Microbial Genome Sequencing Program FY 2007

Program Solicitation
NSF 07-531

Replaces Document(s):
NSF 06-513

       [NSF Logo]        National Science Foundation

                         Directorate for Biological Sciences
                              Emerging Frontiers
[CSREES     logo]
                  [Image]
                         USDA Cooperative State Research, Education and
                         Extension Service

Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p.m. proposer's local time):

     March 08, 2007

          Due by 5 PM submitter's local time

REVISION NOTES

In furtherance of the President's Management Agenda, NSF has identified
programs that will offer proposers the option to utilize Grants.gov to
prepare and submit proposals, or will require that proposers utilize
Grants.gov to prepare and submit proposals. Grants.gov provides a single
Government-wide portal for finding and applying for Federal grants online.

In response to this program solicitation, proposers may opt to submit
proposals via Grants.gov or via the NSF FastLane system.

SUMMARY OF PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS

General Information

Program Title:

     Microbial Genome Sequencing Program

Synopsis of Program:

     As a collaborative, interagency effort, the National Science
     Foundation (NSF), and the Cooperative State Research, Education,
     and Extension Service (CSREES) of the U.S. Department of
     Agriculture invite research proposals (i) to support
     high-throughput sequencing of the genomes of microorganisms
     (including viruses, bacteria, archaea, fungi, oomycetes, protists
     and agriculturally important nematodes) and (ii) to develop and
     implement strategies, tools and technologies to make currently
     available genome sequences more valuable to the user community.
     The availability of genome sequences provides the foundation for
     understanding how microorganisms function and live, and how they
     interact with their environments and with other organisms. The
     sequences are expected to be available to and used by a community
     of investigators to address issues of scientific and societal
     importance including:

        * novel aspects of microbial biochemistry, physiology,
          metabolism, development and cellular biology;
        * the diversity and the roles microorganisms play in complex
          ecosystems and in global geochemical cycles;
        * the impact that microorganisms have on the productivity and
          sustainability of agriculture and natural resources (e.g.,
          forestry, soil and water), and on the safety and quality of
          the nation's food supply; and
        * the organization and evolution of microbial genomes, and the
          mechanisms of transmission, exchange and reshuffling of
          genetic information.

     A Microbial Genomics Workshop is held annually; all current
     awardees in this interagency program are expected to attend.

Cognizant Program Officer(s):

   * Ronald Weiner, Program Director, Division of Molecular & Cellular
     Biosciences, 655 S, telephone: (703) 292-7183, fax: (703) 292-9061,
     email: rweiner@nsf.gov

   * Matthew Kane, Program Director, Division of Molecular & Cellular
     Biosciences, 655 S, telephone: (703) 292-7186, fax: (703) 292-9061,
     email: mkane@nsf.gov

   * Patrick Dennis, Program Director, Division of Molecular & Cellular
     Biosciences, 655 S, telephone: (703) 292-7145, fax: (703) 292-9061,
     email: pdennis@nsf.gov

   * Richard McCourt, Division of Biological Infrastructure, 615 N,
     telephone: (703) 292-8470, fax: (703) 292-9063, email:
     rmccourt@nsf.gov

   * Ann Lichens-Park, National Program Leader, CSREES, U.S. Department of
     Agriculture, telephone: (202) 401-6460, fax: (202) 401-6488, email:
     apark@csrees.usda.gov

   * Daniel Jones, National Program Leader, CSREES, U.S. Department of
     Agriculture, telephone: (202) 401-6854, email: djones@csrees.usda.gov

Applicable Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number(s):

   * 47.074 --- Biological Sciences

Award Information

Anticipated Type of Award:  Standard Grant or Continuing Grant

Estimated Number of Awards:    20 to  30

Anticipated Funding Amount:   $15,000,000   Approximately $15 million is
anticipated ($10 million of NSF and $5 million of USDA funds), pending
availability of funds, with most awards ranging between $100,000 to
$2,500,000 total, for periods of up to three years.

Eligibility Information

Organization Limit:

     Proposals may only be submitted by the following:

        * Organization Limit:

          NSF Eligibility Criteria:

          Proposals are invited from U.S. academic institutions, U.S.
          non-profit research organizations and consortia of such
          organizations with appropriate research and educational
          facilities. A proposal from a multi-organizational
          consortium must be submitted by the lead organization as a
          single proposal (see the Grant Proposal Guide (GPG) Section
          II.D.3). When a consortium of eligible individuals or
          organizations submits a proposal, a single principal
          investigator must be designated as the project director (PD)
          and a single organization must accept overall management
          responsibility, including the management of intellectual
          property, that may result from the proposed research.
          Proposals may also be submitted by federal agencies or State
          Agricultural Experiment Stations; however, these proposals
          would be eligible for funding only by the USDA.

          Simultaneous submission of proposals to this program and
          another federal agency is permissible with prior written
          approval of the appropriate program officers at each agency
          involved. Proposers are encouraged to establish
          international collaborations where appropriate.  It is
          anticipated that foreign agencies will support the offshore
          activities of these programs.  Under most circumstances, the
          NSF component of this program will not make awards or allow
          subcontracts to non-U.S. institutions.

          CSREES Eligibility Criteria:

          The source of CSREES funds for the FY 2007 Microbial Genome
          Sequencing Program is the National Research Initiative (NRI)
          Competitive Grants Program.  Except where otherwise
          prohibited by law, State agricultural experiment stations,
          all colleges and universities, other research institutions
          and organizations, Federal agencies, national laboratories,
          private organizations, or corporations, and individuals are
          eligible to apply for and to receive a competitive grant.
          Faculty at small and mid-sized academic institutions with
          limited institutional success and faculty at institutions in
          USDA Experimental Program for Stimulating Competitive
          Research (EPSCoR) entities are encouraged to apply (for
          definitions of small and mid-sized institutions and for
          EPSCoR eligibility see Part II, C., 2.(c) of the FY 2007 NRI
          Request for Applications at
          http://www.csrees.usda.gov/funding/rfas/nri_rfa.html.
          Applications from scientists at non-U.S. organizations will
          not be accepted.  Award recipients may subcontract to
          organizations not eligible to apply, provided such
          organizations are necessary for the conduct of the project.

