[Federal Register: December 31, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 251)]
[Notices]               
[Page 80369-80371]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr31de08-38]                         

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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Office of the Secretary

 
Announcement of Federal Funding Opportunity

AGENCY: Office of Economic Adjustment, DoD.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces the opportunity to enter into a 
cooperative agreement with the Office of Economic Adjustment (OEA) for 
Research and Technical Assistance (RTA) and invites proposals. The OEA 
is authorized by 10 U.S.C. 2391, to make grants to, or conclude 
cooperative agreements or enter into contracts with, a State or local 
government or any private entity to conduct research and provide 
technical assistance in support of the Defense Economic Adjustment 
Program, and assist communities, businesses and workers responding to 
Defense changes under 10 U.S.C. 2391 and Executive Order 12788, as 
amended. OEA is the Department of Defense's primary source for 
assisting communities that are adversely impacted by Defense program 
changes, including base closures or realignments, base expansions, and 
contract or program cancellations. Awards provided under this 
announcement support the Defense Economic Adjustment Program by: (1) 
Providing analysis and dissemination of information; and (2) support to 
innovative approaches.

DATES: OEA will hold a pre-proposal teleconference on Tuesday, January 
27,

[[Page 80370]]

2009, at 3 p.m. EST in which all interested respondents are invited to 
participate. A completed proposal must be received by OEA no later than 
sixty (60) days after the publication date of this announcement. Any 
proposal received after this time will be considered non-responsive and 
the respondent will not be invited to make a formal application for 
funding. OEA will invite the successful respondent(s) to apply for 
funding under this announcement following its review of proposals and 
determination of eligible respondents, which will occur subsequent to 
the 61st day following publication of this announcement.

ADDRESSES: All interested respondents are to submit a proposal within 
the advertised solicitation period (sixty (60) days). Proposals may be 
submitted to OEA by e-mail, hand-delivery, or postal mail. Send 
submissions to the Director, Office of Economic Adjustment, by mail to 
400 Army Navy Drive, Suite 200, Arlington, VA 22202-4704, by facsimile 
to OEA at (703) 604-5460, or electronically to: rta.submit@wso.whs.mil.
    A pre-proposal teleconference will be held on Tuesday, January 27, 
2009, at 3 p.m. EST to review the goals and objectives of this funding 
opportunity and answer questions from interested respondents. For the 
teleconference number and passcode, interested respondents may contact 
OEA Office of Economic Adjustment, 400 Army Navy Drive, Suite 200, 
Arlington, VA 22202-4704; telephone: (703) 604-6020; fax: (703) 604-
5843; E-mail: daniel.glasson@wso.whs.mil.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Daniel Glasson, (703) 604-6020.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Federal Funding Opportunity Title: Research and Technical 
Assistance.
    Announcement Type: Federal Funding Opportunity (FFO).
    Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 12.615.

I. Funding Opportunity Description

    OEA, a Department of Defense (DoD) Field Activity, is authorized to 
make grants to, or conclude cooperative agreements or enter into 
contracts with, state or local governments or any private entity, to 
conduct research and provide technical assistance in support of its 
program activities under 10 U.S.C. 2391 and Executive Order 12788, as 
amended.
    1. Description of opportunity--Pursuant to the Research and 
Technical Assistance program, OEA is soliciting proposals that will 
result in one or more cooperative agreements to provide economic 
indicators on a recurring basis to certain Defense-impacted locations 
engaged in defense economic adjustment. Currently, OEA works with 
communities/regions experiencing base closure, realignment, and mission 
growth. Implementation of a community's plan to redevelop surplus 
property (base closure) or address public requirements associated with 
mission growth may be impacted by changing economic conditions, 
including, but not limited to, declining home values, rising 
unemployment, labor surplus areas, declining tax revenue, and housing/
business starts. Specifically, OEA is seeking proposals to provide 
information to its program customer base on: (1) Adjusted monthly 
economic data for regions hosting the military installations listed 
below; and (2) a national baseline for identified economic indicators. 
This information will be developed with and for the affected 
communities, and posted on the Internet to further assist OEA's 
community, state and other customers in the coordination and delivery 
of adjustment assistance. OEA desires to have the first set of 
information to the specific communities/regions by Summer 2009, with 
periodic updates to extend through September 2013.
    2. Additional Information--The research and data must be dynamic, 
in that it will be updated on a periodic basis to reflect current local 
economic situations across a portfolio of regions. Respondents will be 
expected to engage the identified communities and provide specific 
information developed by the project directly to the respective 
communities. OEA encourages respondents to consider partnering with 
public, private, and higher education sources for existing economic 
data or techniques for adjusting economic data to reflect local 
conditions.
    3. List of military installations where regional economic data is 
sought--(OEA reserves the right to add to or change this list.)

