Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 72 / Thursday, April 14, 2011 / Notices 20943 

Dated: April 6, 2011. 

Jeanne M. Higgins, 

Forest Supervisor, Humboldt-Toiyabe 

National Forest. 

[FR Doc. 2011–9095 Filed 4–13–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–11–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Rural Business-Cooperative Service 

Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA) 

Inviting Applications for the Rural 

Energy for America Program 

AGENCY: Rural Business-Cooperative 

Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice of funding availability. 

SUMMARY: This Notice announces the 

acceptance of applications for funds 

available under the Rural Energy for 

America Program (REAP) for Fiscal Year 

2011 for financial assistance as follows: 

grants, guaranteed loans, and combined 

grants and guaranteed loans for the 

development and construction of 

renewable energy systems and for 

energy efficiency improvement projects; 

grants for conducting energy audits; 

grants for conducting renewable energy 

development assistance; and grants for 

conducting renewable energy system 

feasibility studies. The Notice also 

announces the availability of $70 

million of Fiscal Year 2011 budget 

authority to fund these REAP activities, 

which will support at least $42 million 

in grant program level and up to $61 

million in guaranteed loan program 

level. If additional funding becomes 

available by a Fiscal Year 2011 

Appropriations Act, a subsequent NOFA 

will be published in the Federal 

Register. 

DATES: In order to be considered for 

Fiscal Year 2011 funds, complete 

applications under this Notice must be 

received by the appropriate USDA Rural 

Development State Office no later than 

4:30 p.m. local time of the dates as 

follows: 

For renewable energy system and 

energy efficiency improvement grant 

applications and combination grant and 

guaranteed loan applications: June 15, 

2011. 

For renewable energy system and 

energy efficiency improvement 

guaranteed loan only applications: June 

15, 2011. 

For renewable energy system 

feasibility study applications: June 30, 

2011. 

For energy audits and renewable 

energy development assistance 

applications: June 30, 2011. 

ADDRESSES: See the SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION for addresses concerning 

applications for the Rural Energy for 

America Program for Fiscal Year 2011 

funds. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

information about this Notice, please 

contact Mr. Kelley Oehler, Branch Chief, 

USDA Rural Development, Energy 

Division, 1400 Independence Avenue, 

SW., Washington, DC 20250. Telephone: 

(202) 720–6819. E-mail: 

kelley.oehler@wdc.usda.gov. 

For further information on this 

program, please contact the applicable 

USDA Rural Development Energy 

Coordinator for your respective State, as 

provided in the SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION section of this Notice. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Fiscal Year 2011 Applications for the 

Rural Energy for America Program 

Applications. Application materials 

may be obtained by contacting one of 

Rural Development’s Energy 

Coordinators. In addition, for grant 

applications, applicants may access the 

electronic grant application for the 

Rural Energy for America Program at 

http://www.Grants.gov. To locate the 

downloadable application package for 

this program, the applicant must use the 

program’s Catalog of Federal Domestic 

Assistance (CFDA) Number 10.868 or 

FedGrants Funding Opportunity 

Number, which can be found at http:// 

www.Grants.gov. 

Application submittal. For renewable 

energy system, energy efficiency 

improvement, and feasibility study 

applications, submit complete paper 

applications to the Rural Development 

State Office in the State in which the 

applicant’s proposed project is located. 

For energy audit and renewable energy 

development assistance applications, 

submit complete paper applications to 

the Rural Development State Office in 

the State in which the applicant’s 

principal office is located. 

Submit electronic grant only 

applications at http://www.grants.gov, 

following the instructions found on this 

Web site. 

Rural Development Energy 

Coordinators 

Note: Telephone numbers listed are not 

toll-free. 

Alabama 

Quinton Harris, USDA Rural 

Development, Sterling Centre, Suite 

601, 4121 Carmichael Road, 

Montgomery, AL 36106–3683, (334) 

279–3623, Quinton.Harris@al.usda.gov. 

Alaska 

Chad Stovall, USDA Rural 

Development, 800 West Evergreen, Suite 

201, Palmer, AK 99645–6539, (907) 

761–7718, chad.stovall@ak.usda.gov. 

American Samoa (See Hawaii) 

Arizona 

Alan Watt, USDA Rural Development, 

230 North First Avenue, Suite 206, 

Phoenix, AZ 85003–1706, (602) 280– 

8769, Alan.Watt@az.usda.gov. 

Arkansas 

Tim Smith, USDA Rural 

Development, 700 West Capitol Avenue, 

Room 3416, Little Rock, AR 72201– 

3225, (501) 301–3280, 

Tim.Smith@ar.usda.gov. 

California 

Philip Brown, USDA Rural 

Development, 430 G Street, #4169, 

Davis, CA 95616, (530) 792–5811, 

Phil.brown@ca.usda.gov. 

Colorado 

Jerry Tamlin, USDA Rural 

Development, 655 Parfet Street, Room 

E–100, Lakewood, CO 80215, (720) 544– 

2907, Jerry.Tamlin@co.usda.gov. 

