[Federal Register: April 10, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 69)]
[Notices]
[Page 17649-17652]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr10ap03-86]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
[Program Announcement 03048]
Cooperative Agreement for Collaborating Centers for Public Health
Law; Notice of Availability of Funds
Application Deadline: June 9, 2003.
A. Authority and Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number
This program is authorized under sections 301 and 311 of the Public
Health Service Act, [42 U.S.C. sections 241, 242, and 243], as amended.
The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance number is 93.283.
B. Purpose
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announces the
availability of fiscal year (FY) 2003 funds for a cooperative agreement
for Collaborating Centers for Public Health Law. This program addresses
the ``Healthy People 2010'' focus area Public Health Infrastructure.
The purpose of this program is to establish two or more centers for
public health preparedness in public health law (``centers'') to
improve the contribution that law makes to the health of the public and
to the performance of the public health system. The highest priority
will be on the contribution law makes to preventing, preparing for, and
responding to terrorism, outbreaks of infectious disease, and other
major public health threats and emergencies.
Measurable outcomes of the program will be in alignment with the
following performance goal for the CDC Public Health Practice Program
Office (PHPPO): Prepare state and local health systems, departments and
laboratories to respond to current and emerging public health threats.
C. Eligible Applicants
Applications may be submitted by public and private nonprofit
organizations and by governments and their agencies; that is,
universities, colleges, technical schools, research institutions,
public health and healthcare organizations, community-based
organizations, faith-based organizations, and other public and private
nonprofit organizations, state and local governments or their bona fide
agents, including the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto
Rico, the Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana
Islands, American Samoa, Guam, the Federated States of Micronesia, the
Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau, federally
recognized Indian tribal governments, Indian tribes, or Indian tribal
organizations. CDC specifically encourages applications from consortia
that include accredited schools of public health or medicine,
accredited schools of law, and organizations that serve the legal and/
or law enforcement communities.
Note: Title 2 of the United States Code section 1611 states that
an organization described in section 501(c)(4) of the Internal
[[Page 17650]]
Revenue Code that engages in lobbying activities is not eligible to
receive Federal funds constituting an award, grant or loan.
D. Funding
Availability of Funds
Approximately $500,000 is available in FY 2003 to fund
approximately two or more awards. It is expected that the average award
will be approximately $165,000 ranging from $100,000 to $250,000. It is
expected that the awards will begin on or about September 1, 2003, and
will be made for a 12-month budget period within a project period of up
to three years. Funding estimates may change.
Continuation awards within an approved project period will be made
on the basis of satisfactory progress as evidenced by required reports
and the availability of funds.
Recipient Financial Participation
Matching funds are not required for this program.
E. Program Requirements
Specific goals of the centers will be to:
1. Provide law-related information to public health practitioners,
policy makers, and the legal community in at least two ways: (a) by
conducting analyses of public health legal issues; and, separately, (b)
by improving the quality, accessibility, and utility of information
relevant to public health practitioners and maintained in standardized,
electronic databases.
2. Improve the competencies of public health practitioners, public
policy makers, the legal community, and others to apply law as an
effective tool for public health.
3. Foster partnerships between the public health practice community
and the legal community (including health attorneys, law enforcement
agencies, the judiciary, legal education and training institutions;
legal professional associations; and related organizations) to improve
their contribution to applying law as an effective tool for public
health.
CDC anticipates making awards to two or more centers. The centers
will not necessarily conduct the same type of activities. An eligible
applicant may apply to conduct activities that address goal 1, goal 2,
goal 3, or any combination thereof. However, an applicant that proposes
to conduct activities in more than one goal area must submit a separate
application for each goal area. For example, if an applicant chooses to
apply to conduct activities in both goal area 1 and goal area 2, the
applicant must submit one application for each goal area. Each such
application will be evaluated separately. CDC reserves the right to
make an award to an applicant for activity in one goal area, but not in
another.
In conducting activities to achieve the purpose of this program,
the recipient will be responsible for the activities listed in 1.
Recipient Activities, and CDC will be responsible for the activities
listed in 2. CDC Activities.
