51456 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 190 / Wednesday, October 1, 1997 / Notices

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Minority Business Development

Agency

Native American Business Consultant

Applications: Nationwide

AGENCY: Minority Business

Development Agency.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: In accordance with Executive

Order 11625 and 15 U.S.C. 1512, the

Minority Business Development Agency

(MBDA) is soliciting competitive

applications to operate its Native

American Business Consultant (NABC)

Program.

The purpose of the NABC is to

provide specialized consultant services

to Native American Business

Development Centers (NABDC) in areas

beyond an NABDC’s capacity and/or

capability, and provide direct business

development services to clients outside

of the geographic service area of the

NABDC and any other MBDA client

service center. The recipient will

provide service nationwide. The award

number of the NABC will be 98–10–

98001–01.

DATES: The closing date for applications

is October 31, 1997. Applications must

be received on or before October 31,

1997. Anticipated processing time of

this award is 120 days. A pre-award

conference will be held. For the exact

date, time and location of the

conference, call (202) 482–2366.

ADDRESSES: U.S. Department of

Commerce, Minority Business

Development Agency, Office of Strategic

Planning, Field Coordination Division,

14th and Constitution Avenue, NW.,

Room 5075, Washington, DC 20230,

(202) 482–6022.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Joe Hardy at (202) 482–2366.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Contingent upon the availability of

Federal funds, the cost of performance

for the first budget period (13 months)

from February 1, 1998 to February 28,

1999, is estimated at $205,000. The total

Federal amount is composed of

$200,000 plus the Audit Fee amount of

$5,000. The NABC will provide service

nationwide.

The funding instrument for this

project will be a cooperative agreement.

Competition is open to individuals,

non-profit and for-profit organizations,

state and local governments, American

Indian tribes and educational

institutions.

Applications will be evaluated on the

following criteria: The experience and

capabilities of the firm and its staff in

addressing the needs of the business

community in general and, specifically,

the special needs of Native American

businesses, individuals and

organizations (50 points), the resources

available to the firm in providing

business development services (10

points); the firm’s approach (techniques

and methodologies) to performing the

work requirements included in the

application (20 points); and the firm’s

estimated cost for providing such

assistance (20 points). An application

must receive at least 70% of the points

assigned to each evaluation criteria

category to be considered

programmatically acceptable and

responsive. Those applications

determined to be acceptable and

responsive will then be evaluated by the

Director of MBDA. Final award

selections shall be based on the number

of points received, the demonstrated

responsibility of the applicant, and the

determination of those most likely to

further the purpose of the MBDA

program. Negative audit findings and

recommendations and unsatisfactory

performance under prior Federal awards

may result in an application not being

considered for award. The applicant

with the highest point score will not

necessarily receive the funding.

Periodic reviews culminating in yearto-date evaluations will be conducted to

determine if funding for the project

should continue. If an application is

selected for funding, MBDA has no

obligation to provide any additional

future funding in connection with that

award. Renewal of an award to increase

funding or extend the period of

performance is at the total discretion of

MBDA.

Executive Order 12372,

‘‘Intergovernmental Review of Federal

Programs,’’ is not applicable to this

program. Federal funds for this project

include audit funds for non-CPA

recipients. In the event that a CPA firm

wins the competition, the funds

allocated for audits are not applicable.

The collection of information

requirements for this project have been

approved by the Office of Management

and Budget (OMB) and assigned OMB

control number 0640–0006. Questions

concerning the preceding information

can be answered by the contact person

indicated above, and copies of

application kits and applicable

regulations can be obtained at the above

address.

Pre-Award Activities—Applicants are

hereby notified that if they incur any

costs prior to an award being made, they

do so solely at their own risk of not

being reimbursed by the Government.

Notwithstanding any verbal assurance

that an applicant may have received,

there is no obligation on the part of the

Department of Commerce to cover preaward costs.

Recipients and subrecipients are

subject to all Federal laws, and Federal

and Departmental regulations, policies,

and procedures applicable to Federal

financial assistance awards.

