It is critical that applicants follow the Research (R) Instructions in How to Apply - Application Guide, except where instructed to do otherwise. Conformance to all requirements (both in the Application Guide and the NOFO) is required and strictly enforced. Applicants must read and follow all application instructions in the How to Apply - Application Guide as well as any program-specific instructions noted in Section IV. When the program-specific instructions deviate from those in the How to Apply - Application Guide , follow the program-specific instructions. Page Limitations: Pages that exceed the page limits described in this NOFO will be removed and not forwarded for peer review, potentially affecting an application's score. Applications that do not comply with these instructions may be delayed or not accepted for review.
Telecommunications for the Hearing-Impaired: TTY 1-888-232-6348.
There are several options available to submit your application through Grants.gov to NIH and Department of Health and Human Services partners. You must use one of these submission options to access the application forms for this opportunity.
- Use the NIH ASSIST system to prepare, submit and track your application online.
- Use an institutional system-to-system (S2S) solution to prepare and submit your application
to Grants.gov and eRA Commons to track your
application. Check with your institutional officials regarding availability.
- Use Grants.gov Workspace to prepare and submit your application and eRA Commons to track your application.
- new wireless communication devices and methodologies,
- training, systems, and tools to facilitate miner self-escape, and
- improvements in the design of refuge alternatives.
- A brief statement about which NIOSH strategic and intermediate goal(s) from the NIOSH Strategic Plan: FYs 2019−2026 are being addressed.
- A rationale for how the proposed research will contribute to the specified priority area(s).
- An explanation of how the proposed research will contribute to the NIOSH Research to Practice (r2p) initiative.
- Identify research needs.
- Design, plan, and conduct studies.
- Translate and disseminate existing knowledge, interventions, and technologies to relevant users for implementation in the workplace; and to
- Evaluate results to determine the impact on occupational safety and health.
- Public/State Controlled Institutions of Higher Education
- Private Institutions of Higher Education
- State Governments
- County Governments
- City or Township Governments
- Special District Governments
- Indian/Native American Tribal Governments (Federally Recognized)
- Indian/Native American Tribal Governments (Other than Federally Recognized)
- U.S. Territory or Possession
- Independent School Districts
- Public Housing Authorities/Indian Housing Authorities
- Native American Tribal Organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments)
- Faith-based or Community-based Organizations
- Regional Organizations
- Bona Fide Agents: a Bona Fide Agent is an agency/organization identified by the state as eligible to apply under the state eligibility in lieu of a state application. If applying as a bona fide agent of a state or local government, a legal, binding agreement from the state or local government as documentation of the status is required. Attach with"Other Attachment Forms" when submitting via Grants.gov.
- System for Award Management (SAM) Applicants must complete and maintain an active registration, which requires renewal at least annually. The renewal process may require as much time as the initial registration. SAM registration includes the assignment of a Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) Code for domestic organizations which have not already been assigned a CAGE Code.
- o NATO Commercial and Government Entity (NCAGE) Code Foreign organizations must obtain an NCAGE code (in lieu of a CAGE code) in order to register in SAM.
- o Unique Entity Identifier (UEI)- A UEI is issued as part of the SAM.gov registration process. The same UEI must be used for all registrations, as well as on the grant application.
- eRA Commons - Once the unique organization identifier is established, organizations can register with eRA Commons in tandem with completing their Grants.gov registration; all registrations must be in place by time of submission. eRA Commons requires organizations to identify at least one Signing Official (SO) and at least one Program Director/Principal Investigator (PD/PI) account in order to submit an application.
- Grants.gov Applicants must have an active SAM registration in order to complete the Grants.gov registration. All applicant organizations must register with Grants.gov. Please visit www.Grants.gov at least 30 days prior to submitting your application to familiarize yourself with the registration and submission processes. The one-time registration process will take three to five days to complete. However, it is best to start the registration process at least two weeks prior to application submission.
- A new (A0) application that is submitted before issuance of the summary statement from the review of an overlapping new (A0) or resubmission (A1) application.
- A resubmission (A1) application that is submitted before issuance of the summary statement from the review of the previous new (A0) application.
- An application that has substantial overlap with another application pending appeal of initial peer review.
- The applicant must not exceed the five-year period of performance limit or the total cost limit of $3,000,000 budget period (including consortium F&A costs).
- The applicant must be a U.S. academic institution with an ABET-accredited undergraduate program in mining or mineral engineering, as defined by the Mining and Similarly Named Engineering Programs criteria, ensuring it meets the standards in these engineering fields.
- The institution must offer distinct graduate-level programs in both mining engineering and explosives engineering.
- The applicant must include documentation of an ABET-accredited undergraduate program in mining or mineral engineering, as defined by the Mining and Similarly Named Engineering Programs criteria, as well as graduate degree programs in both mining engineering and explosives engineering to establish eligibility.
- The PI must be employed by a U.S. academic institution that offers (1) an Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, Inc. (ABET) accredited undergraduate degree program in mining or mineral engineering (under the Mining and Similarly Named Engineering Programs criteria) and (2) graduate degree programs in both mining and explosives engineering.
- Email: [email protected]
-
Phone: 301-402-7469 or (toll-free) 1-866-504-9552.
Hours: Monday - Friday, 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern Time, excluding Federal holidays. - Descriptive title of proposed activity
- Name(s), address(es), and telephone number(s) of the PD(s)/PI(s)
- Names of other key personnel
- Participating institution(s)
- Number and title of this funding opportunity.
- The Research Strategy component of the Research Plan narrative is limited to 12 pages. These page limits are the totals for all text, tables, graphs, figures, diagrams, and charts in this component.
- Supporting materials for the Research Plan narrative included as appendices may not exceed 10 PDF files with a maximum of 100 pages for all appendices.
- Duplication of Efforts (see Section IV, Other Submission Requirements and Information for instructions). Write 'None' if no overlap.
- A description of the data to be collected or generated in the proposed project;
- Standards to be used for the collected or generated data;
- Mechanisms for providing access to and sharing of the data (include a description of provisions for the protection of privacy, confidentiality, security, intellectual property, or other rights - this section should address access to identifiable and de-identified data);
- A statement (required) of any limitations you may encounter with sharing data collected or generated under this award with CDC (such as legal, regulatory, policy, or technical concerns);
- Statement of the use of data standards that ensure all released data have appropriate documentation that describes the method of collection, what the data represent, and potential limitations for use; and
- Plans for archiving and long-term preservation of the data or explaining why long-term preservation and access are not justified (this section should address archiving and preservation of identifiable and deidentified data).
- http://grants.nih.gov/grants/ElectronicReceipt/avoiding_errors.htm
- http://grants.nih.gov/grants/ElectronicReceipt/submit_app.htm
- https://era.nih.gov/files/ASSIST_user_guide.pdf
- http://era.nih.gov/erahelp/ASSIST/
- Outcomes and impacts to be achieved.
- The institution’s capacity in mining safety and health.
- The planned external collaborations with NIOSH researchers.
- The planned external collaborations with industry stakeholders, including, if applicable to the proposed work, other internal and external university programs.
- The value brought to the project through the offering of graduate degree programs in both mining and explosives engineering, including the number of graduate students to be involved at the master's and doctoral levels and the number of degrees granted in each program over the prior 5 years.
- Will undergo a selection process in which only those applications deemed to have the highest scientific and technical merit (generally the top half of applications under review) will be discussed and assigned an overall impact score.
- Will receive a written critique.
- Scientific and technical merit of the proposed project as determined by scientific peer review.
- Relevance of the proposed project to the NIOSH Mining Program
- Proposed or current strength of partnerships (and delivery capacity potential) and collaboration with NIOSH programs (commensurate with a cooperative agreement) and other agencies, in terms of likelihood of new synergy and impact
- Commitment of the applicant institution to collaborative efforts
- Availability of funds.
- Financial stability;
- Quality of management systems and ability to meet the management standards prescribed in this part;
- History of performance. The applicant's record in managing Federal awards, if it is a prior recipient of Federal awards, including timeliness of compliance with applicable reporting requirements, conformance to the terms and conditions of previous Federal awards, and if applicable, the extent to which any previously awarded amounts will be expended prior to future awards;
- Reports and findings from audits performed under subpart F 45 CFR part 75 or the reports and findings of any other available audits; and
- The applicant's ability to effectively implement statutory, regulatory, or other requirements imposed on non-Federal entities.
- The rules listed at 2 CFR Part 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards.
- All HHS/CDC grant and cooperative agreement awards include the HHS Grants Policy Statement as part of the terms and conditions in the Notice of Award (NoA). The NoA includes the requirements of this NOFO. For these terms of award, see the HHS Grants Policy Statement.
- If a recipient receives an award, the recipient must follow all applicable nondiscrimination laws. The recipient agrees to this when registering in SAM.gov. The recipient must also submit an Assurance of Compliance (HHS-690). To learn more, see the Laws and Regulations Enforced by the HHS Office for Civil Rights website.
- Establish research activities focused on aspects of underground mine evacuation technologies and human factors research related to mine emergencies to reduce work-related health and safety risks, promote health and safety, and prevent disease and injury in the workplace;
- Coordinate all technical, scientific, and administrative aspects of activities at the awarded institution and at other sites that may be supported by subcontracts to this award;
- Ensure that data and results are published in a timely manner and shared publicly with the research community;
- Propose evaluation measures for activities conducted in support of all parts of this program, including process evaluation and outcome measures where feasible;
- Interface with NIOSH programmatic staff to insure the required collaborative effort during the term of the cooperative agreement award;
- Retain custody of and have primary rights to the data and software developed under these awards, subject to Government rights of access consistent with current DHHS, PHS, and CDC policies;
- Participate in regularly scheduled and/or ad hoc conference calls with NIOSH to review progress to date, review planned activities, and exchange ideas for future activities;
- Prepare written yearly progress reports and participate in regularly scheduled and/or ad hoc conference calls with NIOSH to review progress to date, review planned activities, and exchange ideas for future activities;
- Meet with NIOSH Scientific Program Official, NIOSH Project Scientist and other staff of the NIOSH Mining Program to review progress, share information, and coordinate research activities. The meeting will be a coordinated effort and should be held on an annual or bi-annual basis depending on the needs. For budget preparation, assume a full 1-day or 2-day meeting and lodging in either Atlanta, GA, Pittsburgh, PA or where the grant recipients are located;
- Facilitate collaboration with investigators, partners, and institutions to share existing expertise and engage in joint interventions to advance the scientific evidence related to underground mine evacuation technologies and human factors research related to mine emergencies;
- Send to NIOSH, in approved electronic format, the final copies of all materials developed with support from NIOSH and made available to the public, subject to any specific legal caveats on use or copyright protection. Progress and final reports are to be Federal Law 508-compliant for public use;
- Assign an individual the responsibility for information technology transfer and dissemination, to ensure effective communication and transfer of important research and administrative information to the NIOSH Project Scientist. Such information may include research-related data, computation and submittal of research data, coordination of special meetings or conferences, submittal of research materials, and other research activities conducted by the program;
- Analyzing data and disseminating findings in peer-reviewed journals and presentations at scientific conferences and other meetings;
- Complying with the responsibilities for the Extramural Investigators as described in the Policy on Public Health Research and Non-research Data Management and Access.
