EPA-OW-OWM-Training-Support-RFP.pdf

Federal Agency Name: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water, Office of Wastewater Management

Funding Opportunity Title: FY 2015 Training Workshop Support Activities for NPDES Program

Announcement Type: Request for Proposals (RFP)

Funding Opportunity Number: EPA-OW-OWM –15-01

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 66.436

Dates: Proposals must be received electronic submission via Grants.gov by 11:59 PM EST November 2, 2015. Questions about this Request for Proposals must be submitted in writing via e-mail and must be received by the Agency Contact identified in Section VII before October 21, 2015. Written responses will be posted on EPA’s web site at:

http://water.epa.gov/polwaste/npdes/NPDES-Training-Courses-and-Workshops.cfm

Following EPA’s evaluation of proposals, all applicants will be notified regarding their status.

Final applications will be requested from those eligible entities whose proposal have been successfully evaluated and preliminarily recommended for award. Those entities will be provided with instructions and a due date for submittal of the final application package.

Note to Applicants: If you name subawardees/subgrantees and/or contractor(s) in your proposal to assist you with the proposed project, pay careful attention to the information in the CONTRACTS AND SUBAWARDS provision found at http://www.epa.gov/ogd/competition/solicitation_provisions.htm.

SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is soliciting proposals from eligible applicants to plan, prepare, and provide technical support for delivery of national training workshops to build the capacity of permitting authorities to implement the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) program. The two training workshop support activities identified in this announcement are: Activity I, plan, prepare, and provide technical support for National Stormwater and Pretreatment Workshops; and Activity II, plan, prepare, and provide technical support for National NPDES and Nutrient Workshops. Funds awarded under this announcement for either of the two training workshop support activities may be used to promote participation and to support travel expenses of non-federal personnel to attend the workshops.

Both training workshop support activities support the following goal of the EPA Strategic Plan:

EPA Strategic Plan: Goal 2: Protecting America’s Waters, Objective 2.2: Protect and Restore Watersheds and Aquatic Ecosystems. Information on the EPA Strategic Plan is available at http://www2.epa.gov/planandbudget/fy-2014-2018-strategic-plan.

States, local governments, federally recognized Indian Tribes, intertribal consortia, territories, possessions of the U.S. (including the District of Columbia), public and private universities and http://www2.epa.gov/planandbudget/fy-2014-2018-strategic-plan colleges, hospitals, laboratories, and public or private non-profit institutions are eligible to apply.

Individuals and for-profit organizations are not eligible to apply. Non-profit organizations described in Section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code that engage in lobbying activities as defined in Section 3 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 are not eligible to apply. As discussed in Section I.D, funding for assistance agreements awarded under this RFP is provided under the authority of Section 104(b)(3) of the Clean Water Act (CWA).

The total amount of federal funding available under this announcement is approximately $890,000, depending on Agency funding levels, the quality of proposals received, and other applicable considerations. It is anticipated that two awards will be made under this announcement: one award for the National Stormwater and Pretreatment Workshops (Activity I);

and one award for the National NPDES and Nutrient Workshops (Activity II). It is anticipated that the award for the National Stormwater and Pretreatment Workshops will be $255,000, to be incrementally funded up to $51,000 per year over a five year project period. It is anticipated that the award for the National NPDES and Nutrient Workshops will be $635,000, to be incrementally funded on average at $127,000 per year (with some variation based on the meetings scheduled each year) over a five year project period.

I. FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION

A. BACKGROUND

EPA is soliciting proposals from eligible applicants to plan, prepare, and provide technical support for delivery of national training workshops to build the capacity of permitting authorities to implement the NPDES program. Permitting authorities may include states, territories, or tribes. Currently 46 states and one territory are authorized to implement the NPDES program.

Hereafter “permitting authorities” will refer to these entities. The two training workshop support activities identified in this announcement are: (Activity I) plan, prepare, and provide technical support for five National Stormwater and Pretreatment Workshops; and (Activity II) plan, prepare, and provide technical support for three biennial National NPDES Workshops and up to seven Nutrient Workshops. Funds awarded under this announcement for either of the two training workshop support activities may be used to promote participation and to support travel expenses of non-federal personnel to attend the meetings/workshops.

As discussed in Section I.D, funding for assistance agreements awarded under this RFP is provided under the authority of Section 104(b)(3) of the CWA.

B. TRAINING WORKSHOP SUPPORT ACTIVITIES

Each proposal submitted under this announcement must address one, and only one, of the two training workshops support activities (i.e., Activity 1: National Stormwater and Pretreatment Workshops or Activity 2: National NPDES and Nutrients Workshops) described below.

