[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 56 (Wednesday, March 25, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12883-12889]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-6545]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Indian Affairs
Grant Program To Assess, Evaluate and Promote Development of
Tribal Energy and Mineral Resources
AGENCY: Bureau of Indian Affairs, Interior.
ACTION: Solicitation of Proposals.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Energy and Mineral Development Program (EMDP) provides
funding to tribes with the mission goal of assessing, evaluating, and
promoting energy and mineral resources on Indian trust lands for the
economic benefit of Indian mineral owners. To achieve these goals, the
Department of the Interior's Office of Indian Energy and Economic
Development (IEED), through its Division of Energy and Mineral
Development (DEMD) office, is soliciting proposals from tribes. The
Department will use a competitive
[[Page 12884]]
evaluation process to select several proposed projects to receive an
award.
DATES: Submit grant proposals on or before June 23, 2009. We will not
consider grant proposals received after this date.
ADDRESSES: Mail or hand-carry to the Department of the Interior,
Division of Energy and Mineral Development, Attention: Energy and
Mineral Development Program, 12136 W. Bayaud Avenue, Suite 300,
Lakewood, CO 80228.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have questions about the EMDP,
or have technical questions about the commodity you wish to assess or
develop, please contact the appropriate DEMD persons listed below:
General Questions about the EMDP Program and Submission
Process: Robert Anderson, Tel: (720) 407-0602; E-mail:
[email protected];
For Additional Copies of the Proposal Writing Guidelines
Manual: Tahnee KillsCrow, Tel: (720) 407-0655; E-mail:
[email protected];
Mineral Projects (Precious Metals, Sand and Gravel): Lynne
Carpenter, Tel: (720) 407-0605, E-mail: [email protected], or David Holmes, Tel: (720) 407-0609, E-mail:
[email protected];
Conventional Energy Projects (Oil, Natural Gas, Coal): Bob
Just, Tel: (720) 407-0611, E-mail: [email protected];
Renewable Energy Projects (Biomass, Wind, Solar): Winter
Jojola-Talburt, Tel: (720) 407-0668, E-mail: [email protected]; or
Geothermal Energy: Roger Knight, Tel: (720) 407-0613, E-
mail: [email protected].
See the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this notice for
information on requests for technical assistance.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
A. Background
B. Items to Consider Before Preparing an Application for an Energy
and Mineral Development Grant
C. How to Prepare an Application for Energy and Mineral Development
Funding
D. Submission of Application in Digital Format
E. Application Evaluation and Administrative Information
F. When to Submit
G. Where to Submit
H. Transfer of Funds
I. Reporting Requirements for Award Recipients
J. Requests for Technical Information
A. Background
Section 103 of the Indian Self-Determination Act, Public Law 93-
638, as amended by Public Law 100-472, contains the contracting
mechanism for energy and mineral development funded programs.
The Department of the Interior's Office of IEED, through the DEMD
office located in Lakewood, Colorado, administers and manages the EMDP.
The objectives of this solicitation are to receive proposals for energy
and mineral development projects in the areas of exploration,
assessment, development, feasibility and market studies.
Energy includes conventional energy resources such as oil, gas,
coal, uranium, and coal bed gas, and renewable energy resources such as
wind, solar, biomass, hydro and geothermal. Mineral resources include
industrial minerals (e.g., sand, gravel), precious minerals (e.g.,
gold, silver, platinum), base minerals (e.g., lead, copper, zinc), and
ferrous metal minerals (e.g., iron, tungsten, chromium).
DEMD's goal is to assist tribes to achieve economic benefits from
their energy and mineral resources. The purpose of the program is to
expand the knowledge base through which tribes, either by themselves or
with industry partners, can bring new energy and mineral resources into
the marketplace through a comprehensive understanding of their
undeveloped resource potential. A strong knowledge base will also
ensure that new resources are produced in an environmentally acceptable
manner.