- Consulting with CDC/NIOSH to ensure compliance with relevant grant policies and regulations.
- Grant management, programmatic, scientific, and stewardship responsibilities will be provided by the assigned NIOSH Scientific Program Official named in the notice of grant award. These responsibilities are inherently governmental and are separate from any substantial involvement with scientific and technical matters. This helps ensure that the sponsoring agency is appropriately managing the research and related activities of the recipient institution funded under a cooperative agreement as a federal assistance funding mechanism;
- Monitor and evaluate the activities, performance, and accomplishments of the recipient through conference calls, site visits, and review of project reports;
- Receive, review, and comment on draft materials and plans consistent with the section description immediately below, such as research materials, evaluation plan, and tools;
- Carry out administrative, scientific, and technical-related duties such as grant cycle or funding information; programmatic approvals and recommendations; and consultation or technical assistance pertaining to administration requirement of award. Monitor and process Just-In-Time (JIT) information for research projects; approve final reports before release and distribution; communicate guidance and policy; facilitate budget recommendations; and disseminate recipient information such as the Annual Report and research reports;
- Provide guidance or information for addressing recipient inquiries;
- Jointly convene a 1-day or 2-day workshop meeting annually with recipients in cooperation with the NIOSH Project Scientist to review and share recipient information and products, discuss technical and coordination plans or issues, build partnership among the funded institutions, and coordinate partnership and/or research activities.
-
Assist the NIOSH's Office of Extramural Coordination and Special
Projects (OECSP)
and NIOSH Mining intramural researchers in reporting or disseminating nonconfidential research results and relevant safety and health information to appropriate Federal, State, and local agencies, the scientific community, and other interested parties; - Provide expert consultation in the area of occupational health protection with policies, programs, and practices that promote safety and health, prevent disease, and provide other occupational health and safety related functions and activities as needed;
- Serve as a subject matter expert for NIOSH;
- Collaborate on scientific projects, upon request;
- Facilitate collaborative efforts among recipients on meeting agendas, prevention activities, and opportunities as needed;
- Help ensure consistent use and delivery of existing miner safety and health training materials;
- Facilitate collaborative efforts with NIOSH and others to compile and disseminate program results through presentations, publications, and other relevant channels; and
- In accordance with HHS/CDC/NIOSH policies and guidelines, the NIOSH Project Scientist may publish with the recipient, if mutually agreeable and warranted by the nature and extent of their intellectual contribution to the program or project.
- Participating in a conference, meeting, or calls to be held in conjunction with NIOSH and Partners to disseminate research findings and outcomes to the public health community and stakeholders.
- Collaborating to address occupational safety and health issues at a national level.
- Creating working groups for specific purposes.
- Description of Progress during Annual Budget Period: Current Budget Period Progress reported on the RPPR form in eRA Commons. Detailed narrative report for the current budget period that directly addresses progress towards the Measures of Effectiveness included in the current budget period proposal.
- Research Aims: list each research aim/project
- Translation of Research (1-page maximum): When relevant to the goals of the research project, the PI should describe how the significant findings may be used to promote, enhance, or advance translation of the research into practice or may be used to inform public health policy. This section should be understandable to a variety of audiences, including policy makers, practitioners, public health programs, healthcare institutions, professional organizations, community groups, researchers, and other potential users. The PI should identify the research findings that were translated into public health policy or practice and how the findings have been or may be adopted in public health settings. Or, if they cannot be applied yet, this section should address which research findings may be translated, how these findings can guide future research or related activities, and recommendations for translation. If relevant, describe how the results of this project could be generalized to populations and communities outside of the study. Questions to consider in preparing this section include:
- Public Health Relevance and Impact (1-page maximum): This section should address improvements in public health as measured by documented or anticipated outcomes from the project. The PI should consider how the findings of the project relate beyond the immediate study to improved practices, prevention or intervention techniques, inform policy, or use of technology in public health. Questions to consider in preparing this section include:
- Current Budget Period Financial Progress: Status of obligation of current budget period funds and an estimate of unobligated funds projected provided on an estimated FFR.
- New Budget Period Proposal: Detailed operational plan for continuing activities in the upcoming budget period, including updated Measures of Effectiveness for evaluating progress during the upcoming budget period. Report listed by Research Aim/Project.
- Project Timeline: Include planned milestones for the upcoming year (be specific and provide deadlines).
- New Budget Period Budget: Detailed line-item budget and budget justification for the new budget period. Use the CDC budget guideline format.
- Publications/Presentations: Include publications/presentations resulting from this CDC grant only during this budget period. If no publication or presentations have been made at this stage in the project, simply indicate "Not applicable: No publications or presentations have been made."
- IRB Approval Certification: Include all current IRB approvals to avoid a funding restriction on your award. If the research does not involve human subjects, then please state so. Please provide a copy of the most recent local IRB and CDC IRB, if applicable. If any approval is still pending at time of APR due date, indicate the status in your narrative.
- Update of Data Management Plan: The DMP is considered a living document that will require updates throughout the lifecycle of the project. Investigators should include any updates to the project’s data collection such as changes to initial data collection plan, challenges with data collection, and recent data collected. Applicants should update their DMP to reflect progress or issues with planned data collection and submit as required for each reporting period.
- Research Aim/Project Overview: The PI should describe the purpose and approach to the project, including the outcomes, methodology and related analyses. Include a discussion of the challenges, successes and lessons learned. Describe the collaborations/partnerships and the role of each external partner.
- Translation of Research Findings: The PI should describe how the findings will be translated and how they will be used to inform policy or promote, enhance or advance the impact on public health practice. This section should be understandable to a variety of audiences, including policy makers, practitioners, public health programs, healthcare institutions, professional organizations, community groups, researchers and other potential end users. The PI should also provide a discussion of any research findings that informed policy or practice during the course of the Period of performance. If applicable, describe how the findings could be generalized and scaled to populations and communities outside of the funded project.
- Public Health Relevance and Impact: This section should address improvements in public health as measured by documented or anticipated outcomes from the project. The PI should consider how the findings of the project related beyond the immediate study to improved practices, prevention or intervention techniques, or informed policy, technology or systems improvements in public health.
- Publications; Presentations; Media Coverage: Include information regarding all publications, presentations or media coverage resulting from this CDC-funded activity. Please include any additional dissemination efforts that did or will result from the project.
- Final Data Management Plan: Applicants must include an updated final Data Management Plan that describes the data collected, the location of where the data is stored (example: a repository), accessibility restrictions (if applicable), and the plans for long-term preservation of the data.
Part 1. Overview Information
Part 2. Full Text of the Announcement
Section
I. Notice of Funding Opportunity Description
Section II. Award Information
Section III. Eligibility Information
Section IV. Application and Submission
Information
Section V. Application Review Information
Section VI. Award Administration Information
Section VII. Agency Contacts
Section VIII. Other Information
Background
Despite advances in technology and the work environment, mining remains one of the most challenging and dangerous occupations in the United States. The fatality rate in mining is three times higher than the national average for other industries according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
There were 324,313 workers in the Mining Sector in 2023, according to data collected by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) from mine operators and independent contractors. In 2023, MSHA reported 12,619 mining operations in the United States. MSHA data for the same period show 41 fatalities, with the industry average from 2015-2022 being 31 annual fatalities. The MSHA data show that 3,491 nonfatal lost-time injuries occurred in 2022, an overall rate of 1.42 per 100 full-time equivalent (FTE) workers. According to data from the NIOSH Mining Program, BLS, and MSHA, the rate of nonfatal lost-time underground injuries in 2022 was greater than the rate for surface injuries (2.71 vs. 1.16 per 100 FTE workers).
In 2006, the Mine Improvement and New Emergency Response Act of 2006, also known as the MINER Act, was signed because of the many challenges in the mining industry. This legislation contains several provisions to improve safety and health in America's mines.
Under the MINER Act of 2006, the Office of Mine Safety and Health Research (OMSHR) was established within NIOSH. One purpose of this office is to enhance the development of new technology and technological applications and to ensure adequate capacity in engineering and science disciplines important to mine safety and health.
The MINER Act grants OMSHR the authority to award competitive grants to:
1. improve mine safety and health.
2. encourage the development and manufacture of mine safety equipment.
3. award education institutions or private laboratories for the performance of product testing or
related work with respect to new mine technology and equipment.
Purpose
The purpose of this Notice of Funding Opportunity Announcement (NOFO) is to solicit meritorious applications from universities with graduate programs in mining and explosives engineering to develop and conduct research specifically focused on aspects of underground mine evacuation technologies and human factors related to mine emergencies. This research will build on NIOSH's work to address mandates in the Mine Improvement and New Emergency Response Act of 2006 , as well as advance the safety and health of mine workers in our nation.
Research priorities include developing new wireless communication devices and methodologies; developing training, systems, and tools to facilitate miner self-escape; and continuing to improve the design of refuge alternatives.
Possible research topics of interest may include health and safety issues in related areas, particularly those associated with mine emergencies caused by mine fires and explosions. Interested applicants are encouraged to consider aspects of their graduate program in mining and explosives engineering, including unique facilities, that could best support research related to mine emergencies and other aspects of the MINER Act. Unique facilities refer to specialized resources or infrastructures that provide distinct capabilities for conducting research. For example, an underground mine owned by the university and operated by the program, capable of testing for methane-coal dust explosions, would be considered a unique facility. Other examples may include a refuge chamber installation capable of ingress/egress testing.
A key factor of this announcement is the congressional intention that the award goes to a U.S. academic institution that offers (1) an Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, Inc. (ABET) accredited undergraduate degree program in mining or mineral engineering (under the Mining and Similarly Named Engineering Programs criteria), and (2) graduate degree programs in both mining and explosives engineering.
