inece rfp aug 21 final for 508.pdf

FEDERAL AGENCY NAME: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, Office of Federal Activities

FUNDING OPPORTUNITY TITLE: Support for the International Network for Environmental Compliance and Enforcement (INECE)

ANNOUNCEMENT TYPE: Request for Proposals - Initial Announcement

FUNDING OPPORTUNITY NUMBER: EPA-OECA-OFA-1501

CATALOG OF FEDERAL DOMESTIC ASSISTANCE NUMBER: 66.313

International Compliance and Enforcement Projects

DATES: The deadline for proposals to be received is 11:59 pm Eastern Daylight Savings Time EDT) on October 5, 2015. Submissions must be submitted electronically to EPA through Grants.gov (http://www.grants.gov) on or before October 5, 2015 at 11:59 p.m.

EDT in order to be considered for funding. Proposals received after the closing date and time will not be considered for funding.

OVERVIEW: The Office of Federal Activities in the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA) at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is requesting proposals for a cooperative agreement in support of the International Network of Environmental Compliance and Enforcement (INECE). INECE (www.inece.org) is an informal international partnership promoting compliance and enforcement of domestic and international environmental laws through networking, capacity building, and enforcement cooperation. INECE is not part of the United States Government.

Comprising 2,500 practitioners from international organizations, governmental agencies and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), INECE is exclusively dedicated to promoting cooperation among governmental and non-governmental stakeholders on environmental compliance and enforcement.

The geographic scope of the cooperative agreement is worldwide. Anticipated funding available for this five-year period is $750,000, which will be incrementally funded. The initial incremental funding for this project is approximately $171,000 for a one-year period. Approval of subsequent funding increments (which may range from $100,000- $200,000 each year) is dependent on satisfactory project progress, continued relevance of the project to EPA's priorities, and availability of funds.

Proposals for this program should focus on: 1) knowledge and experience with environmental compliance and enforcement issues and practice, both in the United States and in other countries, 2) management of international networks and engaging government officials, non-governmental organizations, international organizations, and other diverse interested parties worldwide, 3) expertise in delivering capacity building on technical and policy issues related to environmental governance, compliance and enforcement, and 4) strategic planning and project management involving multiple stakeholders and inclusive decision making, The awarding instrument will be a cooperative agreement. There is no cost share or matching requirement for these funds. Selection of the recipient will be based on the evaluation of the eligible proposals. Once selected, the applicant will receive instructions to submit a full application package. EPA reserves the right to reject all applicants and make no award from this competition.

CONTENTS BY SECTION:

I. Funding Opportunity Description II. Award Information III. Eligibility Information IV. Proposal and Submission Information V. Proposal Review Information VI. Award Administration Information VII. Agency Contacts Appendix A. Grants.gov Instructions Appendix B. Budget Detail

SECION I. FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION

A. Background

The International Network for Environmental Compliance and Enforcement (INECE) develops and implements practical and innovative activities that strengthen environmental compliance and enforcement at all levels of governance – local, national, regional, and international. INECE builds the capacity of compliance and enforcement stakeholders to contribute to the rule of law and good governance in areas that advance sustainable development.

INECE is an informal network comprised of environmental regulators, investigators, prosecutors, judges, and employees of international environmental and development organizations. Officials from customs, the police, non-governmental organizations, academia, the media, and business also participate. Currently, INECE is not a legal entity, and there are no membership requirements or dues. Both financial and in-kind support is provided by governments and other stake holders from around the world.

Founded in 1989, INECE is the only global entity focused exclusively on achieving compliance with environmental law through effective compliance promotion and enforcement strategies, including administrative, civil, criminal, and judicial enforcement. INECE works on both national implementation of domestic environmental laws and on improving the effectiveness of multilateral environmental agreements.

INECE’s goals are to

Improve enforcement and compliance through better cooperation.

Strengthen capacity throughout the regulatory cycle to implement and secure compliance with environmental requirements.

Raise awareness of the importance of environmental compliance and enforcement to sustainable development.

The INECE Secretariat provides technical, managerial, administrative, and communications support for INECE and implements INECE’s work plans. The Secretariat coordinates financial and in-kind support from INECE partners and ensures that INECE participants communicate effectively on cooperative compliance and enforcement activities. The INECE Operating Protocols are attached as Annex 1.

