FAQs for PEHSU NOFO informational call 3_27_24.pdf

AGENCY FOR TOXIC SUBSTANCES AND DISEASE REGISTRY (ATSDR)

Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Units (PEHSU)

CDC-RFA-TS-24-0005

ATSDR published Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) CDC-RFA-TS-24-0005 Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Units (PEHSU) on February 15, 2024. On March 27, 2024, ATSDR held an informational call for prospective applicants. This document is a compilation of questions received before, during, and after the March 27 informational call through April 7, 2024. ATSDR has provided answers to each question below. Additional questions can be sent to Amanda Cadore at fzj3@cdc.gov, but will not be posted as an amendment to the NOFO.

Q: Is this a 3-year or a 5-year cooperative agreement? The forecast indicated 5 years, but the NOFO indicates 3 years.

A: This is a 3-year cooperative agreement.

Q: Can this NOFO be used to conduct children’s or reproductive health research?

A: No, this is a non-research NOFO. Please see other information in the NOFO, Section 16.

Funding Restrictions.

Q: Can this NOFO be used to provide clinical care or testing?

A: No, clinical care and testing is outside the scope of this NOFO. Please see other information in the NOFO, Section 16. Funding Restrictions.

Q: What is the role of the EPA in this NOFO?

A: ATSDR and the US EPA have a longstanding interagency agreement to support the PEHSU program. Through the Office of Children’s Health Protection and regional funding, EPA provides financial support each year to ATSDR for ATSDR’s cooperative agreement with the recipient, the National Program Office (NPO). EPA also provides support in planning and execution of PEHSU program activities.

Q: The NOFO indicates the average yearly award is $2.5M - $3.5M, but total award for 3 years is $14M. Can you explain as 3-year total award does not seem to align with average yearly award?

A: On average, a yearly award may be in the $2.5 to 3.5M range; however, in recent years, additional funding has been made available as one-time or recurring supplements that raise the amount of the total award.

Q: Should we plan for the $14M total award?

A: Plan for the average yearly award and demonstrate capacity to handle additional mailto:fzj3@cdc.gov supplemental funding if made available.

Q: How are special projects determined?

A: Funding entities submit proposals for special projects to ATSDR for review and determination regarding supplemental funding. When this involves EPA funding, this review and determination is made jointly by ATSDR and EPA.

Q: Is there a specific amount of funding set and is it the same for each PEHSU?

A: Core awards are the same for each PEHSU and depend on the amount of funding for that budget period. Supplemental funds and funds for special projects may vary among units.

Q: Who determines the amount that the PEHSU receive?

A: The NPO determines the amount that will be specified for each unit in their contract.

Q: Do the current regional PEHSUs have to compete to continue to remain in the network?

A: The PEHSU network is well established, and the successful applicant will be expected to contract with the existing 10 units for the 3-year project cycle.

Q: Should applicants name the 10 regional sub-awardees in the proposal with all appropriate sub-awardee documentation included at the time of submission?

A: It is optional to name the sub-primes in the application, but no sub-prime documentation is to be included in the application.

Q: Is there is any historical or current expectation for indirect rates for the subs? Is there a cap on the indirect funding for the NPO or the PEHSU?

A: For information on indirect rates, please refer to CFR. § 75.414 Indirect (F&A) costs

(https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-45/subtitle-A/subchapter-A/part-75/subpart-E/subject-group-ECFR1eff2936a9211f7/section-75.414#p-75.414(c)(3)). See also:

(c) Federal Agency Acceptance of Negotiated Indirect Cost Rates. (See also § 75.306.)

(1) The negotiated rates must be accepted by all Federal awarding agencies. An HHS awarding agency may use a rate different from the negotiated rate for a class of Federal awards or a single

Federal award only when required by Federal statute or regulation, or when approved by a

Federal awarding agency head or delegate based on documented justification as described in paragraph (c)(3) of this section.

Q: What is your definition of short term, intermediate, and long-term outcomes?

https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-45/subtitle-A/subchapter-A/part-75/subpart-E/subject-group-ECFR1eff2936a9211f7/section-75.414#p-75.414(c)(3) https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-45/subtitle-A/subchapter-A/part-75/subpart-E/subject-group-ECFR1eff2936a9211f7/section-75.414#p-75.414(c)(3) https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-45/section-75.306 https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-45/section-75.414#p-75.414(c)(3)

A: Definitions and examples of outcomes:

• Short term outcomes: Changes (in intended audience) that will result from the activities in the short-term, including changes in knowledge or attitude

• Intermediate outcomes: Changes (in intended audience) that will result from activities in the mid-term, including changes in behavior, norms, or policy

• Long-term outcomes: Ultimate public health problem(s) project will contribute to addressing, which may take years to accomplish

Q: We understand that BOLD indicates period of performance, so are all the bolded outcomes, short-term and intermediate, associated with the 3-year period of performance or with individual years (1, 2, 3)?

