- Introduction
- Important Reminders
- Where to Send Required Reports
- ASAP.gov
- Allowable Transmission Methods for Grant-Related Actions
- Contacting TOP
- Contacting NIST
- Understanding Your Grant Award Document
- Using TOP's Online Grants Management System & Performance Reporting System
- Project Start-Up Documentation
- Quarterly Performance Reports
- Financial Reports and Forms
- Special Award Conditions
- Project Amendments
- Extensions of the Grant Award Period
- Project Closeout Requirements
- Facilitating Communication Among TOP Grant Recipients
- Audit Requirements
- Appendix
Return to Top
INTRODUCTION
Congratulations on your recent Grant Award from the Technology Opportunities Program (TOP)!
This TOP Grant Recipient Handbook (Handbook) is designed to assist you in understanding the basic responsibilities of TOP grant recipients, and to provide you with information and guidance in the preparation of required reports and documents. We recommend that you carefully review this Handbook, and keep it available for easy reference throughout the period that your grant is active.
Read your entire Financial Assistance Award document carefully; it contains additional information on requirements and conditions of your Grant Award. Pay particular attention to the Special Award Conditions (SACs) that are included with the Grant Award Document.
Your TOP Program Officer is responsible for programmatic and technical matters related to your Grant Award, and your National Institute for Standards and Technology, Grants and Agreements Management Division, (NIST) Grants Specialist is responsible for the financial and administrative aspects of your award. Knowing and understanding the difference can help you avoid delays in processing various aspects of your award.
Below you will find two Important Reminders and Due Dates checklists with which you can track your compliance with various TOP and NIST deadlines. All of the items on the two checklists are important to the responsible management of your TOP Grant Award, and we encourage you to review and refer to them frequently to ensure that your organization remains in compliance with the terms and conditions of your Grant Award. Should you have questions regarding any of these requirements, please contact your TOP Program Officer or your NIST Grants Specialist.
Please note that failure to provide required reports and other information on time and in full creates an unnecessary burden for your organization and for TOP and NIST staff. This situation also places your project out of compliance with the terms and conditions of your TOP Grant Award, a serious situation that may result in suspension or termination of your grant, establishment of an Account Receivable for all Federal funds paid to your organization from this award, and/or denial of future grants to your organization.
Project Start-Up Documentation, Quarterly Performance Reports, and the Final Project Report Must be Submitted to TOP in Electronic Form.
Project Start-Up Documentation, all Quarterly Performance Reports, and the Final Project Report must be submitted to TOP electronically via TOP's web-based Online Reporting System. Information and instructions on using the Online Reporting System are included in this Handbook. Please remember to submit all other required hardcopy documents and any other supporting materials (including newspaper articles, press releases, etc.) to TOP in duplicate (one original and one copy).
Please submit your Final Evaluation Report, which is part of your closeout documentation, in TRIPLICATE, along with an electronic version (in WORD or WordPerfect format).
Please remember to submit all required forms and reports to NIST in
hardcopy form in TRIPLICATE (one original and two copies).
Grant Award Number
Always put your full NIST 12-character Grant Award number (for example, "TOP Grant #55-60-I04001") on all forms or other materials that you submit to TOP or NIST. This helps ensure that your materials will not be misfiled or misdirected, and that action on your request will not be delayed.
Valid Street Mailing Address
If you did not do so during the application process — or if your address has changed — you must provide TOP and NIST with a complete and valid street address for your organization. Remember also to include all applicable Suite and Room numbers. Registered and express mail correspondence from TOP and NIST cannot be delivered to a Post Office box number.
Changes in Address
Please make certain that the address on file with TOP and NIST for your organization is current and correct. Please notify both TOP and NIST immediately of any address changes.
Due Dates Checklist
April 30
April 1, 2005
Your Technology Opportunities Program (TOP) Program Officer (listed in the Special Awards Conditions section of your Grant Award document) is the initial contact for all programmatic and technical matters related to your Grant Award. The information that you will submit to TOP includes:
Any additional materials such as newspaper articles, press releases, conference reports, photos, videos, etc. should be sent to your TOP Program Officer at the following address:
The National Institute for Standards and Technology, Grants and Agreements Management Division, (NIST) is the Federal Grants Office within the Department of Commerce that is responsible for all administrative and financial matters related to your TOP Grant Award. The reports, forms, and other documents you will submit to your NIST Grants Specialist (listed in the Special Awards Conditions section of your Grant Award document) include:
Three copies of the materials listed above should be mailed to your NIST Grants Specialist at the following address:
The Payment Process and Procedures Have Changed: ASAP.gov
All grant award funds obligated under the NTIA's Technology Opportunity Program (TOP) will be disbursed using the Department of Treasury's (Treasury) Automated Standard Application for Payments (ASAP) system. This payment system allows grant and cooperative agreement recipients to withdraw funding directly from an established ASAP account for each award. Withdrawn amounts are deposited directly into the bank account identified by the recipient during the enrollment process. Several TOP recipients are already using the ASAP system.
The ASAP enrollment process is managed by the Department of Treasury. The NIST Grants and Agreements Management Division (GAMD) will provide a list of TOP recipient organizations to Treasury. Treasury will then contact each TOP recipient organization, usually via email, and provide a complete enrollment package. It is very important that the enrollment package be completed as soon as possible and that you follow all the instructions provided.
Once Treasury has accepted your enrollment package, they will inform the organization and NIST's GAMD of the recipient and payment requestor id numbers (IDs). GAMD will then establish an account in ASAP for each award that your organization has with TOP. Once GAMD establishes and certifies the account in ASAP, the organization's payment requestor should have access to the funds immediately.