INECE is guided by an Executive Committee (EC) consisting of high level environmental compliance and enforcement officials from governments and NGO’s around the world. The EC is co-chaired by EPA’s OECA and the Netherlands Ministry of Infrastructure & the Environment. International organizations such as the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) participate in INECE as part of their capacity building programs and in support of their mission. Other governments and NGOs are active in trying to provide their expertise and networking and to leverage assistance for their countries’ enforcement programs.

INECE has also helped start regional enforcement networks worldwide that operate independently from, but in close cooperation with the INECE Secretariat.

Representatives from each network together with selected government officials serve as the Global Council, which helps inform EC decisions, implement and guide INECE projects, and conduct their own activities in response to the needs of their regions.

EPA is seeking proposals from States, local governments, foreign governments, international organizations, Indian Tribes, public and private universities and colleges, hospitals, laboratories, other public or private nonprofit institutions, who are interested and able to serve as the Secretariat for INECE. For-profit organizations and individuals are not eligible entities under this funding opportunity.

B. Project Summary

The EPA is accepting proposals for a cooperative agreement, with the objective to serve as the INECE Secretariat and implement projects corresponding to the three INECE goals listed in Section I.A. of this announcement to strengthen environmental compliance and enforcement, taking into consideration the interests of INECE’s stakeholders, emerging trends in the protection of human health and the environment, and the interests of its funders.

Core Secretariat functions that will be funded under this funding opportunity include:

a) Communicate among environmental enforcement practitioners and other stakeholders through the INECE website, social media tools, direct e-mail, and other forms of remote communication.

b) Design, produce, collect and/or distribute promotional materials, presentations, academic papers, proceedings, newsletters, press releases, and other material to help promote the INECE goals.

c) Support the INECE Executive Committee and Global Council by preparing meeting agendas, inviting and coordinating participants, coordinating meetings, and reporting on outcomes including minutes and key decisions.

d) Help design and implement the INECE Strategic Plan and Annual Work Program in cooperation with the Executive Committee and Global Council.

The awardee may carry out projects, including capacity building, in the priority areas for INECE as listed below, all of which support the three INECE goals.

a) Governance and rule of law.

b) Air pollution and climate change.

c) Illegal trade of waste, and of commodities that may have adverse impacts on the environment.

d) Environmental impact assessment and permitting.

e) Water pollution and management.

f) Enforcement and compliance activities that promote sustainable consumption.

C. Scope of Work:

The list below suggests the types of activities and initiatives that may be supported under this cooperative agreement. This is not intended to be a complete list, nor is it meant to suggest that the INECE Secretariat will have interest and involvement in all listed areas at any particular time, although certain core topics may remain of ongoing critical concern.

It is expected that the INECE Executive Committee will identify and prioritize areas for Secretariat completion, including newly emerging issues that may not be included in this preliminary listing.

The elements in the list below are considered to be critical to the successful establishment and functioning of the INECE Secretariat and all elements should be addressed in proposals. It is hoped that underpinnings for elements that are critical to basic program success will be established within the first one year period of performance under this cooperative agreement. However, exercises involving framing, evaluation and prioritization of project elements are expected to be an ongoing part of Secretariat business. Applicants are encouraged to identify additional project elements that may not be included in this list but that may contribute to overall program success in their proposals. In addition, applicants should articulate their approach to making the Secretariat self-sustaining through other sources of funding or contributions from partners.

1. Serve as INECE Secretariat. The recipient will support the INECE Executive Committee and Global Council by preparing meeting agendas, invite and coordinate participants, coordinate meetings, and report on outcomes including minutes and key decisions. They will help design and implement the INECE Strategic Plan and Annual Work Program in cooperation with the Executive Committee and Global Council. They will also design, produce, collect and/or distribute promotional materials, presentations, academic papers, proceedings, newsletters, press releases, and other material to help promote the INECE goals.

2. Updating and maintenance of INECE website. The recipient will take over the existing INECE website at www.inece.org and associated social media pages and will be responsible for adding new material the recipient believes is appropriate.

They should keep the existing material current, ensure its continual accessibility, and integrate new technological features as they become available as the recipient determines best serves the needs of the international enforcement community.

