P17AS00032_NOFO.docx

U.S. Department of the Interior National Park Service

Financial Assistance Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO)

Janet Keck National Park Service Washington Contracting and Procurement Office PO Box 25287, MS WCP Denver, CO 80225

Janet_Keck@nps.gov

Table of Contents

Section A: Program Description

Section B: Federal Award Information

Section C: Eligibility Information

1. Cost Sharing or Matching

Section D: Application and Submission Information

1. Address to Request Application Package

2. Contents and Form of Application Submission

3. Unique entity identifier and System for Award Management (SAM)

4. Submission Dates and Times

5. Intergovernmental Review

6. Funding Restrictions

7. Deadline for Questions

8. Other Submission Requirements

Section E: Application Review Information

1. Criteria

2. Evaluation of Recipient Risk

3. Anticipated Announcement and Federal Award Dates

Section F: Federal Award Administration Information

1. Federal Award Notices

2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements

3. Reporting

Section G: Federal Awarding Agency Contacts

Section H: Other Information

Appendix A - Application Package Forms - SF 424, SF 424A, SF 424B, SF LLL Section A: Program Description

Federal Agency Name: Department of the Interior, National Park Service

Funding Opportunity Title: Community Volunteer Ambassador Program

Funding Opportunity Number: P17AS00032

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 15.931 - Youth Conservation Activities

Legislative Authority:

Legislative Authority as cited below allows the agency to negotiate and enter into cooperative agreements with any State or local government, organization, institution, individual, or other entity. A cooperative agreement may be utilized if there is substantial involvement in the project on the park of NPS.

A. 54 U.S.C. 101702(a) NPS authority to enter into cooperative agreements and transfer appropriated funds to nonprofit organization for the public purpose of NPS programs.

B. 16 U.S.C. §17j-2(e) authorizes the NPS to expend funds for educational lectures in the vicinity of and with respect to national parks and for the services of employees in cooperation with nonprofit, scientific, and historical societies engaged in educational work in parks.

C. 54 U.S.C. §200103(g)(1), authorizes the NPS to sponsor, engage in, and assist in research relating to outdoor recreation, directly or by contract or cooperative agreements, and make payments for such purposes. Subsection (f)(2) authorizes NPS to undertake studies and assemble information concerning outdoor recreation, directly or by contract or cooperative agreement, and to disseminate such information. Subsection (f)(3) authorizes cooperation with educational institutions and others to assist in establishing programs and activities to encourage public use and benefits from outdoor recreation (funds may even be advanced if in the public interest).

D. 16 U.S.C. §1246(h)(1), National Trails System Act, authorizes cooperative agreements with states or their political subdivisions, landowners, private organizations, or individuals to operate, develop, and maintain portions of national trails located within or outside the boundaries of a federally administered area.

E. 16 U.S.C. §1723(c), Public Lands Corps, authorizes the Secretary to enter into contracts and cooperative agreements with any qualified youth or conservation corps to perform appropriate conservation projects referred to in subsection (d) of section 1723. The Secretary may also authorize appropriate conservation projects and other appropriate projects to be carried out on Federal, State, local, or private lands as part of disaster prevention or relief efforts in response to an emergency or major disaster declared by the President under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.).

F. 54 U.S.C. §101701(b), Challenge-Cost Share agreement authority, authorizes the NPS to enter into agreements with cooperators for the purpose of sharing costs or services in carrying out authorized functions and responsibilities of the Secretary with respect to any unit or program of the national park system, any affiliated area, or any designated National Scenic or Historic Trail. This authority allows the agency to negotiate and enter into cooperative agreements with any State or local Government, public or private agency, organization, institution, corporation, individual, or other entity. A cooperative agreement may be utilized if there is substantial involvement in the project on the part of the NPS. This section principally gives authority for joint-funding arrangements entered into with non-federal partners (“cooperators”), although it also addresses “sharing…services in carrying out authorized functions and responsibilities…”As with 16 U.S.C. §1g, this authority must also be read in conjunction with the Federal Grant and Cooperative Agreement Act of 1977 and other authorities to ensure that a Challenge Cost-Share agreement is not used when a procurement contract would be most appropriate.

Program Background Information and Objectives:

The principal purpose of this agreement is to educate youth, promote community engagement, and to cultivate the next generation of conservation professionals. The project will provide opportunities for youth to learn about the environment by spending time working on conservation projects in the National Parks. National Park Service will promote the public purpose of the agreement by engaging young adults in community-based work and offering internships and training, all of which provide exposure to the importance of parks and conservation and to potential career opportunities therein. In the process, participants will add value to NPS by helping our staff and partners cultivate strong relationships with the youth and “emerging adult” demographics as project participants in our community-based projects.

