step 2015 program announcement 4-8-15.pdf

U.S. Small Business Administration Office of International Trade

State Trade and Export Promotion Program Program Announcement No. OIT-STEP-2015-01

STATE TRADE AND EXPORT PROMOTION

PROGRAM

FY 2015

Program Announcement No.

OIT-STEP-2015-01

The purpose of this Program Announcement is to invite proposals for funding from eligible state entities interested in and capable of providing assistance and guidance to eligible small business concerns to increase the number of such firms that export and the value of small business exports.

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Opening Date: April 8, 2015 Closing Date: May 20, 2015

Proposals responding to this Program Announcement must be posted to www.grants.gov by 11:59 p.m.

Eastern Time, May 20, 2015. No other methods of submission will be permitted. Proposals submitted after the stipulated deadline will be rejected without being evaluated.

U.S. SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

OFFICE OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE

Table of Contents

Section Subject

1.0 Section I – Funding Opportunity Description 4

1.1 Program Overview 4

1.2 Introduction 6

1.3 Background 6

1.4 Purpose 6

1.5 Leveraging of Resources 7

1.6 SBA Roles and Responsibilities 7

1.7 Changes or Cancellation 9

2.0 Section II – Award Information 9

2.1 Estimated Funding 9

2.2 Expected Number of Awards 9

2.3 Period of Performance/Budget Periods 9

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2.4 Funding Information 9

2.5 Funding Instrument 9

2.6 Matching Requirement 9

3.0 Section III – Eligibility Information 10

3.1 General 10

3.2 Eligible Applicants 10

3.3 Ineligible Applicants 10

4.0 Section IV – Application and Submission Information 11

4.1 Application Instructions 11

4.2 Submission Instructions 15

4.3 Required Proposal Submission Dates 16

5.0 Section V – Application Review Information 16

5.1 General 16

5.2 Evaluation Criteria 17

5.3 Review and Selection Process 20

6.0 Section VI – Award Administration Information 20

6.1 Award Notification 20

6.2 Administrative and National Policy Requirements 20

6.3 Reporting 20

7.0 Section VII – Agency Contacts 21

7.1 State Trade and Export Promotion Point of Contact 21

7.2 Financial/Awards Management Point of Contact 21

7.3 Grants.gov Technical Support 21

8.0 Section VIII – Other Information 21

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8.1 Definitions 21

8.2 Key Policies 23

1.0 Section I – Funding Opportunity Description

1.1. Program Overview

1.1.1. Federal Agency Name U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA)

1.1.2. Funding Opportunity Title State Trade and Export Promotion Program

1.1.3. Announcement Type Initial

1.1.4. Funding Opportunity Number: Program Announcement No. OIT-STEP-2015-01

1.1.5. CDFA Number 59.061

1.1.6. Closing Date for Submissions: May 20, 2015 11:59 PM Eastern Time

1.1.7. Authority: Public Law 111 – 240, Small Business Jobs Act of 2010

National Defense Authorization Act of 2013 (H.R. 4310)

Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015 (H.R. 83)

1.1.8. Duration of Authority: Year-to-year, as renewed by Congress.

1.1.9. Funding Instrument: Cooperative Agreement

1.1.10. Funding: Funding is for Fiscal Year (FY) 2015

1.1.11. Award Amount/Funding Range: A total amount of $17,400,000 in funding is available for this program in FY 2015. SBA expects to make up to 30 awards, selected by a competitive process.

The maximum award amount that can be proposed for this funding opportunity by any Applicant is $750,000 and the minimum amount is $100,000.

To be eligible for this funding opportunity an Applicant must be one of the several States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa.

Based upon the latest data available from the U.S.

Department of Commerce, the 10 states with the highest

Page | 4 number of small business exporters shall receive no more than 40 percent of the total Federal fiscal year appropriation. For purposes of this Program Announcement, these states are: California, Florida, Texas, New York, New Jersey, Illinois, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Georgia.

The Federal share of project cost for a State that has a high export volume will be 65%. For purposes of this program announcement, these states are: Texas, California, and Washington. Refer to Section 2.6 Matching Requirement for calculation of required match.

The Federal share of project cost for a State that does not have a high export volume will be 75%. Refer to Section 2.6 Matching Requirement for calculation of required match.

The State must match the remainder of project cost. The match must be comprised of not less than 50% cash and not more than 50% of in-kind contributions. Matching funds may not be derived from any Federal program.

If an insular area Applicant is an agency or instrumentality of the area’s government, pursuant to 48 U.S.C. § 1469a, SBA will waive up to $200,000 of the matching funds requirement if a STEP award is made to American Samoa, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, or the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands. If an insular area Applicant is not an agency or instrumentality of the area’s government, the full matching funds requirement applies.

1.1.12. Project Duration: Awards will be made for a base project period of 12 months, with one option period of 12 months.

1.1.13. Project Starting Date: Awardees must accept their cooperative agreement awards by complying with special terms and conditions (if any), signing and returning the Notice of Award, and starting program activities within 30 calendar days of the start date of the Project Period. Failure to comply with these requirements may result in the loss of award.