3. Support for regional and topical networks. A central goal of the INECE partnership is to support interlocking country, regional and global, topical peer support networks. INECE has successfully fostered networks within several regions, particularly East Africa, Asia, Australia/New Zealand and South America, some of which are thriving independently, and others that need improvement and continued support. INECE has also started global topical networks, some of which have been long-lived and continue to thrive such as the Seaports Environmental Security Network and others, being more ad hoc and short-lived, such as the Performance Indicators Workgroup and Climate Compliance Network. Under this opportunity, EPA expects to support efforts to organize regular communications among regional and topical networks and exchange of work-programs and results of cooperation and exchange, strengthening existing networks and establishing new ones where they do not currently exist. The recipient’s activities may include translating key documents as they determine appropriate

4. Strengthening capacity for environmental governance, compliance and enforcement. This cooperative agreement will support an on-going training effort to build capacity for other countries to enforce their domestic environmental laws. In some cases, the recipient will independently find experts either within their own organization or outside experts to support the development and delivery of the course. At other times, the recipient will work with EPA experts as a delivery partner. In those cases, the recipient may choose to utilize expert facilitators from EPA for the course deliveries and the recipient may use some or all training material that EPA has already developed.

In both cases, the recipient will work in conjunction with EPA and other partners, to develop a strategy for identifying and inviting workshop participants. The recipient will work with the selected participants eligible for funding assistance to facilitate their travel arrangements in an efficient and effective manner. The recipient shall make logistical arrangements for meeting space, simultaneous interpretation, and document translation as needed. The recipient will have the final decision on the invited participants and non-EPA experts.

5. Seaport Environmental Security Network. EPA and the Netherlands co-chair the Seaport Environmental Security Network (SESN), where participants work together to build capacity, raise awareness, and facilitate enforcement collaboration on ways to detect and control illegal and dangerous transboundary shipments of environmentally-regulated goods through seaports, including hazardous materials, electronic waste, and ozone depleting substances. SESN is one of the priority topical networks under section 3 above. The recipient will help SESN with training events, developing guidance and inspection protocols, and communicating problems and solutions for stopping illegal shipments.

6. Improving Environmental Enforcement in China. China is recognized as one of the largest sources of air pollution in the world. Over the past ten years, the Chinese government has taken great strides to develop the legal and administrative framework to confront their pollution problems, but continues to lack the capacity at the local and national level to enforce these requirements.

INECE will co-host a workshop in China in September 2015 on air pollution enforcement that will clearly identify areas for capacity building. EPA is interested in supporting similar future projects that may include training on compliance monitoring and enforcement for Chinese officials to reduce pollution.

7. Enforcement of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). Many countries worldwide use the EIA process to develop requirements for monitoring and mitigation throughout the life of a project. Often these measures are not written with enforceable language that inspectors can use to effectively monitor compliance. EPA will work with the recipient to highlight gaps and collect and distribute best practices and outcomes from successful capacity building projects worldwide. The Recipient shall make the final decision on which best practices and outcomes to distribute.

8. Next Generation Compliance. Today’s pollution challenges require a modern approach to compliance, taking advantage of new tools and approaches while strengthening vigorous enforcement of environmental laws. Next Generation Compliance is EPA’s integrated strategy to do that, designed to bring together the best thinking from inside and outside EPA. EPA will work with the recipient to share information globally and compliance challenges and solutions using Next Generation approaches. (see http://www2.epa.gov/compliance/next-generation-compliance.)

D. Implementation of the program:

This program is to be implemented in close collaboration with EPA. EPA, through its already established contacts in the INECE Executive Committee and the INECE Global Council, will work with the grantee in establishing or strengthening relationships/network with/of stakeholders, and ensure that these stakeholders are appropriately involved in the activities under this program. The recipient shall make the final decision on which stakeholders are involved in the activities under this program. These stakeholders could include ministries of environment, justice, health, transportation, education and energy;

universities; international organizations such as the Organization of American States (OAS) and the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD);

financial international organizations such as the Inter-American Development Bank and World Bank; Non-Government Organizations; other donors; and the private sector.

E. Statutory Authority

EPA expects to award this grant under the Clean Water Act, Section 104, 33 U.S.C.

1254; Solid Waste Disposal Act, Section 8001, 42 U.S.C. 6981; Clean Air Act, Section 103, 42 U.S.C. 7403; Toxic Substances Control Act, Section 10, 15 U.S.C. 2609; Safe Drinking Water Act, Section 1442 (a) and (c), 42 U.S.C. 300j-1 (a)(1); and National Environmental Policy Act Section 102(2)(F), 42 U.S.C. 4332.

F. Alignment with EPA's Strategic Plan

All proposals must support Goal 5 of EPAs Strategic Plan, Compliance and Environmental Stewardship, Objective 1, Improving Compliance, Subobjective 3, Monitoring and Enforcement. In addition, proposals may also support Goal 4 of EPA 2014-2018 Strategic Plan: Ensuring the Safety of Chemicals and Preventing Pollution;

Objective 4.1: “Ensuring Chemical Safety”, which states “Reduce the risk and increase the safety of chemicals that enter our products, our environment, and our bodies.