Applicants may submit more than one complete project proposal package (including SF 424, SF 424A, and Proposal Narrative) under this announcement as long as each one is separately submitted and addresses only one training workshop support activity. The cover page of each proposal package must clearly indicate the training workshop support activity addressed in the proposal. Proposals that address more than one training workshop support activity will be deemed ineligible and will not be reviewed.

Activity I: National Stormwater and Pretreatment Workshops EPA anticipates awarding one cooperative agreement under this training workshop support activity for a total available funding of approximately $255,000, depending on the amount requested and the overall size and scope of the project. It is anticipated that the project period for the award will be five years and that the award will be incrementally funded up to $51,000 per year, depending on Agency priorities, availability of funds, and satisfactory performance of the recipient.

EPA is soliciting proposals from eligible applicants to plan, prepare, and provide technical support for five annual national workshops. The annual workshops should alternate topics each year, and consist of two pretreatment and three stormwater – focused workshops.

The project components described below provide some detail on roles and responsibilities the successful applicant may be expected to assume in order to establish and manage the stormwater and pretreatment national workshops. The description below does not attempt to be comprehensive. However, the project components described do support the proposal review and selection criteria in Section V.A., and may provide guidance as applicants decide what activities will be needed to successfully support the training workshops. Applicants are encouraged to identify additional project components that may not be included in the announcement, but that may contribute to overall project success in their proposals.

The target audience for the National Stormwater and Pretreatment Workshops is expected to include primarily permitting authority personnel and may also include local and regional officials, stakeholders, and national experts. An estimated 50-75 participants are expected to attend each national workshop, approximately 75% permitting authority staff, 20% EPA staff, and 5% non-permitting authority/non-federal. Applicants may propose to use a portion of the assistance funds to defray transportation and subsistence expenses for non-federal attendees to attend the training workshops. The applicant is solely responsible for determining a methodology for selecting and funding reimbursement requests and providing a report on how participating non-federal attendees benefited from the training workshops. EPA will not participate in the selection or approval of individuals who receive travel assistance.

The overall goals of the National Stormwater Workshops are:

• To facilitate information sharing between permitting authorities and EPA on pivotal topics in the municipal, construction, and industrial stormwater permitting program;

• To improve the quality of stormwater permits;

• To engage with stormwater coordinators on program visioning; and

• To share lessons learned and innovative advances in stormwater.

The overall goals of the National Pretreatment Workshops are:

• To engage with leaders the permitting authorities on program vision and managing complex policy issues relevant to the national pretreatment program; and

• To offer technical training and assistance to permitting authorities on a wide variety of NPDES and pretreatment and related program areas.

Meetings on both topics should focus on issues of broad national concern and may be general or topic specific. The types of issues that should be addressed in these meetings include, but are not limited to: roles and responsibilities, program streamlining and use of technology, permitting and oversight of industries for which the EPA or permitting authority is the Control Authority, emerging program areas (including specific emerging contaminants), and technical issues.

Technical issues might include municipal or industrial treatment technologies or emerging issues of concern (such as implementation of a new standard or effluent limitation guideline). These meetings should offer specific concrete information to stakeholders as well as opportunities for permitting authorities to share best practices with each other.

In their proposals, applicants should outline the steps they will take to plan, prepare, and provide technical support for the training workshops and describe the roles and responsibilities of the applicant in carrying out the training workshops. The proposal should describe the approach for consulting with permitting authorities, EPA, and other invited stakeholders to determine the training priorities and/or agendas for the training workshops. The proposal should also include a description of how the applicant will transfer the results of the training workshops to permitting authorities. In their proposals, applicants should demonstrate their experience working with and convening permitting authorities and federal agencies responsible for implementing the NPDES program, especially with regards to implementing the pretreatment and stormwater programs.

The training workshops should be located in or near major U.S. cities to most effectively accommodate travel needs of participants. Wherever possible, the workshops should be held at EPA Regional Offices or other no-cost government space. The successful applicant should provide the overall leadership for the training workshops, select workshop locations, secure workshop facilities (meeting rooms, accommodations, audio-visual equipment, etc.), develop workshop agendas and materials, and select the speakers. EPA will support the workshops by providing technical and programmatic assistance, meeting promotion, and review of meeting agendas and materials. It is anticipated that the successful applicant will use its logos on any materials it provides and EPA will use its logos on any materials it provides.

Proposals will be evaluated based on the criteria in Section V including how well and thoroughly this training workshop support activity is addressed.

Activity II: National NPDES and Nutrient Workshops EPA anticipates awarding one cooperative agreement under this training workshop support activity for a total available funding of approximately $635,000, depending on the amount requested and the overall size and scope of the project. It is anticipated that the project period for the award will be five years and that the award will be incrementally funded on average at $127,000 per year, depending on Agency priorities, availability of funds, and satisfactory performance of the recipient.