1.1.14. Proposal Evaluation: Proposals will be reviewed for sufficiency and quality as detailed in Sections 4 and 5. During the evaluation and award process, SBA may ask Applicants for clarification or further substantiation of the technical and cost aspects of their proposals. This must not be construed as a commitment to fund the proposed effort.

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1.1.15. Agency Programmatic Point of

Contact:

Gene Stewman, Director, State Trade and Export Promotion Program, U.S. Small Business Administration, Office of International Trade, Tel: 202-205-6193.

Email: eugene.stewman@sba.gov

1.2 Introduction

Public Law No. 111 – 240 (the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010) authorized the U.S. Small Business Administration to establish a pilot program, known as the State Trade and Export Promotion Program, to make cooperative agreement awards to States, and the equivalent thereof, to carry out export programs that assist ‘eligible small business concerns.’ The objectives of this program, which was extended by the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015 (H.R. 83), are to increase the number of small businesses that are exporting and to increase the value of exports for those small businesses that export.

1.3 Background

Since its inception in 1953, SBA has served to aid, counsel, assist and protect the interests of small businesses. While SBA is best known for its financial support of small businesses through its many lending programs, the Agency also plays a critical role in providing funding to organizations that deliver technical assistance in the form of counseling and training to small business concerns and nascent entrepreneurs in order to promote growth, expansion, innovation, increased productivity and management improvement.

The mission of SBA’s Office of International Trade, which bears responsibility for administering the State Trade and Export Promotion Program, is to build the capacity of current and future small business exporters to compete in the global marketplace through capital, counseling, and the advancement of commercial interests at home and abroad.

1.4 Purpose

Eligible organizations (as defined in Section 3.2) may apply to SBA for cooperative agreement awards under this Announcement to fund proposed activities from the following list of allowable activities to carry out exporting programs that assist eligible small business concerns (ESBC):

1. Participation in foreign trade missions;

2. Participation in foreign market sales trips;

3. Subscription to services provided by the Department of Commerce;

4. Translation of websites into foreign languages;

5. Design of international marketing products or campaigns;

6. Development of export trade show exhibits;

7. Participation in international trade training workshops; and,

8. Other export initiatives deemed appropriate by SBA’s Associate Administrator of the Office of International Trade that do not duplicate the services of other SBA resource partners.

The underlying premise of the STEP Program is to supplement Applicant funds for export activities, not to substitute Federal funds for costs Applicants would normally or otherwise cover. Per 2 C.F.R.

Section 200.408, Applicants’ proposed use of Federal funds for the STEP Program will be limited to the above statutory uses of funds that directly benefit ESBCs to become an exporter and/or make export sales (e.g., direct financial assistance to cover ESBCs’ costs of export activities, market research, interpreters that accompany ESBCs on export sales trips, state staff travel to recruit ESBCs and to accompany ESBCs on export sales trips). Proposed use of Federal funds not directly supporting development of new ESBC exporters and ESBC export market expansion will not be

Page | 6 mailto:eugene.stewman@sba.gov approved (e.g., proposed activities not drawn from the above list, national/regional association dues, passport/visa fees, immunizations, expenses related to entertaining current or prospective clients or government officials).

Applicants must reflect in their Technical Proposal and Attachment A the use of at least 80 percent of their proposed Federal award for the purpose of providing direct benefit to ESBCs to become an exporter and/or make an export sale, drawn from the list of allowable activities above. Applicants should propose Applicant staff salaries and fringe to meet their required match.

1.5 Collaboration and Leveraging of Resources

Applicants selected for awards under this Announcement are expected to leverage SBA funding by working in conjunction with other Federal, state, local and tribal government small business development programs and activities; SBA’s District Offices, U.S. Export Assistance Center trade finance specialists and SBA’s resource partners such as Small Business Development Centers (SBDC), SCORE, Women’s Business Centers, Veterans Business Outreach Centers, Small Business Investment Companies, Certified Development Companies, and SBA lenders; universities, colleges, and other institutions of higher education; and private organizations such as chambers of commerce and trade and industry groups and associations.

Note that SBDCs do not meet the criteria of ‘eligible applicants’ (see Section 3.2). However, eligible applicants may propose efforts that include both collaborative and sub-contractual relationships with SBDCs. Sub-contracts with SBDCs are governed by guidelines discussed in this Program Announcement. Also note that eligible Applicants may propose efforts that include assistance payments of stipends or tuition for, or reimbursements to, STEP Clients for services provided to them by SBDCs.

Because of the scope and substance of services contemplated under this Program Announcement, in making cooperative agreement awards under it, SBA may prioritize efforts that demonstrate strong collaboration with international trade service providers including, but not limited to, the U.S.

Department of Commerce Commercial Service.