If you are already enrolled to use the ASAP system with another agency, Treasury will not need the organization to enroll again; however, they will confirm that the banking information for the TOP award remains unchanged.
All FY 2004 new awards contain a Special Award Condition similar to Exhibit 1. All funds obligated under those awards will be disbursed through ASAP. There is no need to submit an SF-270, Request for Advance or Reimbursement, or a SF-272, Federal Cash Transaction Report.
Grants Made Prior to FY 2004:
All awards that were obligated prior to FY 2004 and expire after June 30, 2004, and for which an unliquidated balance remains, will be transferred to the ASAP system for all remaining disbursements. These recipients will follow the enrollment procedures described above. An amendment to each award document will be executed and will contain a Special Award Condition similar to that found in Exhibit 1. The amount of funds that will be made available in ASAP for withdrawal will be equal to the agreed upon unliquidated balance of the grant at the time the ASAP account is established. The GAMD grant specialist will confirm the unliquidated balance with the recipient and the NIST accounts payable department before certifying the funds in ASAP. Recipients can continue to send an SF-270, Request for Advance or Reimbursement, to the GAMD Grant Specialist until they receive their ASAP IDs.
For more information regarding ASAP go to http://www.fms.treas.gov/asap/index.html. If you have any questions regarding implementation of ASAP, please contact Melinda Chukran, Grants Specialist, at 301-975-5266 or via email at Melinda.chukran@nist.gov or the NIST Grant Specialist named in your award document.
Allowable Transmission Methods for Grant-Related Actions
The Department of Commerce will accept some types of documentation in email or fax from grantees, obviating the need for transmission of a signed original. The table below summarizes which types of documentation may be submitted electronically, and which types of documentation must be sent in hard copy with original signatures on letterhead.
With respect to items sent electronically, grantees do not need to send the original version to TOP. However, they should maintain original versions in their files.
TOP Director:
TOP Evaluation Specialist:
TOP Program Officers:
TOP Grantee Specialists:
TOP Grants Assistant:
Your TOP Grant Award document package contains all of the materials and information necessary for your organization to remain in full compliance with the terms and conditions of your award. Read all of these materials and keep them at hand for reference during the months that your project is active. Even though your organization may have had previous experience with other Federal grants, each Federal agency and grant program is different, and each has its own distinct reporting requirements.
CD-450: Financial Assistance Award
The first item in your TOP Grant Award package is the one-page Financial Assistance Award (CD-450) document, the formal award signed and dated by the NIST Grants Officer that constitutes an obligation of Federal funding for your project. Your package contains three identical copies of the CD-450, each of which must be signed and dated by an authorized official from your organization. In signing these documents, your organization agrees to comply with the provisions, terms and conditions of the Grant Award. Once the CD-450 has been signed and dated, two copies must be returned to the NIST Grants Officer within 30 days of receipt, and the third copy retained by your organization. If the two signed copies are not returned to NIST within the 30-day period, the Grants Officer may declare your Grant Award to be null and void.
Please check to make sure that the information contained on the CD-450 is complete and accurate. If you believe that an item is incorrect, contact the NIST Grants Specialist who is listed on the first page of the Special Award Conditions packet. Do not attempt to make any changes to the award document on your own.
U.S. Department of Commerce Financial Assistance Standard Terms
and Conditions
The Department of Commerce Financial Assistance Standard Terms and Conditions document contained in your Grant Award package describes a number of general financial, programmatic and other Departmental award requirements with which your organization must comply.
Among the items covered in the Standard Terms and Conditions document are the following:
U.S. Department of Commerce Financial Assistance Special Award
Conditions
The Department of Commerce Financial Assistance Special Award Conditions document in your Grant Award package contains specific information related to your particular award, reiterates some of the requirements contained in the Standard Terms and Conditions, and describes a number of requirements that must be met before Federal funds from your Grant Award can be released to your organization.
The Special Awards Conditions document lists the names, addresses and telephone numbers of your organization's TOP Program Officer, NIST Grants Officer, and NIST Grants Specialist, as well as the primary contact individual for your organization. The document also describes the general nature of your funded project, and lists the agreed-upon line-item budget figures for your project by Federal and non-Federal share. In addition, it identifies the required components of the Quarterly Performance Reports and Closeout Documentation package that your organization will be required to submit to TOP.
For a description of the Special Award Conditions that may be specifically required of your organization, please see the Special Award Conditions section of this
Handbook.
Your Grant Award package will contain a number of blank forms that are to be used in submitting required financial information to NIST. Both of the forms may be reproduced as often as necessary. These forms are as follows: Each of these required Financial Reports and Forms is discussed in the Financial Reports and Forms section of this Handbook.
Regulations, Circulars, and Policies Related to Your Grant Award Document
The front page of your Financial Assistance Award document (CD-450) contains a list of regulations, circulars and policies that may apply to your TOP Grant Award.
Those that have checks appearing in front of them specifically apply to your organization's award. Copies of each of these are included with your Grant Award package. For online versions of the circulars, please see:
TOP's web-based Online Grants Management and Performance Reporting Systems (PRS) ["Online Reporting Systems"] were developed to improve grantees' ability to collect data and document project start-up, operation, and ongoing progress in a timely and efficient way. This data provides grantees with a valuable tool for ongoing self-assessment and monitoring. Also, the Online Reporting Systems enhance the Program's ability to collect relevant data, monitor project progress, and conduct ongoing analyses of projects and their impact.
The Online Reporting Systems are a tool for grantees and for TOP Program Officers, providing improved, increased, and more timely communication between grantees and TOP. In addition, by collecting results data from the field in a structured format, TOP can better aggregate and assess the information provided by different projects. The resulting analyses assist TOP in understanding and sharing lessons learned by the projects.