EPA is soliciting proposals from eligible applicants to plan, prepare, and provide technical support for three biennial National NPDES Workshops and up to seven National Nutrient Workshops. Under this training workshop support activity, the proposal must address the two elements further described below.

Applicants with expertise in one of the elements may partner with another (other) eligible organization(s) to submit a proposal which addresses the two elements of this training workshop support activity. Please carefully review the CONTRACTS AND SUBAWARDS provision found at http://www.epa.gov/ogd/competition/solicitation_provisions.htm for information regarding proposals that include partners as subawardees.

Proposals for awards under this training workshop support activity must address both of the following two elements (Element A., National NPDES Workshops and Element B., National Nutrient Workshops):

Element A: National NPDES Workshops Under Element A., applicants should describe an approach to plan, prepare, and provide technical support for three National NPDES Workshops (eg., one workshop every other year over five years.)

The project components described below provide some detail on roles and responsibilities the successful applicant may be expected to assume in order to establish and manage the NPDES National Program Workshops. The description below does not attempt to be comprehensive.

However, the project components described do support the proposal review and selection criteria in Section V.A., and may provide guidance as applicants decide what activities will be needed to successfully support the training workshops. Applicants are encouraged to identify additional project components that may not be included in this announcement, but that may contribute to overall project success in their proposals.

The target audience for the National NPDES Workshops is expected to include primarily permitting authority program personnel and may also include local and regional officials, stakeholders, and national experts. An estimated 100-120 participants are expected to attend each training workshop; approximately 50% permitting authorities (representatives of up to 46 authorized programs), 5% non-permitting authority/non-federal, 20% EPA Regional offices and 25% EPA headquarters. EPA attendance is twofold: headquarters staff will be primarily serving as trainers, and Regional staff will attend so as to clarify any Regional policies of which states should be aware. Applicants may propose to use a portion of the assistance funds to defray transportation and subsistence expenses for non-federal attendees to attend the training workshops. The applicant is solely responsible for determining a methodology for selecting and funding reimbursement requests and providing a report on how participating non-federal attendees benefited from the training workshops. EPA will not participate in the selection or approval of individuals who receive travel assistance.

The overall goals of the National NPDES Workshops are: (1) to engage with leaders in permitting authorities on program vision and managing complex policy issues; and (2) to offer technical training and assistance to permitting authority on a wide variety of NPDES and related program areas.

Each training workshop should address one of the following goals, with Goal 1 sessions aimed towards program managers, and Goal 2 sessions geared towards senior technical staff. Both goals should be addressed in the course of the project period.

Goal 1 sessions should focus on issues of broad national concern, and may be general or topic specific. The types of issues that should be addressed in these meetings include, but are not limited to: permitting for nutrients, roles and responsibilities, program streamlining and use of technology, managing increasing complexity with decreasing funding, emerging program areas, and program expectations.

Goal 2 sessions should focus on issues that are technical in nature. They might be ongoing technical issues (such as whole effluent toxicity testing) or emerging issues of concern (such as implementation of a new standard or effluent limitation guideline). Examples of potential topics include, but are not limited to: whole effluent toxicity, construction stormwater, municipal stormwater, industrial stormwater, water quality trading, permit quality reviews, electronic notice of intent, compliance schedules, water quality standards implementation, effluent guidelines implementation, modelling methodology, total maximum daily load implementation, use of variances, and nutrients. These sessions should offer specific concrete information to stakeholders as well as opportunities for permitting authorities to share best practices with each other.

In their proposals, applicants should outline the steps they will take to plan, prepare, and provide technical support for the training workshops and describe the roles and responsibilities of the applicant in carrying out the training workshops. The proposal should describe the approach for consulting with permitting authorities, EPA, and other interested stakeholders to determine the training priorities and/or agendas for the training workshops. The proposal should also include a description of how the applicant will transfer the results of the training workshops to permitting authorities and other interested stakeholders. In their proposals, applicants should demonstrate their experience working with and convening permitting authorities and federal agencies responsible for implementing the NPDES program.

The training workshops should be located in or near major U.S. cities to most effectively accommodate travel needs of participants. Wherever possible, the workshops should be held at EPA Regional offices or other no-cost government space. The successful applicant will provide the overall leadership for the training workshops, select workshop locations, secure workshop facilities (meeting rooms, accommodations, audio-visual equipment, etc.), develop workshop agendas and materials, and select the speakers. EPA will support the workshops by providing technical and programmatic assistance, workshop promotion, and review of workshop agendas and materials. It is anticipated that the successful applicant will use its logos on any materials it provides and EPA will use its logos on any materials it provides.