PI Limit:

     None Specified

Limit on Number of Proposals per Organization:

     None Specified

Limit on Number of Proposals per PI:

     None Specified

Proposal Preparation and Submission Instructions

A. Proposal Preparation Instructions

   * Letters of Intent: Not Applicable

   * Full Proposals:

        * Full Proposals submitted via FastLane: Grant Proposal Guide (GPG)
          Guidelines apply. The complete text of the GPG is available
          electronically on the NSF website at:
          http://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=gpg.

        * Full Proposals submitted via Grants.gov: NSF Grants.gov
          Application Guide: A Guide for the Preparation and Submission of
          NSF Applications via Grants.gov Guidelines apply (Note: The NSF
          Grants.gov Application Guide is available on the Grants.gov
          website and on the NSF website at:
          http://www.nsf.gov/bfa/dias/policy/docs/grantsgovguide.pdf/)

B. Budgetary Information

   * Cost Sharing Requirements: Cost Sharing is not required by NSF or by
     CSREES in proposals submitted under this Program Solicitation.

   * Indirect Cost (F&A) Limitations:

     The applicant should submit a proposal using their Federally
     negotiated indirect cost rate.

     NSF Policy

     Standard NSF policy regarding indirect cost rates applies to proposals
     funded by the NSF. The CSREES policy regarding indirect cost rates is
     described below.

     CSREES Policy

     Section 709 of the FY 2006 Consolidated Appropriations Act (Public Law
     109-97) limits indirect costs to 20 percent of the total Federal funds
     provided under each award. Therefore, when preparing budgets,
     applicants should limit their requests for recovery of indirect costs
     to the lesser of their institutions official negotiated indirect cost
     rate or the equivalent of 20 percent of total Federal funds awarded.
     Another method of calculating the maximum allowable is 25 percent of
     the total direct costs. Please note that if the 2007 Appropriation Act
     contains a different indirect cost limitation CSREES will contact each
     successful applicant to apply the correct rate prior to the award of a
     grant.

     To accommodate differences in allowable indirect costs between CSREES
     and NSF, the proposer may be required at the time of award to submit a
     separate budget with indirect cost rates appropriate to each agency.

   * Other Budgetary Limitations: Not Applicable

C. Due Dates

   * Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p.m. proposer's local time):

          March 08, 2007

               Due by 5 PM submitter's local time

Proposal Review Information Criteria

Merit Review Criteria:   National Science Board approved criteria.
Additional merit review considerations apply. Please see the full text of
this solicitation for further information.

Award Administration Information

Award Conditions:   Additional award conditions apply. Please see the full
text of this solicitation for further information.

Reporting Requirements:   Additional reporting requirements apply. Please
see the full text of this solicitation for further information.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

     Summary of Program Requirements

  I. Introduction

 II. Program Description

III. Award Information

 IV. Eligibility Information

  V. Proposal Preparation and Submission Instructions
       A. Proposal Preparation Instructions
       B. Budgetary Information
       C. Due Dates
       D. FastLane/Grants.gov Requirements

 VI. NSF Proposal Processing and Review Procedures
       A. NSF Merit Review Criteria
       B. Review and Selection Process

VII. Award Administration Information
       A. Notification of the Award
       B. Award Conditions
       C. Reporting Requirements

VIII.Agency Contacts

 IX. Other Information

I. INTRODUCTION

Microorganisms dominate the planet in terms of total biomass. They
represent a vast array of species with enormous genetic, metabolic,
structural, physiological and behavioral diversity. Despite their ubiquity,
beyond human pathogens, a few model organisms, and a few broad surveys,
little is known about their fundamental properties, the range in their
diversity, how they interact with each other, with more complex life forms
and with their environment, and the roles they play in global
biogeochemical cycles. Future progress toward filling these knowledge gaps
can be advanced significantly by the availability of whole genome sequences
and by more complete and accurate information about the contents of
sequenced genomes.

The Microbial Genome Sequencing Program is a collaborative interagency
activity of the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Cooperative State
Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES) of the U.S. Department
of Agriculture. The program supports (i) high-throughput sequencing of the
genomes of a broad range of microorganisms (including viruses, bacteria,
archaea, fungi, oomycetes, protists and agriculturally important nematodes)
and (ii) the development and implementation of strategies, tools and
technologies to make currently available genome sequences more valuable to
the user community. The newly acquired sequences are expected to be made
available and used by a community of investigators to address issues of
scientific and societal importance including:

   * novel aspects of microbial biochemistry, physiology, metabolism,
     development and cellular biology;
   * the diversity and the roles microorganisms play in complex ecosystems
     and in global geochemical cycles;
   * the impact that microorganisms have on the productivity and
     sustainability of agriculture and natural resources (e.g., forestry,
     soil and water), and on the safety and quality of the nation's food
     supply; and
   * the organization and evolution of microbial genomes, and the
     mechanisms of transmission, exchange and reshuffling of genetic
     information.

The development and implementation of strategies, tools and technologies
are expected to significantly enhance the value of existing sequences by
unambiguously assigning functions to previously unannotated ORFs.

This program is part of The Microbe Project, a coordinated effort of
multiple federal agencies to promote genome-enabled microbial science. (See
http://www.microbeproject.gov.)

II. PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

This program supports (i) the high-throughput sequencing of the genomes
from a wide range of microorganisms (including viruses, bacteria, archaea,
fungi, oomycetes, protists and agriculturally important nematodes) that are
either of fundamental biological interest, are important to the national
interest, to the productivity and sustainability of agriculture and
forestry, or to the safety and quality of the nation's food supply and (ii)
the development and implementation of strategies, tools and technologies to
make currently available genome sequences more valuable to the user
community. The results will be partial or whole genome sequence data, more
extensive and reliable annotation and whole genome mapping or scaffolding
information. Proposals are encouraged to incorporate teaching, training, or
outreach components within the scope of the project to facilitate the
dissemination of knowledge and the education of students and the public.
Taxon-based functional genomics studies are not within the scope of the
Microbial Genome Sequencing Program unless they involve the development and
implementation of strategies, tools and technologies to make genome
sequences more valuable to user communities. Taxon-based functional
genomics studies are supported by other Programs offered by NSF and CSREES;
e.g., activities within the NSF Division of Molecular and Cellular
Biosciences (http://www.nsf.gov/div/index.jsp?div=MCB) and the CSREES
National Research Initiative's Microbial Genomics Program, Microbial
Biology Program, and the Animal Protection and Biosecurity Program
(http://www.csrees.usda.gov/funding/rfas/nri_rfa.html).

