23672 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 90 / Wednesday, May 9, 2001 / Notices

The Department will publish a notice

of the final results of these

administrative reviews within 120 days

from the publication of these

preliminary results.

These preliminary results are

published pursuant to sections 703(f)

and 777(i) of the Act. Effective January

20, 2001, Bernard T. Carreau is fulfilling

the duties of the Assistant Secretary for

Import Administration.

Dated: May 2, 2001.

Bernard T. Carreau,

Deputy Assistant Secretary Import

Administration.

[FR Doc. 01–11729 Filed 5–8–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

[Docket No. 010412090–1090–01; I.D.

022301C]

RIN 0648–ZB06

Financial Assistance for Cooperative

Research Projects to Strengthen and

Develop the Northeast U.S. Groundfish

Fishing Industry

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), Northeast Region

(NER) Northeast Cooperative Research

Programs Initiative (NECRPI), National

Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: This notice is to advise the

public that the National Marine

Fisheries Service (NMFS) Northeast

Region (NER) is requesting proposals in

support of cooperative research and

management activities by encouraging

the development of partnerships among

the commercial fishing industry,

scientists, fishery managers and the

academic community. By this notice,

NMFS describes the conditions under

which applications will be accepted and

selected for funding. The goals of such

research are to improve data upon

which fishery management decisions

are based and to improve

communication, collaboration, and

mutual understanding among all

concerned with the Northeast

groundfish fishery.

DATES: Preliminary proposals

(cooperative research concept papers)

will be accepted between May 9, 2001

and 5 p.m. eastern Daylight time June

25, 2001.

Comments on those preliminary

proposals that will be invited to submit

full proposals will be made available by

July 23, 2001. Full proposals must be

postmarked no later than August 22,

2001. No facsimile applications will be

accepted.

ADDRESSES: Send preliminary proposals

to Northeast Regional Office, NMFS,

Northeast Cooperative Research

Programs Initiative (NECRPI) Attn: Nick

Anderson, One Blackburn Drive,

Gloucester, MA 01930–2298.

You can obtain application forms

from www.rdc.noaa.gov/grants/

index.htmland www.whitehouse.gov/

omb/grants/and Code of Federal

Regulations (CFR) citations from

www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/ . Forms

can also be obtained by contacting Nick

Anderson or Earl Meredith at the

previous address.

The 1998 updated Executive

Summary of the NOAA Strategic Plan is

available at: www.strategic.noaa.gov/

and the Magnuson-Stevens Act is

available at: www.nmfs.gov/sfa/magact/

.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Earl

Meredith (978–281–9276) or Nick

Anderson (978–281–9383); or FAX

(978–281-9161); or E-mail

earl.meredith@noaa.gov or

nick.anderson@noaa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

Congressional funding for the

Cooperative Research Initiative was

appropriated pursuant to Pub. L. 106-78

to provide emergency disaster assistance

for the commercial fishery failure under

section 308(b)(1) of the

Interjurisdictional Fisheries Act of 1986

with respect to Northeast multispecies

fisheries. Approximately $15 million is

available to support cooperative

research and management activities

administered by the National Marine

Fisheries Service and based on

recommendations by the New England

Fishery Management Council. These

funds will be available beginning

FY2001 until expended. Several

cooperative research programs

(industry-based surveys/study fleets,

groundfish tagging studies, and bycatch/

discard conservation engineering) as

well as short-term research projects (1–

2 years) are currently under

development. In support of the shortterm research projects, NMFS

anticipates that between 5 and 10

projects, will be issued grants ranging in

size from $10,000 to $500,000, through

this request for proposals. There are no

matching/cost sharing requirements.

This solicitation is limited to

applications for short-term cooperative

research projects only (1–2 years) and

not for long-term programs. Grants

issued under the Cooperative Research

Initiative will be included among the

programs funded by NOAA under

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance

No. 11.472 (Unallied Science Program).

II. Program Priorities and Objectives

In order to encourage research ideas

and to prevent the expenditure of effort

that may not be successful, NMFS is

requesting preliminary proposals to

determine the appropriateness of the

ideas according to the list of research

priorities for further development in a

full proposal.