Commonwealth of the Northern 

Marianas Islands-CNMI (See Hawaii) 

Connecticut (see Massachusetts) 

Delaware/Maryland 

Bruce Weaver, USDA Rural 

Development, 1221 College Park Drive, 

Suite 200, Dover, DE 19904, (302) 857– 

3626, Bruce.Weaver@de.usda.gov. 

Federated States of Micronesia (See 

Hawaii) 

Florida/Virgin Islands 

Matthew Wooten, USDA Rural 

Development, 4440 NW. 25th Place, 

Gainesville, FL 32606, (352) 338–3486, 

Matthew.wooten@fl.usda.gov. 

Georgia 

J. Craig Scroggs, USDA Rural 

Development, 111 E. Spring St., Suite B, 

Monroe, GA 30655, Phone 770–267– 

1413 ext. 113, 

craig.scroggs@ga.usda.gov. 

Guam (See Hawaii) 

Hawaii/Guam/Republic of Palau/ 

Federated States of Micronesia/Republic 

of the Marshall Islands/American 

Samoa/Commonwealth of the Northern 

Marianas Islands—CNMI 

Tim O’Connell, USDA Rural 

Development, Federal Building, Room 

311, 154 Waianuenue Avenue, Hilo, HI 

96720, (808) 933–8313, 

Tim.Oconnell@hi.usda.gov. 

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20944 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 72 / Thursday, April 14, 2011 / Notices 

Idaho 

Brian Buch, USDA Rural 

Development, 9173 W. Barnes Drive, 

Suite A1, Boise, ID 83709, (208) 378– 

5623, Brian.Buch@id.usda.gov. 

Illinois 

Molly Hammond, USDA Rural 

Development, 2118 West Park Court, 

Suite A, Champaign, IL 61821, (217) 

403–6210, 

Molly.Hammond@il.usda.gov. 

Indiana 

Jerry Hay, USDA Rural Development, 

5975 Lakeside Boulevard, Indianapolis, 

IN 46278, (812) 346–3411, Ext. 126, 

Jerry.Hay@in.usda.gov. 

Iowa 

Teresa Bomhoff, USDA Rural 

Development, 873 Federal Building, 210 

Walnut Street, Des Moines, IA 50309, 

(515) 284–4447, 

teresa.bomhoff@ia.usda.gov. 

Kansas 

David Kramer, USDA Rural 

Development, 1303 SW. First American 

Place, Suite 100, Topeka, KS 66604– 

4040, (785) 271–2730, 

david.kramer@ks.usda.gov. 

Kentucky 

Scott Maas, USDA Rural 

Development, 771 Corporate Drive, 

Suite 200, Lexington, KY 40503, (859) 

224–7435, scott.maas@ky.usda.gov. 

Louisiana 

Kevin Boone, USDA Rural 

Development, 905 Jefferson Street, Suite 

320, Lafayette, LA 70501, (337) 262– 

6601, Ext. 133, 

Kevin.Boone@la.usda.gov. 

Maine 

John F. Sheehan, USDA Rural 

Development, 967 Illinois Avenue, Suite 

4, P.O. Box 405, Bangor, ME 04402– 

0405, (207) 990–9168, 

john.sheehan@me.usda.gov. 

Maryland (see Delaware) 

Massachusetts/Rhode Island/ 

Connecticut 

Charles W. Dubuc, USDA Rural 

Development, 451 West Street, Suite 2, 

Amherst, MA 01002, (401) 826–0842 x 

306, Charles.Dubuc@ma.usda.gov. 

Michigan 

Traci J. Smith, USDA Rural 

Development, 3001 Coolidge Road, 

Suite 200, East Lansing, MI 48823, (517) 

324–5157, Traci.Smith@mi.usda.gov. 

Minnesota 

Lisa L. Noty, USDA Rural 

Development, 1400 West Main Street, 

Albert Lea, MN 56007, (507) 373–7960 

Ext. 120, lisa.noty@mn.usda.gov. 

Mississippi 

G. Gary Jones, USDA Rural 

Development, Federal Building, Suite 

831, 100 West Capitol Street, Jackson, 

MS 39269, (601) 965–5457, 

george.jones@ms.usda.gov. 

Missouri 

Matt Moore, USDA Rural 

Development, 601 Business Loop 70 

West, Parkade Center, Suite 235, 

Columbia, MO 65203, (573) 876–9321, 

matt.moore@mo.usda.gov. 

Montana 

Michael Drewiske, USDA Rural 

Development, 2229 Boot Hill Court, 

Bozeman, MT 59715–7914, (406) 585– 

2554, Michael.drewiske@mt.usda.gov. 

Nebraska 

Debra Yocum, USDA Rural 

Development, 100 Centennial Mall 

North, Room 152, Federal Building, 

Lincoln, NE 68508, (402) 437–5554, 

Debra.Yocum@ne.usda.gov. 

Nevada 

Mark Williams, USDA Rural 

Development, 1390 South Curry Street, 

Carson City, NV 89703, (775) 887–1222, 

mark.williams@nv.usda.gov. 