All microorganisms, except strict human pathogens that are not related to
food safety, are candidates for genome sequencing under this program.
Proposers should justify organism selection on the basis of biological
interest or agricultural importance, as well as community involvement,
education and training, and societal impact. Factors to consider include
metabolic potential, novel biochemical, structural or developmental
features, phylogenetic affiliation, ecological or evolutionary
significance, economic importance, and relevance to national security.

Proposals to sequence the genomes of agriculturally important nematodes
will be accepted in the competition; such proposals will be eligible for
funding by CSREES but not by NSF.

Projects will also be considered that include, for example, the sequencing
of (i) eukaryotic expressed sequence tag (EST) libraries, (ii) clones from
mixed environmental microbial populations, or (iii) homologous genes
(orthologs and paralogs), islands, plasmids or regions from the genomes of
multiple organisms.

Complete coverage is generally the most desirable end-point for whole
genome sequencing. However, the choice and justification of complete versus
draft coverage is dependent on the nature and scope of the proposed
project. For example, the genomes of some protozoa and fungi are relatively
large and their sequencing may not easily be completed under the support of
a single grant. Similarly, sequencing of prokaryotic genomes for
comparative purposes or from environmental samples may not require or
generate complete coverage. The outcome of all draft sequencing projects is
expected to include generation of high quality sequence data, organization
of the sequence reads into contiguous sequences (contigs), correlation with
physical maps when appropriate, annotation of open reading frames, and
deposition of all information into a publicly accessible, preexisting
database. Investigators who choose to create their own database must ensure
accessibility and justify why preexisting databases are not suitable.
Investigators should indicate how accessibility to the databases will be
maintained after the award period. When the future goal is complete
coverage, plans for completing the sequence should be outlined.

For large genome projects, investigators are encouraged to seek partners,
either in the form of consortia or support from other sources, so that the
complete sequence, if appropriate, can be obtained in a reasonable time
frame. If parallel support from another agency is under consideration or
being planned, investigators should inform the cognizant NSF and CSREES
program officer in advance and indicate in the proposal how the NSF or
CSREES funded activity will be organized and coordinated within the larger
project. The limited ability to decipher the information content of
sequenced genomes has seriously hindered the full experimental exploitation
of this valuable resource.

The Microbial Genome Sequencing Program encourages the development and
implementation of strategies, tools and technologies to make currently
available genome sequences more valuable to the user community through
enhancements in functional annotation. Proposals that contain activities
directed toward the rigorous and unambiguous assignment of function to
genes or coding regions will be considered. An important component of
proposals in this area should be a clear statement of how the information
generated will be disseminated and used to update existing genome
annotations.

The program will entertain proposals to support finishing (closure) of
draft genomes under limited circumstances. The resources for finishing and
annotation will be directed toward organisms for which there is a large
community of dedicated experimentalists, where the organism is unique,
amenable to biochemical experimentation and genetic manipulation and
provides a valuable new perspective on a biological question or phenomenon,
and where the proposal is cost effective.

An important activity of this interagency program is an annual Microbial
Genomics Workshop for current awardees. This workshop is intended to
highlight the breadth of the program and to facilitate exchange of
scientific and technical information between awardees and projects.

Organism strains that are being targeted in other, already funded,
sequencing projects should be avoided, unless the sequence information from
these other projects is incomplete or will not be in the public domain. If
one strain of a species has been or is being sequenced, the proposer should
provide strong justification as to why the sequencing of other strains
should be undertaken. Examples of microbial genome sequencing projects are
available at the following sites:

http://www.tigr.org/tdb/mdb/mdb.html
http://genome.jgi-psf.org/mic_home.html
http://www.niaid.nih.gov/dmid/genomes/default.htm
http://www.sanger.ac.uk/Projects/
http://www.genome.wisc.edu
http://www.genome.wustl.edu/
http://hgsc.bcm.tmc.edu/
http://194.214.212.50/CAZY/
http://www.broad.mit.edu/annotation/

The NSF and CSREES will determine which agency will support each award.
These decisions will be based on the mission of the agency (NSF,
fundamental scientific and national interest; CSREES, food and agricultural
relevance) and the availability of funds. Proposers may request funding for
up to three years. The requested duration should be consistent with the
goals of the project. Detailed information on (i) the organisms chosen,
(ii) the coordination, management and organizational plan, (iii) the method
of library preparation and all other pertinent methodological information,
and (iv) the method for disseminating data and interfacing with the broader
scientific community and the public, should be provided. All cloning and
sequencing technologies and strategies, particularly ones that are novel,
and the mechanisms to assess validity and accuracy of the data must be
described in the proposal. Rapid and inexpensive, high throughput DNA
sequencing technologies are beginning to come on line. Proposers should
consider how new technologies might be exploited to achieve the aims of
their projects. Current industry standards result in costs below one dollar
per lane and read lengths of 800 nucleotides or more. A reasonable cost per
megabase of finished, non-problematic sequence is now about $20,000 -
$25,000; this includes library preparation, template production,
sequencing, closure, assembly, automated annotation, personnel, and
indirect costs. When sequencing costs exceed this benchmark, an explanation
and justification should be provided. Additional activities such as manual
annotation, and integral education and outreach are appropriate for
inclusion in the project; when included, full justification and a
description of the appropriateness within the context of the project is
required. Factors resulting in additional costs (e.g., resulting from
methodological complexity, non sequencing personnel, education and
outreach, community integration, resource storage and management, etc.)
should be clearly identified and rationalized. It is unlikely that awards
will be made in excess of $2,500,000. In judging the merits of a proposal,
the speed, level of accuracy, and cost effectiveness of the proposed work
and the identification and involvement of an active community of
experimental users will be among the evaluation criteria.

Awards will be made in the form of grants to be determined at the time of
the award. Each participating agency will obligate funds separately and any
particular award may be funded by one or both of the participating
agencies. The exact amount of an award will depend on the advice of the
reviewers, agency priorities and the availability of funds. In FY 2006 the
award sizes ranged from $300,000 to $2,000,000. Further information on
awards made in this program during FY 2006 is available at the following
links:

NSF Awards

USDA/CSREES Awards

III. AWARD INFORMATION

Estimated program budget, number of awards and average award size/duration
are subject to the availability of funds. Between 20 and 30 awards are
anticipated in this program in FY 2007, and will be made as standard or
continuing grants, with most budgets ranging from $100,000 to $2,500,000
for durations up to three years.

