Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 168 / Thursday, August 31, 2023 / Notices 60243 

HISTORY: 

None. 

[FR Doc. 2023–18848 Filed 8–30–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7401–01–P 

NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND 

SPACE ADMINISTRATION 

[NOTICE: 23–091] 

Conflict of Interest Policy for 

Recipients of NASA Financial 

Assistance Awards 

AGENCY: National Aeronautics and 

Space Administration 

ACTION: Final notice of a new NASA 

policy and term and condition regarding 

conflict of interest disclosures for grant 

and cooperative agreement recipients. 

SUMMARY: The National Aeronautics and 

Space Administration (NASA) is 

publishing, in final form, a new policy 

and term and condition regarding 

conflict of interest disclosures. The final 

policy can be found in Grant 

Information Circular (GIC) 23–07. 

NASA’s intention to develop and 

implement this new policy and term 

and condition was specified in the 

Federal Register of January 30, 2023. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

any questions, comments, or concerns 

regarding this policy, please contact 

Christopher Murguia at 

christopher.e.murguia@nasa.gov or 

202–909–5918. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

In December 2020, the U.S. 

Government Accountability Office 

(GAO) published report GAO–21–130, 

Federal Research: Agencies Need to 

Enhance Policies to Address Foreign 

Influence. This report included two 

recommendations for NASA that 

pertained to (1) updating NASA’s 

conflict of interest policy to include a 

definition of non-financial conflicts, 

such as conflicts of commitment, and (2) 

documenting procedures, roles, and 

responsibilities for addressing and 

enforcing failures to disclose required 

information. In response to GAO–21– 

130, NASA published a proposed 

conflict of interest and conflict of 

commitment policy in the Federal 

Register in January 2023 (88 FR 5930, 

pages 5930–5932, January 30, 2023). 

After reviewing public comments and 

feedback, NASA has revised the 

proposed policy to only address 

financial conflicts of interest. All 

references to conflicts of commitment in 

the January 2023 draft policy have been 

removed. 

The revised policy is designed to 

standardize NASA’s conflict to interest 

disclosure requirements with those of 

other Federal research funding agencies. 

In summary, the policy requires NASA 

grant and cooperative agreement 

recipients to maintain and enforce a 

conflict of interest policy that requires 

the disclosure of significant financial 

interests to an authorized official prior 

to application submission. Prior to the 

expenditure of grant or cooperative 

agreement funds, the institution shall 

review disclosed significant financial 

interests, determine if a conflict of 

interest exits, and determine what 

conditions or restrictions, if any, should 

be imposed to manage, reduce, or 

eliminate such conflict of interest. 

Institutions shall notify NASA of any 

conflict of interest that cannot be 

managed, reduced, or eliminated in 

accordance with the institution’s policy. 

Public Comments Discussion 

In response to NASA’s request for 

public comment, the Agency received 

seven letters containing multiple 

comments from colleges and 

universities, for-profit entities, and 

other non-profit organizations. All 

comments were carefully reviewed and 

considered prior to finalizing the policy. 

NASA received several comments 

pertaining to the lack of consistency 

between the Agency’s proposed conflict 

of interest and conflict of commitment 

policy and other agencies’ conflict of 

interest policies. Commenters stated 

that this lack of consistency could result 

in award recipients having to adopt 

unique processes, tools, and training to 

address unique requirements in NASA’s 

proposed policy. Response: NASA 

recognizes the inconsistencies between 

the proposed policy and that of other 

Federal research agencies and the 

confusion that those inconsistencies 

may cause. As such, NASA has aligned 

its conflict of interest policy with those 

of other Federal research agencies to the 

greatest extent practicable. 

