Biotechnology Risk Assessment Research

The purpose of the BRAG program Assistance Listing 10.219, is to support the generation of new information that will assist Federal regulatory agencies [USDA's - Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service - Biotechnology Regulatory Services (APHIS-BR

The purpose of the Biotechnology Risk Assessment Grants (BRAG) program is to support the generation of new information that will assist Federal regulatory agencies make science-based decisions about the effects of introducing genetically engineered organisms (GE) into the environment.

Any public or private research or educational institution or organization.

Any public or private research or educational institution or organization.

Grant funds must be used for allowable costs necessary to conduct approved research objectives. Funds may not be used for purposes other than those approved in the grant award documents.

The use of grant funds to plan, acquire, or construct a building or facility is not allowed. Some grant funds may be used for minor alterations, renovations, or repairs deemed necessary to retrofit existing teaching or research spaces in order to carry out a funded project. However, requests to use grant funds for such purposes must demonstrate that the alterations, renovations, or repairs are incidental to the major purpose for which a grant is made. Indirect Cost (IDC) is not to exceed 30 percent of the recipient's Total Federal Funds Awarded (TFFA). 7 U.S.C. 3310 limits the recovery of IDC for the overall award to 30 percent of the TFFA under a research, education, or extension grant. Grant funds may not be used for endowment investing. Please refer to the NOFO, Part III.E and F - Program Description - Funding Restrictions for specific details.

In accordance with statutory time limits, project periods, including no-cost extensions of time, are not to exceed five (5) years. Further details are provided in the Award document Form NIFA-2009 and the NIFA General Terms and Conditions Grants and Cooperative Agreements.

All NOFOs are published on the NIFA website and Grants.gov. Applicants must complete the SAM.gov and Grants.gov registration process prior to applying. See the program NOFO for any program specific pre-application requirements.

Within guidelines established for the program as described in the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO). The most current NOFOs are available via: https://nifa.usda.gov/funding-opportunity/biotechnology-risk-assessment-research-grants-program-brag

Applications are subjected to a system of peer and merit review in accordance with section 103 of the Agricultural Research, Extension and Education Reform Act of 1998 (7 U.S.C. 7613) by a panel of qualified scientists and other appropriate persons who are specialists in the field covered by the proposal. Within the limit of funds available for such purpose, the NIFA Authorized Departmental Officer (ADO) shall make grants to those responsible, eligible applicants whose applications are judged most meritorious under the procedures set forth in the NOFO. Reviewers will be selected based upon training and experience in relevant scientific, extension, or education fields, taking into account the following factors: (a) The level of relevant formal scientific, technical education, or extension experience of the individual, as well as the extent to which an individual is engaged in relevant research, education, or extension activities; (b) the need to include as reviewers experts from various areas of specialization within relevant scientific, education, or extension fields; (c) the need to include as reviewers other experts (e.g., producers, range or forest managers/operators, and consumers) who can assess relevance of the applications to targeted audiences and to program needs; (d) the need to include as reviewers experts from a variety of organizational types (e.g., colleges, universities, industry, state and Federal agencies, private profit and non-profit organizations) and geographic locations; (e) the need to maintain a balanced composition of reviewers with regard to minority and female representation and an equitable age distribution; and (f) the need to include reviewers who can judge the effective usefulness to producers and the general public of each application. See the program NOFO for specific details about evaluation criteria.

From 30 to 60 days. Contact the National Program Leader (NPL), as indicated per CFDA Section # 152 - Headquarters Office regarding dates for specific deadlines, start and end dates, and range of approval/disapproval time. Information is also available via our website and may be obtained via the Grants.gov website. NIFA's respective links regarding general information are provided below: http://nifa.usda.gov/ http://www.grants.gov. SPECIAL NOTE: Please refer to the Competitive Request for Applications (RFAs) for further specific and pertinent details. The most current RFA is available via: https://nifa.usda.gov/funding-opportunity/biotechnology-risk-assessment-research-grants-program-brag RFAs are generally released annually. Hence, the RFAs provide the most current and accurate information available. Any specific instructions in the Competitive RFAs supersede the general information provided in the CFDA database.