Each year, DEMD usually receives more energy and mineral
development request applications than can be funded in that year. The
DEMD has discretion for awarding funds and requires that the tribes
compete for such funds on an annual basis. The DEMD has established
ranking and paneling procedures with defined criteria for rating the
merits of proposals to make the award of the limited funds as fair and
equitable as possible.
The EMDP program is funded under the non-recurring appropriation of
the Bureau of Indian Affairs's (BIA) budget. Congress appropriates
funds for EMDP funding on a year-to-year basis. Thus, while some
projects may extend over several years, funding for successive years
depends on each fiscal year's appropriations.
B. Items To Consider Before Preparing an Application for an Energy and
Mineral Development Grant
1. Trust Land Status
The EMDP's funding can only be made available to tribes whose lands
are held in trust or restricted fee by the Federal government. Congress
has appropriated these funds for the Federal development of energy and
mineral resources only on Indian trust or restricted fee lands.
2. Tribes' Compliance History
The DEMD will monitor all EMDP grants for statutory and regulatory
compliance to assure that awarded funds are correctly applied to
approved projects. Tribes that expend funds on unapproved functions may
forfeit remaining funds in that proposal year, and possibly for any
future EMDP funding. Consequently, DEMD may request a tribe to provide
a summary of any funds it has received in past years through other
projects approved by DEMD, and DEMD may conduct a review of prior award
expenditures before making a decision on current year proposals.
3. BIA Sanction List
Tribes who are currently under BIA sanction resulting from non-
compliance with the Single Audit Act may be ineligible from being
considered for an award.
4. Completion of Previous Energy and Mineral Development Projects
Generally, the DEMD will not support nor recommend additional
funding for a project until all project functions scheduled for
completion the previous year have been documented by the tribe and
reviewed by the DEMD.
Under some circumstances, delays encountered in performing the
project that are beyond the control of the tribe or its consultant will
be taken into consideration when making decisions on future year EMDP
awards. Such acceptable delays may include late delivery of funding
awards to the tribal project, difficulty in finding appropriate
contractors to perform project functions, permitting issues, and
weather delays.
5. Multi-Year Projects
The DEMD cannot award multi-year funding for a project. Funding
available for the EMDP is subject to annual appropriations by Congress
and therefore DEMD can only consider single-year funded projects.
Generally, energy and mineral development projects are designed to be
completed in one year. It is acceptable that a project may require more
than one year to complete due to circumstances such as weather,
availability of the consultant, or scope of project.
The EMDP's projects requiring funding beyond one-year intervals
should be grouped into discrete, single-year units of operation, and
then submitted as individual proposals for
[[Page 12885]]
consideration of EMDP award funding. Tribes must be aware, however,
that there is no absolute guarantee of EMDP awards being available for
future years of a multi-year project due to the discretionary nature of
EMDP award funding.
6. Use of Existing Data
The DEMD maintains a comprehensive set of tribal data and
information. The DEMD has spent considerable time and expense in
collecting digital land grids, geographic information system (GIS) data
and imagery data for many reservations. Monthly well status and
production data, geophysical data (such as seismic data), geology and
engineering data, etc., are all stored at DEMD's offices. All of these
data sets are available to tribes to reduce the cost of their
investigations.
Budget line items will not be allowed for data or products that
reside at DEMD. The tribe or the tribe's consultant must first check
with DEMD for availability of these data sets on the reservation they
are investigating. If DEMD does not have a particular data set, then
EMDP funds may be used to acquire such data.
When a proposal includes the acquisition of new data, the tribe
should thoroughly search for preexisting data to ensure there is no
duplication. If older data does exist, it may have considerable value.
It may be updated or improved upon, either by the DEMD or by the
tribe's consultant.
