DE-FOA-0003615.000001.pdf

Building EPSCoR-State/National Laboratory Partnerships

Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) Number:

DE-FOA-0003615

NOFO Type: Amendment 000001 Assistance Listings: 81.049

Amendment 000001 is issued to update the date and time of the webinar and some programmatic contacts

NOFO Issue Date: February 18, 2026 Submission Deadline for Pre-Applications:

March 18, 2026, at 5:00 PM Eastern Time A Pre-Application is required.

Pre-Applications must be submitted by an authorized institutional representative.

Pre-Application Response Date: April 8, 2026, at 5:00 Eastern Time Submission Deadline for Applications: May 21, 2026 at 11:59 PM Eastern Time

Table of Contents

I. BASIC INFORMATION

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

FUNDING DETAILS

KEY FACTS

KEY DATES

AGENCY CONTACT INFORMATION

INFORMATIONAL WEBINAR / OFFICE HOURS

RECOMMENDATION

II. ELIGIBILITY

A. ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS

B. COST SHARING

C. ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUALS

D. LIMITATIONS ON SUBMISSIONS

III. PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

A. PURPOSE

B. PROGRAM GOALS, OBJECTIVES, AND PRIORITIES

C. AWARD CONTRIBUTION TO GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

D. PERFORMANCE GOALS

E. SUBSTANTIAL INVOLVEMENT

F. PROGRAM UNALLOWABLE COSTS

G. CITATIONS TO STATUTE AND REGULATIONS

H. PROGRAM HISTORY

I. OTHER INFORMATION

IV. APPLICATION CONTENTS AND FORMAT

A. PRELIMINARY SUBMISSIONS

B. APPLICATION

C. COMPONENT PIECES OF THE APPLICATION

D. INFORMATION THAT MUST BE SUBMITTED AFTER APPLICATION BUT

BEFORE AWARD

V. SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS AND DEADLINES

A. ADDRESS TO REQUEST APPLICATION PACKAGE

B. UNIQUE ENTITY IDENTIFIER (UEI) AND SYSTEM FOR AWARD MANAGEMENT

(SAM.GOV)

C. SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS

D. SUBMISSION DATES AND TIMES

VI. APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION

A. RESPONSIVENESS REVIEW

B. REVIEW CRITERIA

C. REVIEW AND SELECTION PROCESS

VII. AWARD NOTICES

A. TYPE OF AWARD INSTRUMENT

B. ANTICIPATED TIMELINE FOR NOTICE OF SELECTION FOR AWARD

NEGOTIATION

VIII. POST-AWARD REQUIREMENTS AND ADMINISTRATION

A. ADMINISTRATIVE AND NATIONAL POLICY REQUIREMENTS

B. REPORTING

C. REPORTING OF MATTERS RELATED TO RECIPIENT INTEGRITY AND

PERFORMANCE (DECEMBER 2015)

D. INTERIM CONFLICT OF INTEREST POLICY FOR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE

IX. OTHER INFORMATION

A. CHECKLIST FOR AVOIDING COMMON ERRORS

B. HOW-TO GUIDES

C. ADMINISTRATIVE AND NATIONAL POLICY REQUIREMENTS

D. REFERENCE MATERIAL

I. Basic Information

U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science (SC)

Executive Summary

DOE’s Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) program hereby announces its interest in receiving applications for Building EPSCoR-State/DOE-National Laboratory Partnerships. These partnerships advance understanding of the physical world by supporting fundamental, early-stage energy research collaborations with the DOE National Laboratories (https://www.energy.gov/national-laboratories). Participation by undergraduate students, graduate students, or postdoctoral fellows is required. Early career faculty from EPSCoR jurisdictions are encouraged to apply. Utilization of DOE user facilities is encouraged, if appropriate for the scope of proposed research (https://science.osti.gov/User-Facilities/User-Facilities-at-a-Glance; https://nsuf.inl.gov).

While the academic, non-profit and industrial research communities are welcome to lead or to participate in applications, applications must include an academic institution and a strong component of student participation in research is required for all applicants.

Applications should propose research relevant to program areas in the Office of Science or the Applied Energy Offices. Supported programs from the Office of Science are: Advanced Scientific Computing Research (ASCR), Basic Energy Sciences (BES), Biological and Environmental Research (BER), Fusion Energy Sciences (FES), High Energy Physics (HEP), Nuclear Physics (NP), and Isotope R&D and Production (DOE IP). Supported programs from the Applied Energy Offices are: Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response (CESER), Electricity (OE), Environmental Management (EM), Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation (CMEI), Hydrocarbons and Geothermal Energy Office (HGEO), and Nuclear Energy (NE).

DOE EPSCoR follows National Science Foundation (NSF) EPSCoR Program eligibility determinations. As a result, and in accordance with 2 CFR 910.126, competition and eligibility for award is restricted. Domestic applicants except nonprofit organizations described in section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that engaged in lobbying activities after December 31, 1995, that are within the following jurisdictions will be eligible to apply under this NOFO: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Delaware, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Vermont, Virgin Islands, West Virginia, and Wyoming.