IV. ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION

Organization Limit:

     Proposals may only be submitted by the following:

        * Organization Limit:

          NSF Eligibility Criteria:

          Proposals are invited from U.S. academic institutions, U.S.
          non-profit research organizations and consortia of such
          organizations with appropriate research and educational
          facilities. A proposal from a multi-organizational
          consortium must be submitted by the lead organization as a
          single proposal (see the Grant Proposal Guide (GPG) Section
          II.D.3). When a consortium of eligible individuals or
          organizations submits a proposal, a single principal
          investigator must be designated as the project director (PD)
          and a single organization must accept overall management
          responsibility, including the management of intellectual
          property, that may result from the proposed research.
          Proposals may also be submitted by federal agencies or State
          Agricultural Experiment Stations; however, these proposals
          would be eligible for funding only by the USDA.

          Simultaneous submission of proposals to this program and
          another federal agency is permissible with prior written
          approval of the appropriate program officers at each agency
          involved. Proposers are encouraged to establish
          international collaborations where appropriate.  It is
          anticipated that foreign agencies will support the offshore
          activities of these programs.  Under most circumstances, the
          NSF component of this program will not make awards or allow
          subcontracts to non-U.S. institutions.

          CSREES Eligibility Criteria:

          The source of CSREES funds for the FY 2007 Microbial Genome
          Sequencing Program is the National Research Initiative (NRI)
          Competitive Grants Program.  Except where otherwise
          prohibited by law, State agricultural experiment stations,
          all colleges and universities, other research institutions
          and organizations, Federal agencies, national laboratories,
          private organizations, or corporations, and individuals are
          eligible to apply for and to receive a competitive grant.
          Faculty at small and mid-sized academic institutions with
          limited institutional success and faculty at institutions in
          USDA Experimental Program for Stimulating Competitive
          Research (EPSCoR) entities are encouraged to apply (for
          definitions of small and mid-sized institutions and for
          EPSCoR eligibility see Part II, C., 2.(c) of the FY 2007 NRI
          Request for Applications at
          http://www.csrees.usda.gov/funding/rfas/nri_rfa.html.
          Applications from scientists at non-U.S. organizations will
          not be accepted.  Award recipients may subcontract to
          organizations not eligible to apply, provided such
          organizations are necessary for the conduct of the project.

PI Limit:

     None Specified

Limit on Number of Proposals per Organization:

     None Specified

Limit on Number of Proposals per PI:

     None Specified

Additional Eligibility Info:

V. PROPOSAL PREPARATION AND SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS

A. Proposal Preparation Instructions

Full Proposal Preparation Instructions: Proposers may opt to submit
proposals in response to this Program Solicitation via Grants.gov or via
the NSF FastLane system.

   * Full proposals submitted via FastLane: Proposals submitted in response
     to this program solicitation should be prepared and submitted in
     accordance with the general guidelines contained in the NSF Grant
     Proposal Guide (GPG). The complete text of the GPG is available
     electronically on the NSF website at:
     http://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=gpg. Paper copies
     of the GPG may be obtained from the NSF Publications Clearinghouse,
     telephone (703) 292-7827 or by e-mail from pubs@nsf.gov. Proposers are
     reminded to identify this program solicitation number in the program
     solicitation block on the NSF Cover Sheet For Proposal to the National
     Science Foundation. Compliance with this requirement is critical to
     determining the relevant proposal processing guidelines. Failure to
     submit this information may delay processing.

   * Full proposals submitted via Grants.gov: Proposals submitted in
     response to this program solicitation via Grants.gov should be
     prepared and submitted in accordance with the NSF Grants.gov
     Application Guide: A Guide for the Preparation and Submission of NSF
     Applications via Grants.gov. The complete text of the NSF Grants.gov
     Application Guide is available on the Grants.gov website and on the
     NSF website at:
     (http://www.nsf.gov/bfa/dias/policy/docs/grantsgovguide.pdf). To
     obtain copies of the Application Guide and Application Forms Package,
     click on the Apply tab on the Grants.gov site, then click on the Apply
     Step 1: Download a Grant Application Package and Application
     Instructions link and enter the funding opportunity number, (the
     program solicitation number without the NSF prefix) and press the
     Download Package button. Paper copies of the Grants.gov Application
     Guide also may be obtained from the NSF Publications Clearinghouse,
     telephone (703) 292-7827 or by e-mail from pubs@nsf.gov.

This program solicitation supplements the standard GPG or NSF Grants.gov
Application Guide proposal preparation guidelines.  Proposers or applicants
who have had prior support from the Microbial Genome Sequencing Program
(from NSF and/or USDA/CSREES) should indicate the results of that prior
support in the Project Description section of the solicitation.

Applicants selected for funding by CSREES will be required to submit CSREES
agency-specific forms prior to the awarding of the grant.  Successful
applicants will be notified at the time of award to prepare and submit
applicable forms.

B. Budgetary Information

Cost Sharing:   Cost sharing is not required by NSF or by CSREES in
proposals submitted under this Program Solicitation.

Indirect Cost (F&A) Limitations:

The applicant should submit a proposal using their Federally negotiated
indirect cost rate.

NSF Policy

Standard NSF policy regarding indirect cost rates applies to proposals
funded by the NSF. The CSREES policy regarding indirect cost rates is
described below.

CSREES Policy

Section 709 of the FY 2006 Consolidated Appropriations Act (Public Law
109-97) limits indirect costs to 20 percent of the total Federal funds
provided under each award. Therefore, when preparing budgets, applicants
should limit their requests for recovery of indirect costs to the lesser of
their institutions official negotiated indirect cost rate or the
equivalent of 20 percent of total Federal funds awarded. Another method of
calculating the maximum allowable is 25 percent of the total direct costs.
Please note that if the 2007 Appropriation Act contains a different
indirect cost limitation CSREES will contact each successful applicant to
apply the correct rate prior to the award of a grant.

To accommodate differences in allowable indirect costs between CSREES and
NSF, the proposer may be required at the time of award to submit a separate
budget with indirect cost rates appropriate to each agency.

