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FY 2023 NIST Small Business Innovation Research Program Phase II

Notice of Funding Opportunity 

April 6, 2023

FY 2023

Small Business Innovation Research 

(SBIR) Program Phase II

Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO)

ANNOUNCEMENT

FUNDING OPPORTUNITY NUMBER: 2023-NIST-SBIR-02

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 

11.620, Science, Technology, Business and/or Education Outreach

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Institute of Standards and Technology

Opening Date of NOFO: April 6, 2023 

Closing Date: June 5, 2023

http://www.nist.gov/sbir
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FY 2023 NIST Small Business Innovation Research Program Phase II

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

1.0 PROGRAM DESCRIPTION AND FEDERAL AWARD INFORMATION 5

1.01 Introduction 5

1.02 Three-Phase Program 6

1.03 SBIR Applicant Eligibility and Limitations 8

1.04 Contact with NIST 9

1.05 Definitions 10

1.06 Fraud, Waste and Abuse 19

1.07 Other Information 20

2.0 CERTIFICATIONS 21

2.01 Due Diligence Certification 21

2.02 Funding Agreement Certification 22

2.03 Research Applications Involving Human Subjects, Human Tissue, Data or 

Recordings Involving Human Subjects Including Software Testing 22

2.04 Research Activities Involving Live Vertebrate Animals or Pre-Existing Cell 

Lines/Tissues from Vertebrate Animals 24

2.05 Certifications Regarding Federal Felony and Federal Criminal Tax Convictions, Unpaid 

Federal Tax Assessments and Delinquent Federal Tax Returns 25

3.0 APPLICATION PREPARATION INSTRUCTIONS AND REQUIREMENTS 25

3.01 Phase II Application Requirements 25

3.02 Phase II Application 27
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FY 2023 NIST Small Business Innovation Research Program Phase II

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4.0 METHOD OF SELECTION AND EVALUATION CRITERIA 33

4.01 Introduction 33

4.02 Phase II Screening Criteria 33

4.03 Phase II Evaluation Criteria 35

4.04 Phase II Award Selections 36

5.0 CONSIDERATIONS 37

5.01 Awards 37

5.02 Reporting Requirements 38

5.03 Payment Schedule 39

5.04 Innovations, Inventions and Patents 39

5.05 Cost Sharing 48

5.06 Profit or Fee 48

5.07 Joint Ventures or Limited Partnerships 49

5.08 Research and Analytical Work 49

5.09 Awardee Commitments 49

5.10 Summary Statements 49

5.11 Additional Information 51

5.12 Technical and Business Information (TABA) 52
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FY 2023 NIST Small Business Innovation Research Program Phase II

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5.13 Technical Assistance for Application Preparation and Project Conduct 52

6.0 SUBMISSION OF APPLICATIONS 53

6.01 Deadline for Applications 53

6.02 Address to Request Application Package 54

6.03 Application Submission 54

7.0 SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL INFORMATION SOURCES 57

8.0 SUBMISSION FORMS AND CERTIFICATIONS 57

8.01 Required Forms and Documents 57

8.02 Attachment of Required Application Documents 64

8.03 Verifying the Submission and Tracking the Application 65

8.04 Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management (SAM) 66

9.0 RESEARCH AREAS 67

Appendix A. COVER SHEET 70

Appendix B. Appendix B. Due Diligence Certification 73

Appendix C. Certifications 79
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FY 2023 NIST Small Business Innovation Research Program Phase II

Notice of Funding Opportunity 

April 6, 2023

US DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF STANDARDS AND TECHNOLOGY

FY 2023 SMALL BUSINESS INNOVATION RESEARCH (SBIR) PROGRAM 

PHASE II NOTICE OF FUNDING OPPORTUNITY (NOFO)

1.0 PROGRAM DESCRIPTION AND FEDERAL AWARD INFORMATION

1.01 Introduction

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) invites FY 2022 NIST SBIR 

Phase I awardees to submit Phase II research applications under this Notice of Funding 

Opportunity (NOFO). Only FY 2022 NIST SBIR Phase I awardees are eligible to submit 

applications in response to this NOFO for Phase II of their projects.

The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program was originally established in 1982 

by the Small Business Innovation Development Act (P.L. 97-219), codified at 15 U.S.C. § 

638. It was then expanded and extended by the Small Business Research and Development 

(R&D) Enhancement Act of 1992 (P.L. 102-564), and received subsequent reauthorization 

and extensions, the most recent of which extends the SBIR program through 2025. (P.L.

117-183).

Eleven Federal agencies implement SBIR by setting aside a portion of their extramural 

research and development budget each year to fund research applications from small 

science and technology-based firms. The statutory purpose of the SBIR Program is to 

strengthen the role of innovative small business concerns (SBCs) in Federally-funded 

research or research and development (R/R&D). Specific program goals are to:

(1) stimulate technological innovation; (2) use small business to meet Federal R/R&D needs;

(3) foster and encourage participation by socially and economically disadvantaged small 

businesses and by women-owned small businesses in technological innovation; and (4) 

increase private sector commercialization of innovations derived from Federal R/R&D, 

thereby increasing competition, productivity, and economic growth.

The NIST FY 2023 SBIR program identifies and solicits applications in topics that fall within 

NIST’s mission and allow collaboration between NIST scientists and the SBIR awardees 

whenever possible.

When reviewing applications, NIST gives high priority to SBCs that participate in or conduct 
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energy efficiency or renewable energy system R&D projects, consistent with Executive

Order (EO) 13329 “Encouraging Innovation in Manufacturing,” the Energy Independence

and Security Act of 2007 (P.L. 110-140 § 1203(e), codified at 15 U.S.C. § 638(z)), and the 

Small Business Administration (SBA) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small

Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Program Policy Directive, § 9.

For any SBIR award that requires a license to use a NIST-owned invention covered by a 

patent or patent application, the SBIR awardee will need to contact NIST’s Technology 

Partnerships Office for a license to use the NIST-owned invention. Such awardees will be 

granted a non-exclusive research license and will be given the opportunity to negotiate a 

non-exclusive or an exclusive commercialization license to the NIST-owned invention, in 

accordance with the Federal patent licensing regulations, set forth in 37 C.F.R. Part 404, 

and to the extent that such NIST-owned invention is available for licensing and has not 

otherwise been exclusively licensed to another party. It is the goal of this program to 

position the SBIR awardee to use and build upon such licensed NIST-owned invention with 

the awardee’s own innovation to develop a commercially viable product based on the NISTowned invention.

1.02 Three-Phase Program

The SBIR statute (15 U.S.C. § 638) requires the Department of Commerce to establish a 

three-phase SBIR program by reserving a percentage of its extramural R&D budget to 

be awarded to SBCs for innovation research. SBIR policy is provided by the SBA through 

the SBIR/STTR Policy Directive.

The funding vehicles for NIST’s SBIR program in both Phase I and Phase II are cooperative 

agreements. NIST’s authority to implement its SBIR program through cooperative 

agreements is 15 U.S.C. § 272(b)(4). NIST programmatic authorities for the research areas 

listed in this NOFO are found at 15 U.S.C. § 272(b) and (c). The nature of NIST’s “substantial 

involvement” will generally be collaboration with the awardees in carrying out the projects’ 

approved scope of work. Grants and agreements administrative requirements set forth at 2

C.F.R. Part 200 will apply to NIST SBIR awards.

1.02.01 Phase I - Feasibility Research

The purpose of Phase I is for NIST to determine the technical feasibility of the research, 
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FY 2023 NIST Small Business Innovation Research Program Phase II

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preliminary commercialization merit of the proposed effort, and the quality of the 

awardee’s performance. The application should concentrate on describing research that

will significantly contribute to proving the feasibility of the proposed Phase II research 

and commercialization potential, prerequisites to receiving further support in Phase II. 

Each Phase I award is for up to $100,000 and up to a six (6) month period of 

performance. Up to an additional $6,500 may be requested for Technical and Business 

Assistance (TABA); see Section 5.12 for more information about TABA. NIST’s inclusion of 

TABA funds in the award will be subject to the availability of NIST funding.

This NOFO is not soliciting applications for Phase I research.

1.02.02 Phase II - Research and Development

This NOFO provides an opportunity to all NIST FY 2022 SBIR I awardees to submit a Phase II 

application following the completion of Phase I. This NOFO provides instructions for FY 2023 

NIST SBIR Phase II application preparation and submission requirements.

In Phase II, work from Phase I that exhibits potential for commercial application is 

further developed. Phase II is the R&D or prototype development phase. To apply for a 

Phase II award, each Phase I awardee will be required to submit a comprehensive 

application outlining the proposed research and a detailed plan to commercialize the 

final product. Each NIST Phase II award is for up to $400,000 and up to a 24-month 

period of performance. One year after completing the Phase II R&D activity, the awardee 

shall be required to report on its commercialization activities.

1.02.03 Phase III - Commercialization

Phase III refers to work that derives from, extends, or completes an effort made under 

prior SBIR funding agreements, but is funded by sources other than the SBIR Program. 

Phase III work is typically oriented towards commercialization of SBIR research or 

technology and may be for products, production, services, R/R&D or a combination thereof.

1.02.04 Commercialization Readiness Pilot Program

As allowed in Section 5123 of the SBIR/STTR Reauthorization Act of 2011, Division E of Pub.

L. 112-81, codified in 15 U.S.C. § 638(gg), NIST has received authorization to establish a 

Commercialization Readiness Pilot Program (CRPP). NIST may provide follow-on funding (up 
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FY 2023 NIST Small Business Innovation Research Program Phase II

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April 6, 2023

to an additional $100,000) to selected awardees after completion of Phase II. The funding 

would be used to further develop Phase II technologies, to support advancement toward 

Phase III, and to increase the likelihood of commercialization. NIST is under no obligation to 

make any CRPP awards.

1.03 SBIR Applicant Eligibility and Limitations

1.03.01 Applicant Qualifications

Under this NOFO, only FY 2022 NIST SBIR Phase I awardees are eligible to submit applications. 

Applications received from entities other than FY 2022 NIST SBIR Phase I awardees will not be 

reviewed or considered for award. Each applicant must qualify as an SBC for R/R&D 

purposes, as defined in Section 1.05 of this NOFO, at the time of award. In addition, the 

primary employment of the principal investigator must be with the small business at the 

time of the award and during the conduct of the proposed research. Primary employment 

means that more than one-half of the principal investigator's time is spent working with the 

small business. Primary employment with a small business precludes full-time employment 

with another organization. Occasionally, deviations from this requirement may occur, 

which must be approved in writing by the NIST Grants Officer after consultation with the 

SBIR Program Manager. Further, a small business may only replace the principal 

investigator on an SBIR Phase II award if the NIST Grants Officer provides prior written 

approval. Personnel obtained through a Professional Employer Organization or other 

similar personnel leasing company may be considered employees of the awardee.

The R/R&D work must be performed in the United States. Requests for an exemption must 

be submitted in writing at the time of application submission. Only rare and unique 

circumstances will be considered for an exemption. The NIST Grants Officer must approve 

each exemption and its terms in writing.

NIST has elected to not use the authority that would allow venture capital operating 

companies (VCOCs), hedge funds or private equity firms to participate in the SBIR 

Program. Therefore, applications in which work would be performed by VCOCs will not be 

considered for award.

For Phase II, a minimum of one-half of the research and/or analytical effort must be 

performed by the awardee. The total cost for all consultant fees, facility leases, usage fees, 

and other subcontract/subaward or purchase agreements, excluding funds requested for 
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TABA (see Section 5.12), may not exceed one-half of the total award.

Each applicant will be required to provide certain information via www.sbir.gov as well as 

other information required by the SBIR/STTR Policy Directive (see Appendices V-VI), found at 

Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program Policy Directive Appendices. Each SBC 

applying for an award is required to update the appropriate information in the SBA database 

on SBIR.gov for any of its existing and prior Phase II awards. Applicants may not participate in 

the review of applications.

The statement of work of an SBIR award awarded under this NOFO cannot overlap with 

the statement of work of an existing NIST Cooperative Research and Development 

Agreement (CRADA) with the awardee. NIST will consider the issue of any potential 

overlap on a case- by-case basis.

1.03.02 Company Registry Requirements

SBA maintains and manages a Company Registry at to track ownership and affiliation 

requirements for all companies applying to the SBIR Program. Each Phase II applicant

must register in the Company Registry prior to submitting an application. The applicant

must save its information from the registration in a .pdf document and append this

document to the SF-424 (R&R) form as described in Section 8.02. of this NOFO. All 

applicants are required to report and/or update their registration information in the SBA 

Company Registry prior to each SBIR application submission or if any information changes 

prior to an award.

1.04 Contact with NIST

For general programmatic, electronic submission, or grants questions, please contact the 

appropriate individual:
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FY 2023 NIST Small Business Innovation Research Program Phase II

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Subject Area Point of Contact

Programmatic Questions Jacqueline Gray 

Phone: (301) 975-2522

E-mail: jacqueline.gray@nist.gov

or

Nicole Berry

Phone: (202) 235-3675

E-mail: nicole.berry@nist.gov

Electronic Application Submission 

through Grants.gov

Grants.gov 

Phone: (800) 518-4726

E-mail: support@grants.gov

Grant Rules and Regulations Dean Iwasaki

Phone: (301) 975-8449

E-mail: dean.iwasaki@nist.gov

Applicants may also contact the NIST Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership 

(MEP) for technical assistance with application preparation. More information on 

obtaining technical assistance from MEP Centers for application preparation can be 

found in Section 5.13 of this NOFO.

1.05 Definitions

(a) General Definitions

Except as specifically noted by citation or reference, all definitions below are 

excerpted from the SBA SBIR/STTR Policy Directive.
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FY 2023 NIST Small Business Innovation Research Program Phase II

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Applicant – The organizational entity that qualifies as an SBC at all pertinent times and 

that submits a contract proposal or a grant application for a funding agreement under 

the SBIR/STTR Programs.

Awardee – The organizational entity that receives an SBIR or STTR Phase I, Phase II, or 

Phase III award. An “SBIR/STTR Awardee.”

Commercialization - The process of developing products, processes, technologies, or 

services and the production and delivery (whether by the originating party or others) of the 

products, processes, technologies, or services for sale to or use by the Federal government 

or commercial markets.

Contract, see 2 CFR §200.1 - For the purpose of Federal financial assistance, a legal instrument 

by which a recipient or subrecipient purchases property or services needed to carry out the 

project or program under a Federal award. For additional information on subrecipient and 

contractor determinations, see § 200.331.

Cooperative Agreement, see 2 CFR §200.1 - A legal instrument of financial assistance 

between a Federal awarding agency and a recipient or a pass-through entity and a 

subrecipient that is consistent with 31 U.S.C. 6302,6305:

(1) Is used to enter into a relationship the principal purpose of which is to transfer 

anything of value to carry out a public purpose of support or stimulation authorized 

by a law of the United States and not to acquire property or services for the Federal 

Government or pass-through entity's direct benefit or use;

(2) Is distinguished from a grant in that it provides for substantial involvement of the 

Federal awarding agency in carrying out the activity contemplated by the Federal award.

Covered Individual, see 15 U.S.C. § 638(e)(15) – An individual who—

(1) contributes in a substantive, meaningful way to the scientific development or 

execution of a research and development project proposed to be carried out with a 

research and development award from a Federal research agency; and 

(2) is designated as a covered individual by the Federal research agency concerned.
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Essentially Equivalent Work - Work that is substantially the same research, which is proposed 

for funding in more than one contract proposal or grant application submitted to the same 

Federal agency, or submitted to two or more different Federal agencies for review and funding 

consideration; or work where a specific research objective and the research design for 

accomplishing the objective are the same or closely related to another proposal or award, 

regardless of the funding source.

Federally Funded Award - A Phase I, Phase II (including a Phase II award under subsection (cc)), 

or Phase III SBIR or STTR award made using a funding agreement.

Foreign Affiliation, see 15 U.S.C. § 638(e)(16) - A funded or unfunded academic, professional, or 

institutional appointment or position with a foreign government or government-owned entity, 

whether full-time, part-time, or voluntary (including adjunct, visiting, or honorary).

Foreign Country of Concern, see 15 U.S.C. § 638(e)(17) - The People’s Republic of China, the 

Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation, the Islamic Republic of Iran, or 

any other country determined to be a country of concern by the Secretary of State.

Funding Agreement - Any contract, grant, or cooperative agreement entered into between any 

Federal agency and any SBC for the performance of experimental, developmental, or research 

work, including products or services, funded in whole or in part by the Federal Government.

Joint Venture – See 13 C.F.R. § 121.103(h).

Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment Program, see 15 U.S.C. § 638(e)(18), citing 42 U.S.C. § 19237 

– Is –

(1) Any program, position, or activity that includes compensation in the form of cash, in-kind 

compensation, including research funding, promised future compensation, complimentary 

foreign travel, things of non de minimis value, honorific titles, career advancement 

opportunities, or other types of remuneration or consideration directly provided by a foreign 

country at any level (national, provincial, or local) or their designee, or an entity based in, 

funded by, or affiliated with a foreign country, whether or not directly sponsored by the foreign 

country, to the targeted individual, whether directly or indirectly stated in the arrangement, 

contract, or other documentation at issue, in exchange for the individual—

(i) engaging in the unauthorized transfer of intellectual property, materials, data 
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FY 2023 NIST Small Business Innovation Research Program Phase II

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products, or other nonpublic information owned by a United States entity or developed 

with a Federal research and development award to the government of a foreign country 

or an entity based in, funded by, or affiliated with a foreign country regardless of 

whether that government or entity provided support for the development of the 

intellectual property, materials, or data products; 

(ii) being required to recruit trainees or researchers to enroll in such program, position, 

or activity; 

(iii) establishing a laboratory or company, accepting a faculty position, or undertaking 

any other employment or appointment in a foreign country or with an entity based in, 

funded by, or affiliated with a foreign country if such activities are in violation of the 

standard terms and conditions of a Federal research and development award; 

(iv) being unable to terminate the foreign talent recruitment program contract or 

agreement except in extraordinary circumstances; 

(v) through funding or effort related to the foreign talent recruitment program, being 

limited in the capacity to carry out a research and development award or required to 

engage in work that would result in substantial overlap or duplication with a Federal 

research and development award; 

(vi) being required to apply for and successfully receive funding from the sponsoring 

foreign government’s funding agencies with the sponsoring foreign organization as the 

recipient; 

(vii) being required to omit acknowledgment of the recipient institution with which the 

individual is affiliated, or the Federal research agency sponsoring the research and 

development award, contrary to the institutional policies or standard terms and 

conditions of the Federal research and development award; 

(viii) being required to not disclose to the Federal research agency or employing 

institution the participation of such individual in such program, position, or activity; or 

(ix) having a conflict of interest or conflict of commitment contrary to the standard 

terms and conditions of the Federal research and development award; and 

(2) a program that is sponsored by—

(i) a foreign country of concern or an entity based in a foreign country of concern, 

whether or not directly sponsored by the foreign country of concern; 

(ii) an academic institution on the list developed under section 1286(c)(8) of the John S. 

McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 (10 U.S.C. 2358 note; 

Public Law 115-232); or 

(iii) a foreign talent recruitment program on the list developed under section 1286(c)(9) 

of the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 (10 U.S.C. 

2358 note; Public Law 115-232).
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FY 2023 NIST Small Business Innovation Research Program Phase II

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Research or Research and Development (R/R&D) - Any activity that is:

(1) a systematic study directed toward greater knowledge or understanding of 

the subject studied;

(2) a systematic study directed specifically toward applying knowledge 

and innovation to meet a recognized but unmet need; or

(3) a systematic application of knowledge and innovation toward the production of 

useful materials, devices, and systems or methods, including design, development, 

and improvement of prototypes and new processes to meet specific requirements.

Small Business Concern (SBC) – A concern that meets the SBIR/STTR program 

eligibility requirements set forth in 13 C.F.R. 121.702, “What size and eligibility 

standards are applicable to the SBIR and STTR programs?” 

Socially and Economically Disadvantaged SBC (SDB) - See 13 C.F.R. Part 124, Subpart B.

Socially and Economically Disadvantaged Individual - See 13 C.F.R. §§ 124.103 and 124.104.

Subaward, see 2 CFR §200.1 - An award provided by a pass-through entity to a subrecipient for 

the subrecipient to carry out part of a Federal award received by the pass-through entity. It 

does not include payments to a contractor or payments to an individual that is a beneficiary of 

a Federal program. A subaward may be provided through any form of legal agreement, 

including an agreement that the pass-through entity considers a contract.

Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) - An SBC that is at least 51% owned by one or more 

women, or in the case of any publicly owned business, at least 51% of the stock is owned by 

women, and women control the management and daily business operations.

(b)Definitions related to rights in data developed under the SBIR program. These 

definitions are also included in Section 5.04.02 of this NOFO.

All definitions below are excerpted from the SBA SBIR/STTR Policy Directive.

Computer Database - A collection of data recorded in a form capable of being processed by a 

computer. The term does not include Computer Software.

Computer Programs - A set of instructions, rules, or routines recorded in a form that is 
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FY 2023 NIST Small Business Innovation Research Program Phase II

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capable of causing a computer to perform a specific operation or series of operations.

Computer Software - Computer programs, source code, source code listings, object code 

listings, design details, algorithms, processes, flow charts, formulae, and related material that 

would enable the software to be reproduced, recreated, or recompiled. Computer Software 

does not include Computer Databases or Computer Software Documentation.

Computer Software Documentation - Owner's manuals, user's manuals, installation 

instructions, operating instructions, and other similar items, regardless of storage medium, 

that explain the capabilities of the Computer Software or provide instructions for using the

software.

Data - All recorded information, regardless of the form or method of recording or the media on 

which it may be recorded. The term does not include information incidental to contract or grant 

administration, such as financial, administrative, cost or pricing or management information.

Form, Fit, and Function Data - Data relating to items, components, or processes that are 

sufficient to enable physical and functional interchangeability, and data identifying source, 

size, configuration, mating and attachment characteristics, functional characteristics, and 

performance requirements. For Computer Software it means data identifying source, 

functional characteristics, and performance requirements, but specifically excludes the source 

code, algorithms, processes, formulas, and flow charts of the software.

Government Purpose - Any activity in which the United States Government is a party, including 

cooperative agreements with international or multi-national defense organizations or sales or 

transfers by the United States Government to foreign governments or international 

organizations. Government Purposes include competitive procurement, but do not include the 

rights to use, modify, reproduce, release, perform, display, or disclose Technical Data or 

Computer Software for commercial purposes or authorize others to do so.

Operations, Maintenance, Installation, or Training Purposes (OMIT) Data - Data that is 

necessary for operation, maintenance, installation, or training purposes (but not including 

detailed manufacturing or process data).

SBIR/STTR Computer Software Rights - The Federal Government’s rights during the SBIR/STTR 

Protection Period in specific types of SBIR/STTR Data that are Computer Software.
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(1) The Federal Government may use, modify, reproduce, release, perform, display, or 

disclose SBIR/STTR Data that are Computer Software within the Government. The 

Federal Government may exercise SBIR/STTR Computer Software Rights within the 

Government for:

(i) Use in Federal Government computers;

(ii) Modification, adaptation, or combination with other Computer Software, 

provided that the Data incorporated into any derivative software are subject to the 

rights in § 3(ee) of the SBIR/STTR Policy Directive and that the derivative software is 

marked as containing SBIR/STTR Data;

(iii) Archive or backup; or

(iv) Distribution of a computer program to another Federal agency, without 

further permission of the Awardee, if the Awardee is notified of the distribution 

and the identity of the recipient prior to the distribution, and a copy of the 

SBIR/STTR Computer Software Rights included in the Funding Agreement is 

provided to the recipient.

(2) The Federal Government shall not release, disclose, or permit access to 

SBIR/STTR Data that is Computer Software for commercial, manufacturing, or 

procurement purposes without the written permission of the Awardee. The Federal 

Government shall not release, disclose, or permit access to SBIR/STTR Data outside 

the Government without the written permission of the Awardee unless:

(i) The non-Governmental entity has entered into a non-disclosure agreement 

with the Government that complies with the terms for such agreements 

outlined in § 8 of the SBIR/STTR Policy Directive; and

(ii) The release or disclosure is—

(A) To a Federal Government support service contractor or their 

subcontractor for purposes of supporting Government internal use or 

activities, including evaluation, diagnosis and correction of deficiencies, and 

adaptation, combination, or integration with other Computer Software 

provided that SBIR/STTR Data incorporated into any derivative software are 

subject to the rights in § 3(ee) of the SBIR/STTR Policy Directive; or

(B) Necessary to support certain narrowly-tailored essential Government 

activities for which law or regulation permits access of a non-Government entity 
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to a contractors’ data developed exclusively at private expense, non-SBIR/STTR 

Data, such as for emergency repair and overhaul.

SBIR/STTR Data - All Data developed or generated in the performance of an SBIR or STTR 

award, including Technical Data and Computer Software developed or generated in the 

performance of an SBIR or STTR award. The term does not include information incidental to 

contract or grant administration, such as financial, administrative, cost or pricing or 

management information.

SBIR/STTR Data Rights - The Federal Government’s license rights in properly marked SBIR/STTR

Data during the SBIR/STTR Protection Period are as follows: SBIR/STTR Technical Data Rights in 

SBIR/STTR Data that are Technical Data or any other type of Data other than Computer 

Software; and SBIR/STTR Computer Software Rights in SBIR/STTR Data that is Computer 

Software. Upon expiration of the protection period for SBIR/STTR Data, the Federal 

Government has a royalty free license to use, and to authorize others to use on its behalf, 

these data for Government Purposes, and is relieved of all disclosure prohibitions and assumes 

no liability for unauthorized use of these data by third parties. The Federal Government 

receives Unlimited Rights in Form Fit, and Function Data, OMIT Data, and all unmarked 

SBIR/STTR Data.

SBIR/STTR Protection Period - The period of time during which the Federal Government is 

obligated to protect SBIR/STTR Data against unauthorized use and disclosure in accordance 

with SBIR/STTR Data Rights. The SBIR/STTR Protection Period begins at award of an SBIR/STTR 

Funding Agreement and ends not less than twenty years from that date (See § 8(b)(4) of the 

SBIR/STTR Policy Directive).

SBIR/STTR Technical Data Rights - The Federal Government’s rights during the SBIR/STTR 

Protection Period in SBIR/STTR Data that are Technical Data or any other type of Data other 

than Computer Software.

(1) The Federal Government may, use, modify, reproduce, perform, display, 

release, or disclose SBIR/STTR Data that are Technical Data within the 

Government; however, the Government shall not use, release, or disclose the 

data for procurement, manufacturing, or commercial purposes; or release or 

disclose the SBIR/STTR Data outside the Government except as permitted by 

paragraph (B) below or by written permission of the Awardee.
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(2) SBIR/STTR Data that are Technical Data may be released outside the 

Federal Government without any additional written permission of the 

Awardee only if the non-Governmental entity or foreign government has 

entered into a non-disclosure agreement with the Federal Government that 

complies with the terms for such agreements outlined in § 8 of the 

SBIR/STTR Policy Directive and the release is:

(i) Necessary to support certain narrowly-tailored essential Government 

activities for which law or regulation permits access of a non-Government 

entity to a contractors’ data developed exclusively at private expense, 

non- SBIR/STTR Data, such as for emergency repair and overhaul;

(ii) To a Government support services contractor in the performance of a

Government support services contract for internal Government use or 

activities, including evaluation, diagnosis or modification, provided that 

SBIR/STTR Technical Data incorporated into any derivative Data are subject to 

the rights in § 3(ii) of the SBIR/STTR Policy Directive, and the release is not for 

commercial purposes or manufacture;

(iii) To a foreign government for purposes of information and evaluation 

if required to serve the interests of the U.S. Government; or

(iv) To non-Government entities or individuals for purposes of evaluation.

Technical Data - Recorded information, regardless of the form or method of the recording, of a 

scientific or technical nature (including Computer Software Documentation and Computer 

Databases). The term does not include Computer Software or financial, administrative, cost or 

pricing, or management information, or other data incidental to contract or grant 

administration. The term includes recorded Data of a scientific or technical nature that is 

included in Computer Databases.

Unlimited Rights - The Government’s rights to access, use, modify, prepare derivative works, 

reproduce, release, perform, display, disclose, or distribute Data in whole or in part, in any 

manner and for any purpose whatsoever, and to have or authorize others to do so.
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1.06 Fraud, Waste and Abuse

As defined in the SBIR/STTR Policy Directive section 9(f), fraud includes any false 

representation about a material fact or any intentional deception designed to deprive the 

United States unlawfully of something of value or to secure from the United States a 

benefit, privilege, allowance, or consideration to which an individual or business is not 

entitled. Waste includes extravagant, careless, or needless expenditure of Government 

funds, or the consumption of Government property, that results from deficient practices, 

systems, controls, or decisions. Abuse includes any intentional or improper use of 

Government resources, such as misuse of rank, position, or authority or resources.

Examples of fraud, waste, and abuse relating to the SBIR/STTR Program include, but are 

not limited to:

(i) misrepresentations or material, factual omissions to obtain, or otherwise receive 

funding under, an SBIR/STTR award;

(ii) misrepresentations of the use of funds expended, work done, results achieved, 

or compliance with program requirements under an SBIR/STTR award;

(iii) misuse or conversion of SBIR/STTR award funds, including any use of award funds while 

not in full compliance with SBIR/STTR Program requirements, or failure to pay taxes due on 

misused or converted SBIR/STTR award funds;

(iv) fabrication, falsification, or plagiarism in applying for, carrying out, or reporting results 

from an SBIR/STTR award;

(v) failure to comply with applicable federal costs principles governing an award;

(vi) extravagant, careless, or needless spending;

(vii) self-dealing, such as making a sub-award to an entity in which the Principal Investigator 

(PI) has a financial interest;

(viii) acceptance by agency personnel of bribes or gifts in exchange for grant or contract 

awards or other conflicts of interest that prevents the Government from getting the best 

value; and
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(ix) lack of monitoring, or follow-up if questions arise, by agency personnel to ensure that 

awardee meets all required eligibility requirements, provides all required certifications, 

performs in accordance with the terms and conditions of the award, and performs all 

work proposed in the application.

Report any allegations of fraud, waste and abuse using the online Department of Commerce

Office of Inspector General Complaint Form.

Contact information for the Office of Inspector General is available at: 

https://www.oig.doc.gov/pages/Contact- Us.aspx. Please do not include Personally 

Identifiable Information (PII) through the website. PII is considered to be items containing 

Social Security numbers, dates of birth, credit card and passport numbers, or other 

personally identifying information that could adversely affect an individual. Should you 

desire to provide this information, it is strongly recommended that you contact the 

Hotline by telephone at the number listed below.

Phone:

Toll Free 800-424-5197

Mail:

Office of Inspector General Hotline 

HCHB 7709

1401 Constitution Avenue, N.W. 

Washington, DC 20230

1.07 Other Information

1.07.01 Personal and Business Information

Information and data contained in applications for financial assistance, as well as 

information and data contained in financial, performance and other reports submitted by 

applicants, may be used by the Department of Commerce in conducting reviews and 

evaluations of its financial assistance programs. For this purpose, applicant information and 

data may be accessed, reviewed and evaluated by Department of Commerce employees, 

other Federal employees, and also by Federal agents and contractors, and/or by nonFederal personnel, all of whom enter into appropriate conflict of interest and 

confidentiality agreements covering the use of such information. As may be provided in the 

terms and conditions of a specific financial assistance award, applicants are expected to 
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support program reviews and evaluations by submitting required financial and 

performance information and data in an accurate and timely manner, and by cooperating 

with Department of Commerce and external program evaluators. In accordance with 2 

C.F.R. § 200.303(e), applicants are reminded that they must take reasonable measures to 

safeguard protected personally identifiable information and other confidential or sensitive 

personal or business information created or obtained in connection with a Department of 

Commerce financial assistance award.

In addition, Department of Commerce regulations implementing the Freedom of 

Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. § 552, are found at 15 C.F.R. Part 4, Public Information. 

These regulations set forth rules for the Department regarding making requested materials, 

information, and records publicly available under the FOIA. Applications submitted in 

response to this Notice of Funding Opportunity may be subject to requests for release 

under the Act. In the event that an application contains information or data that the 

applicant deems to be confidential commercial information that should be exempt from 

disclosure under FOIA, that information should be identified, bracketed, and marked as 

Privileged, Confidential, Commercial or Financial Information. In accordance with 15 CFR § 

4.9, the Department of Commerce will protect from disclosure confidential business

information contained in financial assistance applications and other documentation 

provided by applicants to the extent permitted by law.

2.0 CERTIFICATIONS

2.01 Due Diligence Certification

The SBIR and STTR Extension Act of 2022, Pub. L. 117-183, requires that all agencies 

funding SBIR awards, including NIST, establish a due diligence program to assess security 

risks presented by small business concerns seeking a federally funded SBIR award. 

Specifically, NIST must assess the “cybersecurity practices, patent analysis, employee 

analysis, and foreign ownership of a small business concern seeking an award, including 

any financial ties and obligations (which shall include surety, equity, and debt obligations) 

of the small business concern and [its] employees . . . to a foreign country, foreign person, 

or foreign entity. . . ”. 15 U.S.C. § 638(vv)(2). NIST is prohibited from funding awards to 

businesses with specified relationships and commitments described in 15 U.S.C. § 

638(g)(15)(A) to foreign countries of concern that are determined to fall into one of the 

categories listed in 15 U.S.C. § 638(g)(15)(B).
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As a result of these statutory requirements, all applicants must complete a certification 

that discloses the ownership, financial ties, technology licensing or intellectual sales, and 

other affiliations, as specified in 15 U.S.C. § 638(g)(13), to the People’s Republic of China, 

the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation, the Islamic Republic of 

Iran, and/or any other country determined to be a country of concern by the Secretary of 

State of concern prior to award, and as required during the life of the funding agreement. 

The certification is available in Appendix B of this NOFO.

2.02 Funding Agreement Certification

Awardees will be required to certify size, ownership and other SBIR Program requirements 

at the time of award and during the funding agreement life cycle using the SBIR Funding 

Agreement Certification and the SBIR Funding Agreement Certification – Life-Cycle

Certification, which are provided in Appendix B of this NOFO.

2.03 Research Activities Involving Human Subjects, Human Tissue, Data or 

Recordings Involving Human Subjects Including Software Testing

This section summarizes the requirements for applications that potentially involve research 

involving human subjects. Additional information that describes the NIST review process for 

such applications and provides details regarding the documentation required is available 

here: https://www.nist.gov/oaam/nist-notice-funding-opportunity-requirements-humansubjects- and-live-vertebrate-animal. Both this summary and the additional information 

provided at the link will be incorporated into any award made under this NOFO.

Any application that includes research activities involving human subjects, human tissue/cells, 

or data or recordings from or about human subjects must satisfy the requirements of the 

Common Rule for the Protection of Human Subjects (“Common Rule”), codified for the 

Department of Commerce at 15 C.F.R. Part 271. Research activities involving human subjects 

that fall within one or more of the classes of vulnerable subjects found in 45 C.F.R. Part 46, 

Subparts B, C and D must satisfy the requirements of the applicable subpart(s). In addition, 

any such application that includes research activities on these subjects must comply with all 

applicable statutory requirements imposed upon the Department of Health and Human 

Services (DHHS) and other Federal agencies, all regulations, policies and guidance adopted by 

1 NIST uses the Common Rule definitions for research and human subjects research contained in 15 C.F.R. § 27.102.
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DHHS, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and other Federal agencies on these topics, 

and all Executive Orders and Presidential statements of policy on applicable topics. The 

website of the Office of Human Research Protection (OHRP) in the DHHS contains the 

applicable regulatory, policy and guidance and includes links to FDA, but may not include all 

applicable FDA regulations and policies.