Funding Details

Expected total available funding $35,000,000 https://www.energy.gov/national-laboratories https://science.osti.gov/User-Facilities/User-Facilities-at-a-Glance https://nsuf.inl.gov/

Expected number of awards 30-35 Expected dollar amount of individual awards

$1,000,000

Expected award project period 4 Years

Key Facts

NOFO Title Building EPSCoR-State/National Laboratory Partnerships NOFO Number DE-FOA-0003615 Announcement Type Initial Assistance Listing 81.049 Statutory Authority The programmatic authorizing statutes are Section 646 of Public

Law 95-91, U.S. Department of Energy Organization Act; Section 901, et seq. of Public Law 109-58, Energy Policy Act of 2005

Governing Regulations

• Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards, codified at 2 CFR

• U.S. Department of Energy Financial Assistance Rules, codified at 2 CFR 910

• U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science Financial Assistance Program Rule, codified at 10 CFR 605

Key Dates

Key dates are printed on the cover of this NOFO.

Agency Contact Information

Grants.gov Customer Support

800-518-4726 (toll-free) support@Grants.gov

PAMS

Customer Support

855-818-1846 (toll-free) 301-903-9610 sc.pams-helpdesk@science.doe.gov

Technical/Scientific Program Contact

Questions regarding the specific program areas/technical requirements can be directed to the program managers/technical contacts listed for each program within the NOFO.

Administrative Contact (questions about budgets and eligibility)

Office of Science EPSCoR Coordinator EPSCoR.NOFO@science.doe.gov mailto:support@grants.gov mailto:sc.pams-helpdesk@science.doe.gov mailto:EPSCoR.NOFO@science.doe.gov

Informational Webinar / Office Hours

SC plans to hold an informational webinar about this NOFO on Thursday, March 5, 2026 at 4:00 PM, Eastern Time. Registration instructions and other details will be posted at https://science.osti.gov/grants/FOAs/Open.

Recommendation

SC encourages you to register in all systems as soon as possible. You are also encouraged to submit letters of intent (LOIs), pre-applications, and applications well before the deadline.

https://science.osti.gov/grants/FOAs/Open

II. Eligibility

A. Eligible Applicants

DOE EPSCoR follows NSF EPSCoR Program eligibility determinations. As a result, and in accordance with 2 CFR 910.126, competition, eligibility for award is restricted. All types of domestic applicants except nonprofit organizations described in section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that engaged in lobbying activities after December 31, 1995 that are within the following jurisdictions will be eligible for this NOFO: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Delaware, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Vermont, Virgin Islands, West Virginia, and Wyoming.

All research supported by an EPSCoR award must be performed in an EPSCoR jurisdiction or at a DOE National Laboratory. Funding support for the prime applicant and any potential subawardees is limited to those with addresses within one or more EPSCoR jurisdictions. As previously noted, DOE National Laboratories are not eligible for funding under this NOFO.

Funding of foreign entities is not permitted for this NOFO.

Non-profit organizations and for-profit applicants from EPSCoR jurisdictions may apply but must include academic institutions from EPSCoR jurisdictions as part of their team. For-profit applicants must include a letter from a responsible member of the applicant’s management committing that the location of the research as well as the staff participating for this application will be within one of the eligible jurisdictions. Industrial and for-profit organizations should note that if research is proposed in support of current commercial activity the application may be declined without merit review.

If a team involving more than one organization in addition to the required partnering with one or more national laboratories is envisaged, then one member institution of the team shall serve as the lead and other members of the team at other institutions must request support through subawards. Collaborative proposals are not allowed. The lead institution in the application must perform a greater portion of the scientific and technical work (as measured by the budget) than any other partner institution.

Federally affiliated1 entities must adhere to the eligibility standards below:

1 Institutions that are not DOE/NNSA National Laboratories, a non-DOE/NNSA FFRDC, or another Federal agency are not Federally affiliated, even if they receive Federal funds or perform work under a Federal award or contract.

1. DOE/NNSA National Laboratories

DOE/NNSA National Laboratories are neither eligible to submit applications under this NOFO nor to be proposed as subrecipients under another organization’s application.

2. Non-DOE/NNSA FFRDCs

Non-DOE/NNSA FFRDCs are neither eligible to submit applications under this NOFO nor to be proposed as subrecipients under another organization’s application.

3. Other Federal Agencies

Other Federal Agencies are neither eligible to submit applications under this NOFO nor to be proposed as subrecipients under another organization’s application.

Notes for applicants of all types:

This NOFO seeks to support fundamental research to advance understanding rather than to address commercial opportunities. Applications that propose research related to current commercial activity or current customer needs may be declined without merit review.

Applications that are submitted by applicants that have not submitted a required LOI, or pre-application will be declined without further review.

B. Cost Sharing

Cost sharing for basic and fundamental research is not required pursuant to an exclusion from the requirements of Section 988 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005.

Cost sharing will not be considered as a factor during merit review or award selection.

Note that demonstrations of institutional or third-party commitment to the proposed activity are required. The institutional commitment is not to be documented on the application’s budget: institutional commitments are neither a formal nor a voluntary committed cost sharing, but it must be identified as described in Section IV.

Examples of non-Federal contributions that may be considered as demonstrating institutional or third-party commitment include, but are not limited to, the following:

• The provision of space, facilities, equipment, or resources at no or reduced charge;

• The provision of release time for faculty;

• The provision of scholarship support for students; or

• The waiver of facilities and administrative costs, in whole or in part.

