NIST MEP Disaster Assessment Program

MDAP Amendment Coversheet

AMENDED NOTICE OF FUNDING OPPORTUNITY FOR
NIST MEP DISASTER ASSESSMENT PROGRAM
AMENDMENT
6/18/24
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is announcing an
amendment to its Date original NOFO posted Announcement of Notice of Funding
Opportunity (NOFO) Number 2020-NIST-MEP-MDAP-01, posted on Grants.gov, that
solicits proposals for the NOFO titled NIST MEP DISASTER ASSESSMENT Program
NIST is issuing this amendment (Amendment 1) to make updates to the 2020-NIST-
MEP-MDAP-01 as described below. This Amendment Package will be in effect for the
NOFO Title until either a new NOFO or subsequent amendments are published on
Grants.gov.
Update Section What does the References to the full text of revisions are
revision do? noted and brief text changes are quoted.
1 II.1 Revises CFR Current Text:
2 C.F.R. § 200.24
Revised Text:
the definition of “cooperative agreement” in 2
C.F.R. § 200.1
2 VI.2.a Adds: Current text
Additional None
Information
Added text
Additional Information:
On April 22, 2024, the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) published updates to the OMB
Guidance for Grants and Agreements located in
part 200 of Title 2 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (2 CFR part 200), now called the
OMB Guidance for Federal Financial Assistance.
This updated OMB Guidance for Federal Financial
Assistance (2 CFR) is effective for all awards
issued by DOC/NIST on or after October 1, 2024.
Applicants can find these recent revisions to 2
CFR here:
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2024/0
4/22/2024-07496/guidance-for-federal-financial-
assistance.
3 IV.2.a. Updating CFR Current Text: See 2 C.F.R. § 200.330
(7) f) Revised Text: See 2 C.F.R. § 200.331

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4 VII. Update Federal Current text:
Awarding Wiza Lequin
Agency Phone: 301-975-4395
Contacts since
this is an Revised Text:
ongoing NOFO. Bryana Head
Phone: 301-975-4885
Current text:
Gilbert Castillo
Phone: 301-975-3726
Fax: 301-975-6368
E-mail: gilbert.castillo@nist.gov
Revised Text:
Michael Teske
E-mail: Michael.teske@nist.gov

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MEP-MDAP NOFO

NOTICE OF FUNDING OPPORTUNITY (NOFO)
NIST MEP DISASTER ASSESSMENT PROGRAM
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
• Federal Agency Name: National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST),
United States Department of Commerce (DoC)
• Funding Opportunity Title: NIST MEP Disaster Assessment Program
• Announcement Type: -Amendment
• Funding Opportunity Number: 2020-NIST-MEP-MDAP-01
• Assistance Listing (CFDA Number): 11.611
Dates: Applications for funding pursuant to this NOFO must be received by
NIST no later than 60 calendar days following the date that a Major or an
Emergency Disaster Declaration is declared by the Federal Emergency
Management Agency (FEMA Disaster Declaration) for all or a portion of an
impacted State or of Puerto Rico. NIST expects to complete its review, selection
of successful applicants, and award processing within 90 calendar days of
application receipt. This program is open, and applications will be accepted by
NIST on a rolling basis based on the date of the subject FEMA Disaster
Declaration and subject to the publication of a superseding NOFO. See Section
IV.4. in the Full Announcement Text of this NOFO.
When developing the submission timeline, please keep in mind that: (1) all
applicants are required to have current registrations in the electronic System for
Award Management (SAM.gov) and Grants.gov; (2) the free annual registration
process in SAM.gov (see Section IV.3. of this NOFO) generally takes between
three and five business days but can take more than two weeks; and (3)
applicants will receive e-mail notifications over a period of up to two business
days as the application moves through intermediate systems before the applicant
learns via a validation or rejection notification whether NIST has received the
application. (See Grants.gov for full information on application and notification
through Grants.gov). Please note that a federal assistance award cannot be
issued if the designated recipient’s registration in SAM.gov is not current at the
time of the award.
• Application Submission Address: Applications must be submitted using
Grants.gov. NIST will not accept applications submitted by mail, facsimile, or by
e-mail. See Section IV.6. in the Full Announcement Text of this NOFO.
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• Funding Opportunity Description: NIST invites applications from current
recipients of Manufacturing Extension Partnership Center cooperative
agreements (MEP Centers) to perform assessments of small- and medium-sized
manufacturers (SMMs) in areas subject to a FEMA Disaster Declaration. These
assessments should be designed to identify the impact, if any, to the operations
of the SMMs as result of the subject disaster. MEP Centers receiving funding
pursuant to this program must also assist impacted SMMs in identifying and
accessing Federal, State and local resources to aid in business recovery efforts
and, as appropriate, in the development of a risk mitigation plan for future
disasters. Award recipients will further be required to share the results of their
project, including disaster preparedness lessons learned and SMMs best
practices, with other SMMs, NIST and the MEP National NetworkTM in order to
help the SMM community with future disaster resilience planning efforts. See
Section I. in the Full Announcement Text of this NOFO.
• Anticipated Amounts: NIST anticipates funding individual projects at a level of
approximately $50,000 to no more than $1,000,000 in total funding for each
award. The amount of each award will depend on the nature and severity of each
individual FEMA Disaster Declaration. Projects awarded under this NOFO will
have a budget and a performance period of no more than 18 months. See
Section II.2. in the Full Announcement Text of this NOFO.
• Funding Instrument: Cooperative Agreement. See Section II. in the Full
Announcement Text of this NOFO.
• Eligibility: Eligible applicants for this funding opportunity are recipients of current
MEP Center cooperative agreements. A MEP Center recipient may work
individually or may include proposed subawards to other recipients of MEP
Center cooperative agreements and/or proposed contracts with other
organizations as part of the applicant’s proposal, effectively forming a team or
consortium.
A MEP Center may only submit one funding application for each FEMA Disaster
Declaration and, where an application is submitted with respect to a particular
FEMA Disaster Declaration, such MEP Center may not be included as a
subawardee or as a project participant in any other applications pertaining to the
same FEMA Disaster Declaration. Moreover, a MEP Center that does not submit
a funding application for a particular FEMA Disaster Declaration may only be
included as a subawardee or as a project participant in one funding application
for each FEMA Disaster Declaration.
Priority in selecting applications for funding will be given to applications that
include the meaningful participation, as either the recipient or as a subrecipient,
of the MEP Center for the State in which the FEMA Disaster Declaration pertains.
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Where the same FEMA Disaster Declaration covers multiple States, priority in
selecting applications for funding will be given to applications where MEP
Centers propose working as a consortium to cover all of the impacted States
pursuant to a single project. See Section I.3. in the Full Announcement Text of
this NOFO.
• Cost Sharing Requirements: Non-federal cost share is not required for awards
issued pursuant to this NOFO.
• Public Website and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs). Questions from
applicants pertaining to NOFO eligibility, cost sharing requirements, evaluation
criteria and selection factors, selection process, and the general characteristics
of a competitive proposal will not be considered on an informal basis. Applicants
must submit all such questions in writing to mepnofo@nist.gov.