If the application is accepted for [or awarded] funding, organizations that have an 

Institutional Review Board (IRB) are required to follow the procedures of their 

organization for approval of exempt and non-exempt research activities that involve 

human subjects. The IRB must be currently registered with OHRP that is linked to the 

engaged organization. Organizations that do not have an IRB must demonstrate the ability 

to expeditiously contract with a commercial IRB to conduct a review of the proposed 

activities. Also, all engaged organizations must possess a currently valid Federal wide 

Assurance (FWA) on file from OHRP. The NIST IRB is unable to serve as the IRB for financial 

assistance recipients.

The NIST Research Protections Office (RPO) reserves the right to conduct an administrative 

review of all applications that potentially include research involving human subjects and 

were approved by an authorized non-NIST institutional entity (an IRB or entity analogous 

to the NIST RPO) under 15 C.F.R. § 27.112 (Review by Institution). Conducting an 

“administrative review” means that the NIST RPO will review and verify the performing 

institution’s determinations made under the Common Rule and all documentation that 

support such determinations.

All applications involving human subjects research must clearly indicate, by separable task, 

all research activities believed to be exempt or non-exempt research involving human 

subjects, the expected institution(s) where the research activities involving human subjects 

may be conducted, and the institution(s) expected to be engaged in the research activities. 

Some documents may be requested for a pre-review during the proposal review process; 

however, the Grants Officer may allow final versions of certain required documents to be 

produced at an appropriate designated time post-award. If an award is issued, no research 

activities involving live vertebrate animals shall be initiated or costs incurred for those 

activities under the award until the NIST Grants Officer issues written approval. In addition, 

all re-approvals, amendments, modifications, changes, annual reports and closure will be 

reviewed by NIST.

This summary and the information provided here https://www.nist.gov/oaam/nist-notice-
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funding-opportunity-requirements-human-subjects-and-live-vertebrate-animal reflect the 

existing NIST policy and requirements for Research Involving Human Subjects. Should the 

policy be revised prior to award, a clause reflecting the policy current at time of award may 

be incorporated into the award. If the policy is revised after award, a clause reflecting the 

updated policy may be incorporated into the award.

For more information regarding research projects involving human subjects, contact Anne 

Andrews, Director, NIST Research Protections Office (e-mail: anne.andrews@nist.gov;

phone: (301) 975-5445).

2.04 Research Activities Involving Live Vertebrate Animals or Pre-Existing Cell Lines/Tissues 

From Vertebrate Animals

This section summarizes the requirements for applications that potentially involve research 

involving live vertebrate animals or pre-existing cell lines or tissues from vertebrate 

animals. Additional information that describes the NIST review process for such 

applications and provides details regarding the documentation required is available here: 

https://www.nist.gov/oaam/nist-notice-funding-opportunity-requirements-humansubjects- and-live-vertebrate-animal. Both this summary and the additional information 

provided at the link will be incorporated into any award made under this NOFO.

Any application that proposes research activities involving live vertebrate animals that are 

to be cared for, euthanized, or used by award recipients to accomplish research goals, 

teaching, or testing must meet the requirements of the Animal Welfare Act (AWA) (7 U.S.C.

§ 2131 et seq.), and the AWA final rules (9 C.F.R. Parts 1, 2, and 3), and if appropriate, the 

Good Laboratory Practice for Nonclinical Laboratory Studies (21 C.F.R. Part 58). In addition, 

such research activities should be in compliance with the “U.S. Government Principles for 

Utilization and Care of Vertebrate Animals Used in Testing, Research, and Training” 

(Principles).

NIST reserves the right to conduct an administrative review of all applications that 

potentially include research activities that involve live vertebrate animals, or custom 

samples from, or field studies with live vertebrate animals. Conducting an “administrative 

review” means that the NIST RPO will review and verify the performing institution’s 

determinations made under the applicable legal and policy requirements and all 

documentation that support such determinations. Some documents may be requested for 

a pre-review during the proposal review process; however, the Grants Officer may allow 
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final versions of certain required documents to be produced at an appropriate designated 

time post-award. If an award is issued, no research activities involving live vertebrate 

animals shall be initiated or costs incurred for those activities under the award until the 

NIST Grants Officer issues written approval. In addition, all re-approvals, amendments, 

modifications, changes, annual reports, and closure will be reviewed by NIST.

The applicant should clearly indicate in the application, by separable task, all research 

activities believed to include research involving live vertebrate animals and the 

institution(s) where the research activities involving live vertebrate animals may be 

conducted. In addition, the applicant should indicate any activity/task that involves an

excluded or custom collection from vertebrate animals, or a field study with animals.

This summary and the information provided here https://www.nist.gov/oaam/nistnotice-funding-opportunity-requirements-human-subjects-and-live-vertebrate-animal

reflect the existing NIST policy for Research Involving Live Vertebrate Animals. Should 

the policy be revised prior to award, a clause reflecting the policy current at time of 

award may be incorporated into the award. If the policy is revised after award, a clause 

reflecting the updated policy may be incorporated into the award.

For more information regarding research projects involving live vertebrate animals, 

contact Anne Andrews, Director, NIST Research Protections Office (e-mail: 

anne.andrews@nist.gov; phone: 301-975-5445).

2.05 Certifications Regarding Federal Felony and Federal Criminal Tax Convictions, 

Unpaid Federal Tax Assessments and Delinquent Federal Tax Returns

In accordance with Federal appropriations law, an authorized representative of the 

selected applicant(s) may be required to provide certain pre-award certifications 

regarding federal felony and federal criminal tax convictions, unpaid federal tax 

assessments, and delinquent federal tax returns.

3.0 APPLICATION PREPARATION INSTRUCTIONS AND REQUIREMENTS

3.01 Phase II Application Requirements

Only FY 2022 NIST SBIR Phase I awardees are eligible to submit FY 2023 Phase II 

applications in response to this NOFO. Phase I applications are not being accepted at 
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this time.

The application must provide sufficient information to demonstrate that the proposed 

work represents a sound approach to the investigation of an important scientific or 

engineering innovation worthy of support. The application must sufficiently identify and 

address a specific NIST technical program area that falls within one of the research areas 

described in Section 9.0 or a NIST-patented technology available for licensing. The 

research area or NIST-patented technology must be the same as identified in Phase I. The 

research must be directed towards development of a commercial product or service in 

the NIST program area. The application must be self-contained and written with all the 

care and thoroughness of a scientific paper submitted for publication. It should indicate a 

thorough knowledge of the current status of research area addressed by the application.

Each application should be checked carefully by the applicant to ensure inclusion of all 

essential material needed for a complete evaluation (see Sections 4.02 and 8.01).

The application must serve as the basis for technological innovation and lead to a new 

commercial product, process, or service that benefits the public.

NIST reserves the right to not submit an application for merit review if NIST determines 

that the application fails to comply with the administrative procedures as outlined in the 

applicable Screening Criteria in Section 4.02 or is missing any of the required forms and 

documents listed in Section 8.01.

3.01.01 SBA Data Collection Requirement

All applicants are required to provide certain information for inclusion into SBA’s 

SBIR.gov database by completing the Company Commercialization Report (CCR). The CCR 

allows applicants to report funding outcomes resulting from prior SBIR and STTR awards. 

SBIR and STTR awardees are required by the SBIR Policy Directive to update and maintain 

their organization’s CCR at www.SBIR.gov.

Each Phase II awardee is required to update appropriate information on the award in the 

database upon completion of the last program objective under the funding agreement and is 

requested to voluntarily update the information in the database annually thereafter for a 

minimum period of 5 years.
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Applicants shall complete the CCR by logging into their company’s existing account or 

register for a new account at www.SBIR.gov. Instructions for applicants to complete and 

include the CCR with its application are listed below.

1. Log into www.SBIR.gov.

2. Use the Login/Register prompt at the top of the home page to login to your existing 

account or to register and create a new account.

3. Navigate to My Dashboard > My Documents to view or print the information 

currently contained in the Company Registry Commercialization Report.

4. Create or update the commercialization record from the company dashboard by scrolling 

to the “My Commercialization” section, and clicking the create/update Commercialization 

tab under “Current Report Version.” Please refer to the “Instructions” and “Guide” 

documents contained in this section of the Dashboard for details on completing and 

updating the CCR. Ensure the report is certified and submitted.

5. Click the “Company Commercialization Report” PDF under the My Documents section of 

the dashboard to download a PDF of the CCR.

6. Submit your CCR along with the proposal documents listed in Section 8.01, Required 

Forms and Documents of this NOFO.

3.02 Phase II Application

A complete application must include a Technical Proposal (described below) and all other 

forms and documents listed in Section 8.01.

The Cover Sheet (a) and Technical Content (b) of the Technical Proposal is limited to 15 

pages. Additional pages beyond the 15-page limit will not be considered in the evaluation 

process. The Commercialization Plan (c) and Phase I Final Report (d) are not included in 

the page count. Pages should be of standard size (8 1/2” x 11”; 21.6 cm x 27.9 cm) with 

margins of 2.5 cm and type at least 10-point font. All units of measurement should be 

presented in metric units.

The Technical Proposal portion of the application requires the following:

(a) Cover Sheet (3.02.01) pages 1 and 2,

(b) Technical Content (3.02.02) pages 3 through 15,

(c) Commercialization Plan (3.02.03), and

(d) Phase I Final Report (3.02.04).
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The listing of all forms and documents needed to complete the application is given in 

Section 8.01 of this NOFO. The additional required forms and documents in Section 8.01 

are not included in the 15-page count.

See Section 6.0 for information on the submission of applications in response to this NOFO.

3.02.01 Cover Sheet

A completed Cover Sheet (see Appendix A of this NOFO) is a required part of the Technical 

Proposal. The Cover Sheet is counted as pages 1 and 2 of the Technical Proposal.

If an applicant checks ‘Yes’ on #11, the applicant’s contact information will be provided to 

the NIST Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP). Such applicants may be 

contacted by your local MEP Center to explore a wide range of services and initiatives to 

help identify potential opportunities to accelerate and strengthen growth and 

competitiveness in the global marketplace for small and medium-sized manufacturers,

including business-related support services that could potentially benefit the applicant’s 

proposed project.

The applicant must provide in the space available on the Cover Sheet an abstract (limited to 

200 words) and summary of potential commercial application of the research results 

(limited to 100 words). Each applicant’s abstract and summary of potential commercial 

applications will be provided to the SBA and should not contain proprietary information.

Each awardee’s abstract and summary of potential commercial applications will be 

published on the NIST SBIR website and www.sbir.gov.

3.02.02 Technical Content

Beginning on page 3 of the Technical Proposal, include the following items with headings as 

shown:

(1) Identification and Significance of the Problem or Opportunity. Make a clear 

statement of the specific research problem or opportunity addressed, its 

innovativeness, commercial potential, and why the research is important. Explain how 

it applies to the specific research area in Section 9 that was utilized in Phase I.

(2) Phase II Technical Objectives. State the specific objectives of the Phase II effort, 
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including the technical questions it will try to answer, to determine the feasibility of the 

proposed approach.

(3) Phase II Work Plan. Include a detailed description of the Phase II research plan. The 

plan should indicate what will be done, where it will be done, and how the research will 

be carried out. The method(s) planned to achieve each objective or task should be 

discussed in detail.

(4) Related R/R&D. Describe significant R/R&D that is directly related to the 

application, including any conducted by the principal investigator or by the proposing 

SBC. Describe how it relates to the proposed effort and describe any planned 

coordination with outside sources. The applicant must persuade evaluators of his or her 

awareness of key, recent R/R&D conducted by others in the specific topic area.

(5) Key Individuals and Bibliography of Related Work. Identify key individuals 

involved in Phase II, including their related education, experience, and publications. 

Where vitae are extensive, summaries that focus on the most relevant experience 

and publications are desired and may be necessary to meet application size 

limitations.

(6) Relationship with Future R/R&D. Discuss the significance of the Phase II 

effort in providing a foundation for the Phase III R/R&D effort. Also state the 

anticipated commercial results of the proposed approach.

(7) Facilities and Equipment. A description, availability, and 

location of instrumentation and physical facilities proposed for 

Phase II should be provided.

(8) Consultants, Contracts, and Subawards. The purpose of this section is to show 

that any third-party research assistance would materially benefit the proposed effort 

and that arrangements for such assistance are in place at time of application 

submission.

For Phase II, a minimum of one-half of the research and/or analytical effort must be 

performed by the awardee. Outside involvement in the project is encouraged where it 

strengthens the conduct of the research. Outside involvement is not a requirement of 

this program and is limited to no more than one-half of the research and/or analytical 
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effort in Phase II. The total cost for all consultant fees, facility leases, usage fees, and 

other subcontract/subaward or purchase agreements, excluding funds requested for 

TABA – see Section 5.12 – may not exceed one-half of the total award.

No individual or entity may serve as consultant, contractor, or subrecipient if they have 

been the recipient of any NIST information related to the research area that is not 

generally available to the public.

The applicant must also include Letters of Commitment from any participating 

consultants, subrecipients, or subcontractors. The Letters of Commitment do not count 

against the page limit. See Section 8.01.16.

(9) Cooperative Research and Development Agreements (CRADA). State if the 

applicant is a former or current CRADA partner with NIST, or with any other Federal 

agency, naming the agency, title of the CRADA, and any relationship with the proposed 

work. The statement of work of an SBIR award awarded under this NOFO cannot 

overlap with the statement of work of an applicant’s existing CRADA with any federal 

agency, including NIST. NIST will consider whether there is any overlap on a case by 

case basis.

(10) Guest Researcher. State if any of the applicant’s employees, 

consultants, contractors, or subrecipients or their employees is a domestic 

or foreign guest researcher at NIST, naming the sponsoring laboratory.

(11) Cost Sharing. Cost sharing is not required and is not considered during the 

evaluation process for Phase II applications.

(12) Similar Applications or Awards. WARNING -- While it is permissible to submit 

identical applications or applications containing a significant amount of essentially 

equivalent work for consideration under numerous Federal program funding 

announcements, it is unlawful to enter into a funding agreement requiring essentially 

equivalent work to an SBIR award (see 15 U.S.C. § 638(bb)(3)). If there is any question 

concerning this, it must be disclosed to the soliciting agency or agencies before award.

If an application submitted in response to this NOFO is substantially the same as another 

application that has been funded, is now being funded, or is pending with another Federal 

Agency, the applicant must provide the following information:
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(a) Names and addresses of agencies to which an application was submitted or from 

which an award was received.

(b) Date of application submission or date of award.

(c) Title, number, and date of NOFO(s) under which an application was submitted or 

award received.

(d) Specific applicable research topic(s) for each application submitted or award received.

(e) Title of research projects for each application submitted or award received.

(f) Name and title of principal investigator or project manager for each 

application submitted or award received.

If no equivalent application is under consideration or award for equivalent work received, 

a statement to that effect must be included in this section of the technical content area 

of the application.

(13) Prior SBIR Phase II Awards. If the SBC has received more than 15 Phase II 

awards in the prior 5 fiscal years, the SBC must submit the following information in 

its Phase II application: name of the awarding agency; date of award; funding 

agreement number; amount of award; topic, subtopic, or research area title; followon agreement amount; source and date of commitment; and current 

commercialization status for each Phase II

award. This required information will not be counted toward the 15-page Technical 

Proposal limitation.

3.02.03Commercialization Plan

Attach a copy of your commercialization plan that follows the guidelines below.

An important criterion for selection of NIST Phase II awards is the potential for commercial 

applications of the research, as evidenced by one or more of the following:

• The SBC’s record of commercializing SBIR and other research;
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• The existence of Phase III follow-on funding commitments from the private sector 

or non-SBIR Government funding sources; and

• Other indicators of the concept’s commercial potential.

There are no page limits (upper or lower) for the commercialization plan because each 

project is distinct and each company's vision for deploying its technology into the 

marketplace is unique.

The commercialization plan should provide information directly related to bringing the anticipated 

research results to market. For more information on preparing a commercialization plan, please visit 

the Small Business Administration website, Writing a Business Plan: https://www.sba.gov/businessguide/plan-your-business/write-your-business-plan. The commercialization plan should indicate how 

the Phase II research results are to be carried out in Phase III and should address the following areas:

Company Information – Focused objectives/core competencies; specialization area(s); 

products with significant sales, and history of previous Federal and nonfederal funding, 

regulatory experience, and subsequent commercialization.

Commercial Applications - A clear description of the product/service/process you plan on 

providing as a result of your Phase II research and the potential commercial application or 

use.

Customers and Competition – Clear description of key technology objectives, current 

competition, and advantages compared to competing products or services; description of

hurdles to acceptance of the innovation.

Market – Milestones, target dates, analyses of market size, and estimated market share after 

first year sales and after 5 years, explanation of plan to obtain market share.

Intellectual Property – Patent status, technology lead, trade secrets, or other 

demonstration of a plan to achieve sufficient protection to realize the commercialization 

state and attain at least a temporal competitive advantage.

Financing – Plans for securing necessary funding in Phase III.
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Assistance and Mentoring - Plans for securing needed technical or business assistance 

through mentoring, partnering, or through arrangements with state assistance programs, 

Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs), Hollings Manufacturing Extension 

Partnership Centers, or other assistance providers.

Each SBC applying for a Phase II award is required to update its Commercialization 

information on www.SBIR.gov for all of its prior Phase II awards.

3.02.04 Phase I Final Report

Attach a copy of your Phase I Final Report. The Phase I Final Report does not count toward the 

Technical Proposal’s 15 page limit.

4.0 METHOD OF SELECTION AND EVALUATION CRITERIA

4.01 Introduction

All applications will be evaluated and judged on a competitive basis. Applications will be 

initially screened to determine eligibility, completeness, and responsiveness to this NOFO 

(see Sections 4.02 and 8.01). Applications passing the initial screening will be evaluated in 

accordance with the evaluation criteria (see Section 4.03). Each application will be judged 

on its own merit.