A: The bolded outcomes are those the recipient is expected to achieve or make progress toward during the period of performance.

Q: What do the non-bolded outcomes signify? Are they required?

A: The recipient is funded to work on all the listed strategies and activities and is expected to document work toward achieving all the listed outcomes.

Q: Page 12, bullet 3: What are your expectations for the NPO (National Program Office) to

“Assure critical clinical expertise…”? Is the NPO responsible for tracking, staffing, and expertise within the PEHSUs?

A: There should be ongoing dialogue between the NPO and the regional units. The NPO should be aware of staffing issues in the regions (e.g., difficulty hiring, maintaining appropriate expertise in the unit, or loss of staff), as these types of issues will affect program activities and spend down of funds.

Q: Page 12, bullet 4: Can you define “transparency” in this context?

A: For any public health program to be successful, there needs to be good communication between the participants. Transparency builds trust and this cooperative agreement requires trust between NPO, PEHSU and funders. It is good practice to maintain open lines of communication among all parties.

Q: Page 13, bullet 2: Can you explain what is meant by “provide emergency response support”?

A: ATSDR and EPA perform health risk evaluation and remediation activities in communities and may seek technical expertise from the PEHSU when conducting these activities. The NPO is expected to support the PEHSU in providing this expertise when requested.

Q: Can you clarify what the national learning management system is?

A: The PEHSU has a National Classroom, which is currently managed by a sub-contractor. It is the responsibility of the NPO to ensure that this system is maintained, updated regularly, the accreditation process for continuing education is done in a timely fashion, and it is promoted to clinicians.

Q: Is this different from the repository?

A: The repository is a collection of materials developed by the PEHSU that is accessible to funders, PEHSU, and NPO. The repository serves as a site to easily locate educational materials.

The details of this site will be discussed with the NPO after the award is made.

Q: Regarding “Where the applicant chooses to, or is expected to, take on specific evaluation studies, the applicant should be directed to…”, page 22- What is meant by “evaluation studies”?

A: This language is standard verbiage on CDC NOFOs. CDC-RFA-TS-24-0005 is a non-research NOFO. Required evaluation activities are outlined in the NOFO.

Q: Are letters of support helpful to include with the application?

A: We will review all materials submitted with each application. Letters of support are optional and not required.

Q: Is there a maximum number of pages for the application (aside from the 20 pages for narrative and work plan)?

A: There is no page limit for the entire application; however certain sections have page limits which are noted in the NOFO.

Q: Do you have specific metrics that you want the NPO to meet, or do those metrics need to be developed by the NPO and PEHSU?

A: The metrics section outlines the types of things ATSDR is seeking in the metrics that will show impact and success of the PEHSU program. The final metrics and how they will be collected will be determined by the NPO in consultation with the funders and the PEHSU and finalized within

6 months of the beginning of the project cycle.

Q: Page 12, bullet 5: Can you define “performance targets”?

A: Performance targets are established for the PEHSU to determine how each region will contribute to achieving overall performance and outcome measures.

Q: To confirm, the narrative should contain sections describing evaluation and organizational capacity, and then we should submit separate attachments addressing evaluation ("Evaluation and Performance Measurement Plan") and organizational capacity ("Appendix describing organizational history and activities") as well?

https://www.pehsu.net/nationalclassroom.html

A: The Project Narrative must include all the following headings (including subheadings):

Background, Approach, Applicant Evaluation and Performance Measurement Plan, Organizational Capacity of Applicants to Implement the Approach, and Work Plan. The organizational history and activities can be included with Organizational Capacity of Applicants to Implement the Approach section of the Project Narrative. Information about attachments can be found in Section H: Other Information.

Q: What is "servant leadership" as used in the NOFO?

A: Servant leadership refers to the recipient supporting the PEHSU’s success. Please refer to the

NPO activities outlined in the NOFO, which include examples of servant leadership.

Q: Will the CDC share any final reports from previous iterations of the national program office?

A: Final reports can be obtained by submitting a Freedom of Information ACT (FOIA) request;

see www.cdc.gov/od/foia/. Note that there is not a final report for the current cycle as the program cycle has not concluded.

Q: How are the evaluation and outcome analytics requirements of the NOFO different from research?

A: CDC uses standard language in NOFOs that cannot be altered. The evaluation section refers to “studies”, but this should not be construed as research. The data collected will be based on the metrics created within the first 6 months of the project cycle and can be used for program improvement and demonstration of impact.

Q: Is it up to the NPO to determine how much the regions get?

A: Yes, the NPO determines the amount each region will receive based on agreed-upon special projects, the core amount, and any supplemental funding. The funder will communicate with the NPO regarding the anticipated amount of funding each year and confirm the final amount (which typically is awarded in August). The NPO is expected to plan how to distribute funds in advance of the start of each project year.

http://www.cdc.gov/od/foia/