Healthy People 2030 and other National Strategic Priorities
The Underground Mine Evacuation Technologies and Human Factors Research Cooperative Agreement funded by this NOFO will contribute to the CDC strategic goal, in alignment with an HHS strategic goal and objectives found in Healthy People 2030, to increase the number of communities that protect and promote health and safety and prevent illness and injury to improve the safety, quality, affordability, and accessibility of health care.
Underground mine evacuation technologies and human factors research will support the mission of NIOSH in protecting and promoting the health of mining workers in the United States.
NIOSH has an extensive history of conducting research to understand and to reduce hazards in the mining industry. This legacy is detailed further on the CDC’s mining pages: About Mining Safety and Health and Mining Program | NIOSH Research Programs | CDC.
Underground mine evacuation technological and human factors research
developments could be utilized to enhance mine safety and accident response.
Protecting the health and safety of mine workers by preventing diseases, injuries, and fatalities is a NIOSH priority, along with making certain that workers are qualified, trained, and properly equipped. The National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA) Mining Agenda was developed and implemented through the NORA Mining Sector Council and serves as guidance for the nation as a whole, whereas the 2019-2024 Mining Program Strategic Plan is specific to the NIOSH Mining Program, focusing on its unique capabilities and resources.
The NIOSH Mining Program has established three overarching strategic goals for this plan:
Strategic Goal 1: Reduce mine workers risk of occupational illness.
Strategic Goal 2: Reduce mine workers risk of traumatic injuries and fatalities.
Strategic Goal 3: Reduce the risk of mine disasters and improve post-disaster survivability of mine workers.
The Underground Mine Evacuation Technologies and Human Factors Research cooperative agreement will support applicants that can perform work within the scope and that have an ABET-accredited undergraduate degree program in mining or mineral engineering (under the Mining and Similarly Named Engineering Programs criteria) and (2) graduate degree programs in both mining and explosives engineering.
Objectives/Outcomes
The objective of this cooperative agreement is to address research related to mine emergencies, including but not limited to:
NIOSH also encourages research proposals that address health and safety issues in related areas, particularly those associated with mine emergencies caused by mine fires and explosions, consistent with the intent of the MINER Act.
Applicants are encouraged to consider aspects of their graduate program in mining and explosives engineering, including unique facilities, that could best support research related to mine emergencies.
Clearly state your proposed goals and objectives, and directly link these to the occupational health and safety burdens you are addressing.
Provide data to support your selection of the proposed work, such as morbidity or mortality rates and indicators of the size of the population at risk (including estimates of the target population’s potential risk of exposure to the hazard, frequency of exposure, or sociodemographic factors such as age, gender, and race/ethnicity).
Similarly, provide qualitative data that describe exposures, the magnitude of the problem, and potential benefits and impacts of addressing the issue. Qualitative data may be necessary when the nature of the exposure or population at risk makes it difficult to collect large-scale, representative quantitative data.
NORA Sectors and Health and Safety Cross-sectors
Applicants should provide a statement about which NORA Sectors, Cross-Sectors, Core and Specialty Programs are being addressed in both the Project Abstract and in the Research Strategy (Significance) sections of the application. In addition, applicants should include the following:
Outputs and Outcomes
Underground mine evacuation technologies and human factors research will support the NIOSH goal to reduce fatalities related to mine emergencies caused by mine fires and explosions in the United States.
Governmental agencies and organizations have been faced with increasing demand to measure the effectiveness of their funded research in improving public health. The products (outputs) of research activities, and subsequent outcomes that is, benefits or changes at an individual or population level can measure effectiveness. Outputs are the immediate products or direct result of research or other occupational health activities. Examples include publications, reports, conference proceedings, presentations/posters, investigator career development, databases, tools, methods, guidelines, and recommendations.
Outcomes can be measured over time as either short-term, intermediate, or end outcomes. Collecting data on all types of outcomes, as appropriate, is encouraged.
Short-term outcomes are the immediate effects of NIOSH or NIOSH-funded initiatives, projects, or programs. Often, these effects include changes in learning, awareness, knowledge, attitudes, skills, opinions, motivations, and intent.
Intermediate outcomes are specific changes that occur as a result of research outputs. Examples of intermediate outcomes include public or private policy changes, conduct of training or workshops based on project outputs, citations in the literature, inventions and patents, and adoption of technologies or methods developed by the researcher.
End outcomes are the ultimate goal of the research and the result of what individuals and organizations do with the knowledge or products generated by the research. Examples of end outcomes include a) reduction in mining-related illnesses, injuries, fatalities, near-miss incidents, and/or hazardous exposures; and b) improvement in qualitative and/or quantitative indicators for safety culture and safety climate, safety program administration, mining safety costs/economics, and safety intervention and/or implementation effectiveness.
Applicants should provide a brief statement about expected outputs/products of the research and outcomes of their proposed research in the Description (Abstract) and in the Research Strategy (Significance) in Section IV.
The beneficiaries of these cooperative agreements are miners working in the United States. As appropriate, the research project might target vulnerable U.S. worker populations to address increased safety and health risks associated with occupational health disparities, changing worker demographics, and the changing nature of work.
Collaboration/Partnerships
Partnerships are important for the NIOSH Mining Safety and
Health Program. They facilitate advances in the safety and health of U.S. mine
workers. Input from customers and stakeholder groups, which have inherent
knowledge and concern about the safety and health of miners, helps in setting
research priorities. Partners often add expertise or specialized experience to
the research team, which contributes to the success of the overall project.
The NIOSH's broad base of stakeholders includes academia; equipment
manufacturers; government; mine operators; mining industry trade associations;
organized labor; regulatory agencies (on the local, state, and federal levels,
due to their unique role in developing, implementing, and enforcing safety and
health regulations); research laboratories; and suppliers. NIOSH collaborates
and communicates with the stakeholders on a regular basis to better inform
their research and assess its direct contributions to safety and health.
Applicants will institute collaborative partnerships as appropriate with NIOSH, and local and state organizations, universities, manufacturers, government agencies, professional organizations, engineering and safety training partner organizations, community organizations, health care institutions, business groups, and labor organizations to carry out these proposed research activities.
Partnerships are also critical to translate research findings into effective training and work practices and are encouraged by the NIOSH Research-to-Practice Program (r2p). Interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary collaborations that share expertise are essential to advancing occupational safety and health and promoting overall worker health in mining environments.
Note to
Applicants
Applicants should include collaborations or partnerships, particularly with
industrial collaborators/partners as well as NIOSH, that strengthen the
proposed research in terms of occupational, safety and health (OSH), or
related, expertise and resources.
Evaluation/Performance Measurement
Evaluations provide information for management and improve program effectiveness. The following CDC resource: CDC Program Evaluation Framework may be helpful.
Effective program evaluation is a systematic way to improve and account for public safety and health actions by involving procedures that are useful, feasible, ethical, and accurate. Understanding and applying the elements of this framework for research projects may enhance planning effective public safety and health strategies, improving existing programs including evidence-based activities, and demonstrating beneficial results and impact of federal funding.
Translation Plan
In addition to NORA, NIOSH has established a Research-to-Practice (r2p) approach to reduce or eliminate occupational illness, injury and fatalities, by increasing the transfer and translation of knowledge, interventions, and technologies into highly effective prevention practices and products into the workplace.
The r2p approach is an interactive process in which the occupational safety and health community - including researchers, communicators, decision-makers, and employer/employee groups - work collaboratively to:
Note to Applicants
Applicants must provide a brief statement about how their proposed research addresses r2p in both the Description (Abstract) and in the Research Strategy (Significance). Additionally, applicants should describe the anticipated strategies for translation and/or dissemination of research findings, including the audiences to be reached and the methods to reach those audiences.
See Section VIII. Other Information for award authorities and regulations.
HHS/CDC grants policies as described in the HHS Grants Policy Statement will apply to the applications submitted and awards made from this NOFO.
Higher Education Institutions
The following types of Higher Education Institutions are always encouraged to apply for CDC/NIOSH support as Public or Private Institutions of Higher Education:
o Hispanic-serving Institutions
o Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs)
o Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs)
o Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions
o Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs)
Nonprofits Other Than Institutions of Higher Education
o Nonprofits with 501(c)(3) IRS Status (Other than Institutions of Higher Education)
Governments
Other
Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs): FFRDCs are operated, managed, and/or administered by a university or consortium of universities, other not-for-profit or nonprofit organization, or an industrial firm, as an autonomous organization or as an identifiable separate operating unit of a parent organization. A FFRDC meets some special long-term research or development need which cannot be met as effectively by an agency's existing in-house or contractor resources. FFRDCs enable agencies to use private sector resources to accomplish tasks that are integral to the mission and operation of the sponsoring agency. For more information on FFRDCs, go to https://gov.ecfr.io/cgi-bin/searchECFR.
Non-domestic (non-U.S.) Entities (Foreign Organizations) are
not eligible
to apply.
Non-domestic (non-U.S.) components of U.S. Organizations are not eligible to
apply.
Foreign components, as defined in the HHS Grants Policy Statement, are not allowed.
For this announcement, applicants may not include collaborators or consultants from foreign institutions. All applicable federal laws and policies apply.
Applicant Organizations
Applicant organizations must complete and maintain the following registrations as described in the How to Apply - Application Guide to be eligible to apply for or receive an award. All registrations must be completed prior to the application being submitted. Registration can take 6 weeks or more, so applicants should begin the registration process as soon as possible. Failure to complete registrations in advance of a due date is not a valid reason for a late submission. Applicants must have a valid Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number in order to begin each of the following registrations.
PLEASE NOTE: Effective April 4, 2022, applicants must have a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) at the time of application submission. The UEI replaced the Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) and is generated as part of SAM.gov registration. Current SAM.gov registrants have already been assigned their UEI and can view it in SAM.gov and Grants.gov. Additional information is available on the GSA website, SAM.gov, and Grants.gov-Finding the UEI.
All Senior/Key Personnel (including Program Directors/Principal Investigators (PD(s)/PI(s))
All PD(s)/PI(s) must have an eRA Commons account. PD(s)/PI(s) should work with their organizational officials to either create a new account or to affiliate their existing account with the applicant organization in eRA Commons. If the PD/PI is also the organizational Signing Official, they must have two distinct eRA Commons accounts, one for each role. Obtaining an eRA Commons account can take up to 2 weeks. All registrations must be successfully completed and active before the application due date. Applicant organizations are strongly encouraged to start the eRA Commons registration process at least four (4) weeks prior to the application due date. ASSIST requires that applicant users have an active eRA Commons account in order to prepare an application. It also requires that the applicant organization's Signing Official have an active eRA Commons Signing Official account in order to initiate the submission process. During the submission process, ASSIST will prompt the Signing Official to enter their Grants.gov Authorized Organizational Representative (AOR) credentials in order to complete the submission; therefore the applicant organization must ensure that their Grants.gov AOR credentials are active.