Answers to such written questions submitted to NIST MEP may be made
available to the public as part of an FAQ document, which willbe periodically
updated on the MEP website at www.nist.gov/mep/mep-disaster-assessment-
program.
• Webinar Information Session: NIST MEP will host a webinar information
session for MEP Centers that are interested in learning about this funding
opportunity. This webinar will provide general information regarding MEP and
offer general guidance on preparing proposals. NIST MEP staff will be available
at the webinar to answer general questions. During the webinar, proprietary
technical discussions about specific project ideas will not be permitted. Also,
NIST MEP staff will not critique or provide feedback on any specific project ideas
during the webinar or at any time before submission of a proposal to Grants.gov.
However, NIST MEP staff will provide information about the MEP eligibility and
cost sharing requirements, the evaluation criteria, the selection factors and
process, and the general characteristics of a competitive MEP proposal during
this webinar. The webinar will be held approximately fifteen (15) to thirty (30)
business days after posting of this NOFO. The exact date and time of the
webinar will be posted on the MEP website at www.nist.gov/mep/mep-disaster-
assessment-program. The webinar will be recorded, and a link to the recording
will be posted on the NIST MEP website. In addition, the webinar presentations
will be available on the MEP website. Organizations wishing to participate in the
webinar must register in advance by contacting NIST MEP by e-mail at
mepnofo@nist.gov. Participation in the webinar is not required in order for a MEP
Center to submit an application pursuant to this NOFO.
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Table of Contents
I. Program Description ................................................................................................ 4
II. Federal Award Information ...................................................................................... 6
III. Eligibility Information ................................................................................................ 8
IV. Application and Submission Information .................................................................. 9
V. Application Review Information ............................................................................. 21
VI. Federal Award Administration Information ............................................................. 27
VII. Federal Awarding Agency Contacts ...................................................................... 31
VIII. Other Information .................................................................................................. 32
FULL ANNOUNCEMENT TEXT
I. Program Description
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is publishing this
Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) pursuant to the Hollings Manufacturing
Extension Program (MEP) Competitive Awards Program, which is authorized by
15 U.S.C. § 278k-1. This program is not a Federal research and development
program, and it is not the intent of this program that MEP Center awardees will
perform systematic research.
1. Program Overview
In general, NIST conducts and supports disaster resilience research in several
areas, including: Structural Performance under the Multi-Hazard Program; the
National Windstorm Impact Reduction Program (NWIRP); Disaster and Failure
Studies Program (DFS); the Wildland Urban Interface Fire Program (WUI); and
National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP).
The MEP Competitive Awards Program authorizes NIST to provide cooperative
agreement funding to current MEP Centers to support projects that will add
capabilities to the overall MEP National Network™, including projects to solve
new or emerging manufacturing problems. In this respect, small- and medium-
sized manufacturers (SMMs) often experience major business interruptions and
longer-term continuity of business operation challenges following a natural or
other major disaster, including:
• Supply chain disruptions: difficulty sourcing goods and materials for
business operations due to material shortages, disrupted information
technology systems, transportation network disruptions and other internal
and external factors;
• Lost Business: loss of customers results in reduced revenues;
• Financial constraints: loss of sales, rising prices in materials and energy;
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• Workforce constraints: short-term and longer-term labor shortages resulted
in decreased production;
• Manufacturing facility infrastructure and/or equipment damage;
• Utilities disruption (i.e., electricity, water); and
• Other internal and external business operation problems.
SMMs are also less likely to be prepared with a disaster resilience plan and/or a
continuity of business operations plan, which in many cases exacerbates the
adverse impacts to the SMM of a natural or other disaster.
NIST MEP Centers are in a unique position to identify and to assess the impacts
to SMMs in areas affected by natural or other disasters and to help such SMMs in
identifying and accessing Federal, State and local resources to aid in business
recovery efforts. MEP Centers are further positioned to share disaster
preparedness and disaster resilience information, including lessons learned and
best practices, with other SMMs, NIST and with the MEP National NetworkTM.
Pursuant to the MEP Disaster Assessment Program (MDAP) and the
requirements contained in this NOFO, NIST MEP invites applications from current
recipients of MEP Center cooperative agreements to perform assessments of
SMMs in areas where a Major or an Emergency Disaster Declaration is declared
by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA Disaster Declaration).
Projects funded by NIST MEP pursuant to this NOFO are intended to add
capabilities and knowledge to the MEP National Network™ in order to help the
SMM community with future disaster preparedness and resilience efforts.
2. Program Requirements
MEP Centers selected for funding pursuant to this NOFO will be expected to, at
a minimum, conduct the following activities:
a. Identify the universe of SMMs located within the geographical area covered
by the FEMA Disaster Declaration. Develop a comprehensive understanding of
those SMMs whose business operations were adversely impacted by the
subject disaster and the reasons for such adverse impacts, as well as those
SMMs that were not or that were only marginally impacted by the subject
disaster and the reasons that such SMMs were not significantly impacted.
b. Assess the condition of adversely impacted SMMs. The assessment
must, at a minimum, include a description of the disaster-related issue(s)
which caused the company to remain at a reduced functional level.
c. Assist adversely impacted SMMs in identifying and accessing Federal,
State and local resources to aid in business recovery efforts. As appropriate,
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provide technical assistance to SMMs in the development of disaster
preparedness and risk mitigation plans to help minimize the impact of future
disasters. MEP Centers must not provide technical assistance or other
services pertaining to business recovery efforts of the SMM with
funding under this program; rather, to the extent that business recovery
services are provided by a MEP Center to an SMM, such services should
be performed pursuant to the MEP Center’s base MEP Center
cooperative agreement.
d. Prepare a detailed project report discussing the results of the project,
including disaster preparedness lessons learned and SMMs best practices in
mitigating the adverse impacts of a disaster. The report and other information
learned through the project should be in a format that lends itself to
dissemination to other SMMs and to the MEP National NetworkTM in order to
help SMM community with future disaster resilience planning efforts. In
addition, the report may be shared by NIST MEP with various NIST Laboratory
Programs charged with disaster resilience and related research. See Section
VI.2.g.1.b.
3. Program Priorities
In cases where the FEMA Disaster Declaration covers a single State, it is a priority
of the NIST MDAP that funded projects involve the meaningful participation, as
either a recipient or as a subrecipient, of the MEP Center for the State in which the
FEMA Disaster declaration pertains. Where the same FEMA Disaster Declaration
covers multiple States, it is a program priority that multiple MEP Centers work as a
consortium to cover all of the impacted States pursuant to a single project. See
also Section IV.2.e. of this NOFO for information on the Selection Factors for this
program.