1.6 SBA Roles and Responsibilities

The State Trade and Export Promotion Program is managed by the Associate Administrator, Office of International Trade. On behalf of the Associate Administrator, the Director of the State and Export Promotion Program, Office of International Trade:

i. Establishes program policy, planning, review, coordination, and evaluation;

ii. In collaboration with the Office of Grants Management, manages the competitive award of cooperative agreements in accordance with a merit-based review (competitive) process;

iii. Directs program management and monitoring activities executed by Program Managers and other agency resources;

iv. Ensures effective use of program funds; and,

v. Resolves issues, problems, and/or disputes.

For assigned STEP Award Recipients, under direction of the Director of the State and Export Promotion Program, the Program Manager, Office of International Trade:

i. Has the delegated authority for full programmatic execution of the program;

ii. Serves as the Grants Officer’s Technical Representative (GOTR)

iii. Serves as liaison between the Office of International Trade and their assigned STEP

Recipients;

iv. Maintains communication with the District International Trade Officer;

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v. Receives copies of all official project documents and maintains project files containing copies of the applications, proposals, budgets, notices of award, web-site information, client follow-up plans, financial, statistical and narrative reports, correspondence, modification requests, travel requests, payment requests, notes, etc.;

vi. Recommends Grants Management Officer approval or decline of requests for programmatic and budgetary changes to awards and requests for advance of funds or reimbursement of expenditures.

Within the Office of Grants Management, for assigned Recipients, the Grants Management Officer:

i. Has full responsibility for financial management of grant and cooperative agreement awards;

ii. Is responsible for issuance of the notices of award, approval of any programmatic and budgetary modifications.

iii. Approves all requests for advance of funds and payment of expenses incurred under grants and cooperative agreements.

Within SBA District Offices, for an assigned STEP Recipient, the District International Trade Officer:

i. Serves as SBA’s lead local point of contact for coordination of Recipient’s efforts and activities with other SBA resource partners;

ii. Serves as liaison between the Recipient’s program and other local resources, integrating the program into the network of service providers and resource partners, including the District Office, Small Business Development Center, Women’s Business Center, and SCORE.

iii. Assists award recipients with eligibility determinations of prospective small business concerns;

iv. Maintains ongoing communication with Recipient, Program Manager, and assigned U.S.

Export Assistance Center Trade Finance Specialist, as needed, to coordinate recipient’s activities with resource partners;

v. Acts as advocate for the Recipient’s program within the district, referring clients to the Recipient’s program, and helping other SBA personnel and resource partners understand which clients are best served by referral to the Recipient’s program;

vi. Collaborates with the Program Manager in review of the scope and quality of services provided to clients by resource partners;

vii. Shares information with Program Manager to facilitate program evaluation; and,

viii. Monitors Recipient’s signage and media (newspaper articles, radio and television interviews, etc.), to help ensure compliance with SBA requirements regarding use of SBA logo and acknowledgement of support.

For assigned STEP Recipients, the U.S. Export Assistance Center Trade Finance Specialist:

i. Has lead area responsibility for providing support and assistance regarding SBA’s export-focused loan programs; and,

ii. Guides the Recipient, as necessary, in identifying external sources of export-related financial programs that may be appropriate for client needs.

1.7 Changes or Cancellation

SBA reserves the right to amend or cancel this Announcement, in whole or in part, at the Agency’s discretion. Should SBA make material changes to this Announcement, the Agency will extend the Closing Date as necessary to afford Applicants sufficient opportunity to address such changes.

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2.0 Section II – Award Information

2.1 Estimated Funding

SBA expects to issue $17,400,000 worth of awards under this Announcement.

The maximum award amount that can be proposed for this funding opportunity by any Applicant is $750,000 and the minimum is $100,000.

2.2 Expected Number of Awards

SBA anticipates making up to 30 awards under this Announcement.

2.3 Period of Performance/Budget Periods

Awards will be made for a one-year period of performance, consisting of a base period of 12 months from the date of award and one option period of an additional 12 months.

2.4 Funding Information

Funds provided under the State Trade and Export Promotion Program must be used solely for the purposes stipulated in this Announcement and the Notice of Award and may not be commingled with any other monies.

All costs proposed in an Applicant’s budget must meet the tests of allowability, allocability, and reasonableness set forth in the applicable Office of Management and Budget (OMB) cost principles.

In accordance with 2 C.F.R. Section 200.408, allowability of costs is restricted to the statutory limitations specified in Section 1.4 above.

2.5 Funding Instrument

The funding instrument used will be a Cooperative Agreement.

2.6 Matching Requirement

i. The Federal share of project cost for states that have high export volumes will be 65%, and state matching funds required will be 35% of the sum of the Federal award plus the Recipient match amount. This means that for every $1 of Federal funds received, the Recipient must provide $.5384 in match. For purposes of this Program Announcement, these states are: Texas, California and Washington.

ii. The Federal share of project cost for states that do not have high export volumes will be 75%, and state matching funds required will be 25% of the sum of the Federal award and Recipient match amount. This means that for every $1 of Federal funds received, the Recipient must provide $.333333 in match.

iii. If an insular area Applicant is an agency or instrumentality of the area’s government, pursuant to 48 U.S.C. § 1469a, SBA will waive up to $200,000 of the matching funds requirement if a STEP award is made to American Samoa, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, or the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands. If the insular area Applicant is not an agency or instrumentality of the area’s government, the full matching funds requirement applies.

iv. Matching funds must be comprised of not less than 50% cash and not more than 50% in-kind contributions. Matching funds may not be derived from any Federal program.

v. Applicants may not use program income for the purpose of meeting their match requirement.