The purpose of the program is to support park units service-wide in expanding volunteerism, service-learning, and community engagement programs and activities to new audiences and communities. The Community Volunteer Ambassador (CVA) program will also allow the NPS to help develop the next generation of lifelong conservation and stewards and ensure a skilled and diverse workforce pipeline, through work and training opportunities for young adults and veterans.

The 52 week-long internship program is also designed to inspire young adults and veterans (18-35 years old) from diverse backgrounds who are service-focused to aspire for careers of conservation stewardship through exposure to the many different career and leadership developmental opportunities at the NPS. NPS will provide the necessary training, career development, and education so that program participants can be effective and supported in their role.

The Community Volunteer Ambassador (CVA) Program will help to build a pathway and will assist in creating the next generation of conservation leaders.

Project Objectives:

NPS seeks one Recipient who will:

(1) Recruit, appoint, and place qualified diverse candidates, in collaboration with NPS, as Community Volunteer Ambassador Interns (CVAs), and assign these CVAs to identified NPS units. Successful awardee must describe their recruitment strategy, including outreach efforts to women, veterans, minority groups, and hard-to-reach populations. As CVAs will be Key Personnel in this project, awardee will need prior approval for all proposed CVAs, in accordance with 2 CFR 200, Subpart E, Cost Principles.

(2) Work with NPS to plan, implement, lead, and administer expenses for housing and transportation stipends of CVAs stationed at NPS units that require this process.

(3) Work with NPS to design, plan, implement, lead, deliver and administer expenses national CVA program orientation training for CVAs and their site supervisors, which shall be considered a part of the CVAs’ overall service/learning experience and continued service-learning/career developmental training opportunities; Awardee shall provide CVAs with a web-based tool kit with initial training, including a national program introduction, CVA roles, responsibilities, and NPS expectations.

(4) Enroll selected intern candidates as CVAs and administer all financial, tax, housing, benefits (including weekly living allowance and travel grant), insurance (including worker’s compensation insurance), and timekeeping and related personnel matters.

(5) Establish a process for obtaining safe, suitable housing for CVAs for those that require housing.

(6) Obtain and maintain all appointment and administrative records for the sponsored CVAs.

(7) Collaborate with AmeriCorps, especially regarding co-branding, membership development, ethics of service and significant of volunteerism. Provide an AmeriCorps Education Award to qualifying CVAs, as made available to the awarded entity’s partnership with the Corporation for National and Community Service (AmeriCorps).

(8) As necessary at each NPS unit, provide a stipend for subsistence to each individual selected as a CVA, an allowance to defray daily commuting expenses, a travel allowance to provide funds for duty-related travel for training and project work, and housing or a housing stipend appropriate to the cost of local housing, and injury and liability insurance coverage.

(9) Coordinate with individual NPS units in locating alternative housing (if furnished housing is not available at the site) and to administer a monthly housing allowance to the CVAs with (additional) funding that is obligated directly to the awarded entity from the respective NPS unit.

(10) Collaborate with the NPS in developing and implementing regular and on-going program monitoring, professional development, training, team-building, and evaluation protocols, including quarterly and annual satisfaction surveys for NPS unit personnel and CVAs.

(11) Collaborate with NPS to jointly provide mentoring and counsel that helps the CVAs to be successful in their internship. Establish a process to support CVAs with problem resolution, and establish communication procedures within the program and NPS unit framework that address communication protocols and timelines, so that issues can be addressed effectively and within a timely manner. Additionally, the awardee shall set up a process for CVAs to share experiences, voice concerns, and exchange best practices with each other.

(12) Manage and carry out all necessary administrative functions and record-keeping, with the exception of instruction and supervision related to the conduct of the experiential/work assignments given by the NPS staff serving as mentors/supervisors.

(13) Provide annual financial reporting at the task agreement level using the OMB-approved SF-425 Federal Financial Report no later than 90 calendar days after the end of the 4th quarter calculated from the start date of the task agreement.

(14) Provide an annual performance report at the task agreement level that addresses current number of CVAs per park unit, summarizing activities at each park unit, and providing a cost-per-CVA for the year, based on information reported on the SF-425 Federal Financial Report. This performance report should address any problems or issues with the project, any project slowdowns or work-stops, as well as highlight success stories. For problems and issues, the awardee should detail a plan of action to correct any issues. This report shall be submitted no later than 90 calendar days after the end of the 4th quarter calculated from the start date of the task agreement.

(15) Provide a comprehensive annual report to the NPS, in accordance with 2 CFR 200.328, at the task agreement level. The report will capture all project activities, metrics, and achievements, along with participant demographic information, and other related data. This report should summarize all successes and issues discussed and/or resolved within the annual performance reports. This report shall be submitted no later than 90 calendar days after the end date of the task agreement.