NIST is under no obligation to fund any application or any specific number of applications in 

a given topic. NIST may elect to fund several or none of the applications for the same 

research area. If an application is submitted that requires a license to use a NIST-owned 

invention covered by a patent or patent application and such NIST-owned invention has

become unavailable for licensing prior to the close of this NOFO in the field of use relevant 

to the application, NIST has the sole discretion to deem the application ineligible.

4.02 Phase II Screening Criteria

Please carefully read the entire NOFO and review the following Phase II Screening Criteria to 

ensure that your application meets NIST requirements. Phase II applications that do not 

clearly satisfy all seven (7) of the screening criteria will be eliminated from the review

and selection process and not receive further consideration. However, NIST, in its sole 
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discretion, may continue the review process for an application that is missing minor nonsubstantive information, the absence of which may easily be rectified.

The screening criteria are:

(1) The application must be received by NIST before the deadline specified in Section 6.01.

(2) The proposing firm must qualify as eligible according to the criteria provided in Section 

1.03.

(3) The Phase II application must include all required forms and documents listed in 

Section 8.01:

i) SF-424 (R&R), Application for Federal Assistance

ii) Research and Related Budget (Total Fed + Non-Fed)

iii) CD-511, Certification Regarding Lobbying

iv) Research and Related Other Project Information

v) SF-LLL – Disclosure of Lobbying Activities (if applicable)

vi) Technical Content – see Section 3.02

a. Cover Sheet – see Section 3.02.01

b. Technical Proposal – see Section 3.02.02

c. Commercialization Plan – see Section 3.02.03

d. Phase I Final Report – see Section 3.02.04

vii) Budget Narrative and Justification – see Section 8.01.7

viii) Indirect Cost Rate Agreement – see Section 8.01.8

ix) SBA Company Registry Form – see Section 8.01.9

x) Data Management Plan -see Section 8.01.10

xi) Subaward Budget Form - see Section 8.01.11

xii) Research and Related Personal Data – see Section 8.01.12

xiii) Current and Pending Support Form – see Section 8.01.13

xiv) Compliance with SBIR Program Requirements, Applicant Fraud Awareness Training –

Certificate of Training Completion – see Section 8.01.14

xv) Letters of Commitment – see Section 8.01.15

xvi) Company Commercialization Report (CCR) – see Section 8.01.16

(4) The Technical Content must not exceed 15 pages.
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(5) The Phase II total proposed project budget must not exceed $400,000. Up to $50,000 

of the award may be requested for TABA. NIST’s inclusion of TABA funds in the award 

will be subject to the availability of NIST funding. For Phase II, a minimum of one-half of 

the research and/or analytical effort must be performed by the awardee. The total cost 

for all consultant fees, facility leases, usage fees, and other subcontract/subaward or 

purchase agreements, excluding funds requested for TABA – see Section 5.12 – may not 

exceed one-half of the total award (Section 1.03).

(6) The duration of R/R&D for the Phase II project must not exceed 24 months.

(7) If an application is submitted that requires a license to use a NIST-owned invention 

covered by a patent or patent application, the relevant NIST-owned invention must be available 

for licensing prior to the close of this NOFO in the field of use relevant to the application.

4.03 Phase II Evaluation Criteria

Phase II applications that satisfy the screening criteria in Section 4.02 will proceed to 

a scored merit review process.

Merit Review. The applications will be evaluated by at least three (3) independent, objective reviewers 

composed of NIST staff or non-federal personnel in accordance with the following equally-weighted 

criteria for a maximum of 100 points. Reviewers may discuss the applications with each other, but 

scores will be determined on an individual basis, not as a consensus. The reviewers will evaluate:

(1) The soundness of the technical approach to the proposed research.

(2) The likelihood the proposed effort will yield significant results leading to a product within 

the technical area as described in the commercialization plan.

(3) The likelihood the proposed approach will contribute to the field of study in the technical 

area.

(4) Qualifications of the proposed principal/key investigators, supporting staff, and consultants 

as they relate to accomplishing the proposed research effort.

Applicants should be specific and clear when writing their applications and not 

assume information not clearly spelled out can be inferred by the reviewer. No 

technical clarifications may be made after application submission.
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4.04 Phase II Award Selections

Final selection decisions will be made by the Selecting Official, the Director of the NIST 

Technology Partnerships Office, or designee.

The Selecting Official shall select awards in rank order unless a selection out of rank order is 

justified based upon any of the following factors:

(1) Diversity across NIST program areas;

(2) Proposed projects that include SBIR high priority areas of manufacturing and 

energy efficiency research;

(3) Proposed projects that include participation by women and socially and economically 

disadvantaged SBCs, and SBCs from HUBZones or underserved-states;

(4) Possible duplication of other federally-funded research; and

(5) Availability of funding.

NIST may select some, all, or none of the applications, or part(s) of any particular 

application. Prior to issuing an award, NIST may ask for supplemental information and may 

negotiate the scope and amount of the award. The final approval of selected applications 

and issuance of awards will be by the NIST Grants Officer. The award decisions of the NIST 

Grants Officer are final.

4.04.01 Federal Awarding Agency Review of Risk Posed by Applicants

After applications are proposed for funding by the Selecting Official, the NIST Grants 

Management Division (GMD) performs pre-award risk assessments in accordance with 2

C.F.R. § 200.206 which may include a review of the financial stability of an applicant, the 

quality of the applicant’s management systems, the history of performance, and/or the 

applicant’s ability to effectively implement statutory, regulatory, or other requirements 

imposed on non-Federal entities.

In addition, prior to making an award where the total Federal share is expected to exceed the 

simplified acquisition threshold (currently $250,000), NIST GMD will review and consider the 

publicly available information about that applicant in the Federal Awardee Performance and 

Integrity Information System (FAPIIS). An applicant may, at its discretion, review and

comment on information about itself previously entered into FAPIIS by a Federal awarding 
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agency. As part of its review of risk posed by applicants, NIST GMD will consider any 

comments made by the applicant in FAPIIS in making its determination about the applicant’s 

integrity, business ethics, and record of performance under Federal awards.

Upon completion of the pre-award risk assessment, the Grants Officer will make a 

responsibility determination concerning whether the applicant is qualified to receive the 

subject award and, if so, whether appropriate specific conditions that correspond to the 

degree of risk posed by the applicant should be applied to an award.

4.04.02 Release of Proposal Review Information

After final award decisions have been announced, the merit evaluations of applications that 

passed the screening criteria will be provided to the applicant with written notification of 

award/non-award. The identity of the reviewers will not be disclosed.

5.0 CONSIDERATIONS

5.01 Awards

Review of applications, selection of successful applicants, and award processing is expected 

to be completed by September 2023. The earliest start date for awards under this NOFO is 

expected to be September 2023.

Through 2 C.F.R. § 1327.101, the Department of Commerce adopted Uniform 

Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal 

Awards at 2 C.F.R. Part 200, which apply to awards in this program

The Department of Commerce will apply to all awards made under this NOFO the Financial 

Assistance Standard Terms and Conditions in effect on the date of award. The current 

version, dated November 12, 2020, is accessible at

Department of Commerce Financial Assistance Standard Terms and Conditions.

The Department of Commerce Pre-Award Notification Requirements for Grants and 

Cooperative Agreements, 79 FR 78390 (December 30, 2014), are applicable to this NOFO.

Contingent upon availability of funds, NIST anticipates making a total number of 

approximately five (5) Phase II awards with a project budget of no more than $400,000 each. 
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Of this amount, up to $50,000 may be included in each application for TABA. NIST’s inclusion 

of TABA funds in the award will be subject to the availability of NIST funding. The total 

performance period shall be no more than 24 months beginning on the agreement start 

date. A period of one (1) month is allotted after the 24-month R&D duration for the awardee 

to prepare and submit a final report. One year after completing the R&D activity, the 

awardee shall be required to report on its commercialization activities.

The funding vehicles for NIST’s SBIR program in both Phase I and Phase II are 

cooperative agreements.

To provide for an in-depth review of the Phase I final report and the Phase II application, 

Phase II awards will be made approximately 6 months after the completion of Phase I, 

contingent upon availability of funds.

In no event will NIST or the Department of Commerce be responsible for application 

preparation costs. This NOFO does not obligate NIST or the Department of Commerce to 

make any awards under either Phase I or Phase II. Furthermore, NIST will not fund any costs 

incurred by the applicants before awards are made. Publication of this NOFO does not 

oblige NIST or the Department of Commerce to award any specific project or to obligate any 

available funds.

5.02 Reporting Requirements

Phase II awardees will be required to submit Research Performance Progress Reports 

(RPPR) including a final report. RPPRs are generally due 30 days after the end of the 6th, 

12th, 18th, and 24th month of the period of performance. Publication citation information 

as well as links to publicly available data or revised Data Management Plans (DMPs) shall 

be submitted as soon as they become available.

The RPPR should include a response to each of the metric questions that address the 

technical details regarding the research conducted up to that point in the project, detailed 

plans for the next stages of the project, results obtained, estimates of technical feasibility, 

a description of TABA services provided, and the benefits and results of TABA services 

provided for those awardees who requested and were approved for TABA services.

Consideration will be given to changes from the solicited and proposed milestones if 
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results from experimentation warrant a deviation from the plan. Inclusion of proprietary 

information within the RPPRs may be necessary in order to effectively communicate 

progress and gain appropriate consultation from NIST experts regarding next steps. All 

such proprietary information must be marked by the awardee according to instructions 

provided in Section 5.04.01.

To help assess the effectiveness of our program in meeting programmatic and SBIR 

objectives, NIST may periodically request information from small businesses about 

progress taken towards commercialization of the technology after the completion of 

Phase I and II awards.

5.03 Payment Schedule

Cooperative agreements will include an award term with electronic payment system 

information. Pursuant to 2 C.F.R. § 200.305 awardees are to be paid in advance, provided 

they maintain or demonstrate the willingness to maintain: written procedures that 

minimize the time elapsing between the transfer of funds and disbursement by the 

recipient, and financial management systems that meet the standards for fund control 

and accountability as established in 2 C.F.R. § 200.302. Advances of funds to a recipient 

organization shall be limited to the minimum amounts needed and be timed to be in 

accordance with the actual, immediate cash requirements of the recipient organization in 

carrying out the purpose of the approved program or project.

The Department of Commerce policy requires that in the usual case, non-Federal entities 

time advance payment requests so that Federal funds are on hand for a maximum of 30 

calendar days before being disbursed by the non-Federal entity for eligible award costs. 

5.04 Innovations, Inventions and Patents

5.04.01 Proprietary Information Contained in Proposals

Information contained in unsuccessful applications will remain the property of the applicant. 

Unsuccessful applications will be retained in accordance with the General Record Schedule

1.2/021. The Federal Government may, however, retain copies of all applications. Public 

release of information in any application submitted will be subject to existing statutory and 

regulatory requirements. Applicants are discouraged from submitting proprietary 

information unless the information is deemed essential for proper evaluation of the 
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application. If proprietary information provided by an applicant in a proposal, which 

constitutes a trade secret, proprietary commercial or financial information, confidential 

personal information, or data affecting national security, it will be treated in confidence to 

the extent permitted by law, provided that the proposal is clearly marked by the applicant 

as follows:

(A) The following legend must appear on the title page of the proposal:

This proposal contains information that shall not be disclosed outside the Federal 

Government and shall not be duplicated, used, or disclosed in whole or in part for any 

purpose other than evaluation of this proposal, unless authorized by law. The Government 

shall have the right to duplicate, use, or disclose the data to the extent provided in the 

resulting award if award is made as a result of the submission of this proposal. The 

information subject to these restrictions are contained on all pages of the proposal except 

for pages [insert page number or other identification of pages that contain no restricted 

information.]

(End of Legend); and

(B)The following legend must appear on each page of the proposal that contains information 

the applicant wishes to protect:

Use or disclosure of information contained on this sheet is subject to the restriction on the 

title page of this proposal.

The use of any other legend is unacceptable to the Government and may constitute 

grounds for removing the application from further consideration without assuming any 

liability for inadvertent disclosure.

5.04.02 Rights in Data Developed Under SBIR Funding Agreements

In lieu of the Department of Commerce Financial Assistance Standard Terms and

Conditions, Section C.03, Intellectual Property Rights, the following terms and conditions 

will apply to and be included in all SBIR awards issued under this NOFO:

(a) Definitions. All definitions below are excerpted from the SBA SBIR/STTR Policy

Directive.
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(1) Computer Database. A collection of data recorded in a form capable of being processed 

by a computer. The term does not include Computer Software.

(2) Computer Programs. A set of instructions, rules, or routines recorded in a form that 

is capable of causing a computer to perform a specific operation or series of operations.

(3) Computer Software. Computer programs, source code, source code listings, object 

code listings, design details, algorithms, processes, flow charts, formulae, and related 

material that would enable the software to be reproduced, recreated, or recompiled. 

Computer Software does not include Computer Databases or Computer Software 

Documentation.

(4) Computer Software Documentation. Owner's manuals, user's manuals, installation 

instructions, operating instructions, and other similar items, regardless of storage medium, 

that explain the capabilities of the Computer Software or provide instructions for using the 

software.

(5) Data. All recorded information, regardless of the form or method of recording or the 

media on which it may be recorded. The term does not include information incidental 

to contract or grant administration, such as financial, administrative, cost or pricing or 

management information.

(6) Form, Fit, and Function Data. Data relating to items, components, or processes that 

are sufficient to enable physical and functional interchangeability, and data identifying 

source, size, configuration, mating and attachment characteristics, functional 

characteristics, and performance requirements. For Computer Software it means data 

identifying source, functional characteristics, and performance requirements, but 

specifically excludes the source code, algorithms, processes, formulas, and flow charts 

of the software.

(7) Government Purpose. Any activity in which the United States Government is a party, 

including cooperative agreements with international or multi-national defense 

organizations or sales or transfers by the United States Government to foreign 

governments or international organizations. Government Purposes include competitive 

procurement, but do not include the rights to use, modify, reproduce, release, perform, 

display, or disclose Technical Data or Computer Software for commercial purposes or 
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authorize others to do so.

(8) Operations, Maintenance, Installation, or Training Purposes (OMIT) Data. Data that 

is necessary for operation, maintenance, installation, or training purposes (but not 

including detailed manufacturing or process data).

(9) SBIR/STTR Computer Software Rights. The Federal Government’s rights during 

the SBIR/STTR Protection Period in specific types of SBIR/STTR Data that are 

Computer Software.

(1) The Federal Government may use, modify, reproduce, release, perform, display, or 

disclose SBIR/STTR Data that are Computer Software within the Government. The 

Federal Government may exercise SBIR/STTR Computer Software Rights within the 

Government for:

(i) Use in Federal Government computers;

(ii) Modification, adaptation, or combination with other Computer Software, 

provided that the Data incorporated into any derivative software are subject to the 

rights in § 3(ee) of the SBIR/STTR Policy Directive and that the derivative software is 

marked as containing SBIR/STTR Data;

(iii) Archive or backup; or

(iv) Distribution of a computer program to another Federal agency, without 

further permission of the Awardee, if the Awardee is notified of the distribution 

and the identity of the recipient prior to the distribution, and a copy of the 

SBIR/STTR Computer Software Rights included in the Funding Agreement is 

provided to the recipient.

(2) The Federal Government shall not release, disclose, or permit access to SBIR/STTR 

Data that is Computer Software for commercial, manufacturing, or procurement 

purposes without the written permission of the Awardee. The Federal Government 

shall not release, disclose, or permit access to SBIR/STTR Data outside the 

Government without the written permission of the Awardee unless:

(i) The non-Governmental entity has entered into a non-disclosure agreement 
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with the Government that complies with the terms for such agreements 

outlined in § 8 of the SBIR/STTR Policy Directive; and

(ii) The release or disclosure is—

(A) To a Federal Government support service contractor or their 

subcontractor for purposes of supporting Government internal use or 

activities, including evaluation, diagnosis and correction of deficiencies, and 

adaptation, combination, or integration with other Computer Software 

provided that SBIR/STTR Data incorporated into any derivative software are 

subject to the rights in § 3(ee) of the SBIR/STTR Policy Directive; or

(B) Necessary to support certain narrowly-tailored essential Government 

activities for which law or regulation permits access of a non-Government entity 

to a contractors’ data developed exclusively at private expense, non-SBIR/STTR 

Data, such as for emergency repair and overhaul.

(10) SBIR/STTR Data. All Data developed or generated in the performance of an SBIR 

or STTR award, including Technical Data and Computer Software developed or 

generated in the performance of an SBIR or STTR award. The term does not include 

information incidental to contract or grant administration, such as financial, 

administrative, cost or pricing or management information.

(11) SBIR/STTR Data Rights. The Federal Government’s license rights in properly 

marked SBIR/STTR Data during the SBIR/STTR Protection Period are as follows: 

SBIR/STTR Technical Data Rights in SBIR/STTR Data that are Technical Data or any 

other type of Data other than Computer Software; and SBIR/STTR Computer 

Software Rights in SBIR/STTR Data that is Computer Software. Upon expiration of 

the protection period for SBIR/STTR Data, the Federal Government has a royalty 

free license to use, and to authorize others to use on its behalf, these data for 

Government Purposes, and is relieved of all disclosure prohibitions and assumes no 

liability for unauthorized use of these data by third parties. The Federal 

Government receives Unlimited Rights in Form Fit, and Function Data, OMIT Data, 

and all unmarked SBIR/STTR Data.

(12) SBIR/STTR Protection Period. The period of time during which the Federal 

Government is obligated to protect SBIR/STTR Data against unauthorized use and 

disclosure in accordance with SBIR/STTR Data Rights. The SBIR/STTR Protection 
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Period begins at award of an SBIR/STTR Funding Agreement and ends not less than 

twenty years from that date (See § 8(b)(4) of the SBIR/STTR Policy Directive).