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                  Base name                              State
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Aberdeen Proving Ground.....................  MD
Andrews Air Force Base......................  MD
Army Reserve Personnel Command St. Louis....  MO
Brooks City Base............................  TX
Buckley Air Force Base Annex................  CO
Cannon Air Force Base.......................  NM
Charles E. Kelly Support Facility...........  PA
Deseret Chemical Depot......................  UT
Eglin Air Force Base........................  FL
Fort Belvoir................................  VA
Fort Benning................................  GA
Fort Bliss..................................  TX
Fort Bragg/Pope Air Force Base..............  NC
Fort Carson.................................  CO
Fort Drum...................................  NY
Fort Gillem.................................  GA
Fort Hood...................................  TX
Fort Knox...................................  KY
Fort Lee....................................  VA
Fort Lewis/McChord Air Force Base...........  WA
Fort McPherson..............................  GA
Fort Meade..................................  MD
Fort Monmouth...............................  NJ
Fort Monroe.................................  VA
Fort Polk...................................  LA
Fort Riley..................................  KS
Fort Sam Houston............................  TX
Fort Sill...................................  OK
Fort Stewart/Hunter Army Air Field..........  GA
Four Lakes Combat Support...................  WA
Galena Forward Operating Location...........  AK
Grand Forks Air Force Base..................  ND
Guam Military Complex.......................  Guam
Kansas Army Ammunition Plant................  KS
Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune/Marine Corps   NC
 Air Station New River/Marine Corps Air
 Station Cherry Point.
Marine Corps Base Quantico..................  VA
Naval Air Station Brunswick.................  ME
Naval Air Station Corpus Christi/Naval        TX
 Station Ingleside.
Naval Air Station Willow Grove..............  PA
Naval Medical Center Bethesda...............  MD
Naval Station Pascagoula....................  MS
Naval Supply Corps School Athens............  GA
Naval Support Activity Crane................  IN
Naval Support Activity New Orleans..........  LA
Naval Weapons Station Seal Beach Concord      CA
 Detachment.
Newport Chemical Depot......................  IN
Onizuka Air Force Station...................  CA
Red River Army Depot/Lone Star Army           TX
 Ammunition Plant.
Redstone Arsenal............................  AL
Riverbank Army Ammunition Plant.............  CA
Rock Island Arsenal.........................  IL
Selfridge Army Activity.....................  MI
Sheppard Air Force Base.....................  TX
Umatilla Army Depot.........................  OR
Walter Reed Army Medical Center.............  DC
White Sands Missile Range...................  NM
------------------------------------------------------------------------

II. Award Information

    OEA is accepting proposals for Research and Technical Assistance 
award(s). Proposals should pertain to the identified areas of interest 
and will be rated on content (relevance and appropriateness to OEA's 
core functions, qualifications of project personnel, responsiveness to 
this announcement, and budget). OEA will invite successful 
respondent(s) to enter into a cooperative agreement under this 
announcement following its review of proposals and determination of 
eligible respondents which will occur subsequent to the 61st day 
following publication of this announcement.

III. Eligibility Information

    Eligible respondents include any State or local government or 
private entity.

[[Page 80371]]

    Eligible activities include research and technical assistance that 
pertains to activities related to the Defense Economic Adjustment 
Program aimed at assisting communities, businesses, and workers 
affected by Defense changes under 10 U.S.C. 2391 and Executive Order 
12788, as amended. OEA specifically seeks proposals on:
     Research leading to the recurring presentation of current 
local economic indicator data for regions impacted by Defense 
downsizing or mission growth, based on the two elements identified in 
section I, subsection 1 of this announcement.
    Proposals outside the identified areas of interest will not be 
considered.

