National Geodetic SurveyGrants Process

Great Lakes Region Height Modernization Consortium

Meeting and Workshop

March 23-24, 2010West Lafayette, Indiana

Renee ShieldsHeight Modernization Manager

NOAA’s National Geodetic Survey

• The overall process

• Grants.gov – “It’s our friend”

• Pre-Award

– Letter of Intent

– Application & Forms

– Negotiations & Re-submission of Forms

• Post Award

– Grants online – “Our other friend”

– Project execution

– Reports

Introduction

Grants.gov“Find and Apply”

Grants Online*NOAA Grants Processing

Applicants

Recipients

GeneralPublic

CorporateNOAA

General Timeline

• Omnibus is published Federal Register Notice FRN• Letter Of Intent (LOI)• Response to LOI• Full Application• Negotiations - Resubmission• Grants Management Division• Legal• NOAA Finance• Recipient

Seeking Grant Opportunities

Basic searchBrowse by categoryBrowse by agencyAdvanced search

E-mail alert notification service

Grants.gov Home Page

Search Screen

Finding Federal Funding Opportunities (FFO)Basic Search

• Find the grant opportunity you are interested in by using the Grants.gov search interface at http://www.grants.gov/search/basic.do. 

• You can conduct a basic or advanced search. 

– Basic search, you can search for information using• Keyword • Funding opportunity number, • Catalog of federal domestic assistance (CFDA)

number. 

Basic Search Screen

Finding Federal Funding OpportunitiesAdvanced Search

– Advanced searches allow you to search by:• Funding opportunity dates• Funding activity category• Funding instrument type• Eligibility• Agency name• Any of the basic search parameters. 

NOTE•Grants.gov also allows an applicant to register to receive e-mail updates as new grant opportunities are added.  •Applicants can also signup to receive e-mail notices of any changes to a specific grant application package(s) or federal funding opportunity announcements.

Advanced Search Screen

Height Modernization FFO

“Mapping” FFOs

Full Announcement Format

I. Funding opportunity descriptionII. Award informationIII. Eligibility informationIV. Application and submission information

– Application package instructions– Content and form of application – Submission dates and times– Intergovernmental review– Funding restrictions

Full Announcement Format Continued

V. Application review informationVI. Award administration information

– Notice of award– Administrative and national policy requirements– Reporting requirements – Government participation

VII. Agency contactsVIII. Other information

All federal agencies are required to follow this format.

Do NGS Grant Competitions include a Letter of Intent (LOI) Process?

• NGS competitions include an LOI process. 

– The Letter of Intent (LOI) process is intended to provide potential funding applicants with information regarding the relevance of their project proposal to NGS objectives in advance of preparing a full proposal. 

– The merit review of LOIs, allows NGS to review and accept only applications that have been invited through the LOI process for further consideration in the application selection and review process.

• PLEASE PAY SPECIAL ATTENTION TO THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE FFO, DUE DATES & TIMES

Standard Evaluation Criteria

1. Importance and/or relevance and applicability of proposed project to the program goals (30 points)

2. Technical/scientific merit (30 points)

3. Overall qualifications of applicants (15 points)

4. Project costs (10 points)

5. Outreach and education (15 points)

Point value may change

How Do I Apply For Funding?

• Grant applications should be submitted electronically using Grants.gov.

• Applicants without Internet access may submit hard copy application packages according to the directions stated in the federal funding opportunity announcement.

SUBMISSION WILL NOT BE ALLOWED IF ONE SECOND AFTER DUE DATE & TIME; GRANT TIMELINES WILL NOT CHANGE

Get Registered

User Roles for Grants.gov

The e-business point of contact (POC) determines who is allowed to submit grant application packages on behalf of an organization.

The authorized organization representative (AOR) has the ability to submit applications on behalf of an organization.

The application author (AA) prepares grant application packages but does not have signature authority to submit the applications.

Your Grants.gov Registration Checklist:I have my organization’s DUNS number

My organization is registered with the Central Contractor Registry

I know my E-Business Point Of Contact (POC)

I have registered with ORC, the Grants.gov Credential Service Provider (CSP)

I have used my CSP-provided Username and Password to register with Grants.gov

I have obtained authorization from my organization’s e-business POC

I have secure access to Grants.gov

I’m ready to begin

This process should take about 3 weeks be prepared

What is a DUNS #?

