NOAA-NOS-RESTORE-2025-26020.pdf

NOTICE OF FUNDING OPPORTUNITY

NOAA NOFO Page 1 of 30

Table of Contents

NOTICE OF FUNDING OPPORTUNITY

Executive Summary Full Text of Announcement

I. Funding Opportunity Description II. Award Information III. Eligibility Information IV. Application and Submission Information V. Application Review Information VI. Award Administration Information VII. Agency Contacts VIII. Other Information

Executive Summary Federal Agency Name NOS National Center for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) Funding Opportunity Title NOAA RESTORE Science Program FFO-2025: Long-term Trends Announcement Type Competitive Funding Opportunity Number

NOAA-NOS-RESTORE-2025-26020

Assistance Listing Number(s) 11.451 Dates Letters of Intent due 11:59 p.m., Eastern Time on May 23, 2024

Full proposals due 11:59 p.m., Eastern Time on August 22, 2024

Funding Opportunity Description

NOAA NOFO Page 2 of 30

The purpose of this document is to advise the public that the NOAA RESTORE Science Program is soliciting proposals for projects of five years in duration with the option for a five year, non-competitive renewal award for high-performing projects. This announcement invites proposals that request funding for partnerships that include researchers, resource managers, and other interested parties to conduct a collaborative research project that will identify, track, understand, or predict trends and variability in the Gulf of Mexico’s natural resources and the abiotic and biotic factors driving those trends. Funding is contingent upon the availability of funds in the Gulf Coast Restoration Trust Fund. It is anticipated that final recommendations for funding under this Announcement will be made in June 2025, and that projects funded under this Announcement will have a October 1, 2025 start date. Total funding for this competition will be approximately $17.5 million over five years and approximately six projects may be funded. The minimum individual award amount is approximately $1 million over five years (an average of $200,000 per year) and the maximum individual award amount is approximately $4 million over five years (an average of $800,000 per year). An additional $21 million may be available for five year, non-competitive renewals for high performing projects. Information regarding this Announcement, including webinars and additional background information, is available on the Science Program’s website (https://restoreactscienceprogram.noaa.gov/funding-opportunities/ffo-2025).

The NOAA RESTORE Science Program encourages applicants and awardees to support the principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion when writing their proposals and performing their work. Promoting diversity, inclusion, and equity improves the creativity, productivity, and vitality of the research and management communities and leads to more robust natural resource management decisions.

Electronic Access: The NOAA RESTORE Science Program website (http://restoreactscienceprogram.noaa.gov/) furnishes supplementary information. Full proposals should be submitted electronically through Grants.gov (http://www.grants.gov).

Full Text of Announcement I. Funding Opportunity Description A. Program Objective The mission of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) RESTORE Science Program is to carry out research, observation, and monitoring to support the long-term sustainability of the ecosystem, fish stocks, fish habitat, and the recreational, commercial, and charter-fishing industry in the Gulf of Mexico. NOAA was authorized to establish and administer the Science Program, in consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, by the Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf States Act of 2012 (RESTORE Act) (Public Law 112-141, Section 1604).

The RESTORE Act also directs NOAA to prioritize integrated, long-term projects that address current or anticipated coastal and marine ecosystem, fishery, wildlife, or habitat management information needs.

https://restoreactscienceprogram.noaa.gov/funding-opportunities/ffo-2025 https://restoreactscienceprogram.noaa.gov/funding-opportunities/ffo-2025 http://restoreactscienceprogram.noaa.gov/ http://www.grants.gov

NOAA NOFO Page 3 of 30

In developing proposals for this Announcement, applicants should consider the Science Program’s long-term outcomes. First, the Science Program supports research that fosters an integrated understanding of the Gulf of Mexico ecosystem. This means focusing on the connections among species, habitats, and ecosystem processes as well as the cause-and-effect relationships that govern the strength of those connections. Second, the Science Program supports the use of this integrated understanding of the ecosystem to guide natural resource management, including restoration. Natural resource managers and natural resource management bodies are individuals or groups with authority to make decisions regarding the human use of or interaction with natural resources. Natural resource management takes many forms, including wildlife and fishery management, state and federal rulemaking and permitting, conservation practices by public or private landowners, place-based management, and restoration planning.

B. Program Priorities Effective management of the Gulf of Mexico ecosystem requires an understanding of the status of the ecosystem’s natural resources and the linkages between natural resources, economic activity, and community well-being. By tracking the status of an ecosystem's natural resources, researchers and natural resource managers can better understand if and how a natural resource is changing over time and space. Assessing change over time and space for a particular natural resource requires knowledge of long-term trends and variability in the resource, as well as the long-term trends of biotic and abiotic factors that directly and indirectly impact the target natural resource. This knowledge can be derived from the collection and analysis of long-term data on natural resources. Long-term data includes scientific information and local and Indigenous knowledge systems.