Each tier below contains priorities

that fall within the areas of resource

dynamics, fisheries management,

habitat and socio-economics. Tier I

addresses the most pressing fisheries

management information needs. Tier II

and Tier III list other areas of

investigation that are also valued highly.

Habitat issues in particular have been

identified as extremely important and

are listed in all three tiers, either

directly or indirectly. During the

consideration of preliminary proposals a

greater regard may be given to

applications that are specific to higher

priority levels, but, foremost, each

application will be judged primarily on

the strength of the idea presented and

the means it will employ to address the

research topic.

A. Tier I

Obtain better fine-scale information

on resource status in inshore and

offshore areas.

Provide enhanced port and sea

sampling information using the fishing

industry (including documenting the

quantity and composition of discards).

Monitor and evaluate effectiveness of

area closures as a management tool to

protect and build stocks.

Evaluate discard, bycatch, and noncatch mortality rates; initiate special

studies under experimental design

protocols to calculate gear interaction or

discard rates. Bycatch encompasses all

species, including marine mammals

such as the harbor porpoise.Develop

methods of enhanced collection of

biological data through fishery

participants.

B. Tier II

Obtain life history and spawning

information: identify time and areas of

spawning and other life history

information as determined from fishing

activities and information collected

from the fishing industry.

Obtain detailed information on

‘‘fishing power’’ (related to capacity and

catchability issues).

Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 90 / Wednesday, May 9, 2001 / Notices 23673

Investigate the conditions and

benthos (sea floor characteristics) that

contribute to post-settlement groundfish

survivability. Identify the major

groundfish nursery areas and their

characteristics.

Conduct fishing industry-supported,

high-resolution sediment mapping in

specific areas of the Gulf of Maine and/

or Georges Bank. Identify biological

communities associated with mapped

areas and determine relationships

among sediment types and these

communities. Identify and compare or

contrast impacts to a variety of habitat

types (mud, sand, gravel, cobble, rock,

boulder) associated with roller and

rockhopper trawl gear of the various

sizes used in New England fisheries.

Identify issues associated with the

social and economic components of

fishing households and communities,

such as family dependence on fishing;

community dependence on fishing;

changes in dependence across time and

space; fishing crew issues, such as

working conditions, safety, and views of

the future; and spatial considerations,

such as where people fish and why.

Elucidate fishing communities and

social relations associated with the

fishing way of life, paying particular

attention to area and/or sector-based

management and community impacts.

Determine methods to integrate

fishermen’s knowledge into the

management of fisheries. This includes

articulating fishing business practices,

examining the number of fisheries in

which they participate, seasonality of

participation, training needs or other

business practices that impact

efficiency.

Investigate possible fishery

institutions of the future, with particular

attention given to such issues as

capacity management, fishing permit

flexibility, alternative organizations for

management and for ITQ design and

implementation. This research should

concentrate on issues and structures

surrounding possible organizations

oriented on ecosystem, co-management,

cooperatives, communities or zones.

C. Tier III

Conduct research designed to improve

our understanding of predatory/prey

interactions and examine food habits

through stomach content analysis, stable

isotopes, otolith analysis or other

reliable methods.

Evaluate the use of Marine Protected

Areas.

Develop methods to collect and

integrate ecosystem information into

fisheries management decisions.

Examine and compare the critical life

history processes of commercially

important species in a variety of habitats

(which have been identified through

fine-scale mapping) in both heavily and

lightly fished reference areas.

Develop and demonstrate the

practical use of otter trawl, scallop

dredge, and other fishing gear designs

that have significantly less contact or

impact on the sea bottom (benthos) than

gear in current use by New England

fishermen.

Identify areas in the Gulf of Maine

and Georges Bank that have not been

subject to fishing activity, focusing

primarily on areas with high relief

geologic structure or on areas in close

proximity to wrecks or other areas that

have been left undisturbed. Identify

flora and fauna assemblages associated

with these areas.