• A unique nine-character identification number provided by the commercial company Dun & Bradstreet

• Used by OMB to identify organizations that receive grant awards and to track dispersed grants

• Improves statistical reporting of Federal grants

• Only one e-business point of contact can be assigned to each organization's DUNS #

FFO Synopsis

What Forms Are Required to Apply for Grant/Cooperative Agreement Funding?

• SF-424 – Application for Federal Assistance

• SF-424A - Budget Information for Non-Construction Programs

• SF-424B - Assurances for Non-Construction Programs

• CD-511 – Certification Regarding Lobbying

• SF-LLL – Disclosure of Lobbying Activities

• National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Questionnaire

• Project Proposal

• Budget Narrative

After Application Submission

• Reviews– Internal– External

• Each Proposal is Ranked by a ranking system.• Negotiations are conducted with the applicant.• New forms are submitted directly to NGS

New For Submission After Negotiations

• SF-424 Application, SF-424A, Revised project proposal, & budget narrative. Submitted by e-mail to NGS after negotiations to reflect negotiated dollar amount.

• The form(SF-424) requires an original ink signature by the authorized representative.

• Budget narrative must contain detailed budget information consistent information submitted on forms SF-424 and SF-424A.

PreAward – Program Office

• Announce, Receive and Accept application• Obtain merit reviews (3 minimum)• Obtain National Environmental Policy Act review

(CE, EA, EIS)• Complete Federal Program Officer Checklist• Rank and Select or noncompetitively justify

applications for funding • Submit final recommendations• Certify funds availability

Preaward – Grants Management Division

• Review Federal Program Officer Submissions• Complete Grants Management Division Checklist• Perform organizational analysis• Perform cost analysis• Review DOC debt List• Review Governmentwide debarment list

Award – GMD and Other Offices (OIG, OGC, OPA, OLA, Finance)

• Obtain Office of Inspector General clearance• Submit to DOC Federal Assistance Law Division

for legal review• Submit to public affairs for notification• Submit to DOC and NOAA Legislative Affairs

Offices for notification• Electronically Approve award

Post Award – GMD & NOAA Finance

• Obligate Funds in Financial system CBS (two step process)

• Authorize funds in CBS for transfer to Treasury’s payment system

• Certify Funds for payment

Grants Online (GOL) Overview

• Grants Online is now our Best Friend• NGS submits all pre-award documents• NOAA’s Grant Management Reviews pre-awards and forwards

all documentation in the system.• Award process tracked in GOL• Post award monitoring in GOL

Grants Online Welcomes You

What Do We Do In Grants Online

• Applicant– Accepts the award– Submits financial reports biannually – Submits Performance Progress Reports – All award actions are submitted through Grants Online

such common actions:• No cost Time Extensions• Budget Transfers/Program Revisions/Changes in

Scopes of Work

More to Do in Grants Online

• Equipment purchases• Foreign Travel/Foreign Flag carrier• Change Absence of Principal Investigator (PI)• Sub-award/Contract to Federal Agency• Other sub-awards/subcontracts• Carry over of funds• Special Award Condition approval

Award Action Request (AAR) Index Page

Resources

• Grants.gov http://www.grants.gov/

• Forms http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/grants/grants_forms.html

• Grants Online https://grantsonline.rdc.noaa.gov/flows/home/Login/logout.do

• National Geodetic Survey http://www.ngs.noaa.gov/

Additional Resources

1. Obtain a Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number

Call 1-(888) 814-1435 or www.dnb.com/US/duns_update/index.html

2. Register on-line with the Central Contractor Registrytwo identification codes created (Employee Identification

Number or Taxpayer Identification Number needed)www.ccr.gov

www.irs.gov/businesses/small/article/0,,id=98350,00.htmlwww.irs.gov/businesses/small/international/article/

0,,id=96696,00.html

Questions Or Comments

Renee Shields, NGS301-713-3231 x 116

Renee.Shields@noaa.gov“Geodesy without Currency is a Felony”

– Sonita Tiwari