This funding opportunity is designed to support projects that will contribute to our knowledge of the trends and variability in the Gulf of Mexico’s natural resources, and the associated dynamics of abiotic and biotic factors driving those trends. Consistent with the need for long-term study, these projects will be funded for five years with the option for an additional five years of funding through a non-competitive renewal award. Projects should be co-produced with resource managers so that the research findings and products are scoped, designed, and utilized by the resource managers and their institutions throughout the project’s award period and beyond. There may be other individuals or institutions that intend to or do use the findings and products from the research project. These end users may be from the research community, non-governmental and boundary organizations, and affected communities and can be incorporated into the co-production process along with other interested parties. Overall, these awards are designed to facilitate long-term relationships between the researchers, natural resource managers, and other interested parties, which should result in the use of project findings and products in a management context. A decadal plan that describes a 10-year approach to the proposed research activities, including planning activities, must be included in all full proposals.

NOAA NOFO Page 4 of 30

An effective co-production model includes planning time during the development of the project and throughout its duration as learning is applied. Applicants are encouraged to schedule additional planning time throughout the project, particularly within the first year of the award period in order to strengthen team relationships, clearly define a co-production or collaborative process for the project, and engage additional managers and end users that did not participate in planning during the pre-award period. Co-production also requires careful attention to how project findings and products are relayed to the science and management communities for their uses. Applicants are encouraged to utilize planning time throughout the award period to develop approaches to aid with that transfer (e.g., training, workshops, webinars, and other forms of communication and outreach materials). Examples of co-production, as well as guidelines and best practices, can be found in Beier et al.

(2017), Djenontin and Meadow (2018), Vincent et al. (2018), Laudien et al. (2019), and Miller et al. (2017), among others.

2. Priority

This Announcement invites proposals that will identify, track, understand, or predict trends and variability in the Gulf of Mexico’s natural resources and the abiotic and biotic factors driving those trends. Applicants are required to form a team of researchers, resource managers, and other interested parties focused on the natural resource management issue(s) they intend to investigate.

This competition is for five-year awards with the option for a five-year, non-competitive renewal award for high-performing projects. Projects should meet the needs of the end user community with a focus on improving our ability to manage natural resources. Applicants must clearly state their targeted natural resource(s), associated management issue(s), and area(s) of emphasis (see below) for their project and clearly identify the resource management entities and any interested parties with whom they are working.

In advance of this funding opportunity, the NOAA RESTORE Science Program conducted a series of outreach sessions that identified regional interests and topical areas in need of sustained funding for longer-term research in the Gulf of Mexico region. Participants represented local, state, and federal management agencies; academic institutions; and not-for-profit organizations from all five Gulf states. Applicants may propose research that aligns with one or more of three areas of emphasis identified from that process:

1. Climate change - Research in this area should investigate if long-term trends and variability in key natural resources in the Gulf Region are or will be impacted by changes in the climate and its associated variability (e.g., extreme events such as hurricanes, precipitation events, drought, heat waves, etc.)

2. Water quality and quantity - Research in this area should investigate if long-term trends and variability in key natural resources in the Gulf region are impacted or will be impacted by water quality and/or quantity (e.g., nutrient status and cycling, saltwater intrusion, harmful algal blooms, salinity dynamics, wastewater management, flooding, etc.)

3. Fish, fisheries, and fishing communities - Research in this area should investigate long-term trends and variability in fish stocks, fisheries, and fishing communities that enhance our understanding or lead to improved management of managed or endangered species, spawning aggregations, aquaculture, fisheries, and stressors.

NOAA NOFO Page 5 of 30

Applicants may also choose to propose a project that tracks long-term trends and variability in key natural resources in the Gulf region outside of these three areas of emphasis. If an applicant chooses to do so, they must have a strong justification for selecting an abiotic or biotic factor that does not fall within the three areas of emphasis described above.

Regardless, all applicants should keep in mind the program’s legislative authority, which directs it to prioritize integrated, long-term projects that address current or anticipated coastal and marine ecosystem, fishery, wildlife, or habitat management information needs.

If applicable for their project, applicants may also make connections among the areas of emphasis and the human communities and economic activities that are impacted by natural resource management decisions. Applicants may also choose to design a project that informs Gulf of Mexico restoration activities, but the Science Program will not directly fund restoration implementation.