Roles and Responsibilities The Recipient will:

· Administer components described in the Project Objectives section

· In addition, the awardee will develop and deliver an annual work plan and detailed budget to accomplish the specific task(s) outlined in a separate task agreement(s), and quarterly and annual performance and financial reports as described in the Project Objectives section. The annual performance report should include an electronic-based reporting mechanism that documents and celebrates accomplishment through narrative and graphic communication.

The NPS will:

· Provide financial assistance in accordance with this FOA

· Provide general orientation to the NPS, park/site operations, the mission and objectives of the Community Ambassador Program and the role of the Participants.

· Provide NPS technical representatives to assist with specifics of the project as needed

· Coordinate with the awarded entity for project selection and consultation on CVA placement.

· Identified NPS units and provide a site supervisor for each unit to guide daily work projects and tasks.

Term of the Agreement This agreement will become effective upon the date of last signature and shall expire five years from the effective date, unless terminated earlier in accordance with 2 CFR 1402. Prior to the expiration of this agreement, modifications may be proposed by either party and will become effective upon written approval of both parties. Each activity or project under this agreement will be treated individually, with more detail through project statements, project plans and budgets developed cooperatively between the NPS and the recipient organization. Projects will be funded by issuance of task agreements, subject to the availability of funds, placed against the (NPS/recipient) master cooperative agreement. Each task agreement will identify the amount of funding provided by the NPS.

Section B: Federal Award Information

Anticipated Federal Funding:

Subject to the availability of funds, estimated annual funding is approximately $1,800,000 to $2,000,000. The actual level of funding is dependent upon the appropriations allocated for this program.

Recipient Cost Share:

Recipient cost share is not required for this agreement.

Estimated Number of Agreements to be awarded: One (1)

Estimated Amount of Funding Available Per Award:

Award Ceiling (annual): $2,000,000 (funded at the task agreement level)

Anticipated Start Date:

Projects receiving funding through this Notice of Funding Opportunity will start once funding has been secured and awards have been made. Funds are awarded at the task agreement level.

Anticipated Term of the Agreement:

This agreement will become effective upon the date of last signature and shall expire five years from the effective date, unless terminated earlier in accordance with 2 CFR 1402. Prior to the expiration of this agreement, modifications may be proposed by either party and will become effective upon written approval of both parties. Each activity or project under this agreement will be treated individually, with more detail through project statements, project plans and budgets developed cooperatively between the NPS and the recipient organization. Projects will be funded by issuance of task agreements, subject to the availability of funds, placed against the (NPS/recipient) master cooperative agreement. Each task agreement will identify the amount of funding provided by the NPS.

Type of Agreements:

NPS anticipates awarding a Master Cooperative Agreement (defined below) under this program announcement. The NPS will be substantially involved in directing the work performed under the resulting award. The level of involvement will be negotiated with the Awardee prior to award of individual task agreement(s). Substantial involvement (described below) consists of collaboration on the project. As part of its standard project management responsibilities, NPS will also conduct periodic reviews and ongoing evaluation of key performance parameters.

Master Cooperative Agreement – A master cooperative agreement is an agreement with a recipient in which more than one project is anticipated. This type of cooperative agreement includes a detailed description of all types of work that can be done under the agreement. The master cooperative agreement will also establish the overarching terms and conditions agreed to by the National Park Service and the recipient and are not funded. Specific projects and funding under a master agreement are identified through task agreements, which are issued under the applicable legal authority documented in the master cooperative agreement. A specific task agreement will always reference, and be subject to, the terms and conditions of the master cooperative agreement.

Substantial Involvement:

Substantial involvement may include:

NPS is involved with the recipient in describing the goals, jointly developing the scope and the activities to be accomplished. This must be combined with other substantial involvement, such as providing technical assistance or any of the statements listed below, that goes beyond Federal stewardship responsibilities.

· NPS staff will assist the recipient in selecting projects, providing orientation to park resources, overseeing assignments, teaching new skills, distributing tools and equipment and providing technical assistance and safety training.

· NPS will provide cultural/environmental programs to the team members including park tours, educational programs, talks on the history of the park, and other similar programs in a variety of media and will coordinate among other NPS units in the area to provide joint educational programs and field trips to NPS and other related sites.

· NPS will provide the programmatic structure of the project, provide special interpretive programs, and provide educational elements of the project such as trade skill development and leadership development.

· NPS staff will work together with the recipient to jointly organize and deliver seminars, workshops, and types of training programs for the purpose of promoting historic preservation to non-Government entities, States, Tribes, and local governments and the general public.

Other Information:

Applications for renewal or supplementation of existing projects are eligible to compete with applications for new Federal awards.