Conduct surveys that investigate the

expenditure impacts of the fishing

industry in New England, with a

particular focus on locations of

expenditures and localized input/output

analysis.

Conduct studies that focus on

management and enforcement, such as

compliance, at-sea and at-shore

enforcement, and improvements to the

effectiveness of regulations.

Develop methods to collect and/or

integrate ecosystems information into

fisheries management decision making.

Primary consideration for funding

will be given to preliminary proposals

that address the topics listed below. The

three programs, industry-based surveys

(and related projects such as study

fleets), groundfish tagging, and bycatch/

discard/conservation engineering, have

also been identified as priority research

areas because of their relationship to

immediate fisheries management needs,

their high level of interest to New

England fishermen and their

collaborative research value. Scoping

and planning related to the

development of these program areas are

currently underway. Applicants should

be aware that these programs are not the

subject of this solicitation, but are

discussed because of their relationship

to the funding priorities listed below.

Decisions concerning the development

of full projects, however, could be made

with these programs in mind, although

final selection of the projects will be

funded based on the merits of the

proposals.

III. Eligibility

Eligible applicants are institutions of

higher education, other non-profits,

commercial organizations, state, local or

Indian tribal governments, and

individuals. Employees of any Federal

agency or of a Regional Fishery

Management Council are not eligible to

submit an application under this

program. However, Council members

who are not Federal employees can

submit an application to the program.

NMFS supports cultural and gender

diversity in our programs and

encourages women and minority

individuals and groups to submit

applications. NMFS is strongly

committed to broadening the

participation of Minority Serving

Institutions (MSIs), which include

Historically Black Colleges and

Universities, Hispanic Serving

Institutions, and Tribal Colleges and

Universities, in our programs. The DOC/

NOAA/NMFS vision, mission, and goals

are to increase the opportunities for

MSIs to participate in and benefit from

Federal financial assistance programs, to

advance the development of human

potential, and to strengthen the Nation’s

capacity to provide high-quality

education. Therefore, all applicants are

encouraged to include meaningful

participation of MSIs.

NMFS encourages applications from

members of the fishing community and

applications that involve fishing

community cooperation and

participation. Note that NMFS expects

the primary operations center of anyone

receiving a grant under the Cooperative

Research Initiative to be in the New

England region since the objective of the

NECRPI program is to benefit and

optimize cooperative research and

management activities specifically for

the Northeast multispecies fisheries.

IV. Preliminary Proposal Guidelines

A. Preliminary Proposal

A preliminary proposal is required

and must be postmarked no later than

June 25, 2001. A preliminary proposal is

a brief document (no more than four

pages) that explains clearly the general

concept of the project; how it would be

carried out; and, how it will improve

the conservation or management of

groundfish stocks in Northeast fisheries.

Preliminary proposals should include

the following information:

1. Project Summary and statement of

research question

2. Importance of research to

groundfish conservation and

management

3. Study design and duration

4. Expected products

5. Estimated cost (non-binding)

6. Principal investigators and their

contact information

7. Existing expertise, equipment,

facilities, and infrastructure

23674 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 90 / Wednesday, May 9, 2001 / Notices

B. Screening, Evaluation, and Selection

Procedures of Preliminary Proposals

1. Initial Screening of Preliminary

Proposals

Preliminary proposals will be

screened to ensure that they are

postmarked by June 25, 2001 and

submitted by an eligible applicant,

address one of the research priorities

(see Section II of this document), and

identify the principal investigator. If

your application does not meet the

above criteria, it will be returned

without further consideration.