TOP assesses the nature and degree of the effects that TOP-supported projects are having at the local, state, and national levels. The Online Reporting System helps grantees and TOP measure the degree to which TOP-supported projects affect the organizations implementing the projects, other organizations that are involved with the projects, individuals and populations served, and communities.
The Online Reporting System consists of the following data collection elements:
Each will be explained in subsequent sections of the Handbook.
The Online Reporting System is a web-based reporting tool which allows grantees to submit action requests, monitoring, and evaluation data electronically to TOP.
To use the Online Reporting Systems you need Microsoft Internet Explorer or Netscape Browser 4.0 or higher. If you are using a dial-up connection, we recommend, at least, a 56K modem.
There are several key features to the system that are intended to simplify your reporting requirements:
Logging On and Using the Online Reporting Systems
Your organization will receive one set of access/submit codes for the Online Reporting System. The access codes are composed of a ten-digit alpha-numeric ID and Password. You will also be issued a ten digit Close Password. Once you log on, you can change both your ID and your password.
The ID and Password provide read and write access to the system. The Close Password is required to submit a completed report to TOP for review and acceptance. Sending your final submittal will freeze your data for that report. Until final submittal, you may leave and return to the Online Reporting System as often as you like. After final submittal, you may return to the site as often as like to view a read-only version of your report.
If you have lost or forgotten your Access/Submit codes, please contact your Program Officer. They will see that your organization is provided with new codes. If you think that an unauthorized user has gained access to your records, please contact your Program Officer immediately, and we will provide you with new codes.
Once you have submitted a completed report to TOP, your Program Officer reviews your report. Your Program Officer may have questions about your report and may request that you modify your submission. If that is the case, your Program Officer re-opens your report, allowing you to edit your submission. When you have completed your edits, resubmit your report (using your Close Password).
The Program Director gives each report a final review and accepts them. At this point the system rolls to the next reporting cycle. After the Program Director's acceptance, you will be able to begin to enter data for your next report. It takes approximately 30 days to process reports.
If you need help with the system, telephone support (via 202-482-2048) will be available Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Eastern Standard Time. Please indicate to the receptionist the nature of your technical question (can't access the site, receiving an error message, etc.).
Technical matters will be referred to our technical support staff. If you prefer email, technical questions can be sent to our email support at PRSHelp@ntia.doc.gov. In your email, always include the following:
For programmatic questions (i.e., not certain who should be listed under "key personnel," not certain what TOP is looking for in the "Outcomes" section, etc.), please contact your TOP Program Officer.
You are required to submit project Start-Up Documentation that provides initial background information regarding your project. The purpose of the Start-Up Documentation is to establish an initial framework of information from which your Program Officer will be able to assess the progress being made on your project during the period that it is active.
This data also provides you with an opportunity to verify the information about the project that may have changed during or since negotiations. The data entered in this report is important in filling out the quarterly reports and the final project report.
Project Start-Up Documentation is to be submitted to TOP electronically via the TOP web-based Online Grants Management System within 60 days of the award start date.
Your organization is expected to provide TOP with the following information and data in your project Start-Up Documentation:
A particularly troublesome section of the start-up documentation is the section on Partners and Subrecipients. Partners are organizations contributing financially to the project, either with cash or in-kind contributions. The Subrecipient category is used rarely, and only when you are making grants of Federal funds to other organizations. A Partner cannot be listed as a Subrecipient, nor can a Subrecipient be listed as a Partner. A Vendor is a contractor paid to accomplish a specific task. Vendors are never listed as Subrecipients, although they may be listed as Partners if they are contributing something for which they are not paid. Some additional tips for completing this section correctly are:
Your Program Officer will assist you in identifying outputs vs. outcomes and making sure the outcomes are operationalized. In particular, check that the outcomes are defined in measurable terms; that they are focused clearly on target groups; and that it is clear what behaviors and changes will be examined to determine progress, and the standard against which that progress will be measured. In the evidence section make sure you have included some mention of how the data will be collected and analyzed. Finally, make sure you have included evaluation milestones in the Activities and Milestones Section.
The start-up documentation is based on the information you provided in your application. Any discrepancies need to be discussed and resolved with your Program Officer. Changes that have occurred since the application was submitted need to be noted in Section H, Other.
Quarterly Performance Reports are submitted to TOP electronically via the TOP web-based Online Grants Management System within 30 days after the end of each calendar quarter as follows: It is extremely important that your organization submit all Quarterly Performance Reports on time. Failure to submit Reports in a timely fashion places your organization out of compliance with the terms and conditions of your Grant Award, and may result in the suspension of payments associated with the grant, an effort to recover funds that have already been disbursed, and/or termination of the Grant Award.
If the Project Period End Date for your grant falls before the last day of a quarter, your organization is not required to submit a Quarterly Performance Report for that particular quarter. Instead, these final activities are reported in the Final Report that is included with your Closeout Documentation. If the Project Period End Date falls on the last day of a quarter — which is more typically the case — you submit both a Quarterly Performance Report for that quarter and a Final Report.
The content of your Quarterly Performance Report reflects the current status of your project, and should be confined to the months in the specific quarter being reported. When you are working on your report, do not report events and developments that will occur in the month after the quarter is over. Similarly, each Quarterly Report does not need to provide a complete history of your project, although you may wish to refer to some items included in previous reports in order to provide a context. The following information is required in each Quarterly Performance Report:
In addition, Quarterly Performance Reports submitted for the Quarter ending September 30 of each year must contain information on two additional items:
The information in your Quarterly Performance Report helps TOP staff document the steps that individual grant recipients are taking to implement their projects. Within TOP, this information is used for routine program monitoring, for identifying projects in need of technical assistance, and for identifying potentially promising practices that warrant more intensive study and/or adaption by other projects.
