NOAA-OAR-OER-2019-2005679 Full Announcement.pdf

Ocean Exploration Fiscal Year 2019 Funding Opportunity

TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. Funding Opportunity Description 4

A. Program Objective 4 B. Program Priorities 4 C. Program Authority 5

II. Award Information 6 A. Funding Availability 6 B. Project/Award Period 6 C. Type of Funding Instrument 6

III. Eligibility Information 7 A. Eligible Applicants 7 B. Cost Sharing or Matching Requirement 7 C. Other Criteria that Affect Eligibility 7

IV. Application and Submission Information 8 A. Address to Request Application Package 8 B. Content and Form of Application 8 C. Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management (SAM) 14 D. Submission Dates and Times 15 E. Intergovernmental Review 16 F. Funding Restrictions 16 G. Other Submission Requirements 16

V. Application Review Information 17 A. Evaluation Criteria 17 B. Review and Selection Process 18 C. Selection Factors 19 D. Anticipated Announcement and Award Dates 19

VI. Award Administration Information 20 A. Award Notices 20 B. Administrative and National Policy Requirements 20 C. Reporting 24

VII. Agency Contacts 26 VIII. Other Information 26

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ANNOUNCEMENT OF FEDERAL FUNDING OPPORTUNITY

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Federal Agency Name(s): Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Department of Commerce

Funding Opportunity Title: Ocean Exploration Fiscal Year 2019 Funding Opportunity

Announcement Type: Initial

Funding Opportunity Number: NOAA-OAR-OER-2019-2005679

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 11.011, Ocean Exploration

Dates: A complete, maximum two-page, pre-proposal is a requirement in order to be allowed to submit a full proposal. Pre-proposals must be received by 5:00 pm (EDT) on July 26, 2018. Full proposal submissions must be received by 5:00 pm (EST) on November 15, 2018. Applications received after the above deadlines will not be considered.

Funding Opportunity Description: NOAA’s Office of Ocean Exploration & Research (OER) is soliciting proposals for ocean exploration in waters under U.S. jurisdiction, including the U.S.

Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), and areas mapped by, or of interest to, the U.S. Extended Continental Shelf (ECS) Project. Presently, important marine habitats and living and non-living resources are neither fully explored nor characterized. OER's intent is to address these knowledge gaps and support growth in the Nation's Blue Economy by soliciting ocean exploration proposals that focus on:

1. Discovering microorganisms, sponges, corals, and other organisms with biopharmaceutical or biotechnical potential;

2. Acquiring baseline ocean environmental information to better inform decision-making where future ocean energy development or critical mineral extraction may occur;

3. Finding and characterizing shipwrecks and submerged cultural resources that played a role in America’s past ocean-based economy (e.g., transport, trade, warfare, etc.) and could inform decisions on future seabed activities and potential environmental impacts.

OER seeks to enhance ocean exploration and scientific knowledge of unknown or poorly known areas of the ocean through interdisciplinary exploration, and to advance and disseminate knowledge of the ocean’s physical, geological, chemical, biological, and archaeological environments. This entails identifying, describing and creating baseline characterizations of new

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 2 of 31 ocean habitats, marine resources and/or processes. OER’s mission is compliant with NOAA’s Next Generation Strategic Plan (http://www.performance.noaa.gov/ngsp/) which outlines NOAA goals of Science, Service and Stewardship.

Applicants are required to submit pre-proposals and, ultimately, full proposals that support OER’s exploration mission.

Note: Ship time on the NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer will not be funded through this announcement.

Informational documents on this funding opportunity are accessible through the OER Website:

https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/about/funding-opps/welcome.html.

For the purpose of this opportunity, ship time costs and/or other ocean data collection platform support (remotely operated vehicles, autonomous underwater vehicles, etc.) are considered rental costs and therefore are not included in Modified Total Direct Cost (MTDC).

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FULL ANNOUNCEMENT TEXT

I. Funding Opportunity Description

A. Program Objective

The world’s deep ocean remains largely unexplored, leaving significant gaps in the basic environmental intelligence needed to manage and protect ocean resources and forecast future environmental changes. NOAA’s Office of Ocean Exploration & Research (OER) is dedicated to exploring these unknown and poorly known areas of the ocean, filling those knowledge gaps, and delivering information essential to address current and emerging science and management issues by:

1. Sponsoring interdisciplinary baseline characterizations of unknown or poorly known ocean areas, processes, and resources;

2. Advancing undersea technical capabilities through support for design/development, testing and implementation of new or improved deep-sea technologies (e.g., platforms, sensors etc.) and innovative applications of existing technologies;

3. Fostering partnerships to accomplish NOAA ocean exploration goals;

4. Engaging and educating audiences by sharing information about ocean exploration through innovative means;

5. Adhering to an open-data policy which ensures that all data acquired by the program, once quality controlled, are promptly made available to requestors; and

6. Ensuring that funded projects are compliant with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and other federal laws for environmental protection (e.g., the Endangered Species Act, Marine Mammal Protection Act, and National Marine Sanctuaries Act).