Any individual(s) with the skills, knowledge, and resources necessary to carry out the proposed research as the Program Director(s)/Principal Investigator(s) [PD(s)/PI(s)] is invited to work with his/her organization to develop an application for support. Individuals from diverse backgrounds, including underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, individuals with disabilities, and women are always encouraged to apply for CDC support.
For institutions/organizations proposing multiple PDs/PIs, please refer to the Multiple Program Director/Principal Investigator Policy and submission details in the Senior/Key Person Profile (Expanded) component of the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide.
When multiple PDs/PIs are proposed, NIOSH requires that one PD/PI be designated as the "Contact" PI. This individual will be responsible for all communications between the PDs/PIs and NIOSH, assembling the application materials outlined below, and coordinating progress reports. The Contact PD/PI must meet all eligibility requirements for PD/PI status in the same manner as the other PDs/PIs.
The Principal Investigator (PI) must hold a full-time academic position at the rank of Assistant Professor or higher, and must be employed by a U.S. academic institution that (1) offers an ABET-accredited undergraduate degree program in mining or mineral engineering (under the Mining and Similarly Named Engineering Programs criteria) and (2) graduate degree programs in both mining and explosives engineering. Enough detail must be provided in the proposal to clearly demonstrate that the department meets all these criteria.
NOTE: CDC does not make
awards to individuals directly.
This NOFO does not require cost sharing as defined in the HHS Grants Policy Statement.
Only one application per institution is allowed.
The CDC/NIOSH will not accept duplicate or highly overlapping applications under review at the same time. This means that the CDC/NIOSH will not accept:
The congressional intention is that the award goes to a U.S. academic institution that (1) offers an ABET-accredited undergraduate degree program in mining or mineral engineering (under the Mining and Similarly Named Engineering Programs criteria) and (2) graduate degree programs in both mining and explosives engineering.
Note to
Applicants
Applicants should submit documentation of (1) an ABET-accredited
undergraduate degree program in mining or mineral engineering (under the Mining
and Similarly Named Engineering Programs criteria) and (2) graduate degree
programs in both mining and explosives engineering to establish eligibility.
Although a letter of intent is not required, is not binding, and does not enter into the review of a subsequent application, the information that it contains allows NIOSH staff to estimate the potential review workload and plan the review.
Upon receipt, applications will be evaluated for completeness by CDC/NIOSH. Applications that do not meet the following criteria will be considered nonresponsive and will not enter the peer review process. CDC/NIOSH will notify the applicant that the application did not meet the submission requirements.
Enough detail must be provided in the proposal to clearly demonstrate the academic institution meets all of these criteria.
Applicants will use a system or platform to submit their applications through Grants.gov and eRA Commons to CDC. ASSIST, an institutional system to system (S2S) solution, or Grants.gov Workspace are options. ASSIST is a commonly used platform because, unlike other platforms, it provides a validation of all requirements prior to submission and prevents errors. Links to apply using ASSIST or Grants.gov Workspace are available in Part 1 of this NOFO. See your administrative office for instructions if you plan to use an institutional system-to-system solution.
To use ASSIST, applicants must visit https://public.era.nih.gov where you can login using your eRA Commons credentials and enter the Notice of Funding Opportunity Number to initiate the application, and begin the application preparation process.
If you experience problems accessing or using ASSIST, you can refer to the ASSIST Online Help Site at: https://era.nih.gov/erahelp/assist. Additional support is available from the NIH eRA Service desk via: http://grants.nih.gov/support/index.html
Application guides for FORMS-I application packages are posted to the How to Apply - Application Guide page.
It is critical that applicants follow the Research (R) instructions in the SF-424 (R&R) Application Guide in the How to Apply - Application Guide, except where instructed in this notice of funding opportunity to do otherwise. Conformance to the requirements in the How to Apply - Application Guide is required and strictly enforced. Applications that are out of compliance with these instructions may be delayed or not accepted for review.
The package associated with this NOFO includes all applicable mandatory and optional forms. Please note that some forms marked optional in the application package are required for submission of applications for this NOFO. Follow the instructions in the SF-424 Application Guide to ensure you complete all appropriate optional components.
When using ASSIST, all mandatory forms will appear as separate tabs at the top of the Application Information screen; applicants may add optional forms available for the NOFO by selecting the Add Optional Form button in the left navigation panel.
Due Date for Letter of Intent 01/17/2025
Although a letter of intent is not required, is not binding, and does not enter into the review of a subsequent application, the information that it contains allows IC staff to estimate the potential review workload and plan the review.
By the date listed in Part 1. Overview Information, prospective applicants are asked to submit a letter of intent that includes the following information:
The letter of intent should be sent to:
Michael Goldcamp, PhD
Office of Extramural Coordination and Special Projects
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Telephone: 304-285-5951
Email: [email protected]
All page limitations described in the How to Apply Application Guide and the Table of Page Limits must be followed with the following exceptions or additional requirements for this NOFO:
All page limitations described in this individual NOFO must be followed. Pages that exceed page limits described in this NOFO will be removed and not forwarded for peer review.
Designed to maximize system-conducted validations, multiple separate attachments are required for a complete application. When the application is received by the agency, all submitted forms and all separate attachments are combined into a single document that is used by peer reviewers and agency staff. Applicants should ensure that all attachments are uploaded to the system.
CDC requires all text attachments to the Adobe application forms be submitted as PDFs and that all text attachments conform to the agency-specific formatting requirements noted in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide at How to Apply - Application Guide.
A complete application has many components, both required and optional. The forms package associated with this NOFO in Grants.gov includes all applicable components for this NOFO, required and optional. In ASSIST, all required and optional forms will appear as separate tabs at the top of the Application Information screen. The following section supplements the instructions found in the How to Apply Application Guide and should be used for preparing an application to this NOFO.
Required Components for this NOFO:
All instructions in the How to Apply - Application Guide must be followed.
All instructions in the How to Apply - Application Guide must be followed.
All instructions in the How to Apply - Application Guide must be followed. For this NOFO, the following items should be included as attachments in the "12. Other Attachments" section of the "R&R Other Project Information" form of the application. When uploading supporting documentation into this application package, clearly label each item for easy identification of the type of documentation.
All instructions in the How to Apply - Application Guide must be followed.
All instructions in the How to
Apply - Application Guide must be followed. For this NOFO, CDC/NIOSH
requires a detailed budget information for the initial budget year and a budget
for the second year of support.
Modular budgets are
not allowed.
All instructions in the How to Apply - Application Guide must be followed.
All instructions in the How to
Apply - Application Guide must be followed, with the following additional
instructions:
The SF424 (R&R) Application Guide includes instructions for applicants to
complete a PHS 398 Research Plan that consists of components. Not all
components of the Research Plan apply to all NOFOs. Specifically, some of the
following components are for Resubmissions or Revisions only. See the SF 424
(R&R) Application Guide at How to
Apply - Application Guide for additional information. Please attach
applicable sections of the following Research Plan components as directed in
Part 2, Section 1 (Notice of Funding Opportunity Description).
Follow the page limits stated in the SF 424 unless otherwise specified in the NOFO. As applicable to and specified in the NOFO, the application should include the bolded headers in this section and should address activities to be conducted over the course of the entire project, including but not limited to:
1. Introduction to Application (not applicable to this NOFO).
2. Specific Aims state the problem the proposed research addresses and how it will result in public health impact and improvements in population health.
3. Research Strategy the research strategy should be organized under 3 headings: Significance, Innovation and Approach. Describe the proposed research plan, including staffing and timeline.
4. Progress Report Publication List (for Renewals only)
Other Research Plan Section
5. Vertebrate Animals
6. Select Agent Research
7. Multiple PD/PI Leadership Plan
8. Consortium/Contractual Arrangements
9. Letters of Support
10. Resource Sharing Plan(s)
11. Other Plan(s) - attach Data Management (DMP) here if applicable.
12. Authentication of Key Biological and/or Chemical Resources
Appendix
13. Appendix
Only limited Appendix materials are allowed. Do not use the appendix to circumvent page limits. A maximum of 10 PDF documents is allowed in the appendix. Additionally, up to 3 publications may be included that are not publicly available. Follow all instructions for the Appendix as described in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide.
Additional Components for this NOFO
Please note: Duplication of Efforts should be included as attachments in the "12. Other Attachments" section of the "R&R Other Project Information" section of the application. When uploading documentation into this application package, clearly label the documents for easy identification.
Applicants that plan to collect public health data must submit a Data Management Plan (DMP) in the Other Plan(s) section of the PHS 398 Research Plan Component of the application. A DMP is required for each collection of public health data proposed. Applicants who contend that the public health data they collect or create are not appropriate for release must justify that contention in the DMP submitted with their application for CDC funds.
The DMP may be outlined in a narrative format or as a checklist but, at a minimum, should include:
The AR-25 outlines the components of a DMP and provides additional information for investigators regarding the requirements for data accessibility, storage, and preservation.
CDC OMB-approved templates may be used (e.g., NCCDPHP template). Other examples of DMPs may be found at USGS.
When involving human subjects research, clinical research, and/or NIH-defined clinical trials (and when applicable, clinical trials research experience) follow all instructions for the PHS Human Subjects and Clinical Trials Information form in the How to Apply - Application Guide , with the following additional instructions:
If you answered Yes to the question Are Human Subjects Involved? on the R&R Other Project Information form, you must include at least one human subjects study record using the Study Record: PHS Human Subjects and Clinical Trials Information form or Delayed Onset Study record.
Study Record: PHS Human Subjects and Clinical Trials Information
All instructions in the How to Apply - Application Guide must be followed.
Delayed Onset Study
Note: Delayed onset does NOT apply to a study that can be described but will not start immediately (i.e., delayed start).
All instructions in the How to Apply - Application Guide must be followed.
Optional Components for this NOFO:
All instructions in the How to Apply - Application Guide must be followed.
All instructions in the How to Apply - Application Guide must be followed.
Not applicable.
