2021 WUDR Program Announcement_Template.docx

Attachment I Water-Use Data and Research Program Template

A. Proposal Information Summary.

USGS Water Use Data and Research Cooperative Agreement Proposal Information Summary

Use the format below for the required Proposal Information Summary. Blue text denotes what to add. Please change the font color back to black before submitting.

1.Short Project Title: THE SHORT PROJECT TITLE SHOULD BE USED ON THE SF FORMS FOR GRANTS.GOV AND WILL BE USED ON THE AWARD COVER PAGE. The short project title should include the State or State agency name, the year, and WUDR or Water Use in the title. The following are two examples: “Pennsylvania DEP 2021 WUDR Project” or “Texas Water Use Data Project FY2021”

2.Descriptive Project Title: The descriptive project title will be used by the WUDR program. Please do not use this title in the SF forms for Grants.gov. The descriptive project title should include the agency name, the geographic area, and a brief statement of the work to be accomplished. The following is an example descriptive project title: “Quality Assurance Enhancements to Web Based Water Use Reporting Application to support Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection’s Water Use Data Program”

3.Project Keywords: List 3 to 5 keywords for the proposed work.

4. Primary Investigator: List technical contact and contact information here. The primary investigator should be a recipient agency employee and only one primary investigator is needed.

(Name) (Agency Name) (Street Address/P.O. Box) (City, State, Zip Code) (Telephone Number), (FAX Number), (E-mail Address) 5.Authorized Institutional Provide name of Institutional/Financial contact here Representative:(Name) (Agency Name) (Organizational Unit) (Street Address/P.O. Box) (City, State, Zip Code) (Telephone Number), (FAX Number), (E-mail Address) 6.Amount Requested: (List amount of Federal funds requested for this Proposal)

7.Proposed Start Date: (The date you would like to start work; between September 1, 2021 and September 30, 2021)

8.Proposed Duration: (12 or 24 months, No awards are issued for less than 12 months)

9.Previous WUDR Funding: Amount, Performance Period

B. Proposal

Please include the following sections:

1) Project Summary. Provide an overall summary of the project including a brief description of work to be accomplished, USGS category(ies) of water use data collection or methodology development, how the proposed work increases the “TIER LEVEL” for a category of use (see Attachment A, Data Goals for Major Water-Use Categories), and geographic and temporal scale of data activity.

2) Project Description.

a. Problem Statement. Describe the problem and the state agency’s role relevant to the problem.

b. Project Objectives. Describe the objectives of the proposed work.

c. Approach. Proposals should thoroughly address how the proposed work will accomplish project objectives.

· Describe specific methods that will be used to complete the project tasks.

· Describe the significance of each task relative to the project objectives. If work is not being performed by the applicant agency, explain the role relative to water use of the party conducting the work.

· Describe work being done by contractors.

· Describe how science will be used to identify best practices to manage land and water resources and adapt to changes in the environment (U.S. Department of Interior Secretarial Priority 1a, see Attachment F).

d. Project Timeline and Milestones. Include a detailed timeline for the proposed work, relating tasks and subtasks described in the Approach section to completion dates. An example table is provided below. Please list project objectives and describe specific, quantifiable and/or qualitative milestones and deliverables over the duration of the project to show how the project is successful, and what benefits/products (i.e. data) will be accrued if the project is successful. Products or deliverables may include reports, datasets, maps, electronic data services, data portals, etc., that will be produced as part of the project. Please indicate if objectives or milestones relate to improving a tier level for a category of water use.

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e. Previous WUDR competitive awards. Briefly describe how this proposed work is different from any previously funded WUDR projects from FY16 through FY20 Competitive Awards.

f. Transfer of data to the USGS or other entities. Specifically describe how data will be transferred to the USGS. Data transfer guidance is available on the USGS WUDR website: https://water.usgs.gov/wausp/wudr/. Describe how data will be made available to the USGS in a machine-readable open format, such that the data can be easily integrated (by the USGS) into USGS databases in compliance with the SECURE Water Act. If data will be made available to other entities, describe how the data will be made available.

g. Relevance to State Priorities. Describe how the proposed tasks meet the priorities of the State water use program as described in the “Workplan.”

h. Science and Technology Transferability. Describe how the methods, or technical components developed under the proposed project will be applicable to other states, agencies, and/or the USGS.

i. Collaboration. Describe meetings, communication, and collaboration with other state and/or local agencies that collect water-use data that occurred in the development of this proposal. Describe collaboration with the USGS, including Water Science Center contacts. Describe collaboration that will be ongoing through the proposed project period with local, state, federal agencies (including USGS), or educational institutions.

j. Team Experience. Succinctly describe the relevant experience of the project team members.

k. IT Infrastructure l.

i. Describe databases that are used to store data.

ii. Briefly describe any current data sharing applications or web sites.

iii. Describe IT staff experience and availability.

iv. Discuss any security requirements or limitations.