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3.0 Section III – Eligibility Information

3.1 General

i. A state may submit only one proposal in response to this Announcement.

ii. Any additional applications from a state will automatically be rejected without being evaluated. (Only the latest application successfully submitted by an eligible Applicant to grants.gov will be screened for potential evaluation for an award.)

iii. All monetary values in budgetary and financial submissions shall be rounded to the nearest whole dollar.

3.2 Eligible Applicants

The Small Business Jobs Act of 2010, as amended by National Defense Authorization Act of 2013 (H.R. 4310), provides that State Trade and Export Promotion Program cooperative agreements may be awarded only to ‘States,’ meaning any of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa. Therefore, only applicants that meet this definition are eligible for award of funding under this Program Announcement.

For purposes of this Program Announcement, the term ‘eligible applicant’ means a state agency or other entity that, prior to the date of application for this Announcement, has been officially designated by a state governor, or equivalent thereof, as the sole entity responsible for conducting the State’s trade and export activities.

i. The organizational structure of the State’s designated international trade arm must show an official agency relationship with State government, and the State must provide financial backing and show support for program activities.

ii. Only those proposals accompanied by the written designation of the State Governor, or his/her designee, may submit an application for evaluation and funding consideration.

iii. Only one proposal will be considered per State.

iv. Should the Governor, or equivalent thereof (e.g., Mayor of the District of Columbia), assign signatory responsibility for the designation letter to a designee, the letter must include an acknowledgement that the Governor, or his/her equivalent, has authorized the designee to sign the letter on his/her behalf.

v. For insular areas, the equivalent of a State governor is the appropriate signatory.

3.3 Ineligible Applicants

The following organizations will automatically be considered ineligible and their applications will be rejected without being evaluated:

i. Any organization that has not been officially designated by a State Governor as the sole entity responsible for conducting the State’s trade and export activities (See Section 3.2 Eligible Applicants, above.)

ii. Any organization that owes an outstanding and unresolved financial obligation to the federal government;

iii. Any organization that is currently suspended, debarred or otherwise prohibited from receiving awards of contracts, grants, or cooperative agreements from the Federal government;

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iv. Any organization with an outstanding and unresolved material deficiency reported under the requirements of the Single Audit Act or OMB Circular A-133 within the past three years;

v. Any organization that has had a grant or cooperative agreement involuntarily terminated or non-renewed by SBA for cause;

vi. Any organization that has filed for bankruptcy within the past five years;

vii. Any organization that proposes to serve as a pass-through and permit another organization to manage the day-to-day operations of the project; and/or

viii. Any organization that was convicted, or had an officer or agent acting on its behalf convicted, of a felony criminal violation under any Federal law within the preceding 24 months.

4.0 Section IV - Application and Submission Information

4.1 Application Instructions

Applications must include the following elements: (i) a cover letter; (ii) a technical proposal and proposal attachments; (iii) budget information; (iv) certifications, forms and assurances; and (v) additional attachments and exhibits.

Use the checklist provided as Attachment C (applicants may create their own format) to ensure that all required documents are included in the application package. In addition, make sure the elements of the application package follow the order listed in the Program Announcement (which is the same as in Attachment C).

All extraneous material submitted will be ignored in evaluation of applications submitted under this Program Announcement.

All applications successfully submitted to SBA via grants.gov will undergo an initial screening process, consisting of a review for Applicant eligibility and adherence to the requirements of Section

4. Only those applications which pass this initial screening will move forward in the competitive merit-based evaluation process.

4.1.1 Cover Letter

The first element of the application must be a cover letter addressed to Ms. Eileen Sánchez, Associate Administrator, Office of International Trade, 409 3rd St SW Washington, DC 20416. The cover letter is not to exceed two pages and must include the following information:

i. Statement that the application is in response to Program Announcement No. OIT- STEP- 2015-01;

ii. Applicant’s name and address;

iii. Applicant’s website address (if applicable);

iv. Name, telephone number, fax number, and email address for the Applicant’s designated point of contact;

v. Dollar amount of Federal assistance being requested;

vi. A summary overview comprised of no more than one paragraph for each of the three or four most important proposed export activities and the outcomes that are expected for each of these activities. Note: For cooperative agreements awarded pursuant to the proposal, this overview will be used for the SBA’s State Trade and Export Promotion Program webpage.

Submit the Cover Letter electronically in Word format.