7. Using Technical Services at DEMD
The DEMD has many in-house technical capabilities and services that
the tribes may wish to use. All services provided by DEMD are without
charge to the tribes. Tribes can obtain maximum benefit from energy and
mineral development studies by first using DEMD's services, or by using
DEMD services in conjunction with outside consultants. Services
available at DEMD include:
Technical literature search of previous investigations and
work performed in and around reservations using reference materials
located nearby, such as the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) library in
Denver, Colorado, or the Colorado School of Mines library in Golden,
Colorado;
Well production history analysis, decline curve and
economic analysis of data obtained through DEMD's in-house databases;
Well log interpretation, including correlation of
formation tops, identification of producing horizons, and generation of
cross-sections;
Technical mapping capabilities, using data from well log
formation tops and seismic data;
Contour mapping capabilities, including isopachs,
calculated grids, color-fill plotting, and posting of surface features,
wells, seismic lines and legal boundaries;
Seismic data interpretation and data processing;
Three dimensional modeling of mine plans;
Economic analysis and modeling for energy and solid
mineral projects; and
Marketing studies.
8. What the Energy and Mineral Development Program Cannot Fund
As stated above, these funds are specifically for energy and
mineral development project work only. Examples of elements that cannot
be funded include:
Establishing or operating a tribal office, and/or purchase
of office equipment not specific to the assessment project. Tribal
salaries may be included only if the personnel are directly involved in
the project and only for the duration of the project;
Indirect costs and overhead as defined by the Federal
Acquisition Regulation (FAR);
Purchase of equipment that is used to perform the EMDP
project, such as computers, vehicles, field gear, etc. (however, the
leasing of this type of equipment for the purpose of performing energy
and mineral development is allowed);
Purchasing and/or leasing of equipment for the development
of energy and mineral resources (this would include such items as well
drilling rigs, backhoes, bulldozers, cranes, trucks, etc.);
Drilling of wells for the sale of hydrocarbons, geothermal
resources, other fluid and solid minerals (however, funds may be used
for the drilling of exploration holes for testing, sampling, coring, or
temperature surveys);
Legal fees;
Application fees associated with permitting;
Research and development of unproved technologies;
Training;
Contracted negotiation fees;
Purchase of data that is available through DEMD; and
Any other activities not authorized by the tribal
resolution or by the award letter.
9. Who Performs Energy and Mineral Development Studies?
The tribe determines who will perform the energy and mineral
development work, such as a consultant, a private company, or other
sources described in the list below. The tribe may also request the BIA
to perform the work.
A tribe has several choices in contracting work performed under an
energy and mineral development project:
A private company (although that company must not be
competing for exploration or development rights on the tribe's lands);
An experienced and qualified scientific consultant; or
A Federal government agency (such as USGS or the U.S.
Department of Energy (DOE)) or a State government agency (such as a
State geological survey).
There are no requirements or restrictions on how the tribe performs
their contracting function for the consultant or company. The tribe is
free to issue the contract through a sole source selection or through
competitive bidding. This determination will depend on the tribe's own
policies for contracting procedures.
C. How To Prepare an Application for Energy and Mineral Development
Funding
The application shall be prepared as set forth herein to provide a
standard basis for evaluation and to ensure that each application will
be uniform as to format and sequence. Applications are expected to be
prepared in accordance with this section. A complete energy and mineral
development request must contain the following components:
A current tribal resolution authorizing the proposed
project;
A proposal describing the planned activities and
deliverable products; and
A detailed budget estimate.
DEMD will examine every request for the mandatory components.
Energy and mineral development requests that do not contain all of the
mandatory components will be considered incomplete and returned to the
tribe, with an explanation. Tribes will then be allowed to correct all
deficiencies and resubmit the proposal for consideration on or before
the deadline.
A detailed description of each of the required components follows.