C. Budget Summary Provide a budget summary using the format shown below. The budget items should correlate with the detailed budget below.

Budget Summary

Indirect cost rate:

Budget summary table

1. Salary (wages, fringe)

2. Travel

3. Equipment

4. Supplies

5. Contractors

6. Total Direct Costs (items 1-5)

7. Indirect cost

8. Total Cost (items 6 and 7)

In-kind services percent:

D. Detailed Budget A budget sheet for each year is required that provides more detail than what is entered under the SF-424A form. In this budget breakdown sheet please separate federal funds from cost-sharing funds (see ‘In-kind Resource Match’ section below). A set cost-sharing percentage for the recipient is not mandated, but a match of in-kind services is encouraged and should be denoted within the budget as cost sharing. The cost for the project should include both the agency in-kind services and the work to be funded by the WUDR funding opportunity. Please provide the following information for each objective or major task. Applicants should include the following categories for both federal and in-kind services:

1. Salaries

a. Please provide a list of staff that will work on each objective listed in the proposal. If staff will work on more than one objective, include an entry with the hours for that employee on each objective.

b. Objective Name: For each objective provide a table with the following items for each staff member that will work on the objective

1. employee name,

2. title,

3. hourly rate of compensation,

4. fringe benefit rate and hourly rate of fringe benefit,

5. the total hourly rate (item 3 + item 4),

6. the number of hours planned,

7. the cost (item 5 times item 6),

8. the percent of the cost that is Federally funded, and

9. the percent of cost that is agency in-kind services. (item 8 and item 9 should add to 100%)

Detailed Budget Table

funded Percent and amount that is in-kind services

Objective #1: list objective, years and funding per year or percent of funding per year

Salaries

Objective #1 total

Objective #2: list objective, years and funding per year

Salaries

Objective #2 Contractor Budget

Salaries

Contractor Name

Contractor Travel

Contractor Equipment

Contractor Supplies

Objective #2 Contractor total

Objective #2 total

Include a footnote if there is a cost of living increase.

2. Supplies. For each major type of supply, enter a description and the cost for supplies needed for the project (include percent of cost that is Federally funded and/or provided as in-kind);

3. Equipment: Enter a description and the cost for each piece of equipment needed for the project. Please list any computer purchases separately. If possible, computer purchases should be as in-kind services to avoid property ownership issues;

4. Contractors: Provide the following detailed breakdown for each contractor needed for the project:

1. hourly rate of compensation,

2. fringe benefit rate and hourly rate of fringe benefit,

3. the total hourly rate (item 1 + item 2),

4. the number of hours planned,

5. the cost (item 5 times item 6),

6. the percent of the cost that is Federally funded, and

7. the percent of cost that is Agency in-kind services. (items 8 and 9 should add to 100%)

5. Travel: Provide detailed information on proposed travel, i.e. where to, why, how many, how long, per diem, mileage, anticipated conference name, if applicable, and lodging rates, etc. (include percent of cost that is Federally funded and/or provided as in-kind); and

6. Indirect Cost/General and Administrative (G&A) Cost: Show the proposed rate, cost base, and proposed amount for allowable indirect costs based on the cost principles applicable to the Applicant's organization. If the Applicant has separate rates for recovery of labor overhead and G&A costs, each charge should be shown. Explain the distinction between items included in the two cost pools. The Applicant should propose rates for evaluation purposes, which they are also willing to establish as fixed or ceiling rates in any resulting award. NOTE: A copy of the indirect negotiated cost agreement with the Federal Government must be provided with the application package. Pursuant to the Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards, Section 200.414, in the absences of a negotiated rate agreement, non-Federal entities may use a de minimis rate of 10% of modified total direct costs (MTDC).

In-Kind Resource Match

Examples of in-kind resource match are: salaries, contract support, student assistance fees, travel expenses, software purchase, equipment dedicated to the project, production of outreach materials, and indirect costs or overhead charges. All contributions, including cash and third party in-kind, will be accepted as part of the recipient’s in-kind match when such contributions meet all of the following criteria:

· verifiable from the recipients’ records,

· not included as contributions for any other federally-assisted project or program,

· necessary and reasonable for proper and efficient accomplishment of project or program objectives,

· allowable under the applicable cost principles,

· not paid by the Federal Government under another award, except where authorized by Federal statute to be used for cost matching,

· provided for in the approved budget when required by the Federal awarding agency, and

· conform to the provision of the appropriate OMB Circular, as applicable.