IV. Application and Submission Information

    The process requires each interested respondent to submit a 
proposal within the advertised solicitation period (sixty (60) days). 
OEA will hold a pre-application teleconference on Tuesday, January 27, 
2009, at 3 p.m. EST in which all prospective respondents are invited to 
participate. OEA will make a brief presentation that reviews the goals 
and objectives of the RTA funding opportunity and will answer questions 
from the teleconference participants. For the teleconference number and 
passcode, interested parties may contact OEA as specified in section 
VII.
    Each proposal submitted must include a cover or transmittal letter 
and accompanying text that shall consist of no more than 10 pages 
(single-sided), comprising:
     An abstract of the proposed research or technical 
assistance;
     A description of the scope of work required to address the 
challenge identified to include:
    [cir] Specific economic indicators or types of indicators proposed 
to be obtained or developed to reflect near real-time economic 
conditions;
    [cir] Methods for obtaining or developing the indicators;
    [cir] The respondent's plan for engaging the impacted communities 
for each of the listed installations during development of the 
information and for evaluating the usefulness of information provided;
    [cir] Methods for distributing the information to the impacted 
communities.
     A proposed budget and accompanying budget justification;
     Detailed description of the project team and their 
relevant experience;
     A project schedule for completion of the work;
     A point of contact.
    Proposals must be provided to: Director, Office of Economic 
Adjustment, by mail to 400 Army Navy Drive, Suite 200, Arlington, VA 
22202-4704, by facsimile to OEA at (703) 604-5460, or electronically 
to: rta.submit@wso.whs.mil.

V. Application Review Information

    1. Selection Criteria--In reviewing proposals under this Notice, 
OEA considers and equally weights each of the following factors as a 
basis for inviting applications:
     Overall conformance with proposal requirements;
     Overall quality of proposed research;
     Overall expertise, experience, qualifications and ability 
of investigators; and
     Overall reasonableness of budgeted expenditures.
    2. Review and Selection Process--OEA will assign a Project Manager 
and notify respondent(s) as soon as practicable following its review of 
proposals and determination of eligibility, to advise and assist with 
the preparation of an application. Applications will be reviewed for 
their completeness and accuracy, and, to the extent possible, an award 
notification will be issued within fourteen (14) days of the receipt of 
a complete application.

VI. Award Administration Information

    1. Award Notices--To the extent possible, successful applicants 
will be notified within fourteen (14) days of the receipt at OEA of a 
complete application whether or not they will receive an award. Upon 
notification of an award, applicants will receive an award agreement, 
signed by the Director of OEA on behalf of DoD. Awardees must review 
the award agreement and indicate their consent to its terms by signing 
and returning it to OEA.
    2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements--The Awardee, 
and any subawardee or consultant/contractor, operating under the terms 
of a grant or cooperative agreement shall comply with all Federal, 
State, and local laws including the following, where applicable: 32 CFR 
Part 33, ``Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and 
Cooperative Agreements to State and Local Governments''; OMB Circulars 
A-87, ``Cost Principles for State and Local Governments'' and the 
revised A-133, ``Audits of States, Local Governments and Non-Profit 
Organizations''; 32 CFR Part 25, ``Government-wide Debarment and 
Suspension (Non-procurement)''; 32 CFR Part 26, ``Drug-free 
Workplace''; 32 CFR, Part 32, Uniform Administrative Requirements for 
Grants and Agreements to Institutions of Higher Education, Hospitals, 
and other Non-Profit Organizations; 32 CFR, Part 34, Administrative 
Requirements for Grants and Agreements with For-Profit Organizations; 
OMB Circular A-21 Cost Principles for Educational Institutions; OMB 
Circular A-122, Cost Principles for Non Profit Organizations; 32 CFR 
Part 28, ``New Restrictions on Lobbying (Grants)''; and 2 CFR Part 175, 
``Award Term for Trafficking in Persons.''
    3. Reporting--OEA requires interim performance reports and one 
final performance report for each award. The performance reports will 
contain information on the following:
     A comparison of actual accomplishments to the objectives 
established for the reporting period;
     Reasons for slippage if established objectives were not 
met;
     Additional pertinent information when appropriate;
     A comparison of actual and projected expenditures for the 
period;
     The amount of awarded funds on hand at the beginning and 
end of the reporting period.

The final performance report must contain a summary of activities for 
the entire award period. All remaining required deliverables should be 
submitted with the final performance report. The final SF 269A, 
``Financial Status Report,'' must be submitted to OEA within ninety 
(90) days after the end date of the award. Any funds actually advanced 
and not needed for award purposes shall be returned immediately to OEA.
    OEA will provide a schedule for reporting periods and report due 
dates in the Award Agreement.

VII. Agency Contacts

    For further information, to answer questions, or for help with 
problems, contact: Daniel Glasson, Project Manager, Office of Economic 
Adjustment, 400 Army Navy Drive, Suite 200, Arlington, VA 22202-4704, 
O: (703) 604-6020, F: (703) 604-5843, E-mail: 
daniel.glasson@wso.whs.mil.

VIII. Other Information

    The Office of Economic Adjustment Internet address is http://
www.oea.gov.

    Dated: December 22, 2008.
Patricia L. Toppings,
OSD Federal Register Liaison Officer, Department of Defense.
[FR Doc. E8-31045 Filed 12-30-08; 8:45 am]

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