During the period that your TOP grant is active, your organization is required to submit a series of financial reports and forms to NIST. The Financial Assistance Standard Terms and Conditions section of your TOP grant award document contains detailed information regarding these reports and other financial requirements related to your award, as well as instructions on how to request award payments.
The principal financial reports and forms that your organization will be required to submit to NIST are described below. Links to each of the forms listed below can be found in the
Appendix of this Handbook; most of the forms are available online at
www.FedForms.gov.
SF-269: Financial Status Report (long form)
Your organization is required to submit a Financial Status Report (Standard Form 269 [SF-269]) semi-annually to NIST for the periods ending March 31 and September 30, or any portion thereof, whether there was financial activity during that period or not. Financial Status Reports are due no later than 30 days following the end of each reporting period.
Your organization is also required to submit a final Financial Status Report to NIST within 90 days following the expiration of your project's Grant Award Period.
A link to a Financial Status Report form can be found in the Appendix, and is also available online at www.FedForms.gov. Several
blank Financial Status Report forms are also included in your grant award document package.
Completed original copies of Financial Status Reports are sent to NIST, not to TOP. All Financial Status Reports must be submitted in triplicate (one original and two copies).
CD-281: Report of Government Property in Possession of Contractor
When your TOP project has been completed, a Report of Government Property in Possession of Contractor (Commerce Department Form 281 [CD-281]) must be submitted to TOP as part of the closeout documentation for the Grant Award. The CD-281 is an inventory of all equipment acquired under the grant with both Federal and non-Federal funds.
A link to a Report of Government Property in Possession of Contractor form can be found in the Appendix, and is also available online at www.osec.doc.gov/forms/pdf/cd281fll.pdf. See also www.doc.gov/forms for all necessary forms.
Should you have questions regarding the preparation of any of these Financial Reports, please contact your NIST Grants Specialist.
Your award document may contain one or more Special Award Conditions (SACs) that require the submission of specific documents to TOP or to NIST before Federal funds can be released to your organization. Special Award Conditions regarding the release of Federal funds are generally listed in the first eight pages of your award document. Read them thoroughly, paying particular attention to the date on which each item is due.
Special Award Condition Documentation to be Submitted to TOP
Should you have questions regarding the preparation of any of the items listed below, please contact your TOP Program Officer.
All TOP awards contain a provision that the organization submit a detailed plan describing the policies and technical mechanisms that your group employs to encourage "acceptable use" to online resources, including the Internet. Your Acceptable Use Plan must be submitted to TOP within 60 days after the award start date.
Your organization's Acceptable Use Plan should offer reasonable assurances that safeguards will be in place to ensure that end users (especially minors) do not encounter inappropriate material or dangerous situations while online. The plan may include, but need not be limited to, the use of specialized filtering software, the development of guidelines for acceptable conduct and activities on the network, or a discussion of monitoring steps that will be taken to verify compliance with the organization's policies.
Background
Freely given consent to participate in research is the cornerstone of ethical experimentation involving human subjects. For more information on human subject research protections, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Human Research Protection has created a guidebook available at:
Your Responsibilities
By law, the Department of Commerce must certify that the research elements of your project adequately protect human subjects. Federal policy defines a "human subject" as an individual about whom an investigator conducting research obtains:
Recognizing that many applicants do not have their research and evaluation procedures fully developed by the time of award, TOP created the "Deferral of Review of Use of Human Subjects" Special Award Condition (SAC). For FY2004 recipients, by April 1, 2005, you must ask TOP to certify that your procedures are either: (1) exempt from Human Subject Research Protections or (2) approved by an Institutional Review Board (IRB).
Either the exemption request or the request for acceptance of IRB approval must be accompanied by your Evaluation Plan.
In order to determine whether an exemption or IRB approval is needed, please use TOP's
Human Subjects Research Checklist. While you assess your research and evaluation procedures, you are permitted to begin work on other aspects of project implementation. In addition, you are also permitted to develop research plans, evaluation questions, or survey instruments as you seek IRB approval or exemption status. However, you cannot conduct any research involving human subjects until documentation substantiating an exemption or IRB approval has been submitted to and approved by TOP.
If you believe your research is exempt, you should first contact your TOP Program Officer and discuss your justification. With respect to TOP projects, exemptions are provided for:
If you and your Program Officer determine an exemption is warranted, she/he will ask that you prepare an exemption request.
If you and your Program Officer determine IRB approval of your research is required, you will need to submit your research procedures, proposed protections, and evaluation instruments to an IRB that has been approved by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. If your organization does not have an IRB, many local colleges and universities have approved IRBs that will conduct reviews of your research for a nominal fee (typically less than $900). The Department of Human Services Office of Human Research Protections maintains an updated list of approved IRBs at:
Once the IRB has reviewed and approved your research and evaluation procedures, you will need to send your TOP Program Officer information on IRB approval.
Finally, protecting human subjects is an ongoing activity. For those projects that seek IRB approval, your certification needs to be updated annually. For those projects that are exempt, the exemption is only valid as long as the research on which it is based remains unchanged. In other words, if your project is certified as being exempt, and subsequently your evaluator decides to alter the research methodology or include subjects from special classes, you need to contact your TOP Program Officer and resubmit the modified research protocol for either an exemption or IRB approval.
Privacy and Security Safeguards Plan
Your TOP Grant Award may contain a Special Award Condition that requires your organization to submit a detailed plan describing the policies and technical mechanisms that your group will employ to protect network security and safeguard the privacy of individuals associated with your project. Your organization is required to submit such a Privacy and Security Safeguards Plan to TOP within 60 days after the award start date.