Applicants should assemble project teams that span the disciplines and expertise necessary to identify, track, understand, or predict trends and variability in the Gulf of Mexico’s natural resources and the abiotic and biotic factors driving them in the area(s) of emphasis identified in their proposal. The project team should include individuals with expertise in transferring research findings and products to resource managers and others or a plan for how such expertise will be obtained through partnership. Applicants are encouraged to include one or more team members with facilitation expertise and experience. Applicants are encouraged to submit proposals with diverse types of institutions (e.g., institutions of higher education; not-for-profit institutions; local, state, territorial, federal, and tribal government entities; for-profit organizations) and partners commensurate with the proposed research and its application.

Project teams are required to include one or more natural resource managers. Applicants must describe how the team’s natural resource managers will shape the project throughout the award period, and, if possible, how the project fits into a strategic goal or plan laid out by the natural resource management agency. A letter of participation is required from the natural resource manager(s) or natural resource management bodies responsible for the identified resource. If multiple managers from one management body are on the project team, they may submit one combined letter. The letter should describe their role as the project lead or as an equal partner in the project, how they were involved in the project planning process and their role in the project moving forward, and how and when they will use the findings and products from the research.

Proposals may also include one or more representatives from other parties with an interest in the project's targeted natural resources (e.g., resource users, non-governmental organizations, etc.) on their project team. Identified interested parties should be included in the co-production process throughout the award period.

To effectively co-produce a long-term and applied ecosystem research project, applicants should dedicate planning time to build connections between researchers, resource managers, and other interested parties; to design the research plan; to design and gain support for products coming from the research; and to plan for the eventual dissemination of those materials to the end user community. Applicants should describe the planning efforts they conducted that led to the development and submission of their proposal. To refine project activities and products as new information and data is gathered and assembled, applicants are also encouraged to include planning activities in their project timeline and milestone chart. In all cases, applicants must clearly demonstrate how the proposed work will generate research findings or products of significance and utility to resource managers and the broader end user community within the first five years of the project. The proposal must also include a decadal plan that demonstrates how the initial five years of work could inform and serve as the basis for up to 10 years of continuous work.

NOAA NOFO Page 6 of 30

Project teams should reserve time at the end of the first five-year award period to ensure project products are effectively shared with the end user community, including the natural resource management bodies, through communication products, workshops, training, and other mutually agreed upon activities.

Analysis of long-term trends and variability in natural resources requires the use of long-term datasets. Yet in the Gulf of Mexico, the limited availability of long-term datasets, especially outside of fisheries and water quality, impedes resource managers’ capacity to address pressing resource management issues. Applicants should consider leveraging existing datasets that are relevant for the management issue they are addressing (e.g., from the management entities represented on their team, other end users, and interested parties). Applicants may approach the collection and use of datasets by proposing to:

• Use existing datasets;

• Collect additional data to complement or extend existing datasets; or

• Collect new datasets

The proposed research and the resource management issue being addressed must occur in the Gulf of Mexico or its watersheds. The Gulf of Mexico is defined as the ocean basin bounded by the United States along its northeastern, northern, and northwestern edges;

Mexico on its southwestern and southern edges; and Cuba on its southeastern edge. This definition of the Gulf of Mexico ecosystem includes the estuarine and marine environments of the basin’s continental shelf and its deepwater environments. If occurring in a watershed, which includes freshwater wetlands and uplands, the research must focus on a species, habitat, or process that has a direct, significant, and quantifiable impact on the Gulf of Mexico.

Applicants must incorporate the principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion when writing their proposals and performing their work. Diversity here is defined as a collection of individual attributes that together help support effective natural resource management decisions and the research that underpins them. Equity here is defined as the quality of being fair and impartial. Ensuring equity means paying attention to end users and other resource users' barriers to informing and influencing decisions and taking steps to maximize fairness, transparency, and accountability with them. Inclusion here is defined as a culture that intentionally creates opportunities to connect each person to the larger organizing structure, for example, a researcher being a part of a research team or a resource user having an opportunity to participate in a natural resource management decision process.

Promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion improves the creativity, productivity, and vitality of the research and management communities and leads to more robust natural resource management decisions. Applicants may demonstrate this in a variety of ways. Examples include, but are not limited to, broadening the participation of underrepresented groups;

having a diverse project team across several factors (e.g., sectors, disciplines, age, career stage, gender, ethnicity, disability, geography, etc.); working with under-resourced, underserved, underrepresented, or under-engaged communities who may be impacted by the natural resource management decision; partnering with minority serving institutions or programs actively seeking diversity in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics;

encouraging diverse perspectives from project team members and partners; fostering an inclusive and safe environment; or incorporating different learning or engagement approaches into the project.