• Third party contributions (e.g., state, private entities, etc.)

Institutional commitments may not include the following:

• Revenues or royalties from the prospective operation of an activity beyond the time considered in the award;

• Proceeds from the prospective sale of an asset of an activity; or

• Other Federal awards.

C. Eligible Individuals

Individuals with the skills, knowledge, and resources necessary to carry out the proposed research as a Principal Investigator (PI) are invited to work with their organizations to develop an application.

SC does not require that individuals be U.S. citizens or permanent residents to be proposed as a PI or in any other role under an award, but all personnel working or proposed to work under an award must have the legal right to perform such work in the jurisdiction where the work will be performed. Individuals at any stage of their career may be proposed as a PI if they have the skills, knowledge, and resources necessary to carry out the proposed research.

D. Limitations on Submissions

Applicant institutions are limited to being lead institutions on no more than two pre-applications, or applications in each of the program areas listed below. Participation as a subawardee on pre-applications or applications submitted by other institutions is not limited. DOE will consider the latest received submissions to be the institution’s intended submissions.

• Pre-applications in excess of the limited number of submissions may be discouraged.

• Applications in excess of the limited number of submissions may be declined without review.

Should DOE receive submissions in excess of the applicable limits, DOE reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to request additional or clarifying information to ascertain the institution’s intended submissions. Otherwise, DOE will consider the latest received submissions to be the institution’s intended submissions.

Each institution is limited to two submissions as the lead institution per program area listed below (a. through m.). Pre-applications and applications must list the program area from this list and should also list the relevant research area/ research area program manager within the respective program area. See Section III.B.

a. Advanced Scientific Computing Research

b. Basic Energy Sciences

c. Biological and Environmental Research https://science.osti.gov/ascr https://science.osti.gov/bes https://science.osti.gov/ber

d. Fusion Energy Sciences

e. High Energy Physics

f. Isotope R&D and Production

g. Nuclear Physics

h. Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation

i. Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response

j. Office of Electricity

k. Office of Environmental Management

l. Hydrocarbons and Geothermal Energy Office

m. Office of Nuclear Energy

LIMITATIONS ON PI

An individual may only be PI on a single pre-application, or application from a lead institution. A PI may also be listed as a senior or key personnel, including in any role on a proposed subaward, on an unlimited number of separate submissions.

PIs must be in a permanent or long-term position at the applicant institution, whether tenured, tenure-track, or a staff appointment. Individuals in term-limited appointments whether as adjunct, visiting faculty, fellows, or similar appointments, are not eligible to be proposed as a PI. Individuals in part-time permanent positions are eligible to be proposed as a PI.

Individuals in a joint appointment are eligible to be proposed as a PI if work will be performed at the applicant institution and if the PI is a paid employee of the applicant institution. Individuals paid by another institution may not be named as the PI but may be named in other senior/key roles. A paid employee is one that is on the applicant institution’s payroll, receiving wages and benefits in accordance with the applicant institution’s normal wage and benefit practices, and whose position is not governed by any arrangement, agreement, or contract between the applicant institution and another institution.

Individuals receiving more than half of their salary and benefits from a DOE/NNSA National Laboratory may not be named as the PI in an application under this NOFO, regardless of any arrangement between the employing Laboratory and the applicant institution.

Awards made under this NOFO are intended to support activities at eligible applicant institutions. If the PI of an award made under this NOFO were to accept a position at an institution that is not eligible to receive an award under this NOFO, SC does not intend to deobligate funds from the resulting award to support a new award to the PI’s new institution. SC would be interested in the recipient institution proposing a new PI.

PIs are not required to be in tenure-track appointments.

https://science.osti.gov/fes https://science.osti.gov/hep https://science.osti.gov/Isotope-Research-Development-and-Production https://science.osti.gov/np https://www.energy.gov/cmei/office-critical-minerals-and-energy-innovation https://www.energy.gov/ceser/office-cybersecurity-energy-security-and-emergency-response https://www.energy.gov/oe/office-electricity https://www.energy.gov/em/office-environmental-management https://www.energy.gov/hgeo/hydrocarbons-and-geothermal-energy-office https://www.energy.gov/ne/office-nuclear-energy

III. Program Description

A. Purpose

The DOE SC Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) hereby announces its interest in receiving applications for Building EPSCoR-State/DOE-National Laboratory Partnerships. These partnerships advance understanding of the physical world by supporting fundamental, early-stage energy research collaborations with the DOE National Laboratories. (Information on the DOE National Laboratories including links to websites can be found at https://www.energy.gov/about-national-labs.) Participation by undergraduate students, graduate students, or postdoctoral fellows is required. Early career faculty from EPSCoR jurisdictions are encouraged to apply. Utilization of DOE user facilities is encouraged. (Information on the SC User Facilities can be found at https://science.osti.gov/User-Facilities/User-Facilities-at-a-Glance; information on the DOE Office of Nuclear Energy user facilities can be found at https://nsuf.inl.gov).