II. Federal Award Information
1. Funding Instrument
The funding instrument used in this program will be a cooperative
agreement. In accordance with the definition of “cooperative agreement” in
2 C.F.R. § 200.1, it is anticipated that there will be “substantial involvement”
between NIST MEP and MEP Centers receiving funding pursuant to this
program in carrying out the activities contemplated by each federal award
issued by NIST pursuant to this NOFO. The nature of NIST’s substantial
involvement will generally include collaboration between NIST MEP and the
recipient MEP Center organization in more fully developing and executing
the approved scope of work, including assistance to the recipient
organization in understanding and resolving issues pertaining to the
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successful implementation of the Project and in defining the content and
format of program reports and other information dissemination activities.
2. Funding Availability
NIST anticipates funding individual projects at a level of approximately $50,000
to no more than $1,000,000 in total funding for each award. The amount of each
award will depend on the nature and severity of each individual FEMA Disaster
Declaration. Projects awarded under this NOFO will have a budget and a
performance period of no more than 18 months, unless a no-cost award
extension is approved by the Grants Officer during the pendency of the subject
award.
3. Award Kick-off.
Recipients should anticipate attending a video kick-off conference which will be
held within 15 calendar days after the award start date. The kick-off conference
will typically take between 3 and 4 hours and must be attended by key project
personnel. Representatives from key subrecipients and other key strategic
partners may also attend the kick-off conference.
4. MEP National Network Meetings.
NIST MEP typically organizes MEP National Network meetings up to two times
per year to share best practices, and to discuss new and emerging trends and
additional topics of interest. These meetings are planned throughout the United
States and typically involve 2-3 days of resource time and associated travel
costs for each meeting. One key representative from the lead MEP Center and
other appropriate partners/collaborators should attend these meetings.
Applicants must include travel and related costs for at least 1 MEP National
Network meeting in during the life of project. These costs must also be
reflected in the budget tables and budget narratives which are submitted as
part of the Budget Narrative and Justification. (See Section IV.2.a.(7).e). of this
NOFO). In the event that travel and related costs for the MEP Center
representative are already accounted for under another MEP award, the
applicant should note this in the budget narrative and should not include travel
and related costs in the budget.
Project personnel will be expected to actively participate during these
meetings and freely share lessons learned regarding the details of the project
and attributes conducive to transferring knowledge to other MEP Centers for
the benefit of small U.S. manufacturers.
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Recipients will be required to provide detailed analysis of the lessons learned
through these projects under Section VI.2.g.1.b. Performance (Technical)
Reports. These analyses will include, but are not limited to: attributes,
participant roles, planning of the intended approach, root cause(s) for
success/failures, recommendations for how the outcomes of the project might
inform expansion of the intended goals.
5. Indirect (F&A) Costs.
NIST will reimburse applicants for proposed indirect (F&A) costs in
accordance with 2 C.F.R. § 200.414. Applicants proposing indirect (F&A)
costs must follow the application requirements set forth in Section IV.2.b.(8)
of this NOFO.
III. Eligibility Information
1. Eligible Applicants
Eligible applicants for this funding opportunity are recipients of current MEP
Center cooperative agreements. A MEP Center recipient may work individually
or may include proposed subawards to other recipients of MEP Center
cooperative agreements and/or proposed contracts with other organizations as
part of the applicant’s proposal, effectively forming a team or consortium.
A MEP Center may only submit one funding application for each FEMA Disaster
Declaration and, where an application is submitted with respect to a particular
FEMA Disaster Declaration, such MEP Center may not be included as a
subawardee or as a project participant in any other applications pertaining to the
same FEMA Disaster Declaration. Moreover, a MEP Center that does not submit
a funding application for a particular FEMA Disaster Declaration may only be
included as a subawardee or as a project participant in one funding application
for such FEMA Disaster Declaration.
Priority in selecting applications for funding will be given to applications that
include the meaningful participation, as either the recipient or as a subrecipient,
of the MEP Center for the State in which the FEMA Disaster Declaration pertains.
Where the same FEMA Disaster Declaration covers multiple States, priority in
selecting applications for funding may be given to applications where MEP
Centers propose working as a consortium to cover all of the impacted States
pursuant to a single project.
2. Cost Sharing or Matching. Non-Federal cost sharing is not required for
awards issued pursuant to this NOFO.
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3. Program Income. For the purposes of this program, applicants should not
budget program income as non-federal cost share. Rather the recipient MEP
Center and any subrecipients of this award must expend all program income (as
defined in 2 C.F.R. § 200.307) generated pursuant to this project by using the
"additive method" under 2 C.F.R. § 200.307(e)(2), with any excess program
income to be disposed of pursuant to the “deductive method” under 2 C.F.R. §
200.307(e)(1). In addition, the recipient must properly account for and report on
the Form SF-425 all program income generated pursuant to the project, including
program income generated by subrecipients.
4. Prohibition on Profit and Fees. A profit, fee, or other incremental charge above
actual cost is not an allowable cost under this program.
5. No Double Charging Against other NIST/MEP Awards. Costs charged
against awards issued pursuant to this NOFO, whether paid by federal or non-
federal funds, may not also be charged as costs against any other NIST/MEP
award (i.e., no double-billing of costs). In addition, NIST/MEP funding provided
by a MEP Center to another MEP Center or other collaborator may not be used
by such MEP Center or collaborator as a non-federal cost share contribution for
a MEP Center or collaborator award (i.e., federal funds may not be used as
cost share for other federal awards).
IV. Application and Submission Information
1. Address to Request Application Package
The application package is available at Grants.gov under Funding Opportunity
Number 2020-NIST-MEP-MDAP-01
2. Content and Form of Application Submission
a. Required Forms and Documents. The Application must contain the following:
(1) SF-424, Application for Federal Assistance.
a. The SF-424 must be signed by an authorized representative of the
applicant organization.
b. SF-424, Item 8.d. Zip/Postal Code field, should reflect the Zip code + 4
(#####-####) format.
c. SF-424, Item 12, should list the NOFO number 2020-NIST-MEP-MDAP-
01.
d. SF-424, Item 18, should list the total budget information for the duration of
the project.
e. The list of certifications and assurances referenced in Item 21 of the SF-
424 is contained in the SF-424B.
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(2) SF-424A, Budget Information for Non-Construction Programs.
The budget should reflect anticipated expenses for the entire project, considering
all potential cost increases, including cost of living adjustments. The budget
should also include the MEP National Network meetings for the MEP Center as
described in Sections II.3. and II.4., respectively, of this NOFO.
a) The applicant should reflect each year of the project, up to three (3)
years, on the SF-424A form.
b) In Section A, the Grant Program Function or Activity on Line 1 under
Column (a) should be entered as “Manufacturing Extension Partnership”.
The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number in on Line 1 under
Column (b) should be entered as “11.611”. The total budget amount for
the term of the award should be listed in Section A, Line 1, Column (e).
c) Section B, Column (1) of the SF-424A should reflect funds for the first
year of the award. Section B, Column (2) of the SF-424A should reflect
funds for the second year of the award. Section B, Column (3) of the SF-
424A should reflect funds for the third year of the award.
d) Section D requires a breakdown of the first year’s budget by quarter. The
budget estimate for the second year of the award should be entered in
Section E, Line 16, Column (b). The budget estimate for the third year of
the award should be entered in Section E, Line 17, Column (b).