Budget Preparation Instructions:

A budget is required for each year of requested support. In addition, a
cumulative budget is required detailing the requested total support for the
overall project period. Funds may be requested under any of the categories
listed on the budget, provided that the item or service for which support
is requested is allowable under the authorizing legislation, the applicable
statutes, regulations, and Federal cost principles, and these program
guidelines, and can be justified as necessary for the successful conduct of
the proposed project. In the budget justification, all budget categories
for which support is requested, with the exception of Indirect Costs, must
be individually listed (with costs) in the same order as in the budget and
justified on a separate page according to the instructions in the GPG.

Proposers are reminded to include in the submitted budget the cost of the
principal investigator or designee to attend the annual Microbial Genomics
Awardee Workshop that is organized by NSF and CSREES. This meeting is often
held as a satellite to a larger national genomics meeting.

C. Due Dates

   * Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p.m. proposer's local time):

          March 08, 2007
                Due by 5 PM submitter's local time

D. FastLane/Grants.gov Requirements

   * For Proposals Submitted Via FastLane:

     Detailed technical instructions regarding the technical aspects of
     preparation and submission via FastLane are available at:
     https://www.fastlane.nsf.gov/a1/newstan.htm. For FastLane user
     support, call the FastLane Help Desk at 1-800-673-6188 or e-mail
     fastlane@nsf.gov. The FastLane Help Desk answers general technical
     questions related to the use of the FastLane system. Specific
     questions related to this program solicitation should be referred to
     the NSF program staff contact(s) listed in Section VIII of this
     funding opportunity.

     Submission of Electronically Signed Cover Sheets. The Authorized
     Organizational Representative (AOR) must electronically sign the
     proposal Cover Sheet to submit the required proposal certifications
     (see Chapter II, Section C of the Grant Proposal Guide for a listing
     of the certifications). The AOR must provide the required electronic
     certifications within five working days following the electronic
     submission of the proposal. Further instructions regarding this
     process are available on the FastLane Website at:
     https://www.fastlane.nsf.gov/fastlane.jsp.

   * For Proposals Submitted Via Grants.gov:

     Before using Grants.gov for the first time, each organization must
     register to create an institutional profile. Once registered, the
     applicant's organization can then apply for any federal grant on the
     Grants.gov website. The Grants.gov's Grant Community User Guide is a
     comprehensive reference document that provides technical information
     about Grants.gov. Proposers can download the User Guide as a Microsoft
     Word document or as a PDF document. The Grants.gov User Guide is
     available at: http://www.grants.gov/CustomerSupport. In addition, the
     NSF Grants.gov Application Guide provides additional technical
     guidance regarding preparation of proposals via Grants.gov. For
     Grants.gov user support, contact the Grants.gov Contact Center at
     1-800-518-4726 or by email: support@grants.gov. The Grants.gov Contact
     Center answers general technical questions related to the use of
     Grants.gov. Specific questions related to this program solicitation
     should be referred to the NSF program staff contact(s) listed in
     Section VIII of this solicitation.

     Submitting the Proposal: Once all documents have been completed, the
     Authorized Organizational Representative (AOR) must submit the
     application to Grants.gov and verify the desired funding opportunity
     and agency to which the application is submitted. The AOR must then
     sign and submit the application to Grants.gov. The completed
     application will be transferred to the NSF FastLane system for further
     processing.

VI. NSF PROPOSAL PROCESSING AND REVIEW PROCEDURES

Proposals received by NSF are assigned to the appropriate NSF program and,
if they meet NSF proposal preparation requirements, for review. All
proposals are carefully reviewed by a scientist, engineer, or educator
serving as an NSF Program Officer, and usually by three to ten other
persons outside NSF who are experts in the particular fields represented by
the proposal. These reviewers are selected by Program Officers charged with
the oversight of the review process. Proposers are invited to suggest names
of persons they believe are especially well qualified to review the
proposal and/or persons they would prefer not review the proposal. These
suggestions may serve as one source in the reviewer selection process at
the Program Officer's discretion. Submission of such names, however, is
optional. Care is taken to ensure that reviewers have no conflicts with the
proposer.

A. NSF Merit Review Criteria

All NSF proposals are evaluated through use of the two National Science
Board (NSB)-approved merit review criteria: intellectual merit and the
broader impacts of the proposed effort. In some instances, however, NSF
will employ additional criteria as required to highlight the specific
objectives of certain programs and activities.

The two NSB-approved merit review criteria are listed below. The criteria
include considerations that help define them. These considerations are
suggestions and not all will apply to any given proposal. While proposers
must address both merit review criteria, reviewers will be asked to address
only those considerations that are relevant to the proposal being
considered and for which the reviewer is qualified to make judgements.

     What is the intellectual merit of the proposed activity?
     How important is the proposed activity to advancing knowledge and
     understanding within its own field or across different fields?
     How well qualified is the proposer (individual or team) to
     conduct the project? (If appropriate, the reviewer will comment
     on the quality of the prior work.) To what extent does the
     proposed activity suggest and explore creative and original
     concepts? How well conceived and organized is the proposed
     activity? Is there sufficient access to resources?

     What are the broader impacts of the proposed activity?
     How well does the activity advance discovery and understanding
     while promoting teaching, training, and learning? How well does
     the proposed activity broaden the participation of
     underrepresented groups (e.g., gender, ethnicity, disability,
     geographic, etc.)? To what extent will it enhance the
     infrastructure for research and education, such as facilities,
     instrumentation, networks, and partnerships? Will the results be
     disseminated broadly to enhance scientific and technological
     understanding? What may be the benefits of the proposed activity
     to society?

NSF staff will give careful consideration to the following in making
funding decisions:

     Integration of Research and Education
     One of the principal strategies in support of NSF's goals is to
     foster integration of research and education through the
     programs, projects, and activities it supports at academic and
     research institutions. These institutions provide abundant
     opportunities where individuals may concurrently assume
     responsibilities as researchers, educators, and students and
     where all can engage in joint efforts that infuse education with
     the excitement of discovery and enrich research through the
     diversity of learning perspectives.

     Integrating Diversity into NSF Programs, Projects, and Activities
     Broadening opportunities and enabling the participation of all
     citizens -- women and men, underrepresented minorities, and
     persons with disabilities -- is essential to the health and
     vitality of science and engineering. NSF is committed to this
     principle of diversity and deems it central to the programs,
     projects, and activities it considers and supports.