Element B: National Nutrient Workshops

Under Element B., applicants should describe an approach to plan, prepare, and provide technical support for up to seven National Nutrient Workshops (eg. one to two workshops each year over five years).

The project components described below provide some detail on roles and responsibilities the successful applicant may be expected to assume in order to establish and manage NPDES National Nutrient Workshops. The description below does not attempt to be comprehensive.

However, the project components described do support the proposal review and selection criteria in Section V.A., and may provide guidance as applicants decide what activities will be needed to successfully support the training workshops. Applicants are encouraged to identify additional project components that may not be included in this announcement, but that may contribute to overall project success in their proposals.

The target audience for the National Nutrient Workshops is expected to include primarily permitting authority personnel and may also include local and regional officials, stakeholders, and national experts. An estimated 50-60 participants are expected to attend each training workshop; approximately 60% permitting authorities, <1% non-state/non-federal, 30% EPA Regional Offices and 10% EPA Headquarters. Applicants may propose to use a portion of the assistance funds to defray transportation and subsistence expenses for non-federal attendees to attend the training workshops. The applicant is solely responsible for determining a methodology for selecting and funding reimbursement requests and providing a report on how participating non-federal attendees benefited from the training workshops. EPA will not participate in the selection or approval of individuals who receive travel assistance.

The overall goal of the National Nutrients Workshops is to offer permitting authorities clear and constructive information on methods for establishing and implementing numeric nutrient limits in NPDES permits. It is anticipated that this will be accomplished through a combination of EPA-led instruction (estimated 2 days) and permitting authority sharing facilitated by the applicant (estimated 1 day). Permitting authority sessions should consider breadth related to types of nutrient implementation, stage in the nutrient implementation process, and geographic range.

In their proposals, applicants should outline the steps they will take to plan, prepare, and provide technical support for the training workshops and describe the roles and responsibilities of the applicant in carrying out the workshops. The proposal should describe the approach for consulting with permitting authorities, EPA, and other interested stakeholders to determine the training priorities and/or agendas for the training workshops. The proposal should also include a description of how the applicant will transfer the results of the training workshops to permitting authorities and other interested stakeholders. In their proposals, applicants should demonstrate their experience working with and convening permitting authorities, and federal agencies responsible for implementing the NPDES program.

The training workshops should be located in or near major U.S. cities to most effectively accommodate travel needs of participants. Wherever possible, the workshops should be held at EPA Regional Offices or other no-cost government space. The successful applicant should provide the overall leadership for the national meetings, select meeting locations, secure meeting facilities (meeting rooms, accommodations, audio-visual equipment, etc.), develop meeting agendas and materials, and select the speakers. EPA will support the workshops by providing technical and programmatic assistance, instructors for the EPA-led portions of the meeting, meeting promotion, and review of meeting agendas and materials. It is anticipated that the successful applicant will use its logos on any materials it provides and EPA will use its logos on any materials it provides.

Proposals will be evaluated based on the criteria in Section V including how well and thoroughly both elements of this training workshop support activity are addressed.

C. ENVIRONMENTAL RESULTS AND LINKAGE TO STRATEGIC PLAN

All proposed projects must demonstrate the linkage to the EPA Strategic Plan and include specific statements describing the environmental results of the proposed project in terms of well-defined outputs and, to the maximum extent practicable, well-defined outcomes that will demonstrate how the project will contribute to the overall goals of the EPA Strategic Plan, available at http://www2.epa.gov/planandbudget/fy-2014-2018-strategic-plan

Environmental results are a way to gauge a project’s performance and are described in terms of outputs and outcomes. Environmental outputs (or deliverables) refer to an environmental activity, effort, and/or associated work product related to an environmental goal or objective, that will be produced or provided over a period of time or by a specified date. Outputs may be quantitative or qualitative, but must be measurable during an assistance agreement funding period.

Examples of anticipated environmental outputs from the cooperative agreement to be awarded under this announcement for Activity I: National Stormwater and Pretreatment Workshops include, but are not limited to the following:

• Increased expertise and experience in reviewing and approving municipal pretreatment programs;

• Increased expertise and experience in oversight of municipal pretreatment programs, including use of tools to assess local program implementation (audits, inspections, annual reports) for environmental improvement;

• Increased management and oversight of, and methods to address, industries for which the EPA or permitting authority is the Control Authority;

• Program management and goal-based meetings addressing nationally significant topics;

• Technical training workshops on topics such as: local limits for contaminants of emerging concern, assessment determination of cases of interference and pass through, implementation of new effluent guidelines and pretreatment standards for particular industrial sectors;

• Increased expertise and experience in oversight of municipal, construction, and industrial programs; and

• Increased coordination and sharing of information to better address stormwater issues.