DOE EPSCoR follows NSF EPSCoR Program eligibility determinations. As a result, and in accordance with 2 CFR 910.126, competition, eligibility for award is restricted. Domestic applicants except nonprofit organizations described in section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that engaged in lobbying activities after December 31, 1995, that are within the following jurisdictions will be eligible to apply under this NOFO: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Delaware, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Vermont, Virgin Islands, West Virginia, and Wyoming.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

DOE EPSCoR is designed to help DOE lead the world in transformative science and in meeting the Nation’s energy needs by increasing the domestic geographic distribution of competitive research capability in DOE’s mission areas. Positioned within DOE’s Office of Science and supporting early-stage research across a wide range of DOE programs within the Office of Science and the Applied Energy Offices, DOE EPSCoR addresses its mission by issuing solicitations for DOE-relevant research in eligible states and territories. All eligibility and application requirements are covered in the relevant sections of this NOFO. Applicants should pay attention to the following key requirements/elements when preparing applications:

1. Applicant organizations (entities) may submit no more than two (2) pre-applications and applications as the lead organization within each of the program areas listed in Section II.D. Further details may be found in Section IV. A PI may lead only one pre-application or application to the NOFO.

https://www.energy.gov/about-national-labs https://science.osti.gov/User-Facilities/User-Facilities-at-a-Glance https://nsuf.inl.gov/

2. Applicants must propose scientific collaborations that partner academic institutions of higher education in EPSCoR jurisdictions and research staff at DOE National Laboratories.

These partnerships should leverage capabilities of DOE National Laboratories, particularly their user facilities.

3. National laboratory partners must provide a letter of commitment confirming their willingness to collaborate on the project for the application (endorsed by both the national laboratory collaborator and a senior member of laboratory management who is authorized to commit the laboratory to the collaboration). Please refer to Section IV. EPSCoR funds may not be used to support national laboratory participation in the research.

4. Letters of Institutional and/or EPSCoR jurisdiction commitment must be provided.

Please refer to Section IV.

5. Non-profit organizations and for-profit applicants from EPSCoR jurisdictions may apply as lead organizations but must include academic institutions from EPSCoR jurisdictions as part of their team. Non-profit organizations and for-profit organizations within EPSCoR jurisdictions may be included as team members under an application from another organization.

6. Applicants must include support for undergraduate students, graduate students, and/or postdoctoral fellows as active members of the research team. Early career faculty members are encouraged to apply.

7. The collaborative research must address early-stage scientific research in the physical, biological, computational, or engineering sciences. The research must be of public benefit and relevant to DOE’s Congressionally authorized mission. The most relevant DOE program office must be identified along with the topical research area and relevant program manager on the cover of the pre-application and on the application. If the relevant DOE program office, etc. is unknown, please contact the DOE EPSCoR office for assistance well in advance of the pre-application deadline. The websites for DOE research programs are provided in the links below; applicants are encouraged to read information available from the relevant websites to ensure that proposed research is aligned with the missions and priorities of one or more programs.

8. Investigators are encouraged to prioritize requests for funding of research equipment and instrumentation requests early in the award to maximize its availability for research in the following years.

https://www.energy.gov/mission

Program Objective

The U.S. Department of Energy's Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (DOE EPSCoR) is a federal-state partnership program designed to enhance the capabilities of designated states and territories to conduct nationally competitive energy-related research. DOE EPSCoR addresses this mission by fostering competitions for scientific and engineering research in states and territories that have demonstrated a commitment to develop their research bases and to improve the quality of science and engineering research conducted at their universities and colleges. DOE EPSCoR has a strong science orientation but welcomes applications for research spanning the range of program offices and topical areas covered by the Department. While a strong academic component including the education of graduate students or training of post-doctoral fellows is required, industrial participation or leadership on grant applications is also welcome.

Annual Meetings

The selected awardees should plan to attend annual or biennial PI meetings in the relevant DOE program area(s) and participate in coordination activities with other projects.

Applicants should anticipate a need for travel to effectively communicate with other researchers and request appropriate funding in their budgets.

Teaming Arrangements

Multi-Institutional Teams

Applications for multi-institutional teams must ensure that that the lead institution performs a greater portion of the scientific and technical work than any other team member.

Requests to change the institution performing the greatest portion of the scientific and technical work after an application is submitted will result in the application being declined unless the request is the result of the lead PI’s death, incapacitation, or relocation.

SC uses two different mechanisms to support teams of multiple institutions.

COLLABORATIVE APPLICATIONS

Collaborative applications (in which each team member submits its own application with a common Project Narrative) will NOT be accepted under this NOFO.

SUBAWARDS2

Multi-institutional teams must submit one application from a designated lead institution with all other team members proposed as subrecipients. Participation as a subawardee on other institutions submissions does not count towards limitations on submissions of pre-applications or applications by the subawardee’s institution.

DOE/National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) National Laboratories3, other Federal agencies, and another Federal agency’s FFRDCs4, may not be proposed as subrecipients.

Open Science

SC is dedicated to promoting the values of openness in Federally supported scientific research, including, but not limited to, ensuring that research may be reproduced and that the results of Federally supported research are made available to other researchers. These objectives may be met through any number of mechanisms including, but not limited to, data access plans, data sharing agreements, the use of archives and repositories, and the use of various licensing schemes.

The use of the phrase “open-source” does not refer to any particular licensing arrangement but is to be understood as encompassing any arrangement that furthers the objective of openness.