Your organization's Privacy and Security Safeguards Plan should contain a detailed description of the technical mechanisms your organization plans to employ to safeguard the confidentiality of information and the privacy of any individuals involved with the project, either as end-users or as information providers. Your plan should also discuss specific policies and procedures that your organization plans to use to accomplish this goal, such as non-disclosure agreements, verification procedures, access authorization mechanisms, and the training of staff and end-users regarding the nature of security and privacy issues. In addition, you should indicate how you plan to safeguard the integrity of your own system, and to protect it from viruses, hackers, and other outside threats. Special Award Condition Documentation to be Submitted to NIST
Should you have questions regarding any of the items listed below, please contact your NIST Grants Specialist.
Universal Service Discount Certification
Under the Universal Service Discounts provisions of Section 254 of the
Telecommunications Act of 1996, eligible schools, libraries, and public and rural not for-profit health care providers are allowed discounts on the purchase of all commercially available telecommunications services, Internet access and internal connections.
If your organization or any of your partners and/or subrecipients is eligible, your TOP Grant Award may contain a Special Award Condition requiring your organization to submit certification to TOP that:
1) your organization will expeditiously apply for and accept any discounts, currently available or for which you may later become eligible, under the Universal Service Discounts provisions of the Act; and that 2) you will advise all partners and/or subrecipients participating in your Grant Award that they are expected to apply for and to accept any discounts available under the Act.
More information on universal service discounts and eligibility requirements can be found on the Universal Service Administrative Company's website at www.universalservice.org.
Certification of Financial Management System Adequacy
Your TOP Grant Award document may contain a Special Award Condition requiring that your organization submit a letter from an independent Certified Public Accountant to NIST within 60 days of the award start date stating that your organization's financial management system is adequate to meet the standards prescribed in 15 CFR Part 14, §14.21.
Other Special Award Conditions
If your project is earning program income, then your organization, as the recipient, must use the funds for a purpose that is consistent with the purposes of the award. Typically, this would involve using the funds to expand the scope of the project, or for other uses identified at the time of award negotiation. The funds must be obligated during the award period. The use of program income is subject to audit.
All of the responsibilities relating to program income also apply to all subrecipients of an award. For example, if the grant has paid for equipment that your organization transfers to a third party and the third party uses the equipment to provide a service that generates income, then your organization must report the income. This Special Award Condition only applies to services provided for a fee. Services provided to outside organizations or to the public free of charge are not affected by this requirement.
Any TOP recipient that is assessing fees for grant-supported services that can also be obtained from private businesses must ensure that the rates charged for those services are not less than what private companies generally charge for "equivalent" services. If you are unsure whether or not your organization is in compliance with these provisions, it is imperative that you contact your TOP Program Officer immediately to discuss the services in question.
This Special Award Condition is in effect for as long as any equipment, such as servers, routers, personal computers, and modems, is used to provide services to outside organizations or to the public for a fee. It applies to TOP awards that have been completed as well as to those that remain active. The equipment in question refers not only to equipment purchased with Federal funds, but to all equipment included in the project budget, including that owned by third-parties.
During the months that your TOP project is active, you may occasionally find that some aspects of your project plan are in need of modification. In such situations, you are required to inform TOP in advance of possible project modifications, to discuss these with your TOP Program Officer, and, in some cases, to formally request and receive prior approvals from TOP and NIST before such changes can take place. Examples of such situations include instances in which: 1) a project appears to be shifting away from its originally stated objectives and scope; 2) key personnel are about to leave a project; and/or 3) a project budget seems to be in need of re-alignment. In such cases, it may be necessary for you formally request a Project Amendment in order to complete the project.
After you have consulted with your TOP Program Officer and you decide that an Amendment Request is warranted, prepare an Amendment Request and submit it via the Online Grants Management System to TOP at least 30 days before the end of the Grant Award period. [Note: Even if a No-Cost Budget Amendment Request has merit, it is often impossible to process the request and to seek necessary internal approvals prior to the formal expiration date of the award if it is received any later.]
Amendment Requests should not be sought retroactively. The request should be clearly labeled as an Amendment Request, and should not be combined with any other submission. The online Amendment Request should state clearly what changes your organization wishes to make to the project and the reasons for them. All relevant cost figures must be included. In addition, it is important that your request contain a statement to the effect that your Amendment Request will not result in any additional cost to the Federal government.
All Amendment Requests will be reviewed by TOP and NIST prior to issuing written approval or denial of your request. If your Amendment Request is approved, the Grants Officer will provide written notification to your organization; if it is denied, the Grants Officer will send a letter notifying you of this fact. Amendment approvals are not considered official until formal notification has been signed by the Grants Officer.
It is important to remember that no matter what anyone may tell you, including TOP Staff, if you do not receive written approval from the Grants Officer, your request for an amendment is not approved. If your organization decides to purchase items of equipment listed in the Amendment Request prior to receiving written approval, you do so at your own risk. If the Amendment Request is eventually turned down, your organization will have to bear the entire cost of the unauthorized purchase. In other words, if purchases are made before written approval is received, the Amendment Request may be denied or the approval rescinded. Types of Project Amendment Requests Permitted by TOP
Changes in Project Scope or Focus
As TOP grant recipients begin work on their projects, some may find that unanticipated circumstances intervene over time to cause subtle shifts in the overall focus and/or scope of their projects. For example, an organization may come to realize that a technology different from the one proposed in the award document could be used to achieve project goals more effectively. Another grant recipient might decide that the number of locations served by a project should be increased or decreased; that the number of services provided should be expanded; and/or that the planned project sites should be changed.