Examples of anticipated environmental outputs from the cooperative agreement to be awarded under this announcement for Activity II: National NPDES and Nutrient Workshops include, but are not limited to the following:

• Increased expertise and experience in establishing numeric nutrient effluent limitations;

• Program management and goal-based meetings addressing nationally significant topics;

and

• Technical training workshops on topics such as: whole effluent toxicity, construction stormwater, municipal stormwater, industrial stormwater, water quality trading, permit quality reviews, electronic notice of intent, compliance schedules, water quality standards implementation, effluent guidelines implementation, modelling methodology, total maximum daily load implementation, use of variances, and nutrients.

Environmental outcomes, by comparison, are the result, effect, or consequence that will occur from carrying out an environmental program or activity that is related to an environmental or programmatic goal or objective, and are used as a way to gauge a project’s performance and take the form of output measures and outcome measures. Outcomes must be quantitative and need not necessarily be achieved within an assistance agreement funding period. Outcomes may be short-term (changes in learning, knowledge, attitude, skills), intermediate (changes in behavior, practice, or decisions), or long-term (changes in condition of the natural resource).

Examples of anticipated environmental outcomes from the cooperative agreement to be awarded under this announcement for Activity I: National Stormwater and Pretreatment Workshops include, but are not limited to the following:

• Improved oversight of industries for which the EPA or permitting authority is the Control Authority;

• Improved stormwater permit quality;

• Enhanced communication between NPDES Permit Writers and Pretreatment Programs;

and between NPDES Enforcement and Pretreatment Programs

• Improved consistency in application of effluent guidelines and pretreatment standards

• Improved communication and coordination among stormwater permitting authorities

• Increased permitting authority engagement on complex stormwater issues, resulting in better, more effective solutions.

Examples of anticipated environmental outcomes from the cooperative agreement to be awarded under this announcement for Activity II: National NPDES and Nutrient Workshops include, but are not limited to the following:

• Increased issuance of permits that include limits for nutrients, resulting in improved compliance and water quality.

• Improved communications between permitting authorities and EPA, resulting in better implementation of the program’s goal of protecting water quality.

• Improved permit quality resulting in better water quality.

• Improved consistency between permitting authorities in permitting to protect water quality.

• Increased permitting authority engagement on complex environmental issues, resulting in better, more effective environmental solutions.

As part of the Proposal Narrative, an applicant will be required to describe how the project results will link the outcomes to the Agency’s Strategic Plan. In addition, applicants will have to describe their plan and approach for tracking and measuring their progress towards achieving expected outputs and outcomes. Additional information regarding EPA’s definition of environmental results in terms of outputs and outcomes can be found at:

http://www.epa.gov/ogd/epa_order_5700_7a1.pdf.

D. STATUTORY AUTHORITY

The statutory authority for the assistance agreements to be funded under this announcement is Section 104(b)(3) of the CWA. CWA Section 104(b)(3) restricts the use of these assistance agreements to the following: conducting or promoting the coordination and acceleration of research, investigations, experiments, training, demonstrations, surveys, and studies relating to the causes, effects (including health and welfare effects), extent, prevention, reduction, and elimination of water pollution. Implementation projects are not eligible for funding under this announcement.

II. AWARD INFORMATION

A. AMOUNT OF FUNDING

The total amount of federal funding available under this announcement is approximately $890,000, depending on Agency funding levels, the quality of proposals received, and other applicable considerations. It is anticipated that two awards will be made under this announcement: one award for the National Stormwater and Pretreatment Workshops (Activity I);

and one award for the National NPDES and Nutrient Workshops (Activity II). It is anticipated that the award for the National Stormwater and Pretreatment Workshops will be $255,000, to be incrementally funded up to $51,000 per year over a five year project period. It is anticipated that the award for National NPDES and Nutrient Workshops will be $635,000, to be incrementally funded on average at $127,000 per year (with some variation based on the meetings scheduled each year) over a five year project period.

In appropriate circumstances, EPA reserves the right to partially fund a proposal by funding discrete portions or phases of a proposed project. If EPA decides to partially fund a proposal, it will do so in a manner that does not prejudice any applicants or affect the basis upon which the proposal or portion thereof, was evaluated and selected for award, and therefore maintains the integrity of the competition and selection process.

EPA reserves the right to make no awards under this announcement. In addition, EPA reserves the right to make additional awards under this announcement, consistent with Agency policy and guidance, if additional funding becomes available after the original selections are made. Any additional selections for awards will be made no later than six months after the original selection decisions.