Applicants are encouraged to visit the Ocean Explorer Web site (https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/) to familiarize themselves with past and present OER-funded activities. Links to helpful information on the OER grant program, Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), and the required cover sheet for pre-proposal and full proposal application are available on this OER web page:

https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/about/funding-opps/welcome.html.

B. Program Priorities

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OER is especially interested in Ocean Exploration in support of America’s Blue Economy:

OER is soliciting proposals for ocean exploration in waters under U.S. jurisdiction, including the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), and areas mapped by, or of interest to, the U.S.

Extended Continental Shelf (ECS) Project. Results of proposed projects should provide oceanographic data and information that will contribute to ocean-related segments of the U.S. economy, also referred to as the Blue Economy.

NOAA’s contribution to the Nation’s Blue Economy incorporates a concept of science-based management and sustainable use of ocean resources that depends on reliable scientific data to support national economic and environmental security, provides jobs and economic growth, improves livelihoods, and fosters healthy ocean and coastal ecosystems.

Robust knowledge of existing ocean environments and potential marine resources must be available to meet such goals. For example, important marine habitats and living and non-living resources are neither fully explored nor characterized. Multidisciplinary ocean exploration information is essential to implement best ocean stewardship practices within U.S. waters where there are gaps in basic knowledge of the ocean.

OER's intent is to address these knowledge gaps and support growth in the Nation's Blue Economy by soliciting proposals for ocean exploration that focus on:

1. Discovering microorganisms, sponges, corals, and other organisms with biopharmaceutical or biotechnical potential;

2. Acquiring baseline ocean environmental information to better inform decision-making where future ocean energy development or critical mineral extraction may occur;

3. Finding and characterizing shipwrecks and submerged cultural resources that played a role in America’s past ocean-based economy (e.g., transport, trade, warfare, etc.) and could inform decisions on future seabed activities and potential environmental impacts.

OER strongly encourages the use of innovative techniques and technologies. Emphasis for this announcement is on ocean exploration and characterization of the deep ocean in depths greater than 200 meters. However, marine archaeology proposals may be conducted in shallower waters.

C. Program Authority

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33 USC 3403(a)

II. Award Information

A. Funding Availability

OER anticipates a total of approximately $3,000,000 will be available through this announcement. Through this solicitation, OER anticipates being able to support approximately 4-10 awards with budgets ranging from $10,000 to a maximum of $750,000.

Any proposal that exceeds $750,000 will not be considered. The amount of funding available through this announcement will be subject to the final FY 2019 appropriation/allocation for NOAA OER. Publication of this announcement does not obligate NOAA to fund any specific project or obligate all or any part of available funds. There is no guarantee that sufficient funds will be available to initiate or continue exploration activities where funding has been recommended by OER. The amount of funding that OER may recommend for a grant will be determined in pre-award negotiations between the applicant and OER. The OER Director may defer selected FY 2019 proposals for consideration for funding in the subsequent, or later, fiscal year(s).

B. Project/Award Period

OER will accept proposals for projects that are one or two years in duration.

C. Type of Funding Instrument

Proposals selected for funding will be funded through a grant or cooperative agreement under the terms of this notice. Proposals selected for funding from NOAA scientists will be funded through an intra-agency transfer. Federal agencies that possess the statutory authority to accept funding for this type of work may also apply and must agree to take FY 2019 funding for proposed projects. Proposals from a non-NOAA federal agency will be funded through an interagency agreement transfer.

For applications funded through cooperative agreements, substantial involvement of the federal government may include, but is not limited to, activities such as specifying direction or redirection of the scope of work due to interrelationships with other projects or stipulating that the recipient must meet or adhere to specific procedural requirements before subsequent stages of a project may continue.

By receiving funding from OER, all applicants agree to certain requirements for sample collection, education and outreach, data management, and website development. To help meet these requirements, one or more NOAA staff or NOAA designee(s) may become

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 6 of 31 members of an at-sea science team serving roles as Expedition Coordinators, Data Managers, or Web Coordinators. For more details please refer to section VIII of this document.

III. Eligibility Information

A. Eligible Applicants

Eligible applicants are U.S.-based institutions of higher education; non-profit institutions; state, local, and tribal governments; Federal agencies; for-profit organizations;

and U.S. territories that possess the statutory authority to accept funding for this type of work. PLEASE NOTE: Before non-NOAA federal applicants may be funded, they must demonstrate that they have legal authority to receive funds from another federal agency in excess of their appropriation. NOAA and other Federal agencies that possess the statutory authority to accept funding for this type of work must agree to take FY 2019 funding for proposed projects and allocate them in FY2019.