1. Recipient Activities
With respect to goal 1, recipient activities will be to:
a. Conduct analyses of public health legal issues (see guidance in
the Content section of this announcement).
b. Implement the information improvement plan submitted in your
application to improve the quality, accessibility, and utility for
public health practitioners of information relevant to public health
and maintained in standardized, electronic, databases (see guidance in
the Content section of this announcement); and revise that plan as
needed thereafter.
c. Assist other organizations to conduct activities like those
identified in (a) and (b) above.
d. Evaluate the impact of the activities annually.
With respect to goal 2, recipient activities will be to:
a. Review existing statements of core competencies in public health
law for public health practitioners, public policy makers, the legal
community, and others whose actions affect the health of the public,
and assess the need for revision of those statements.
b. Assess the extent to which the groups listed above possess those
core competencies.
c. Develop a plan (no later than December 31, 2003) for a self-
sustaining program of training, education, and continuing education
suitable for implementation at multiple jurisdictional levels to
improve the achievement of public health law-related competencies by
the current and future public health workforce, the legal community,
and others whose actions affect the health of the public; revise that
plan as needed thereafter.
d. Develop curricula, courses, and materials, (beginning no later
than March 31, 2004) and disseminate training, education, and
continuing education consistent with that plan.
e. Assist other organizations in developing and disseminating such
training, education and continuing education consistent with that plan.
f. Evaluate the impact of the recipient's activities annually.
With respect to goal 3, recipient activities will be to:
a. Identify organizations in the legal community currently or
potentially active in improving the contribution law makes to the
health of the public; for this purpose the ``legal community'' includes
health attorneys, law enforcement agencies, the judiciary, legal
education and training institutions, legal professional associations,
and related organizations.
b. Assess the capacity of those organizations to make such
contributions and identify gaps between their existing and needed
capacities.
c. Develop (by December 31, 2003) a plan to assist those
organizations in improving their capacity; and revise that plan as
needed thereafter.
d. Assist those organizations to improve their capacity through
consultation, technical assistance, training, and other activities.
e. Evaluate the impact of the activities annually.
2. CDC Activities
a. Provide scientific, technical, and legal assistance.
b. In goal area 1, Provide technical assistance in identifying
public health legal issues for analysis, in implementing the plan for
improving information, and in developing approaches to assisting other
organizations.
In goal area 2, Provide technical assistance in identifying
existing statements of competencies, in setting priorities for a plan
for a program to improve achievement of competencies, in setting
priorities for training materials, and in developing approaches to
assisting other organizations.
In goal area 3, Provide technical assistance in identifying
organizations in the legal community suitable for partnerships, in
developing methods for assessing their capacity, in setting priorities
for assisting them, and in developing approaches to improving their
capacity.
c. Collaborate in identifying constituencies to be served and in
establishing goals, priorities, strategies, timelines, and training
materials.
d. Identify and establish partnerships between the grantees and
other organizations.
e. Collaborate in the evaluation of the effectiveness of the
collaborative activities supported under this cooperative agreement.
F. Content
Letter of Intent (LOI)
A LOI is required for this program. The Program Announcement title
and
[[Page 17651]]
number must appear in the LOI. The narrative should be no more than two
pages, double-spaced, printed on one side, with one-inch margins, and
unreduced 12-point font. Your letter of intent will be used to estimate
the potential reviewer workload and to avoid conflicts of interest
during the review. Your letter of intent must include the following
information: name, address, telephone number, and E-mail address of the
Principal Investigator, the identities of other key personnel and
participating institutions, and a narrative description of the proposed
project.
Applications
The Program Announcement title and number must appear in the
application. Use the information in the Program Requirements, Other
Requirements, and Evaluation Criteria sections to develop the
application content. Your PHS 398 (OMB Number 0925-0001) application
will be evaluated on the criteria listed, so it is important to follow
them in laying out your program plan. The narrative should be no more
than 25 pages, single-spaced, printed on one side, with one-inch
margins, and 12-point unreduced font.
The narrative should consist of, at a minimum, the following
sections: Background and Need; Goals and Objectives; Project Management
and Staffing; Methods and Plan of Operation; Collaboration Plan;
Evaluation Plan; and Requested Budget.