(13) SBIR/STTR Technical Data Rights. The Federal Government’s rights during the 

SBIR/STTR Protection Period in SBIR/STTR Data that are Technical Data or any 

other type of Data other than Computer Software.

(1) The Federal Government may, use, modify, reproduce, perform, display, 

release, or disclose SBIR/STTR Data that are Technical Data within the 

Government; however, the Government shall not use, release, or disclose 

the data for procurement, manufacturing, or commercial purposes; or 

release or disclose the SBIR/STTR Data outside the Government except as 

permitted by paragraph (B) below or by written permission of the Awardee.

(2) SBIR/STTR Data that are Technical Data may be released outside the 

Federal Government without any additional written permission of the 

Awardee only if the non-Governmental entity or foreign government has 

entered into a non-disclosure agreement with the Federal Government that 

complies with the terms for such agreements outlined in § 8 of the 

SBIR/STTR Policy Directive and the release is:

(i) Necessary to support certain narrowly-tailored essential Government 

activities for which law or regulation permits access of a non-Government 

entity to a contractors’ data developed exclusively at private expense, 

non- SBIR/STTR Data, such as for emergency repair and overhaul;

(ii) To a Government support services contractor in the performance of a 

Government support services contract for internal Government use or 

activities, including evaluation, diagnosis or modification, provided that 

SBIR/STTR Technical Data incorporated into any derivative Data are subject to 

the rights in § 3(ii) of the SBIR/STTR Policy Directive, and the release is not for 

commercial purposes or manufacture;

(iii) To a foreign government for purposes of information and evaluation 

if required to serve the interests of the U.S. Government; or

(iv) To non-Government entities or individuals for purposes of evaluation.
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(14) Technical Data. Recorded information, regardless of the form or method of the 

recording, of a scientific or technical nature (including Computer Software 

Documentation and Computer Databases). The term does not include Computer 

Software or financial, administrative, cost or pricing, or management information, or 

other data incidental to contract or grant administration. The term includes 

recorded Data of a scientific or technical nature that is included in Computer 

Databases.

(15) Unlimited Rights. The Government’s rights to access, use, modify, prepare 

derivative works, reproduce, release, perform, display, disclose, or distribute Data in 

whole or in part, in any manner and for any purpose whatsoever, and to have or 

authorize others to do so.

(b) Allocation of SBIR/STTR Data Rights.

(1) An SBC retains ownership of all SBIR/STTR Data it develops or generates in the 

performance of an SBIR/STTR award. The SBC retains all rights in SBIR/STTR Data 

that are not granted to the Federal Government in accordance with the SBIR/STTR 

Policy Directive. These rights of the SBC do not expire.

(2) During the SBIR/STTR Protection Period, the Federal Government receives 

SBIR/STTR Technical Data Rights in appropriately marked SBIR/STTR Data that is 

Technical Data or any other type of Data other than Computer Software; and 

SBIR/STTR Computer Software Rights in appropriately marked SBIR/STTR Data that 

is Computer Software.

(3) After the protection period, the Federal Government may use, and authorize 

others to use on its behalf, for Government Purposes, SBIR/STTR Data that was 

protected during the SBIR/STTR Protection Period. Awards issued by the U.S. 

Department of Energy are subject to Unlimited Rights after the expiration of 

the SBIR/STTR Protection Period.

(4) The Federal Government receives Unlimited Rights in Form Fit, and Function Data, 

OMIT Data, and all unmarked SBIR/STTR Data.

(c) Identification and Delivery of SBIR/STTR Data. Any SBIR/STTR Data delivered by the 

Awardee, and in which the Awardee intends to limit the Federal Government’s rights to 
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SBIR/STTR Data Rights, must be delivered with restrictive markings. The Federal 

Government assumes no liability for the access, use, modification, reproduction, release, 

performance, display, disclosure, or distribution of SBIR/STTR Data without markings. 

The Awardee or its subcontractors or suppliers shall conspicuously and legibly mark all

such SBIR/STTR Data with the appropriate legend.

(1) The authorized legend shall be placed on each page of the SBIR/STTR Data. If only 

portions of a page are subject to the asserted restrictions, the SBIR/STTR Awardee 

shall identify the restricted portions (e.g., by circling or underscoring with a note or 

other appropriate identifier). With respect to SBIR/STTR Data embodied in 

Computer Software, the legend shall be placed on: (1) the printed material or media 

containing the Computer Software; or (2) the transmittal document or storage 

container. The legend shall read as follows:

“SBIR/STTR DATA RIGHTS

Funding Agreement No.

Award Date

SBIR/STTR Protection Period

SBIR/STTR Awardee

SBIR/STTR Awardee Address

This is SBIR/STTR Data (or is Computer Software or a Prototype that embodies or 

includes SBIR/STTR Data) to which the SBIR/STTR Awardee has SBIR/STTR Data Rights 

and to which the Federal Government has received SBIR/STTR Technical Data Rights 

(or SBIR/STTR Computer Software Rights) during the SBIR/STTR Protection Period 

and rights of use for Government Purposes after the SBIR/STTR Protection Period, as 

those terms are defined in the SBIR/STTR Funding Agreement. Awards issued by the

U.S. Department of Energy are subject to Unlimited Rights after the SBIR/STTR 

Protection Period, as that term is defined in the SBIR/STTR Funding Agreement. Any 

reproduction of SBIR/STTR Data or portions of such data marked with this legend 

must also reproduce the markings.”

(End of Legend)

(2) Data submitted without correct or appropriate markings may be corrected within 

6 months from the date the data is delivered.
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(d) Relation to patents. Nothing regarding SBIR/STTR Data Rights in this clause shall imply 

a license to or imply a requirement to license to the Federal Government any patent to a 

Subject Invention (as defined under the Bayh-Dole Act implemented at 37 CFR 401) made 

under an SBIR/STTR award.

(e) Copyright.

(1) Data first produced in the performance of this award.

(i) Except as otherwise specifically provided in this award, the Awardee may 

assert copyright subsisting in any data first produced in the performance of this 

award.

(ii) When asserting copyright, the Awardee shall affix the applicable copyright notice 

of 17 U.S.C. § 401 or § 402 and an acknowledgment of Government sponsorship 

(including award number).

(iii) For data other than computer software, the Awardee grants to the 

Government, and others acting on its behalf, a paid-up nonexclusive, irrevocable, 

worldwide license to reproduce, prepare derivative works, distribute copies to the 

public, and perform publicly and display publicly, by or on behalf of the 

Government. For computer software, the Awardee grants to the Government, and 

others acting on its behalf, a paid-up, nonexclusive, irrevocable, worldwide license 

in such copyrighted computer software to reproduce, prepare derivative works, 

and perform publicly and display publicly, by or on behalf of the Government.

(2) Data not first produced in the performance of this award. The Awardee shall not, 

without prior written permission of the Grants Officer, incorporate in data delivered under 

this award any data that are not first produced in the performance of this award unless 

the Awardee: (i) identifies such data; and (ii) grants to the Government, or acquires on its 

behalf, a license of the same scope as set forth in subparagraph (c)(1) of this clause.

(3) Removal of copyright notices. The Government will not remove any copyright 

notices placed on data pursuant to this paragraph (c)) and will include such notices on 

all reproductions of the data.

(End of Clause)

5.04.03 NIST-Owned Inventions
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Awardees will not have any automatic rights to make, use, or sell products or services 

incorporating NIST-owned inventions. For any SBIR award that requires a license to use a 

NIST-owned invention covered by a patent or patent application, the SBIR awardee will be 

required to contact NIST’s Technology Partnerships Office for a patent license for 

research or for commercial use.

To the extent that such NIST-owned invention is available for licensing and has not 

otherwise been exclusively licensed to another party, the SBIR awardee will be granted 

a non-exclusive research license and will be given the opportunity to negotiate a nonexclusive or an exclusive commercialization license to the NIST-owned invention, in 

accordance with the Federal patent licensing regulations, set forth in 37 C.F.R. Part 404.

5.04.04 Patent Rights

Normally, SBCs may retain worldwide patent rights to any invention developed with 

Federal support. The specific requirements governing the development, reporting, and 

disposition of rights to inventions and patents resulting from Federal awards are described 

in more detail in 37 C.F.R. Part 401, which implements 35 U.S.C. § 202 through 204 and 

includes standard patent rights clauses in 37 C.F.R. § 401.14, which are incorporated by 

reference into all awards.

5.04.05 Invention Reporting

SBIR awardees must report inventions to the NIST SBIR Program Office within 2 months of 

the inventor’s report to the awardee. Inventions must also be reported through the iEdison 

Invention Reporting System at www.iedison.gov.

5.05 Cost Sharing

Cost sharing is permitted for applications under this program NOFO; however, cost sharing 

is not required and will not be considered in evaluation of applications.

5.06 Profit or Fee

A reasonable profit or fee not to exceed 7% of the sum of the direct and indirect costs is 

allowed.
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5.07 Joint Ventures or Limited Partnerships

Joint ventures and limited partnerships are eligible provided the entity created qualifies as an 

SBC as defined in this NOFO.

5.08 Research and Analytical Work

For Phase II, a minimum of one-half of the research and/or analytical effort, per Section 

1.03, must be performed by the proposing SBC. The total cost for all consultant fees, facility 

leases, usage fees, and other subcontract/subaward or purchase agreements, excluding 

funds requested for TABA – see Section 5.12 – may not exceed one-half of the total award.

5.09 Awardee Commitments

Upon award of a funding agreement, the awardee will be required to make certain legal 

commitments through acceptance of numerous Specific Award Conditions (SAC) in the 

funding agreement. Awards also will be governed by the Department of Commerce 

Financial Assistance Standard Terms and Conditions (November 12, 2020 or successor 

version); the Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit 

Requirements for Federal Awards at 2 C.F.R. Part 200, adopted by the Commerce 

Department through 2 C.F.R. § 1327.101; and the Department of Commerce Pre-Award 

Notification Requirements for Grants and Cooperative Agreements, 79 FR 78390 

(December 30, 2014).

Section 5.10 describes the types of terms and conditions to which the awardee would 

commit. This list is not a complete list of terms and conditions to be included in Phase I and 

Phase II funding agreements and is not the specific wording of such terms and conditions.

5.10 Summary Statements

The following statements apply to Phase I and Phase II awards and are examples of some of 

the topic areas that will be addressed in the award terms and conditions.

(1) Access to Records. Government officials have the right of timely and unrestricted access 

to records of awardees, including access to personnel for discussion related to the records. 

See 2 C.F.R. § 200.337.
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(2) Termination. Awards may be terminated (a) by the NIST Grants Officer, if an awardee 

materially fails to comply with the terms and conditions of an award; (b) by the Federal 

awarding agency or pass-through entity, to the greatest extent authorized by law, if an award no 

longer effectuates the program goals or agency priorities; (c) by the NIST Grants Officer with the 

consent of the awardee, in which case the two parties shall agree upon the termination conditions, 

including the effective date and, in the case of partial termination, the portion to be terminated; 

(d) by the awardee upon sending to the NIST Grants Officer written notification setting forth the 

reasons for such termination, the effective date, and, in the case of partial termination, the 

portion to be terminated. See 2 C.F.R. §§ 200.339-343.

(3) Non-Discrimination. The awardee will be required to comply with statutory and other 

non-discrimination requirements. No person in the United States shall, on the ground of 

race, color, national origin, handicap, age, religion, or sex, be excluded from participation 

in, be denied the benefits of, or be subject to discrimination under any program or activity 

receiving Federal financial assistance. See Section G.02 of the Department of Commerce

Financial Assistance Standard Terms and Conditions (November 12, 2020).

(4) Audit Requirements. Government officials may conduct an audit of an award at any 

time. Unless otherwise specified in the award, for-profit organizations that expend 

$750,000 or more in Department of Commerce funds during their fiscal year must have an 

audit conducted for that year in accordance with Section D.01.c of the Department of 

Commerce Financial Assistance Standard Terms and Conditions (November 12, 2020).

(5) Codes of Conduct. Pursuant to Section F.01 of the Department of Commerce Financial 

Assistance Standard Terms and Conditions (November 12, 2020), the awardee must 

maintain written standards of conduct to establish safeguards to prohibit employees 

from using their positions for a purpose that constitutes or presents the appearance of 

personal or organizational conflict of interest, or personal gain in the administration of 

the award.

(6) Officials Not To Benefit. No Federal Government official may benefit personally, to 

include financial and/or profession gain, from the SBIR/STTR Funding Agreement.

(7) Duplication of Effort. The funding agreement shall not support the duplication of 

other federally-funded research.
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(8) Scheduling and Use of Federal Agency Facilities and Equipment. The Awardee must 

schedule, reserve, and complete usage within the period of performance of the 

Funding Agreement.

5.11 Additional Information

This NOFO reflects current planning. If there is any inconsistency between the information 

contained herein and the terms of any resulting SBIR funding agreement, the terms of the 

funding agreement are controlling.

Before award of a SBIR funding agreement, the Government may request the applicant to 

submit certain organizational, management, personnel, and financial information to assure 

responsibility of the applicant.

The Government is not responsible for any funds expended by the applicant before award 

of any funding agreement.

This program NOFO is not an offer by the Government and does not obligate the 

Government to make any specific number of awards. Also, awards under the SBIR Program 

are contingent upon the availability of funds.

The SBIR Program is not a substitute for existing unsolicited application mechanisms. 

Unsolicited applications will not be accepted under the SBIR Program in either Phase I or 

Phase II.

If an award is made pursuant to an application submitted under this SBIR Program NOFO, a 

representative of the awardee will be required to certify that the concern has not previously 

been, nor is currently being, paid for essentially equivalent work by any Federal agency.

The responsibility for the performance of the principal investigator, and other 

employees or consultants who carry out the proposed work, including those of 

subrecipients or contractors, lies with the management of the organization receiving an 

award.

Safety is a top priority at NIST. Employees and affiliates of award recipients who conduct 

project work at NIST will be expected to be safety-conscious, to attend NIST safety training, 

and to comply with all NIST safety policies and procedures, and with all applicable terms of 
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their guest research agreement.

5.12 Technical and Business Assistance (TABA)

NIST is committed to the goal of commercialization of the results of SBIR projects and will 

provide funding for Technical and Business Assistance (TABA) to Phase I and Phase II 

awardees as authorized by 15 U.S.C. § 638(q). The NIST TABA program assists in providing 

funding for the successful commercialization of products, services, or technologies 

developed in association with the NIST SBIR Program. The NIST TABA program provides 

funding for guidance and mentoring in topics such as assessing small business

commercialization needs; planning, developing, and assisting in the preparation of a 

commercialization plan; and identifying markets and developing entry strategies. Allowable 

services include assistance with product sales, intellectual property protections, market 

research, market validation, and development of regulatory plans and manufacturing plans, 

or access to technical and business literature available through on-line databases.

Applicants may propose up to $50,000 of Phase II funding for TABA services. NIST’s 

inclusion of TABA funds in the award will be subject to the availability of NIST funding. 

Funding for TABA counts toward the maximum $400,000 award limit. To include TABA 

services as part of a Phase II award, provide amount and vendor information in the 

budget justification that demonstrates the provider can provide the services needed and 

include a letter of commitment from the provider (see Section 8.01 for additional 

information). NIST may disapprove a proposed TABA provider. TABA requests must be 

part of the application submission and may not be requested subsequent to award. 

Reimbursement is limited to services received that comply with 15 U.S.C. § 638(q). 

Requested TABA funds should be clearly labeled in the Budget Narrative (see Section 

8.01.8).

5.13 Technical Assistance for Application Preparation and Project Conduct

Applicants may wish to contact the NIST Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership 

(MEP), a nationwide network of locally managed extension centers whose sole purpose is to 

provide small- and medium-sized manufacturers with the help they need to succeed. The 

centers provide guidance to high-technology companies seeking resources and teaming 

relationships. To be referred to an MEP center for technical assistance, call 1-800-MEP-4-

MFG (1-800-637-4634) or visit MEP‘s website.
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MEP Centers are also prepared to provide referrals to state and local organizations offering 

resources and technical assistance to all NIST SBIR applicants after awards have been 

announced. If you would like your local MEP Center to contact you, please respond 

affirmatively to the statement (#11) about MEP on the Cover Sheet.

6.0 SUBMISSION OF APPLICATIONS

6.01 Deadline for Applications

Phase II applications must be received no later than 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time, June 5, 

2023. Only electronic applications submitted via Grants.gov will be accepted.

Applicants should be aware, and factor in their application submission planning, that the 

Grants.gov system closes periodically for routine maintenance. Applicants should visit 

Grants.gov for information about any scheduled closures.

Applicants are cautioned to be careful of unforeseen delays that can cause late arrival of 

applications, with the result that they will not be forwarded for evaluation.

Applications not received by the specified due date and time, as recorded by Grants.gov, or 

that do not adhere to the other requirements of this NOFO (see Section 4.02 Screening 

Criteria and Section 8.01 Required Forms and Documents) will not be considered.

NIST strongly recommends that applicants do not wait until the last minute to submit an 

application. NIST will not make allowance for any late submissions. To avoid any potential 

processing backlogs due to last minute Grants.gov registrations, applicants are highly 

encouraged to begin their Grants.gov registration process early. No extensions will be 

granted.

When developing your submission timeline, please keep in mind that (1) all applicants are 

required to have current registrations in the System for Award Management (SAM.gov) and 

Grants.gov; (2) the free annual registration process in the electronic System for Award 

Management (SAM.gov) (see Section 6.03.(1.).b) of this NOFO) generally takes between 

three and five business days but can take more than three weeks; and (3) applicants will 

receive a series of e-mail messages from Grants.gov over a period of up to two business 

days before learning whether a Federal agency’s electronic system has received its 

application. Please note that a federal assistance award cannot be issued if the 
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designated recipient’s registration in the System for Award Management (SAM.gov) is 

not current at the time of the award.

Applicants will find instructions on registering with SAM.gov as part of the Grants.gov 

process at: http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/organizationregistration.html.