Opportunities for Early-Stage Investigators

A vibrant research community must be able to train and employ the next generation of researchers. Lead applicants that are not degree-granting institutions of higher education must include in their application a description of how they will promote opportunities for early-stage investigators. This description must include:

• A statement detailing the institutional provision of training, coaching, mentoring, and advising early-stage researchers;

• A statement detailing the career pathways available to early-stage researchers, including if protections akin to academic tenure are extended; and

• A statement detailing the institution’s commitment to research of a basic and fundamental nature, not related to current commercial activity.

2 Subawards are made to subrecipients. Both terms are defined in 2 CFR 200.1 (https://www.ecfr.gov) 3 The phrase “National Laboratories” is used broadly to encompass DOE/NNSA laboratories and sites capable of performing the work described in this NOFO and capable of receiving funds through the DOE Field Work System.

4 An authoritative list of all Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs) may be found at https://www.nsf.gov/statistics/ffrdclist/ https://www.ecfr.gov/ https://www.nsf.gov/statistics/ffrdclist/

Multi-Project Applications

SC permits applications that span multiple research areas described in this NOFO, including applications that span multiple programs or that involve multiple sub-projects or tasks. If proposing such an application:

• Ensure that the application describes an integrated and synergistic research effort.

Do not propose an unconnected agglomeration of discrete research efforts.

• Provide a description of the management of the overall research effort.

• Organize the narrative portion of the application by the topics, thrusts, programs, projects, or tasks.

• Provide both a summary budget and a budget for each topic, thrust, program, project, or task, using the Research & Related Subaward Budget Attachment(s) Form to provide the multiple budgets by identifying the budget type as being for a “project.” If required by your system-to-system software, the budgets may be identified as “subawards” from the same institution as the summary budget.

All entities submitting applications to this NOFO must recognize the moral and legal obligations to comply with export controls and policies that limit the transfer of technologies with potential dual use. Applicants are reminded that international activities must comply with nonproliferation, sanction, and other protocols described at https://www.trade.gov/export-solutions.

International activities related to special nuclear materials (SNM) are subject to additional requirements. Please see 10 CFR 810 for further information.

All work proposed under this NOFO must be for basic and fundamental research whose results may be published in scholarly literature. Do not submit applications containing restricted data or unclassified controlled nuclear information as defined in the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, 42 USC 2011, et seq., 10 CFR 1017, 10

CFR 1045.

B. Program Goals, Objectives, and Priorities

The Office of Science’s (SC) mission is to deliver scientific discoveries and major scientific tools to transform our understanding of nature and advance the energy, economic, and national security of the United States (U.S.). SC is the Nation’s largest Federal sponsor of basic research in the physical sciences and the lead Federal agency supporting fundamental scientific research for our Nation’s energy future.

SC accomplishes its mission and advances national goals by supporting:

• The frontiers of science—exploring nature’s mysteries from the study of fundamental subatomic particles, atoms, and molecules that are the building blocks of the materials of our universe and everything in it to the DNA, proteins, and cells that are the building https://www.trade.gov/export-solutions blocks of life. Each of the programs in SC supports research probing the most fundamental disciplinary questions.

• The 21st Century tools of science—providing the nation’s researchers with 28 state-of-the-art national scientific user facilities, the most advanced tools of modern science, propelling the U.S. to the forefront of science, technology development, and deployment through innovation.

• Science for energy and the environment―paving the knowledge foundation to spur discoveries and innovations for advancing the Department’s mission in energy and environment. SC supports a wide range of funding modalities from single principal investigators to large team-based activities to engage in fundamental research on energy production, conversion, storage, transmission, and use, and on our understanding of the earth systems.

SC is an established leader of the U.S. scientific discovery and innovation enterprise. Over the decades, SC investments and accomplishments in basic research and enabling research capabilities have provided the foundations for new technologies, businesses, and industries, making significant contributions to our nation’s economy, national security, and quality of life.

Individual Program Information

The EPSCoR program facilitates applications to specific DOE program areas with the Office of Science and several Applied Energy Offices. Additional details about these programs can be found in the website links below, within which current research priorities and contacts for specific topical area program managers can be found. Points of contact with respect to the EPSCoR program are also listed. The EPSCoR program manager can assist with information about the overall DOE EPSCoR program, this funding opportunity, facilitating conversations with different areas, or any other general questions.

DOE EPSCoR Program Website: https://science.osti.gov/bes/epscor Contact: EPSCoR Coordinator, EPSCoR.NOFO@science.doe.gov

Programs within the Office of Science

Advanced Scientific Computing (ASCR)

Website: https://www.energy.gov/science/ascr/advanced-scientific-computing-research and https://science.osti.gov/ascr/About

EPSCoR Contact: Carol Hawk, carol.hawk@science.doe.gov

Basic Energy Sciences (BES) Website: https://www.energy.gov/science/bes/basic-energy-sciences and https://science.osti.gov/bes/ https://science.osti.gov/bes/epscor mailto:EPSCoR.NOFO@science.doe.gov https://www.energy.gov/science/ascr/advanced-scientific-computing-research https://www.energy.gov/science/ascr/advanced-scientific-computing-research https://science.osti.gov/ascr/About mailto:carol.hawk@science.doe.gov https://www.energy.gov/science/bes/basic-energy-sciences https://science.osti.gov/bes/

EPSCoR Contact: John Vetrano, epscor.nofo@science.doe.gov

Biological and Environmental Research (BER)