Federal and state agencies are strongly encouraged to collaborate with partners from a non-federal eligible entity.

Foreign researchers may participate by submitting a sub-award through collaboration with an eligible U.S. entity.

The DOC and NOAA support cultural and gender diversity and encourage women and minority individuals and groups to submit applications to this Announcement of Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO). In addition, DOC/NOAA is 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.

DOC/NOAA encourages applications involving any of the above institutions to apply.

B. Cost Sharing or Matching Requirement

Cost-sharing, matching funds, in-kind contributions or contribution of no-cost ship time, etc. are not required. However, cost efficiency may be a Selection Factor, particularly for ship time and underwater platforms, when proposals are considered for final selection.

C. Other Criteria that Affect Eligibility

1. Potential Partners.

OER encourages partnerships between academia, government agencies, foundations, and private-sector companies. Foreign entities can participate only through collaboration with an eligible US-based entity through a subaward. OER also encourages investigators to seek

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 7 of 31 additional funding for their proposed projects through complementary or linked proposals to other sponsors, both internal and external to NOAA.

2. Permits and Approvals.

It is the applicant's responsibility to obtain all necessary international, federal, state, and local government permits and approvals where necessary for the proposed work to be conducted. Applicants are expected to design their proposals so that they minimize potential adverse environmental impacts. If applicable, documentation of requests for or approvals of cultural resource or environmental permits must be included in the proposal package.

Applications will be reviewed to ensure the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) questionnaire (http://www.nepa.noaa.gov/questionnaire.pdf) has been completed, i.e., to ensure there is sufficient information about the project to allow OER to analyze the project’s potential environmental impacts, pursuant to NEPA.

Prior to submitting a full proposal, applicants who propose archaeological work in state waters must consult with the appropriate State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. In your proposal you must indicate whether SHPO staff provided an opinion of your project’s potential to affect historic resources. Applicants must adhere to any regulations or guidelines that may apply and have the appropriate permits. Sample collection must not only adhere to Federal and State law, but the applicant must make accommodation for conservation and curating as described in the Annex Rules of the UNESCO Convention for the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage.

IV. Application and Submission Information

A. Address to Request Application Package

Information on this Notice of Funding Opportunity and how to apply is available at:

www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/apply-for-grants.html

For applicants without Internet access, please contact the OER Program Officer Frank Cantelas by mail at NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration (R/OER), SSMC3, Room 10208, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910 to obtain an Application Package and guidance on submission of pre-proposals and full proposals.

B. Content and Form of Application

1. Pre-proposal Content.

A pre-proposal should identify the project’s priorities and objectives and describe how these

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 8 of 31 relate to NOAA’s mission goals and OER's mission, objectives, and priorities (as described in Sections I.A and I.B above).

Complete, two-page pre-proposals are required for all applications. No more than two pages will be evaluated. Incomplete pre-proposals will not be considered. All information must be included in the designated two pages or on the OER NOFO Cover Sheet. Such information must be included: vessels, platforms, or other critical assets required to technically achieve the goals and their costs; auxiliary funding sources for the proposed project; and dates of anticipated field operations and any operational constraints, especially with regard to field operations; anticipated outputs (e.g., potential discoveries, knowledge and impact, published papers, reports, meetings, and/or education and outreach material). See Section IV.C for submission due dates, Section IV.F for submission procedures and addresses and V.A.1 for pre-proposal evaluation criteria. Submissions not adhering to the requirements listed below will be rejected upon receipt.

All pre-proposal submissions must include:

a. A completed OER NOFO Cover Sheet available through a link at:

https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/about/funding-opps/welcome.html

b. A completed pre-proposal narrative which is not to exceed two single-sided typewritten pages;

c. The pre-proposal must be written on 8.5” x 11”paper, in at least 12-point font, with 1-inch margins;

d. The Principal Investigator's last name typed in the bottom right-hand corner of each page.

See Section IV.C for submission due dates, Section IV.F for submission procedures and addresses and V.A.1 for pre-proposal evaluation criteria; and

e. All digital files named with the applicant’s name and a descriptor of the file, e.g. “Jones Cover Sheet 2019”.

f. Address the following questions in your pre-proposal narrative (Sections IV. B. 1 and V.

A. 1 describe pre-proposal content and Evaluation Criteria).

i. How is the proposal relevant to NOAA and OER missions and goals? Describe the project's intrinsic value, how it is exploratory rather than research based, and what is its expected scientific impact?

ii. What is the scientific and technical merit of the proposal? Include plans for information

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 9 of 31 and data sharing. Describe how the project is innovative and interdisciplinary, its exploration value, and the logistical feasible of the project.

iii. What are the qualifications and competence of the applicant(s)? Include past performance on any prior OER award.

iv. Describe and justify project costs and budget. Include the value of non-OER funding and in-kind contributions. Provide a simple budget summarizing the major categories of effort (including costs associated with analysis, publication of the results, and archiving of data).

v. If a ship (or other seagoing asset) is required, the applicant must state that he/she has assured that the ship (or other asset) is available when needed and, have the administrative means to arrange and pay for it.