Specifically, the recipient will cooperate with regulators, compliance and enforcement practitioners and the public in other countries worldwide to build capacity to design and implement effective environmental regulatory, enforcement, public participation, and education programs. This is an example of an international capacity building program that provides technical assistance, training, information exchange, and other forms of cooperation to enhance the capabilities of governments and other stakeholders to protect human health and the environment nationally, regionally, and globally.

International capacity-building plays a key role in protecting human health and the environment by providing technical cooperation to help countries reduce pollution, better manage environmental quality, and reduce the global use and emission of mercury.

EPA’s strategic plan is available on line at http://www2.epa.gov/planandbudget/strategicplan

G. Measuring Environmental Results

Measuring Environmental Results: Outputs and Outcomes: Pursuant to EPA order 5700.7, "Environmental Results under EPA Assistance Agreements," EPA requires that all grant recipients adequately address environmental outputs and outcomes. Outputs and outcomes differ both in their nature and in how they are measured.

Anticipated Outputs: The term "output" means an environmental activity, effort, and/or associated work products related to an environmental goal and 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.

According to the definitions above, expected outputs from the activities funded under this solicitation may include but are not limited to the following:

Number of countries developing/amending/enforcing environmental policies including but not limited to: drinking water, wastewater management, solid waste, management, and air pollution management;

Number of internet users measured by hits, followers on social media, pages visited, diversity of user’s countries, etc.

Number of people trained;

Increased capacity – within regulatory institutions and other related key stakeholders – on environmental enforcement and compliance; and Participation in regional and topical networks.

Anticipated Outcomes: The term "outcome" means the result, effect, or consequence that will occur from carrying out an environmental program or activity that is related to an environmental programmatic goal objective. Outcomes may be environmental, behavioral, health-related or programmatic in nature, but must be quantitative. They may not necessarily be achievable within an assistance agreement funding period;

Expected outcomes from projects funded under this solicitation may include but are not limited to the following:

Increased technical capacity to investigate and prosecute environmental violations;

Enhanced environmental governance and enforcement (e.g. increase awareness, policy development, update and/or implementation of regulations, behavioral change) in the areas of: drinking water, wastewater management, solid waste management, and air pollution management;

Improved capacity in case preparation and review and/or prosecution;

Enhanced compliance monitoring capabilities; and Increased public awareness in environmental compliance and enforcement.

SECTION II. AWARD INFORMATION

A. Amount of Funding Available

The total estimated funding expected to be available for awards under this competitive funding opportunity is approximately $750,000. EPA anticipates an initial award of up to $171,000, with an estimated total award of $750,000, to be provided incrementally, over the five years performance period of the cooperative agreement, subject to the availability of funds, quality of evaluated proposals, and other applicable considerations.

In appropriate circumstances, EPA reserves the right to partially fund proposals by funding discrete portions or phases of proposed projects. 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.

B. Funding Type

This award will be funded through a cooperative agreement and will include substantial involvement from EPA. Although EPA will negotiate precise terms and conditions relating to substantial involvement as part of the award process, the anticipated substantial EPA involvement for this project may include:

Close monitoring of the successful applicant’s performance to verify the results proposed by the applicant;

Joint operational involvement, participation, and/or collaboration between EPA and the recipient;

EPA review of project phases or the substantive provisions of proposed contracts found within the scope of the agreement;

EPA involvement in the selection of key recipient personnel (EPA will not select employees or contractors employed by the award recipient);

Agency approval of recipient plans prior to award;

Normal monitoring activities such as site visits, performance reporting, financial reporting and audit;

Review and comment on reports prepared under the cooperative agreement (the final decision on the content of reports rests with the recipient); and Agency review of performance after completion;

In-kind staff support and expertise to the recipient on technical issues related to environmental compliance and enforcement;

EPA may nominate or advise about invitees and attendees that require travel funding assistance, but the recipient will make the final decisions about how the funds are used.

EPA will collaborate with the recipient on communications with INECE members, the INECE Executive Committee (EC), and the public. The recipient will provide draft copies of the following for EPA’s review and comment, but will make final decisions on the content of the documents:

a. All correspondence with other international organizations and foreign governments on behalf of INECE, and in particular invitations to conferences, workshops, or training courses,

b. Brochures and proceedings,

c. Draft meeting and conference agendas.