Section C: Eligibility Information

Application Due Date: February 28, 2017, 11:00 A.M. MT An applicant's failure to meet an eligibility criterion by the time of the application deadline will result in the application being excluded from consideration. This includes but is not limited to late and incomplete application packages.

1. Eligible Applicants Non-Profit Organizations Section 501(c)(3) of the IRS code exempts payment of federal income taxes for charitable, religious, scientific, literary and educational organizations. It is the most commonly used section in the IRS code granting tax exemption. Unless a non- profit corporation files a 501(c)(3) application with the IRS, it will not be exempt from paying federal income taxes.

2. Cost Sharing or Matching Recipient cost sharing is not required to be eligible for an award under this Notice of Funding Opportunity.

Section D: Application and Submission Information

1. Address to Request Application Package

PLEASE NOTE: APPLICATIONS FOR THIS ANNOUNCEMENT WILL BE SUBMITTED ELECTRONICALLY THROUGH GRANTS.GOV AND TO JANET_KECK@NPS.GOV SUBMISSION INFORMATION IS POSTED AT ITEM 4 OF THIS SECTION BELOW.

An Application Package has been included within this Notice of Funding Opportunity for your convenience, found in Appendix A. The Application Package contains four mandatory forms, which must be submitted with your proposal, forms include: form SF-424 (Application for Financial Assistance), form SF-424A (Budget Information), form SF-424B (Assurances), and SF-LLL (Lobbying). The Application Package can also be accessed and downloaded from the Synopsis page of this announcement in Grants.gov.

2. Contents and Form of Application Submission

You must complete the mandatory forms and any applicable optional forms, in accordance with the instructions below, as required by this Notice of Funding Opportunity. Do not include any proprietary or personally identifiable information. A complete application should include:

· Standard Form 424 (SF 424) - Application for Federal Assistance Complete this form as much as possible with all applicable information.

· Standard Form 424A - Budget Information Applicants must provide an estimated cumulative budget for the total project in the proposal for this Cooperative Agreement. The estimated budget must align with the projected scope of work presented in this application.

This estimated budget should include baseline estimates of intern costs, executive salary costs, indirect cost rates and other relevant budget factors. This is solely an estimated budget for example purposes only and will not be considered a formal budget proposal.

However, for budgets proposed at the task agreement level a detailed budget will be required per individual task agreement generated under the Cooperative Agreement during the term of the agreement. You do NOT need to provide a detailed budget for the proposal for this Cooperative Agreement.

Indirect Charges

Most states, Universities and larger non-profits have a negotiated indirect cost rate with Federal Government. This agreement must be submitted with any proposed project. Smaller organizations may not have an agreement with the Federal Government. In these cases, the indirect cost rate must be accompanied by a determination from an independent auditing firm. This determination will include the indirect cost rate, the calculations of the indirect cost rate including the base and indirect costs pools and the associated dollar figures for both. Proposals that fail to document their indirect costs will have those costs disallowed.

· Standard Form 424B – Assurances This form must be signed and submitted with your application.

· Standard Form LLL - Disclosure of Lobbying Activities In accordance with 43 C.F.R. § 18 and 31 U.S.C. § 1352 this form must be completed and signed if the amount of the Federal award is anticipated to exceed $100,000.

Project Narrative - Proposal Submission Format

The proposal is a narrative description that should specifically address all items in the Program Objective section of this document (Section A), and each of the review criteria (see Section E). The proposal text must be no longer than 20 pages, no smaller than font size 11, and have 1-inch margins. The 20-page limit includes all text, figures, references, and resumes. Forms SF-424, SF-424A, SF-424B, and the statement of indirect charges are not counted as part of the 20-page limit. Additionally, only information that is pertinent to the proposal should be included. Complete Application Package should include: ·

• Completed SF 424 - Application for Financial Assistance

• Completed SF 424 A - Budget Information

• Project Narrative

• Indirect Cost Rate

• Signed SF 424B - Assurances

· Indirect Costs If your proposed budget includes indirect costs, the rate as proposed must meet the requirements of 2 CFR Part 200, Section 200.414 and 2 CFR Part 200, Appendix III through Appendix VII as applicable. A negotiated indirect cost rate agreement must be provided with your proposal. Proposals that fail to document their indirect costs will have those costs disallowed.

If selected for award, NPS reserves the right to request additional or clarifying information for any reason deemed necessary, including, but not limited to:

(a) Other budget information

(b) Financial capability

(c) Evaluation of risk

(d) Name and phone number of the Designated Responsible Employee for complying with national policies prohibiting discrimination (See 43 C.F.R. § 17)

3. Unique entity identifier and System for Award Management (SAM)

Each applicant (unless exempt under 2 CFR §25.110) is required to:

(a) Be registered in SAM before submitting its application;

(b) Provide a valid unique entity identifier in its application (currently a DUNS number);

(c) Continue to maintain an active SAM registration with current information at all times during which it has an active Federal award or an application or plan under consideration by a Federal awarding agency.