Submissions not adhering to these requirements will be rejected upon receipt. Pre-proposals submitted after the due date will not be evaluated.

2. Full Proposal Content.

Successful full proposals will demonstrate relevance to NOAA’s and OER’s mission goals and priorities (as described in Sections I.A and I.B). Successful proposals are typically undertaken by a multi-partner group and are characterized by an interdisciplinary and innovative exploration approach; they frequently are leveraging other programs/organizations with compatible objectives; they employ advanced technology platforms and sensors to further explore and characterize the priority themes; they produce information that will be valuable to state and federal marine resource managers; they give consideration to environmental impacts in the project planning and represent the applicant's ability to acquire all necessary permits; and they explain the applicant’s plan for making data and results publicly available to advance scientific knowledge and inform environmental management decisions, and provide a plan for outreach/education activities. Applicants should use September 1, 2019 when referring to the project award date in the proposal and on the OMB Standard Forms.

Format requirements:

Proposers must number each page and label each page with the Principal Investigator's last name in the bottom right-hand corner. All digital files should be named with the applicant’s last name and a descriptor indicating the file content, e.g. “Jones executive summary 2019”.

All full proposal text should be written on 8.5” x 11” paper, in at least 12-point font, with 1-inch margins. See Section IV.C for submission due date and IV.F for submission procedures and addresses.

Proposals submitted after the due date will not be considered. No appendices are permitted.

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Full proposals must include the content described below in the order listed, unless otherwise indicated. All full proposals must include:

a. Completed OER NOFO Cover Sheet available at:

https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/about/funding-opps/welcome.html

b. Maximum one-page Executive Summary describing the essential elements of the project being proposed. The summary must include: 1) Title, 2) List of names, contact details, and affiliations of each investigator who will significantly contribute to the project, 3) A concise statement of the compelling objectives and benefits of the project and the rationale for the work proposed, and 4) Funding request for each year of the project and the total funding requested.

c. A Project Description not to exceed 15 pages, including all text and any tables and visual materials (e.g., charts, graphs, maps, photographs). This is a firm requirement. Any project description pages beyond the 15-page limit will be deleted and not reviewed.

The 15-page limit does not include: the Executive Summary, Budget Justification and Tables, Data Information and Sharing Plan (see VIII.C.), Outreach and Education Plan, Literature Citation, Current and Pending Support, Curriculum Vitae, Letters of Commitment, and Required Forms (e.g., NEPA).

Contents of the Project Description:

i. Description of the project’s scientific, technical, historical, cultural, or socioeconomic importance and merit. Might it potentially challenge existing paradigms or lead to the formulation of new paradigms?

ii. Description of the project’s goals and objectives and the proposed methodology.

iii. Provision of brief descriptions of the contributions of participating personnel.

iv. Description of any complementary funding.

v. Clarification of date of field operations and any operational constraints.

vi. If a ship (or other seagoing asset) is required, the applicant must state that he/she has assured that the ship (or other asset) is available when needed and that the host institution would, if provided with the funding, have the administrative means to arrange and pay for it.

vii. Anticipated outputs (e.g., potential discoveries, knowledge and impact, published papers, reports, meetings, and/or education and outreach material).

viii. The value to NOAA and the nation and how this project’s anticipated outcomes will benefit our understanding of the ocean, the science community, and society.

ix. Provide an education/outreach plan and state a willingness to participate in related OER

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x. Applicants for marine archaeology proposals must consult with the appropriate State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) and indicate whether SHPO staff provided an opinion of your project’s potential to affect historic resources under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. Data/Information Sharing Plan: Proposals submitted in response to this announcement must include a Data Management Plan (up to 2 pages). See Section VI.B., Administrative and National Policy Requirements, below for additional information on what the plan should contain.

d. Proposals submitted in response to this Announcement must include a Data Management Plan (up to 2 pages). See Section VI.B., Administrative and National Policy Requirements, below for additional information on what the plan should contain.

e. A concise summary of significant results and achievements: This summary should include publications and outputs, and data/information sharing experience from any prior, or ongoing, NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research funding.

f. A summary of current funding support: Applicants must provide information on all their current and pending federal support for ongoing projects and proposals, including potential subsequent funding in the case of continuing grants. The proposed project and all other projects or activities using federal assistance or that requires a portion of time of the Principal Investigator or other senior personnel should be included. The relationship between the proposed project and these other projects should be described, and the number of person-months per year to be devoted to the projects must be clearly stated.

g. Brief resumes for each investigator: A maximum of two pages for each Principal and Co- Principal Investigator(s), including a representative reference list of relevant recent publications.

h. Budget justification and table: These must reflect the guidance and templates provided in the NOAA Grants Management Division’s Budget Narrative Guidance which can be found at: ago.noaa.gov/grants/training.html (select: Budget Narrative Guidance). All expenses should be rounded to the nearest dollar.