NOTE: As of Monday, April 4, 2022, the federal government stopped using the DUNS number 

to identify entities. All entities doing business with the federal government must use a Unique 

Entity Identifier (UEI) generated in SAM.gov. Applicants must request and be assigned a UEI 

number prior to completing the grant application forms and submitting their application via 

Grants.gov. For more information, please see Planned UEI Updates | GRANTS.GOV.

The Standard Forms (e.g., SF424, SF424 R&R, etc.) were also updated on April 4, 2022, to 

allow entities to enter the UEI number. Applicants must use the applicable UEI Forms for all 

submissions.

6.02 Standard Application Package

The standard application package, consisting of the standard forms, i.e., SF-424 (R&R), CD511, Research and Related Other Project Information, SF-LLL (if applicable), and Research & 

Related Subaward Budget is available at www.grants.gov.

Please see Section 8.01 for a complete list of required forms and documents.

6.03 Application Submission

Applications must be submitted electronically through Grants.gov at www.grants.gov. Paper 

applications or applications submitted by other electronic means will not be accepted.

Supplementary material, revisions, substitutions, audio or video tapes, or computer storage 

media or devices will not be accepted. While applicants may not submit replacement pages 

or missing documents once an application has been submitted, an applicant may submit a 

complete, new application including such information by the required deadline.

Applications are limited to one proposal per SBC. The last application received in 

Grants.gov will be used for evaluation.

(1) Applications must be submitted via Grants.gov at www.grants.gov, under 

announcement 2023-NIST-SBIR-02.
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a) Applicants should carefully follow specific Grants.gov instructions to ensure the 

attachments will be accepted by the Grants.gov system. A receipt from Grants.gov 

indicating an application is received does not provide information about whether

attachments have been received. Attachment files names should be kept as short as 

possible due to potential file corruption after the addition of extensions by 

Grants.gov. For further information or questions regarding the electronic application 

process for the 2022-NIST-SBIR-02 announcement, send an e-mail to 

grants@nist.gov.

b) Applicants are strongly encouraged to start early and not wait until the approaching due 

date before logging on and reviewing the instructions for submitting an application through 

Grants.gov. The Grants.gov registration process must be completed before a new registrant 

can apply. If all goes well, the registration process takes three (3) to five (5) business days. 

If problems are encountered, the registration process can take three (3) weeks or more. 

Applicants must have a valid unique entity identifier number and must maintain a current 

registration in the Federal government’s primary registrant database, the System for Award

Management, as explained on the Grants.gov website. See also Section 8.04 of this NOFO. 

After registering, it may take several days or longer from the initial log-on before a new 

Grants.gov system user can submit an application. Only authorized individuals(s) will be 

able to submit an application, and the system may need time to process a submitted 

application. Applicants should save and print the proof of submission they receive from 

Grants.gov. If problems occur while using Grants.gov, the applicant is advised to (a) print 

any error message received and (b) call Grants.gov directly for immediate assistance. If 

calling from within the United States or from a U.S. territory, please call 800-518-4726. If 

calling from a place other than the United States or a U.S. territory, please call 606-545-

5035. Assistance from the Grants.gov Help Desk will be available around the clock every 

day, with the exception of Federal holidays. Help Desk assistance will resume at 7:00 a.m. 

Eastern Time the day after Federal holidays. For assistance using Grants.gov, you may also 

contact support@grants.gov.

c) To find instructions on submitting an application on Grants.gov, Applicants should refer 

to the “Applicants” tab in the banner just below the top of the Grants.gov homepage. 

Clicking on the “Applicants” tab produces two exceptionally useful sources of information, 

Grant Applications and Applicant Resources, which applicants are advised to review.

Applicants will receive a series of e-mail messages over a period of up to two business days 
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before learning whether a Federal agency’s electronic system has received its application. 

Closely following the detailed information in these subcategories will increase the 

likelihood of acceptance of the application by the Federal agency’s electronic system.

Applicants should pay close attention to the guidance under “Applicant FAQs,” as it contains 

information important to successful submission on Grants.gov, including essential details on 

the naming conventions for attachments to Grants.gov applications.

The Grants.gov Online Help site provides vital information on checking the status of 

applications. See especially the “Check Application Status” option, found by clicking first on 

Applicants, and then by clicking on Grant Applications.

The application must be both received and validated by Grants.gov. The application is 

“received” when Grants.gov provides the applicant a confirmation of receipt and an

application tracking number. If an applicant does not see this confirmation and tracking 

number, the application has not been received. After the application has been received, it 

must still be validated. During this process, it may be “validated” or “rejected with errors.” 

To know whether the application was rejected with errors and the reasons why, the 

applicant must log in to Grants.gov, select “Applicants” from the top navigation, and select 

“Track my application” from the drop-down list. If the status is “rejected with errors,” the 

applicant may still seek to correct the errors and resubmit your application before the 

deadline. If the applicant does not correct the errors, the application will not be forwarded 

to NIST by Grants.gov.

NIST uses the Tracking Numbers assigned by Grants.gov and does not issue Agency Tracking 

Numbers.

Applicants should be aware that adequate time must be factored into applicants’ 

schedules for delivery of their application. Submitters are advised that volume on 

Grants.gov may be extremely heavy leading up to the deadline date.

Refer to important information in Section 6.01 Deadline for Applications, to help ensure 

your application is received on time.

Any amendments to this NOFO will be announced through Grants.gov. Applicants can sign 

up for Grants.gov NOFO amendments or may request copies from Nicole Berry by e-mail 

to nicole.berry@nist.gov.
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7.0 SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL INFORMATION SOURCES

Background information related to the NIST research programs referenced within the 

research areas may be found within the NIST website The NIST Research Library, , may also 

provide valuable scientific and technical information resources. A listing of NIST-developed 

technologies is available on the Federal Laboratory Consortium’s (FLC) website.

8.0 SUBMISSION FORMS AND CERTIFICATIONS

8.01 Required Forms and Documents

Applicants should review the following list carefully to ensure the proposal includes all 

required forms and documents. Failure to include any of the applicable listed forms and/or

documents will result in rejection of the proposal without consideration. All required 

forms and documents must be complete. Please also review Section 4.02 Phase II

Screening Criteria. Guidelines provided below are based on frequently asked questions and 

are not intended to be comprehensive – all forms must be fully completed.

A complete application contains the following forms and documents:

1. SF-424 (R&R), Application for Federal Assistance. The SF-424 (R&R) must be signed 

by an authorized representative of the applicant organization.

For SF-424 (R&R), items 5, 14, and 19, use the Zip Code +4 format (##### - ####) when 

addresses are called for.

For SF-424 (R&R), item 16, the NIST SBIR Program is not covered by that Executive 

Order.

For SF-424 (R&R), item 17, the list of certifications and assurances is contained in the 

Federal Financial Assistance Certifications and Representations (Certs and Reps) as part 

of the SAM.gov entity registration.

For SF-424 (R&R), item 18, if the SF-LLL, Disclosure of Lobbying Activities form (item 6. 

below) is applicable, attach it to field 18.

Instructions for filling in the SF-424 (R&R) can be found on Grants.gov, as well as in the 

NIST Grants Management Division SF-424 Research and Related (R&R) Application

Package Guidance.

2. Research & Related Budget (Total Fed + Non-Fed). The budget

should reflect anticipated expenses for the full term of the project, considering all 
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potential cost increases, including cost of living adjustments.

The budget should be detailed in these categories:

A. Senior/Key Person;

B. Other Personnel;

C. Equipment Description;

D. Travel;

E. Participant/Trainee Support Costs (not relevant to this competition);

F. Other Direct Costs;

G. Direct Costs (automatically generated);

H. Indirect Costs;

I. Total Direct and Indirect Costs (automatically generated);

J. Fee;

K. Total Costs and Fee (automatically generated);

L. Budget Narrative and Justification document (item 8. below) should 

be attached to field L.

Instructions for completing the Research & Related Budget (Total Fed + Non-Fed) form 

can be found on Grants.gov, as well as in the NIST Grants Management Division SF-424

Research and Related (R&R) Application Package Guidance.

3. CD-511, Certification Regarding Lobbying. Enter “2022-NIST-SBIR-02” in the 

Award Number Field. Enter the title of the application used in field 11 of the SF-424 

(R&R), or an abbreviation of that title, in the Project Name field.

4. Research and Related Other Project Information. Answer the highlighted 

questions and use this form to attach the Cover Sheet, Technical Proposal, 

Commercialization Plan and Phase I Final Report (item (6) below); the Indirect Cost 

Rate Agreement (item (8) below); the SBA Company Registry Form (item (9) below); 

the Data Management Plan (item (10) below); the Research & Related Personal 

Data form(s) (item (12) below); the Current and Pending Support Form (item (13) 

below); the Compliance with SBIR Program Requirements, Applicant Fraud 

Awareness Training (item (14) below); and Letters of Commitment (item (15) 

below). Instructions for completing the Research and Related Other Project 

Information can be found on Grants.gov, as well as in the NIST Grants Management

Division SF-424 Research and Related (R&R) Application Package Guidance.
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Please note that the Project Summary/Abstract is not relevant to this competition. 

However, Grants.gov requires an attachment to field 7 of the Research and Related 

Other Project Information form to successfully pass through Grants.gov. Please attach a 

document to field 7 stating, “A Project Summary/Abstract is not relevant to this 

competition”.

There are no separate documents required for field 9, “Bibliography & References Cited’; 

or for field 10, “Facilities & Other Resources;” or for field 11, “Equipment”. Any details 

relating to these topics should be included in other documents and forms, if and as 

specified in this NOFO.

5. SF-LLL, Disclosure of Lobbying Activities (if applicable).

6. Cover Sheet (Appendix A) and Technical Proposal. Read Section 3.02 of this NOFO

very carefully, and in its entirety, for directions on completing this section of the

application. The Technical Content is limited to 15 pages, see Section 3.02. The 

Commercialization Plan and Phase I Final Report portions of the Technical Proposal 

do not count against the page limit – see Sections 3.02.03 and 3.02.04.

7.Budget Narrative and Justification. There is no set format for the Budget Narrative 

and Justification; however, the written justification should include the necessity and 

the basis for the cost, as described below. Proposed funding levels must be 

consistent with the project scope, and only allowable costs should be included in the 

budget. Information on cost allowability is available in the Uniform Administrative 

Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards at 2 C.F.R.

Part 200 , which apply to awards in this program. If requested, include TABA funds 

(see Section 5.12) in the Budget Narrative and Justification.

The Budget Narrative and Justification must be attached to the Research & Related 

Budget (Total Fed + Non-Fed) and it does not count against the 15-page limit of the 

Technical Proposal.

Information needed for each budget category is as follows (categories not listed are 

automatically generated by the form or are not relevant to this competition):

(a) Senior/Key Person – At a minimum, the budget justification should include the 

following: name, job title, commitment of effort on the proposed project in terms 
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of average number of hours per week or percentage of time, salary rate, total direct 

charges on the proposed project, description of the role of the individual on the 

proposed project, and the work to be performed.

Fringe benefits should be identified separately from salaries and wages and based 

on rates determined by organizational policy. The items included in the fringe 

benefit rate (e.g., insurance, parking, etc.) should not be charged under another cost 

category.

(b) Other Personnel – Data is requested at the project role level, and not at the 

individual level for Other Personnel. The budget justification should include the 

following: job title, commitment of effort on the proposed project in terms of 

average number of hours per week or percentage of time, salary rate, total direct 

charges on the proposed project, description of the role of the position on the 

proposed project and the work to be performed.

Fringe benefits should be identified separately from salaries and wages and based 

on rates determined by organizational policy. The items included in the fringe 

benefit rate (e.g., health insurance, parking, etc.) should not be charged under 

another cost category.

(c) Equipment Description – Equipment is defined as an item of property that has an 

acquisition cost of $5,000 or more (unless the organization has established lower 

levels) and an expected service life of more than one year. The budget justification 

should list each piece of equipment, the cost, and a description of how it will be 

used and why it is necessary to the successful completion of the proposed

project. Please note that any general use equipment (computers, etc.) charged 

directly to the award should be allocated to the award according to expected usage 

on the project (i.e. prorated cost). Applicants should provide at least two (2) 

quotes, if available, for equipment costing $25,000 or more. If two (2) quotes are 

not available, please provide a statement as to why two (2) quotes are not 

available.

Any items that do not meet the threshold for equipment can be included under the 

Materials and Supplies line item in Section F, Other Direct Costs.

(d) Travel –– For all travel costs, required by the recipient to complete the project, 
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including attendance at any relevant conferences, the budget justification for 

travel should include the following: destination; names or number of people 

traveling; dates and/or duration; mode of transportation, lodging and 

subsistence rates; and description of how the travel is directly related to the 

proposed project. For travel that is yet to be determined, please provide best 

estimates based on prior experience. If a destination is not known, an 

approximate amount may be used with the assumptions given for the location 

of the meeting.

(f) Other Direct Costs – For costs that do not easily fit into the other cost categories, 

please list the cost, and the breakdown of the total costs by quantity or unit of cost. 

Include the necessity of the cost for the completion of the proposed project. Only 

allowable costs can be charged to the award.

Each subaward or contractual cost should be treated as a separate item in the 

Other Direct Costs category. Describe the services to be provided and the necessity 

of the subaward or contract to the successful performance of the proposed 

project. Contracts are for obtaining goods and services. Subawardees perform part 

of the project scope of work. For each subaward, applicants must provide budget 

detail justifying the cost of the work performed on the project.

(h) Indirect Costs – Commonly referred to as Facilities & Administrative Costs, Indirect 

Costs are defined as costs incurred by the applicant organization that cannot 

otherwise be directly assigned or attributed to a specific project. For more details, 

see Section 8.01(9) of this NOFO.

(j) Fee – Profit or fee not to exceed 7% of the sum of the direct and indirect costs must 

be listed in this budget category if included in the proposed budget.

8. Indirect Cost Rate Agreement. If indirect costs are included in the proposed budget, 

provide a copy of the approved negotiated agreement if this rate was negotiated 

with a cognizant Federal audit agency. If a rate has not been established, provide a 

statement to this effect and a computation for the cost in the budget narrative. 

Applicants without an established rate may propose estimated indirect costs at a rate 

not to exceed 40 percent of the total direct costs and will not be required to provide 

further justification if selected for an award. Applicants without an established rate 

who propose a rate exceeding 40% may request negotiation of an indirect cost rate 
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agreement. Any profit or fee requested is not considered a direct cost for the 

purpose of the indirect cost base calculation.

9. SBA Company Registry Form. SBA maintains and manages a Company Registry to 

track ownership and affiliation requirements for all companies applying to the SBIR 

Program. The SBIR/STTR Policy Directive requires each Phase II applicant to register 

in the Company Registry prior to submitting an application. The applicant must 

save its information from the registration in a .pdf document. Attach this document 

to the Research and Related Other Project Information form as described in Section 

8.02.

10. Data Management Plan. Consistent with NIST Policy 5700.002, Managing Public 

Access to Results of Federally Funded Research, and NIST Order 5701.003, Managing 

Public Access to Results of Federally Funded Research”, applicants proposing projects 

that include the conduct of research must include a Data Management Plan (DMP).

All applications for activities that will generate scientific data using NIST funding are 

required to adhere to a DMP or explain why data sharing and/or preservation are not 

within the scope of the project. For the purposes of the DMP, NIST adopted the 

definition of “research data” at 2 C.F.R. § 200.315(e)(3).

The DMP must include, at a minimum, a summary of proposed activities that are 

expected to generate data; a summary of the types of data expected to be generated 

by the identified activities; a plan for storage and maintenance of the data expected 

to be generated by the identified activities, including after the end of the award’s 

period of performance; and a plan describing whether and how data generated by the 

identified activities will be reviewed and made available to the public.

A template for the DMP, an example DMP, and the rubric against which the DMP 

will be evaluated for sufficiency is available on NIST’s Public Access to NIST Research 

Information for Awardees webpage. Please pay particular attention to the 20 

Performance Criteria (PC) that appear in the rubric section and ensure all 20 PCs are 

addressed. 

If an application stands a reasonable chance of being funded and the DMP is 

2

https://www.nist.gov/system/files/documents/2018/06/19/final_p_5700.pdf

3 https://www.nist.gov/system/files/documents/2019/11/08/final_o_5701_ver_2.pdf
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determined during the review process to be insufficient, the program office may 

reach out to the applicant to resolve deficiencies in the DMP. If an award is issued 

prior to the deficiencies being fully rectified, the award will include a Specific Award 

Condition (SAC) stating that no research activities shall be initiated or costs incurred

for those activities under the award until the NIST Grants Officer amends the award 

to indicate the SAC has been satisfied.

Reasonable costs for data preservation and access may be included in the application.

11.Subaward Budget Form. The Research & Related Subaward Budget Attachment 

Form is required if sub-recipients and contractors are included in the application 

budget.

Instructions for completing and attaching subaward budget forms are available by 

visiting the R & R Family section of the Grants.gov Forms Repository and scrolling down 

to the R & R Subaward Budget Attachment(s) Form and selecting “Instructions.”

12. Research & Related Personal Data. Answer the highlighted questions.

Complete and print the form available in the R&R Family Section of the 

Grants.gov Forms Repository and scrolling down to the Research & Related 

Personal Data form. Attach this document to the Research and Related 

Other Project Information form as described in Section 8.02.

13. Current and Pending Support Form. Any application that includes 

investigators, researchers, and key personnel must identify all sources of 

current and potential funding, including this proposal. Any current project 

support (e.g., Federal, state, local, public or private foundations, etc.) must be 

listed on this form. The proposed project and all other projects or activities 

requiring a portion of time of the Principal Investigator (PI), co-PI, and key 

personnel must be included, even if no salary support is received. The total 

award amount for the entire award period covered, including indirect costs, 

must be shown as well as the number of person-months per year to be 

devoted to the project, regardless of the source of support. Similar 

information must be provided for all proposals already submitted or that are 

being submitted concurrently to other potential funders.