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4.1.2 Technical Proposal (not to exceed 18 pages)

The technical proposal serves as the narrative and data blueprint for the Applicant’s proposed export milestone goals and supporting activities. Applicants must complete as part of their application a Technical Proposal that meets the requirements of Section 4.1.2 and thoroughly addresses the evaluation criteria in Section 5 of the Program Announcement. Applicants may use either the Attachment B template or their own format, provided that they address all requirements stated in Section 4 and include all elements contained in Attachment B.

Note: The milestone goals and supporting activity data placed in Attachment B reflect totals for the full year period of performance, whereas, the milestone goals and supporting activity data placed in the Attachment A are broken out by Federal fiscal quarter.

Technical proposals may not exceed 18 pages of double-spaced text. A minimum 12-point font is required using 8 ½ x 11 paper with a one-inch margin on all sides. It must exclude confidential and/or proprietary information and must include the following (see Section 5.2 for the evaluation criteria for the technical proposal):

A. Description of the Applicant’s past international trade assistance experience and present capacity to facilitate export activities for eligible small business concerns;

B. Detailed description of each proposed milestone goal and supporting export activity implemented for eligible small business concerns, to include the projected outcome results in data form contained within Attachments A and B;

C. Applicant’s Financial Assistance Plan addressing the parameters of providing financial assistance from STEP Federal award directly to eligible small business concerns;

D. Organizational chart identifying the project director and key personnel who are funded by the STEP award and the Applicant’s facilities and locations used to conduct the proposed STEP project;

E. Description of contractors and consultants services funded by the award to support the proposed milestone goals and export activities; and, F. Completed Attachment A.

The Technical Proposal shall be submitted electronically in pdf format and in Microsoft Excel format with respect to Attachment A.

4.1.3 Budget Information

Each Applicant must provide budget information through the completion and submission of the following:

i. Standard Form (SF) 424, Application for Federal Assistance. Note: Block ‘f’ must reflect only the name of the director of the Applicant organization, not a grant writer or any other contact person.

ii. SF-424A, Budget Information (Non-Construction Programs). For Section A, fill in columns (a), (b), (e), (f), and (g). For Section B, place the proposed Federal award in column (1), required Non-Federal match column (2), and any third party in-kind contribution in column (3). For Section C, fill in columns (a), (b), and (e). In Section D, spread the Federal and Non-Federal amounts across all quarters with proposed expenditures.

iii. SF-424A, Attachments A-9 through A-12 (Budget Detail Worksheet). Note: Identify all Applicant employee personnel who are funded by the STEP award in Attachment A-10.

Worksheet budget line totals must match those on the SF-424, Application for Federal

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Assistance, and SF-424A, Budget Information; worksheets must support all dollar amounts reflected on SF-424A; Applicant STEP Project Director must devote at least 50% of his/her time to the project; applicant may substitute its own forms or spreadsheets in place of the Budget Detail Worksheet, provided it includes all the same cost elements, line items, and columns covered by Attachments A-9 through A-12 (Note: include a breakout of the Federal and Non-Federal costs into two separate columns);

iv. Budget Narrative providing a detailed explanation of the components of each cost element listed in the SF-424A, indicating for each cost component how it directly benefits ESBCs, as applicable.

v. Match requirement documentation, per Section 2.6 above, reflecting how the applicant plans to fund such requirement. Include as attachments any letter(s) from sources from which the applicant intends to obtain financial matching funds.

4.1.4 Certifications, Forms and Assurances

Each Applicant must complete and submit the following forms:

i. SBA Form 1623, Certification Regarding Debarment, Suspension, and Other Responsibility Matters;

ii. SF-LLL, Disclosure of Lobbying Activities (Note: If there is nothing to disclose in blocks10a-b, only blocks 1-9 need be completed. The form must be signed and dated.

Federal funds under this award may not be used for lobbying activities.);

iii. SF-3881 ACH Vendor/Miscellaneous Payment Enrollment Form (Note: Applicant must complete the Payee Information and Financial Institution sections only. The Agency Information section will be completed by SBA. Applicant must sign the form.);

and,

iv. SF-424B, Assurances for Non-Construction Programs. Note: This form must be signed.

4.1.5 Additional Attachments

Each Applicant must attach copies of the following to its proposal (as applicable):

i. Governor’s letter designating the Applicant as the State’s sole entity responsible for conducting the State’s trade and export activities addressed to Ms. Eileen Sánchez, Associate Administrator, Office of International Trade, 409 3rd St SW Washington, DC 20416;

ii. Résumés (or position descriptions for unfilled positions) for all key personnel providing services funded by the award. Résumés must include experience relevant to the proposed project and may not be more than two pages in length. (Note: Résumés and position descriptions for board members, contractors, and consultants need not be submitted unless they are also key personnel and paid with funds under the award.)

iii. List of members of Board of Directors, if applicable;

iv. List of extant or anticipated contractual and consulting agreements that directly support the Applicant’s proposed export activities, which must include the contract provider name, the manner in which the provider was or will be selected (i.e., competitively or non-competitively), a summary of support provided, actual or estimated contract cost to support the proposed activities, as well as, identify the employee or official of the Applicant organization who will be responsible for overseeing those agreements and how they will be administered. If a contract calls for expenditure of $25,000 or more in project funds, include a copy (which must include hourly charges, session costs, materials costs, etc.) as an attachment because each of these contracts must be approved