     Additional Review Criteria:

     The following additional evaluation factors will be considered in
     reviewing all proposals:

       1. Relevance of the microorganism(s) to be sequenced and the
          scientific merit of the project. This criterion addresses the
          scientific and/or practical importance of the microorganism
          chosen for sequencing, the novelty, uniqueness and originality of
          the proposal, and the conceptual adequacy of the sequencing
          approach including suitability of methodology, clarity and
          delineation of objectives, and demonstration of feasibility
          through preliminary data (e.g., known or estimated genome size
          and techniques for isolation of nucleic acid).

       2. The speed, level of accuracy, and cost effectiveness of the
          proposed work.

       3. The broader impact of the activity on the biological sciences or
          agriculture, community involvement, education, training, and
          outreach. This criterion addresses the potential of the proposed
          activity to contribute to better understanding or improvement in
          the quality and effectiveness of the Nation's scientific
          research, education, and human resources capabilities. Important
          issues are the widespread use and appropriate dissemination of
          results, strengthening the biological sciences and agriculture,
          and contributing to the security and social stability of the
          nation. Priority also will be given to projects that integrate
          research with education and outreach, and those that exhibit
          close collaboration among multiple investigators, institutions,
          and end users.

       4. Performance competence. This criterion addresses the technical
          merit of the proposed approach, the capabilities of the proposed
          personnel, including those of the Principal Investigator and
          other senior staff, the adequacy of the resources available or
          proposed, and the likelihood that this project will lead to
          successful, timely, and cost-effective completion of the
          microbial genome sequence(s).

       5. Project management. This criterion addresses the overall quality
          of the technical and managerial aspects of the proposal,
          including management oversight, long-range planning, release of
          the data, and sharing of the information and resources resulting
          from the project within the broader scientific community. To this
          end, applications are required to have a section on
          deliverables that would include a time line and a clear statement
          of what the project deliverables (or products) will be at the end
          of the project period (i.e., a complete and finished sequence; a
          repository site for the sequence; tools for accessing the
          sequence; completed automated and manual annotation, etc.).  The
          time line should cover scheduling, resource allocation,
          milestones, contingencies and deliverables.  There should be
          clear examples of what will be accomplished by each person in the
          proposal.

       6. Scientific collaboration and information sharing and the
          identification and involvement of an active community of
          experimental users.   Sequencing of the genome of an organism is
          a community activity. As such, a close collaboration among the
          scientists and organizations involved in sequencing activities
          and effective dissemination to the potential users of the
          information are important components of this criterion.  This
          criterion also includes adequacy of plans for long-term
          maintenance of data accessibility and plans for updating data in
          response to new information about functional assignments.  Thus,
          key criteria are compatibility, accessibility, longevity and the
          size and enthusiasm of the user community.

       7. Appropriateness of the proposed budget. Budget requests should be
          proportional to the size of the genome(s) to be sequenced or the
          amount of sequencing to be done. The cost of sequencing should be
          $20,000-$25,000 per megabase for closed, non-problematic,
          finished prokaryotic genomes, including library preparation,
          template production, sequencing closure, assembly, personnel and
          indirect costs and automated annotation. It should be less (about
          half) for eukaryote genomes where finishing is not included.
          When sequencing costs exceed this benchmark, an explanation and
          justification need to be provided. Additional activities, such as
          manual annotation, and integral education and outreach are
          appropriate for inclusion in the project; when included, full
          justification and a description of appropriateness within the
          context of the project is required. Factors resulting in
          additional costs (e.g., resulting from methodological complexity,
          non sequence related personnel, education and outreach, community
          integration, resource storage and management) should be clearly
          identified and rationalized. It is unlikely that awards will be
          made in excess of $2,500,000.

       8. In judging the merits of a proposal, the speed, level of
          accuracy, and cost effectiveness of the proposed work will be
          among the evaluation criteria.

       9. For proposals to enhance existing annotation programs and
          resources, it is imperative that enhancements be compatible with
          existing sites (e.g. websites above) and that principal
          investigators and submitting institutions foster compatibility.
          Concrete examples of how the proposed project would improve
          current resources are encouraged.

B. Review and Selection Process

All proposals are carefully reviewed by at least three other persons
outside NSF who are experts in the particular field represented by the
proposal. Proposals submitted under this program solicitation will be
carefully reviewed by a combination of at least three ad hoc (mail) or
panel reviewers from outside of the Foundation who have expertise in some
aspect of the proposal. Reviewers are selected by the responsible Program
Director and are asked to provide a written critique of the proposal that
addresses the two National Science Board review criteria and the special
program criteria described above. The written reviews will also include an
overall rating of the proposal. An individual reviewer may not have
expertise in all aspects of a complex proposal and therefore may choose to
focus on areas that are closest to their areas of expertise. In all cases
reviews are treated as confidential documents.

Each proposal, along with the associated written reviews, will be discussed
by a review panel. The panel will rate each proposal relative to all other
proposals under consideration. A summary of the panel deliberations will be
written by one of the panelists. The summary will describe substantive
issues raised by the panel that are not covered in the written reviews, and
in addition, will provide a general impression of the enthusiasm of the
panel for the project and their overall panel rating of the proposal. The
panel rating is not intended to be an average of the ratings of the written
reviews.

The Program Directors assigned to manage the review of the proposals will
consider all available information, including the written ad hoc and panel
reviews, the panel discussion and rating, the panel summary and all other
available information and formulate a recommendation to award or decline
the proposal. After programmatic approval has been obtained, the proposals
recommended for funding will be forwarded to either the Division of Grants
and Agreements or the USDA/CSREES Office of Extramural Programs (OEP) for
review of business, financial, and policy implications and the processing
and issuance of a grant or other agreement. Proposers are cautioned that
only an NSF Grants and Agreements Officer or an OEP Authorized Departmental
Officer may make commitments, obligations, awards or authorize the
expenditure of funds on behalf of either NSF or USDA. No commitment on the
part of either NSF or USDA should be inferred from technical or budgetary
discussions with a NSF or USDA Program Director. A Principal Investigator
or organization that makes financial or personnel commitments in the
absence of a grant or cooperative agreement signed by the NSF Grants and
Agreements Officer or the CSREES Authorized Departmental Officer, does so
at their own risk.