2. Evaluation of Preliminary Proposals

After the initial screening, each

preliminary proposal will be evaluated

by members of the New England Fishery

Management Council’s Research

Steering Committee (RSC), fishing

industry representatives, scientists, and

by other interested parties. These

reviewers will be required to certify that

they do not have a conflict of interest

concerning the application(s) they are

reviewing. Each preliminary proposal

will receive a score from the reviewer

up to a maximum of 100 points

according to the following criteria

(maximum points per category shown in

parentheses): degree of fishing industry

involvement in design and conduct of

research (20 points), technical

appropriateness(10 points), study

design(10 points), degree that priority

issues are addressed(10 points),

innovation(20 points), and use of

existing resources, i.e., scientific and

technical expertise(10 points), facilities

and equipment(10 points), and other

infrastructure(10 points). Preliminary

proposals will be ranked based on

weighted scores. Based on the number

of submissions, full research proposals

will be requested from approximately

the top 25 percent of evaluated

submissions. NMFS will notify the

applicants in writing of the review

results and of the need to submit a full

proposal by July 23, 2001.

Please note that preliminary proposals

and full proposals are subject to public

review. If an application contains

information which the applicant does

not want disclosed, the applicant

should follow instructions below under

Section V. A. 6: ‘‘Privileged

Information—Limited Use.’’ This

information may be eliminated from

public review.

If possible, preliminary proposals and

full proposals (if requested) shall

identify potential conflicts with any

fishery management or protected

species regulation. Projects that are

inconsistent with regulations will not

proceed until they have received an

exempted fishery permit. Participation

in this program does not automatically

guarantee an exempted fishery permit.

NMFS may provide advice and

assistance in completing the application

for such a permit, if requested, but the

primary responsibility for obtaining

exemptions belongs to the potential

grant recipient.

V. Full Proposal Guidelines

A full research proposal will be

requested from applicants whose

preliminary proposals successfully meet

the criteria for further development and

evaluation. The research proposal

application must follow the instructions

and format described below. The

application must not be bound and must

be printed on one side only. Submit one

signed original and two signed copies of

your proposal. Full proposals must be

postmarked no later than August 22,

2001.

A. Full Proposal Format

1. Cover Sheet

Submit OMB Standard Form 424

‘‘Application for Federal Assistance’’

(available at http://

www.whitehouse.gov/omb/grants/

sf424.pdf) as the cover sheet for each

project.

2. Project Summary

Provide a summary for each project

under a heading ‘‘Project Summary.’’

This section should itemize the specific

priority(ies) to which the proposal

responds (see Section III - A & B of this

document).

3. Project Budget

Provide detailed cost estimates

showing total project costs. Specify

estimates of the direct costs in the

categories listed on OMB Standard Form

424A (Budget Information -

Nonconstruction Programs)—available

at http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/

grants/sf424a.pdf). The NMFS will not

consider fees or profits as allowable

costs in your proposal. The total costs

of a project consist of all allowable costs

you incur, including the value of inkind contributions, in accomplishing

project objectives during the life of the

project. A project begins on the effective

date of an award agreement between

you and an authorized representative of

the U.S. Government and ends on the

date specified in the award.

Accordingly, you cannot be reimbursed

for time that you spend or costs that you

incur in developing a project or

preparing the proposal or in discussing

or negotiating with us prior to the

award.

4. Narrative Project Description

Provide a no longer than 8–page

narrative description of your project.

The narrative should demonstrate your

knowledge of the need for the project

and show how your proposal builds on

any past or current work in the subject

area or in a related field. Do not assume

that the evaluation panel will know the

relative merits of the project you

describe. Describe your project as

follows:

a. Project goals and objectives.

Identify the specific priority(ies) listed

under the heading Project Summary.

Identify the problem/opportunity you

intend to address and describe its

significance to the fishing community.

State what the project is expected to

accomplish. If applying to continue a

project previously funded, describe in

detail progress to date and explain the

need for additional funding.

b. Project impacts. Describe the

anticipated impacts of the project on the

fishing community in terms of reduced

bycatch, increased product yield, or of

any other measurable benefits. Describe

how you will make the results of the

project available for publication. Specify

the research priority that your project

will address from those listed in this

notice.

c. Evaluation of project. Specify the

criteria and procedures that will be used

to evaluate the relative success or failure

of a project in achieving its objectives.

d. Need for government financial

assistance. Explain why government

financial assistance is needed for the

proposed work. List all other sources of

funding you have or are seeking for the

project.