(3) SF-424B, Assurances – Non-Construction Programs. (if applicable)
The SF-424B is required for all applicants that have not updated their System for
Award Management (SAM.gov) entity registration since February 2, 2019 to
include the Federal financial assistance certifications and representations (certs
and reps). If an applicant has updated their SAM.gov entity registration since
February 2, 2019 to include the certifications and representations, then the SF-
424B is not required.
(4) CD-511, Certification Regarding Lobbying.
Enter “2020-NIST-MEP-MDAP-01” in the Award Number field. Enter the title of
the application, or an abbreviation of that title, in the Project Name field.
(5) SF-LLL, Disclosure of Lobbying Activities (if applicable).
(6) Project Narrative.
The Project Narrative is a word-processed document of no more than twenty (20)
pages (double-spaced between lines), which is responsive to the Program
Description (see Section I. of this NOFO) and to the Evaluation Criteria (see
Section V.1. of this NOFO). The projective narrative should contain the following
information:
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• Table of Contents. (Does not count toward the page limit)
• Executive Summary. An executive summary of the proposed project
consistent with the objectives, requirements and priorities of this
program (see Section I. of this NOFO). The executive summary
should include information indicating how each evaluation criterion
(see Section V.1. of this NOFO) and its sub-factors are addressed. A
table can be helpful in providing this information. The executive
summary should not exceed two (2) pages.
Please note, if an applicant’s proposal is selected for funding, NIST
may use all or a portion of the Executive Summary as part of a press
release issued by NIST, or for other public information and outreach
purposes. Applicants are advised not to incorporate information that
concerns business trade secrets or other confidential commercial or
financial information as part of the Executive Summary. See also 15
C.F.R. § 4.9(c) concerning the designation of business information by
the applicant. (Does not count towards page limit).
• Project Approach and Project Execution Plan. A detailed discussion of
the applicant’s approach in planning for and in executing the proposed
project consistent with the objectives, requirements and priorities of this
program (see Section I. of this NOFO). This section should provide a
description of the proposed project plan and execution strategy sufficient
to permit evaluation of the proposal, in accordance with details included in
the proposal Evaluation Criteria (see Section V.1. of this NOFO).
• Project Impacts, Project Evaluation and Project Information
Dissemination. A detailed discussion of the: (i) anticipated impacts
of the proposed project; (ii) methodology for identifying and evaluating
project outcomes; and (iii) dissemination of project learnings
consistent with the objectives, requirements and priorities of this
program (see Section I. of this NOFO). This section should provide a
discussion of the proposed project impacts, proposed project
evaluation and proposed information dissemination activities sufficient
to permit evaluation of the proposal in accordance with the Evaluation
Criteria for this program (see Section V.1. of this NOFO).
Applicants should identify in this section specific project taskings,
measurable milestones and outcomes resulting from the proposed
project, as well as a methodology for identifying and analyzing project
outcomes. Applicants must also provide details about approaches for
sharing lessons learned and best practices resulting from the project,
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including information dissemination sharing to and with SMMs and the
MEP National Network.
• Project Management and Project Budget. The applicant should specify
plans for the proper and efficient organization, staffing, and management
(including but not limited to the key personnel) see Section IV.2.a.(7) a) of
the proposed project). Applicants should also demonstrate the relevance
and cost effectiveness of the proposed project budget to meeting the
program objectives, requirements and priorities of this program (see
Section I. of this NOFO). This section should provide a description of the
proposed project sufficient to permit evaluation of the proposed project
management structure and proposed project budget in accordance with
the Evaluation Criteria for this program (see Section V.1. of this NOFO).
(7) Budget Narrative and Justification.
(Does not count toward the page limit). In addition to the SF-424A form (see
section IV.2.a.(2) of this NOFO), applicants must provide a detailed budget
table and budget narrative for the proposed period of performance, fully
explaining and justifying all proposed project funding (both revenue and
expenses) in accordance with applicable federal cost principles.
All applicants are required to use the MEP budget templates when submitting a
Budget workbook and a budget summary table. The budget should reflect
anticipated expenses for the entire project, considering all potential cost
increases, including cost of living adjustments. In the budget narrative, the
recipient should provide adequate information to support the costs identified in
each category of the budget table. For example, providing the annual salary
and the percentage of time dedicated to the project by personnel to
demonstrate the total cost of that individual; providing the airfare, lodging, per
diem, number of days and number of travelers for each proposed trip; and
identifying anticipated subaward/contract amounts, the sub
awardees/contractors, to the extent known at the time of application, and a
detailed description of the purpose of each subaward/contract. Applicants must
also include staff, travel and related expenses for any anticipated System-Wide
meetings described in Sections II.3. and II.4. of this NOFO in the budget tables
and budget narratives. A suggested budget table and budget narrative
template are available on the MEP website www.nist.gov/mep/mep-disaster-
assessment-program .
The Budget Narrative and Justification must clearly identify whether the applicant
or any of its subrecipients anticipate generating program income pursuant to the
proposed project (e.g., client service fees, etc.). If program income is anticipated
under the project, the applicant must identify the anticipated amount of program
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income as part of the overall project budget (including subrecipient budgets) and
must budget for the expenditure of such program income using the "additive
method," with any excess program income to be disposed of pursuant to the
“deductive method.” For purposes of this program, applicants should not budget
program income as non-federal cost share.
This section will be evaluated in accordance with the Budget Narrative evaluation
criteria (see Section V.1.g. of this NOFO). It will also be reviewed to determine if
all costs are reasonable, allocable, and allowable under 2 C.F.R. Part 200
Subpart E, Cost Principles.
Information needed for each category is as follows:
a) Key Personnel – At a minimum, the budget justification should include the
following: name, 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 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., health 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.
c) 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.
d) 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
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project. 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.
e) Travel - For all travel costs, required by the recipient to complete the
project, 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. As
described in Section II.4. of this NOFO, Applicants must include travel
and related costs for at least 1 MEP National Network meeting in during
the life of project. In the event that travel and related costs for the MEP
Center representative are already accounted for under another MEP
award, the applicant should note this in the budget narrative and should
not include travel and related costs in the budget.
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 for
the primary benefit of the contracting party and are for services incidental
to the project. Subawardees perform part of the project scope of work.
See 2 C.F.R. § 200.331.
Applicants must use the MEP SRA-TPC table template included as part of
the Budget and Narrative template. For each subaward, applicants must
also provide budget detail justifying the cost of the work performed on the
project.
g) Indirect Costs – Commonly referred to as Facilities & Administrative
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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 IV.2.b.(8) of this NOFO.
(8) Indirect Cost Rate Agreement.
(Does not count towards page limit.) 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 the rate was not established
by a cognizant Federal audit agency, provide a statement to this effect. If the
successful applicant includes indirect costs in the budget and has not established
an indirect cost rate with a cognizant Federal audit agency, the applicant will be
required to obtain such a rate in accordance with Section B.06 of the Department
of Commerce Financial Assistance Standard Terms and Conditions, dated April
30, 2019.