References

Beier, P., L.J. Hansen, L. Helbrecht, and D. Behar. 2017. A how-to guide for coproduction of actionable science. Conservation Letters. 10:288-296. https://doi.org/10.1111/conl.12300.

Djenontin, I.N. and A.M. Meadow. 2018. The art of co-production of knowledge in environmental sciences and management: Lessons from international practice.

Environmental Management. 61:885–903. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-018-1028-3.

https://doi.org/10.1111/conl.12300 https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-018-1028-3

NOAA NOFO Page 7 of 30

Vincent, K., M. Daly, C. Scannell, and B. Leathes. 2018. What can climate services learn from theory and practice of co-production? Climate Services. 12:48-58.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cliser.2018.11.001.

Laudien, R., E. Boon, H. Goosen, and K. van Nieuwaal. 2019. The Dutch adaptation web portal: seven lessons learnt from a co-production point of view. Climatic Change. 153:509–

521. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-018-2179-1.

Miller, B.W., A.J. Symstad, L. Frid, N.A. Fisichelli, and G.W. Schuurman. 2017. Co-producing simulation models to inform resource management: a case study from southwest South Dakota. Ecosphere 8(12):e02020. https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.2020.

C. Program Authority Public Law 112-141, Section 1604, the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Science, Observation, Monitoring and Technology Program; 33 U.S.C. § 1321 note.

II. Award Information A. Funding Availability Funding is contingent upon availability of funds in the Gulf Coast Restoration Trust Fund. It is anticipated that total funding for this funding opportunity will be approximately $17.5 million and will fund approximately six projects. The minimum individual award amount is approximately $1 million over five years (an average of $200,000 per year) and the maximum individual award amount is approximately $4 million over five years (an average of $800,000 per year) in duration. An additional $21 million may be available for five year, non-competitive renewals for high performing projects.

B. Project/Award Period Full applications (hereafter, “proposals”) must cover an award period of five years and include a decadal plan that outlines the potential scope of the project over 10 years. Projects selected for an initial five year award may be invited to submit a new, non-competitive renewal proposal for an additional five year award that builds upon the initial five-year project and original decadal plan. Invitations to submit a non-competitive renewal proposal are at the sole discretion of the Science Program and all decisions will be considered final.

The Science Program will use the findings from (1) a quality and relevancy review of the initial five-year project conducted by an expert panel of researchers and resource managers and (2) a review of programmatic, financial, and administrative performance of the initial five-year project to determine whether an invitation to submit a subsequent five-year non-competitive renewal proposal is warranted. An invitation to submit a non-competitive renewal proposal does not obligate the Science Program to select those proposals for funding. All non-competitive renewal proposals will be subject to independent merit review (see Section V.A). The initial five-year project reviews described above will be made available to the independent merit reviewers and will be considered in their review of the renewal proposal. Funding decisions will be based on the outcome of that review process.

It is anticipated that final recommendations for funding under this Announcement will be made in June 2025, and that projects funded under this Announcement will have a October 1, 2025 start date.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cliser.2018.11.001 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-018-2179-1 https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.2020

NOAA NOFO Page 8 of 30

C. Type of Funding Instrument In an effort to maximize the use of limited resources, proposals from non-federal, non-NOAA federal, and NOAA federal applicants will be evaluated in the same competition, with different funding instruments applicable to the type of applicant.

The funding instrument for a full proposal selected for funding from a non-federal applicant is expected to be a cooperative agreement. A cooperative agreement is similar to a grant, but used when substantial federal government involvement is anticipated. This means that the recipient can expect substantial agency collaboration, participation, or intervention in project performance. Substantial involvement exists when responsibility for the management, control, direction, or performance of the project is shared by the assisting agency and the recipient; or, the assisting agency has the right to intervene (including interruption or modification) in the conduct or performance of project activities. Substantial involvement will be coordinated and communicated by the Science Program, and may include, but is not limited to, collaboration and participation by NOAA, involvement in investigator meetings, setting up management advisory groups, support for the co-production of science process, review of financial expenditures, and communication and dissemination of project results.

If the non-federal applicant is at an institution that has a NOAA approved Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU) and meets the criteria described below for using that status, they may include a cover letter with their proposal stating their desire to have the proposal associated with that CESU. This letter should specify the name of the CESU. Of the 17 CESUs across the nation, NOAA is a member of 10: North and West Alaska, California, Hawaii-Pacific Islands, South Florida-Caribbean, Gulf Coast, Piedmont-South Atlantic Coast, Chesapeake Watershed, North Atlantic Coast, Pacific Northwest, and Great Plains. The following criteria must be met for NOAA to use the established partnerships with CESUs:

• The proposed project must fit within the objectives of the National CESU Network Program, which are to provide research, technical assistance, and education to federal land management, environmental, and research agencies and their partners in biological, physical, social, cultural, or engineering disciplines needed to address natural and cultural resource management issues at multiple scales and in an ecosystem context.