1. Mandatory Component 1: Tribal Resolution.
The tribal resolution must be current, and must be signed. It must
authorize tribal approval for an EMDP proposed project in the same
fiscal year as that of the energy and mineral development proposal and
must explicitly refer to the assessment proposal being submitted. The
tribal resolution must also include:
[[Page 12886]]
(a) A description of the commodity or commodities to be studied;
(b) A statement that the tribe is willing to consider development
of any potential energy or mineral resource discovered;
(c) A statement describing how the tribe prefers to have the energy
or mineral program conducted (i.e., through the sole utilization of
DEMD in-house professional staff, in conjunction with tribal
professional staff, private contractors/consultants, or through other
acceptable means); and
(d) A statement that the tribe will consider public release of
information obtained from the energy and mineral development study upon
request from DEMD. (Public release is meant to include publications, a
poster session, attending a property fair, or giving an oral
presentation at industry or Federal meetings and conferences.)
Note: Any information in the possession of DEMD or submitted to
DEMD throughout the EMDP process, including the final energy and
mineral development study, are government records and may be subject
to disclosure to third parties under the Freedom of Information Act
(FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552, and the Department of the Interior's FOIA
regulations at 43 CFR part 2, unless a FOIA exemption or exception
applies or other provisions of law protect the information. A tribe
may, but is not required to, designate information it submits as
confidential commercially or financially sensitive information, as
applicable in any submissions it makes throughout the EMDP process.
If DEMD receives a FOIA request for any such information, it will
follow the procedures in 43 CFR part 2.
2. Mandatory Component 2: Energy and Mineral Development Proposal
A tribe may present their energy and mineral development proposal
in any form they wish, so long as the proposal contains a description
of planned activities and deliverable products that can be accomplished
within the fiscal year for which funding is being requested. The
proposal should be well organized, contain as much detail as possible,
yet be presented succinctly to allow a quick and thorough understanding
of the proposal by the DEMD ranking team.
Many tribes utilize the services of a staff geoscientist or private
consultant to prepare the technical part of the proposal. However, some
tribes may not have these resources and, therefore, are urged to seek
DEMD's technical assistance in preparing their EMDP proposal. Tribes
who want technical assistance from DEMD should make this request in
writing to the address provided in this notice. The request should be
made as early as possible to give DEMD time to perform the assistance.
The proposal should include the following sections.
(a) Overview and Technical Summary of the Project: Prepare a short
summary overview of the proposal that includes the following:
--Elements of the proposed study;
--Reasons why the proposed study is needed;
--Total requested funding;
--Responsible parties for technical execution and administration of the
proposed project; and
--A tribal point of contact for the project and contact information.
(b) Technical Summary of Project: Describe in relevant detail the
technical description of the project area, if sufficient information
exists. Give examples of a typical resource occurrence to be examined
under the proposal, such as the oil or gas deposit, etc. If possible,
include criteria applicable to these types of resource occurrences.
Multi-Phased Studies: Explain whether this assessment
request will begin a new study or continue a study, which has already
been partially completed. Also explain how long the study will last.
[Note: DEMD cannot guarantee funding for a project from one fiscal year
to the next.]
Known Energy/Mineral Resource: If a known energy and/or
mineral deposit exists or produces near the reservation, discuss the
possible extension or trend of the deposit onto the reservation.
Existing Information: Acknowledge any existing mineral
exploration information and provide references. The proposed new study
should not duplicate previous work.
Environmental or Cultural Sensitive Areas: Describe and
verify if the resources are located in an archeological,
environmentally or culturally sensitive area of the reservation. The
tribe must also assist DEMD with the review under the National
Environmental Policy Act, 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq., for the proposed
project.
(c) Project Objective, Goals and Scope of Work: Describe why the
tribe needs the proposed energy and mineral development. Examples may
include:
Discussion of the short and long term benefits to the
tribe;
Initial identification of an energy or mineral resource
for possible development;
Additional information regarding the potential resource
required for tribal decision making commitments on development
proposals;
Feasibility studies and market analyses on resource
development potentials;
Support for environmental studies;
Support and technical assistance as part of the contract
negotiations process;
Description of the work proposed, and the project goals
and objectives expected to be achieved by the proposed project;
Description of the location on the reservation where the
work will be done (include relevant page size maps and graphs); and
Description, in relevant detail, of the scope of work and
justification of a particular method. For example, if a geochemical
sampling survey is planned, an explanation might include the quantity
samples to be obtained, what type of sampling will be targeted, the
soil horizons to be tested, general location of the projected sampling,
how the samples are to be analyzed and why geochemistry was chosen as
an exploration technique. Furnish similar types of explanations and
details for geophysics, geologic mapping, core drilling or any other
type of assessment planned.