e. Federal, state, and local

government activities and permits. List

any existing Federal, state, or local

government programs or activities that

this project would affect, including

activities requiring certification under

state Coastal Zone Management Plans,

section 404 or section 10 permits issued

by the Corps of Engineers, experimental

fishing or other permits under FMPs,

environmental impact statements to

meet the requirements of the National

Environmental Policy Act, or scientific

permits under ESA and/or the Marine

Mammal Protection Act. Describe the

relationship between the project and

these FMPs or activities and list names

and addresses of persons providing this

information. If your project is selected

for funding, you are responsible for

complying with all applicable laws.

f. Project statement of work. The

statement of work is an action plan of

activities you will conduct during the

period of the project. Prepare a detailed

narrative, fully describing the work that

will be performed to achieve the project

Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 90 / Wednesday, May 9, 2001 / Notices 23675

goals and objectives. The narrative

should respond to the following

questions:

(1) What is the project design? What

specific work, activities, procedures,

statistical design, or analytical methods

will be undertaken?

(2) Who will be responsible for

carrying out the various activities?

(Highlight work that will be

subcontracted and provisions for

competitive subcontracting.)

(3) What are the major products and

how will project results be

disseminated? Describe products of the

project, such as a manual, video,

technique, or piece of equipment.

Indicate how project results will be

disseminated to potential users.

(4) What are the project milestones?

List milestones, describing the specific

activities and associated time lines to

conduct the scope of work. Describe the

time lines in monthly increments (e.g.,

month 1, month 2), rather than by

specific dates. Identify the individual(s)

responsible for the various specific

activities. This information is critical in

the reviewing process of your proposal,

so you are encouraged to provide

sufficient detail.

g. Participation by persons or groups

other than the applicant. Describe

whether government and nongovernment entities, particularly

members of fishing communities, will

participate in the project and how they

will participate. The degree of

participation by members of the fishing

community will be considered in

determining which proposals to fund.

h. Project management. Describe how

the project will be organized and

managed. Identify the principal

participants in the project. If you do not

identify the principal investigator, your

proposal will be returned without

further consideration. Include copies of

any agreements between you and the

participants describing the specific tasks

to be performed. Provide a separate

statement (e.g., resume or curriculum

vitae) not to exceed two pages, stating

the qualifications and experience of the

principal investigator(s) and of any

consultants and/or subcontractors and

indicating their level of involvement in

the project. If any portion of the project

will be conducted through consultants

and/or subcontracts, you must follow

procurement guidance in 15 CFR part

24, ‘‘Grants and Cooperative

Agreements to State and Local

Governments’’ and in 15 CFR part 14, A

Uniform Administrative Requirements

for Grants and Agreements with

Institutions of Higher Education,

Hospitals, Other Non-Profit, and

Commercial Organizations. The text of

CFR citations can be reviewed at: http:/

/www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/cfr-tablesearch.html.If you select a consultant

and/or a subcontractor prior to

submitting a proposal, indicate the

process that you used for selection.

5. Supporting Documentation

You should include any relevant

documents and additional information

(e.g. maps, background documents) that

will help us to understand the project

and the problem/opportunity you seek

to address.

6. Privileged Information–Limited Use

In the event that a proposal contains

information or data which the applicant

does not want disclosed prior to award

for purposes other than the evaluation

of the proposal, the applicant should

mark the cover page of the proposal

with the following notice:

Notice

The information contained in pages

[insert page numbers here] of this

proposal has been submitted in

confidence and contains trade secrets

and/or privileged or confidential

commercial, financial or other

information, and such information shall

be used or disclosed only for evaluation

purposes, provided that, if this

applicant receives an award as a result

of or in connection with the submission

of this proposal, NMFS shall have the

right to use or disclose all the

information in this proposal to the

extent provided in the award.

The proposal must include or be

accompanied by an explanation of why

the applicant considers or believes the

information to be privileged or

confidential, whether such information

is customarily treated as confidential by

other similar organizations and entities,

and what harm would result to the

applicant if the information were

disclosed.