In addition, the narrative contained in applications for activities
that address goal 1 must include the following information:
a. A description of the public health legal issues the applicant
tentatively proposes to analyze, reasons for selecting those issues,
and a description of ways public health practitioners, policy makers,
and the legal community would apply the results of those analyses.
b. A detailed plan for activities the recipient would conduct to
improve the quality, accessibility, and utility for public health
practitioners of information relevant to public health and maintained
in standardized, electronic databases. (This is the ``information
improvement plan'' referred to in the Program Requirements section of
this announcement.) This type of information consists, in part, of
information stemming from scholarly legal research and analysis and
review, as well as information maintained in compilations of statutory
and regulatory law and of judicial rulings. This body of information
currently is largely inaccessible to public health practitioners. The
information improvement plan will identify the types and sources of
such information the recipient will include in these activities, the
methods the recipient will use to improve the quality, accessibility,
and utility of that information, the resources the recipient will use
to conduct these activities, and a calendar showing when improved
information would be made available to public health practitioners.
G. Submission and Deadline
Letter of Intent (LOI) Submission
On or before May 12, 2003, submit the LOI to the Grants Management
Specialist identified in the ``Where to Obtain Additional Information''
section of this announcement.
Application Forms
Submit the original and two copies of PHS 398 (OMB Number 0925-
0001) (Errata Instruction Sheet for PHS 398 attached). Forms are
available at the following Internet address: http://www.cdc.gov/od/pgo/forminfo.htm
.
If you do not have access to the Internet, or if you have
difficulty accessing the forms on-line, you may contact the CDC
Procurement and Grants Office Technical Information Management Section
(PGO-TIM) at: 770-488-2700. Applications can be mailed to you.
Submission Date, Time, and Address
The application must be received by 4 p.m. Eastern Time June 9,
2003.
Submit the application to:
Technical Information Management-PA03048, Procurement and
Grants Office, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2920
Brandywine Rd., Atlanta, GA 30341-4146.
Applications may not be submitted electronically.
CDC Acknowledgement of Application Receipt
A postcard will be mailed by PGO-TIM, notifying you that CDC has
received your application.
Deadline
Letters of intent and applications shall be considered as meeting
the deadline if they are received before 4 p.m. Eastern Time on the
deadline date. Any applicant who sends their application by the United
States Postal Service or commercial delivery services must ensure that
the carrier will be able to guarantee delivery of the application by
the closing date and time. If an application is received after closing
due to: (1) Carrier error, when the carrier accepted the package with a
guarantee for delivery by the closing date and time, or (2) significant
weather delays or natural disasters, CDC will upon receipt of proper
documentation, consider the application as having been received by the
deadline.
Any application that does not meet the above criteria will not be
eligible for competition, and will be discarded. The applicant will be
notified of their failure to meet the submission requirements.
H. Evaluation Criteria
Letter of Intent
The required Letter of Intent will not be evaluated or scored.
Application
Applicants are required to provide measures of effectiveness that
will demonstrate the accomplishment of the various identified
objectives of the cooperative agreement. Measures of effectiveness must
relate to the goals stated in the Program Requirements section of this
announcement. Measures must be objective and quantitative and must
measure the intended outcome. These measures of effectiveness shall be
submitted with the application and shall be an element of evaluation.
A review group appointed by CDC will evaluate each application
against the following criteria:
1. Collaboration Plan (25 points)
a. The extent to which the applicant presents documented evidence
of past or current experience and collaboration, or capacity to
collaborate, with partners active in public health practice and public
health law, the legal community, and other relevant entities.
b. The extent to which the applicant proposes relevant and feasible
collaborations with other organizations in conducting the Recipient
Activities and methods for fostering collaboration among such
organizations.
c. The extent to which the application includes signed agreements
specifying the roles and responsibilities of each organization that
will collaborate with the applicant.
2. Project Management and Staffing (20 points)
a. The extent to which the project staff is clearly identified,
possesses appropriate skills and knowledge, and has clearly described
roles.
b. The extent to which the application provides details regarding
the level of effort and allocation of time for each staff position.
c. The extent to which the applicant possesses management and other
[[Page 17652]]
systems to assure successful and responsible program implementation.
d. The applicant's experience in the management of resources and
production of successful outcomes.
3. Methods and Plan of Operation (20 points)
a. The soundness of the methods the applicant proposes to use to
conduct each of the Recipient Activities.
b. The specificity, relevance, and feasibility of the plan of
action the applicant proposes to take to develop and conduct each of
the Recipient Activities.