For both awarded and declined proposals, verbatim copies of all written
reviews and the panel summary, excluding the names of the reviewers, are
sent to the Principal Investigator/Project Director by the Program
Director. In addition, the proposer will receive an explanation of the
decision to award or decline funding. NSF and USDA are striving to be able
to tell proposers whether their proposals have been declined or recommended
for funding within six months. The time interval begins on the date of
receipt. The interval ends when the Division Director accepts the Program
Officer's recommendation.

VII. AWARD ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION

A. Notification of the Award

Notification of the award is made to the submitting organization by a
Grants Officer in the Division of Grants and Agreements. Organizations
whose proposals are declined will be advised as promptly as possible by the
cognizant NSF Program administering the program. Verbatim copies of
reviews, not including the identity of the reviewer, will be provided
automatically to the Principal Investigator. (See Section VI.B. for
additional information on the review process.)

B. Award Conditions

An NSF award consists of: (1) the award letter, which includes any special
provisions applicable to the award and any numbered amendments thereto; (2)
the budget, which indicates the amounts, by categories of expense, on which
NSF has based its support (or otherwise communicates any specific approvals
or disapprovals of proposed expenditures); (3) the proposal referenced in
the award letter; (4) the applicable award conditions, such as Grant
General Conditions (GC-1); * or Federal Demonstration Partnership (FDP)
Terms and Conditions * and (5) any announcement or other NSF issuance that
may be incorporated by reference in the award letter. Cooperative
agreements also are administered in accordance with NSF Cooperative
Agreement Financial and Administrative Terms and Conditions (CA-FATC) and
the applicable Programmatic Terms and Conditions. NSF awards are
electronically signed by an NSF Grants and Agreements Officer and
transmitted electronically to the organization via e-mail.

*These documents may be accessed electronically on NSF's Website at
http://www.nsf.gov/awards/managing/general_conditions.jsp?org=NSF. Paper
copies may be obtained from the NSF Publications Clearinghouse, telephone
(703) 292-7827 or by e-mail from pubs@nsf.gov.

More comprehensive information on NSF Award Conditions and other important
information on the administration of NSF awards is contained in the NSF
Grant Policy Manual (GPM) Chapter II, available electronically on the NSF
Website at http://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=gpm.

Special Award Conditions:  CSREES Awards

Within the limit of funds available for such purpose, the awarding CSREES
official shall make grants to those responsible, eligible applicants whose
applications are judged most meritorious under the procedures set forth in
this program solicitation. All funds granted by CSREES under this
solicitation shall be expended solely for the purpose for which the funds
are granted in accordance with the approved application and budget, the
regulations, the terms and conditions of the award, the applicable Federal
cost principles, and the assistance regulations of the USDA (parts 3015 and
3019 of 7 CFR).

Specific management information relating to an applicant shall be submitted
on a one-time basis as part of the responsibility determination prior to
the award of a grant identified under this solicitation, if such
information has not been provided previously under this or another CSREES
program. CSREES will provide copies of forms recommended for use in
fulfilling these requirements as part of the preaward process. Although an
applicant may be eligible based on its status as one of these entities,
there are factors which may exclude an applicant from receiving Federal
financial and nonfinancial assistance and benefits under this program
(e.g., debarment or suspension of an individual involved or a determination
that an applicant is not responsible based on submitted organizational
management information).

A CSREES award document shall include at a minimum the following:

  1. Legal name and address of performing organization or institution to
     whom the CSREES Administrator has awarded a grant under the terms of
     this solicitation;

  2. Title of project;

  3. Name(s) and institution(s) of Project Directors chosen to direct and
     control approved activities;

  4. Identifying grant number assigned by CSREES;

  5. Project period, specifying the amount of time CSREES intends to
     support the project without requiring recompetition for funds;

  6. Total amount of CSREES financial assistance approved by the CSREES
     Administrator during the project period;

  7. Legal authority(ies) under which the grant is awarded;

  8. Appropriate Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) number;

  9. Applicable award terms and conditions (see
     http://www.csrees.usda.gov/business/awards/awardterms.html for CSREES
     award terms and conditions);

 10. Approved budget plan for categorizing allocable project funds to
     accomplish the stated purpose of the grant award; and

 11. Other information or provisions deemed necessary by CSREES to carry
     out its respective granting activities or to accomplish the purpose of
     a particular grant.

C. Reporting Requirements

For all multi-year grants (including both standard and continuing grants),
the Principal Investigator must submit an annual project report to the
cognizant Program Officer at least 90 days before the end of the current
budget period. (Some programs or awards require more frequent project
reports). Within 90 days after expiration of a grant, the PI also is
required to submit a final project report.

Failure to provide the required annual or final project reports will delay
NSF review and processing of any future funding increments as well as any
pending proposals for that PI. PIs should examine the formats of the
required reports in advance to assure availability of required data.

PIs are required to use NSF's electronic project-reporting system,
available through FastLane, for preparation and submission of annual and
final project reports.  Such reports provide information on activities and
findings, project participants (individual and organizational)
publications; and, other specific products and contributions.  PIs will not
be required to re-enter information previously provided, either with a
proposal or in earlier updates using the electronic system.  Submission of
the report via FastLane constitutes certification by the PI that the
contents of the report are accurate and complete.

 CSREES Awards

Applicants selected for funding by CSREES will need to submit the Current
Research Information System (CRIS) forms AD-416 and AD-417 for NEW awards
only.  These forms must be submitted electronically via the CRIS Web Forms
site at http://cwf.uvm.edu/cris. For assistance with CRIS forms, please
contact the CRIS office at 202-690-0009 or cdeckers@cris.csrees.usda.gov.