Some proposed modifications to the scope or focus of a project are relatively minor and do not require a formal amendment to the Grant Award. However, in instances where the scope or focus of the project may undergo significant modification, grant recipients are required to request and seek prior written approval before they can undertake such a revision in the program plan. A decision to request a project Scope or Focus Amendment should be made only after you have thoroughly discussed the proposed modifications and the need for such an amendment with your TOP Program Officer. Amendment approvals may not be sought retroactively for changes in project scope or focus.
Be aware that at some point a requested change in project scope or focus may represent such a departure from the original nature of the project that it cannot be approved by the Grants Officer.
No-Cost Budget Amendments
Occasionally it may be necessary for a TOP grant recipient to request modification of a project's budget in order to complete a project. Such budget amendment requests usually involve the transfer of specific amounts budgeted for one or more categories to one or more other categories in order to absorb unanticipated expenses. As noted in the OMB Circulars, grantees may shift up to 10% of the Total Project Cost (less indirect charges) between and among primary budget categories without seeking approval from the Federal government. However, once the 10% threshold is reached, or if the grantee believes the line item changes to be significant, the grantee must submit a request for a No-Cost Budget Amendment.
Procedures for Submission of a No-Cost Budget Amendment
When submitting a No-Cost Budget Amendment Request, the grantee may use the Online Grants Management System, including: (1) a memo explaining the proposed changes; (2) a revised Budget Narrative delineating the proposed modifications; (3) an updated Statement of Matching Funds; and (4) a revised Standard Form 424A (SF-424A, Budget Information — Non-Construction Programs).
Even if the modification alters the grantee's share of the estimated funding, grant recipients need not submit a revised Standard Form 424 (SF-424).
Before considering any amendment to your project's budget, it is important to remember that your organization was awarded a TOP grant to complete a specific project at an agreed-upon Total Project Cost, with a further understanding that the Federal share would not exceed the amount of the specified Federal award. Therefore, requests for a No-Cost Budget Amendments cannot seek additional Federal funds.
Budget amendments are also required if you would like to pay for an item not listed in your approved budget. In addition, your organization does not have authorization to spend funds to purchase more items than what you listed in your approved budget. For example, if the original approved budget for your project included the purchase of six computers, and these computers actually cost only half of what had been budgeted, your organization does not have authorization to buy additional computers. If your project can be completed for less than the cost that was estimated in the award document, then both your organization and the Federal government have saved money. [Note: Funds returned to TOP in this manner may be awarded as grants in subsequent grant rounds.]
OMB Circular A-110, "Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Agreements with Institutions of Higher Education, Hospitals, and Other Non-Profit Organizations," discusses the revision of budget and program plans. With respect to budget revisions, the circular indicates:
Any decision to request a No-Cost Budget Amendment should be made only after you have discussed the need for the amendment with your TOP Program Officer. Such requests require the prior written approval of the Grants Officer. No-Cost Budget Amendments cannot be approved retroactively for items purchased or expenses incurred without prior written authorization.
Changes in Key Project Personnel
Your organization must also provide written notification and formally request an amendment for any change in the key person(s) specified in your project's application or award document. While sudden personnel changes cannot always be anticipated in time to seek prior approval from TOP and NIST, such an amendment is required if the principal administrative oversight and responsibility for a project is going to be shifted from one individual to another within the grant recipient organization. A request for an amendment of this type should be sought as soon as possible, and must be accompanied by a CD-346 — Applicant for Funding Assistance and résumé for each key project individual listed. [Note: A CD-346 is not required of state and local government entities, including school districts and public libraries, or of accredited colleges and universities. Also, this Amendment Request requires an original signature.]
Federal and Non-Federal Cost Share Ratio
In accepting the Federal award, your organization is committed to provide the matching funds identified in the approved budget. Therefore, budget amendments that result in a decrease of the non-Federal matching share will result in a corresponding decrease in the Federal share of the award.
The non-Federal share of your award, whether in cash or in-kind
contributions, is expected to be paid out at the same general rate as the Federal share. Exceptions to this requirement may be granted by the Grants Officer based on sufficient documentation demonstrating previously determined plans for, or later commitment of, cash or in-kind contributions.
Items, services, or equipment that do not appear in the award document or have not been the subject of an approved amendment will be removed from the project budget by TOP and NIST at the time of closeout. If this occurs, your organization may be required to refund Federal funds previously paid to your organization.
The Grant Award Period is the time during which your organization can obligate your Federal grant funds to complete your approved project. The Grant Award Period for your TOP grant appears on the first page of your CD-450 award document. All project activities must be completed by the end of the Grant Award Period.
Occasionally a grant recipient organization may consider it necessary to request a one-time extension of a Grant Award period in order to complete a project. A number of factors beyond the control of the organization may lead them to believe that such an extension is necessary, including slow delivery of equipment from vendors, delays in connecting project sites, unexpected turnover of key project personnel and related causes.
Extension Requests should be made only after you have thoroughly discussed the need for such an extension with your TOP Program Officer. Extension Requests may be submitted through the Online Grants Management System at least 30 days before the end of the Grant Award period. This allows a request to be given full consideration before the Grant Award Period expires. Extension Requests may not be honored retroactively. The request should be clearly labeled as an Extension Request, and should not be combined with a Quarterly Performance Report.
Extension Request memos should contain a full explanation of what has happened to make a project extension necessary and how the extension will favorably affect the outcome(s) of the project. Generally TOP will look for causes beyond the grant recipient's control in considering an Extension Request, and it may request supporting documentation to accompany the request. TOP does not look favorably upon requests that appear to result from simple inactivity on the part of the grant recipient organization. The request must include: (1) a statement that the extension does not seek additional Federal funding; (2) the length of time requested for the extension; and (3) a revised project timetable.