See Part 1. Section III.1 for information regarding the
requirement for obtaining a unique entity identifier and for completing and
maintaining active registrations in System for Award Management (SAM), NATO
Commercial and Government Entity (NCAGE) Code (if applicable), eRA Commons, and
Grants.gov. Additionally, organizations must maintain the registration with
current information at all times during which it has an application under
consideration for funding by CDC and, if an award is made, until a final financial
report is submitted or the final payment is received, whichever is later. SAM.gov
is the primary registrant database for the Federal government and is the
repository into which an entity must provide information required for the
conduct of business as a recipient. Additional information about registration
procedures may be found at SAM.gov and
the SAM.gov
Knowledge Base.
If an award is granted, the recipient organization must notify potential
sub-recipients that no organization may receive a subaward under the grant
unless the organization has provided its UEI number to the recipient
organization.
Part I. Overview Information
contains information about Key Dates and times. Applicants are strongly encouraged
to submit applications before the due date to ensure they have time to make any
application corrections that might be necessary for successful submission. This
includes the time necessary to complete the application resubmission process
that may be necessary if errors are identified during validation by Grants.gov
and the NIH eRA systems. The application package is not complete until it has
passed the Grants.gov and NIH eRA Commons submission and validation processes.
Applicants will use a platform or system to submit applications.
When a submission date falls on a weekend or Federal
holiday, the application deadline is automatically extended to the next
business day.
ASSIST is a commonly used platform because it provides a validation of all requirements prior to submission. If ASSIST detects errors, then the applicant must correct errors before their application can be submitted. Applicants should view their applications in ASSIST after submission to ensure accurate and successful submission through Grants.gov. If the submission is not successful and post-submission errors are found, then those errors must be corrected, and the application must be resubmitted in ASSIST.
Applicants are able to access, view, and track the status of their applications in the eRA Commons.
Information on the submission process is provided in the SF-424 (R&R) Application Guidance and ASSIST User Guide.
Note: HHS/CDC grant submission procedures do not provide a grace period beyond the grant application due date time to correct any error or warning notices of noncompliance with application instructions that are identified by Grants.gov or eRA systems (i.e., error correction window).
Applicants who encounter problems when submitting their applications must attempt to resolve them by contacting the NIH eRA Service desk at:
Toll-free: 1-866-504-9552; Phone: 301-402-7469
http://grants.nih.gov/support/index.html
Hours: Mon-Fri, 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern Time (closed on Federal holidays)
Problems with Grants.gov can be resolved by contacting the Grants.gov Contact Center at:
Toll-free: 1-800-518-4726
https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/support.html
Hours: 24 hours a day, 7 days a week; closed on Federal holidays
It is important that applicants complete the application submission process well in advance of the due date time.
After submission of your application package, applicants will receive a "submission receipt" email generated by Grants.gov. Grants.gov will then generate a second e-mail message to applicants which will either validate or reject their submitted application package. A third and final e-mail message is generated once the applicant's application package has passed validation, and the grantor agency has confirmed receipt of the application.
Unsuccessful Submissions: If an application submission was unsuccessful, the applicant must:
1. Track submission and verify the submission status
(tracking should be done initially regardless of rejection or success).
a. If the status states "rejected," be sure to save-time stamped,
documented rejection notices, and do #2a or #2b.
2. Check emails from both Grants.gov and NIH eRA Commons for
rejection notices.
a. If the deadline has passed, he/she should email the Grants Management
contact listed in the Agency Contacts section of this announcement explaining
why the submission failed.
b. If there is time before the deadline, correct the problem(s) and resubmit as soon as possible.
Applicants are responsible for viewing their application before the due date in the eRA Commons to ensure accurate and successful submission.
Electronically submitted applications must be submitted no later than 5:00 PM local time of applicant organization, on the listed application due date.
Information on the submission process and a definition of on-time submission are provided in the How to Apply Application Guide.
This NOFO is not subject to Executive Order 12372, Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs. No action is needed.
Expanded Authority:
For more information on expanded authority and pre-award costs, go to the HHS Grants Policy Statement and speak to your Grants Management Specialist.
All HHS/CDC awards are subject to the federal regulations in 45 CFR part 75, terms and conditions, and other requirements described in the HHS Grants Policy Statement. Pre-award costs may be allowable as an expanded authority, but only if authorized by CDC.
Public Health Data:
CDC requires that mechanisms for, and cost of, public health data sharing be included in grants, cooperative agreements, and contracts. The cost of sharing or archiving public health data may also be included as part of the total budget requested for first-time or continuation awards.
Data Management Plan:
Fulfilling the data-sharing requirement must be documented in a Data Management Plan (DMP) that is developed during the project planning phase prior to the initiation of generating or collecting public health data and must be included in the Other Plan(s) section of the PHS398 Research Plan Component of the application.
Applicants who contend that the public health data they collect or create are not appropriate for release must justify that contention in the DMP submitted with their application for CDC funds (for example, but not limited to, any statutory limitations prohibiting data sharing, privacy and confidentiality considerations, embargo issues).
Applications submitted without the required DMP may be deemed ineligible for award unless submission of DMP is deferred to a later period depending on the type of award, in which case, funding restrictions may be imposed pending submission and evaluation.
For further information, please see AR-25.
Human Subjects:
Funds relating to the conduct of research involving human subjects will be restricted until the appropriate assurances and Institutional Review Board (IRB) approvals are in place. Copies of all current local IRB approval letters and local IRB approved protocols (and CDC IRB approval letters, if applicable) will be required to lift restrictions.
If the proposed research project involves more than one institution and will be conducted in the United States, recipients are expected to use a single Institutional Review Board (sIRB) to conduct the ethical review required by HHS regulations for the Protections of Human Subjects Research, and include a single IRB plan in the application, unless review by a sIRB would be prohibited by a federal, tribal, or state law, regulation, or policy or a compelling justification based on ethical or human subjects protection issues or other well-justified reasons is provided. Exceptions will be reviewed and approved by CDC in accordance with Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Regulations (45 CFR part 46), or a restriction may be placed on the award. For more information, please contact the scientific/research contact included on this NOFO.
Note: The sIRB requirement applies to participating sites in the United States.
Awards may be initially issued with restrictions until all information requested can be provided. Generally, funds will not be given for renovation of existing facilities or for purchasing substantial amounts of equipment.
Applicants are responsible for reporting if this application will result in programmatic, budgetary, or commitment overlap with another application or award (i.e., grant, cooperative agreement, or contract) submitted to another funding source in the same fiscal year. Programmatic overlap occurs when (1) substantially the same project is proposed in more than one application or is submitted to two or more funding sources for review and funding consideration or (2) a specific objective and the project design for accomplishing the objective are the same or closely related in two or more applications or awards, regardless of the funding source. Budgetary overlap occurs when duplicate or equivalent budgetary items (e.g., equipment, salaries) are requested in an application but already are provided by another source. Commitment overlap occurs when an individual’s time commitment exceeds 100 percent, whether or not salary support is requested in the application. Overlap, whether programmatic, budgetary, or commitment of an individual s effort greater than 100 percent, is not permitted. Any overlap will be resolved by the CDC with the applicant and the PD/PI prior to award.
Report Submission: The applicant must upload the report as an attachment in the "Other Attachments Forms" The document should be labeled: "Report on Programmatic, Budgetary, and Commitment Overlap.
Application Submission
Applications must be submitted electronically following the instructions described in the How to Apply - Application Guide. Paper applications will not be accepted.
Applicants must complete all required registrations before the application due date. Section III. Eligibility Information contains information about registration.
For assistance with your electronic application or for more information on the electronic submission process, visit How to Apply - Application Guide. If you encounter a system issue beyond your control that threatens your ability to complete the submission process on-time, you must follow the Dealing with System Issues guidance. For assistance with application submission, contact the Application Submission Contacts in Section VII.
Important reminders:
All PD(s)/PI(s) must include their eRA Commons ID in the Credential field of the Senior/Key Person Profile form of the SF 424(R&R) Application Package. Failure to register in the Commons and to include a valid PD/PI Commons ID in the credential field will prevent the successful submission of an electronic application to CDC. See Section III of this NOFO for information on registration requirements.
The applicant organization must ensure that the unique entity identifier provided on the application is the same identifier used in the organization’s profile in the eRA Commons and for the System for Award Management (SAM). Additional information may be found in the How to Apply - Application Guide.
If the applicant has an FWA number, enter the 8-digit number. Do not enter the letters FWA before the number. If a Project/Performance Site is engaged in research involving human subjects, the applicant organization is responsible for ensuring that the Project/Performance Site operates under an appropriate Federal Wide Assurance for the protection of human subjects and complies with 45 CFR part 46 and other CDC human subject-related policies described in Part II of the SF 424 (R&R) Application Guide and in the HHS Grants Policy Statement.
See more resources to avoiding common errors and submitting, tracking, and viewing applications:
Upon receipt, applications will be evaluated for completeness by the CDC Office of Grants Services (OGS) and responsiveness by OGS and CDC/NIOSH. Applications that are incomplete and/or nonresponsive will not be reviewed.
In order to expedite review, applicants are requested to notify the CDC/NIOSH Referral Office by email at [email protected] when the application has been submitted. Please include the FON and title, PD/PI name, and title of the application.
Applicants are required to follow the instructions for post-submission materials, as described in the policy. Any instructions provided here are in addition to the instructions in the policy.
Only the review criteria described below will be considered in the review process. As part of the CDC mission and NIOSH mission, all applications submitted to the CDC/NIOSH in support of public health research are evaluated for scientific and technical merit through the CDC/NIOSH peer review system.
Reviewers will provide an overall impact score to reflect their assessment of the likelihood for the project to exert a sustained, powerful influence on the research field(s) involved, in consideration of the following review criteria and additional review criteria (as applicable for the project proposed).
Reviewers will consider each of the review criteria below in the determination of scientific merit and give a separate score for each. An application does not need to be strong in all categories to be judged likely to have major scientific impact. For example, a project that by its nature is not innovative may be essential to advance a field.
Does the project address an important problem or a critical barrier to progress in the field? Does the project address a significant health and safety issue in the industry with potential contribution and relevance to the NIOSH Mining Program mission? Is there a strong scientific premise for the project? If the aims of the project are achieved, how will scientific knowledge, technical capability, and/or clinical practice be improved? How will successful completion of the aims change the concepts, methods, technologies, treatments, services, or preventative interventions that drive this field? Does the applicant describe the following?
Are the PD/PIs, collaborators, and other researchers well suited to the project? Have they demonstrated an ongoing record of accomplishments that have advanced their field(s)? If the project is collaborative or multi-PD/PI, do the investigators have complementary and integrated expertise; are their leadership approach, governance, and organizational structure appropriate for the project? Do the investigators have a successful track record in public health research or safety and health research? Have previous research results provided high quality outputs and contributed to improvements in public health practice and population health, or occupational health and safety? Is there evidence of past collaborations with the proposed research team? Is the collaboration of the project team with the mining industry and NIOSH adequate for achieving the proposed work?