C. Start Date/Project Duration

EPA anticipates that the start date of this project would be no later than November 30, 2015, and the period of performance will not exceed five years (60 months). Should the award of funds be delayed, EPA will work with the applicant to adjust the proposed project start and end dates as needed.

D. Miscellaneous

EPA reserves the right to reject all proposals and make no awards under this announcement. 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 selection is made. Any additional selections for awards will be made no later than 6 months after the original selection decisions.

SECTION III. ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION

A. Who may apply?

Assistance under this funding opportunity is generally available to States, local governments, foreign governments, international organizations, Indian Tribes, public and private universities and colleges, hospitals, laboratories, other public or private nonprofit institutions, which submit applications with significant technical merit and relevance to EPA's Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance's mission.

States are defined in 2 CFR 200.90 as any state of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and any agency or instrumentality thereof exclusive of local governments.

Non-profit organization, as defined by 2 CFR Part 200, means any corporation, trust, association, cooperative or other organization that: (1) is operated primarily for scientific, educational, service, charitable or similar purposes in the public interest; (2) is not organized primarily for profit; and (3) uses its net proceeds to maintain, improve and/or expand its operations. Note that 2 CFR Part 200 specifically excludes the following types of organizations from the definition of “non-profit organization” because they are separately defined in the Circular: (i) colleges and universities; (ii) hospitals; (iii) state, local and federally-recognized Indian tribal governments; and (iv) those non-profit organizations that are excluded from coverage of this Circular in accordance with paragraph 5 of the Circular. While not considered to be a “non-profit organization(s)” as defined by 2 CFR Part 200, colleges and universities, hospitals, state, local and federally-recognized Indian tribal governments are, nevertheless, eligible to submit proposals under 2 CFR Part 200 and this RFP.

For-profit organizations and individuals are not an eligible entities for this funding opportunity. Additionally, 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.

Coalitions/partnerships are encouraged to apply collectively. EPA will consider letters of support for and/or commitment to the project from potential partners.

B. Cost Sharing or Matching

No matching funds are required under this competition. Although cost sharing/matching is not required as a condition of eligibility under this competition, under Section V of this announcement EPA will evaluate proposals based on a leveraging criterion.

Leveraging is generally when an applicant proposes to provide its own additional funds/resources or those from third party sources to support or complement the project they are awarded under the competition which are above and beyond the EPA cooperative agreement funds awarded. Any leveraged funds/resources, and their source, must be identified in the proposal (See Section IV of the announcement, under Collaborations/Partnerships and Leveraging). Leveraged funds and resources may take various forms as noted below.

Voluntary cost share is a form of leveraging. Voluntary cost sharing is when an applicant voluntarily proposes to legally commit to provide costs or contributions to support the project when a cost share is not required. Applicants who propose to use a voluntary cost share must include the costs or contributions for the voluntary cost share in the project budget on the SF-424. If an applicant proposes a voluntary cost share, the following apply:

A voluntary cost share is subject to the match provisions in the cooperative agreement regulations (2 CFR 200.306).

A voluntary cost share may only be met with eligible and allowable costs.

The recipient may not use other sources of federal funds to meet a voluntary cost share unless the statute authorizing the other federal funding provides that the federal funds may be used to meet a cost share requirement on a federal grant.

The recipient is legally obligated to meet any proposed voluntary cost share that is included in the approved project budget. If the proposed voluntary cost share does not materialize during grant performance, then EPA may reconsider the legitimacy of the award and/or take other appropriate action as authorized by 2 CFR Part 200 as applicable.

Other leveraged funding/resources that are not identified as a voluntary cost share -this form of leveraging may be met by funding from another federal grant, from an applicant's own resources, or resources from other third party sources. This form of leveraging should not be included in the budget and the costs need not be eligible and allowable project costs under the EPA assistance agreement. While this form of leveraging should not be included in the budget, the cooperative agreement workplan should include a statement indicating that the applicant is expected to produce the proposed leveraging consistent with the terms of the announcement and the applicant's proposal. If applicants propose to provide this form of leveraging, EPA expects them to make the effort to secure the leveraged resources described in their proposals. If the proposed leveraging does not materialize during grant performance, then EPA may reconsider the legitimacy of the award and/or take other appropriate action as authorized by 2 CFR Parts 200 or 1500.

C. Threshold Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for funding consideration under this announcement, proposals must meet the following threshold eligibility criteria. Failure to meet any of the following threshold eligibility criteria in the proposal will result in the automatic disqualification of the proposal for funding consideration. Ineligible applicants will be notified within 15 calendar days of the determination that they are ineligible based on the threshold eligibility criteria.