Delinquent Federal Debts—No award

of Federal funds shall be made to an

applicant who has an outstanding

delinquent Federal debt until either the

delinquent account is paid in full, a

negotiated repayment schedule is

established and at least one payment is

received, or other arrangements

satisfactory to the Department of

Commerce are made.

Name Check Policy—All non-profit

and for profit applicants are subject to

a name check review process. Name

checks are intended to reveal if any key

individuals associated with the

applicant have been convicted of or are

presently facing criminal charges such

as fraud, theft, perjury or other matters

which significantly reflect on the

applicants’ management honesty or

financial integrity.

Award Tetmination—The

Departmental Grants Officer may

terminate any grant/cooperative

agreement in whole or impart at any

time before the date of completion

whenever it is determined that the

award recipient has failed to comply

with the conditions of the cooperative

agreement. Examples of some of the

conditions which can cause termination

are failure to meet cost-sharing

requirements; unsatisfactory

performance of the NABC work

requirements; and reporting inaccurate

or inflated claims of client assistance.

Such inaccurate or inflated claims may

be deemed illegal and punishable by

law.

False Statements—A false statement

on an application for Federal financial

assistance is grounds for denial or

termination of funds, and grounds for

possible punishment by a fine or

imprisonment as provided in 18 U.S.C.

1001.

Primary Applicant Certifications—All

primary applicants must submit a

completed Form CD–511,‘‘Certifications

Regarding Debarment, Suspension and

Other Responsibility Matters; Drug-Free

Workplace Requirements and

Lobbying.’’

Nonprocurement Debarment and

Suspension—Prospective participants

(as defined at 15 CFR Part 26, Section

105) are subject to 15 CFR Part 26,

‘‘Nonprocurment Debarment and

Suspension’’and the related section of
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 190 / Wednesday, October 1, 1997 / Notices 51457

the certification form prescribed above

applies.

Drug-Free Workplace—Grantees (as

defined at 15 CFR Part 26, Section 605)

are subject to 15 CFR Part 26, Subpart

F, ‘‘Governmentwide Requirements for

Drug-Free Workplace (Grants)’’ and the

related section of the certification form

prescribed above applies.

Anti-Lobbying—Persons (as defined at

15 CFR Part 28, Section 105) are subject

to the lobbying provisions of 31 U.S.C.

1352,‘‘Limitation on use of appropriated

funds to influence certain Federal

contracting and financial transactions,’’

and the lobbying section of the

certification form prescribed above

applies to applications/bids for grants,

cooperative agreements, and contracts

for more than $100,000, and loans and

loan guarantees for more than $150,000

or the single family maximum mortgage

limit for affected programs, whichever is

greater.

Anti-Lobbying Disclosures—Any

applicant that has paid or will pay for

lobbying using any funds must submit

an SF–LLL, ‘‘Disclosure of Lobbying

Activities,’’ as required under 15 CFR

Part 28, Appendix B.

Lower Tier Certifications—Recipients

shall require applications/bidders for

subgrants, contracts, subcontracts, or

other lower tier covered transactions at

any tier under the award to submit, if

applicable, a completed Form CD–512,

‘‘Certifications Regarding Debarment,

Suspension, Ineligibility and Voluntary

Exclusion-Lower Tier Covered

Transactions and Lobbying’’and

disclosure form, SF–LLL, ‘‘Disclosure of

Lobbying Activities.’’ Form CD–512 is

intended for the use of recipient sand

should not be transmitted to DOC. SF–

LLL submitted by any tier recipient or

subrecipient should be submitted to

DOC in accordance with the

instructions contained in the award

document.

Indirect Costs—The total dollar

amount of the indirect costs proposed in

an application under this program must

not exceed the indirect cost rate

negotiated and approved by a cognizant

Federal agency prior to the proposed

effective date of the award or 100% of

the total proposed direct costs dollar

amount in the application, whichever is

less.