New Hampshire (See Vermont) 

New Jersey 

Victoria Fekete, USDA Rural 

Development, 8000 Midlantic Drive, 5th 

Floor North, Suite 500, Mt. Laurel, NJ 

08054, (856) 787–7752, 

Victoria.Fekete@nj.usda.gov. 

New Mexico 

Jesse Bopp, USDA Rural 

Development, 6200 Jefferson Street, NE., 

Room 255, Albuquerque, NM 87109, 

(505) 761–4952, 

Jesse.bopp@nm.usda.gov. 

New York 

Scott Collins, USDA Rural 

Development, 9025 River Road, Marcy, 

NY 13403, (315) 736–3316 Ext. 4, 

scott.collins@ny.usda.gov. 

North Carolina 

David Thigpen, USDA Rural 

Development, 4405 Bland Rd. Suite 260, 

Raleigh, NC 27609, 919–873–2065, 

David.Thigpen@nc.usda.gov. 

North Dakota 

Dennis Rodin, USDA Rural 

Development, Federal Building, Room 

208, 220 East Rosser Avenue, P.O. Box 

1737, Bismarck, ND 58502–1737, (701) 

530–2068, Dennis.Rodin@nd.usda.gov. 

Ohio 

Randy Monhemius, USDA Rural 

Development, Federal Building, Room 

507, 200 North High Street, Columbus, 

OH 43215–2418, (614) 255–2424, 

Randy.Monhemius@oh.usda.gov. 

Oklahoma 

Jody Harris, USDA Rural 

Development, 100 USDA, Suite 108, 

Stillwater, OK 74074–2654, (405) 742– 

1036, Jody.harris@ok.usda.gov. 

Oregon 

Don Hollis, USDA Rural 

Development, 200 SE. Hailey Ave, Suite 

105, Pendleton, OR 97801, (541) 278– 

8049, Ext. 129, Don.Hollis@or.usda.gov. 

Pennsylvania 

Bob Schoenfeldt, USDA Rural 

Development, 14699 North Main Street 

Ext., Meadville, PA 16335, (814) 336– 

6155, Ext. 114, 

robert.schoenfeldt@pa.usda.gov. 

Puerto Rico 

Luis Garcia, USDA Rural 

Development, IBM Building, 654 Munoz 

Rivera Avenue, Suite 601, Hato Rey, PR 

00918–6106, (787) 766–5091, Ext. 251, 

Luis.Garcia@pr.usda.gov. 

Republic of Palau (See Hawaii) 

Republic of the Marshall Islands (See 

Hawaii) 

Rhode Island (see Massachusetts) 

South Carolina 

Shannon Legree, USDA Rural 

Development, Strom Thurmond Federal 

Building, 1835 Assembly Street, Room 

1007, Columbia, SC 29201, (803) 253– 

3150, Shannon.Legree@sc.usda.gov. 

South Dakota 

Kenneth Lynch, USDA Rural 

Development, Federal Building, Room 

210, 200 4th Street, SW., Huron, SD 

57350, (605) 352–1120, 

ken.lynch@sd.usda.gov. 

Tennessee 

Will Dodson, USDA Rural 

Development, 3322 West End Avenue, 

Suite 300, Nashville, TN 37203–1084, 

(615) 783–1350, 

will.dodson@tn.usda.gov. 

Texas 

Billy Curb, USDA Rural Development, 

Federal Building, Suite 102, 101 South 

Main Street, Temple, TX 76501, (254) 

742–9775, billy.curb@tx.usda.gov. 

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Utah 

Roger Koon, USDA Rural 

Development, Wallace F. Bennett 

Federal Building, 125 South State 

Street, Room 4311, Salt Lake City, UT 

84138, (801) 524–4301, 

Roger.Koon@ut.usda.gov. 

Vermont/New Hampshire 

Cheryl Ducharme, USDA Rural 

Development, 89 Main Street, 3rd Floor, 

Montpelier, VT 05602, 802–828–6083, 

cheryl.ducharme@vt.usda.gov. 

Virginia 

Laurette Tucker, USDA Rural 

Development, Culpeper Building, Suite 

238, 1606 Santa Rosa Road, Richmond, 

VA 23229, (804) 287–1594, 

Laurette.Tucker@va.usda.gov. 

Virgin Islands (see Florida) 

Washington 

Mary Traxler, USDA Rural 

Development, 1835 Black Lake Blvd. 

SW., Suite B, Olympia, WA 98512, (360) 

704–7762, Mary.Traxler@wa.usda.gov. 

West Virginia 

Richard E. Satterfield, USDA Rural 

Development, 75 High Street, Room 320, 

Morgantown, WV 26505–7500, (304) 

284–4874, 

Richard.Satterfield@wv.usda.gov. 

Wisconsin 

Brenda Heinen, USDA Rural 

Development, 4949 Kirschling Court, 

Stevens Point, WI 54481, (715) 345– 

7615, Ext. 139, 

Brenda.Heinen@wi.usda.gov. 