Does the application challenge and seek to shift current research or clinical practice paradigms by utilizing novel theoretical concepts, approaches or methodologies, instrumentation, or interventions? Are the concepts, approaches or methodologies, instrumentation, or interventions novel to one field of research or novel in a broad sense? Is a refinement, improvement, or new application of theoretical concepts, approaches or methodologies, instrumentation, or interventions proposed?
Are the overall strategy, methodology, and analyses well-reasoned and appropriate to accomplish the specific aims of the project? Have the investigators included plans to address weaknesses in the rigor of prior research that serves as the key support for the proposed project? Have the investigators presented strategies to ensure a robust and unbiased approach, as appropriate for the work proposed? Are potential problems, alternative strategies, and benchmarks for success presented? If the project is in the early stages of development, will the strategy establish feasibility, and will particularly risky aspects be managed? Have the investigators presented adequate plans to address relevant biological variables, such as sex, for studies in vertebrate animals or human subjects? Do the investigators understand past work in the field and the barriers to potential implementation or commercialization?
If the project involves human subjects and/or CDC/NIOSH-defined clinical research, are the plans to address:
1) the protection of human subjects from research risks, and
2) inclusion (or exclusion) of individuals on the basis of sex or gender, race, and ethnicity, as well as the inclusion or exclusion of individuals of all ages (including children and older adults), justified in terms of the scientific goals and research strategy proposed?
Will the scientific environment in which the work will be done contribute to the probability of success? Are the institutional support, equipment, and other physical resources available to the investigators adequate for the project proposed? Will the project benefit from unique features of the scientific environment, subject populations, or collaborative arrangements? For planned or potential collaborations, is the commitment and cooperation of other interested parties adequate as evidenced by letters of support specifying the nature and extent of their involvement?
As applicable for the project proposed, reviewers will evaluate the following additional items while determining scientific and technical merit, and in providing an overall impact score, but will not give separate scores for these items.
If research that involves human subjects but does not involve one of the six categories of research that are exempt under 45 CFR part 46, the committee will evaluate the justification for involvement of human subjects and the proposed protections from research risk relating to their participation according to the following five review criteria: 1) risk to subjects, 2) adequacy of protection against risks, 3) potential benefits to the subjects and others, 4) importance of the knowledge to be gained, and 5) data and safety monitoring for clinical trials.
For research that involves human subjects and meets the criteria for one or more of the categories of research that are exempt under 45 CFR part 46, the committee will evaluate: 1) the justification for the exemption, 2) human subjects' involvement and characteristics, and 3) sources of materials. For additional information on review of the Human Subjects section, please refer to the HHS/CDC Requirements under AR-1 Human Subjects Requirements.
If your proposed research involves the use of human data and/or biological specimens, you must provide a justification for your claim that no human subjects are involved in the Protection of Human Subjects section of the Research Plan.
When the proposed project involves human subjects, the committee will evaluate the proposed plans for the inclusion (or exclusion) of individuals on the basis of sex or gender, race, and ethnicity, as well as the inclusion (or exclusion) of individuals of all ages (including children and older adults) to determine if it is justified in terms of the scientific goals and research strategy proposed. For additional information on review of the Inclusion section, please refer to the CDC policies on the Inclusion of Women and Racial and Ethnic Minorities in Research and the Inclusion of Persons Under 21 in Research.
The committee will evaluate the involvement of live vertebrate animals as part of the scientific assessment according to the following three points: (1) a complete description of all proposed procedures including the species, strains, ages, sex, and total numbers of animals to be used; (2) justifications that the species is appropriate for the proposed research and why the research goals cannot be accomplished using an alternative non-animal model; and (3) interventions including analgesia, anesthesia, sedation, palliative care, and humane endpoints that will be used to limit any unavoidable discomfort, distress, pain and injury in the conduct of scientifically valuable research. Methods of euthanasia and justification for selected methods, if NOT consistent with the AVMA Guidelines for the Euthanasia of Animals, is also required but is found in a separate section of the application. For additional information on review of the Vertebrate Animals Section, please refer to the Worksheet for Review of the Vertebrate Animals Section.
Reviewers will assess whether materials or procedures proposed are potentially hazardous to research personnel and/or the environment, and if needed, determine whether adequate protection is proposed.
Reviewers will identify whether the
project involves one of the agents or toxins described in the US Government
Policy for the Institutional Oversight of Life Sciences Dual Use Research of
Concern, and, if so, whether the applicant has identified an IRE to assess the
project for DURC potential and develop mitigation strategies if needed.
For more information about this Policy and other policies regarding dual use
research of concern, visit the U.S. Government Science, Safety, Security (S3)
website at: http://www.phe.gov/s3/dualuse.
Tools and guidance for assessing DURC potential may be found at: http://www.phe.gov/s3/dualuse/Pages/companion-guide.aspx.
For Renewals, the committee will consider the progress made as well as the accomplishments in the last funding period.
As applicable for the project proposed, reviewers will consider each of the following items, but will not give scores for these items, and should not consider them in providing an overall impact score.
Not applicable.
Reviewers will assess the information provided in this section of the application, including 1) the Select Agent(s) to be used in the proposed research, 2) the registration status of all entities where Select Agent(s) will be used, 3) the procedures that will be used to monitor possession use and transfer of Select Agent(s), and 4) plans for appropriate biosafety, biocontainment, and security of the Select Agent(s).
Reviewers will comment on whether the Resource Sharing Plan(s) (e.g., Sharing Model Organisms) or the rationale for not sharing the resources, is reasonable.
For projects involving key biological and/or chemical resources, reviewers will comment on the brief plans proposed for identifying and ensuring the validity of those resources.
Reviewers will consider whether the
budget and the requested period of support are fully justified and reasonable
in relation to the proposed research.
The applicant can obtain guidance for completing a detailed justified budget on
the CDC website, at the following Internet address: https://www.cdc.gov/grants/applying/application-resources.html.
Following this guidance will also facilitate the
review and approval of the budget request of applications selected for award.
The budget can include both direct costs and indirect costs as allowed.
Indirect costs could include the cost of collecting, managing, sharing and
preserving data.
If requesting indirect costs in the budget based on a federally negotiated rate, a copy of the indirect cost rate agreement is required. Include a copy of the current negotiated federal indirect cost rate agreement or cost allocation plan approval letter.
Applications will be evaluated for scientific and technical merit by an appropriate Scientific Review Group(s) convened by CDC/NIOSH, in accordance with NIOSH peer review and policy procedure, using the stated review criteria. Assignment to a Scientific Review Group will be shown in the eRA Commons.
As part of the scientific peer review, all applications:
Appeals
of initial peer review will not be accepted for applications submitted in
response to this NOFO.
The decision to fund or not to fund an organization that applied to a NOFO is
not appealable at CDC. Similarly, the score and ranking awarded to an
application is not appealable at CDC.
Applications will be assigned to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Applications will compete for available funds with all other recommended applications submitted in response to this NOFO. Following initial peer review, recommended applications will receive a second level of review for programmatic relevance and priority. The following will be considered in making funding decisions:
If the application is under consideration for funding, NIOSH will request "just-in-time" information from the applicant as described in the HHS Grants Policy Statement. This request is not a Notice of Award, nor should it be construed to be an indicator of possible funding.
Prior to making a Federal award, CDC is required by 31 U.S.C. 3321 and 41 U.S.C. 2313 to review information available through any OMB-designated repositories of government-wide eligibility qualification or financial integrity information as appropriate. See also suspension and debarment requirements at 2 CFR parts 180 and 376.
In accordance 41 U.S.C. 2313, CDC is required to review the non-public segment of the OMB-designated integrity and performance system accessible through SAM (currently the Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System (FAPIIS)) prior to making a federal award where the Federal share is expected to exceed the simplified acquisition threshold, defined in 41 U.S.C. 134, over the period of performance. At a minimum, the information in the system for a prior Federal award recipient must demonstrate a satisfactory record of executing programs or activities under Federal grants, cooperative agreements, or procurement awards, and integrity and business ethics. CDC may make a federal award to a recipient who does not fully meet these standards, if it is determined that the information is not relevant to the current Federal award under consideration or there are specific conditions that can appropriately mitigate the effects of the non-Federal entity's risk in accordance with 45 CFR 75.207.CDC’s review of risk may impact award eligibility.
In evaluating risks posed by applicants, CDC will use a risk-based approach and may consider any items such as the following:
CDC must comply with the guidelines on government-wide suspension and debarment in 2 CFR Part 180 and require non-Federal entities to comply with these provisions. These provisions restrict Federal awards, subawards and contracts with certain parties that are debarred, suspended or otherwise excluded from or ineligible for participation in Federal programs or activities.
After the peer review of the application is completed, the PD/PI will be able to access their Summary Statement (written critique) via the eRA Commons. Refer to Part 1 for dates for peer review, advisory council review, and earliest start date.
A Notice of Award (NoA) is the official authorizing document notifying the applicant that an award has been made and that funds may be requested from the designated HHS payment system or office. The NoA is signed by the Grants Management Officer and emailed to the recipient’s business official.
In accepting the award, the recipient agrees that any activities under the award are subject to all provisions currently in effect or implemented during the period of the award, other Department regulations and policies in effect at the time of the award, and applicable statutory provisions.
Any applications awarded in response to this NOFO will be subject to the UEI, SAM Registration, and Transparency Act requirements. If the application is under consideration for funding, HHS/CDC will request "just-in-time" information from the applicant as described in the HHS Grants Policy Statement.
PLEASE NOTE: Effective April 4, 2022, applicants must have a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) at the time of application submission. The UEI is generated as part of SAM.gov registration. Current SAM.gov registrants have already been assigned their UEI and can view it in SAM.gov and Grants.gov. Additional information is available on the GSA website, SAM.gov, and Grants.gov-Finding the UEI.
Recipients must comply with any funding restrictions described in Section IV.6. Funding Restrictions. Any pre-award costs incurred before receipt of the NoA are at the applicant's own risk. For more information on the Notice of Award, please refer to the CDC Office of Financial Resources website. This includes any recent legislation and policy applicable to awards that is highlighted on this website.