Buy American-Made Equipment or

Products—Applicants are hereby

notified that they are encouraged, to the

extent feasible, to purchase AmericanMade equipment and products with

funding provided under this program in

accordance with Congressional intent as

set forth in the resolution in Pub.L. 103–

121, Section 606 (a) and (b).

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance:

11.801 Native American Program)

Dated: September 25, 1997.

Donald L. Powers,

Federal Register Liaison Officer, Minority

Business Development Agency.

[FR Doc. 97–26035 Filed 9–30–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–21–M

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Minority Business Development

Agency

Native American Business

Development Center Application:

Cherokee

AGENCY: Minority Business

Development Agency; Commerce.

ACTION: Notice

SUMMARY: In accordance with Executive

Order 11625 and 15 U.S.C. 1512, the

Minority Business Development Agency

(MBDA) is soliciting competitive

applications from organizations to

operate its Native American Business

Development Center (NABDC).

The purpose of the NABDC is to

provide integrated business

development services to Native

American entrepreneurs and other

eligible clients within its designated

geographic service area. The recipient

will provide service in the Cherokee,

North Carolina, geographic service area.

The award number of the NABDC will

be 04–10–98002–01.

DATES: The closing date for applications

is October 31, 1997. Applications must

be received in the MBDA Headquarters’

Executive Secretariat on or before

October 31, 1997. A pre-application

conference will be held on October 15,

1997, at 9:00 a.m., at the following

address: U.S. Department of Commerce,

Minority Business Development

Agency, 401 West Peachtree Street,

N.W., Room 1715, Atlanta, Georgia

30308–3516.

ADDRESSES: Completed application

packages should be submitted to the

U.S. Department of Commerce, Minority

Business Development Agency, MBDA

Executive Secretariat, 14th and

Constitution Avenue, N.W., ROOM

5073, Washington, D.C. 20230.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION AND AN

APPLICATION PACKAGE, CONTACT: Robert

Henderson, Regional Director, at (404)

730–3300. Proper Identification is

Required for Entrance Into Any Federal

Building.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

funding instrument for this project will

be a cooperative agreement. Contingent

upon the availability of Federal funds,

the cost of performance for the first

budget period (13 months) from

February 1, 1998 to February 28, 1999,

is estimated at $197,825. The total

Federal amount is $197,825 and is

composed of $193,000 plus the Audit

Fee amount of $4,825. If the

recommended applicant is the current

incumbent organization, the award will

be for 12 months. For those applicants

who are not incumbent organizations or

who are incumbents that have

experienced closure due to a break in

service, a 30-day start-up period will be

added to their first budget period,

making it a 13-month award.

Competition is open to individuals,

non-profit and for-profit organizations,

state and local governments, American

Indian tribes and educational

institutions.

Applications will be evaluated on the

following criteria: the experience and

capabilities of the firm and its staff in

addressing the needs of the business

community in general and, specifically,

the special needs of Native American

businesses, individuals and

organizations (45 points), the resources

available to the firm in providing

business development services (10

points); the firm’s approach (techniques

and methodologies) to performing the

work requirements included in the

application (25 points); and the firm’s

estimated cost for providing such

assistance (20 points). On May 31, 1995,

MBDA issued an Interim Final Notice in

the Federal Register which announced

the Agency’s decision to revise

application requirements for its closely

related Minority Business Development

Center program. This decision was

made in order to leverage Federal

resources together with those existing in

communities, and to build local

capacity to impact growth in the

nation’s minority business sector. In

accordance with revised scoring

requirements announced in that Notice,

MBDA will revise the scoring system in

the NABDC program to add ten (10)

bonus points to the application of

community-based organizations. Each

qualifying application will receive the

full ten points. Community-based

organizations are those organizations

whose headquarters and/or principal

place of business within the last five

years have been located within the

geographic service area designated in

the solicitation for the award. Where an

applicant organization has been in

existence for fewer than five years or

five years, the individual years of

experience of the applicant

organization’s may be applied toward

the requirement of five years of