(9) Current and Pending Support Form.
(Does not count towards page limit.) 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 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
website at https://www.nist.gov/oaam/grants-management-division/current-and-
pending-support and reference the guidance provided as it contains information
to assist with accurately completing the form.
(10) Table of Abbreviations and Acronyms.
(Does not count toward the page limit). An alphabetical list of all
abbreviations and acronyms, and their meaning, should be included.
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(11) Table of Funded Project Participants and Unfunded Informal
Collaborators.
(Does not count toward the page limit). Provide a table that identifies all
organizations that will participate in and contribute to the project, if funded,
known at the time of the application submission. The table should consist of an
alphabetically ordered list, by organization, of all Funded Project Participants
and all Unfunded Informal Collaborators. The table should include the
organization’s name, address, administrative role, scope of work (funded
participants only) and proposed funding amount (funded participants only).
Administrative roles are: applicant, subrecipient, or contractor for funded
participants; or collaborator if they will not receive funding.
(12) Bibliographic List of References.
(Does not count toward the page limit). A complete bibliographic listing of all
references used within the application should be included.
(13) Resumes of Key Personnel.
(Do not count toward the page limit but are limited to one-page each). One-
page resumes of no more than five key personnel from each participating
organization may be included; these do not count toward the page limit. Any
information beyond one page for each resume and any additional resumes
submitted will not be considered.
(14) Required Letters of Commitment.
(Do not count toward the page limit). Each application must include a letter of
commitment from an authorized representative of: (i) the MEP Center
applicant; and from (ii) other MEP Centers that will be participating in the
project. The letter of commitment should discuss the scope of work of the
subject MEP Center and its relevance to the proposed project.
B. Attachment of Required Documents
Items in Section IV.2.a.(1) though 2.a.(5) above are part of the standard
application package in Grants.gov and can be completed through the
download application process.
Items in Section IV.2.a.(6) through 2.a.(14) above must be completed and
attached by clicking on “Add Attachments” found in item 15 of the SF-424,
Application for Federal Assistance. This will create a zip file that allows for
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transmittal of the documents electronically via Grants.gov.
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. 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.
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:
https://www.grants.gov/help/html/help/index.htm#t=GetStarted%2FGetStarted.htm
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 the Grants.gov site (http://go.usa.gov/cjamz). 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.
C. Application Format
(1) Paper, Email, and Facsimile (fax) Submissions. Will not be accepted.
(2) Figures, Graphs, Images, and Pictures. Should be of a size that is easily
readable or viewable and may be displayed in landscape orientation. Any figures,
graphs, images, or pictures will count toward the page limits for the Project
Narrative.
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(3) Font. Easy to read font (11-point minimum). Smaller type may be used in figures
and tables but must be clearly legible.
(4) Page Limit. The Project Narrative is limited to twenty (20) pages double spaced,
noting the limit of two (2) pages for the Executive Summary. Resumes are not
included in the page count of the Project Narrative. However, if resumes are
included, resumes must be a maximum of two (2) pages each.
(5) Page Limit Exclusions:
SF-424, Application for Federal Assistance;
SF-424A, Budget Information for Non-Constructions Programs;
SF-424B, Assurances – Non-Construction Programs;
CD-511, Certification Regarding Lobbying;
SF-LLL, Disclosure of Lobbying Activities;
Budget Narrative and Justification;
Indirect Cost Rate Agreement; and
Current and Pending Support Form.
(6) Page Layout. The Proposal must be in portrait orientation.
(7) Page size. 21.6 centimeters by 27.9 centimeters (8 ½ inches by 11 inches).
(8) Page numbering. Number pages sequentially.
(9) Application language. English. All documents must be in English, including but
not limited to the initial application, any additional documents submitted in
response to a NIST request, all reports, and any correspondence with NIST.
(10) Typed document. All applications, including forms, must be typed; handwritten
forms will not be accepted.
D. Application Replacement Pages. Applicants may not submit replacement pages
and/or missing documents once an application has been submitted. Any revisions
must be made by submission of a new application that must be received by NIST
by the submission deadline.
E. Pre-Applications. Pre-applications will not be accepted under this NOFO.
F. 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.
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3. Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management (SAM).
Pursuant to 2 C.F.R. part 25, applicants and recipients 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.
4. Submission Dates and Times. Applications for funding pursuant to this NOFO must
be received by NIST no later than 60 calendar days following the date that a Major or
an Emergency Disaster Declaration is declared by the Federal Emergency
Management Agency (FEMA Disaster Declaration) for all or a portion of an impacted
State or of Puerto Rico. This program is open, and applications will be accepted by
NIST on a rolling basis based on the date of the subject FEMA Disaster Declaration
and subject to the publication of a superseding NOFO.
When developing the submission timeline, please keep in mind that: (1) all applicants
are required to have current registrations in the electronic System for Award
Management (SAM.gov) and Grants.gov; (2) the free annual registration process in
SAM.gov (see Section IV.3. of this NOFO) generally takes between three and five
business days but can take more than two weeks; and (3) applicants will receive e-
mail notifications over a period of up to two business days as the application moves
through intermediate systems before the applicant learns via a validation or rejection
notification whether NIST has received the application. (See Grants.gov for full
information on application and notification through Grants.gov). Please note that a
federal assistance award cannot be issued if the designated recipient’s registration in
SAM.gov is not current at the time of the award.
NIST expects to complete its review, selection of successful applicants, and award
processing within 90 days of application receipt.
5. Intergovernmental Review.
Applications under this Program are not subject to Executive Order 12372.
6. How to Submit an Application.
A. Applications must be submitted electronically.
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(1) Applications must be submitted via Grants.gov.
(a) Applicants should carefully follow specific Grants.gov instructions to
ensure that all 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. For
further information or questions regarding applying electronically for the
2020-NIST-MEP-MDAP-01 announcement, contact the Grants.gov Help
Desk at 800-518-4726.
(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
electronically. The typical registration process takes three to five business
days. If problems are encountered, the registration process can take two
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 (https://www.sam.gov/), as explained on the Grants.gov
Web site (also see Section IV.3. 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 individuals authorized as
organization representatives will be able to submit the 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, except for Federal holidays. Help Desk service will
resume at 7:00 a.m. Eastern Time the day after Federal holidays. For
assistance using Grants.gov, the applicant may also contact
support@grants.gov.
(c) To find instructions for submitting an application on Grants.gov, applicants
should refer to the “Applicants” tab in the banner just below the top of the
Grants.gov home page. Clicking on the “Applicants” tab produces two
exceptionally useful sources of information, Applicant Actions and
Applicant Resources, which applicants are advised to review.
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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.
Applicants should pay close attention to the guidance under Grants.gov’s
“Applicant FAQs,” as it contains information important to successful
submission, including essential details on the naming conventions for
attachments to applications.