If NMFS determines that such

information is exempt from mandatory

public disclosure, NMFS shall ensure

that each copy of the proposal carries

the ‘‘Notice’’ and that information in the

proposal is not disclosed to any member

of the public except as required for the

purpose of scientific, technical, or

business evaluation. NMFS is not

authorized to withhold information

requested by the Congress, by any

committee of Congress, or by the

General Accounting Office.

NMFS shall not limit the disclosure of

any data or commercial or financial

information contained in a proposal if

such information is already generally

available to the public, is already the

property of the Government, or is or

becomes available to NMFS from any

source, including the applicant, without

limitation.

B. Duration and Terms of Funding

If your proposal is selected for

funding, NMFS incurs 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 totally at

the agency’s discretion. The period of

funding is generally considered to be for

a duration of one year but may be

adjusted for variations in schedules,

seasonal considerations, or elsewhere.

There are no matching or cost-sharing

requirements placed upon the grant

recipient.

The publishing of this announcement

does not require the award of any

specific grant or cooperative agreement,

nor require the obligation of any part or

the entire amount of funds available.

C. Full Research Proposal Screening,

Evaluation, and Selection

1. Screening and Evaluation of Research

Proposals

Prior to proposal evaluation, NMFS

will conduct an initial screening to

determine that proposals are

postmarked by August 22, 2001, include

Office of Management and Budget

(OMB) Standard Form 424 (available at

http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/grants/

sf424.pdf ), and are signed and dated by

an authorized representative of the

organization. Following the initial

screening, NMFS will convene a panel

to determine the technical merit of each

proposal. The panel will be composed

of fishing industry representatives,

scientists, and others. The panel

members will be required to certify that

they do not have a conflict of interest

concerning the proposal(s) they are

reviewing. For proposals that continue a

previously funded project, information

on progress of the funded work must

also be provided for evaluation. These

proposals will be considered along with

the new unfunded proposals. Proposals

will be assigned scores based on the

following criteria, with weights shown

in parentheses:

a. Soundness of project design/

conceptual approach. Proposals will be

evaluated on the conceptual approach;

the likelihood of gaining project results

in the time frame specified in the

proposal; whether there is sufficient

information to evaluate the project

technically; and, if so, the strengths

and/or weaknesses of the technical

design relative to securing productive

results. (50 percent)

b. Project management and

experience and qualifications of

23676 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 90 / Wednesday, May 9, 2001 / Notices

personnel. The organization and

management of the project will be

evaluated. The project’s principal

investigator and other personnel,

including consultants and

subcontractors participating in the

project, will be evaluated in terms of

related experience and qualifications.

Proposals that include consultants and

subcontractors will also be reviewed to

preclude excess overhead and to ensure

that the primary applicant is necessary

to the conduct of the project and to the

accomplishment of its objectives. (25

percent)

c. Project evaluation. The

effectiveness of proposed methods to

monitor and evaluate the success or

failure of the project in terms of meeting

its original objectives will be examined.

(10 percent)

d. Project costs. The justification and

allocation of the budget in terms of the

work to be performed will be evaluated.

Unreasonably high or low project costs

will be taken into account. (15 percent)

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 percent of the total

proposed direct cost dollar amount in

the application, whichever is less.

Proposals will be ranked in

descending order by their final technical

scores.

2. Selection Procedures and Project

Funding

Panel recommendations will be sent

to the Northeast Regional Administrator

(RA) of NMFS for review. Panel

members will provide individual

evaluations on each proposal they

evaluate; thus there will be no

consensus advice. In making the final

grant award selection, the RA may

consider fishing community

involvement, geographical distribution,

costs, and duplication with other

federally funded projects. Thus, awards

may not necessarily be made to the

highest ranked proposals.

You will be notified in writing

whether your proposal is selected.

Successful proposals will be

incorporated into the award document.

The exact amount of funds, the scope of

work, and terms and conditions of a

successful award will be determined in

pre-award negotiations between you and

NOAA/NMFS representatives. You

should not initiate your project in

expectation of Federal funding until you

receive a grant award document signed

by an authorized NOAA official.