B. TYPE OF FUNDING

It is anticipated that cooperative agreements will be funded under this announcement. When a cooperative agreement is awarded, EPA will have substantial involvement with the project workplans and budget. Although EPA will negotiate precise terms and conditions relating to substantial involvement as part of the award process, the anticipated substantial federal involvement for a project selected may include:

http://www.epa.gov/ogd/epa_order_5700_7a1.pdf

1. Close monitoring of the recipient’s performance to verify the results proposed by the applicant;

2. Collaboration during the performance of the scope of work;

3. In accordance with the applicable regulations at 2 CFR 200.317 and 2 CFR 200.318, as appropriate, review of proposed procurements;

4. Review of qualifications of key personnel (EPA does not have authority to select employees or contractors employed by the recipient); and

5. Review and comment on tasks/deliverables and reports prepared under the cooperative agreement(s). The final decision on the content of these reports rests with the recipient.

III. ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION

A. ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS

States, local governments, federally recognized Indian Tribes, intertribal consortia, territories, possessions of the U.S. (including the District of Columbia), public and private universities and colleges, hospitals, laboratories, and public or private non-profit institutions are eligible to apply.

Individuals and for-profit entities are not eligible. Non-profit organizations described in Section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code that engage in lobbying activities as defined in Section 3 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 are not eligible to apply.

An intertribal consortium is a partnership between two or more tribes that is authorized by the governing bodies of those tribes to apply for and receive assistance. (See 40 CFR 35.502.) The intertribal consortium is eligible only if the consortium demonstrates that all of its members meet the eligibility requirements and authorize the consortium to apply for and receive assistance in accordance with 40 CFR 35.504 at the time of proposal submission. An intertribal consortium must submit with its proposal to EPA adequate documentation of the existence of the partnership and the authorization of the consortium by its members to apply for and receive the grant. (See 40 CFR 35.504.) Non-profit applicants may be asked to provide documentation that they meet the definition of a non-profit organization in OMB Circular A-122.

B. COST SHARING/MATCH REQUIREMENTS

No cost-share/match is required under this announcement.

C. THRESHOLD ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

These are requirements that if not met by the time of proposal submission will result in elimination of the proposal from consideration for funding. Only proposals that meet all of these criteria will be evaluated against the ranking factors in Section V of the announcement.

Applicants deemed ineligible for funding consideration as a result of the threshold eligibility review will be notified within 15 calendar days of the ineligibility determination.

1. An applicant must meet the eligibility requirements in Section III.A of this announcement.

2. Proposals must address one, and only one, of the training workshop support activities (Activity 1 or Activity II) listed in Section I.B, although eligible organizations may submit more than one proposal as long as each one is separately submitted and addresses only one training workshop support activity. Proposals that address more than one training workshop support activity will not be reviewed.

3. Proposals for Activity II must address both of the two elements of that training workshop support activity (Element A. National NPDES Workshops, and Element B. National Nutrient Workshops) as described in Section I.B.

4. Proposals must substantially comply with the proposal submission instructions and requirements set forth in Section IV of this announcement or else they will be rejected.

However, where a page limit is expressed in Section IV.C.3 with respect to the proposal, pages in excess of the page limitation will not be reviewed. Section IV.C.3 establishes a 12-page, single-spaced Proposal Narrative page limit that does not include the cover page.

5. In addition, initial proposals must be submitted through www.grants.gov as stated in Section IV of this announcement (except in the limited circumstances where another mode of submission is specifically allowed for as explained in Section IV) on or before the proposal submission deadline published in Section IV of this announcement.

Applicants are responsible for following the submission instructions in Section IV of this announcement to ensure that their proposal is timely submitted.

6. Proposals submitted after the submission deadline will be considered late and deemed ineligible without further consideration unless the applicant can clearly demonstrate that it was late due to EPA mishandling or because of technical problems associated with Grants.gov or relevant SAM.gov system issues. An applicant’s failure to timely submit their proposal/application through Grants.gov because they did not timely or properly register in SAM.gov or Grants.gov will not be considered an acceptable reason to consider a late submission. Applicants should confirm receipt of their proposal with Amelia Letnes (letnes.amelia@epa.gov) as soon as possible after the submission deadline—failure to do so may result in your proposal not being reviewed.

7. Proposals must be for projects that improve water quality by conducting or promoting the coordination and acceleration of research, investigations, experiments, training, demonstrations, surveys, and studies relating to the causes, effects, extent, prevention, reduction, and elimination of water pollution. Implementation projects are not eligible for funding under this announcement.

8. If a proposal is submitted that includes any ineligible tasks or activities, that portion of the proposal will be ineligible for funding and may, depending on the extent to which it affects the proposal, render the entire proposal ineligible for funding.