All applicants should be aware that adequate time must be factored into
applicants’ schedules for delivery of their application. Applicants are
advised that volume on Grants.gov may be extremely heavy leading up to
the deadline.
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 ascertain whether the application was rejected with errors and
the reasons for the rejection, 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 the
application before the deadline. If the applicant does not correct the errors,
the application will not be forwarded to NIST by Grants.gov.
Refer to important information in Section IV.4. Submission Dates and
Times, to help ensure the application is received on time.
7. Amendments. Any amendments to this NOFO will be announced through
Grants.gov.
V. Application Review Information
1. Evaluation Criteria. The Evaluation Criteria, the Review and Selection
Process, and the Section Factors for this program are set forth below.
Reviewers will evaluate how well the applicant’s proposed approach will
achieve the program objectives, requirements and priorities for this program
as described in Section I. of the NOFO. NIST will use the following criteria in
evaluating applications and assigning weights, with a maximum score of 100.
a. Demonstration that the proposed project will meet the needs of
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manufacturers in the target population (20 points). Reviewers will
assess the extent to which the applicant’s proposal clearly defines the
SMM target population(s) and how well the proposal demonstrates that the
applicant understands the impact of the disaster to that population.
Reviewers will also assess the extent to which the proposal shows that the
efforts being proposed meet the needs identified and are consistent with
the anticipated impacts of the project.
b. Development/deployment methodology and use of appropriate
technology and information sources (20 points). Reviewers will
assess the extent to which the applicant’s proposed plan for conducting
the assessments and analyzing the data included in the project will be
used to successfully create and/or deploy the outcomes of the project.
Reviewers will also evaluate the applicability of any identified sources of
technologies, training(s), tool(s), technique(s), service(s), and practice(s)
to solve the problems of affected manufacturers.
c. Assessment delivery and implementation mechanisms (15 points).
Reviewers will evaluate the extent to which the mechanisms for delivery
and/or implementation of proposed outcomes effectively serves the target
population(s). Reviewers will also evaluate the extent to which the
proposal clearly describes how the project’s activities and work products
will be integrated into and will be of service to SMMs and to the NIST MEP
National Network. Factors that may be considered include: ease of access
to the outcomes of the project, especially for MEP Centers; methodology
for disseminating or promoting involvement in and/or use of the outcomes
especially within the MEP Network; and demonstrated interest in the
outcomes, especially by MEP Centers.
d. Coordination with other relevant organizations. (10 points). Reviewers
will assess the degree to which the proposed project is coordinated with
and leverages other organizations which are developing or have expertise
with similar projects and outcomes. Factors that may be considered
include: demonstrated understanding of existing organizations and
resources relevant to the proposed project; adequate linkages and
partnerships with existing organizations and clear definition of those
organizations' roles in the proposed activities; and that the proposed
activity does not duplicate existing services or resources.
e. Program evaluation. (10 points). Reviewers will assess the degree to
which the applicant’s plan for evaluation of the effectiveness of the proposed
activity and for ensuring continuous improvement of the technologies,
training(s), tool(s), technique(s), service(s), practice(s) and/or analyses
outcomes of the project. Factors that may be considered include:
thoroughness of evaluation plans, including internal evaluation for
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management control, external evaluation for assessing outcomes of the
activity, and “customer satisfaction” measures of performance.
f. Management and organizational experience and plans (15 points).
Reviewers will assess the degree to which the applicant’s plans for proper
organization, staffing, and management of the implementation process
describe key personnel’s experience and education relevant to the
project(s) proposed; management structure and organizational roles are
aligned to plan, direct, monitor, organize and control the monetary
resources of the proposed project(s); and organizational structure that
flows logically from the specified approach to the market and use of
technologies, training(s), tool(s), technique(s), service(s), practice(s)
and/or analyses outcomes of the project.
g. Financial Plan (10 points). Reviewers will assess the suitability and focus
of the applicant’s budget. It is expected that the amount of award funding
that is applied to direct project activity costs should be maximized and
allocated among participating MEP Centers to appropriately support the
achievement of project tasking, goals, and objectives. The reviewers will
consider the extent to which the proposed budget projections are
reasonable and appropriate for the scale of effort to be undertaken by the
applicant. The reviewers will also consider the extent to which the proposal
explains the rationale for each of the budgeted items, including
assumptions the applicant used in budgeting for the overall project, and the
proposed budget is aligned to support the execution of the proposed project
consistent with the goals, objectives and priorities of this program.
2. Review and Selection Process
Proposals, reports, documents and other information related to applications
submitted to NIST and/or relating to financial assistance awards issued by NIST
will be reviewed and considered by Federal employees, or non-Federal
personnel who have entered into conflict of interest and confidentiality
agreements covering such information.
a. Initial Administrative Review of Applications. All applications received in
response to this NOFO will be reviewed as received to determine whether
they are eligible, complete, and responsive to this NOFO and aligned with
the program objectives, requirements and priorities as described in the
Program Description (see Section I. of this NOFO). Applications
determined to be ineligible, incomplete, and/or non- responsive will not be
reviewed by MEP. However, NIST, in its sole discretion, may continue the
review process for an application that is missing non-substantive
information which may easily be rectified or cured.
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b. Full Review of Eligible, Complete, and Responsive Applications.
Applications that are determined to be eligible, complete, and responsive to
this NOFO will proceed for full reviews in accordance with the review and
selection process described below. For FEMA Disaster Declarations covering
only one State or Puerto Rico, NIST MEP will evaluate all applications as a
single group. For FEMA Disaster Declarations covering multiple States, NIST
MEP will first evaluate for funding suitability those applications where MEP
Centers propose working as a consortium to cover all of the impacted States
pursuant to a single project and will only evaluate applications covering a
single State if none of the single project applications merit NIST MEP funding.
c. Merit Review. Each application will be reviewed by at least three technically
qualified individual reviewers who will evaluate each application based on the
Evaluation Criteria for this program (see Section V.1. of this NOFO).
Applicants may receive written follow-up questions during the review process
relative to requested clarifications of items contained in the applicant’s
proposal. Each reviewer will provide a written technical assessment against
the evaluation criteria and based on that assessment will assign each
application a numeric score, with a maximum score of 100. The reviewers
may discuss the applications with each other, but scores will be determined
on an individual basis, not as a consensus.
Based on an average of the reviewers’ final scores, applications will be
assigned adjectival ratings in accordance with the following scale:
Fundable (70-100); or
Unfundable (0-69).
For decision-making purposes, applications receiving the same
adjectival rating will maintain a rank order based on the average of the
reviewers’ scores – both within the particular adjectival ranking, as well
as overall.
The Subject Matter Expert, who will be a NIST MEP federal employee,
will review the reviewers’ final scores, written technical comments and
the final ranking of the proposals, and will provide a written
recommendation to the Selecting Official concerning the funding of
awards under this NOFO. The Subject Matter Expert may recommend
to the Selecting Official that awards be made out of rank order based
upon one or more of the selection factors described in Section V.2.e. of
this NOFO or that no applications be recommended for funding.
d. Selection. The Selecting Official is the Director of NIST MEP or designee.