VI. Administrative Requirements

A. Your Obligations as an Applicant

You must:

1. Meet all application requirements

and provide all information necessary

for the evaluation of the proposal,

including one signed original and two

signed copies of the application.

2. Be available to respond to questions

during the review and evaluation of the

proposal(s).

3. Primary applicant certification.

Applicants whose proposals are

recommended for funding will be

required to submit a completed Form

CD–511, ‘‘Certification Regarding

Debarment, Suspension and Other

Responsibility Matters; Drug-Free

Workplace Requirements and

Lobbying.’’ (Available at http://

www.rdc.noaa.gov/grants/pdf/

cd511.pdf). The following explanations

are provided:

a. Non-procurement debarment and

suspension. Prospective participants (as

defined at 15 CFR 26.105) are subject to

15 CFR part 26, ‘‘Non-procurement

Debarment and Suspension’’ and to the

related section of the certification form

prescribed here;

b. Drug-free workplace. Grantees (as

defined at 15 CFR 26.605) are subject to

15 CFR part 26, subpart F,

‘‘Government-wide Requirements for

Drug-Free Workplace (Grants)’’ and to

the related section of the certification

form prescribed here;

c. Anti-lobbying. Persons (as defined

at 15 CFR 28.105) 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 to the lobbying section of the

certification form 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; and

d. Anti-lobbying disclosures. Any

applicant who 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.

4. If applicable, require applicants/

bidders for sub-grants, contracts,

subcontracts, or other lower tier covered

transactions at any tier under the award

to submit a completed Form CD–512,

‘‘Certifications Regarding Debarment,

Suspension, Ineligibility and Voluntary

Exclusion-Lower Tier Covered

Transactions and Lobbying’’ (available

at Office of Management and Budget

http://www.rdc.noaa.gov/grants/pdf/

cd512.pdf) and disclosure form SF–LLL,

‘‘Disclosure of Lobbying Activities.’’

Form CD–512 is intended for your use

and should not be sent to the

Department of Commerce (Commerce).

You should send an SF-LLL submitted

by any tier recipient or sub-recipient to

Commerce only if your proposal is

recommended for funding.

5. Complete Standard Form 424B (4–

92), Assurances, Non-construction

Programs.

B. Your Obligations as a Successful

Applicant (Recipient)

If you are selected to receive a grant

award for a project, you must:

1. Manage the day-to-day operations

of the project, be responsible for the

performance of all activities for which

funds are granted, and be responsible

for the satisfaction of all administrative

and managerial conditions imposed by

the award.

2. Keep records sufficient to

document any costs incurred under the

award, and allow access to these records

for audit and examination by the

Secretary of Commerce, the Comptroller

General of the United States, or their

authorized representatives; and, submit

financial status reports (SF 269) to GMD

in accordance with the award

conditions.

3. Submit semiannual project status

reports on the use of funds and progress

of the project to us within 30 days after

the end of each 6-month period. You

will submit these reports to the

individual identified as the NMFS

Program Officer in the funding

agreement.

4. Submit a final report within 90

days after completion of each project to

the NMFS Program Officer. The final

report must describe the project and

include an evaluation of the work you

performed and the results and benefits

in sufficient detail to enable us to assess

the success of the completed project.

NMFS is committed to using available

technology to achieve the timely and

wide distribution of final reports to

those who would benefit from this

information. Therefore, you are required

to submit final reports in electronic

format, in accordance with the award

terms and conditions, for possible

publication by NMFS. You may charge

the costs associated with preparing and

transmitting your final reports in

electronic format to the grant award.

Requests for exemption from the

electronic submission requirement will

be considered on a case-by-case basis.

5. In addition to the final report in

section VI.B.4. of this document, you are

requested to submit any publications

printed with grant funds (such as

manuals, surveys, etc.) to the NMFS

Program Officer for dissemination to the

Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 90 / Wednesday, May 9, 2001 / Notices 23677

public. Submit either three hard copies

or an electronic version of any such

publications.