Institutional Review Board or Independent Ethics Committee Approval: Recipient institutions must ensure that protocols are reviewed by their IRB or IEC. To help ensure the safety of participants enrolled in NIOSH-funded studies, the recipient must provide NIOSH copies of documents related to all major changes in the status of ongoing protocols.
Diversity Supplements: NIOSH support efforts to enhance diversity of the research workforce through recruitment and support for students, post-doctorates, and eligible investigators from diverse backgrounds and groups under-represented in OSH research. To help accomplish this, supplemental funding will be considered after an application is awarded. Please refer to PA-23-189 for information or contact the NIOSH Scientific Program Official (SPO) assigned to this NOFO. Diversity supplements are contingent upon administrative review and availability of funds.
The following Federal wide and HHS-specific policy requirements apply to awards funded through CDC/NIOSH:
o HHS recognizes that CDC/NIOSH research projects are often limited in scope for many reasons that are nondiscriminatory, such as the principal investigator’s scientific interest, funding limitations, recruitment requirements, and other considerations. Thus, criteria in research protocols that target or exclude certain populations are warranted where nondiscriminatory justifications establish that such criteria are appropriate with respect to the health or safety of the subjects, the scientific study design, or the purpose of the research. For additional guidance regarding how the provisions apply to CDC/NIOSH grant programs, please contact the Scientific/Research Contact that is identified in Section VII under Agency Contacts of this NOFO.
All federal statutes and regulations relevant to federal financial assistance, including those highlighted in HHS Grants Policy Statement.
Recipients are responsible for ensuring that their activities comply with all applicable federal regulations. CDC/NIOSH may terminate awards under certain circumstances. See 2 CFR Part 200.340 Termination and HHS Grants Policy Statement Remedies for Noncompliance or Enforcement Actions: Suspension, Termination, and Withholding of Support.
Additional Requirements (ARs)
ARs outline the administrative requirements found in 45 CFR part
75 and the HHS Grants Policy
Statement and other requirements as mandated by statute or CDC policy. Recipients must comply with administrative and national policy requirements as appropriate. For more information on the Code of Federal Regulations, visit the National Archives and Records Administration.
Generally applicable ARs:
AR-1: Human Subjects Requirements
AR-2: Requirements for Inclusion of Women and Racial and Ethnic Minorities in Research
AR-3: Animal Subjects Requirements
AR-9: Paperwork Reduction Act Requirements
AR-10: Smoke-Free Workplace Requirements
AR-13: Prohibition on Use of CDC Funds for Certain Gun Control Activities
AR-14: Accounting System Requirements
AR-16: Security Clearance Requirement
AR-21: Small, Minority, and Women-Owned Business
AR-24: Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act Requirements
AR-25: Data Management and Access
AR-26: National Historic Preservation Act of 1966
AR-28: Inclusion of Persons Under the Age of 21 in Research
AR-30: Compliance with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
AR-32: Appropriations Act, General Provisions
AR-34: Accessibility Provisions and Non-Discrimination Requirements
AR-36: Certificates of Confidentiality
Organization specific ARs:
AR-8: Public Health System Reporting Requirements
AR-15: Proof of Non-profit Status
AR-23: Compliance with 45 CFR Part 87
The following are additional policy requirements relevant to this NOFO:
HHS Policy on Promoting Efficient Spending: Use of Appropriated Funds for Conferences and Meetings, Food, Promotional Items and Printing Publications This policy supports the Executive Order on Promoting Efficient Spending (EO 13589), the Executive Order on Delivering and Efficient, Effective, and Accountable Government (EO 13576) and the Office of Management and Budget Memorandum on Eliminating Excess Conference Spending and Promoting Efficiency in Government (M-35-11). This policy applies to all new obligations and all funds appropriated by Congress. For more information, visit the HHS Policy on Promoting Efficient Spending website.
Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006: Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 (FFATA), P.L. 109 282, as amended by section 6202 of P.L. 110 252, requires full disclosure of all entities and organizations receiving Federal funds including grants, contracts, loans and other assistance and payments through a single, publicly accessible website, USAspending.gov. For the full text of the requirements, please review the following website: Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act Subaward Reporting System.
Plain Writing Act: The Plain Writing Act of 2010, Public Law 111-274 was signed into law on October 13, 2010. The law requires that federal agencies use "clear Government communication that the public can understand and use" and requires the federal government to write all new publications, forms, and publicly distributed documents in a "clear, concise, well-organized" manner. For more information on this law, go to: Law and Requirements.
Employee Whistleblower Rights and Protections: All recipients of an award under this NOFO will be subject to a term and condition that applies the requirements set out in 41 U.S.C. 4712, Enhancement of contractor protection from reprisal for disclosure of certain information and 48 CFR section 3.9 to the award, which includes a requirement that recipients and subrecipients inform employees in writing (in the predominant native language of the workforce) of employee whistleblower rights and protections under 41 U.S.C. 4712. For more information see: https://oig.hhs.gov/fraud/whistleblower/.
Copyright Interests Provision: This provision is intended to ensure that the public has access to the results and accomplishments of public health activities funded by CDC. Applicants may include reasonable publication costs and costs associated with submission, curation, management of data, and special handling instructions as allowable expenses in all research budgets. Pursuant to applicable grant regulations and CDC’s Public Access Policy, Recipient agrees to submit into the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Manuscript Submission (NIHMS) system an electronic version of the final, peer-reviewed manuscript of any such work developed under this award upon acceptance for publication, to be made publicly available without any embargo or delay after publication. Also at the time of submission, Recipient and/or Recipient s submitting author must also post the manuscript through PMC without any embargo or delay after publication. The recipient must obtain prior approval from the CDC for any exception to this provision.
The author's final, peer-reviewed manuscript is defined as the final version accepted for journal publication and includes all modifications from the publishing peer review process, and all graphics and supplemental material associated with the article. Recipient and its submitting authors working under this award are responsible for ensuring that any publishing or copyright agreements concerning submitted articles reserve adequate right to fully comply with this provision and the license reserved by CDC. The manuscript will be hosted in both PMC and the CDC Stacks institutional repository system. In progress reports for this award, recipient must identify publications subject to the CDC Public Access Policy by using the applicable NIHMS identification number for up to three (3) months after the publication date and the PubMed Central identification number (PMCID) thereafter.
Language Access for Persons with Limited English Proficiency: Recipients of federal financial assistance from HHS must administer their programs in compliance with federal civil rights law. This means that recipients of HHS funds must ensure equal access to their programs without regard to a person’s race, color, national origin, disability, age and, in some circumstances, sex and religion. This includes ensuring your programs are accessible to persons with limited English proficiency. Recipients of federal financial assistance must take reasonable steps to provide meaningful access to their programs by persons with limited English proficiency.
Dual Use Research of Concern: On September 24, 2014, the US Government Policy (USG) for the Institutional Oversight of Life Sciences Dual Use Research of Concern was released. Recipients (foreign and domestic) receiving CDC funding on or after September 24, 2015, are subject to this policy. Research funded by CDC involving the agents or toxins named in the policy, must be reviewed to determine if it involves one or more of the listed experimental effects and if so, whether it meets the definition of DURC. This review must be completed by an Institutional Review Entity (IRE) identified by the funded institution.
Recipients also must establish an Institutional Contact for Dual Use Research (ICDUR). The award recipient must maintain records of institutional DURC reviews and completed risk mitigation plans for the term of the research grant, cooperative agreement or contract plus three years after its completion, but no less than eight years, unless a shorter period is required by law or regulation.
If a project is determined to be DURC, a risk/benefit analysis must be completed. CDC will work collaboratively with the award recipient to develop a risk mitigation plan that the CDC must approve. The USG policy can be found at Dual Use Research of Concern.
Non-compliance with this Policy may result in suspension, limitation, restriction or termination of USG-funding, or loss of future USG funding opportunities for the non-compliant USG-funded research project and of USG-funds for other life sciences research at the institution, consistent with existing regulations and policies governing USG-funded research and may subject the institution to other potential penalties under applicable laws and regulations.
Data Management Plan(s): CDC requires that all new collections of public health data include a Data Management Plan (DMP). For purposes of this announcement, public health data means digitally recorded factual material commonly accepted in the scientific community as a basis for public health findings, conclusions, and implementation.
This new requirement ensures that CDC is in compliance with the following; Office of Management and Budget (OMB) memorandum titled Open Data Policy Managing Information as an Asset (OMB M-13-13); Executive Order 13642 titled Making Open and Machine Readable the New Default for Government Information ; and the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) memorandum titled Increasing Access to the Results of Federally Funded Scientific Research (OSTP Memo).
The AR-25 outlines the components of a DMP and provides additional information for investigators regarding the requirements for data accessibility, storage, and preservation.
Certificates of Confidentiality: Institutions and investigators are responsible for determining whether research they conduct is subject to Section 301(d) of the Public Health Service (PHS) Act. Section 301(d), as amended by Section 2012 of the 21st Century Cures Act, P.L. 114-255 (42 U.S.C. 241(d)), states that the Secretary shall issue Certificates of Confidentiality (Certificates) to persons engaged in biomedical, behavioral, clinical, or other research activities in which identifiable, sensitive information is collected. In furtherance of this provision, CDC supported research commenced or ongoing after December 13, 2016 in which identifiable, sensitive information is collected, as defined by Section 301(d), is deemed issued a Certificate and therefore required to protect the privacy of individuals who are subjects of such research. Certificates issued in this manner will not be issued as a separate document but are issued by application of this term and condition to this award. See Additional Requirement 36 to ensure compliance with this term and condition.
Cooperative Agreement Terms and Conditions of Award
The following special terms of award are in addition to, and not in lieu of, otherwise applicable U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) administrative guidelines, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) grant administration regulations at 45 CFR part 75, and other HHS, PHS, and CDC grant administration policies.
The administrative and funding instrument used for this program will be the cooperative agreement, an "assistance" mechanism (rather than an "acquisition" mechanism), in which substantial CDC programmatic involvement with the recipients is anticipated during the performance of the activities.
Under the cooperative agreement, the HHS/CDC purpose is to support and stimulate the recipient's activities by involvement in and otherwise working jointly with the award recipient in a partnership role; CDC Project Officers are not to assume direction, prime responsibility, or a dominant role in the activities. Consistent with this concept, the dominant role and prime responsibility resides with the recipient for the project as a whole, although specific tasks and activities may be shared among the recipient and HHS/CDC as defined below.
Principal Investigator (PI)
The PDs/PIs (recipients) will have primary responsibility for the following elements:
NIOSH staff will have substantial programmatic involvement that is above and beyond the normal stewardship role in awards, as described below.