Website: https://www.energy.gov/science/ber/biological-and-environmental-research and https://science.osti.gov/ber EPSCoR Contact: Dawn Adin, dawn.adin@science.doe.gov

Fusion Energy Sciences (FES) Website: https://www.energy.gov/science/fes/fusion-energy-sciences and https://science.osti.gov/fes EPSCoR Contact: Nirmol Podder, nirmol.podder@science.doe.gov

High Energy Physics (HEP)

Website: https://www.energy.gov/science/hep/high-energy-physics and https://science.osti.gov/hep/ Accelerator Stewardship programs (formerly ARDAP) are now part of HEP. Website:

https://science.osti.gov/ardap EPSCoR Contact: Jeremy Love, Jeremy.love@science.doe.gov

Nuclear Physics (NP) Website: https://www.energy.gov/science/np/nuclear-physics and https://science.osti.gov/np EPSCoR Contact: Michelle Shinn, michelle.shinn@science.doe.gov

Isotope R&D and Production (DOE IP)

Website: https://www.energy.gov/science/ip/isotope-rd-and-production-doe-ip and https://science.osti.gov/Isotope-Research-Development-and-Production

EPSCoR Contact: Ethan Balkin ethan.balkin@science.doe.gov

Current topical descriptions for areas within the Office of Science can be found DE-FOA- 0003600, the FY 2026 Continuation of Solicitation for the Office of Science Financial Assistance Program, at https://science.osti.gov/grants/FOAs/Open.

Applied Energy Program Areas

Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation (CMEI):

Website: https://www.energy.gov/cmei/office-critical-minerals-and-energy-innovation EPSCoR Contact: John Vetrano, epscor.nofo@science.doe.gov mailto:epscor.nofo@science.doe.gov https://www.energy.gov/science/ber/biological-and-environmental-research https://www.energy.gov/science/ber/biological-and-environmental-research https://science.osti.gov/ber mailto:dawn.adin@science.doe.gov https://www.energy.gov/science/fes/fusion-energy-sciences https://science.osti.gov/fes mailto:nirmol.podder@science.doe.gov https://www.energy.gov/science/hep/high-energy-physics https://science.osti.gov/hep/ https://science.osti.gov/ardap mailto:Jeremy.love@science.doe.gov https://www.energy.gov/science/np/nuclear-physics https://science.osti.gov/np mailto:michelle.shinn@science.doe.gov https://www.energy.gov/science/ip/isotope-rd-and-production-doe-ip https://science.osti.gov/Isotope-Research-Development-and-Production mailto:ethan.balkin@science.doe.gov https://science.osti.gov/grants/FOAs/Open https://www.energy.gov/eere/office-energy-efficiency-renewable-energy https://www.energy.gov/cmei/office-critical-minerals-and-energy-innovation https://www.energy.gov/cmei/office-critical-minerals-and-energy-innovation mailto:epscor.nofo@science.doe.gov

Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response (CESER) Website: https://www.energy.gov/ceser/office-cybersecurity-energy-security-and-emergency-response

EPSCoR Contacts: Nabeel Ahmed, nabeel.ahmed@hq.doe.gov

Office of Electricity (OE) Website: https://www.energy.gov/oe/office-electricity EPSCoR Contact: Caitlin Callaghan, caitlin.callaghan@hq.doe.gov

Office of Environmental Management (EM) Website: https://www.energy.gov/em/office-environmental-management EPSCoR Contact: Albert Kruger, albert.kruger@hanford.gov

Hydrocarbons and Geothermal Energy Office (HGEO)

a. Hydrocarbons Website: https://www.energy.gov/hgeo/hydrocarbons-and-geothermal-energy-office EPSCoR Contact: Caleb Woodall, caleb.woodall@hq.doe.gov

b. Geothermal Website: https://www.energy.gov/eere/geothermal/geothermal-technologies-office Contact: doe.geothermal@ee.doe.gov

Office of Nuclear Energy (NE) Website: https://www.energy.gov/ne/office-nuclear-energy EPSCoR Contact: Andrew Boulanger, andrew.boulanger@nuclear.energy.gov

C. Award Contribution to Goals and Objectives

Awards resulting from this NOFO are intended to increase our understanding of scientific phenomena and advance early-stage energy research goals pertinent to the particular Office and Program Area.

D. Performance Goals

You will be expected to demonstrate progress toward increasing knowledge in periodic progress reports. This could include reports required by both the program area and EPSCoR program coordinator.

E. Substantial Involvement

Not applicable.

F. Program Unallowable Costs https://www.energy.gov/ceser/office-cybersecurity-energy-security-and-emergency-response https://www.energy.gov/ceser/office-cybersecurity-energy-security-and-emergency-response mailto:nabeel.ahmed@hq.doe.gov https://www.energy.gov/oe/office-electricity mailto:caitlin.callaghan@hq.doe.gov https://www.energy.gov/em/office-environmental-management mailto:albert.kruger@hanford.gov https://www.energy.gov/hgeo/hydrocarbons-and-geothermal-energy-office mailto:caleb.woodall@hq.doe.gov https://www.energy.gov/eere/geothermal/geothermal-technologies-office mailto:doe.geothermal@ee.doe.gov https://www.energy.gov/ne/office-nuclear-energy mailto:andrew.boulanger@nuclear.energy.gov

You must apply the cost principles of 2 CFR 200, as modified by 2 CFR 910 and 10 CFR 605, to your application and any resulting award.