Registration processes for SAM can be found at https://www.sam.gov

A financial assistance agreement will not be made with an applicant until the applicant has complied with all applicable unique entity identifier and SAM requirements. If an applicant has not fully complied with the requirements by the time that an agreement is ready for award, a determination may be made that the applicant is not qualified to receive a Federal award. That determination may be used as a basis for making a Federal award to another applicant.

In addition, in order to submit an application through Grants.gov an applicant must have an active SAM registration and register for submission permissions through the Grants.gov website. Utilize the following link to guide you through this process: http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/organization-registration.html

4. Submission Dates and Times

Applicants are held responsible for their proposals being submitted to the National Park Service. Applications must be received by Tuesday, February 28, 2017, 11:00 A.M. MT. Applicants are encouraged to submit the application well before the deadline.

Application preparation time may take several weeks, so please start the application process as soon as possible. Applications received after the deadline will not be reviewed or considered for award. If it is determined that a proposal was not considered due to lateness, the applicant will be notified during the selection process.

5. Intergovernmental Review

This funding opportunity is not subject to Executive Order (EO) 12372 “Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs.” Applicants subject to EO 12372 must contact their State’s Single Point of Contact (SPOC) to find out about and comply with the State’s process. The names and addresses of the SPOC’s are listed in the OMB’s home page at: http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/grants_spoc/

6. Funding Restrictions

Costs incurred by the applicant prior to the start date of the period of performance of a signed Federal award are only allowable with written approval by a Financial Assistance Awarding Officer.

7. Deadline for Questions

Questions must be submitted in writing via email only to Janet_Keck@nps.gov. The subject line of the email must reference “P17AS00032.” All questions and answers will be consolidated into one document and disseminated through an amendment to the NOFO through the grants.gov website.

The deadline for questions is January 14, 2017.

The NOFO amendment of the consolidated questions and answers will be disseminated a few days following January 14, 2017.

8. Other Submission Requirements

Applications must be submitted through grants.gov to the National Park Service by the deadline identified in paragraph 4 above. Applications submitted by other means or not received by the deadline will not be considered.

APPLICATIONS RECEIVED AFTER THE DEADLINE WILL NOT BE REVIEWED OR CONSIDERED FOR AWARD. If it is determined that a proposal will not be considered due to lateness, the applicant will be notified.

In the event the applicant experiences technical difficulties with submitting their application, please contact: Janet Keck at Janet_Keck@nps.gov

Section E: Application Review Information

1. Criteria

NPS will evaluate and consider only those applications that separately address each of the merit review criterion. Each applicant is required to provide a detailed narrative, in accordance with section D.2., of the following criteria elements. It is HIGHLY recommended that the project narrative has sections labeled as follows:

Criterion 1: Objective and Design Project Objectives and Program Design – the program design needs to address all items listed in the Project Objectives section of this document, and the program should be designed to incorporate all elements into a smoothly running system that will provide both NPS units and CVAs with a program that will produce results and support CVAs during their tenure with the program.

Criterion 2: National Perspective and Local Collaboration

(1) National perspective, local collaboration - This 52 week long internship program needs to be national in scope in order to provide coordinated services in nationwide locations to be determined, and the awardee should have a national perspective and exposure, while also supporting local volunteer program needs at the same time, the partner(s) should be supportive of collaborative approaches and capable of identifying, engaging, and collaborating with successful established local groups to carry out these and activities efficiently and effectively. Partnering agreements are encouraged; however, the awardee will be the financial sponsor/grantee, and any partnering entities will be subgrantees/subawardees. If these arrangements are proposed, awardee shall submit a sub-monitoring plan compliant with 2 CFR 200 before final grant award.

(2) Experience with Public Land Corps will be of added value in the selection process.

(3) Collaborate with AmeriCorps, especially regarding co-branding, membership development, ethics of service and significant of volunteerism. Provide an AmeriCorps Education Award to qualifying CVAs, as made available to the awarded entity’s partnership with the Corporation for National and Community Service (AmeriCorps).

Criterion 3: Experience in Youth Development, and Program Management

(1) Experience in youth development, and program management - demonstrated experience with resource stewardship as well as management of people and community engagement. Experience working with diverse youth and young adults and developing future leaders. Direct participants will be ages 18-35 and the participants will in turn engage with their peers.

(2) Experience in mentoring youth. Have established process and procedures related to problem resolution and human resource issues, and establish communication procedures to address concerns or issues effectively and within a timely manner. Have the staff capacity to provide interns support for the duration of the program tenure.