Several comments pertained to the 

conflation of conflicts of interest and 

conflicts of commitment in NASA’s 

proposed policy. Conflicts of interest 

and commitment affect research in 

different ways and, therefore, actions 

taken to address conflicts of interest are 

different than those taken to address 

conflicts of commitment. As such, 

commenters recommended that NASA 

address conflicts of interest via a 

standalone policy similar to other 

agencies’ financial conflicts of interest 

policies and address conflicts of 

commitment via biographical sketch 

and current and pending support 

disclosures. Response: NASA recognizes 

that conflicts of interest and 

commitment affect research and are 

addressed in different ways. Therefore, 

NASA has removed all references to 

conflicts of commitment in its policy so 

as not to conflate the two concepts. 

Some comments pertained to the 

definitions of ‘‘conflict of interest’’, 

‘‘conflict of commitment’’, and ‘‘covered 

individual’’ in the proposed policy. 

Comments stated that the definitions 

were vague and inconsistent with 

terminology and definitions used by 

other Federal research agencies. 

Moreover, commenters requested that a 

definition of ‘‘significant financial 

interest’’ be added to the policy and that 

that definition include dollar thresholds 

for what should and should not be 

considered a significant financial 

interest. Response: NASA has updated 

the definition of ‘‘conflict of interest’’ to 

align to that used by other Federal 

research agencies, removed all 

references to conflicts of commitment, 

and added a definition for ‘‘significant 

financial interest’’ that includes dollar 

thresholds. 

A few comments requested that 

NASA revise the time at which conflict 

of interest information had to be 

reviewed and managed. Per the 

comments, other Federal agencies 

require that significant financial interest 

disclosures be reviewed and managed, 

as necessary, prior to the expenditure of 

award funds. NASA’s proposed policy, 

on the other hand, required conflict of 

interest information to be reviewed and 

managed prior to application 

submission. Response: NASA 

recognizes that its proposed policy 

included requirements for the review 

and management of conflict of interest 

information that is burdensome and 

inconsistent with other Federal research 

agencies. NASA has revised the policy 

to require that significant financial 

interest disclosures be reviewed and 

managed, reduced, or eliminated prior 

to the expenditure of awards funds. 

One comment requested that NASA 

clarify how its proposed policy would 

impact subaward recipients. Response: 

NASA has added language to the policy 

describing pass-through entities’ and 

subaward recipients’ responsibilities. 

One comment recommended that 

NASA add language to the proposed 

policy specifically allowing the use of 

independent third party or contracted 

services for the provision of technical 

assistance to meet the due diligence and 

review requirements described in the 

policy. 

Response: NASA has declined to add 

this recommended language to the 

policy. As written, the policy permits 

discretion when grant and cooperative 


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60244 Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 168 / Thursday, August 31, 2023 / Notices 

agreement recipients are determining 

which individual(s) is responsible for 

soliciting and reviewing significant 

financial interest disclosures. 

One comment recommended that the 

proposed policy be updated to include 

language allowing security review 

requirements to be considered a direct 

cost or, at a minimum, considered a 

reasonable and allocable cost under title 

2 of the Code of Federal Regulations 

part 200, sections 404 and 405. 

Response: NASA assumes that this 

comment was made in response to 

language in the proposed policy’s 

definition of conflicts of commitment 

that pertained to conflicting obligations 

that threaten research security. Given 

that all references to conflicts of 

commitment have been removed, NASA 

has declined to add this recommended 

language. 

The full text of the policy and term 

and condition is provided below: 

GCAM section 3.3, Conflicts of 

Interest Policy, is revised as follows: 

1. For the purposes of section 3.3, the 

following definitions apply: 

a. The term ‘‘conflict of interest,’’ or 

‘‘COI,’’ means a situation in which an 

investigator, or the investigator’s spouse 

or dependent children, has a significant 

financial interest that could directly and 

significantly affect the design, conduct, 

or reporting of NASA-funded research. 