(d) Deliverable Products: Describe all deliverable products that
the proposed assessment project will generate, including all technical
data to be obtained during the study. Describe the types of maps to be
generated and the proposed scales. Also, discuss how these maps and
cross-sections will help define the energy and mineral potential on the
reservation. Discuss any planned status reports as well as the
parameters of the final report.
(e) Resumes of Key Personnel: If using consultant services, provide
the resumes of key personnel who will be performing the project work.
The resumes should provide information on each individual's expertise.
If subcontractors are used, these should also be disclosed.
3. Mandatory Component 3: Detailed Budget Estimate
A detailed budget estimate is required for the funding level
requested. The detail not only provides the tribe with an estimate of
costs, but it also provides DEMD with the means of evaluating the cost-
benefit of each project. This line-by-line budget must fully detail all
projected and anticipated expenditures under the EMDP proposal. The
ranking committee reviews each budget estimate to determine whether the
budget is reasonable and can produce the results outlined under the
proposal.
Each proposed project function should have a separate budget. The
budget should break out contract and consulting fees, fieldwork, lab
and
[[Page 12887]]
testing fees, travel and all other relevant project expenses.
Preparation of the budget portion of an EMDP proposal should be
considered a top priority. EMDP proposals that include sound budget
projections will receive a more favorable ranking over those proposals
that fail to provide appropriate budget projections.
The budget page(s) should provide a comprehensive breakdown for
those project line items that involve several components, or contain
numerous sub-functions.
(a) Contracted Personnel Costs. This includes all contracted
personnel and consultants, their respective positions and time (man-
hour) allocations for the proposed functions of a project.
Personnel funded under the Public Law 93-638 EMDP must
have documented professional qualifications necessary to perform the
work. Position descriptions or resumes should be attached to the budget
estimate.
If a consultant is to be hired for a fixed fee, the
consultant's expenses should be itemized as part of the project budget.
Consultant fees must be accompanied by documentation that
clearly identifies the qualifications of the proposed consultants,
specifics as to how the consultant(s) are to be used, and provides a
line item breakdown of costs associated with each consultant activity.
(b) Travel Estimates. Estimates should be itemized by airfare and
vehicle rental, lodging and per diem, based on the current federal
government per diem schedule.
(c) Data Collection and Analysis Costs. These costs should be
itemized in sufficient detail for the reviewer to evaluate the charges.
For example, break down drilling and sampling costs in relation to
mobilization costs, footage rates, testing and lab analysis costs per
core sample.
(d) Other Expenses. Include computer rental, report generation,
drafting, and advertising costs for a proposed project.
D. Submission of Application in Digital Format
Submit the application, including the budget pages, in digital
form. Proposals that are submitted without the digital components will
be returned.
Acceptable formats are Microsoft (MS) Word, MS Excel or Adobe PDF
on compact disks (CDs) or floppy disks. The budget must be submitted in
an Excel spreadsheet.
Each file must be saved with a filename that clearly identifies the
file being submitted. File name extensions must clearly indicate the
software application used for preparation of the documents (i.e. , doc,
pdf, xls).
Documents that require an original signature, such as cover
letters, tribal resolutions, and other letters of tribal authorization
can be submitted in hard copy (paper) form.
If you have any additional questions concerning the Energy and
Mineral Development proposal submission process, please contact Robert
Anderson, DEMD's EMDP Coordinator at (720) 407-0602.
E. Application Evaluation and Administrative Information
1. Administrative Review
Upon receipt of an application, DEMD will determine whether the
document contains the required prescribed information, includes a
tribal resolution, contains sufficient technical/scientific information
to conduct an evaluation, and does not duplicate or overlap previous or
current funded EMDP projects.
