms and worksheets

Indirect cost Allocation Worksheet

SBDC forms and worksheets

CERTIFICATION FORMS AND ASSURANCES

SBDC BUDGET JUSTIFICATION INSTRUCTIONS

The direct cost and indirect cost total must agree with the SF424 and SF424A.

Equipment:

List non-expendable items purchased. Non-expendable equipment is tangible property having a useful life of at least one year and an acquisition cost of $5,000 or more per unit. The recipient organization must maintain an inventory of equipment purchased with program dollars, network equipment including cost, location, and detailed description of each item.

Equipment inventory must be made available upon request to the SBA. Expendable items should be included in the “Supplies” category or the “Other” category. Rented or leased equipment costs should be listed in the “Contractual” category.

6.2 Reporting Requirements

The Recipient is responsible for compiling, maintaining, and submitting the reports identified below. SBA may withhold payment if reports are not received or are deemed inadequate. Failure to report in a timely manner will also be weighed against future grant funding.

6.3 Performance Reports

The Recipient will maintain an on-going Inquiry/Response Record of the number, type and mode of inquiries received, referrals made, and problems addressed and solved. This record shall be made available for review by the Grant’s Officer Technical Representative (GOTR) when requested.

Quarterly Performance Reports consolidating the Inquiry/Response Record data will be compiled and submitted to the GOTR for review. Quarterly reports are required to be furnished every 120 days after the date of project commencement.

A consolidated Annual Performance Report shall be submitted to the GOTR within 90 days after the completion of each 12 month budget period. This report will serve as the Quarterly Performance Report for the fourth quarter.

6.4 Financial Reports

The Recipient must submit quarterly financial reports to the GOTR. Financial Status Reports must be submitted on Standard Form 425 and payment requests must be submitted on Standard Form 270. Each quarterly financial report is to cover the prior 3-month period of the award.

Quarterly Financial Reports must be submitted every 90 days commencing after the date of project start. The final report must include a cost breakdown, by line item of actual financial expenditures of costs incurred.

Quarterly Program Income Report must be submitted every 90 days commencing after the date of the project start. Financial information should be reported on SBA Form 2113. The report should also include a narrative describing the kinds of services provided, accomplishments, benefits of being able to charge fees, and customer reviews. The SBA reserves the right to change the format of the program narrative.

The final financial (fourth quarterly) report may include adjustments to previous reports. The final financial report must include:

· SBDC approved SF-425

· Detailed Expenditures Worksheet

· SBA Form 2113

· Spreadsheet in support of the SBA Form 2113

6.5 Annual Needs Assessment

The collection of materials held by the Clearinghouse must be based on the needs of the SBDCs. The recipient will conduct an annual SBDC needs assessment in order to ascertain their need for general reference materials and their interest in having access to research and development by other SBDCs.

6.6 Project Equipment and Materials

The Recipient will utilize equipment and materials transferred to it by the prior recipient of this award to operate and maintain this Clearinghouse. Additional materials and equipment can be purchased by the Recipient using award funds as needed. All such materials will be used solely for the performance of this project. If the Recipient does not receive a follow-on award at the conclusion of the project, it will transfer all equipment and materials purchased with award funds or received from its predecessor to a successor entity designated by SBA. The Recipient will also assist the follow-on Recipient in transferring the existing information database and resources, including hardware and software, publications, periodicals, etc., to the follow-on place of performance.

6.7 Procedure for Responding to Inquiries

· The Clearinghouse will utilize the following procedures to respond to requests for information received from SBDC counselors:

· SBDC counselors requesting assistance will contact the Clearinghouse using the on-line request form (accessible via the Clearinghouse website), a toll-free telephone number, e- mail, U.S. Post mail, in person, or by fax.

· The Clearinghouse will review its holdings and identify available sources for the requested information. If these sources are held by the Clearinghouse, the project staff will provide the needed information to the requesting party via the most appropriate means. If requests require specialized knowledge or expertise possessed by another SBDC, then the Clearinghouse will provide the requesting counselor with the necessary contact information for that SBDC.

· The requestor will use the information provided by the Clearinghouse and, if necessary, will contact an SBDC that possesses specialized information or expertise in the matter.

· The Clearinghouse will then maintain a copy of the specialized information provided by the SBDC to the requesting counselor.