Wyoming 

Jon Crabtree, USDA Rural 

Development, Dick Cheney Federal 

Building, 100 East B Street, Room 1005, 

P.O. Box 11005, Casper, WY 82602, 

(307) 233–6719, 

Jon.Crabtree@wy.usda.gov. 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

In accordance with the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995, the information 

collection requirements associated with 

renewable energy system and energy 

efficiency improvement grants and 

guaranteed loans, as covered in this 

Notice, has been approved by the Office 

of Management and Budget (OMB) 

under OMB Control Number 0570–0050. 

The information collection requirements 

associated with energy audit and 

renewable energy development 

assistance grants and with renewable 

energy feasibility study grants have also 

been approved by OMB under OMB 

Control Number 0570–0059 and OMB 

Control Number 0570–0061, 

respectively. 

Overview 

Federal Agency Name: Rural 

Business-Cooperative Service. 

Contract Proposal Title: Rural Energy 

for America Program. 

Announcement Type: Initial 

announcement. 

Catalog of Federal Domestic 

Assistance Number. 10.868. 

Dates: Grant applications and 

combined grant and guaranteed loan 

applications for renewable energy 

systems and energy efficiency 

improvement projects under this Notice 

will be accepted up to June 15, 2011. 

Guaranteed loan only applications for 

renewable energy system and energy 

efficiency improvement projects will be 

accepted on a continuous basis, but to 

compete for FY 2011 funding, complete 

applications must be submitted to the 

Agency by June 15, 2011. Applications 

for renewable energy feasibility studies, 

energy audits, and renewable energy 

development assistance grants will be 

accepted up to June 30, 2011. 

For all applications submitted under 

this Notice, complete applications must 

be received by the appropriate USDA 

Rural Development State Office no later 

than 4:30 p.m. local time of the 

applicable application deadline date in 

order to be considered for Fiscal Year 

2011 funds. Any application received 

after its applicable date and time, 

regardless of the postmark on the 

application, will not be considered for 

Fiscal Year 2011 funds. 

Availability of Notice. This Notice for 

the Rural Energy for America Program is 

available on the USDA Rural 

Development Web site at http:// 

www.rurdev.usda.gov/rbs/farmbill/ 

index.html. 

I. Funding Opportunity Description 

A. Purpose of the Rural Energy for 

America Program. This Notice is issued 

pursuant to section 9001 of the Food, 

Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 

(2008 Farm Bill), which amends Title IX 

of the Farm Security and Rural 

Investment Act of 2002 (2002 Farm Bill) 

and establishes the Rural Energy for 

America Program under section 9007 

thereof. The program is designed to help 

agricultural producers and rural small 

businesses reduce energy costs and 

consumption and help meet the 

Nation’s critical energy needs. 

B. Statutory Authority. This program 

is authorized under 7 U.S.C. 8107. 

C. Definition of Terms. The 

definitions applicable to this Notice are 

published at 7 CFR 4280.103. In 

addition, the following definition of 

‘‘hybrid’’ applies to this Notice. 

Hybrid. A combination of two or more 

renewable energy technologies that are 

incorporated into a unified system to 

support a single project. 

II. Award Information 

A. Available funds: The amount of 

grant funds available for energy audits 

and renewable energy development 

assistance in Fiscal Year 2011 is 

approximately $2.8 million. The amount 

of grant funds available for renewable 

energy system feasibility studies in 

Fiscal Year 2011 is $2.0 million. The 

budget authority available for renewable 

energy system and energy efficiency 

improvement projects in Fiscal Year 

2011 is $51.2 million. For renewable 

energy system and energy efficiency 

improvement projects only, there will 

be an allocation of funds to each State, 

and the Rural Development’s National 

Office will maintain a reserve of funds. 

In order to ensure that small projects 

have a fair opportunity to compete for 

the funding and are consistent with the 

priorities set forth in the statute, the 

Agency will set-aside $14 million of the 

$70 million budget authority available 

to fund grants of $20,000 or less. 

B. Approximate number of awards: 

The number of awards will depend on 

the number of eligible applicants 

participating in this program. 

C. State and National competitions. 

Renewable energy system and energy 

efficiency improvement applications for 

Fiscal Year 2011 funds will compete for 

funds allocated to their State (State 

competition) as described under the 

competition deadline in this Notice. All 

unfunded eligible State applications 

will be competed against other 

applications from other States at a final 

National competition. Separate 

competitions will be held on guaranteed 

loan only applications and on grant only 

and grant and guaranteed loan 

combination applications for both State 

and National competitions. If funds 

remain after the National guaranteed 

loan only application competition, the 

Agency may elect to utilize budget 

authority to fund additional grant only 

and grant and guaranteed loan 

combination applications in the 

National competition. 

D. Type of instrument. Grant, 

guaranteed loan, and grant/guaranteed 

loan combinations. 

E. Funding limitations. The following 

funding limitations apply to 

applications submitted under to this 

Notice. 