1. a. 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 with respect to the proposal, pages in excess of the page limitation will not be reviewed.

b. 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/application is timely submitted.

c. 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 Davis Jones at jones.davis@epa.gov as soon as possible after the submission deadline—failure to do so may result in your proposal not being reviewed.

2. The applicant must demonstrate that it is eligible to apply for financial assistance under this announcement as described in Section III.A. above.

4. Proposals must be submitted in English or they will not be accepted.

5. Ineligible activities: If an application is submitted that includes any ineligible tasks or activities, that portion of the application will be ineligible for funding and may, depending on the extent to which it affects the application, render the entire application ineligible for funding.

SECTION IV. PROPOSAL AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION

Please see Appendix A for:

Requirement to submit through grants.gov and limited exception procedures Grants.gov submission instructions Technical issues with submission

A. Proposal Submission Deadline

Your organization’s Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) must submit your complete proposal package electronically to EPA through Grants.gov (http://www.grants.gov) on or before October 5, 2015, 11:59pm EDT. Please allow for enough time to successfully submit your proposal and allow for unexpected errors that may require you to resubmit.

Please submit all of the proposal materials described in Section IV.B below using the grants.gov proposal package that you downloaded using the instructions in Appendix A.

For additional instructions on completing and submitting the electronic proposal package, click on the “Show Instructions” tab that is accessible within the proposal package itself.

Proposals 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 proposal deadline, please contact Davis Jones at (202) 564-6035 or jones.davis@epa.gov. Failure to do so may result in your proposal not being reviewed.

B. Content of Proposal Submission

The information in the proposal must provide EPA with a profile of the applicant, the purpose and anticipated results of the project, an explanation of how you plan to accomplish your project, how the project addresses the elements and activities described in Section I.C and the criteria in Section V, and an estimate of the time and money needed to complete the project (see format below).

The following forms and documents are required to be submitted under this announcement.

Mandatory Documents:

1. Application for Federal Assistance (SF-424)

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

3. Assurances for Non-Construction Programs (SF-424B)

4. Narrative Proposal (Project Narrative Attachment Form)-prepared as described in Section IV.B.2. of the announcement

5. Biographical sketch

Application for Federal Assistance (SF-424) Complete the form. There are no attachments. Please be sure to include organization fax number and email address in Block 5 of the Standard Form SF 424. Please note that the organizational Dun and Bradstreet (D&B) Data Universal Number System (DUNS) number must be included on the SF-424. Organizations may obtain a DUNS number at no cost by calling the toll-free DUNS number request line at 1-866-705-5711.

Budget Information for Non-Construction Programs (SF-424A) Complete the form. There are no attachments. The total amount of federal funding requested for the project period should be shown on line 5(e) and on line 6(k) of SF- 424A. If indirect costs are included, the amount of indirect costs should be entered on line 6(j). The indirect cost rate (i.e., a percentage), the base (e.g., personnel costs and fringe benefits), and the amount should also be indicated on line 22.

Assurances for Non-Construction Programs (SF-424B) Complete the form. There are no attachments.

Narrative Proposal:

The Narrative Proposal must be limited to no more than 15 single spaced pages of English text, including the cover page. Excess pages will not be reviewed or considered. Proposals should specify activities that would be accomplished with the initial funding for this cooperative agreement ($171,000) and plans for use of future funding. The document should be readable in PDF format and consolidated into a single file. It should include the following components:

a. Cover Page -- Include the following information:

a) Project Title

b) Project Manager: Identify who will serve as the principal party responsible for accomplishing the activities outlined in the work plan, including name, address, phone number, fax number, and email address

c) Proposed funding request: Specify the total amount requested from EPA, as well as any resources or funding from other sources that may be contributing support

d) Project period: Provide anticipated beginning and end dates

e) Summary Statement: One-to-two paragraphs summary of the proposal describing approach and expected results.

b. Narrative Workplan: The narrative work plan must explicitly describe how the proposed project meets the guidelines established in Sections I-III, including the eligibility requirements in Section III, Part C, and address each of the evaluation criteria disclosed in Section V. Part B. The narrative work plan should not exceed 15 pages in length. Maps, charts or photographs may be included within the 15-page limit, but must be included in the document and cannot be submitted as separate attachments.) The proposal must include:

Project Approach and Management: Outline clearly the approach you will take with the available funding of $171,000 and potential future funding for the tasks outlined in Section I, how you will complete these tasks, and how your proposal meets the criteria. Explain specifically how you plan to ensure sustainability and replicability in the projects.