All Extension Requests will be reviewed by TOP and NIST prior to issuing written approval or denial of requests. If an Extension Request is approved, the Grants Officer will send an Amendment to Financial Assistance Award (CD-451) Form to the grant recipient organization; if it is denied, the Grants Officer will send a letter notifying the recipient of this fact. Extension approvals are not considered official until the CD-451 Form has been (1) signed by both the Grants Officer and the authorized signatory from a grant recipient organization, and (2) received by the grants officer. No matter what an organization may be told, if it does not receive written approval from NIST, its request for an extension is not approved.
Your organization is required to provide TOP with closeout documentation for your project within ninety (90) days following project completion or the expiration of your Grant Award period, whichever comes first. Closeout documentation includes the following components:
Final Project Report
The final report is your best opportunity to assess the successes, challenges, surprises, and other significant experiences you encountered during your project. The final report should reflect what you learned, what worked, what did not work as planned, and what you might do differently. Please remember that TOP is a national demonstration program — your experiences are of interest to the program and to communities across the country. As you complete the final report, try to put yourself in the position of a colleague who has not yet had your opportunity, but who would like to embark on a similar project in another community.
Your organization's final project report must be submitted to TOP electronically via the TOP web-based Online Reporting System. Prior to the submission of your final quarterly report, your Program Officer will seek confirmation that you will not request an extension of the closing date of your award. Your organization will be expected to provide TOP with the following information and data in your final project report:
Final Outside Evaluation Report
A Final Outside Evaluation Report is to be prepared by an independent evaluator(s). Neither the project director nor any project staff is permitted to author, or co-author, the final outside evaluation report.
The Final Outside Evaluation Report should include:
Submit three copies and an electronic version (either WordPerfect or Word) of the Final Outside Evaluation Report to your Program Officer. Please consult the Program Officer and the Evaluation Specialist if you are having problems.
Closeout documentation includes a complete listing of project-related expenditures by object class category. The list is organized according to the format of the approved budget contained in the Financial Assistance Award document. Also, provide brief explanations for any aspect of the expenditures that are unusual, or that do not appear on either the originally negotiated project budget or on any subsequently amended budgets. This will greatly facilitate TOP review of your closeout materials. A spreadsheet template is available to assist you.
The total expenditures reported must equal the total project cost reported on the final Financial Status Report (SF 269, long form) submitted to NIST.
Please also remember that your organization is subject to the auditing requirements described in the Special Terms and Conditions section of your Grant Award document. Audit requirements are discussed later in this Handbook. CD-281: Report of Government Property in Possession of Contractor
A Report of Government Property in Possession of Contractor (Commerce Department Form 281 [CD-281]) must be submitted to TOP as part of the closeout documentation for your Grant Award. The CD-281 is an inventory listing of all equipment that your organization acquired under the grant with both Federal and non-Federal funds.
Copies of CD-281 forms are included in your Grant Award packet. A link to a CD-281 form can be found in the Appendix, is also available online at www.osec.doc.gov/forms/pdf/cd281fll.pdf.
Should you have questions regarding the preparation of the CD-281, please contact your Program Officer.
Other Studies, Publications, Reports and/or Other Work Products Generated by the Project
Please include with the closeout documentation copies of any final reports, studies, publicity coverage, letters from the public, awards, etc. that were generated as a result of and that relate to your project. Please do not submit duplicate copies of materials that you previously submitted to TOP along with your Quarterly Performance Reports.
TOP encourages the active exchange of information between grant recipients, program staff, and the public. In addition, TOP staff play a larger role than strictly monitoring projects for compliance with paperwork obligations. The staff actively seek your input and knowledge and, in turn, can provide you with assistance on the issues you face as you implement your project.
TOP also has its own Website at
www.ntia.doc.gov/TOP/. The following items on the TOP Website are apt to be of particular interest to TOP grant recipients:
The TOP website contains project evaluation reports from completed projects. These evaluations have been prepared by a variety of evaluators, ranging from independent university specialists to internal staff evaluators. Some of the evaluations are large and detailed, while others are smaller, but just as effective.
The views, findings, opinions, and recommendations expressed in these reports are solely those of the project evaluator(s) and do not represent the official views, opinions, or policies of the United States Department of Commerce or any of its individual agency components.
Descriptions of Funded TOP Projects and Contacts
This section contains a description of all TOP projects funded since the program began in 1994, and includes names of project contacts, award amounts and other data pertaining to each project.
TOP has inaugurated a broadcast email list to provide interested parties with updates and other information about the program. The list streamlines the process of communications with grantees. Anyone may join the list by click on Get Updates in the footer of any page on TOP's website.
All TOP grant recipients are subject to audit requirements contained in Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-133, revised June 30, 1997. A copy of the A-133 is included in your Grant Award package.
OMB Circular A-133 requires that non-profit organizations, government agencies, Indian tribes and educational institutions expending more than $500,000 in Federal funds during a one-year period conduct an audit in accordance with guidelines outlined in the A-133. These audits are to be performed in one of two ways. A TOP-specific audit may be performed if the organization receives Federal funds solely from TOP. If the organization receives funds from more than one Federal source during the year that the audit is conducted, an organization-wide audit must be performed.
In general, A-133 requires TOP grant recipients to obtain annual audits. [Note: Exceptions are made in the case of some non-profit organizations and some state and local governments in which biennial audits are permitted. See Subpart B, Section __.220 of OMB Circular A-133 (revised June 30, 1997).] Copies of such audits must be provided to each Federal agency that provides funds to your organization. The copy of the audit report is provided to the Department of Commerce at the following address:
A second copy of the audit report is sent to the Bureau of the Census, which has been designated by OMB as a central clearinghouse. The address is as follows:
All TOP grant recipients are also required to send a copy of the audit transmittal letter to their NIST Grants Specialist.