NIOSH Scientific Program Official
The assigned HHS/CDC/NIOSH Scientific Program Official will be responsible for the normal scientific and programmatic stewardship of the award and will be named in the Notice of Award.
The NIOSH Scientific Program Official will have the primary responsibility for the following:
NIOSH Project Scientist (Mining)
A NIOSH Intramural Scientist will serve as a Project Scientist to provide substantial scientific involvement and subject matter expertise for health protection with policies, programs, and practices that promote safety and health, prevent disease, and advance research focused on aspects of underground mine evacuation technologies and human factors research related to mine emergencies. Specific responsibilities, in coordination with the NIOSH Scientific Program Official, may include the following:
Areas of Joint Responsibility
Joint responsibilities may include:
When multiple years are involved, recipients will be required to submit the Research Performance Progress Report (RPPR) annually and financial statements as required in the HHS Grants Policy Statement.
A final progress report, invention statement, equipment inventory list and the expenditure data portion of the Federal Financial Report are required for closeout of an award, as described in the HHS Grants Policy Statement.
Although the financial plans of the HHS/CDC CIO(s) provide support for this program, awards pursuant to this funding opportunity depend upon the availability of funds, evidence of satisfactory progress by the recipient (as documented in required reports) and the determination that continued funding is in the best interest of the Federal government.
A final progress report, invention statement, and the expenditure data portion of the Federal Financial Report are required for closeout of an award, as described in the HHS Grants Policy Statement.
Although the financial plans of the HHS/CDC CIO(s) provide support for this
program, awards pursuant to this funding opportunity depend upon the
availability of funds, evidence of satisfactory progress by the recipient (as
documented in required reports) and the determination that continued funding is
in the best interest of the Federal government.
The Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 (Transparency Act), includes a requirement for recipients of Federal grants to report information about first-tier subawards and executive compensation under Federal assistance awards issued in FY2011 or later.
Compliance with this law is primarily the responsibility of the Federal agency. However, two elements of the law require information to be collected and reported by recipients:
1) Information on executive compensation when not already reported through the SAM Registration; and
2) Similar information on all sub-awards/ subcontracts/ consortiums over $25,000.
It is a requirement for recipients of Federal grants to report information about first-tier subawards and executive compensation under Federal assistance awards.
All recipients of applicable CDC grants and cooperative agreements are required to report to the Federal Subaward Reporting System (FSRS) on all subawards over $25,000. See the HHS Grants Policy Statement.
In accordance with the regulatory requirements provided at 45 CFR 75.113 and Appendix XII to 45 CFR part 75, recipients that have currently active Federal grants, cooperative agreements, and procurement contracts from all Federal awarding agencies with a cumulative total value greater than $10,000,000 for any period of time during the period of performance of a Federal award, must report and maintain the currency of information reported in the System for Award Management (SAM) about civil, criminal, and administrative proceedings in connection with the award or performance of a Federal award that reached final disposition within the most recent five-year period. The recipient must also make semiannual disclosures regarding such proceedings. Proceedings information will be made publicly available in the designated integrity and performance system (currently FAPIIS). This is a statutory requirement under section 872 of Public Law 110-417, as amended (41 U.S.C. 2313). As required by section 3010 of Public Law 111-212, all information posted in the designated integrity and performance system on or after April 15, 2011, except past performance reviews required for Federal procurement contracts, will be publicly available. Full reporting requirements and procedures are found in Appendix XII to 45 CFR part 75 Award Term and Conditions for Recipient Integrity and Performance Matters.
The Recipient Organization must provide CDC/NIOSH the following reports:
1. Yearly Non-Competing Grant Progress Report: The RPPR is due 120 days before the end of the current budget period. The form (instructions) is to be completed on the eRA Commons website. The progress report will serve as the non-competing continuation application. Although the financial plans of the HHS/CDC CIO(s) provide support for this program, awards pursuant to this funding opportunity are contingent upon the availability of funds, evidence of satisfactory progress by the recipient (as documented in required reports) and the determination that continued funding is in the best interest of the Federal government.
2. Annual Federal Financial Report (FFR) SF 425 is required and must be submitted to the Payment Management System accessed through the FFR navigation link in eRA Commons or directly through PMS within 90 days after the budget period ends.
3. Annual report suitable for public distribution submitted to the NIOSH Scientific program official at the end of the federal fiscal year (September 30). This report should include narrative descriptions of high-impact outcomes of individual programs that are noteworthy. Specific guidance on report content will be provided by NIOSH.
4. Closeout
Reports: A final progress report, invention statement,
equipment/inventory report, Final
FFR (SF-425) are required 120 days after the end of the period of performance.
1. Yearly Non-Competing Grant Progress Report
The recipient’s continuation application/progress report should include:
a) Research Aim/Project: purpose, status (met, ongoing, and unmet), challenges, successes, and
lessons learned.
b) Leadership/Partnership:
list project collaborations and describe the role of external partners.
How will the scientific findings be translated into public health practice or inform public health policy?
How will the project improve or effect the translation of research findings into public health practice or inform policy?
How will the research findings help promote or accelerate the dissemination, implementation, or diffusion of improvements in public health programs or practices?
How will the findings advance or guide future research efforts or related activities?
How will this project lead to improvements in public health?
How will the findings, results, or recommendations be used to influence practices, procedures, methodologies, etc.?
How will the findings, results, or recommendations contribute to documented or projected reductions in morbidity, mortality, injury, disability, or disease?
2. Annual Federal Financial Reporting
The Annual Federal Financial Report (FFR) SF 425 is required and must be submitted through the Payment Management System (PMS) within 90 days after the end of the budget period. The FFR should only include those funds authorized and disbursed during the timeframe covered by the report. The final FFR must indicate the exact balance of unobligated funds and may not reflect any unliquidated obligations. There must be no discrepancies between the final FFR expenditure data and the Payment Management System's (PMS) cash transaction data.
Failure to submit the required information in a timely manner may adversely affect the future funding of this project. If the information cannot be provided by the due date, you are required to submit a letter explaining the reason and date by which the Grants Officer will receive the information.
Additional resources on the Payment Management System (PMS) can be found at https://pms.psc.gov.
Recipients must submit closeout reports in a timely manner. Unless the Grants Management Officer (GMO) of the awarding Institute or Center approves an extension, recipients must submit a final FFR, final progress report, and Final Invention Statement and Certification within 120 days after the end of the period of performance. Failure to submit timely and accurate final reports may affect future funding to the organization or awards under the direction of the same Project Director/Principal Investigator (PD/PI).
Organizations may verify their current registration status by running the List of Commons Registered Organizations query found at: eRA Commons Registration & Accounts. Organizations not yet registered can go to https://commons.era.nih.gov/commons/ for instructions. It generally takes several days to complete this registration process. This registration is independent of Grants.gov and may be done at any time.
The individual designated as the PI on the application must also be registered in the Commons. The PI must hold a PI account and be affiliated with the applicant organization. This registration must be done by an organizational official or their delegate who is already registered in the Commons. To register PIs in the Commons, refer to the eRA Commons User Guide.
3. Final Reports
Final reports should provide sufficient detail for CDC to determine if the stated outcomes for the funded research have been achieved and if the research findings resulted in public health impact based on the investment. The recipient's final report should include:
CDC may impose other enforcement actions in accordance with 45 CFR 75.371- Remedies for Noncompliance, as appropriate.
The Federal award may be terminated in whole or in part as follows:
(1) By the HHS awarding agency or pass-through entity, if the non-Federal entity fails to comply with the terms and conditions of the award;
(2) By the HHS awarding agency or pass-through entity for cause;
(3) By the HHS awarding agency or pass-through entity with the consent of the non-Federal entity, in which case the two parties must agree upon the termination conditions, including the effective date and, in the case of partial termination, the portion to be terminated; or
(4) By the non-Federal entity upon sending to the HHS awarding agency or pass-through entity written notification setting forth the reasons for such termination, the effective date, and, in the case of partial termination, the portion to be terminated. However, if the HHS awarding agency or pass-through entity determines in the case of partial termination that the reduced or modified portion of the Federal award or subaward will not accomplish the purposes for which the Federal award was made, the HHS awarding agency or pass-through entity may terminate the Federal award in its entirety.
We encourage inquiries concerning this funding opportunity
and welcome the opportunity to answer questions from potential applicants.
eRA Service Desk (Questions regarding ASSIST, eRA Commons, application errors and warnings, documenting system problems that threaten submission by the due date, post-submission issues, and FFR submission)
Finding Help Online: https://www.era.nih.gov/need-help
(preferred method of contact)
Telephone: 301-402-7469 or 866-504-9552 (Toll Free)
General Grants Information
(Questions regarding application instructions, application processes, and NIH
grant resources)
Email: [email protected] (preferred
method of contact)
Telephone: 301-480-7075
Hours: Monday - Friday, 7am - 8pm U.S. Eastern Time; closed on Federal holidays
Grants.gov Customer Support (Questions regarding
Grants.gov registration and Workspace)
Contact Center Telephone: 800-518-4726
Email: [email protected]
Hours: 24 hours a day, 7 days a week; closed on Federal holidays
Maria Lioce, MD
Office of Extramural Coordination and Special Projects
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
(NIOSH)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Telephone: 404-498-2575
Email: [email protected]
Michael Goldcamp, PhD
Office of Extramural Coordination and Special Projects
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
(NIOSH)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Telephone: 304-285-5951
Email: [email protected]
Christina Park
Grants Management Specialist
Office of Grants Services (OGS)
Office of Financial Resources (OFR)
Office of the Chief Operating Officer (OCOO)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Telephone: 404-498-5014
Email: [email protected]
Other CDC funding opportunity announcements can be found at www.grants.gov. Recently issued trans-NIH policy notices may affect your application submission. A full list of policy notices published by NIH is provided in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts. All awards are subject to the terms and conditions, cost principles, and other considerations described in the HHS Grants Policy Statement .
This program is described in the Assistance Listings and is not subject to the intergovernmental review requirements of Executive Order 12372 or Health Systems Agency Review. Awards are made under the authorization of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, Section 20(a) and 21(a) (29 USC 669(a) and 29 USC 670); Federal Mine Safety and Health Act, Section 501(a), 30 USC 1 (Note), and 30 USC 951(a); and Section 301 of the Public Health Service Act as amended (42 USC 241) and under Federal Regulations 42 CFR part 52. All awards are subject to 45 CFR part 75, the terms and conditions, cost principles, and other considerations described in the HHS Grants Policy Statement.
and Human Services (HHS)