Project Tasks and Schedule: Outline the steps to be taken and the significant milestones to be achieved to complete the project, as well as the estimated schedule of these achievements with dates. This section should also include a discussion of a communication plan for distributing the project results to interested parties.

Project Goals/Outcomes/Outputs - Specify the quantitative and qualitative outcomes and outputs of the project, including what measurements you will use and how you will measure, evaluate and track the results of your project to prove that you have achieved short, medium, and long-term outcomes and outputs.

Stakeholder Involvement/Impacts - List out all of the proposed stakeholder groups that will be involved in this project and what each of the group's roles will be in the project staffing, funding, design, and implementation. Please also list all the major stakeholders who will be positively impacted by this project and how they will benefit from this project.

Collaborations/Partnerships and Leveraging – Describe the degree to which you intend to work in partnership with other stakeholders to ensure the sustainability of the work and to leverage additional resources to help implement the proposed project. Describe the amount and type of leveraged resources to be provided, how you will obtain the leveraged resources, the likelihood the leveraging will materialize during grant performance, the strength of the leveraging commitment, and the role the leveraged resources will play to support the proposed project activities. Selected applicants are expected to abide by their proposed leveraging commitments during grant performance. Failure to do so may affect the legitimacy of the award. (Note: Applicants may also submit letters of support for key personnel or organizations who will be involved in the project.)

c. Project Budget - The proposal must include a detailed budget which clearly explains how funds ($750,000) will be used for the following categories:

Personnel Fringe Benefits

Contractual Costs Travel Equipment Supplies Other Total Direct Costs Total Indirect Costs: must include documentation of accepted indirect rate Total Cost

d. Key Personnel: The applicant should submit an appendix with the resumes of key personnel who will be significantly involved in the project (not to be included in 15 page limit).

e. Reporting Requirements: Outline the process for developing quarterly updates (schedule to be established by EPA) including detailed task-specific budget updates, and a detailed final report.

f. Environmental Results: Identify the expected quantitative and qualitative outcomes of the project (See Section I.G), including what measurements will be used to track your progress towards achieving the expected outcomes and how the results of the project will be evaluated. Identify the expected project outputs and how progress towards achieving the expected outputs will be tracked and measured.

g. Programmatic Capability and Past Performance: Submit a list of federally funded assistance agreements (assistance agreements include Federal grants and cooperative agreements but not Federal contracts) similar in size, scope and relevance to the proposed project that your organization performed within the last three years (no more than 5 agreements, and preferably EPA agreements) and describe (i) whether, and how, you were able to successfully complete and manage those agreements and (ii) your history of meeting the reporting requirements under those agreements including whether you adequately and timely reported on your progress towards achieving the expected outputs and outcomes of those agreements (and if not, explain why not) and whether you submitted acceptable final technical reports under the agreements. In evaluating applicants under these factors in Section V, EPA will consider the information provided by the applicant and may also consider relevant information from other sources, including information from EPA files and from current/prior grantors (e.g., to verify and/or supplement the information provided by the applicant). If you do not have any relevant or available past performance or reporting information, please indicate this in the proposal and you will receive a neutral score for these factors (a neutral score is half of the total points available in a subset of possible points). If you do not provide any response for these items, you may receive a score of 0 for these factors.

h. Voluntary cost share/match and other leveraged funds (See Section III.B also) Demonstrate how you will leverage additional funds/resources beyond the grant funds awarded to support the proposed project activities and how these funds/resources will be used to contribute to the performance and success of the proposed project. This includes but is not limited to funds and other resources leveraged from businesses, labor organizations, non-profit organizations, education and training providers, and/or Federal, state, tribal, and local governments, as appropriate. Describe the amount and type of leveraged resources to be provided, how you will obtain the leveraged resources, the likelihood the leveraging will materialize during grant performance, the strength of the leveraging commitment, and the role the leveraged resources will play to support the proposed project activities. Selected applicants are expected to abide by their proposed leveraging commitments during grant performance and the failure to do so may affect the legitimacy of the award.

C. Submission Dates and Times:

The deadline for all proposals to be submitted is October 5, 2015. All proposals must be date/time stamped via www.grants.gov, on or before 11:59pm EDT on October 5, 2015. Late proposals will not be reviewed or considered for funding.