Applicants must complete the Current and Pending Support Form, using 
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multiple forms as necessary to account for all activity for each individual 

identified in the PI, co-PI and key personnel roles. A separate form should be 

used for each identified individual.

Applicants must download the Current and Pending Support Form from the NIST 

Grants Management Division Current and Pending Support and reference the 

guidance provided as it contains information to assist with accurately completing 

the form.

14. Compliance with SBIR Program Requirements, Applicant Fraud Awareness Training 

- Certificate of Training Completion. Complete the training at: 

https://www.nist.gov/file/384881. After completion, print and fill out the last page of 

the training presentation. Attach this document to the Research and Related Other 

Project Information form as described in Section 8.02.

15. Letters of Commitment. Letters must be submitted by all funded and unfunded 

entities, including TABA providers, that will have an active role in executing the 

activities outlined in the Project Narrative. Letters of Commitment must address the 

level of participation, qualifications of the personnel who will be actively involved, and 

how successful completion of this project would positively impact their profession or

community. Letters of Commitment must also specify any voluntary committed costshare, including the specific services and/or products to be used in the project. Letters 

of Commitment must be signed by an individual with authority to legally bind the 

organization to its commitment. Letters of commitment do not count against the 

specified page limits.

16. Company Commercialization Report (CCR). Attach a PDF copy of the CCR which 

was completed in your account at Sbir.gov and submit along with your proposal 

(refer to Section 3.01.01 SBA Data Collection Requirement).

8.02 Attachment of Required Application Documents

Items 8.01.1 through 8.01.4 above are part of the standard application package in 

Grants.gov and can be completed through the download application process.

Item 8.01.5, the SF-LLL, Disclosure of Lobbying Activities form, is an optional application 
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form which is part of the standard application package in Grants.gov. If item 8.01.5, the 

SF-LLL, Disclosure of Lobbying Activities form is applicable to this proposal, attach it to 

field 18 of the SF-424 (R&R), Application for Federal Assistance.

Item 8.01.6, the Cover Sheet, Technical Proposal, Commercialization Plan and Phase I 

Final Report, should be attached to field 8 (Project Narrative) of the Research and 

Related Other Project Information form by clicking on “Add Attachment”.

Item 8.01.7, the Budget Narrative and Justification, should be attached to field L (Budget 

Justification) of the Research and Related Budget (Total Fed + Non-Fed) form by clicking 

on “Add Attachment”.

Items 8.01.8, the Indirect Cost Rate Agreement; 8.01.9, the SBA Company Registry 

Form; 8.01.10, the Data Management Plan; 8.01.12, the Research & Related Personal 

Data; 8.01.13, the Current and Pending Support Form; 8.01.14, the SBIR Applicant Fraud 

Awareness Training Certificate of Training Completion; and 8.01.15 Letters of 

Commitment, and 8.01.16 Company Commercialization Report (CCR), must be attached 

by clicking on “Add Attachments” found in item 12 (Other Attachments) of the Research 

and Related Other Project Information form.

Item 8.01.11, the Subaward Budget Form(s), if applicable to the submission, should be 

attached to the Research & Related Subaward Budget (Total Fed + Non-Fed) 

Attachment(s) Form in the application package.

Following these directions will create zip files which permit transmittal of the documents 

electronically via Grants.gov.

8.03 Verifying the Submission and Tracking the Application

Applicants should carefully follow specific Grants.gov instructions at www.Grants.gov to 

ensure the attachments will be accepted by the Grants.gov system. A receipt from 

Grants.gov indicates only that an application was transferred to a system. It does not 

provide details concerning whether all attachments (or how many attachments) 

transferred successfully. Attachment file names should be kept as short as possible due 

to potential file corruption after the addition of extensions by Grants.gov. Applicants will 

receive a series of e-mail messages over a period of up to two business days before 

learning whether a Federal agency’s electronic system has received its application.
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Applicants are strongly advised to use Grants.gov’s “Download Submitted Forms and 

Applications” option to check that their application’s required attachments were 

contained in their submission.

After submitting the application, check the status of your application here: CHECK

APPLICATION STATUS. If any, or all, of the required attachments are absent from the 

submission, follow the attachment directions found above, resubmit the application, and 

check again for the presence of the required attachments.

If the directions found at the Grants.gov Online Help page are not effective, please contact 

the Grants.gov Help Desk immediately. If calling from within the United States or from a

U.S. territory, please call 800-518-4726. If calling from a place outside the United States or 

a U.S. territory, please call 606-545-5035. E-mails should be addressed to 

support@grants.gov. Assistance from the Grants.gov Help Desk will be available around 

the clock every day, with the exception of Federal holidays. Help Desk service will resume 

at 7:00 a.m. Eastern Time the day after Federal holidays.

Applicants can track their submission in the Grants.gov system by following the 

procedures at Grants.gov Track My Application page. It can take up to two business 

days for an application to fully move through the Grants.gov system to NIST.NIST 

uses the Tracking Numbers assigned by Grants.gov, and does not issue Agency 

Tracking Numbers.

8.04 Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management (SAM)

Pursuant to 2 C.F.R. Part 25, applicants and recipients (as the case may be) are required to:

(i) be registered in SAM before submitting its application; (ii) provide a valid unique entity 

identifier in its application; and (iii) continue to maintain an active SAM registration with 

current information at all times during which it has an active Federal award or an 

application or plan under consideration by a Federal awarding agency, unless otherwise 

excepted from these requirements pursuant to 2 C.F.R. § 25.110. NIST will not make a 

Federal award to an applicant until the applicant has complied with all applicable unique 

entity identifier and SAM requirements and, if an applicant has not fully complied with the 

requirements by the time that NIST is ready to make a Federal award pursuant to this 

NOFO, NIST may determine that the applicant is not qualified to receive a Federal award 

and use that determination as a basis for making a Federal award to another applicant.
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9.0 RESEARCH AREAS

The NIST research programs work at the frontiers of measurement science to ensure that 

the U.S. system of measurements is firmly grounded in sound scientific and technical 

principles. Today, the NIST laboratories address increasingly complex measurement 

challenges, ranging from the very small (nanoscale devices for advanced computing) to the 

very large (vehicles and buildings), and from the physical (resilient infrastructure) to the 

virtual (cybersecurity and data science). As new technologies develop and evolve, NIST’s 

measurement research and services remain central to national defense, homeland security, 

trade and innovation.

NIST’s research activities provide industry, academia and other federal agencies with worldclass research capabilities in measurement science that form the foundation of the global 

system of weights and measures and enable innovation. NIST provides measurement tools 

and standards to strengthen U.S. competitiveness and security in the following areas:

Advanced Communications, Networks and Scientific Data Systems

NIST’s Advanced Communications, Networks and Scientific Data Systems activities enable 

secure, reliable, high-speed wireless and wireline communications critical to U.S. 

economic competitiveness, safety and security. NIST measurement science research and 

support for the development of standards accelerates the deployment of next-generation 

communication technologies needed for commercial- scale use of connected vehicles, 

“internet of things” (IoT) applications, drones and future artificial intelligence/machine 

learning-based systems. NIST is committed to helping solve the measurement and 

validation challenges of these fast-moving fields to help the U.S. achieve and maintain 

global leadership in these areas.

Advanced Manufacturing and Material Measurements

NIST has partnered with the U.S. manufacturing sector for more than a century and has a 

proven track record of delivering useful tools and technical assistance to existing 

manufacturers and aspiring start-ups. NIST's Advanced Manufacturing and Material 

Measurements activities provide industry with precision measurement technologies, tests, 

protocols and world-class scientific and engineering knowledge through targeted research 

across a broad portfolio, including advanced materials development, advanced sensing, 

biomanufacturing and smart manufacturing systems. NIST’s efforts in advanced 
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manufacturing and material measurements rely on three major mechanisms: partnerships 

with manufacturers, development of physical and information standards, and development 

of new measurement capabilities.

Cybersecurity and Privacy

NIST’s Cybersecurity and Privacy activities strengthen the security of the digital 

environment through a portfolio bridging foundational and applied cybersecurity research, 

and through the development of publicly available standards and technical guidance. 

NIST’s sustained outreach efforts support the effective application of standards and best 

practices enabling the adoption of practical cybersecurity and privacy. Through internal 

research and collaboration with the private sector, academia, standards development 

organizations, other government agencies and national and international stakeholders, 

NIST addresses the nation’s current and future measurement science needs and is 

responsive to Congressional mandates and Executive Orders.

Fundamental Measurement, Quantum Science and Measurement Dissemination

At the heart of NIST’s mission is the dissemination of the fundamental units of 

measurement (the International System of Units, or SI). NIST determines the definitive 

methods for nearly every kind of measurement employed in commerce and research, 

provides NIST-traceable calibrations, and disseminates standards and best practices 

throughout the nation. Staying ahead of the increasingly challenging demands of U.S. 

industry requires that NIST push the frontiers of measurement science by devising new 

tools and techniques—especially at the quantum scale where the rules of classical physics 

do not apply. Through balanced and coordinated programs, NIST leads the world in 

disseminating the fundamental units of measurement. This leadership in metrology 

advancement directly impacts NIST’s relevance and leadership in measurement services.

Health and Biological Systems Measurements

NIST provides a solid foundation of measurement assurance enabling reproducibility of 

biomedical research results and confidence in clinical decision-making and ensuring the 

efficacy and safety of treatments. As a nonregulatory agency, NIST’s research plays an 

essential role in health and bioscience innovations, including in precision medicine, 

engineering biology, medical imaging, regenerative medicine and our understanding of the 

microbiome and how it affects health. New and improved measurement capabilities 
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advance our understanding of biology and provide the basis for industries to harness this 

information for future medical technologies.

Physical Infrastructure and Resilience

NIST’s Physical Infrastructure and Resilience activities support the safety, interoperability 

and resilience of the nation’s infrastructure at the component, structure and system levels. 

NIST’s research supports the development of building codes making the built environment 

healthier for occupants, more resilient against hazards, and safer for both residents and 

first responders. In collaboration with policymakers, building officials and planning groups, 

NIST produces guides to help communities integrate resilience into their economic 

development, zoning, mitigation and other local planning activities impacting buildings, 

public utilities and infrastructure systems.

Exploratory Measurement Science

NIST’s mission requires deep expertise in a broad range of disciplines. To best position NIST 

to support U.S. technological interests well into the future, it is essential that NIST maintain 

a portfolio of exploratory measurement science research programs. NIST invests in higherrisk and potentially transformative measurement science research to stay on the cutting 

edge of technology trends.
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Appendix A. COVER SHEET

(A fillable version of the Cover Sheet is available at http://www.nist.gov/sbir)

Application to National Institute of Standards and Technology 

(NIST) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program Phase II

2023-NIST-SBIR-02 (April 6, 2023)

Cover Sheet

Name & Address 

of Submitting 

Firm:

Proj

ect 

Title

Principal 

Investigat

or (PI) 

Name

PI Title

PI Phone 

#

PI Email

NIST may verify the following responses with information provided elsewhere in your application or by independent sources.

THE APPLICANT CERTIFIES THAT:

1. It is a small business concern (SBC) and meets the definition as stated in this Notice of 

Funding Opportunity (NOFO).

☐ Yes ☐ No

2. The primary employment of the PI will be with the SBC at the time of award and 

during the conduct of research.

☐ Yes ☐ No

3. A minimum of either two-thirds for Phase I or one-half for Phase II of the research 

will be performed by the SBC as determined by data provided in the Budget 

Narrative. See NOFO Section 1.03.01 for details on funding determination.

☐ Yes ☐ No

4. The applicant and/or PI ☐

has /

☐ has not submitted applications for essentially equivalent work under other Federal 

program

FFOs and ☐ has / ☐ has not received other Federal awards for essentially equivalent 

work. If “has”, what agency? Click here to enter text.

See NOFO Section 3.02.02(12) for additional details that must be provided.

5. The applicant qualifies as a socially and economically disadvantaged SBC and meets 

the definition as stated in this NOFO.

☐ Yes ☐ No

6. The applicant qualifies as a woman-owned SBC and meets the definition as stated in this 

NOFO.

☐ Yes ☐ No

7. The applicant qualifies as a HUBZone-owned SBC and meets the SBA’s definition 

(see http://www.sba.gov/hubzone).

☐ Yes ☐ No

8. Year SBC founded: Click here to enter text.

9. Number of Employees: Click here to enter text.

STATEMENTS:
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10. The applicant will permit the Federal Government to disclose name, address, and 

telephone number of the corporate official of your concern, if your application does not 

result in an award, to appropriate local and State-level economic development 

organizations that may be interested in contacting you for further information.

☐ Yes ☐ No

11. The applicant authorizes contact information and project title to be provided to the NIST 

Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) after awards have been announced. If ‘Yes’ 

your contact information will be provided to NIST MEP. If so, you will be contacted by your 

local MEP to explore business-related support services that could benefit the potential of 

the project you proposed.

☐ Yes ☐ No

Signature of Company Official 

and typed name, title, 

address, telephone number, 

and date

Signature of Principal Investigator

and typed name, title, address, telephone 

number, and date

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (limit to 200 words):

POTENTIAL COMMERCIAL APPLICATION OF THE RESEARCH: (limit to 100 words)

OTHER INFORMATION:

Information contained in unsuccessful applications will remain the property of the applicant. The Federal Government may, however, 

retain copies of all applications. Public release of information in any application submitted will be subject to existing statutory and 

regulatory requirements Applicants are discouraged from submitting proprietary information unless the information is deemed essential 

for proper evaluation of the application. If proprietary information provided by an applicant in a proposal constitutes trade secret, 

proprietary commercial or financial information, confidential personal information, or data affecting national security, it will be treated in 

confidence to the extent permitted by law, provided that the proposal is clearly marked by the applicant as follows:

(A) The following legend must appear on the title page of the proposal:

This proposal contains information that shall not be disclosed outside the Federal Government and shall not be duplicated, used, or 

disclosed in whole or in part for any purpose other than evaluation of this proposal, unless authorized by law. The Government shall 

have the right to duplicate, use, or disclose the data to the extent provided in the resulting award if award is made as a result of the 

submission of this proposal. The information subject to these restrictions are contained on all pages of the proposal except for pages 

[insert page number or other identification of pages that contain no restricted information.]

(End of Legend); and

(B) The following legend must appear on each page of the proposal that contains information the applicant wishes to 

protect: Use or disclosure of information contained on this sheet is subject to the restriction on the title page of this 

proposal.
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The use of any other legend is unacceptable to the Government and may constitute grounds for removing the application from further 

consideration without assuming any liability for inadvertent disclosure.

This collection of information contains Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) requirements approved by the Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB). Notwithstanding any other provisions of the 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 requirements of the PRA unless that collection of information displays a 

currently valid OMB control number. Public reporting burden for this collection is estimated to be 30 minutes per response, including the time 

for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed and completing and reviewing the 

collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions

for reducing this burden, to the National Institute of Standards and Technology, Attn: Jacqueline Gray, 100 Bureau Dr., MS 2200, Gaithersburg, MD 

20899.

OMB Control No. 0693-0072 

Expiration Date: 1/31/2024
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Appendix B. DUE DILIGENCE CERTIFICATION

Firm Name: ___________________________________ Firm EIN (UEI if EIN is unavailable): _______________________

As indicated below this document may contain trade secrets or commercial or financial information that is privileged 

or confidential and is exempt from public disclosure. Consistent with Federal law, the Government shall use or 

disclose such information only for evaluation purposes or in accordance with a financial assistance agreement 

between the submitter and the Government. The Government may use or disclose any information that is not 

appropriately marked or otherwise restricted, regardless of source.

Disclosure Questions

1. Is any owner of the small business concern or covered individual party to any foreign talent recruitment program of 

any foreign country of concern? 

☐ Yes ☐ No If yes, please disclose the name of each owner, officer, or covered individual and the foreign talent 

recruitment program. 

First Name Last Name E-mail 

Address

Role (Owner or 

Covered Individual)

Current 

Country of 

Residence 

Foreign Talent Recruitment 

Program 

2. Is there a joint venture or subsidiary, of your small business concern that is based in, funded by, or has a foreign 

affiliation with any foreign country of concern? ☐ Yes ☐ No If yes, please disclose the name and address of each 

joint venture or subsidiary.

Entity Name Street 

Address

City State Zip Country Relationship (i.e., Joint 

Venture, Subsidiary) 

3. Is your small business concern wholly owned in a foreign country of concern? ☐ Yes ☐ No If yes, please disclose 

the foreign country of concern.

Foreign Country of Concern 
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4. Does your small business concern have any venture capital or institutional investment? ☐ Yes ☐ No If yes, please 

proceed to the next question. If no, please proceed to question 5.

4a. Does the investing entity have a general partner or individual holding a leadership role who has a foreign 

affiliation with any foreign country of concern, including the People’s Republic of China? ☐ Yes ☐ No 

If yes, please populate the table below. If no, please proceed to question 5.

Venture Capital or Institutional 

Investor

Percentage of 

Investment

Type of Investment (e.g., Equity, Debt, or 

Equity and Debt)

☐ Check box if this table contains trade secrets or commercial or financial information this is privileged or 

confidential and exempt from public disclosure.

5. During the previous 5-year period, did your small business concern have any technology licensing or intellectual 

property sales to a foreign country of concern? ☐ Yes ☐ No If yes, please disclose the name and address of the 

institution that licensed or purchased the intellectual property.

Licensee or 

Intellectual 

Property 

Buyer Name

Foreign 

Country of 

Concern 

Street Address City State Zip Country

☐ Check box if this table contains trade secrets or commercial or financial information this is privileged or 

confidential and exempt from public disclosure.

Questions 6 and 7 relate to ANY foreign countries.