9. Proposals must be consistent with the funding restrictions set forth in Section IV.E.

10. Proposals must not propose budgets greater than $255,000 for Activity I and $635,000 for Activity II, as described in Section I. Proposals that propose budgets exceeding these limits will be deemed ineligible.

IV. PROPOSAL AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION

A. Requirement to Submit Through Grants.gov and Limited Exception Procedures

Applicants, except as noted below, must apply electronically through Grants.gov under this funding opportunity based on the grants.gov instructions in this announcement. If an applicant does not have the technical capability to apply electronically through grants.gov because of http://www.sam.gov/ http://grants.gov/ http://www.sam.gov/ http://www.grants.gov/ http://www.sam.gov/ http://grants.gov/ mailto:letnes.amelia@epa.gov http://www.grants.gov/ limited or no internet access which prevents them from being able to upload the required application materials to Grants.gov, the applicant must contact OGDWaivers@epa.gov or the address listed below in writing (e.g., by hard copy, email) at least 15 calendar days prior to the submission deadline under this announcement to request approval to submit their application materials through an alternate method.

Mailing Address:

OGD Waivers c/o Barbara Perkins USEPA Headquarters William Jefferson Clinton Building 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., N. W.

Mail Code: 3903R Washington, DC 20460

Courier Address:

OGD Waivers c/o Barbara Perkins Ronald Reagan Building 1300 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.

Rm # 51267 Washington, DC 20004

In the request, the applicant must include the following information:

• Funding Opportunity Number (FON)

• Organization Name and DUNS

• Organization’s Contact Information (email address and phone number)

• Explanation of how they lack the technical capability to apply electronically through

Grants.gov because of 1) limited internet access or 2) no internet access which prevents them from being able to upload the required application materials through www.Grants.gov.

EPA will only consider alternate submission exception requests based on the two reasons stated above and will timely respond to the request -- all other requests will be denied. If an alternate submission method is approved, the applicant will receive documentation of this approval and further instructions on how to apply under this announcement. Applicants will be required to submit the documentation of approval with any initial application submitted under the alternative method. In addition, any submittal through an alternative method must comply with all applicable requirements and deadlines in the announcement including the submission deadline and requirements regarding proposal content and page limits (although the documentation of approval of an alternate submission method will not count against any page limits).

If an exception is granted, it is valid for submissions to EPA for the remainder of the entire calendar year in which the exception was approved and can be used to justify alternative submission methods for application submissions made through December 31 of the calendar year in which the exception was approved (e.g., if the exception was approved on March 1, 2015, it is valid for any competitive or non-competitive application submission to EPA through December mailto:Grants.gov mailto:OGDWaivers@epa.gov

31, 2015). Applicants need only request an exception once in a calendar year and all exceptions will expire on December 31 of that calendar year. Applicants must request a new exception from required electronic submission through Grants.gov for submissions for any succeeding calendar year. For example, if there is a competitive opportunity issued on December 1, 2015 with a submission deadline of January 15, 2016, the applicant would need a new exception to submit through alternative methods beginning January 1, 2016.

Please note that the process described in this section is only for requesting alternate submission methods. All other inquiries about this announcement must be directed to the Agency Contact listed in Section VII of the announcement. Queries or requests submitted to the email address identified above for any reason other than to request an alternate submission method will not be acknowledged or answered.

B. Submission Instructions

The electronic submission of your application must be made by an official representative of your institution who is registered with Grants.gov and is authorized to sign applications for Federal assistance. For more information on the registration requirements that must be completed in order to submit an application through grants.gov, go to http://www.grants.gov and click on “Applicants” on the top of the page and then go to the “Get Registered” link on the page. If your organization is not currently registered with Grants.gov, please encourage your office to designate an Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) and ask that individual to begin the registration process as soon as possible. Please note that the registration process also requires that your organization have a DUNS number and a current registration with the System for Award Management (SAM) and the process of obtaining both could take a month or more.

Applicants must ensure that all registration requirements are met in order to apply for this opportunity through grants.gov and should ensure that all such requirements have been met well in advance of the submission deadline. Registration on grants.gov, SAM.gov, and DUNS number assignment is FREE.

To begin the application process under this grant announcement, go to http://www.grants.gov and click on “Applicants” on the top of the page and then “Apply for Grants” from the dropdown menu and then follow the instructions accordingly. Please note: To apply through grants.gov, you must use Adobe Reader software and download the compatible Adobe Reader version. For more information about Adobe Reader, to verify compatibility, or to download the free software, please visit http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/support/technical-support/software/adobe-reader-compatibility.html

You may also be able to access the application package for this announcement by searching for the opportunity on http://www.grants.gov. Go to http://www.grants.gov and then click on “Search Grants” at the top of the page and enter the Funding Opportunity Number, EPA-OW- OWM –15-01, or the CFDA number that applies to the announcement (CFDA 66.436), in the appropriate field and click the Search button. Alternatively, you may be able to access the application package by clicking on the Application Package button at the top right of the synopsis page for the announcement on http://www.grants.gov. To find the synopsis page, go to http://www.grants.gov/ http://www.grants.gov/ http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/support/technical-support/software/adobe-reader-compatibility.html http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/support/technical-support/software/adobe-reader-compatibility.html http://www.grants.gov/ http://www.grants.gov and click “Browse Agencies” in the middle of the page and then go to “Environmental Protection Agency” to find the EPA funding opportunities.