G. Citations to Statute and Regulations

The programmatic authorizing statutes and governing regulations are:

Section 646 of Public Law 95-91, U.S. Department of Energy Organization Act Section 901, et seq. of Public Law 109-58, Energy Policy Act of 2005 Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards, codified at 2 CFR 200 U.S. Department of Energy Financial Assistance Rules, codified at 2 CFR 910 U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science Financial Assistance Program Rule, codified at

10 CFR 605

H. Program History

You can learn about SC’s history at https://science.osti.gov/About/History. You can read about our achievements at https://science.osti.gov/Science-Features/Science-Highlights.

You can find information about all of our awards at https://pamspublic.science.energy.gov/WebPAMSExternal/interface/awards/AwardSearch External.aspx.

I. Other Information

ANTICIPATED AWARD SIZE

The award size will depend on the number of meritorious applications and the availability of appropriated funds.

MAXIMUM AND MINIMUM AWARD SIZE

Ceiling: $250,000 per year

Floor: $150,000 per year

Applicants may adjust the annual requested budget if the total project support requested is at or under $1,000,000 for a four-year project period. Requests for smaller awards below the floor will be considered when appropriate to the research effort. Applicants may, with compelling justification and approval, exceed the annual ceiling if the total budget does not exceed $1,000,000 for a four-year project period. Investigators are encouraged to prioritize requests for funding of research equipment and instrumentation requests early in the award to maximize its availability for the following years’ research efforts.

https://science.osti.gov/About/History https://science.osti.gov/Science-Features/Science-Highlights https://pamspublic.science.energy.gov/WebPAMSExternal/interface/awards/AwardSearchExternal.aspx https://pamspublic.science.energy.gov/WebPAMSExternal/interface/awards/AwardSearchExternal.aspx

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

DOE anticipates making awards with a project period of approximately 4 years.

Continuation funding (funding for the second and subsequent budget periods) is contingent on: (1) availability of funds appropriated by Congress and future year budget authority; (2) progress towards meeting the objectives of the approved application; (3) submission of required reports; and (4) compliance with the terms and conditions of the award.

AWARD BUDGET PERIODS

SC is committed to distributing workloads (internally and externally) across as much of the calendar as is practical. Accordingly, awards made under this NOFO will generally be made with budget periods that end between December 1 and June 30. New awards may be made with a first budget period of more than 12 months.

New applicants should prepare budgets with a first period that starts on 8/1/2026 and ends on 1/31/2028, followed by three additional 10-month periods (48-month total project period). Actual start dates and cycle dates may be negotiated if an application is recommended for award. Budget periods will generally not be made for less than 9 months or more than 18 months.

IV. Application Contents and Format

A. Preliminary Submissions

1. Letter of Intent (LOI)

Not applicable.

2. Pre-application

PRE-APPLICATION DUE DATE

The pre-application due date is printed on the cover of the NOFO.

ENCOURAGE/DISCOURAGE DATE

The pre-application response date is printed on the cover of the NOFO.

A pre-application is required and must be submitted by the date indicated on the cover of the NOFO.

Pre-applications will be reviewed for responsiveness of the proposed work to the research topics identified in this NOFO. DOE will send a response by email to each applicant encouraging or discouraging the submission of an application by the date indicated on the cover of the NOFO. Applicants who have not received a response regarding the status of their pre-application by this date are responsible for contacting the program to confirm this status.

Applications that have not been encouraged by DOE may be declined without merit review.

The pre-application is to help in planning the review and the selection of potential reviewers for the application. The pre-application must begin with a title page that will not count toward the pre-application page limitation. Include, at the top of the first page, the following information:

• The planned title of the research application

• The name and mailing address of the sponsoring institution

• The name, e-mail address, and telephone number of the PI and any co-PIs

• Funding Opportunity Announcement Number: DE-NOFO-0003615

• DOE Office Sponsoring this NOFO: DOE EPSCoR

• Program: [Select from the Office of Science or Applied Energy Programs listed in Section

III.B.]

• DOE EPSCoR Point of Contact: [see below] o For BES or Applied Energy Office proposals: John Vetrano o For other Programs in the Office of Science (ASCR, BER, DOE IP, FES, HEP, or

NP) choose the appropriate contact listed in section III.B.

• Topical Research Area: [Select the research area from within the program websites listed in Section III.B. For example in BES, this would be an area in MSE or CSGB.]

• Technical Contact: [Select the Program Manager best associated with the Research Area] o If there are multiple Research Areas, place the list below the first Technical Contact o For assistance, reach out to the DOE or Program Contact from Section III.B.

• National Laboratory(s) participating in the proposed research

• List of National Laboratory personnel participating in the proposed research

The material listed here defines the required content of a title page. Additional material is not allowed.

The first page of the pre-application must specify at least one scientific hypothesis whose investigation motivates the proposed work, using no more than 100 words.

This information must be followed by a clear and concise description of the objectives and technical approach of the proposed research. The pre-application may not exceed three pages, when printed using standard letter-size (8.5-inch x 11-inch) paper with 1-inch margins (top, bottom, left, and right). The font size of the body text must not be smaller than 11 points. Figures and references, if included, must fit within the three-page limit.