C. Other Requirements of Recipients

1. Federal Policies and Procedures

If you receive Federal funding, you

are subject to all Federal laws and

Federal and Department of Commerce

policies, regulations, and procedures

applicable to financial assistance

awards. You must comply with general

provisions that apply to all recipients

under Department of Commerce grant

and cooperative agreement programs.

2. Name Check Review

You may be subject to a name check

review process. Name checks are used

to determine whether any of the key

individuals named in the application

has been convicted of, or are presently

facing, criminal charges, such as fraud,

theft, perjury, or other matters, that

significantly reflect on his or her

management skills, honesty, or financial

integrity.

3. Financial Management Certification/

Preaward Accounting Survey

You may, at the discretion of the

NOAA Grants Officer, be required to

have your financial management

systems certified by an independent

public accountant as being in

compliance with Federal standards

specified in the applicable OMB

Circulars prior to execution of the

award. If you are a first-time applicant

for Federal grant funds, you may be

subject to a pre-award accounting

survey by Commerce prior to execution

of the award.

4. Past Performance

An applicant’s unsatisfactory

performance under prior Federal awards

may result in the applicant’s proposal

not being considered for funding.

5. Delinquent Federal Debts

Federal funds will not be awarded to

you or to any sub-recipients who have

an outstanding delinquent Federal debt

or fine until:

a. The delinquent account is paid in

full,

b. A negotiated repayment schedule is

established and at least one payment is

received, or

c. Other arrangements satisfactory to

Commerce are made.

6. Buy American

You are encouraged to the extent

feasible to purchase American-made

equipment and products with the

funding provided under this program.

7. Pre-award Activities

If you incur any costs prior to

receiving an award agreement signed by

an authorized NOAA official, you do so

solely at your own risk of not being

reimbursed by the Government.

Notwithstanding any verbal or written

assurance that you may have received,

the Department of Commerce has no

obligation to cover pre-award costs.

8. False Statements

A false statement on the application is

grounds for denial or termination of

funds and grounds for possible

punishment by a fine or imprisonment

(18 U.S.C. 1001).

Classification

Pursuant to Section 553(a)(2) of the

Administrative Procedure Act (APA),

prior notice and an opportunity for

public comments are not required by the

APA or any other law for this notice

concerning grants, benefits, and

contracts. Therefore, a regulatory

flexibility analysis is not required for

purposes of the Regulatory Flexibility

Act.

This action has been determined to be

not significant for purposes of Executive

Order 12866.

This notice contains collection-ofinformation requirements subject to the

Paperwork Reduction Act. The use of

Standard Forms 424, 424A, 424B, and

SF–LLL has been approved by OMB

under the respective control numbers

0348–0043, 0348–0044, 0348–0040, and

0348–0046. Notwithstanding any other

provision of law, no person is required

to respond to, nor shall any person be

subject to a penalty for failure to comply

with, a collection of information subject

to the Paperwork Reduction Act, unless

that collection displays a currently valid

OMB control number.

VII. Catalog of Federal Domestic

Assistance (CFDA)

This program falls under the CFDA

number 11.472, Unallied Science

projects.

A solicitation for proposals will also

appear in the ‘‘Commerce Business

Daily.’’

Dated: May 3, 2001.

John Oliver,

Acting Deputy Assistant Administrator for

Management and Administration, National

Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 01–11702 Filed 5–8–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Office of the Secretary

[Transmittal No. 01–07]

36(b)(1) Arms Sales Notification

AGENCY: Defense Security Cooperation

Agency; Department of Defense.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: The Department of Defense is

publishing the unclassified text of a

section 36(b)(1) arms sales notification.

This is published to fulfill the

requirements of section 155 of Pub. L.

104–164 dated 21 July 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms.

J. Hurd, DSCA/COMPT/RM, (703) 604–

6575.

The following is a copy of a letter to

the Speaker of the House of

Representatives, Transmittal 01–07 with

attached transmittal, policy justification,

and Sensitivity of Technology.

Dated: May 3, 2001.

L.M. Bynum,

Alternate OSD Federal Register Liaison

Officer, Department of Defense.

BILLING CODE 5001–08–M