We urge you to read and to review the A-133 audit requirements with your accountant.
The Department of Commerce Financial Assistance Standard Terms and Conditions addresses the subject of audits in Section D (pp. 7-9). Should you have questions related to audit requirements, please contact your NIST Grants Specialist.
In addition, under the Government Paperwork Elimination Act (GPEA), the Regulatory Information Service Center (RISC) maintains the Fedforms website, which provides immediate access to most of the Federal forms used by the public. Please note that TOP does not provide technical support for the FedForms site or for any site other than its own:
Here are some resources you can use to become more aware of and accommodate the various needs of the people you serve. These links are provided for informational purposes only, and no endorsement of commercial products is intended.
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IMPORTANT REMINDERS
November 30, 2004
November 30, 2004
November 30, 2004
July 31
October 31
January 31
IMPORTANT NOTE: Your initial quarterly report covers the period October 1 through December 31,
and is due no later than January 31, 2005.
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WHERE TO SEND REQUIRED REPORTS AND ASAP.gov
U.S. Department of Commerce/NTIA
TOP, Room 4096
1401 Constitution Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20230
National Institute for Standards and Technology
Director for Administration and the Chief Financial Officer
Grants and Agreements Management Division
Mailstop 3580
Gaithersburg, MD 20899-3580
Attn: Joyce Brigham, Grants Officer
Type of Documentation
Electronic Submission OK
Hard Copy Required
Project Start-Up Documentation
X
Quarterly Performance Reports
X
SAC: Universal Service Discount
X
SAC: Acceptable Use
X
SAC: Privacy/Security
X
SAC: Human Subjects Research
X
Amendment: Change of Focus/Scope
X
Amendment: No-Cost Budget Amendment
X
Amendment: Request for Extension
X
Amendment: Change in Personnel
(CD-346 Not Required)X
Amendment: Change in Personnel
(CD-346 Required)
X
Amendment: Transfer of Grant Recipient
X
Amendment: Change in Grant Recipient Organization's Name
X
Closeout Documentation
X
Evaluation Plan
X
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CONTACTING TOP
TOP WEB PAGE:
www.ntia.doc.gov/top/
TELEPHONE:
TOP Main Office
(202) 482-2048
FAX:
TOP Main Office
TOP Program Officers(202) 501-8009
(202) 501-5136
EMAIL:
TOP Main Office
Anthony G. Wilhelm, Ph.D.
Francine Jefferson, Ph.D.
Amy Borgstrom
Don Druker
Bart Forbes
Thomas Hardy
Judith Sparrow
Sean Lilly
Edna McCormick
Marius Morgan
TOP@ntia.doc.gov
aborgstrom@ntia.doc.gov
ddruker@ntia.doc.gov
bforbes@ntia.doc.gov
thardy@ntia.doc.gov
jsparrow@ntia.doc.gov
send an email to someone at TOP:
CONTACTING THE GRANTS OFFICE (NIST)
TELEPHONE:
NIST Main Office
(301) 975-6328
FAX:
NIST Main Office
(301) 926-6458
EMAIL:
Joyce Brigham, Grants Officer
joyce.brigham@nist.gov
Richard Barron, Grants Specialist
richard.barron@nist.gov
Judy Murphy, Grants Specialist
judy.murphy@nist.gov
Sharon Farinholt, Grants Specialist
sharon.farinholt@nist.gov
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UNDERSTANDING YOUR GRANT AWARD DOCUMENT
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Financial Reporting Forms
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USING TOP'S ONLINE
GRANTS MANAGEMENT SYSTEM
and
ELECTRONIC PERFORMANCE REPORTING SYSTEM
("Online Reporting System")
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PROJECT START-UP DOCUMENTATION
Additional Hints
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QUARTERLY PERFORMANCE REPORTS
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FINANCIAL REPORTS AND FORMS
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SPECIAL AWARD CONDITIONS
"Program income earned during the award period shall be retained by the Recipient and shall be added to funds committed to the award and used for the purposes and under the conditions applicable to the
use of award funds."
Program income means gross income earned by a grant recipient that is directly generated by a supported activity or earned as a result of the award. If your organization is assessing fees to outside organizations or individuals for services, such as training, Internet access, or webpage hosting, and the costs of providing those services are included in the project budget (in either the Federal or non-Federal share), then your project is earning program income.
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PROJECT AMENDMENTS
"(f) The Federal awarding agency may, at its option, restrict the transfer of funds among direct cost categories or programs, functions and activities for awards in which the Federal share of the project exceeds $100,000 and the cumulative amount of such transfers exceeds or is expected to exceed 10 percent of the total budget as last approved by the Federal awarding agency. No Federal awarding agency shall permit a transfer that would cause any Federal appropriation or part thereof to be used for purposes other than those consistent with the original intent of the appropriation."
The term "cumulative amount of transfers" indicates a cumulative change between cost categories. For example, if the total budget is $1M and you take $60K out of equipment and put it into personnel, then the rules say that you have made $120K (or 12%) of changes and must submit an amendment request.
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EXTENSIONS OF THE GRANT AWARD PERIOD
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PROJECT CLOSEOUT REQUIREMENTS
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FACILITATING COMMUNICATION
AMONG TOP GRANT RECIPIENTS
TOP Website
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AUDIT REQUIREMENTS
Mr. William F. Bedwell, Jr.
Supervisory Auditor
Office of Audits — Regional Audits
Office of Inspector General
U.S. Department of Commerce, Suite 2342
401 West Peachtree Street, NW
Atlanta, GA 30308
Federal Audit Clearinghouse
Bureau of the Census
1201 E. 10th Street
Jeffersonville, IN 47132
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APPENDIX
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