b. The term ‘‘significant financial 

interest’’ means anything of monetary 

value, including, but not limited to, 

salary and any payment for services not 

otherwise identified as salary (e.g., 

consulting fees or honoraria), equity 

interest (e.g., stock, stock options, 

private equity, or other ownership 

interests), venture or other capital 

financing, and intellectual property 

rights (e.g., patents, copyrights, and 

royalties from such rights). The term 

does not include the following: 

i. Salaries, royalties, or other 

remuneration paid by the proposing 

institution to the investigator if the 

investigator is currently employed or 

otherwise appointed by the institution; 

ii. Any ownership interests in the 

proposing institution if the institution is 

a commercial or for-profit organization; 

iii. Income from investment vehicles, 

such as mutual funds and retirement 

accounts, as long as the investigator 

does not directly control the investment 

decisions made in these vehicles; 

iv. Income from seminars, lectures, or 

teaching engagements sponsored by a 

public or nonprofit entity; 

v. Income from service on advisory 

committees or review panels for a 

public or nonprofit entity; 

vi. An equity interest that, when 

aggregated for the investigator and the 

investigator’s spouse and dependent 

children, meets both of the following 

tests: (1) does not exceed $10,000 in 

value as determined through reference 

to public prices or other reasonable 

measures of fair market value and (2) 

does not represent more than a 5 

percent ownership interest in any single 

entity; or 

vii. Salaries, royalties, or other 

payments that, when aggregated for the 

investigator and the investigator’s 

spouse and dependent children, are not 

expected to exceed $10,000 during the 

prior twelve-month period. 

c. The term ‘‘institution’’ means any 

domestic or foreign, public or private, 

entity or organization that is applying 

for, or that receives, a NASA research 

grant or cooperative agreement. 

d. The term ‘‘investigator’’ means the 

principal investigator, project director, 

and any other person, regardless of title 

or position, identified on the proposed 

project who is responsible for the 

design, conduct, or reporting of research 

funded or proposed for funding by 

NASA. 

2. All recipients of NASA research 

grants and cooperative agreements 

(hereinafter ‘‘award’’) shall maintain a 

written and enforced policy addressing 

COI. Pass-through entities shall be 

responsible for ensuring that (1) 

subaward recipients have their own 

policies in place that meet the 

requirements of NASA’s COI policy or 

(2) investigators working for subaward 

recipients follow the COI policies of the 

pass-through entity. 

3. Institutions’ COI policies shall: 

a. Designate an official(s) to solicit 

disclosures of significant financial 

interests (including those of the 

investigator’s spouse and dependent 

children) of investigators that would 

reasonably appear to be affected by 

research funded or proposed to be 

funded by NASA or in entities whose 

financial interests would reasonably 

appear to be affected by such activities. 

b. Ensure that investigators who are 

planning to participate in NASA-funded 

research disclose to the institution’s 

designated official(s) the investigator’s 

significant financial interests no later 

than the time of application for NASAfunded research. Institutions must also 

require that disclosures are updated 

during the award’s period of 

performance, either on an annual basis, 

or as new reportable significant 

financial interests are obtained. 

c. Prior to an institution’s expenditure 

of any funds under a NASA-funded 

research award, institutions shall 

require the designated official(s) to 

review investigators’ disclosures of 

significant financial interests, determine 

whether a COI exists, and, if so, 

determine what conditions or 

restrictions, if any, should be imposed 

by the institution to manage, reduce, or 

eliminate such COI. Examples of 

conditions or restrictions that an 

institution or subrecipient might impose 

to manage, reduce, or eliminate a 

conflict include, but are not limited to: 

i. Public disclosure of the COI (e.g., 

when presenting or publishing the 

research), 

ii. Monitoring of research by 

independent reviewers, 

iii. Modification of the research plan, 

iv. Change of personnel or personnel 

responsibilities, 

v. Disqualification of personnel from 

participation in all or a portion of the 

NASA-funded activity, 

vi. Divestiture of significant financial 

interests that create the COI (e.g., sale of 

an equity interest), or 

vii. Severance of relationships that 

create the COI. 

d. Establish adequate enforcement 

mechanisms and provide for employee 

sanctions or other administrative 

actions to ensure investigators’ 

compliance as appropriate. 

e. Institutions may apply COI 

disclosure standards that are more 

stringent than section 3.3 of this Manual 

(e.g., standards that require more 

extensive disclosure of financial 

interests). 