Criterion 4: Leveraging Funding and Compounding Opportunities

(1) Leveraging funding and compounding opportunities - awardee has demonstrated eagerness and ability to leverage additional resources. (The funds made available in Task Agreements under this cooperative agreement are seen as stimulus, and the ability of partner(s) to leverage additional funding and other resources from other non-Federal sources will be a key consideration in selecting among proposals.)

(2) Awardee has demonstrated creativity in considering ways to use partnerships, resource sharing, and other means to accomplish the purpose of this agreement.

(3) Creativity and resiliency - Awardee shows ability to plan for possible fluctuations in funding available for the project from year to year, and to maintain resiliency in the event of sudden growth or cut-backs in available NPS resources from year to year.

Criterion 5: Recruitment

(1) Partner has repeatedly shown success in reaching underserved populations and diverse participants

(2) Partner has extensive experience partnering with community groups in urban and underserved areas

(3) Partner give evidence of ability to successfully recruitment efforts that will have the ability to support the NPS diversity goals in selecting diverse participants without regard to race, creed, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, or disability.

2. Review and Selection Process

a. Initial Review Prior to conducting the comprehensive merit review, an initial review will be performed to determine whether: (1) the Applicant is eligible for an award; (2) the information required by the NOFO has been submitted; (3) all mandatory requirements of the NOFO are satisfied; and (4) the proposed project is responsive to the program objectives of the NOFO (program determination). If an applicant fails to meet the requirements or objectives of the NOFO, or does not provide sufficient information for review, the applicant will be considered non-responsive and eliminated from further review.

b. Comprehensive Merit Review NPS personnel will review all the proposals. All proposals for funding will be considered using the criteria outlined above. A summary of the review panel comments may be provided to the applicant if requested.

1. Merit Review Each criteria element will be scored on a 0-20 point scale:

Points Rating Descriptive Statement 20: Superior (100 % of weighted average) 16: Good (80 % of weighted average) 12: Satisfactory (60 % of weighted average) 8: Marginal (40 % of weighted average) 4: Poor (20 % of weighted average) 0: Not Acceptable (No score)

The following numerical rating values may be assigned: 20, 16, 12, 8, 4, and 0. The scoring of each criterion must be based on the strengths and weaknesses of the application narrative. To assist in assigning an appropriate score, the following will be used as a guideline:

Rating Descriptive Statement

c. Selection The Selection Official may consider the merit review recommendation and the amount of funds available to select applications for funding.

d. Discussions and Award The Government may enter into discussions with a selected applicant for any reason deemed necessary, including, but not limited to: (1) only a portion of the application is selected for award; (2) the Government needs additional information to determine that the recipient is capable of complying with the requirements of DOI Financial Assistance Regulations, and/or (3) additional specific terms and conditions are required. Failure to satisfactorily resolve the issues identified by the Government may preclude award to the applicant.

3. Evaluation of Recipient Risk In accordance with 2 C.F.R. § 200.205, applications selected for funding will be subject to a pre-award risk assessment which may include a review of information contained within the applicant’s proposal, past audits, Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System (FAPIIS), and/or past performance on previous Federal financial assistance awards. Negative information that leads to a recipient being designated as “Medium Risk” or “High Risk” may result in specific conditions, as identified in 2 C.F.R. § 200.207, being incorporated into the final award.

Prior to making a Federal award, any information about the applicant that is in the designated integrity and performance (currently FAPIIS) will be reviewed and considered (see 41 U.S.C. § 2313). Applicants may review and comment about any information about itself in FAPIIS. The Federal awarding agency will consider any comments by the applicant, in addition to the other information in the designated integrity and performance system, in making a judgment about the applicant's integrity, business ethics, and record of performance under Federal awards when completing the review of risk posed by applicants as described in 2 C.F.R. §200.205

4. Anticipated Announcement and Federal Award Dates

Estimated date of Federal Award: April 30, 2017.

Estimated date notifying successful and unsuccessful applicants: Between April 1 - 30, 2017.

Section F: Federal Award Administration Information

1. Federal Award Notices

Upon being selected for the award, successful applicants will receive a notification of the selection of their application for funding. NPS will notify the applicant selected for award by an estimated date between April 1 - 30, 2017. A notice of selection is not an authorization to begin performance on an agreement. This notice will detail the next steps in the awarding process. Once all clearances and reviews have been conducted, a master cooperative agreement will be sent for signature.

Work cannot begin before the recipient receives a fully executed copy of the cooperative agreement, which contains the signature of the Financial Assistance Awarding Officer. Any pre-award costs incurred prior to the receipt of a signed agreement or written notice signed by a Financial Assistance Awarding Officer authorizing pre-award costs, is at the applicant’s own risk. A cooperative agreement signed by a Financial Assistance Awarding Officer is the only authorizing document to begin performance.