• The proposed project must fit the intent of the CESU’s existing Cooperative and Joint Agreement, which means (1) the research partnership will carry out or stimulate an activity (e.g., data, products, or services) for a public purpose, and (2) NOAA will be significantly involved in the work.

The funding instrument for a selected proposal from an eligible NOAA federal applicant will be an intra-agency transfer of funds.

The funding instrument for a selected proposal from a non-NOAA federal applicant will be through an inter-agency transfer of funds, provided legal authority exists for the federal applicant to receive funds from another agency. NOTE: Before non-NOAA federal applicants may be funded, they must demonstrate that they have applicable legal authority for an inter-agency transfer of funds. Non-NOAA federal applicants that intend to be the lead institution should contact the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) Grants Administrator to discuss technical details (refer to section VII for contact information).

Support may be solely through the Science Program or partnered with other federal offices and agencies.

NOAA NOFO Page 9 of 30

The intra- and inter-agency transfers of funds are not federal assistance (grants or cooperative agreements), and the policies described in this Announcement applicable to federal assistance awards do not apply to federal entities receiving intra- and inter-agency transfers of funds. In the agreements implemented in these situations, NOAA will be substantially involved in the projects in a manner similar to the cooperative agreements with non-federal parties. Contact the NCCOS Grants Administrator for more information (refer to section VII for contact information).

III. Eligibility Information A. Eligible Applicants Eligible applicants are institutions of higher education; not-for-profit institutions; for-profit organizations; local, state, and tribal government entities; and U.S. territories and federal agencies that possess the statutory authority to accept funding for this type of work. The lead applicant must be from a U.S.-based entity.

Science Program funding opportunities may not be used to hire and fund the salaries of any permanent federal employees. Federal award recipients may use their funding to cover travel, equipment, supplies, and contractual personnel costs associated with the proposed work.

Investigators are not required to be employed by an eligible entity that is based in one of the five Gulf of Mexico States (Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas). However, investigators that are not employed by or associated with Gulf of Mexico-based eligible entities are strongly encouraged to collaborate with partners from Gulf of Mexico-based eligible entities.

Foreign researchers may participate by submitting a sub-award or contract through an eligible U.S. entity. Science Program funding may not be spent in Cuba.

The Department of Commerce and NOAA support cultural and gender diversity and encourage proposals involving women and minority investigators, participants, and groups.

In addition, the Department of Commerce and NOAA are strongly committed to broadening the participation of Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic-Serving Institutions, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and institutions that work in underserved areas. The Department of Commerce and NOAA encourage any of the above institutions to apply.

B. Cost Share or Matching Requirement None

C. Other Criteria that Affect Eligibility An LOI is required to apply for this Announcement. Full proposals that do not have an associated LOI that was submitted by the deadline will not be considered, and the full proposal will be returned to the applicant without review.

Each proposal must substantially comply with the 19 elements listed under Required Elements in section IV.B.3.(1)-(19), or it will be returned to the sender without further consideration. A checklist with the required and optional elements can be found in section

VIII.B.

NOAA NOFO Page 10 of 30

IV. Application and Submission Information A. Address to Request Application Package Proposal materials are available at http://www.grants.gov as part of the electronic proposal package, which includes the federal forms. Please contact the NCCOS Grants Administrator should you have an issue accessing the materials (see section VII for contact information).

B. Content and Form of Application A. Address to Request Application Package

Proposal materials are available at http://www.grants.gov as part of the electronic proposal package, which includes the federal forms. Please contact the NCCOS Grants Administrator should you have an issue accessing the materials (see section VII for contact information).

B. Content and Form of Application

1. Letter of Intent An LOI is required to apply for this Announcement. The purpose of the LOI process is to provide information to potential applicants on the relevance of their proposal to the program priority described in this Announcement (section I.B.) in advance of preparing a full proposal.

Full proposals will be encouraged only for LOIs deemed relevant; however, the final decision to submit a full proposal is made by the investigator. The LOI should provide a concise description of the proposed work and its relevance to this competition. The LOI must be no more than three pages in length, single spaced in 12-point font with 1-inch margins and must include, in order, the components listed below. If these listed components are not included, the LOI may not be considered and the applicant may not be eligible to submit a full proposal:

1. The tentative project title.

2. The name, institution, and email address of each investigator. Identify the lead investigator, natural resource manager(s), other co-investigators, and unfunded collaborators that are making a substantial contribution to the project.