Page | 13 by the STEP Program office, in advance. If Applicant does not propose contract support for this award, include this attachment marked “N/A.”

v. List of contracts that the Applicant proposes to charge against the project as a direct cost or to meet matching funds requirement that will be outside the indirect cost rate agreement (e.g., a facilities lease). The list must include the contract provider/lessor name, summary of support provided, actual or estimated contract cost. If Applicant does not propose such charges, include this attachment marked “N/A.”

vi. Tax Identification Documentation issued by the Internal Revenue Service;

vii. Pledges of additional funding or third party in-kind resources. Specifically, provide detailed descriptions of any additional funding or third party in-kind resources the Applicant will devote to the project and copies of donation letters or checks from outside entities;

viii. Conflict of Interest Policy addressing, at a minimum, procedures for ensuring Applicant’s employees, consultants and contractors do not assist eligible small business concerns, in which they, their principals, or their immediate family members have a financial interest or fiduciary duty and for ensuring Applicant’s employees, consultants and contractors do not use their role in the project as a means of marketing their outside services to project clients;

ix. Cost Policy Statement. This statement must describe Applicant’s general accounting policies and a description of their cost allocation methodology (how each type of proposed cost is allocated: direct, indirect, or match). This policy must be signed by an authorized official;

x. Most recent A-133 audit report. If the Applicant is not subject to the requirements of the Single Audit Act, Applicant must instead submit a copy of its most recently audited financial statement and the CPA opinion of this audit (e.g., unqualified, qualified, adverse, etc.) Note: if the Applicant’s A-133 or most recent financial statement audit is large, provide a website link and instruction on where to locate the audit;

xi. For proposals including indirect costs, an executed Indirect Cost Rate Agreement from the Cognizant Agency;

xii. Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Certification (or equivalent thereof, holding analogous responsibilities, and having analogous expertise) verifying that the applicant has an established organizational infrastructure with and internal financial management system that meets OMB cost principles (2 C.F.R. 200). Letter must be on letterhead, signed, and dated;

xiii. Drug-free Workplace Agreement;

xiv. Copy of Applicant’s data collection instrument (DCI) used to collect data from STEP

Clients on results of STEP activities that clearly indicate, at a minimum, the following data: STEP Client’s level of export experience (new-to-export or market expansion), actual export sales amount, projected sales amount within 12 to 18 months. In addition, indicate how often these data will be collected from STEP Clients, either in the DCI or the Technical Proposal; and,

xv. Copy of the Applicant’s STEP Client Self-Representation as an Eligible Small Business Concern form.

4.2 Submission Instructions

All proposals (narratives and forms) must be submitted electronically via the government-wide financial assistance portal www.grants.gov. NO OTHER FORM OF SUBMISSION WILL BE ACCEPTED. All required forms are provided in the grants.gov application package for this funding opportunity. Specific instructions for obtaining, completing, and submitting an application

Page | 14 via grants.gov, including animated tutorials, may be found at http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/applicant-resources.html.

In order to submit an application via grants.gov, an organization is first required to have a DUNS number, be registered with the System for Award Management (SAM), and have an active grants.gov username and password. The process for meeting these three pre-submission requirements may take several days to complete. Additionally, Applicants may have to download or upgrade their software in order to utilize grants.gov. Applicants should not wait until the closing date to begin the submission process in order to avoid unexpected delays that could result in the rejection of an application.

Information about the grants.gov registration process can be found at http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/organization-registration.html. Applicants must register as organizations, not as individuals. Please note that organizations already registered with grants.gov do not need to re-register. However, all registered organizations must keep their SAM registration up-to-date. As part of the grants.gov registration process, an Applicant must designate one or more Authorized Organizational Representatives (AOR). AORs are the only individuals who may submit applications to grants.gov on behalf of an organization. If an application is submitted by anyone other than a designated AOR, it will be rejected by grants.gov and cannot be considered for funding.

Once an application is submitted, it undergoes a validation process through which it will be accepted or rejected by the grants.gov system. The validation process may take 24 to 48 hours to complete.

Applicants should save and print written proof of an electronic submission made at grants.gov.

Applicants can expect to receive multiple emails regarding the status of their submission. The first email will confirm receipt of the application. The second email will indicate that the application has both been successfully validated by the system and assigned an SBA tracking number, or it has been rejected due to errors. An Applicant will receive a third email once SBA has downloaded its application from grants.gov for review in accordance with Section 5.3 below.

If grants.gov notifies an Applicant via email that its application contains an error, the Applicant must correct the noted error(s) before the system will accept and validate the application. Applicants that choose to submit on or close to the closing date are advised they may not receive email notification of an error with their applications until after the submission deadline, and thus will not have an opportunity to correct and resubmit their applications. APPLICATIONS THAT ARE

REJECTED BY GRANTS.GOV WILL NOT BE FORWARDED TO SBA AND CANNOT

BE CONSIDERED FOR FUNDING. It is the Applicant’s responsibility to verify that its submission was received and validated successfully at grants.gov.