The Selecting Official makes the final recommendation to the NIST Grants
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Officer regarding the funding of applications under this NOFO. The Selecting
Official shall be provided all applications, all scores and all technical
assessments by the reviewers, a written funding recommendation from the
SME, and all information obtained from the applicants during the review,
evaluation, and negotiation processes.
The Selecting Official shall generally select and recommend the most
meritorious application(s) for award(s) based upon the rank order of the
applications. The Selecting Official retains the discretion to select and
recommend an application out of order based on the Selection Factors (see
Section V.2.e. of this NOFO) or not to recommend any applications for
funding.
The Selecting Official will make final award recommendations to the NIST
Grants Officer. The Selecting Official will be provided all applications, all the
scores and technical assessments of the reviewers, and all information
obtained from the applicants during the evaluation, review and negotiation
processes. The Selecting Official shall generally select and recommend the
most meritorious application for an award based upon the final rank order of
the applications and the recommendation of the Subject Matter Expert. The
Selecting Official retains the discretion to select and recommend an
application out of order based on the Selection Factors for this program (see
Section V.2.e. of this NOFO) or to select and recommend no applications for
funding. The Selecting Official’s recommendation to the Grants Officer shall
set forth the bases for the selection decisions.
e. Selection Factors.
The Selection Factors for this program are:
i. Relevance of the proposed project to the overall objectives and
priorities of this program (see Section I of this NOFO);
ii. Diversity of geography in the awarding of MEP funding, as
well diversity in awarding MEP funding to multiple MEP
Centers;
iii. Reviewers' evaluations, including technical comments, and the Subject
Matter Expert recommendation;
iv. Whether the proposed project duplicates other projects
funded by the Department of Commerce or by other Federal
agencies; and
v. Availability of Federal funds.
f. Pre-Award Negotiations. NIST reserves the right to negotiate the budget
costs with any applicant selected to receive an award, which may include
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requesting that the applicant removes certain costs. In addition, NIST may
request that successful applicants modify objectives or work plans and
provide supplemental information required by the agency prior to award.
NIST may select some, all, or none of the applications, or part(s) of any
application. In some cases, NIST may ask applicants to consider combining
projects. The final approval of selected applications and issuance of awards
is the responsibility of the NIST Grants Officer. The award decisions of the
NIST Grants Officer are final.
g. 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
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 special conditions that correspond to the degree of
risk posed by the applicant should be applied to an award.
3. Anticipated Announcement and Award Date
Review of applications, selection of successful applicants, and award
processing is expected to be completed within 90 calendar days of receipt of a
complete application.
4. Additional Information
a. Notification to Unsuccessful Applicants. Unsuccessful applicants will
be notified by e-mail and will have the opportunity to receive a debriefing
after the opportunity is officially closed. Applicants interested in a debrief
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must make such request in writing within 10 business days of the email
notification. The program office will then work with the unsuccessful
applicant in arranging a date and time of the debrief.
b. Retention of Unsuccessful Applications. Unsuccessful applications will
be retained in accordance with the General Record Schedule 1.2/021.
VI. Federal Award Administration Information
1. Federal Award Notices. Successful applicants will receive an award
package from the NIST Grants Officer.
2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements
a. Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles and Audit
Requirements. 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. Refer to
http://go.usa.gov/SBYh and http://go.usa.gov/SBg4.
On April 22, 2024, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
published updates to the OMB Guidance for Grants and Agreements
located in part 200 of Title 2 of the Code of Federal Regulations (2 CFR
part 200), now called the OMB Guidance for Federal Financial
Assistance. This updated OMB Guidance for Federal Financial Assistance
(2 CFR) is effective for all awards issued by DOC/NIST on or after
October 1, 2024. Applicants can find these recent revisions to 2 CFR
here: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2024/04/22/2024-
07496/guidance-for-federal-financial-assistance.
b. Department of Commerce Financial Assistance Standard Terms
and Conditions. The Department of Commerce will apply to each
award in this program, the Financial Assistance Standard Terms and
Conditions in effect on the date of award. The current version, dated
April 30, 2019, is accessible here. Refer to Section VII. of this NOFO,
Federal Awarding Agency Contacts, Grant Rules and Regulations, if
you need more information.
c. Pre-Award Notification Requirements. The Department of Commerce
will apply the Pre-Award Notification Requirements for Grants and
Cooperative Agreements dated December 30, 2014 (79 FR 78390),
accessible at http://go.usa.gov/hKkR. Refer to Section VII. of this
NOFO, Federal Awarding Agency Contacts, Grant Rules and
Regulations, for more information.
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d. Funding Availability and Limitation of Liability. Funding for the
program listed in this NOFO is contingent upon the availability of
appropriations. NIST or the Department of Commerce will not be
responsible for application preparation costs, including but not limited to
the program’s failure to receive funding or cancellation due to agency
priorities. Publication of this NOFO does not oblige NIST or the
Department of Commerce to award any specific project or to obligate
any available funds.
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e. Use of Government-Owned Intellectual Property. If the applicant
anticipates using any Government-owned intellectual property to carry
out the work proposed, the applicant should identify such intellectual
property. This information will be used to ensure that no Federal
employee involved in the development of the intellectual property will
participate in the review process for that competition. In addition, if the
applicant intends to use Government-owned intellectual property, the
applicant must comply with all statutes and regulations governing the
licensing of Federal government patents and inventions, described in
35 U.S.C. §§ 200-212, 37 C.F.R. Part 401, 2 C.F.R. §200.315, and in
Section C.03 of the Department of Commerce Financial Assistance
Terms and Conditions dated April 30, 2019.
Any use of government-owned intellectual property by a recipient of an
award under this announcement is at the sole discretion of the Federal
Government and will be negotiated on a case-by-case basis if a project
is deemed meritorious. The applicant should indicate within the
statement of work whether it already has a license to use such
intellectual property or whether it intends to seek one.
If any inventions made in whole or in part by a Federal employee arise
in the course of an award made pursuant to this NOFO, the United
States Government may retain its ownership rights in any such
invention. Licensing or other disposition of Federal Government’s rights
in such inventions will be determined solely by the Federal Government
and include the possibility of the Federal Government putting the
intellectual property into the public domain.
f. Supporting Documentation. Prior to award or following the issuance of
an award, NIST may require recipients to provide draft copies of sub-tier
agreements, including subawards and contracts, as well as subrecipient
performance monitoring plans.
g. Reporting
1. Reporting Requirements. The following reporting requirements
described in Sections A.01, Reporting Requirements, of the
Department of Commerce Financial Assistance Standard Terms and
Conditions, dated April 30, 2019, apply to awards in this program:
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a. Financial Reports. The Recipient shall submit an SF-425,
Federal Financial Report, into the MEP’s Enterprise Information
System (MEIS) on a quarterly basis, beginning the third month
after the award start date. Reports will be due within 30 days after
the end of each quarterly reporting period. The Recipient shall
submit a final SF-425 within 90 days after the expiration date of
the award.
b. Performance. (The Recipient shall submit a Technical Report
(completing all required MEIS fields) on a quarterly basis
beginning the third month after the award start date, unless other
reporting intervals and/or due dates are identified by the NIST
Grants Officer pursuant to a Special Award Condition. Reports
are due in MEIS no later than 30 days following the end of each
reporting period. The Recipient shall submit a final
Technical/Quarterly report within 90 days after the expiration date
of the award, and publication citation information as well as links
to publicly available data shall be submitted as soon as they
become available. The final Technical Report should include
a detailed discussion relative to the learning from and results of
the project, including disaster preparedness lessons learned and
SMMs best practices in mitigating the adverse impacts of a
disaster, as described in Section I. of this NOFO. The report and
other information learned through the project should be in a format
that lends itself to dissemination to other SMMs and to the MEP
National NetworkTM. In addition, the report may be shared by
NIST MEP with various NIST Laboratory Programs charged with
disaster resilience and related research.