(1) Maximum grant assistance to an 

individual or entity. For the purposes of 

this Notice, the maximum amount of 

grant assistance to one individual or 

entity will not exceed $750,000 for 

Fiscal Year 2011 based on the total 

amount of renewable energy system, 

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20946 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 72 / Thursday, April 14, 2011 / Notices 

energy efficiency improvement, and 

renewable energy feasibility study 

grants awarded to the individual or 

entity under the Rural Energy for 

America Program. 

(2) Maximum percentage of Agency 

funding. The 2008 Farm Bill mandates 

the maximum percentages of funding 

that USDA Rural Development will 

provide. Within the maximum funding 

amounts specified in this Notice, 

renewable energy system and energy 

efficiency improvement funding 

approved for guaranteed loan only 

requests and for combination 

guaranteed loan and grant requests will 

not exceed 75 percent of eligible project 

costs, with the grant portion not to 

exceed 25 percent of total eligible 

project costs, whether the grant is part 

of a combination request or is a standalone grant. 

(3) Reallocation of grants funds. 

Based on the quality of the applications 

received under this Notice and subject 

to statutory limitations, the Agency 

reserves the right, at its discretion, to 

move funds among the various grant 

allocations identified under Section 

II.A. of this Notice. 

(4) Renewable energy system and 

energy efficiency improvement grantonly applications. For renewable energy 

system grants, the minimum grant is 

$2,500 and the maximum is $500,000. 

For energy efficiency improvement 

grants, the minimum grant is $1,500 and 

the maximum grant is $250,000. 

(5) Renewable energy system and 

energy efficiency improvement loan 

guarantee-only applications. For 

renewable energy system and energy 

efficiency improvement loan guarantees, 

the minimum guaranteed loan amount 

is $5,000 and the maximum amount of 

a guarantee to be provided to a borrower 

is $25 million. 

(6) Renewable energy system and 

energy efficiency improvement 

guaranteed loan and grant combination 

applications. Funding for grant and loan 

combination packages for renewable 

energy systems and energy efficiency 

improvement projects are subject to the 

funding limitations specified in Section 

II.E.(2). The maximum amount for the 

grant portion is $500,000 for renewable 

energy systems and $250,000 for energy 

efficiency improvements. The minimum 

amount of the grant portion is $1,500 for 

either renewable energy systems or 

energy efficiency improvements. For the 

guarantee portion, the maximum 

amount is $25 million and the 

minimum amount is $5,000. 

(7) Renewable energy system 

feasibility study grant applications. The 

maximum amount of grant funds that 

will be made available for an eligible 

feasibility study project under this 

subpart to any one recipient will not 

exceed $50,000 or 25 percent of the total 

eligible project cost of the study, 

whichever is less. 

(8) Energy audit and renewable energy 

development assistance grant 

applications. The maximum aggregate 

amount of energy audit and renewable 

energy development assistance grants 

awarded to any one recipient under this 

Notice cannot exceed $100,000. In 

addition, the 2008 Farm Bill mandates 

that the recipient of a grant that 

conducts an energy audit for an 

agricultural producer or a rural small 

business require the agricultural 

producer or rural small business to pay 

at least 25 percent of the cost of the 

energy audit, which shall be retained by 

the eligible entity for the cost of the 

audit. 

III. Eligibility Information 

A. Eligible applicants. To be eligible 

for this program, an applicant must 

meet the eligibility requirements 

specified in 7 CFR 4280.109, 7 CFR 

4280.110(c), and, as applicable, 7 CFR 

4280.112, 7 CFR 4280.122, 7 CFR 

4280.170, or 7 CFR 4280.186. 

B. Eligible lenders. To be eligible for 

this program, lenders must meet the 

eligibility requirements in 7 CFR 

4280.130. 

C. Eligible projects. To be eligible for 

this program, a project must meet the 

eligibility requirements specified in 7 

CFR 4280.113, 7 CFR 4280.123, 7 CFR 

4280.171, and 7 CFR 4280.187, as 

applicable. 

IV. Fiscal Year 2011 Application and 

Submission Information 

Applicants seeking to participate in 

this program must submit applications 

in accordance with this Notice and 7 

CFR part 4280, subpart B, as applicable. 

Applicants must submit complete 

applications in order to be considered. 

A. Where To Obtain Applications 

Applicants may obtain applications 

from any USDA Rural Development 

Energy Coordinator, as provided in the 

ADDRESSES section of this Notice. In 

addition, for grant applications, 

applicants may access the electronic 

grant application for the Rural Energy 

for America Program at http:// 

www.Grants.gov. To locate the 

downloadable application package for 

this program, the applicant must use the 

program’s CFDA Number 10.868 or 

FedGrants Funding Opportunity 

Number, which can be found at http:// 

www.Grants.gov. 

When you enter the Grants.gov site, 

you will find information about 

submitting an application electronically 

through the site. To use Grants.gov, all 

applicants must have a Dun and 

Bradstreet Data Universal Numbering 

System (DUNS) number (unless the 

applicant is an individual), which can 

be obtained at no cost via a toll-free 

request line at 1–866–705–5711 or 

online at http://fedgov.dnb.com/ 

webform. USDA Rural Development 

strongly recommends that applicants do 

not wait until the application deadline 

date to begin the application process 

through Grants.gov. 