To check on the status of your application and see the date and time it was received, log on to grants.gov and click on the “Track My Application” link from the left-hand menu.

If you experience a technical difficulty with grants.gov (i.e., system problems or glitches with the operation of the grants.gov website itself) that you believe threatens your ability to submit your application, please (i) print any error message received; and (ii) call the grants.gov Contact Center at 1-800-518-4726 for immediate assistance. Ensure that you obtain a case number regarding your communications with grants.gov. NOTE: Problems with an Applicant’s own computer system or equipment are not considered technical difficulties with grants.gov. Similarly, an Applicant’s failure to: (i) obtain a DUNS number or complete the SAM or grants.gov registration

Page | 15 http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/applicant-resources.html http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/organization-registration.html process; (ii) ensure that an AOR submits the application; or (iii) take note of and act upon an email from grants.gov rejecting its application due to errors, are not considered technical difficulties. A grants.gov technical difficulty is an issue occurring in connection with the operations of grants.gov itself, such as the temporary loss of service by grants.gov due to an unexpected volume of traffic or failure of information technology systems, both of which are rare occurrences.

Applicants should use the following link to obtain assistance in navigating grants.gov and access a list of useful resources: http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/applicant-resources.html. If you have a question that is not addressed under the “Applicant FAQs,” try consulting the “Applicant User Guide” or contacting grants.gov via email at support@grants.gov or telephone at 1-800-518- 4726. The grants.gov Contact Center is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

4.3 Required Proposal Submission Date

Each Applicant is required to submit its proposal electronically via www.grants.gov no later than 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on May 20, 2015. Because of the pre-conditions for submitting applications via grants.gov and the potential for encountering technical difficulties in using that site, Applicants are strongly encouraged to log on to grants.gov and review the submission instructions early. DO NOT WAIT UNTIL THE CLOSING DATE TO BEGIN THE SUBMISSION PROCESS. Applicants bear sole responsibility for ensuring their proposals are submitted and received before the closing date.

SBA will consider the date and time stamp on the validation generated by grants.gov as the official submission time. A proposal that is not received by grants.gov before the closing date of this Announcement will be rejected without being evaluated, unless the Applicant can clearly demonstrate through documentation obtained from grants.gov that it attempted to submit its proposal in a timely manner but was unable to do so solely because of grants.gov systems issues. Additionally, SBA will not accept any changes, additions, revisions, or deletions to applications made after the application closing date, unless requested by the SBA.

Applicants should save and print written proof of an electronic submission made at grants.gov. If problems occur while using grants.gov, the applicant is advised to (i) print any error message received; and (ii) contact grants.gov for immediate assistance. Applicants may obtain advice and assistance with the grants.gov submission process by visiting http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/applicant-resources.html or by calling 1-800- 518-4726.

5.0 Section V - Application Review Information

5.1 General

Applications will be rejected without further evaluation if they are submitted by ineligible organizations or they are illegible or materially incomplete due to an Applicant’s failure to follow the instructions of this Announcement, include all required forms and attachments, or provide the required level of detail.

5.2 Evaluation Criteria

All timely and materially complete applications received from eligible organizations will be evaluated in accordance with the criteria listed below. Evaluation of applications will result in the competitive award of cooperative agreements in accordance with a merit-based review process.

5.2.1 Organizational Experience and Capacity (15 Points)

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Based on information contained in the Technical Proposal, Applicants will be evaluated on their demonstrated capacity and experience with facilitating their proposed export activities, drawn from the following allowable activities:

i. Foreign trade missions;

ii. Foreign market sales trips;

iii. Services provided by the Department of Commerce;

iv. Translation of websites into foreign languages;

v. International marketing campaigns;

vi. Export trade show exhibits;

vii. International trade training workshops; and,

viii. Other export activities that may be deemed appropriate which do not duplicate the services of SBA resource partners.

Applicants must provide evidence, including specific examples, of their familiarity with and expertise in the following aspects of exporting:

i. Market identification and development;

ii. Marketing;

iii. Financing; and,

iv. Logistics.

Applicants must document, including specific examples, their capability and experience with:

i. Developing small businesses into new exporters (e.g., recruiting, training, export business planning, etc.); and,

ii. Facilitating supporting export sales.

5.2.2 Project Design (30 Points)

Based on information contained in the Technical Proposal and Attachment A, applicants will be evaluated on the following elements of their proposed STEP project:

i. Dollar amount and percentage of the total Federal award that will directly benefit STEP ESBCs by completing the matrix in Attachment B (or applicant’s own format).