Note the examples and templates provided in the guidance. The guidance provides a comprehensive description of what is required for the Budget Justification and how to prepare a document that will facilitate a clear understanding of how the allocation of funds being requested in support of the project will be used.

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The budget must include, and justify, sufficient resources to analyze, interpret, publish, and archive data (in accordance with the Data Information and Sharing Plan) and results of the project. Applicants must describe the scope of work and budget for each year of support being sought (not to exceed two years), and a summary budget table for the entire award period.

The summary budget table must reflect the object classes contained in the SF-424A form, which is the Grant.gov official budget form, included with the submission. The document must reflect the computations and basis used in the development of costs and justifications for: salary and travel; contracts for analyses or cataloging; publications; rentals; supplies;

equipment; sub-awards to other parties for services; and non-standard items, including ship time and submersible assets being requested from OER for support. The summary budget table must also show how costs for ship time and submersible costs were developed and whether agreement has been reached for their use. Cost sharing or in-kind contributions must be clearly identified and given a value.

i. Indirect Cost Rate Memo: A copy of the institution's Indirect Cost Rate Agreement used to develop indirect costs in the request is to be included as a separate document. If the agreement is in the process of being renegotiated, indicate the status of the IDC application in an attached letter. See Section VI.B for more information on Indirect Cost Rate.

j. NEPA statement: Applicants are required to submit answers to the questions 1 through 19 of the NOAA National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) questionnaire (http://www.nepa.noaa.gov/questionnaire.pdf). See Section VI.B., Administrative and National Policy Requirements, below for additional NEPA information.

k. Forms: Applicants must submit a complete NOAA grant application package provided from Grants.gov. The required OMB Standard forms are:

i. Standard Form 424 (SF-424) - Application for Federal Assistance

ii. Standard Form 424A(SF-424A) - Budget Information - Non-Construction Programs - When applying for a Multi-Year award (2 to 5 years), the non-federal entity must submit a line item budget (SF-424A) and corresponding budget narrative for each of the funding periods anticipated.

iii. Standard Form 424B - Assurances - Non-Construction Programs.

iv. Standard Form LLL - Disclosure of Lobbying Activities

v. Form CD-511 - Certification Regarding Lobbying

vi. Unpaid Tax Liability Form - For grant applications of less than $5 million from all for-profit and non-profit organization Part I of this form must be submitted. The form can be found at with http://www.ago.noaa.gov/grants/forms.html.

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A list of suggested reviewers: If the applicant chooses to do so, the application may include a list of suggested reviewers (submit names, email addresses, and phone numbers) of five unconflicted potential peer reviewers. Applicants may also identify individuals recommended for exclusion from the review process (including justification for any such recommendation).

Failure to comply with the foregoing requirements will result in the proposal application not being reviewed.

C. Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management (SAM)

To enable the use of a universal identifier and to enhance the quality of information available to the public as required by the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act, 31 U.S.C. 6101 note, to the extent applicable, any proposal awarded in response to this announcement will be required to use the System for Award Management (SAM), which may be accessed online at https://www.sam.gov/portal/public/SAM/. Applicants are also required to use the Dun and Bradstreet Universal Numbering System, as identified in OMB guidance published at 2 CFR Parts 25, which may be accessed at http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/textidx?SID=2dae4a7dcd5848a6364bb94d2d7786dd&mc=true&tpl=/ecfrbrowse/Title02 /2subtitleA.tpl.

In order to submit an application through Grants.gov, an applicant must register for a Grants.gov user ID and password. Note that this process can take between three to five business days or as long as four weeks if all steps are not completed correctly. To avoid delays, applicants are strongly encouraged to start early and not wait until the approaching application deadline before registering, logging in, reviewing the application instructions, and applying. Information about the Grants.gov registration process for organizations can be found at http://grants.gov/applicants/organization_registration.jsp.

Please note that organizations already registered with Grants.gov do not need to re-register;

however, all registered organizations must keep their Grants.gov password and SAM database (which now incorporates CCR) registration up-to-date or their applications will not be accepted by Grants.gov. Note that your CCR username will not work in SAM. You must create a new SAM user account to renew or update your registration. Registration on SAM is a requirement. To obtain additional information and to verify that all required registrations are current, please visit www.sam.gov/portal/public/SAM.