VIII. AGENCY CONTACTS

General inquiries regarding this program should be made to:

   * Ronald Weiner, Program Director, Division of Molecular & Cellular
     Biosciences, 655 S, telephone: (703) 292-7183, fax: (703) 292-9061,
     email: rweiner@nsf.gov

   * Matthew Kane, Program Director, Division of Molecular & Cellular
     Biosciences, 655 S, telephone: (703) 292-7186, fax: (703) 292-9061,
     email: mkane@nsf.gov

   * Patrick Dennis, Program Director, Division of Molecular & Cellular
     Biosciences, 655 S, telephone: (703) 292-7145, fax: (703) 292-9061,
     email: pdennis@nsf.gov

   * Richard McCourt, Division of Biological Infrastructure, 615 N,
     telephone: (703) 292-8470, fax: (703) 292-9063, email:
     rmccourt@nsf.gov

   * Ann Lichens-Park, National Program Leader, CSREES, U.S. Department of
     Agriculture, telephone: (202) 401-6460, fax: (202) 401-6488, email:
     apark@csrees.usda.gov

   * Daniel Jones, National Program Leader, CSREES, U.S. Department of
     Agriculture, telephone: (202) 401-6854, email: djones@csrees.usda.gov

For questions related to the use of FastLane, contact:

   * FastLane Help Desk, telephone: 1-800-673-6188; e-mail:
     fastlane@nsf.gov.

For questions relating to Grants.gov contact:

   * Grants.gov Contact Center: If the Authorized Organizational
     Representatives (AOR) has not received a confirmation message from
     Grants.gov within 48 hours of submission of application, please
     contact via telephone: 1-800-518-4726; e-mail: support@grants.gov.

IX. OTHER INFORMATION

The NSF Website provides the most comprehensive source of information on
NSF Directorates (including contact information), programs and funding
opportunities. Use of this Website by potential proposers is strongly
encouraged. In addition, MyNSF (formerly the Custom News Service)is an
information-delivery system designed to keep potential proposers and other
interested parties apprised of new NSF funding opportunities and
publications, important changes in proposal and award policies and
procedures, and upcoming NSF Regional Grants Conferences. Subscribers are
informed through e-mail or the user's Web browser each time new
publications are issued that match their identified interests. MyNSF also
is available on NSF's Website at http://www.nsf.gov/mynsf/.

Grants.gov provides an additional electronic capability to search for
Federal government-wide grant opportunities. NSF funding opportunities may
be accessed via this new mechanism. Further information on Grants.gov may
be obtained at http://www.grants.gov.

     CSREES supports a wide variety of agricultural research and
     educational programs.  Further information concerning funding
     opportunities may be obtained on the CSREES web site at
     http://www.csrees.usda.gov/fo/funding.cfm.

ABOUT THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent Federal agency
created by the National Science Foundation Act of 1950, as amended (42 USC
1861-75). The Act states the purpose of the NSF is "to promote the progress
of science; [and] to advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare
by supporting research and education in all fields of science and
engineering."

NSF funds research and education in most fields of science and engineering.
It does this through grants and cooperative agreements to more than 2,000
colleges, universities, K-12 school systems, businesses, informal science
organizations and other research organizations throughout the US. The
Foundation accounts for about one-fourth of Federal support to academic
institutions for basic research.

NSF receives approximately 40,000 proposals each year for research,
education and training projects, of which approximately 11,000 are funded.
In addition, the Foundation receives several thousand applications for
graduate and postdoctoral fellowships. The agency operates no laboratories
itself but does support National Research Centers, user facilities, certain
oceanographic vessels and Antarctic research stations. The Foundation also
supports cooperative research between universities and industry, US
participation in international scientific and engineering efforts, and
educational activities at every academic level.

Facilitation Awards for Scientists and Engineers with Disabilities provide
funding for special assistance or equipment to enable persons with
disabilities to work on NSF-supported projects. See Grant Proposal Guide
Chapter II, Section D.2 for instructions regarding preparation of these
types of proposals.

The National Science Foundation has Telephonic Device for the Deaf (TDD)
and Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) capabilities that enable
individuals with hearing impairments to communicate with the Foundation
about NSF programs, employment or general information. TDD may be accessed
at (703) 292-5090 and (800) 281-8749, FIRS at (800) 877-8339.

The National Science Foundation Information Center may be reached at (703)
292-5111.

 The National Science Foundation promotes and advances scientific
 progress in the United States by competitively awarding grants and
 cooperative agreements for research and education in the sciences,
 mathematics, and engineering.

 To get the latest information about program deadlines, to download
 copies of NSF publications, and to access abstracts of awards, visit the
 NSF Website at http://www.nsf.gov

        * Location:                       4201 Wilson Blvd. Arlington,
                                          VA 22230
        * For General Information         (703) 292-5111
          (NSF Information Center):
        * TDD (for the hearing-impaired): (703) 292-5090

        * To Order Publications or Forms:

              Send an e-mail to:          pubs@nsf.gov

                 or telephone:            (703) 292-7827

        * To Locate NSF Employees:        (703) 292-5111

PRIVACY ACT AND PUBLIC BURDEN STATEMENTS

The information requested on proposal forms and project reports is
solicited under the authority of the National Science Foundation Act of
1950, as amended. The information on proposal forms will be used in
connection with the selection of qualified proposals; and project reports
submitted by awardees will be used for program evaluation and reporting
within the Executive Branch and to Congress. The information requested may
be disclosed to qualified reviewers and staff assistants as part of the
proposal review process; to proposer institutions/grantees to provide or
obtain data regarding the proposal review process, award decisions, or the
administration of awards; to government contractors, experts, volunteers
and researchers and educators as necessary to complete assigned work; to
other government agencies or other entities needing information regarding
applicants or nominees as part of a joint application review process, or in
order to coordinate programs or policy; and to another Federal agency,
court, or party in a court or Federal administrative proceeding if the
government is a party. Information about Principal Investigators may be
added to the Reviewer file and used to select potential candidates to serve
as peer reviewers or advisory committee members. See Systems of Records,
NSF-50, "Principal Investigator/Proposal File and Associated Records," 69
Federal Register 26410 (May 12, 2004), and NSF-51, "Reviewer/Proposal File
and Associated Records, " 69 Federal Register 26410 (May 12, 2004).
Submission of the information is voluntary. Failure to provide full and
complete information, however, may reduce the possibility of receiving an
award.

An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to
respond to, an information collection unless it displays a valid Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) control number. The OMB control number for this
collection is 3145-0058. Public reporting burden for this collection of
information is estimated to average 120 hours per response, including the
time for reviewing instructions. Send comments regarding the burden
estimate and any other aspect of this collection of information, including
suggestions for reducing this burden, to:

Suzanne H. Plimpton
Reports Clearance Officer
Division of Administrative Services
National Science Foundation
Arlington, VA 22230

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