4. Goals and Objectives (15 points)
a. The extent to which the application addresses the center goals
listed in the Program Requirements section of this announcement.
b. The extent to which the application specifies objectives,
activities, work projects, and timelines, which are supportive of the
goals, measurable, and feasible.
5. Background and Need (10 points)
The extent to which the applicant clearly describes the need for,
and benefits of, the proposed center, including delineation of target
audiences and benefits that they would realize from the center's
activities.
6. Evaluation Plan (10 points)
The extent to which the applicant provides a detailed description
of the methods to be used to evaluate program effectiveness, including
identification of the variables to be evaluated, identification of the
person(s) or organization(s) that will conduct evaluations, and
specification of the time line for evaluations.
7. Budget (Not scored)
The extent to which the budget is clearly explained, adequately
justified, reasonable, sufficient for the proposed project activities,
and consistent with the intended use of the cooperative agreement
funds.
8. Human Subjects
Does the application adequately address the requirements of title
45 CFR part 46 for the protection of human subjects: Not scored;
however, an application can be disapproved if the research risks are
sufficiently serious and protection against risks is so inadequate as
to make the entire application unacceptable.
Does the application adequately address the CDC Policy requirements
regarding the inclusion of women, ethnic, and racial groups in the
proposed research. This includes:
1. The proposed plan for the inclusion of both sexes and racial and
ethnic minority populations for appropriate representation.
2. The proposed justification when representation is limited or
absent.
3. A statement as to whether the design of the study is adequate to
measure differences when warranted.
4. A statement as to whether the plans for recruitment and outreach
for study participants include the process of establishing partnerships
with community(ies) and recognition of mutual benefits.
I. Other Requirements
Technical Reporting Requirements
Provide CDC with original plus two copies of:
1. Interim progress report, no less than 90 days before the end of
the budget period. The progress report will serve as your non-competing
continuation application, and must contain the following elements:
a. Current budget period activities and objectives.
b. Current budget period financial progress.
c. New budget period program proposed activities and objectives.
d. Detailed line-item budget and justification.
e. Additional requested information.
2. Financial status report, no more than 90 days after the end of
the budget period.
3. Final financial and performance reports, no more than 90 days
after the end of the project period.
Send all reports to the Grants Management Specialist identified in
the ``Where to Obtain Additional Information'' section of this
announcement.
Additional Requirements
The following additional requirements are applicable to this
program. For a complete description of each, see Attachment I of this
announcement as posted on the CDC Web site.
AR-1 Human Subjects Requirements
AR-2 Requirements for Inclusion of Women and Racial and Ethnic
Minorities in Research
AR-7 Executive Order 12372 Review
AR-8 Public Health System Reporting Requirements
AR-9 Paperwork Reduction Act Requirements
AR-10 Smoke-free Workplace Requirements
AR-11 Healthy People 2010
AR-12 Lobbying Restrictions
AR-13 Prohibition on Use of CDC Funds for Certain Gun Control
Activities
AR-15 Proof of Non-Profit Status
J. Where to Obtain Additional Information
This and other CDC announcements, the necessary applications, and
associated forms can be found on the CDC Web site, Internet address:
http://www.cdc.gov. Click on ``Funding'' then ``Grants and Cooperative
Agreements''.
For general questions about this announcement, contact:
Technical Information Management, CDC Procurement and Grants Office,
2920 Brandywine Road, Atlanta, GA 30341-4146, Telephone: 770-488-2700.
For Business management and budget assistance, contact:
Merlin J. Williams, Grants Management Specialist, Procurement and
Grants Office, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2920
Brandywine Road, Atlanta, GA 30341-4146, Telephone number 770-488-2765,
E-mail address MWilliams2@cdc.gov. For program technical assistance, contact:
Anthony D. Moulton, Ph.D., Public Health Law Program, Public Health
Program Practice Office, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
4770 Buford Hwy. (K-39), Atlanta, Georgia 30341-3724, Phone 770-488-
2405/Fax 770-488-2553, E-mail: ADM6@CDC.GOV.
Dated: April 4, 2003.
Sandra R. Manning,
Director, Procurement and Grants Office, Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention.
[FR Doc. 03-8746 Filed 4-9-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4163-18-P