3. The targeted natural resource(s) for which you propose to identify, track, understand, or predict trends and variability, including the abiotic and biotic factors driving those trends and your area(s) of emphasis;

4. A brief description of the resource management entities with whom you are working, the natural resource management issue(s) the research plans to inform, and how the findings and products from the proposed research would improve our ability to manage your targeted natural resource(s).

5. A brief summary of your research methods, including your approach for developing and transferring project findings and products to your resource management entities, other potential end users, and interested parties.

6. A brief overview of how the research will leverage existing or generate new datasets to address the proposed resource management issue(s).

7. A brief summary of how the proposed project incorporates the principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion.

8. The approximate cost of the five-year project, including a brief overview of its budget.

9. An abbreviated decadal plan (i.e., 10 years) that provides:

o An explanation of how the work accomplished in the first five years will generate additional hypotheses, impact resource management and decision-making, and inform the need for continued support in a subsequent five year period; and

NOAA NOFO Page 11 of 30 o An overview of the work planned for a subsequent five years that would complement and build upon the work proposed for the initial five years.

Section IV.D.1 provides a deadline by which the LOI must be submitted and instructions for how to submit it. The Science Program will conduct a review of each LOI to determine whether it is responsive to the program priority as detailed in section I.B. Emails to encourage or discourage a full proposal will be sent to the lead investigator for each LOI approximately four weeks after the LOI due date. The final decision to submit a full proposal will be made by the applicant(s) and institution(s), regardless of the recommendations of the Science Program regarding the LOI.

2. Application

The provisions for preparing full proposals provided here are mandatory. Proposals received after the published deadline (see section IV.D.2) or proposals that deviate from the prescribed format will be returned to the sender without further consideration. Information regarding this Announcement, including webinars and additional background information, is available on the Science Program website (https://restoreactscienceprogram.noaa.gov/funding-opportunities/ffo-2025). An example proposal may be found at https://restoreactscienceprogram.noaa.gov/resources. Please note the example is available for general guidance purposes only; applicants must comply with the complete instructions included within this Announcement. Answers to frequently asked questions are available at https://restoreactscienceprogram.noaa.gov/funding-opportunities/ffo-2025/faqs.

For clarity in the submission of proposals, the following definitions are provided for applicant use:

• Funding or Budget Period - The period of time when federal funding is available for obligation by the recipient. A funding or budget period is typically 12 months and must be specified in multi-year awards, if applicable.

• Period of Performance - The period of time established in the award document during which federal sponsorship begins and ends. The term “award period” or “project period” may be used interchangeably with “period of performance.”

• Proposals with subcontractors or subawards - The lead institution on a collaborative proposal may request direct funding by NOAA. If funded, the lead institution will disburse funds to the contractors or sub-recipient institutions. A sub-recipient receives funds from the lead institution to carry out part of the federal award. A subcontractor provides property or services needed to carry out the project in the federal award.

3. Required Elements

Each proposal must substantially comply with the following 19 elements or it will be returned to the sender without further consideration. The summary title page, abstract, project narrative, decadal plan, data management plan, references, biographical sketch, and budget narrative must be single spaced in 12-point font with 1-inch margins. The 19 elements are as follows (see section VIII.B. for a checklist of elements):

1. Standard Form (SF)-424: All applicants requesting direct funding must submit the Standard Form, SF-424, “Application for Federal Assistance,” to indicate the total amount of funding proposed for their institution for the whole project period. This form is to be the cover page for the original proposal and is the first required form in the Grants.gov proposal package.

https://restoreactscienceprogram.noaa.gov/funding-opportunities/ffo-2025 https://restoreactscienceprogram.noaa.gov/resources https://restoreactscienceprogram.noaa.gov/funding-opportunities/ffo-2021/faqs https://restoreactscienceprogram.noaa.gov/funding-opportunities/ffo-2021/faqs

NOAA NOFO Page 12 of 30

2. Summary title page (one (1) page maximum): The summary title page includes, in order, (a) the project's title; (b) the letter of intent number (provided by the Science Program after the LOI review); (c) the lead investigator’s name, affiliation, complete address, phone number, and email address; (d) the name of each natural resource manager on the project team including their affiliation, complete address, phone number, and email address; (e) the targeted natural resource(s) and area(s) of emphasis; and (f) the requested funding amounts for each fiscal year. Separate budget information is not requested on the title page for institutions that are proposed to receive funds through a subaward to the lead institution; however, an accompanying budget narrative must be submitted for each subaward. For further details on budget information, please see elements 15 and 16 below. Applicants may suggest merit reviewers on a page after the summary title page.