B. When To Submit 

Renewable Energy System and Energy 

Efficiency Improvement Grant and 

Combined Grant and Guaranteed Loan 

Applications. Grant applications and 

combined grant and guaranteed loan 

applications for renewable energy 

systems and energy efficiency 

improvement projects under this Notice 

will be accepted up to June 15, 2011. 

Complete applications under this Notice 

must be received by the appropriate 

USDA Rural Development State Office 

no later than 4:30 p.m. local time on 

June 15, 2011, in order to be considered 

for Fiscal Year 2011 funds. Any 

application received after this date and 

time, regardless of the postmark on the 

application, will not be considered for 

Fiscal Year 2011 funds. 

Renewable Energy System and Energy 

Efficiency Improvement Guaranteed 

Loan Only Applications. Guaranteed 

loan only applications for renewable 

energy system and energy efficiency 

improvement projects will be accepted 

on a continuous basis, but to be 

considered for Fiscal Year 2011 funds, 

complete applications must be received 

by the appropriate USDA Rural 

Development State Office no later than 

4:30 p.m. local time on June 15, 2011. 

Any application received after this date 

and time, regardless of the postmark on 

the application, will be considered for 

Fiscal Year 2012 funds. 

Renewable Energy System Feasibility 

Study Applications. Applications for 

RES feasibility study grants under this 

Notice will be accepted up to June 30, 

2011. Complete applications under this 

Notice must be received at the 

appropriate State Office by 4:30 p.m. 

local time on June 30, 2011, in order to 

be considered for Fiscal Year 2011 

funds. Any application received after 

this date and time, regardless of the 

application’s postmark, will not be 

considered for Fiscal Year 2011 funds. 

Energy Audits and Renewable Energy 

Development Assistance Applications. 

Applications for EA and REDA grants 

under this Notice will be accepted up to 

June 30, 2011. Complete applications 

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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 72 / Thursday, April 14, 2011 / Notices 20947 

under this Notice must be received at 

the appropriate State Office by 4:30 p.m. 

local time on June 30, 2011, in order to 

be considered for Fiscal Year 2011 

funds. Any application received after 

this date and time, regardless of the 

application’s postmark, will not be 

considered for Fiscal Year 2011 funds. 

C. Where To Submit 

All renewable energy system, energy 

efficiency improvement, and renewable 

energy system feasibility study 

applications are to be submitted to the 

USDA Rural Development Energy 

Coordinator in the State in which the 

applicant’s proposed project is located. 

All energy audit and renewable energy 

development assistance applications are 

to be submitted to the USDA Rural 

Development Energy Coordinator in the 

State in which the applicant’s principal 

office is located. A list of USDA Rural 

Development Energy Coordinators is 

provided in the ADDRESSES section of 

this Notice. Alternatively, for grant only 

applications, applicants may submit 

their electronic applications to the 

Agency via the Grants.gov Web site. 

D. How To Submit 

Applicants may submit their 

applications either as hard copy or 

electronically as specified in the 

following paragraphs. When submitting 

an application as hard copy, applicants 

must submit one original and one copy 

of the complete application. 

(1) Grant applications. All grant 

applications may be submitted either as 

hard copy to the appropriate Rural 

Development Energy Coordinator or 

electronically using the Governmentwide Grants.gov Web site. Users of 

Grants.gov who download a copy of the 

application package may complete it off 

line and then upload and submit the 

application via the Grants.gov site, 

including all information typically 

included on the application, and all 

necessary assurances and certifications. 

After electronically submitting an 

application through the Web site, the 

applicant will receive an automated 

acknowledgement from Grants.gov that 

contains a Grants.gov tracking number. 

(2) Guaranteed loan applications. 

Guaranteed loan only applications (i.e., 

those that are not part of a guaranteed 

loan/grant combination request) must be 

submitted as hard copy. 

(3) Guaranteed loan/grant 

combination applications. Applications 

for guaranteed loans/grants 

(combination applications) must be 

submitted as hard copy. 

E. Other Submission Requirements and 

Information 

(1) Application restrictions. 

Applicants may apply for only one 

renewable energy system project and 

one energy efficiency improvement 

project in Fiscal Year 2011. A renewable 

energy system application cannot be 

submitted in Fiscal Year 2011 if a REAP 

feasibility study grant application for 

the same renewable energy system is 

submitted in Fiscal Year 2011 and vice 

versa. 

Applicants may apply for only one 

renewable energy system feasibility 

study grant under this Notice for Fiscal 

Year 2011 funds. 

Applicants may only submit one 

energy audit grant application and one 

renewable energy development 

assistance grant application for Fiscal 

Year 2011 funds. 

(2) Environmental information. For 

the Agency to consider an application, 

the application must include all 

environmental review documents with 

supporting documentation in 

accordance with 7 CFR part 1940, 

subpart G. Applications for financial 

assistance for planning purposes or 

management and feasibility studies are 

typically categorically excluded from 

the environmental review process by 7 

CFR 1940.310(e)(1). 