Technical/Quarterly Report details are accessible on the MEIS
website (https://meis.nist.gov/). Technical progress reports shall
contain information as prescribed in the NIST MEP Reporting
Guidelines (OMB Control Number 0693- 0032). For further
information regarding the NIST MEP Reporting Process, you may
download a copy of the NIST MEP Reporting Guidelines at
www.nist.gov/mep/mep-disaster-assessment-program.
c. Post Client Project Follow-Up. The recipient will be required to
provide client and project data on a quarterly basis (unless
otherwise directed by the NIST Grants Officer) and in a specified
format to the organization identified by NIST MEP in order for post-
project follow-up data to be obtained (OMB Control Number 0693-
0021).
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d. Patent and Property Reports. From time to time, and in
accordance with the Uniform Administrative Requirements set
forth in 2 C.F.R. part 200 and in accordance with other terms and
conditions governing the award, the recipient may be required to
submit property and patent reports.
e. Recipient Integrity and Performance Matters. In accordance
with section 872 of Public Law 110-417 (as amended; see 41
U.S.C. 2313), if the total value of a recipient’s currently active
grants, cooperative agreements, and procurement contracts from
all Federal awarding agencies exceeds $10,000,000 for any
period of time during the period of performance of an award
made under this NOFO, then the recipient shall be subject to the
requirements specified in Appendix XII to 2 C.F.R. Part 200,
http://go.usa.gov/cTBwC, for maintaining the currency of
information reported to SAM that is made available in FAPIIS
about certain civil, criminal, or administrative proceedings
involving the recipient.
2. Audit Requirements. The Department of Commerce Financial
Assistance Standard Terms and Conditions, Section D.01, and 2
C.F.R. Part 200 Subpart F, adopted by the Department of Commerce
through 2 C.F.R. § 1327.101, require any non-Federal entity (i.e.,
including non-profit institutions of higher education and non-profit
organizations) that expends Federal awards of $750,000 or more in the
recipient’s fiscal year to conduct a single or program specific audit in
accordance with the requirements set out in the Subpart. Additionally,
unless otherwise specified in the terms and conditions of the award,
entities that are not subject to Subpart F of 2 C.F.R. Part 200 (e.g., for-
profit commercial entities) that expend $750,000 or more in DOC funds
during their fiscal year must submit to the Grants Officer either: (i) a
financial related audit of each DOC award or subaward in accordance
with Generally Accepted Government Auditing Standards; or (ii) a
project specific audit for each award or subaward in accordance with
the requirements contained in 2 C.F.R. § 200.507. Applicants are
reminded that NIST, the Department of Commerce Office of Inspector
General, or another authorized Federal agency may conduct an audit
of an award at any time.
3. Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006. In
accordance with 2 C.F.R. Part 170, all recipients of a Federal award
made on or after October 1, 2010, are required to comply with
reporting requirements under the Federal Funding Accountability and
Transparency Act of 2006 (Public Law No. 109-282). In general, all
recipients are responsible for reporting sub-awards of $25,000 or
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more. In addition, recipients that meet certain criteria are responsible
for reporting executive compensation. Applicants must ensure they
have the necessary processes and systems in place to comply with the
reporting requirements should they receive funding. Also see the
Federal Register notice published September 14, 2010, at 75 FR
55663 available here http://go.usa.gov/hKnQ.
VII. Federal Awarding Agency Contacts
Questions should be directed to the following:
Subject Area Point of Contact
Programmatic and Technical Questions Bryana Head
Phone: 301-975-4885
E-mail: mepnofo@nist.gov
with ‘2020-NIST-MEP-MDAP-01’ in subject
line
Technical Assistance with Grants.gov grants.gov
Submissions Phone: 800-518-4726
E-mail: support@grants.gov
Grant Rules and Regulations Michael Teske
E-mail:
Michael.teske@nist.gov
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VIII. Other Information
1. Public Website and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs). Questions from
applicants pertaining to NOFO eligibility, cost sharing requirements, evaluation
criteria and selection factors, selection process, and the general characteristics of a
competitive proposal will not be considered on an informal basis. Applicants must
submit all such questions in writing to mepnofo@nist.gov. Answers to such written
questions submitted to NIST MEP may be made available to the public as part of an
FAQ document, which will be periodically updated on the MEP website at
www.nist.gov/mep/mep-disaster-assessment-program.
2. Webinar Information Session: NIST MEP will host a webinar information
session for MEP Centers that are interested in learning about this funding
opportunity. This webinar will provide general information regarding MEP and offer
general guidance on preparing proposals. NIST MEP staff will be available at the
webinar to answer general questions. During the webinar, proprietary technical
discussions about specific project ideas will not be permitted. Also, NIST MEP staff
will not critique or provide feedback on any specific project ideas during the webinar
or at any time before submission of a proposal to Grants.gov. However, NIST MEP
staff will provide information about the MEP eligibility and cost sharing
requirements, the evaluation criteria, the selection factors and process, and the
general characteristics of a competitive MEP proposal during this webinar. The
webinar will be held approximately fifteen (15) to thirty (30) business days after
posting of this NOFO. The exact date and time of the webinar will be posted on the
MEP website at [MEP to insert link]. The webinar will be recorded, and a link to the
recording will be posted on the NIST MEP website. In addition, the webinar
presentations will be available on the MEP website. Organizations wishing to
participate in the webinar must register in advance by contacting NIST MEP by e-
mail at mepnofo@nist.gov. Participation in the webinar is not required in order for a
MEP Center to submit an application pursuant to this NOFO.
3. Personal and Business Information
The applicant acknowledges and understands that 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 non-
Federal 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 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
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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. Sec. 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 Federal Funding Opportunity may be
subject to requests for release under the Act. If 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.
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NIST-MEP-MDAP App Instructions

NOTICE OF FUNDING OPPORTUNITY (NOFO)
NIST MEP DISASTER ASSESSMENT PROGRAM
APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS
REFER TO THE FULL ANNOUNCEMENT: 2020-NIST-MEP- MDAP-01