If you experience a Grants.gov systems issue (technical problems or glitches with the Grants.gov website) that you believe threatens your ability to complete a submission before

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 14 of 31 the application deadline, please do all of the following:

1. Print any error message received.

2. Call the Grants.gov Contact Center at 1-800-518-4726 for immediate assistance.

3. Contact NOAA using the contact information in Section VIII of this NOAA NOFO prior to the close of the competition.

4. Ensure that you obtain a case number regarding your communications with Grants.gov. In the event of a confirmed systems issue, NOAA reserves the right to accept an application in an alternate format prior to the application deadline. Problems with an applicant organization’s computer system or equipment are not considered systems issues. Similarly, an applicant’s failure to do the following is not considered systems issues:

a. Complete the required registration

b. Ensure that a registered Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) submits the application

c. Read an email message with guidance from Grants.gov.

D. Submission Dates and Times

Completed pre-proposals are required and must be received by 5:00 pm (EDT) on July 26, 2018. A complete pre-proposal is a prerequisite for submission of a full proposal.

Applicants will receive an email encouraging or discouraging a full proposal submission by October 2, 2018. If you have not received a reply by October 2, 2018 contact OER at:

oer.ffo2019@noaa.gov or (301) 734-1014 as soon as possible.

Full proposals must be received by 5:00 pm (EST) November 15, 2018.

For applicants without Internet access who must submit a hard copy pre-proposal and full proposal applications by mail or courier services, please allow sufficient time for delivery to OER by the deadline.

Pre-proposals and full Proposals received after their respective cutoff dates and times will not be considered.

Please note: Applicants may have to register or renew their central contractor registration prior to submitting to Grants.gov. Grants.gov will not accept submissions if the applicant has not been authorized or if credentials are incorrect. Authorizations and credential corrections can take several days to establish. Please plan your time accordingly to avoid being disqualified for a late submission. For further information please visit the System for Award Management website: https://www.sam.gov. For questions please visit the Federal Service Desk website: https://www.fsd.gov.

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E. Intergovernmental Review

Applications under this office’s announcement are subject to Executive Order 12372, “Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs.” Applicants must contact their State’s Single Point of Contact (SPOC) to find out about and comply with the State’s process under EO 12372. The names and addresses of the SPOCs are listed on the Office of Management and Budget’s website:

https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/SPOC-Feb.-2018.pdf.

F. Funding Restrictions

For the purpose of this opportunity, costs for ship time and/or other ocean data collection platform support (remotely operated vehicles, autonomous underwater vehicles, etc.) are considered rental costs and therefore are not included in Modified Total Direct Cost

(MTDC).

OER funding will not be provided to hire and/or fund the salaries and associated overhead costs of any permanent federal or state government employee. OER will not pay Facilities and Administrative (F&A or "overhead") fees to federal and state agencies for subawards such as ship time or other ocean data collection platform support. Federal and state award recipients may use funding to cover travel, equipment, supplies, and contractual personnel costs associated with the proposed work.

G. Other Submission Requirements

Pre-proposal submissions must be submitted by email to: oer.ffo2019@noaa.gov. Please put your last name in the subject heading, along with the words “ocean exploration pre-proposal,” e.g., "Jones ocean exploration pre-proposal." Adobe PDF format is preferred.

Full proposals from non-Federal applicants must be submitted through Grants.gov and will have an associated official date and time of receipt. Federal applicants cannot submit their applications through Grants.gov. Federal applications are submitted by email to:

oer.ffo2019@noaa.gov. The official time recorded for the receipt of federal applications is the time-stamp on the email when it arrives in OER with the attached proposal. Arrival can be delayed so allow sufficient time for transmission.

For applicants without Internet access who must submit hard copy pre-proposal and full proposal applications please send the packages to NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration (R/OER), SSMC3, Room 10208, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910.

Allow sufficient time for delivery by mail or courier services by the deadline.

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V. Application Review Information

A. Evaluation Criteria

1. Pre-Proposal Evaluation Criteria.

Pre-proposals will be evaluated by the OER program using the following criteria to either encourage or discourage submission of full proposals:

a. Relevance to NOAA and OER missions and goals

b. Scientific and technical merit

c. Qualifications and competence of the applicants, including past performance on prior OER awards; and

d. Costs for specific items as well as the overall project cost including value of cost-sharing and/or in-kind contributions.

Given a discourage assessment, the decision of whether or not to submit a full proposal is left to the applicant(s).

2. Full Proposal Evaluation Criteria.

Full proposals will be evaluated and rated individually by no fewer than three independent peer reviewers (mail reviews) and/or a peer-review panel with collective expertise in the relevant disciplines. All peer reviewers are required to sign confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements. The review will consist of a determination and analysis of strengths, weaknesses, deficiencies and risks associated with each proposal.