(3) Original signatures. USDA Rural 

Development may request that the 

applicant provide original signatures on 

forms submitted through Grants.gov at a 

later date. 

(4) Award considerations. In 

determining the amount of a renewable 

energy system or energy efficiency 

improvement grant or loan guarantee, 

the Agency will consider the six criteria 

specified in 7 CFR 4280.115(g) or 7 CFR 

4280.124(f), as applicable. 

(5) Hybrid projects. If the application 

is for a hybrid project, technical reports, 

as required under 7 CFR 4280.116(b)(7), 

must be prepared for each technology 

that comprises the hybrid project. 

(6) Multiple facilities. Applicants may 

submit a single application that 

proposes to apply the same renewable 

energy system (including the same 

hybrid project) or energy efficiency 

improvement across multiple facilities. 

For example, a rural small business 

owner owns five retail stores and wishes 

to install solar panels on each store. The 

rural small business owner may submit 

a single application for installing the 

solar panels on the five stores. However, 

if this same owner wishes to install 

solar panels on three of the five stores 

and wind turbines for the other two 

stores, the owner can only submit an 

application for either the solar panels or 

for the wind turbines in the same fiscal 

year. 

V. Program Provisions 

This section of the Notice identifies 

the provisions of the interim rule 

applicable to each type of funding 

available under REAP. 

A. General 

The provisions specified in 7 CFR 

4280.101 through 4280.111 apply to this 

Notice. 

B. Renewable Energy System and Energy 

Efficiency Improvement Project Grants 

In addition to the other provisions of 

this Notice, the requirements specified 

in 7 CFR 4280.112 through 4820.121 

apply to renewable energy system and 

energy efficiency improvement projects 

grants. 

C. Renewable Energy System and Energy 

Efficiency Improvement Project 

Guaranteed Loans 

In addition to the other provisions of 

this Notice, the requirements specified 

in 7 CFR 4280.122 through 4820.160 

apply to guaranteed loans for renewable 

energy system and energy efficiency 

improvement projects. For Fiscal Year 

2011, the guarantee fee amount is 1 

percent of the guaranteed portion of the 

loan and the annual renewal fee is 0.250 

percent (one-quarter of one percent) of 

the guaranteed portion of the loan. 

D. Renewable Energy System and Energy 

Efficiency Improvement Project Grant 

and Guaranteed Loan Combined 

Requests 

In addition to the other provisions of 

this Notice, the requirements specified 

in 7 CFR 4280.165 apply to a combined 

grant and guaranteed loan for renewable 

energy system and energy efficiency 

improvement projects. 

E. Renewable Energy System Feasibility 

Study Grants 

In addition to the other provisions of 

this Notice, the requirements specified 

in 7 CFR 4280.170 through 4820.182 

apply to renewable energy system 

feasibility study grants. 

F. Energy Audit and Renewable Energy 

Development Assistance Grants 

In addition to the other provisions of 

this Notice, the requirements specified 

in 7 CFR 4280.186 through 4820.196 

apply to energy audit and renewable 

energy development assistance grants. 

G. Resubmittal of Fiscal Year 2010 

Renewable Energy System and Energy 

Efficiency Improvement Applications 

If an applicant or lender submitted an 

application for funding in Fiscal Year 

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20948 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 72 / Thursday, April 14, 2011 / Notices 

2010 and that application was 

determined eligible but was not funded, 

the Agency will consider that Fiscal 

Year 2010 application for funding in 

Fiscal Year 2011 as provided in this 

section. 

(1) Written request. An applicant or 

lender must submit a written request for 

the Agency to consider its Fiscal Year 

2010 application for Fiscal Year 2011 

funds. For a guarantee loan and grant 

combination application, both the 

lender and applicant must submit the 

written request to the Agency in order 

to be considered for Fiscal Year 2011 

funds. 

(i) Except for simplified applications, 

applicants must provide current 

financial statements that meet the 

program requirements outlined in 7 CFR 

4280.116(b)(4) with the written request. 

(ii) Written requests to consider Fiscal 

Year 2010 applications for Fiscal Year 

2011 funds may be submitted at any 

time during Fiscal Year 2011 up to and 

including 4:30 pm local time on June 

15, 2011, to be considered for Fiscal 

Year 2011 funds. Written requests 

received after this time and date will not 

be accepted by the Agency and the 

applicant’s Fiscal Year 2010 application 

will not be considered for Fiscal Year 

2011 funds. 

(2) Revisions to Fiscal Year 2010 

applications. If an applicant makes any 

revision to its Fiscal Year 2010 

application that are not necessitated by 

the REAP interim rule, a new 

application meeting the requirements of 

this Notice must be submitted in order 

to be considered for Fiscal Year 2011 

funds and a new date the complete 

application was received will be 

recorded. However, if a revision to the 

Fiscal Year 2010 application is 

necessitated by the REAP interim rule or 

the Agency requests an update of 

information in the original application 

(for example, required current financial 

statements), there will be no change in 

the date the complete application was 

received. 