6. Does your small business concern have any current or pending contractual or financial obligation or other agreement 

specific to a business arrangement, or joint venture-like arrangement with an enterprise owned by a foreign state or any 

foreign entity? ☐ Yes ☐ No If yes, please disclose the name and address of the enterprise and the nature of the 

business relationship.
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Enterprise or 

Foreign Entity 

Name 

Relationship Type 

(i.e., current or 

pending contractual 

arrangement, 

financial obligation, 

other 

agreement/business 

arrangement, joint 

venture-like 

arrangement) 

Description of Relationship Enterprise 

Owned by 

a Foreign 

State 

(Y/N)

Foreign State/Entity Country 

Name

☐ Check box if this table contains trade secrets or commercial or financial information this is privileged or 

confidential and exempt from public disclosure.

7. Is there any foreign business entity, offshore entity, or entity outside the United States related to your small business

concern? ☐ Yes ☐ No If yes, please disclose the name and address of the entity and the relationship to your small 

business concern. 

Entity 

Name 

Entity Type 

(i.e., 

foreign 

business 

entity, 

offshore 

entity, 

entity 

outside the 

United 

States) 

Description of 

Relationship

Foreign 

State/Entity 

Country 

Name

Street 

Address

City State Zip Country

☐ Check box if this table contains trade secrets or commercial or financial information this is privileged or 

confidential and exempt from public disclosure.
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Certification

I certify to the best of my knowledge and belief that the information contained in this Disclosure of Foreign 

Relationships is true, complete, and accurate. I understand that any false, fictitious, or fraudulent information, 

misrepresentations, half-truths, or omissions of any material fact, may subject me to criminal, civil or 

administrative penalties for fraud, false statements, false claims or otherwise. (18 U.S.C. §§ 1001 and 287, and 

31 U.S.C. §§ 3729-3733 and 3801-3812). 

I understand that the small business concern will be required to repay all amounts received under the award if 

there is a material misstatement that NIST determines poses a risk to national security, or there is a change in 

ownership, change to entity structure, or other substantial change in the circumstances of the small business 

concern that NIST determines poses a risk to national security. (15 U.S.C. § 638(g)).

I further understand and agree that (1) the statements and representations made herein are material to NIST’s 

funding decision, and (2) I have a responsibility to update the disclosures during the period of performance of 

the award if: (i) there is any change to a disclosure required under questions 1-7, 

(ii) there is any material misstatement that NIST could determine poses a risk to national security, or (iii) there is 

a change in ownership, change to entity structure, or other substantial change in the circumstances of the small 

business concern that NIST could determine poses a risk to national security. (15 U.S.C. § 638(g)).

Signature Date__/__/__

Print Name (First, Middle, Last)

Role/Title

Name of Small Business Concern

The Disclosure of Foreign Relationships is a part the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) due diligence 

program under 15 U.S.C. §§ 638(g)(13), (g)(15) and (vv) and is exempt from the Paperwork Reduction Act.
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Relevant Definitions for Due Diligence Certification

Relevant Definitions per the Act (15 U.S.C 638 (e))

(15) Covered individual - the term "covered individual" means an individual who-

(A) contributes in a substantive, meaningful way to the scientific development or execution of a 

research and development project proposed to be carried out with a research and development award 

from a Federal research agency; and

(B) is designated as a covered individual by the Federal research agency concerned; 

(16) Foreign affiliation - the term "foreign affiliation" means a funded or unfunded academic, professional, or 

institutional appointment or position with a foreign government or government-owned entity, whether fulltime, part-time, or voluntary (including adjunct, visiting, or honorary);

(17) Foreign Country of Concern - the term "foreign country of concern" means the People's Republic of China, 

the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation, the Islamic Republic of Iran, or any other 

country determined to be a country of concern by the Secretary of State;

(18) Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment Program - the term "malign foreign talent recruitment program" has 

the meaning given such term in section 19237 of title 42; (see appendix)

(19) Federally funded award - the term "federally funded award" means a Phase I, Phase II (including a Phase II 

award under subsection (cc)), or Phase III SBIR or STTR award made using a funding agreement.

Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment Program Definition

(4) Malign foreign talent recruitment program (42 USC 19237, as October 20, 2022)

The term "malign foreign talent recruitment program" means-

(A) any program, position, or activity that includes compensation in the form of cash, in-kind 

compensation, including research funding, promised future compensation, complimentary foreign travel, 

things of non de minimis value, honorific titles, career advancement opportunities, or other types of 

remuneration or consideration directly provided by a foreign country at any level (national, provincial, or 

local) or their designee, or an entity based in, funded by, or affiliated with a foreign country, whether or 

not directly sponsored by the foreign country, to the targeted individual, whether directly or indirectly 

stated in the arrangement, contract, or other documentation at issue, in exchange for the individual-

(i) engaging in the unauthorized transfer of intellectual property, materials, data products, or other 

nonpublic information owned by a United States entity or developed with a Federal research and 

development award to the government of a foreign country or an entity based in, funded by, or 

affiliated with a foreign country regardless of whether that government or entity provided support for 

the development of the intellectual property, materials, or data products;

(ii) being required to recruit trainees or researchers to enroll in such program, position, or activity;

(iii) establishing a laboratory or company, accepting a faculty position, or undertaking any other 

employment or appointment in a foreign country or with an entity based in, funded by, or affiliated 

with a foreign country if such activities are in violation of the standard terms and conditions of a Federal 

research and development award;

(iv) being unable to terminate the foreign talent recruitment program contract or agreement except 

in extraordinary circumstances;

(v) through funding or effort related to the foreign talent recruitment program, being limited in the 
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capacity to carry out a research and development award or required to engage in work that would 

result in substantial overlap or duplication with a Federal research and development award;

(vi) being required to apply for and successfully receive funding from the sponsoring foreign 

government's funding agencies with the sponsoring foreign organization as the recipient;

(vii) being required to omit acknowledgment of the recipient institution with which the individual is 

affiliated, or the Federal research agency sponsoring the research and development award, contrary to 

the institutional policies or standard terms and conditions of the Federal research and development 

award;

(viii) being required to not disclose to the Federal research agency or employing institution the 

participation of such individual in such program, position, or activity; or

(ix) having a conflict of interest or conflict of commitment contrary to the standard terms and 

conditions of the Federal research and development award; and

(B) a program that is sponsored by-

(i) a foreign country of concern or an entity based in a foreign country of concern, whether or not 

directly sponsored by the foreign country of concern;

(ii) an academic institution on the list developed under section 1286(c)(8) of the John S. McCain 

National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 (10 U.S.C. 2358 note; 1 Public Law 115–232)4; or

(iii) a foreign talent recruitment program on the list developed under section 1286(c)(9) of the John S. 

McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 (10 U.S.C. 2358 note; 1 Public Law 

115–232).

4

10 USC Subtitle A, PART V, Subpart E: Research and Engineering (house.gov)
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Appendix C. CERTIFICATIONS

SBIR Funding Agreement Certification (at time of award)

All small businesses that are selected for award of an SBIR funding agreement must complete 

this certification at the time of award and any other time set forth in the funding agreement 

that is prior to performance of work under this award. This includes checking all of the boxes 

and having an authorized officer of the awardee sign and date the certification each time it is 

requested.

Please read carefully the following certification statements. The Federal government relies on 

the information to determine whether the business is eligible for a Small Business Innovation 

Research (SBIR) Program award. A similar certification will be used to ensure continued 

compliance with specific program requirements during the life of the funding agreement. The 

definitions for the terms used in this certification are set forth in the Small Business Act, SBA 

regulations (13 C.F.R. Part 121), the SBIR/STTR Policy Directive and also any statutory and 

regulatory provisions referenced in those authorities.

If the funding agreement officer believes that the business may not meet certain eligibility 

requirements at the time of award, they are required to file a size protest with the U.S. Small 

Business Administration (SBA), who will determine eligibility. At that time, SBA will request 

further clarification and supporting documentation in order to assist in the verification of any 

of the information provided as part of a protest. If the funding agreement officer believes, 

after award, that the business is not meeting certain funding agreement requirements, the 

agency may request further clarification and supporting documentation in order to assist in the 

verification of any of the information provided.

Even if correct information has been included in other materials submitted to the Federal 

government, any action taken with respect to this certification does not affect the 

Government’s right to pursue criminal, civil or administrative remedies for incorrect or 

incomplete information given in the certification. Each person signing this certification may be 

prosecuted if they have provided false information.

The undersigned has reviewed, verified and certifies that (all questions must be responded to

by checking the appropriate box):

(1) The Awardee business concern meets the ownership and control requirements set forth in 13

C.F.R. § 121.702.

☐Yes ☐No
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If a corporation, all corporate documents (namely: articles of incorporation and any amendments, 

articles of conversion, by-laws and amendments, shareholder meeting minutes showing officer 

elections, organizational meeting minutes, all issued stock certificates, stock ledger, buy-sell 

agreements, stock transfer agreements, voting agreements, and documents relating to stock options, 

including the right to convert non-voting stock or debentures into voting stock) must include evidence 

that the corporation meets the ownership and control requirements set forth in 13 C.F.R. § 121.702.

☐Yes ☐No ☐N/A Explain why N/A:

____________________________________________

(2) If a partnership, the partnership agreement evidences that it meets the ownership 

and control requirements set forth in 13 C.F.R. § 121.702.

☐Yes ☐No ☐N/A Explain why N/A:

____________________________________________

If a limited liability company, the articles of organization and any amendments, and operating 

agreement and amendments, evidence that it meets the ownership and control requirements set 

forth in 13 C.F.R. § 121.702.

☐Yes ☐No ☐N/A Explain why N/A:

____________________________________________

(3) The birth certificates, naturalization papers, or passports show that any individuals it relies 

upon to meet the eligibility requirements are U.S. citizens or permanent resident aliens in the 

United States.

☐Yes ☐No ☐N/A Explain why N/A:

_____________________________________________

(4) The Awardee business concern has no more than 500 employees, including the employees of 

its affiliates.

☐Yes ☐No

____________________________________________

(5) SBA has not issued a size determination currently in effect finding that this business 

concern exceeds the 500-employee size standard.

☐Yes ☐No

____________________________________________

(6) During the performance of the award, the principal investigator will spend more than 
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one half of his/her time (based on a 40-hour workweek) as an employee of the awardee 

or has requested and received a written deviation from this requirement from the 

funding agreement officer.

☐Yes ☐No ☐Deviation approved in writing by funding agreement officer: %

 ____________________________________________

(7) All, essentially equivalent work, or a portion of the work proposed under this project 

(check the applicable line):

☐ Has not been submitted for funding to this agency or another Federal agency.

☐ Has been submitted for funding to this agency or another Federal agency but has not 

been funded under any other grant, contract, subcontract or other transaction.

☐ A portion has been funded by another grant, contract, or subcontract as described in 

detail in the application and approved in writing by the funding agreement officer.

____________________________________________

(8) During the performance of award, the Awardee will perform the applicable percentage of 

work unless a deviation from this requirement is approved in writing by the funding 

agreement officer (check the applicable line and fill in if needed):

☐SBIR Phase I: at least two-thirds (66 2/3%) of the research.

☐SBIR Phase II: at least half (50%) of the research.

☐Deviation approved in writing by the funding agreement officer: %

____________________________________________

(9) During performance of award, the research/research and development will be performed 

in the United States unless a deviation is approved in writing by the funding agreement 

officer.

☐Yes ☐No ☐Waiver has been granted

____________________________________________

(10) During performance of award, the research/research and development will be 

performed at the Awardee’s facilities with the Awardee’s employees, except as otherwise 

indicated in the SBIR application and approved in the funding agreement.

☐Yes ☐No

____________________________________________

(11) The SBIR Awardee has registered itself on SBA’s database as majority-owned by 

venture capital operating companies, hedge funds or private equity firms.

Yes ☐No ☐N/A Explain why N/A: 
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FY 2023 NIST Small Business Innovation Research Program Phase II

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___________________________________________

(12) The SBIR Awardee is a Covered Small Business Concern (a small business concern 

that:(a) was not majority-owned by multiple venture capital operating companies (VCOCs), 

hedge funds, or private equity firms on the date on which it submitted an application in 

response to an SBIR solicitation; and (b) on the date of the SBIR award, which is made more 

than 9 months after the closing date of the solicitation, is majority-owned by multiple venture 

capital operating companies, hedge funds, or private equity firms).

☐Yes ☐No

(13) The SBIR Awardee will notify this agency immediately if all or a portion of the work 

authorized and funded under this award is subsequently funded by another Federal 

agency.

☐Yes ☐No

(14) I understand that the information submitted may be given to Federal, State and 

local agencies for determining violations of law and other purposes.

☐Yes ☐No

(15) I am an officer of the business concern authorized to represent it and sign this 

certification on its behalf. By signing this certification, I am representing on my own behalf, 

and on behalf of the business concern that the information provided in this certification, the

application, and all other information submitted in connection with this application, is true 

and correct as of the date of submission. I acknowledge that any intentional or negligent 

misrepresentation of the information contained in this certification may result in criminal, civil 

or administrative sanctions, including but not limited to: (1) fines, restitution and/or 

imprisonment under 18 U.S.C. § 1001; (2) treble damages and civil penalties under the False 

Claims Act (31 U.S.C.§ 3729 et seq.); (3) double damages and civil penalties under the Program 

Fraud Civil Remedies Act (31 U.S.C. § 3801 et seq.); (4) civil recovery of award funds, (5) 

suspension and/or debarment from all Federal procurement and nonprocurement 

transactions (FAR Subpart 9.4 or 2 C.F.R. Part 180); and (6) other administrative penalties 

including termination of SBIR/STTR awards.

Signature Date / /

Print Name (First, Middle, Last)

Title

Business Name
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FY 2023 NIST Small Business Innovation Research Program Phase II

Notice of Funding Opportunity 

April 6, 2023

SBIR Funding Agreement Certification (Life-Cycle Certification)

All SBIR Phase I and Phase II awardees must complete this certification at all times set forth in 

the funding agreement (see §8(j) of the SBIR/STTR Policy Directive). This includes checking all 

of the boxes (unless otherwise directed) and having an authorized officer of the awardee sign 

and date the certification each time it is requested.

Please read carefully the following certification statements. The Federal government relies on 

the information to ensure compliance with specific program requirements during the life of the 

funding agreement. The definitions for the terms used in this certification are set forth in the 

Small Business Act, the SBIR/STTR Policy Directive, and also any statutory and regulatory

provisions referenced in those authorities.

If the funding agreement officer believes that the business is not meeting certain funding 

agreement requirements, the agency may request further clarification and supporting 

documentation in order to assist in the verification of any of the information provided.

Even if correct information has been included in other materials submitted to the Federal 

government, any action taken with respect to this certification does not affect the 

Government’s right to pursue criminal, civil, or administrative remedies for incorrect or 

incomplete information given in the certification. Each person signing this certification may be 

prosecuted if they have provided false information.

The undersigned has reviewed, verified and certifies that (all questions must be responded to by

checking the appropriate box):

(1) The principal investigator spent more than one half of his/her time (based on a 40 

hour workweek) as an employee of the awardee or the awardee has requested and 

received a written deviation from this requirement from the funding officer.

☐Yes ☐No ☐Deviation approved in writing by funding agreement officer: %

(2) All, essentially equivalent work, or a portion of the work performed under this 

project (check applicable line):

☐Has not been submitted for funding to this agency or another Federal agency.

☐Has been submitted for funding to this agency or another Federal agency but has not

been funded under any other grant, contract, subcontract or other transaction.

(3) A portion has been funded by another grant, contract, or subcontract as described in 

detail in the proposal and approved in writing by the funding agreement officer. Upon 

completion of the award the awardee will have performed the applicable percentage or 
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FY 2023 NIST Small Business Innovation Research Program Phase II

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work, unless a deviation from this requirement is approved in writing by the funding 

agreement officer (check the applicable line and fill in if needed):

☐SBIR Phase I: at least two-thirds (66 2/3%) of the research.

☐SBIR Phase II: at least half (50%) of the research.

☐Deviation approved in writing by the funding agreement officer: %

(4) The work is completed and the small business awardee has performed the applicable 

percentage of work, unless a deviation from this requirement is approved in writing by 

the funding agreement officer (check the applicable line and fill in if needed):

☐SBIR Phase I: at least two-thirds (66 2/3%) of the research.

☐SBIR Phase II: at least half (50%) of the research.

☐Deviation approved in writing by the funding agreement officer: %

☐N/A because work is not completed.

(5) The research/research and development is performed in the United States unless a 

deviation is approved in writing by the funding agreement officer.

☐Yes ☐No ☐Waiver has been granted

(6) The research/research and development is performed at the awardee’s facilities by the 

awardee’s employees, except as otherwise indicated in the SBIR application and approved 

in the funding agreement.

☐Yes ☐No

(7) I will notify the Federal agency immediately if all or a portion of the work authorized and 

funded under this award is subsequently funded by another Federal agency.

☐Yes ☐No

(8) I understand that the information submitted may be given to Federal, State and local 

agencies for determining violations of law and other purposes.

☐Yes ☐No

I am an officer of the awardee business concern authorized to represent it and sign this 

certification on its behalf. By signing this certification, I am representing on my own behalf, 

and on behalf of the business concern, that the information provided in this certification, the 

application, and all other information submitted in connection with the award, is true and 

correct as the date of submission. I acknowledge that any intentional or negligent 

misrepresentation of the information contained in this certification may result in criminal, 

civil or administrative sanctions, including but not limited to: (1) fines, restitution and/or 

imprisonment under 18 U.S.C. § 1001; (2) treble damages and civil penalties under the False 
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FY 2023 NIST Small Business Innovation Research Program Phase II

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Claims Act (31 U.S.C. § 3729 et seq.); (3) double damages and civil penalties under the 

Program Fraud Civil Remedies Act (31 U.S.C. § 3801 et seq.); (4) civil recovery of award funds,

(5) suspension and/or debarment from all Federal procurement and nonprocurement 

transactions (FAR Subpart 9.4 or 2 C.F.R. Part 180); and (6) other administrative penalties 

including termination of SBIR/STTR awards.

☐ Yes ☐No

Signature Date / /

Print Name (First, Middle, Last)

Title

Business Name