4. Institutions shall adhere to the 

following notification requirements: 

a. Prior to the expenditure of any 

funds under a NASA-funded research 

award, institutions shall notify the 

NASA Grant Officer(s) listed on the 

related award(s) in writing of any COI 

that cannot be satisfactorily managed, 

reduced, or eliminated in accordance 

with the institution’s policy. In cases in 

which an institution identifies a COI 

and manages, reduces, or eliminates it 

prior to the expenditure of NASAawarded funds, the institution shall not 

submit a COI notification to NASA. 

b. After the expenditure of award 

funds, institutions shall notify NASA 

within 60 days of any subsequently 

identified COI that cannot be managed, 

reduced, or eliminated. 

c. Notifications shall include 

sufficient information to enable NASA 

to understand the nature and extent of 

the COI (e.g., award number, name of 

investigator with the COI, nature of the 

significant financial interest, etc.). 

5. When an institution notifies a 

NASA Grant Officer(s) of a COI that 

cannot be eliminated, managed, or 

reduced, the cognizant Grant Officer or 

one of their delegates will report the 

conflict to the Office of the General 

Counsel (OGC) as follows: 


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Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 168 / Thursday, August 31, 2023 / Notices 60245 

1See Docket No. RM2018–3, Order Adopting 

Final Rules Relating to Non-Public Information, 

June 27, 2018, Attachment A at 19–22 (Order No. 

4679). 

a. Grant Officers will report the 

conflict to the NASA Shared Services 

Center’s (NSSC) OGC and copy the 

award’s Technical Officer. The NSSC 

OGC then will inform HQ OGC of the 

reported conflict. In consultation with 

OGC and the relevant Technical Officer, 

the Grant Officer must review the COI 

and take appropriate action, as 

necessary. 

i. When an institution notifies NASA 

of a COI that involves any foreign 

governments, their instrumentalities, or 

any other entities owned, funded, or 

otherwise controlled by a foreign 

government, the cognizant Grant Officer 

must review the COI and take 

appropriate action, as necessary, in 

consultation with the award’s Technical 

Officer, OGC, and the NASA Office of 

International and Interagency Relations 

(OIIR). 

ii. If fraud, misrepresentation, or 

related misconduct is suspected in 

relation to any COI notification 

submitted to NASA, then the Grant 

Officer or Technical Officer also will 

refer the matter to the NASA Office of 

Inspector General and OGC’s 

Acquisition Integrity Program. 

b. If a Grant Officer must take 

appropriate actions after conducting the 

reviews described above, then they will 

do so in accordance with the remedies 

for noncompliance and termination 

provisions in 2 CFR 200.339 through 

§ 200.343. Remedies for noncompliance 

include but are not limited to: 

i. Temporarily withholding payment, 

ii. Disallowing all or part of the cost 

of an award activity, 

iii. Wholly or partly suspending or 

terminating the award, 

iv. Initiating referrals for 

consideration of suspension or 

debarment proceedings, and 

v. Withholding further Federal awards 

for the project or program. 

c. A Grant Officer intending to take 

action per paragraph (b) of this section, 

with the exception of paragraph (b)(iv), 

will notify each institution about the 

specific reason for the action and will 

adhere to the requirements in GCAM 

section 7.13, Appealing a Suspended or 

Terminated Award, as necessary. 

However, notice of suspension or 

debarment proceedings will be issued 

consistent with 2 CFR part 180, as 

adopted by NASA at 2 CFR part 1880. 

Additionally, if NASA determines that 

an investigator will be disqualified from 

participating on an award due to a COI 

that cannot be managed, reduced, or 

eliminated, then NASA will offer the 

institution an opportunity to address the 

COI prior to taking action on the award. 