Volunteer services furnished by professional and technical personnel, consultants, and other skilled and unskilled labor may be counted as in-kind match if the service is an integral and necessary part of the project. Rates for volunteer services shall be consistent with those paid for similar work in the recipient’s organization. In those instances in which the required skills are not found in the recipient organization, rates shall be consistent with those paid for similar work in the labor market in which the recipient competes for the kind of services involved. In either case, paid fringe benefits that are reasonable, allowable, and allocable may be included in the valuation.

Match calculation: For example, with a request for an award of $5,000 of Federal assistance, a 50-50 cost share contribution by the applicant would be $5,000 in value for a total of $10,000 value committed to the project ($5,000 and $5,000 Federal and applicant, respectively).

Applicant must document the amount and type of in-kind resource that will be contributed to the fulfillment of the project and include this information in the detail budget breakdown.

E. Principal Investigator Resume Please include a resume for the technical lead for the proposed project. The resume should only include relevant professional experience. Do not include personal address, phone number, or e-mail.

F. Data Management Plan Proposals submitted to USGS must include a supplementary document of no more than four pages labeled "Data Management Plan" (DMP). This supplementary document should describe how the proposal will conform to USGS policy on the dissemination and sharing of research results and associated data. Please see section 9 (b)(2) Data Availability, found on page 36 in the program announcement that states that data collected under a federal grant must be made available to the USGS. In rare cases, a DMP may include only the statement that no detailed plan is needed (e.g. “No data are expected to be produced from this project”), if the statement is accompanied by a clear justification.

DMPs should include the following. Two examples of data management plans are included in Attachment D, and the use of one of these formats is strongly encouraged. Additional examples are available at https://www.usgs.gov/products/data-and-tools/data-management/data-management-plans.

1) The types of data, samples, physical collections, software, curriculum materials, and other materials to be produced during the project;

2) The standards to be used for data and metadata format and content (where existing standards are absent or deemed inadequate, this should be documented along with any proposed solutions or remedies);

3) Policies for access and sharing including provisions for appropriate protection of privacy, confidentiality, security, intellectual property, or other rights or requirements;

4) Provisions for re-use, re-distribution, and the production of derivatives; and

5) Plans for archiving data, samples, and other research products, and for preservation of free public access to them.

Additional guidance on data management plans is available from the USGS Data Management web site (https://www2.usgs.gov/datamanagement/plan/dmplans.php).

Note: The DMP does not count toward the 15-page limit.

Data Management Plan

Template 1: This template is for use with projects involving data collection or data digitizing, processing, or other transformations:

PI Name:

Project Title:

1. Will this project utilize existing data? ☐Yes/☐No If yes, where is the existing data hosted/stored currently? (Paper files, Excel spreadsheets, custom database, etc.)

2. Will your Project collect or process new data? ☐Yes/☐No If yes, what file format will be used to collect the new data? (Paper, web forms, PDF forms, etc.)

3. Are there access/use limitations associated with your data? ☐Yes/☐No If yes, describe the limitations, including proprietary or sensitive data elements, etc.

4. Is existing data currently available to the public? ☐Yes/☐No

a. Where are the data made available?

b. Describe how any proprietary/sensitive data is handled.

c. Are any fees associated with release of the data?

d. What data format is the data released in? ☐CSV ☐Shapefile ☐GeoTIFF ☐Other:

e. Is associated metadata made available, and if so what format?

5. Is new data planned to be made available to the public?

a. Where will the data made available?

b. Describe how any proprietary/sensitive data will be handled.

c. Will any fees be associated with release of the data?

d. What data format will the data be released in? ☐CSV ☐Shapefile ☐GeoTIFF ☐Other:

e. Will associated metadata be made available, and if so, what format will be used?

6. Describe the approach for backup of all data associated with this project.

7. What is the lifespan of this data? ☐Maintained indefinitely/☐Moved to archive storage after __ years/☐Destroyed after __years/☐Other:

8. Does data for this project rely on proprietary or licensed software? List software:

9. Describe quality assurance and/or quality control procedures that are associated with data collection and processing:

Template 2: This template is for use with projects involving custom software/code, database, or web tools development:

PI Name:

Project Title:

1. Describe the custom software to be developed.

2. If code is available/planned to be made available via an online repository, provide a link.

3. Identify any restrictions on access or reuse of the software.

4. Describe the approach for backup of the software during this project.

5. Describe the strategy for ongoing support and maintenance of the software after development.

6. Identify the computing language/framework to be used. (Java/Javascript/SQL/.Net/etc)

7. Identify the operating system environment. (Windows/Linux/MacOS/etc.)