6.8 Carryover Requests

Carryover requests must be approved by the AA/OSBDC.

6.9 Record-keeping Instructions

The Recipient agrees to maintain complete and accurate records and supporting documentation to facilitate financial and/or program audits. The Recipient must furnish such records for examination and review to SBA upon request.

Additionally, SBA may request copies of all initial input documents used to provide management reports.

The Recipient must maintain support for year-end Standard Forms 425 and 270 financial reports as required by OMB Circulars and SBA Regulations. In addition, the Recipient must maintain support records. These records should consist of at a minimum all charges to the grant, but not limited to the disbursement leger, vendor invoices, canceled checks, and journal entries.

6.10 OMB 2 CFR 200 - Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards

a. 2 CFR Part 200 Uniform Guidance

· Subpart A – Acronyms and Definitions

· Subpart B – General Provisions

· Subpart C – Pre-Federal Awards Requirements and Contents of Federal Awards

· Subpart D – Post Federal Awards Requirements

· Subpart E – Costs Principles

· Subpart F – Audit Requirements

b. Current versions of these Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) can be viewed online at https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?tpl=/ecfrbrowse/Title02/2cfr200_main_02.tpl

7.0 AGENCY CONTACTS

7.1 Small Business Development Center’s Program Point of Contact Questions concerning general information and questions regarding budgetary matters related to this Announcement should be directed to SBDCGrantsq@sba.gov

7.2 Grants.gov Technical Support

For technical issues with filing an electronic application in response to this Announcement, contact the Grants.gov help desk at 1-800-518-4726 or support@grants.gov.

8.0 OTHER INFORMATION

8.1 Definitions

The following terms are defined below as they are used in reference to the SBDC Clearinghouse:

8.1.1 Agreement Officer: The individual responsible for negotiation, award and business management of grants. An individual who has been delegated the authority to obligate Federal funds by signing the Notice of Award (Agreement Officer is also referred to as Grants Management Officer).

8.1.2 Applicant: An eligible individual or enterprise which sends in a proposal seeking award of a grant or cooperative agreement by SBA.

8.1.3 Bibliographic Data: The identifying elements of a book, document or publication -- author, or title, publisher, date and place of publication, pagination, etc.

8.1.4 Blog: contraction of “Web Log” which is a standardized format for constantly posting new information to a website with each entry containing identical format and elements like Post, Title, Author, Time and Date, Text of Post, Permalink, Trackbacks, email and print options. For a complete explanation of blogs, visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blog.

8.1.5 Cataloging. A complete enumeration of items arranged systematically with descriptive details.

8.1.6 Clearinghouse Holdings: Publications, documents, resource lists, and other materials acquired and maintained by the Clearinghouse.

8.1.7 Computer Search: searching the contents of the computer, a database such as Lexis-Nexus, or the internet through search engines such as Microsoft Live, Google Desktop, Yahoo!, etc.

8.1.8 Descriptors: Keywords that represent the content of a document, book or other media; also referred to as “tags” or “meta tags” on the Internet.

8.1.9 Electronic Mail or Email: messages sent through the internet and read either through a webpage or an email application such as Microsoft Outlook, Gmail, Mozilla Thunderbird, etc.

8.1.10 Option Period: The time allowed, at the discretion of the Government to award the initially funded project for an additional 12-month period.

8.1.11 Recipient (Awardee): For the purpose of this announcement, an entity serving as the Lead Center of an SBDC network operating under an existing cooperative agreement with SBA.

8.1.12 SBDC: The organization which receives and administers an SBDC cooperative agreement with SBA.

8.1.13 SBDC Forms and Worksheets: Are forms and worksheets made available to applicants to assist with the submission of the Clearinghouse proposal and subsequent reporting requirements. To retrieve these forms use the hyperlink http://www.sba.gov/content/sbdc-forms-and-worksheets. in your web browser.

8.1.14 Grants Officer Technical Representative (GOTR): The OSBDC (Office of Small Business Development Center) official who is appointed to monitor the programmatic aspects of the project.

8.1.15 Technology Transfer: is the assignment of technological intellectual property, developed and generated in one place, to another through legal means such as technology licensing or franchising; or the process of converting scientific and technological advances into marketable goods or services. To learn more about technology transfer visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technology_transfer or http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/technology-transfer.html.