Organizations whose applications have not been selected will be advised as promptly as possible.

2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements

a. Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) By accepting Federal financial assistance, the recipient organization agrees to abide by the applicable Federal regulations in the expenditure of Federal funds and performance under this program: 2 C.F.R. Part 200 - Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, And Audit Requirements For Federal Awards

b. Standard Award Terms and Conditions This agreement incorporates the Standard Award Terms and Conditions found at the following Department of the Interior website as if they were given here:

http://www.doi.gov/pam/programs/financial_assistance/TermsandConditions.cfm

Acceptance of a Federal financial assistance award from the Department of the Interior carries with it the responsibility to be aware of and comply with the terms and conditions of the award. Acceptance is defined as the start of work, drawing down funds, or accepting the award via electronic means. Awards are based on the application submitted to, and as approved by the Financial Assistance Awarding Officer. All financial assistance awards are subject to the terms and conditions incorporated either directly or by reference in the award document. Code of Federal Regulations/Regulatory Requirements, as applicable, are listed below (Contact the Financial Assistance Awarding Officer with any questions regarding the applicability of the following):

· 2 C.F.R. Part 175 - Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000

· 2 C.F.R. Parts 182 & 1401 - Government-wide Requirements for a Drug-Free Workplace

· 2 C.F.R. Parts 180 & 1400 - Government-wide Debarment and Suspension (Non-procurement)

· 43 CFR. 18 - Restrictions on Lobbying

3. Special Terms and Conditions

Order of Precedence Any inconsistency in the agreement shall be resolved by giving precedence in the following order: (a) Any national policy requirements and administrative management standards; (b) 2 C.F.R. Part 200, in its entirety; (c) requirements of the applicable OMB Circulars and Treasury regulations; (d) special terms and conditions; (e) all agreement sections, documents, exhibits, and attachments; (f) and the recipient’s project proposal.

Modifications The agreement may be modified by written agreement signed by both the recipient’s Authorized Representative and the Financial Assistance Awarding Officer. Administrative changes (i.e. Awarding Officer name change, etc.) which do not change the statement of work, agreement amount, etc., or otherwise affect the recipient may be signed unilaterally by the Financial Assistance Awarding Officer. Additionally, a unilateral modification may be utilized if it should become necessary to impose remedies for non- compliance, suspension or termination of the agreement in accordance with 2 CFR 200, Section 200.338 – 200.342.

All other changes shall be made by means of a bilateral modification to the agreement. No oral statement made by any person, or written statement by any person other than the NPS Financial Assistance Awarding Officer shall be allowed in any manner or degree to modify or otherwise effect the terms of the agreement.

Payments All applicants must be registered in the System for Awards Management (SAM) prior to award under this NOFO. Instructions for registering for SAM are located at http://www.sam.gov/portal/public/SAM. All applicants must maintain an active SAM registration with current information at all times while they have an active Federal award or an application under consideration.

All applicants must also be registered with, and willing to process all payments through, the Department of the Treasury Automated Standard Application for Payments (ASAP) system. All recipients with active NPS financial assistance agreements must be enrolled in ASAP under the appropriate Agency Location Code(s) (ALC) and the Data Universal Number System (DUNS) Number prior to the award of funds. If a recipient has multiple DUNS numbers they must separately enroll within ASAP for each unique DUNS Number and/or Agency. Note that if your entity is currently enrolled in the ASAP system with an agency other than NPS, you must enroll specifically with NPS in order to process payments.

Liability The recipient shall be required to (1) obtain liability insurance or (2) demonstrate present financial resources in an amount determined sufficient by the Government to cover claims brought by third parties for death, bodily injury, property damage, or other loss resulting from one or more identified activities carried out in connection with this financial assistance agreement.

(1) Insured:

The Federal Government shall be named as an additional insured under the recipient's insurance policy.

(2) Indemnification:

The recipient hereby agrees to indemnify the Federal Government, NPS or from any act or omission of the Recipient, its officers, employees, or (members, participants, agents, representatives, agents as appropriate), (1) against third party claims for damages arising from one or more identified activities carried out in connection with this financial assistance agreement and (2) for damage or loss to government property resulting from such an activity. This obligation shall survive the termination of this Agreement.

i. To purchase public and employee liability insurance at its own expense from a responsible company or companies with a minimum limitation of one million dollars ($1,000,000) per person for any one claim, and an aggregate limitation of Three Million Dollars ($3,000,000) for any number of claims arising from any one incident. The policies shall name the United States as an additional insured, shall specify that the insured shall have no right of subrogation against the United States for payments of any premiums or deductibles due thereunder, and shall specify that the insurance shall be assumed by, be for the account of, and be at the insured's sole risk. Prior to beginning the work authorized herein, the Recipient shall provide the NPS with confirmation of such insurance coverage.