The following are the criteria and corresponding weight values to be used to evaluate the full proposals:

a. Importance/Relevance and applicability of proposal to NOAA and OER’s mission and goals (30%): This criterion ascertains whether there is intrinsic value in the proposed work and/or relevance to NOAA, federal, regional, state, or local activities. For the OER program, this includes: 1) Is the proposed germane to NOAA’s mission goals, 2) Is the proposal exploration focused (expanding the breadth of knowledge) versus being research focused (expanding the depth of knowledge on any particular topic), 3) Could the anticipated results have high downstream impact, and 4) Are the plans for documentation, archival, and sharing of data, multimedia and specimen collections adequately outlined;

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b. Scientific and technical merit (35%): This criterion assesses whether the approach is technically sound and/or innovative, if the methods are appropriate, and whether there are clear project goals and objectives. For the OER program this includes: 1) Is the proposed approach scientifically and technically feasible, 2) Is the proposal innovative, 3) Are there clear project goals and objectives, 4) Is the project interdisciplinary, 5) Are the methods commensurate with the goals and objectives, and 6) Is the data management plan satisfactory?

c. Overall qualifications of applicants (15%): This criterion asks the reviewers to ascertain whether the applicant(s) possesses the necessary education, experience, training, facilities and administrative resources to accomplish the project. For the OER review process this includes evaluating: 1) The qualifications of the applicant(s) and 2) The strength, diversity, and depth of any partnership to accomplish the work proposed. If the applicant has previously received OER funding, this criterion also asks the reviewers to assess the applicant’s prior OER award performance (e.g., timely publication of results and sharing of data);

d. Project costs (15%): This criterion asks the reviewers to evaluate the proposal budget to determine if it is realistic and commensurate with the proposed project needs and timeframe.

e. Outreach and Education (5%): This criterion assesses whether the project provides a focused and effective education and outreach strategy regarding NOAA's mission to protect the Nation's natural resources. For the OER program, this includes the evaluation of the proposal budget to determine if the proposal includes an outreach and education plan that will target future generations of explorers.

B. Review and Selection Process

Once a full proposal has been received by NOAA, an initial administrative review is conducted to determine compliance with requirements and completeness of the application.

When a proposal is determined to be in compliance and complete, the proposal will be subjected to peer review.

Peer reviewers will rate the individual proposals using the evaluation criteria and percentage weights provided above and will provide summary comments. Both federal and non-federal experts in the field may be used in the peer-review process, including both external mail reviews and/or a peer-review panel. Peer-review panelists will not be asked to reach consensus on individual proposals.

Based on external mail reviewer scores, summary comments, and, summaries and scores

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 18 of 31 from review panelists, the OER Director, in consultation with OER scientific and technical staff, will make the final decision.

C. Selection Factors

In making final selections, the OER Director will award in rank order unless the proposal is justified to be selected/deselected out of rank order based upon one or more of the following factors:

1. Availability of funding;

2. Balance/distribution of funds;

a. Geographically

b. By type of institutions

c. By type of partners

d. By research priorities

e. By project types

3. Duplication of other projects funded or considered for funding by NOAA/federal agencies;

4. Office priorities and policy factors described in Section I, A and B, including, but not limited to, substantial contributions that improve cost efficiency of the proposal, (particularly for ship time and underwater platforms availability), logistical feasibility, and scientific discipline areas.

5. Applicants’ prior award performance, including data/information sharing;

6. Partnerships with/Participation of targeted groups;

7. Adequacy of information necessary for NOAA staff to make a NEPA determination and draft necessary documentation before recommendation for funding are made to the Grants Officer.

D. Anticipated Announcement and Award Dates

OER’s intent is to notify all applicants of the results of the peer review of their proposal, as well as OER’s final recommendation to award or decline funding, by email, approximately 180 days after receipt of the full proposal. Progress of the peer-review process as well as timing of budget allocation to OER may affect this timeline. Applicants should factor in this time when proposing starting dates for exploration activities. Project/award start dates are

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 19 of 31 expected to be on or about September 1, 2019.

VI. Award Administration Information

A. Award Notices

1. Notification of Acceptance.

Successful non-federal applicants will receive notification that their proposals have been funded from the NOAA Grants Management Division. This notification is not an authorization to begin performance of the project. The NOAA Grants Officer will provide notice to the applicant that they have received the award. Unsuccessful applicants will be notified that their application was not selected for funding recommendation.

Project activities should not be initiated in the expectation of grant funding until a notice of award document is received from the NOAA Grants Management Division. Any spending prior to an official notice of award will be at the recipient’s risk.

2. Modification to Applications.

Successful applicants may be asked to modify objectives, work plans, or budgets prior to final approval of an award. The exact amount of funds to be awarded, the final scope of activities, the collaboration duration, and specific NOAA cooperative involvement in the activities of each partnership will be determined in pre-award negotiations between the applicant and OER.