3. Abstract (one (1) page maximum): The abstract should appear on a separate single page, and include: (a) the project title; (b) the name, institution, and email address for the lead investigator, natural resource manager(s), other co-investigators, representatives from other parties with an interest in the project's targeted natural resources, and unfunded collaborators that are making a substantial contribution to the project; (c) the total proposed cost (including shiptime, if any); (d) the funding period; and (e) a brief summary of your targeted natural resource(s) and management issue(s), area(s) of emphasis, research methods, expected findings and products, and approach for developing and transferring project findings and products to your resource management entities and other potential end users. It should be written in the third person. Project abstracts of proposals that receive funding may be posted on program-related websites.

4. Project narrative (twelve (12) page maximum): The project narrative must describe the project and indicate its relevance to the stated program priority (refer to section I.B.), as follows:

o Describe how the project proposes to identify, track, understand, or predict trends and variability in the Gulf of Mexico’s natural resources and the abiotic and biotic factors driving those trends. Include the targeted natural resource(s) and which area(s) of emphasis the proposal intends to address.

o Describe the resource management entities with whom you are working, the natural resource management issue(s) the research plans to inform, and how the findings and products from the proposed research would be used by them to improve our ability to manage the targeted natural resource(s). Also describe other potential end users (e.g., resource management, scientific, non-governmental organization communities, interested parties) and how project findings and products could be of use for them.

o Describe the methodology and approaches for: (a) conducting the research, including how the project will leverage or build upon existing and relevant datasets or generate new datasets to address your natural resource management issue, and (b) developing project findings into products for the management community. Include a description of the types of findings and products expected to come from the research and how they would be transferred to your resource management entities, other potential end users, and other interested parties during the project’s period of performance.

o Describe the composition of the project team and the responsibilities of each team member, including a designated lead investigator, natural resource managers (one or more is required), other co-investigators, representatives from other parties with an interest in the project's targeted natural resources, and all unfunded collaborators.

5. Decadal Plan (two (2) page maximum): The decadal plan (i.e., 10 years) should provide:

NOAA NOFO Page 13 of 30 o A rationale for why the resource management issue(s) to be addressed by the proposal requires a decade of research and investment;

o A description of how the applicant(s) will engage the natural resource management community, scientific communities, and other interested parties throughout the 10 years and how they should benefit from the findings and products from the research;

o An explanation of how the work accomplished in the first five years will generate hypotheses, impact resource management and decision-making, and inform the need for continued support in a subsequent five year period;

and o An overview of the work planned for a subsequent five years that would complement and build upon the work proposed in the project narrative for the initial five years.

6. Diversity, equity, and inclusion plan (one (1) page maximum): Describe how the proposed project incorporates the principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Applicants may also highlight past diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts and the value those experiences will add to the proposal.

7. Data management plan (two (2) page maximum): Provide a detailed data management plan that describes how the proposal will meet NOAA’s data management requirements. The plan should describe how metadata and data used as part of the proposed work will be disseminated to the broader community and include a plan for long-term archiving of these data. Costs associated with data preparation, accessibility, and archiving may be included in the proposal budget (see element 16). Refer to sections VI.B. and VIII.A. for specific data management guidance.

8. References cited: Each reference must include the names of all authors in the same sequence they appear in the publication, the article title, volume number, page numbers, and year of publication. While there is no established page limitation, this section should only include bibliographic citations and should not be used to provide parenthetical information outside of the twelve (12) page project narrative.

9. Natural resource management letter(s) of participation: Each proposal must include a letter of participation from each natural resource management body represented on the project team. The letter should describe their roles in the project, how they were previously involved in the planning process and their roles in the project moving forward, and their plan for how and when they will use the findings and products from the research.

10. Milestone chart: Provide the anticipated timelines of major tasks and milestones associated with the proposed work. Applicants are required to use the milestone chart template (which includes an example) included with the electronic proposal package (and also available at https://restoreactscienceprogram.noaa.gov/resources; OMB Control No. 0648-0384).