In addition, the pre-application must include a listing of senior/key personnel and a listing of individuals who should not serve as merit reviewers of a subsequent application. Detailed instructions for how to craft the required listings are provided in Section IX of this NOFO.

Note that the listing of individuals who should not serve as merit reviewers is rarely empty because the instructions contain mandatory inclusions requirements.

This listing will not count toward the pre-application’s page limit. The list of individuals must be included as an “Additional Attachment” to your pre-application in PAMS.

The pre-application may include a list of suggested reviewers (including email address and organizational affiliation) who they believe are especially well qualified to review the proposal. DOE is under no obligation to consider any suggested reviewers.

The pre-application must be machine-readable. Do not submit a scanned image of a printed document.

If a multi-institutional team is being proposed, provide the following information on a separate page. This information will not count toward the page limitation.

• List all institutions by name with each institution’s PI on the same line.

https://science.osti.gov/bes https://science.osti.gov/bes/mse https://science.osti.gov/bes/csgb

• Indicate the lead PI who will be the point of contact and coordinator for the combined research activity.

• Include a table modeled on the following chart providing summary budget information from all institutions. Provide the total costs of the budget request in each year for each institution and totals for all rows and columns.

Multi-Institutional Team Information

Names Institution Year 1 Budget

Year 2 Budget

Year 3 Budget

Year 4 Budget

Total Budget

Lead

PI

Co-PI Co-PI Co-PI

Example budget table ($ in thousands)

PRE-APPLICATION REVIEW

EPSCoR program managers and the selected program area may evaluate all or some portion of pre-applications to determine their competitiveness within a scientific topic.

Any review will be based on the following criteria:

1. Responsiveness to the objectives of the NOFO as stated in Section I.

2. Scientific and technical merit.

3. Appropriateness of the proposed research approaches.

4. Likelihood of scientific impact.

The decision to encourage or discourage the submission of an application may also be influenced by the following factors:

• Relevance of the proposed activity to EPSCoR and program area priorities

• Ensuring an appropriate balance of activities within the selected program area

Any such review that considers factors beyond #1 above will be concurred on by no fewer than three federal staff chosen for their topical knowledge and breadth of perspective. The review may also include subject matter experts, under the direction of federal program managers.

Reviews within a topical field will be a comparative review with priority given to scientifically innovative and forward-looking research with the highest likelihood of success as an application. The results of the review will be documented.

Applicants with the highest rated pre-applications will be encouraged to submit applications; others will be discouraged from submitting applications.

Written feedback about discouraged pre-applications will be provided on request after the deadline for the receipt of applications.

Topics with comparatively few pre-applications may not make use of such pre-application reviews. The ratio of encourage/discourage results will differ between topical subjects.

SC is committed to ensuring that a sufficient number of applicants will be encouraged to submit applications to foster a competitive merit review of the applications. SC’s intent in discouraging submission of certain applications is to save the time and effort of applicants in preparing and submitting applications with a low likelihood of success.

The PI will be automatically notified when the pre-application is encouraged or discouraged. The DOE SC Portfolio Analysis and Management System (PAMS) will send an email to the PI from PAMS.Autoreply@science.doe.gov, and the status of the pre-application will be updated at the PAMS website https://pamspublic.science.energy.gov/.

Notifications are sent as soon as the decisions to encourage or discourage are finalized.

PRE-APPLICATION SUBMISSION

Pre-applications are created in the software system of your choice and must be submitted electronically through the DOE SC Portfolio Analysis and Management System (PAMS) website https://pamspublic.science.energy.gov/. You cannot draft or edit a pre-application in PAMS. Do not submit a pre-application through FedConnect or Grants.gov.

Pre-applications may only be submitted by a user at the PI’s institution with the “Submit to DOE” privilege in PAMS. A PI may draft a pre-application but will only be able to submit the pre-application for institutional countersignature.

Applicants are strongly encouraged to inform their DOE Program Manager if teaming arrangements, proposed personnel, topics, or the anticipated title change between submitting the pre-application and when an application is submitted, to ensure that their application is properly linked to their pre-application and that reviewers are properly assigned to the application.

Detailed instructions about how to submit a pre-application are in Section IX of this NOFO.

B. Application

Applications in response to this NOFO must be submitted through Grants.gov. Detailed instructions for registering in and using Grants.gov are in Section IX of this NOFO.

mailto:PAMS.Autoreply@science.doe.gov https://pamspublic.science.energy.gov/ https://pamspublic.science.energy.gov/ https://www.fedconnect.net/ https://www.grants.gov/

C. Component Pieces of the Application

LETTERS OF COLLABORATION OR ACCESS

Letters must be included in Appendix 7 for collaborators or describing institutional or jurisdictional commitment to a research narrative. These are not considered part of the research narrative’s page limit. Please ensure the letters only describe the nature of the collaboration or the commitment or the access to data, models, software, equipment and/or facilities only describe the nature of the collaboration or the access to data, models, software, equipment and/or facilities. Letters of recommendation are not allowed in applications under this NOFO.

All letters may be addressed “To Whom It May Concern:”

SCIENTIFIC USER FACILITIES

Documentation from any SC scientific user facility…