B. Administrative and National Policy Requirements

1. Department of Commerce Pre-award notification requirements for grants and cooperative agreements.

The Department of Commerce Pre-Award Notification Requirements for Grants and Cooperative Agreements contained in the Federal Register notice of December 30, 2014 (79 FR 78390) are applicable to this solicitation and may be accessed online at https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2014-12-30/pdf/2014-30297.pdf.

2. Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles and Audit Requirements.

Through 2 C.F.R. § 1327.101, the Department of Commerce adopted Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards at 2 C.F.R. Part 200, which apply to awards in this program. Refer to https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2017/05/17/2017-09909/uniform-administrative-requirements-cost-principles-and-audit-requirements-for-federal-awards.

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3. DOC Terms and Conditions.

Successful applicants who accept a NOAA award under this solicitation will be bound by Department of Commerce Financial Assistance Standard Terms and Conditions. This document will be provided in the award package in NOAA’s Grants Online system at http://www.ago.noaa.gov and at http://go.usa.gov/hKbj.

4. Limitation of Liability.

Funding for programs listed in this notice is contingent upon the availability of appropriations. Applicants are hereby given notice that funds may not have been appropriated yet for the programs listed in this notice. In no event will NOAA or the Department of Commerce be responsible for proposal preparation costs. Publication of this announcement does not oblige NOAA to award any specific project or to obligate any available funds.

5. Unpaid or Delinquent Tax Liability.

In accordance with Section 523 of Division B and Sections 744 and 745 of Division E of the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015 (Pub. L. 113-235) or a future public law, an authorized representative of the selected applicant(s) will be required to provide certain pre-award representations regarding federal felony and federal criminal tax convictions, unpaid federal tax assessments, and delinquent federal tax returns. The form must be completed and submitted with grant applications for: (a) all for-profit and non-profit organization applicants (Part I, and if required, Part II); and (b) all non-Federal entity applicants anticipating receipt of $5 million or more in the current Federal Fiscal Year appropriated funding (Part II only). The form can be found at http://www.ago.noaa.gov/grants/forms.html.

6. Review of Risk.

After applications are proposed for funding by the Selecting Official, the Grants Office will perform administrative reviews, including an assessment of risk posed by the applicant under 2 C.F.R. 200.205. These may include assessments of the financial stability of an applicant and the quality of the applicant’s management systems, history of performance, and the applicant’s ability to effectively implement statutory, regulatory, or other requirements imposed on non-Federal entities. Special conditions that address any risks determined to exist may be applied. Applicants may submit comments to the Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System (FAPIIS) about any information included in the system about their organization for consideration by the awarding agency.

7. Data Sharing Plan.

Environmental data and information collected or created under NOAA grants or cooperative

Federal Funding Opportunity Page 21 of 31 agreements must be made discoverable by and accessible to the general public, in a timely fashion (typically within two years), free of charge or at no more than the cost of reproduction, unless an exemption is granted by the NOAA Program. Data should be available in at least one machine-readable format, preferably a widely-used or open-standard format, and should also be accompanied by machine-readable documentation (metadata), preferably based on widely used or international standards.

Proposals submitted in response to this Announcement must include a Data Management Plan of up to two pages describing how these requirements will be satisfied. The Data Management Plan should be aligned with the Data Management Guidance provided by NOAA in the Announcement. The contents of the Data Management Plan (or absence thereof), and past performance regarding such plans, will be considered as part of proposal review. A typical plan should include descriptions of the types of environmental data and information expected to be created during the course of the project; the tentative date by which data will be shared; the standards to be used for data/metadata format and content;

methods for providing data access; approximate total volume of data to be collected; and prior experience in making such data accessible. The costs of data preparation, accessibility, or archiving may be included in the proposal budget unless otherwise stated in the Guidance.

Accepted submission of data to the NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) is one way to satisfy data sharing requirements; however, NCEI is not obligated to accept all submissions and may charge a fee, particularly for large or unusual datasets.

NOAA may, at its own discretion, make publicly visible the Data Management Plan from funded proposals, or use information from the Data Management Plan to produce a formal metadata record and include that metadata in a Catalog to indicate the pending availability of new data.

Proposal submitters are hereby advised that the final pre-publication manuscripts of scholarly articles produced entirely or primarily with NOAA funding will be required to be submitted to NOAA Institutional Repository after acceptance, and no later than upon publication. Such manuscripts shall be made publicly available by NOAA one year after publication by the journal.

8. Minority Serving Institutions.

The Department of Commerce/National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (DOC/NOAA) is strongly committed to increasing the participation of Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs), i.e., Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic-serving institutions, Tribal colleges and universities, Alaskan Native and Native Hawaiian institutions, and institutions that work in underserved communities.

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9. National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

NOAA must analyze the potential environmental impacts, as required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), for applicant projects or proposals which are seeking NOAA Federal Funding Opportunities.