Application Submission Deadline: Your organization’s AOR must submit your complete application package electronically to EPA through Grants.gov (http://www.grants.gov) no later than November 2, 2015. Please allow for enough time to successfully submit your application process and allow for unexpected errors that may require you to resubmit.

Please submit all of the application materials described below using the grants.gov application package that you downloaded using the instructions above. For additional instructions on completing and submitting the electronic application package, click on the “Show Instructions” tab that is accessible within the application package itself.

Application Materials

The following forms and documents are required under this announcement:

Mandatory Documents:

1. Application for Federal Assistance (SF-424)

2. Budget Information for Non-Construction Programs (SF-424A)

3. Narrative Proposal (Project Narrative Attachment Form)-prepared as described in Section

IV of the announcement

4. Other Attachments, if applicable

Applications submitted through grants.gov will be time and date stamped electronically.

If you have not received a confirmation of receipt from EPA (not from grants.gov) within 30 days of the application deadline, please contact Amelia Letnes, at (202) 564-5627. Failure to do so may result in your application not being reviewed.

c. Technical Issues With Submission

1. Once the application package has been completed, the “Submit” button should be enabled. If the “Submit” button is not active, please call Grants.gov for assistance at 1-800-518-4726.

Applicants who are outside the U.S. at the time of submittal and are not able to access the toll-free number may reach a Grants.gov representative by calling 606-545-5035. Applicants should save the completed application package with two different file names before providing it to the AOR to avoid having to re-create the package should submission problems be experienced or a revised application needs to be submitted.

2. Submitting the application. The application package must be transferred to Grants.gov by an AOR. The AOR should close all other software before attempting to submit the application package. Click the “submit” button of the application package. Your Internet browser will launch and a sign-in page will appear. Note: Minor problems are not uncommon with transfers to Grants.gov. It is essential to allow sufficient time to ensure that your application is submitted to Grants.gov BEFORE the due date identified in Section IV of the solicitation. The Grants.gov support desk operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, except Federal Holidays.

A successful transfer will end with an on-screen acknowledgement. For documentation purposes, print or screen capture this acknowledgement. If a submission problem occurs, reboot the computer – turning the power off may be necessary – and re-attempt the submission.

Note: Grants.gov issues a “case number” upon a request for assistance.

3. Transmission Difficulties. If transmission difficulties that result in a late transmission, no transmission, or rejection of the transmitted application are experienced, and following the above instructions do not resolve the problem so that the application is submitted to www.Grants.Gov by the deadline date and time, follow the guidance below. The Agency will make a decision concerning acceptance of each late submission on a case-by-case basis. All emails, as described below, are to be sent to Amelia Letnes with the FON in the subject line. If you are unable to email, contact Amelia Letnes at 202 564 5627. Be aware that EPA will only consider accepting applications that were unable to transmit due to www.Grants.gov or relevant www.Sam.gov system issues or for unforeseen exigent circumstances, such as extreme weather interfering with internet access. Failure of an applicant to submit timely because they did not properly or timely register in SAM.gov or Grants.gov is not an acceptable reason to justify acceptance of a late submittal.

a. If you are experiencing problems resulting in an inability to upload the application to Grants.gov, it is essential to call www.Grants.gov for assistance at 1-800-518-4726 before the application deadline. Applicants who are outside the U.S. at the time of submittal and are not able to access the toll-free number may reach a Grants.gov representative by calling 606-545-5035. Be sure to obtain a case number from Grants.gov. If the problems stem from unforeseen exigent circumstances unrelated to Grants.gov, such as extreme weather interfering with internet access, contact Amelia Letnes at 202-564-5627.

b. Unsuccessful transfer of the application package: If a successful transfer of the application cannot be accomplished even with assistance from Grants.gov due to electronic submission system issues or unforeseen exigent circumstances, send an email message to letnes.amelia@epa.gov prior to the application deadline. The email message must document the problem and include the Grants.gov case number as well as the entire application in PDF format as an attachment.

c. Grants.gov rejection of the application package: If a notification is received from Grants.gov stating that the application has been rejected for reasons other than late submittal…