Appendix D, Award Terms and 

Conditions, is revised as follows: 

D39. Conflict of Interest Policy 

Requirements 

a. All NASA grant and cooperative 

agreement recipients shall comply with 

the conflict of interest policy and 

notification requirements in section 3.3, 

Conflicts of Interest Policy, of the NASA 

Grant and Cooperative Agreement 

Manual (GCAM), as amended by Grant 

Information Circular 23–07, Conflict of 

Interest Policy. 

End of Policy and Term and Condition 

NASA has implemented the new 

policy and term and condition through 

GIC 23–07, which modifies sections 3.3, 

Conflicts of Interest Policy, and 

Appendix D, Award Terms and 

Conditions, of the Grant and 

Cooperative Agreement Manual. The 

policy and term and condition are 

effective December 1, 2023, and the 

term and condition will be placed into 

new and amended awards at that time. 

Antanese Crank, 

Chief, Grants Policy and Compliance. 

[FR Doc. 2023–18802 Filed 8–30–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7510–13–P 

POSTAL REGULATORY COMMISSION 

[Docket No. CP2023–99] 

New Postal Products 

AGENCY: Postal Regulatory Commission. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Commission is noticing a 

recent Postal Service filing for the 

Commission’s consideration concerning 

a negotiated service agreement. This 

notice informs the public of the filing, 

invites public comment, and takes other 

administrative steps. 

DATES: Comments are due: September 1, 

2023. 

ADDRESSES: Submit comments 

electronically via the Commission’s 

Filing Online system at http://

www.prc.gov. Those who cannot submit 

comments electronically should contact 

the person identified in the FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT section by 

telephone for advice on filing 

alternatives. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

David A. Trissell, General Counsel, at 

202–789–6820. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Table of Contents 

I. Introduction 

II. Docketed Proceeding(s) 

I. Introduction 

The Commission gives notice that the 

Postal Service filed request(s) for the 

Commission to consider matters related 

to negotiated service agreement(s). The 

request(s) may propose the addition or 

removal of a negotiated service 

agreement from the Market Dominant or 

the Competitive product list, or the 

modification of an existing product 

currently appearing on the Market 

Dominant or the Competitive product 

list. 

Section II identifies the docket 

number(s) associated with each Postal 

Service request, the title of each Postal 

Service request, the request’s acceptance 

date, and the authority cited by the 

Postal Service for each request. For each 

request, the Commission appoints an 

officer of the Commission to represent 

the interests of the general public in the 

proceeding, pursuant to 39 U.S.C. 505 

(Public Representative). Section II also 

establishes comment deadline(s) 

pertaining to each request. 

The public portions of the Postal 

Service’s request(s) can be accessed via 

the Commission’s website (http://

www.prc.gov). Non-public portions of 

the Postal Service’s request(s), if any, 

can be accessed through compliance 

with the requirements of 39 CFR 

3011.301.1

The Commission invites comments on 

whether the Postal Service’s request(s) 

in the captioned docket(s) are consistent 

with the policies of title 39. For 

request(s) that the Postal Service states 

concern Market Dominant product(s), 

applicable statutory and regulatory 

requirements include 39 U.S.C. 3622, 39 

U.S.C. 3642, 39 CFR part 3030, and 39 

CFR part 3040, subpart B. For request(s) 

that the Postal Service states concern 

Competitive product(s), applicable 

statutory and regulatory requirements 

include 39 U.S.C. 3632, 39 U.S.C. 3633, 

39 U.S.C. 3642, 39 CFR part 3035, and 

39 CFR part 3040, subpart B. Comment 

deadline(s) for each request appear in 

section II. 

II. Docketed Proceeding(s) 

1. Docket No(s).: CP2023–99; Filing 

Title: USPS Notice of Amendment to 

Priority Mail and Parcel Select Contract 

7, Filed Under Seal; Filing Acceptance 

Date: August 24, 2023; Filing Authority: 

39 CFR 3035.105; Public Representative: 

Jennaca D. Upperman; Comments Due: 

September 1, 2023. 


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