(Reminder: 80% of the proposed Federal award is required to directly benefit ESBCs export activities).

ii. Methods to recruit (outreach to) eligible small business concerns (new-to-export and market expansion) for participation in the STEP Program.

iii. Applicant’s proposed use of state resources (state personnel/regional offices/foreign offices), contractor support, and/or consultants to achieve the proposed increase in new exporters and increase in export sales;

iv. A narrative describing each proposed measurable export milestone and supporting activity and the impact on producing new exporters and increasing small business export sales. In addition, complete a line entry in the matrix in Attachment B (or applicant’s own format) for each export activity. The data placed in Attachment B reflect the totals for the full year period of performance, whereas, the data placed in the Attachment A are broken out by Federal fiscal quarter;

v. Applicant's Financial Assistance Plan addressing criteria and policies for the following elements:

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a. Selection of small businesses as STEP Clients;

b. Minimum and maximum financial assistance amount(s) available to a Client;

c. Percent or dollar amount of total activity cost borne by a Client;

d. Timing of financial assistance payments to Clients (e.g., prepaid, reimbursement);

e. Number of financial assistance awards per Client during the performance period;

f. Internal controls to ensure adequate financial management; and,

vi. Applicant's proposed overall ROI for the Federal award reflected in Attachment A.

5.2.3 Collaboration and Leveraging of Resources (10 Points)

Because of the nature and substance of the STEP Program, Applicants are expected to leverage award funding by establishing collaborative relationships with such organizations as SBA resource partners, U.S. Department of Commerce Commercial Service, Export-Import Bank, etc.

Based on information contained in the Technical Proposal, applicants will be evaluated on the breadth of their plans for coordinating/collaborating with the following entities on their proposed activities:

i. SBA’s District Offices, U.S. Export Assistance Center’s trade finance specialists and SBA’s resource partners such as Small Business Development Centers, SCORE, Women’s Business Centers, Veterans Business Outreach Centers, Small Business Investment Companies, Certified Development Companies, SBA lenders, and other SBA award recipients;

ii. Other Federal, state, local and tribal government agencies;

iii. Universities, colleges, and other institutions of higher education; and,

iv. Private organizations, such as chambers of commerce and trade and industry groups and associations.

5.2.4 Project Management (15 Points)

Applicants must demonstrate they will devote an adequate number of personnel to ensure proper direction, management and timely completion of the project, describe the process used to conduct programmatic management and oversight (to include establishing clear and direct lines of responsibility and authority), and show they will have sufficient facilities and other resources at their disposal in order to accomplish the proposed project. In particular, an Applicant must:

i. Describe the roles and responsibilities of key personnel tasked to conduct programmatic and financial management oversight, stipulating the amount of time they will devote to the project, to include identifying Applicant official who will provide necessary level of oversight over contracts, if any. (This is in addition to providing an organizational chart and copies of résumés or position descriptions for unfilled positions); and,

ii. Describe the process used to conduct programmatic and financial management oversight and identify Applicant facilities and locations and how they will be used to support the proposed export activities.

5.2.5 Risk Assessment and Past Performance (25 points)

As required by 2 C.F.R. § 200.205(b), based on information contained in the Technical Proposal, the required attachments, and accumulated performance data of previous STEP awards, if any, Applicants will be evaluated on the following elements:

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i. Financial management structure, systems, and internal controls to include the staff members who will be responsible for financial recordkeeping, reporting, the receipt and expenditure of award funds, and addressing audit findings;

ii. Review of Applicant’s implementation of recommendations received from an SBA examination of their previous STEP project financial management or the risk assessment of Applicants without prior examination. (No input is required from Applicant for item ii);

iii. History of performance with prior STEP Federal awards, if any, to include: extent to which most recently completed award was utilized and the return on Federal investment achieved on the most recently completed STEP award or the risk assessment of Applicants without prior STEP awards. (No input is required from Applicant for item iii);

iv. Compliance with Federal guidelines on suspension and debarment provided in 2 CFR Part 180.

Per 2 CFR §§ 200.205-200.207, the risk assessment of each applicant reflects the increasing emphasis on accountability and mitigating the risks associated with use of Federal funds. Results of a risk assessment may preclude the awarding of a STEP cooperative agreement or the imposition of special terms and conditions.

5.2.6 Measurement of Outcomes, Data Integrity, and Application Quality (10 Points) Based on information contained in the Technical Proposal and their submitted data collection instrument (DCI), sometimes called a STEP Client survey, Applicants will be evaluated on the method, frequency, and the collected data (reflected in the DCI) used to report the number of new-to-export and market expansion small businesses participating in export activities and the small business export sales for quarterly reporting to the SBA.

Based on information contained in the Technical Proposal, the integrity of the Applicant's process to collect outcome data from STEP ESBCs, to record outcome data in their system of record (e.g., website app, client paper file, etc.), and to report outcome data to SBA via the Performance Progress Report will be evaluated. Specifically, the integrity of the Applicant’s data process will be evaluated for its ability to produce verifiable data (data that can be confirmed, if audited).

The entire application package, which is comprised of the Technical Proposal (in Attachment B format or applicant’s own format), the Attachment A, and all required certifications and additional attachments, will be evaluated on its comprehensiveness, completeness, and overall quality.

5.3 Review and Selection Process

Applications that are not rejected by…