ii. To pay the United States the full value for all damage to the lands or other property of the United States caused by the Recipient.

iii. To provide workers' compensation protection to the Recipient, its officers, employees, and representatives.

iv. To cooperate with NPS in the investigation and defense of any claims that may be filed with NPS arising out of the activities of the Recipient, its agents, and employees.

v. In the event of damage to or destruction of the buildings and facilities assigned for the use of the Recipient in whole or in part by any cause whatsoever, nothing herein contained shall be deemed to require NPS to replace or repair the buildings or facilities. If NPS determines in writing, after consultation with the Recipient that damage to the buildings or portions thereof renders such buildings unsuitable for continued use by the Recipient, NPS shall assume sole control over such buildings or portions thereof. If the buildings or facilities rendered unsuitable for use are essential for conducting operations authorized under this Agreement, then failure to substitute and assign other facilities acceptable to the Recipient will constitute termination of this Agreement by NPS.

(3) Flow-down:

For the purposes of this clause, "Recipient" includes such sub-recipients, contractors, or subcontractors as, in the judgment of the recipient and subject to the Government's determination of sufficiency, has sufficient resources and/or maintains adequate and appropriate insurance to achieve the purposes of this clause.

4. Award Instrument Information

Projects will be funded, subject to the availability of funds, by issuance of a master cooperative agreement with subsequent task agreements. Each subsequent task agreement will provide: the amount of funding provided by the NPS; a detailed Statement of Work (SOW) for the project; a project plan noting proposed milestones; and a project budget.

An agreement issued and signed by the NPS Financial Assistance Awarding Officer obligates NPS funds. Notification of a successful proposal does not constitute authority to incur costs. Once the cooperative agreement and subsequent task agreements for a successful proposal has been signed by the NPS Financial Assistance Awarding Officer, the recipient may incur costs as specified in the approved budget submittal.

5. Funding Restrictions All funding is contingent upon the availability and appropriation of funds by the United States Congress.

Cost Principles:

Costs must be allowable in accordance with the applicable Federal cost principles referenced in 2 CFR Part 200, Subpart E – Cost Principles.

Pre-award Costs:

Must comply with 2 CFR Part 200.458 and requires written approval from the Financial Assistance Awarding Officer.

6. Reporting

a. Financial Status Reports at the Task Agreement Level:

A report of expenditures is required as documentation of the financial status of awards according to the official accounting records of the recipient’s organization. The financial information will be reported by completing and submitting the Federal Financial Report (FFR), SF425. At a minimum, financial reports will be required annually and shall be submitted within 90 calendar days after the end of the annual reporting period. The Financial Assistance Awarding Officer may designate a reporting schedule requiring more frequent reporting based on the assessment of risk. The reporting requirements will be defined within the task agreements issued under a master cooperative agreement. A final FFR shall be submitted no more than 90 calendar days after the end date of the agreement.

The FFR can be downloaded at:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/grants/standard_forms/ffr.pdf

The NPS Financial Assistance Awarding Officer will review the report for patterns of cash expenditures and assess whether performance or financial management problems exist. Before submitting the FFR to the NPS Financial Assistance Awarding Officer, recipients must ensure that the information submitted is accurate, complete, and consistent with the recipient’s accounting system. The recipient Authorized Certifying Official’s signature on the FFR certifies that the information in the FFR is correct and complete and that all outlays and obligations are for the purposes set forth in the agreement documents, and represents a claim to the Federal Government. Filing a false claim may result in the imposition of civil or criminal penalties.

b. Performance Reports:

A report of performance is required as documentation of performance towards the accomplishments of the Federal award and detailing project activity and participant profile information. At a minimum, performance reports will be required annually and shall be submitted within 90 calendar days after the end of the annual reporting period. The Financial Assistance Awarding Officer may designate a reporting schedule requiring more frequent reporting based on the assessment of risk. The reporting requirements will be defined within the task agreements issued under master cooperative agreements. A final performance report shall be submitted no more than 90 calendar days after the end date of the agreement.

In accordance with 2 C.F.R. 200 § 200.328, the performance reports shall contain brief information on:

(1) A comparison of actual accomplishments to the objectives of the Federal award established for the period. Where the accomplishments of the Federal award can be quantified, a computation of the cost (for example, related to units of accomplishment) may be required if that information will be useful. Where performance trend data and analysis would be informative to the Federal awarding agency program, the Federal awarding agency should include this as a performance reporting requirement;

(2) The reasons why established goals were not met, if appropriate; and

(3) Additional pertinent information including, when appropriate, analysis and explanation of cost overruns or high unit costs.

Before submitting…