(3) No revisions to Fiscal Year 2010 

applications. If an applicant does not 

plan to make any revisions to its Fiscal 

Year 2010 application, a new 

application is not required and the date 

the complete application was received 

remains unchanged from its original 

Fiscal Year 2010 receipt date. 

H. Award Process. In addition to the 

process for awarding funding under 7 

CFR 4280, subpart B, the Agency will 

make awards using the following 

considerations: 

(1) Funding renewable energy system 

and energy efficiency improvement 

grant and grant/guaranteed loan 

awards. Considering the availability of 

funds, the Agency will fund those grant 

only applications and grant/guaranteed 

loan applications that score the highest 

based on the grant score of the 

application; that is, the grant score an 

application receives will be compared to 

the grant scores of other applications, 

with higher scoring applications 

receiving first consideration for funding. 

(2) Guaranteed loan only awards. 

Considering the availability of funds, 

the Agency will fund those guaranteed 

loan only applications that score the 

highest compared to the scores of other 

applications, with higher scoring 

applications receiving first 

consideration for funding. 

(3) Evaluation criteria. Agency 

personnel will score each application 

based on the evaluation criteria 

specified in 7 CFR 4280.117(c), 7 CFR 

4280.129(c), 7 CFR 4280.178, or 7 CFR 

4280.192, as applicable. 

For hybrid applications, each 

technical report will be evaluated and 

scored based on its own merit. The 

scores for the technologies will be 

consolidated using a weighted average 

approach based on the percentage of the 

cost for each system to the total project 

cost. 

Example: A hybrid project contains a 

wind and solar photovoltaic 

components. The wind system will cost 

the $30,000 (75 percent of total eligible 

project cost) and the solar will cost 

$10,000 (25 percent of total eligible 

project cost). The wind technical report 

was evaluated and assigned a total score 

of 22 points, while the solar report was 

evaluated and assigned a total score of 

31 points. In this scenario, the final 

technical score would be assigned as 

follows: (22 × 75 percent) + (31 × 25 

percent) = 24.25. 

(4) Applications that receive the same 

score. If applications score the same and 

if remaining funds are insufficient to 

fund each such application, the Agency 

will distribute the remaining funds to 

each such application on a pro-rata 

basis. 

VI. Administration Information 

A. Notifications 

(1) Applicants. The notification 

provisions of 7 CFR 4280.111 apply to 

this Notice. 

(2) Lenders. The notification 

provisions of 7 CFR 4280.129(a) apply 

to this Notice. 

B. Administrative and National Policy 

requirements 

(1) Exception authority. The 

provisions of 7 CFR 4280.104 apply to 

this Notice. 

(2) Appeals. A person may seek a 

review of an Agency decision or appeal 

to the National Appeals Division in 

accordance with 7 CFR 4280.105. 

(3) Conflict of interest. The provisions 

of 7 CFR 4280.106 apply to this Notice. 

(4) USDA Departmental Regulations 

and other laws that contains other 

compliance requirements. The 

provisions of 7 CFR 4280.107 and 7 CFR 

4280.108 apply to this Notice. 

VII. Agency Contacts 

For assistance on this program, please 

contact a USDA Rural Development 

Energy Coordinator, as provided in the 

Addresses section of this Notice. 

VIII. Nondiscrimination Statement 

USDA prohibits discrimination in all 

its programs and activities on the basis 

of race, color, national origin, age, 

disability, and where applicable, sex, 

marital status, familial status, parental 

status, religion, sexual orientation, 

genetic information, political beliefs, 

reprisal, or because all or part of an 

individual’s income is derived from any 

public assistance program. (Not all 

prohibited bases apply to all programs.) 

Persons with disabilities who require 

alternative means for communication of 

program information (Braille, large 

print, audiotape, etc.) should contact 

USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720– 

2600 (voice and TDD). 

To file a complaint of discrimination 

write to USDA, Director, Office of 

Adjudication and Compliance, 1400 

Independence Avenue SW., 

Washington, DC 20250–9410 or call 

(800) 795–3272 (voice) or (202) 720– 

6382 (TDD). USDA is an equal 

opportunity provider, employer, and 

lender. 

Dated: April 1, 2011. 

Dallas Tonsager, 

Under Secretary, Rural Development. 

[FR Doc. 2011–8456 Filed 4–13–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–XY–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

Bureau of Industry and Security 

Sensors and Instrumentation 

Technical Advisory Committee; Notice 

of Partially Closed Meeting 

The Sensors and Instrumentation 

Technical Advisory Committee (SITAC) 

will meet on May 3, 2011, 9:30 a.m., in 

the Herbert C. Hoover Building, Room 

3884, 14th Street between Constitution 

and Pennsylvania Avenues, NW., 

Washington, DC. The Committee 

advises the Office of the Assistant 

Secretary for Export Administration on 

technical questions that affect the level 

of export controls applicable to sensors 

mstockstill on DSKH9S0YB1PROD with NOTICES