11. Biographical sketches: The lead investigator and each co-investigator (including natural resource managers) must provide a summary of up to two pages that includes: (a) their email and mailing address; (b) a list of professional and academic credentials and accomplishments; (c) a list of up to five examples or publications that describe their past experience working with researcher and natural resource manager partnerships and transferring and applying research findings and products in a natural resource management context; and (d) a list of up to five archived datasets most closely related to the proposed project.

https://restoreactscienceprogram.noaa.gov/resources

NOAA NOFO Page 14 of 30

12. Current and pending support: The lead investigator, each co-investigator (including natural resource managers), and each unfunded collaborator making a substantial contribution to the project must provide a description of all current and pending financial/funding support (e.g., federal, state, not-for-profit institutions, for-profit organizations). The capability of the investigators and collaborators to complete the proposed work in light of present and future commitments to other projects should be addressed. Therefore, please discuss the percentage of time investigators and collaborators have devoted to other federal or non-federal projects, as compared to the time that will be devoted to the proposed work solicited under this notice. A current and pending support form is available on the NCCOS website for your use:

https://coastalscience.noaa.gov/about/funding-opportunities/application-forms/. You must respond to the requirement whether or not you have any current or pending support.

13. Accomplishments from prior support: If the lead investigator or co-investigators (including natural resource managers) have received federal or state funding awards in the past five years for research relevant to this funding opportunity, information on the awards is required. The following information must be provided: (a) the award number, amount, and period of support; (b) the title of the project; (c) a summary of the results of the completed work; (d) publications resulting from the award; (e) archived datasets resulting from the award; (f) a brief description of outputs and outcomes, especially the application of research findings and products in a natural resource management context; and (g) as appropriate, a description of the relationship of the completed work to the proposed work.

14. Permits: Provide a list of all applicable permits that will be required to perform the proposed work. You must respond to this required element whether or not permits are required.

15. SF-424A: The SF-424A identifies the budget for each fiscal year of the proposal.

Applicants are required to apply for five (5) years of funding. Since the SF-424A only has four columns (see page 2), you MUST use and submit two SF-424A forms, as follows:

o Place the first four years on one of the SF-424A forms in Section B, columns

(1) through (4).

o Total the first four years in column (5).

o Place the total from the first form (from column (5)) onto the second SF- 424A form in Section B column (1) and use column (2) for the fifth year budget figures.

o Total all five years in column (5) on the second SF-424A.

o The budget figures must correspond with the description contained in the budget justification.

o Multi-investigator proposals using a subaward approach must submit an SF-

424A for each subaward that has the same budget figures as its corresponding budget narrative. The lead institution should list the total for subcontracts under 6.f. “Contractual” and the total for subawards under 6.h.

“Other” in their SF-424A.

16. Budget narratives: Proposals must include a detailed budget narrative covering the proposed period of performance with a justification to support all proposed budget categories. For additional information concerning each of the required budget categories and appropriate level of disclosure please see https://www.noaa.gov/sites/default/files/legacy/document/2019/Jun/gmd_budget_narr ative_guidance_-_05-24-2017_final.pdf.

https://coastalscience.noaa.gov/about/funding-opportunities/application-forms/ https://www.noaa.gov/sites/default/files/legacy/document/2019/Jun/gmd_budget_narrative_guidance_-_05-24-2017_final.pdf https://www.noaa.gov/sites/default/files/legacy/document/2019/Jun/gmd_budget_narrative_guidance_-_05-24-2017_final.pdf

NOAA NOFO Page 15 of 30 o Personnel costs should be broken out for each named investigator, number of months, and percentage of time requested per investigator. Support for each investigator should be commensurate with their stated involvement. Any unnamed personnel (e.g., graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, technicians) should be identified by their job title and their personnel costs explained similar to investigator personnel costs above. The contribution of any personnel to the project goals should be explained.

o Travel costs should be broken out by number of people traveling, destination and purpose of travel, and projected costs per person. Equipment costs should describe the equipment to be purchased and its contribution to the achievement of the project goals. Applicants may include publication costs and we encourage the use of open access options.

o Proposals are permitted to include the costs of project-level data management, including coordinating, organizing, documenting, formatting, or otherwise preparing datasets for submission to NOAA or non-NOAA data archive facilities; establishing and maintaining data access tools and services and related metadata; and managing non-digital data that are not required to be made publicly accessible, including laboratory notebooks, preliminary analyses, drafts of scientific papers, plans for future research, peer review reports, communications with colleagues, or physical objects such as laboratory specimens.

o A separate budget narrative is required for each institution that is proposed to receive funds through a subaward or subcontract to the lead institution. The budget narratives should describe the work to be supported and indicate the applicability or necessity to the project. When a collaborator or contractor is known before applying, signed approval from the institution of each subaward and subcontract must accompany its budget justification. The lead institution is responsible for sending funds to its subaward and subcontract institutions.

For acquisition contracts, the purpose and cost or price must be fully justified and the contract must comply with 2 C.F.R. 200.317-.326.

17. CD-511: Certification Regarding Lobbying: Required only for the lead institution, which may submit this form through the Grants.gov CD511 document placeholder without a hard signature because electronic signatures are allowed on documents from the…