D. Additional Provisions For Applicants Incorporated Into the Solicitation:

Additional provisions that apply to this solicitation and/or awards made under this solicitation, including but not limited to those related to confidential business information, contracts and sub-awards under grants, and proposal assistance and communications, can be found at:

http://www.epa.gov/ogd/competition/solicitation_provisions.htm.

These, and the other provisions that can be found at the website link, are important, and applicants must review them when preparing proposals for this solicitation. If you are unable to access these provisions electronically at the website above, please communicate with the EPA contact listed in Section VII of this solicitation to obtain the provisions.

SECTION V. PROPOSAL REVIEW INFORMATION

Only eligible entities whose proposal(s) meet the threshold eligibility criteria in Section III of this announcement will be reviewed according to the evaluation criterion set forth below. Applicants should explicitly address this criterion as part of their proposal package submittal. Each proposal will be rated under a points system, with a total of 100 points possible.

A. Proposal Evaluation Criteria:

Evaluation Criteria Weight Criterion 1: Technical Expertise and Knowledge

Under this criterion the applicant will be evaluated on the extent and quality to which the narrative proposal describes the following:

a) Technical expertise and knowledge on and environmental governance, particularly environmental enforcement and compliance. (10 pts.)

b) Qualified technical capacity for carrying out the work, and should include convincing information that the applicant has the necessary capability in coordinating/managing all the environmental areas to be addressed under this cooperative agreement (10 pts.)

20 points

Criterion 2: Project Approach and Management Plan

Under this criterion the applicant will be evaluated on the extent and quality to which the narrative proposal describes the following: (5 pts.)

a) Clearly articulated approach to maintaining the INECE Secretariat and eventual transition to a self-sustaining organization. (10 pts.)

b) Comprehensive strategy to support capacity building, particularly the courses outlined in section I.C.3. (5 pts.)

c) Approach to sustain communication among INECE participants through network activities, management of the website and other social media outlets. (5 pts.)

d) Clearly articulated milestone timeline with tasks and anticipated deliverables (outputs and outcomes), and reporting schedule. The plan to measure and track progress toward achieving the expected outcomes identified in Section E. (5 pts.)

25 points

Criterion 3: International Experience

a) Under this criterion the applicant will be evaluated on the extent and quality to which the narrative proposal describes the following: The applicant’s relevant international experience which demonstrates a commitment to support policies and programs for good environmental governance management. (5 pts.)

10 points

b) Major and/or current experience with any other environ-mental improvement or projects, including training and capacity building, both in the U.S. or outside the U.S. (5 pts.)

Criterion 4: Programmatic Capability and Past Performance:

Under this criterion, applicants will be evaluated based on their ability to successfully complete and manage the proposed project taking into account their:

a) Past performance in successfully completing and managing the assistance agreements identified in the narrative proposal as described in Section IV.C of the announcement. (5 pts)

b) History of meeting the reporting requirements under the assistance agreements identified in the narrative proposal as described in Section IV.C of the announcement including whether the applicant submitted acceptable final technical reports under those agreements and the extent to which the applicant adequately and timely reported on their progress towards achieving the expected outputs and outcomes under those agreements and if such progress was not being made whether the applicant adequately reported why not. (5 pts)

c) Organizational experience and plan for timely and successfully achieving the objectives of the proposed project. (5 pts)

d) Staff expertise and qualifications, staff knowledge, and resources or the ability to obtain them, to successfully achieve the goals of the proposed project. (5 pts)

Note: In evaluating applicants under items a) and b) of this criterion, the Agency will consider the information provided by the applicant and may also consider relevant information from other sources including agency files and prior/current grantors (e.g., to verify and/or supplement the information supplied by the applicant). If you do not have any relevant or available past performance or reporting information, please indicate this in the proposal and you will receive a neutral score for these sub-factors (items a) and b) above – a neutral score is half of the total points available in a subset of possible points). If you do not provide any response for these items, you may receive a score of 0 for these factors.

20 points

Criterion 5: Leveraging:

Under this criterion, applicants will be evaluated based on the extent they demonstrate that they will leverage additional funds/ resources, beyond the grant funds awarded, to support the proposed project activities and how these funds/resources will be used to contribute to the performance and success of the proposed project. This includes but is not limited to funds and other resources leveraged from businesses, labor organizations, non-profit organizations, education and training providers, and/or Federal, state, tribal, and local governments, as appropriate.

Applicants will also be evaluated based on the amount and type of leveraged resources to be provided, how they will obtain the leveraged resources, the likelihood the leveraging will materialize during grant performance, the strength of the leveraging commitment, and the role the leveraged funds/resources will play to support the…