The DEMD staff may return an application which does not include all
information and documentation required within this notice. During the
review of a proposal, DEMD may request the submission of additional
information.
2. Ranking Criteria
Proposals will be formally evaluated by a Review and Ranking Panel
using the six criteria listed below. Each criteria factor provides a
percentage of the total rating of 100 points maximum.
(a) Resource Potential; 10 points. If the resource does not exist,
then the project will be rejected. The panel will base their scoring on
both the information provided by the tribe and databases maintained by
DEMD. It is critical that the tribe attempt to provide all pertinent
information in their proposal in order to ensure that an accurate
review of the proposal is accomplished. The reviewers are aware that
many tribes have little energy or mineral resource data on reservation
lands, and in some cases, resource data does not exist. However,
geologic and historical mineral development data exist throughout most
of the continental U.S. on lands surrounding Indian reservations.
Many times a producing energy or mineral deposit exists outside but
near the reservation boundary. The geologic setting containing the
resource may extend onto the reservation, regardless of the size of the
reservation. This would suggest potential of finding similar resources
on the reservation. In some cases, available data on adjacent lands may
allow for a scientifically acceptable projection of favorable trends
for energy or mineral occurrences on those Indian lands in question.
For renewable energy proposals, this factor would apply to
conditions favorable for the economic development of the particular
renewable energy source being studied.
(b) Marketability of the Resource; 20 points. Reviewers will base
their scoring on both the short and long-term market conditions of the
resources. Reviewers are aware that the marketability of an energy or
mineral commodity is time-dependent on existing and emerging market
conditions. Industrial minerals such as aggregates, sand/gravel and
gypsum are dependent on local/regional economic conditions. Precious
and base metal minerals such as gold, silver, lead, copper and zinc are
usually more dependent on international market conditions. Natural gas
and coal bed methane production is economically dependent on having
relatively close access to a transmission pipeline, as is renewable
energy to an electric transmission grid. Coal and crude oil production,
on the other hand, carry built-in transportation costs, making those
resources more dependent on current and projected energy commodity
rates. At any time, some commodities may have a strong sustained market
while others experience a weak market environment, or even a market
surge that may be only temporary.
Reviewers are aware of pitfalls surrounding long term market
forecasts of energy and mineral resources, so the proposal should
address this element fully. Also, short-term forecasts may indicate an
oversupply from both national and internationally developed properties,
and therefore additional production may not be accommodated. Certain
commodities such as electricity may be in high demand in some regional
sectors, but the current state of the transmission infrastructure does
not allow for additional kilowatts to be handled, thereby hindering a
market opportunity.
On the other hand, the potential for improving markets may be
suggested by market indicators. Examples of market indicators include
price history, prices from the futures markets, rig count for oil and
gas, and fundamental factors like supply shortages, political unrest in
foreign markets, and changes in technology.
(c) Economic Benefits Produced by the Project; 20 points. This
proposed study should make the tribe's land more attractive to industry
for exploration and development or provide for the
[[Page 12888]]
tribe's own economic development. Whatever the commodity being studied,
the ultimate goal is to collect useful data and information that
generates interest within the development industry, attract potential
developers to the Indian lands, and acquire data and information at a
minimal cost to the tribe.
(d) Tribes' Willingness to Develop; 20 points. The tribe's
willingness to consider developing any potential resource must be
clearly stated in the proposal and the tribal resolution. Note that
this is not a statement for mandatory development of any potential
resource, but just that the tribe is willing to develop. The decision
as to whether or not to develop will always lie with the tribe. The
willingness to development statement should provide sufficient
explanation of how the tribe intends to accomplish this task. The
willingness to develop will also be evaluated by the tribe's
willingness to release energy or mineral data to potential developers.
(e) Tribal Commitment to the Project; 25 points.
The tribe should appoint a designated lead and contact
person (e.g., someone with direct contact to the council) to be
committed to the successful completion of the project.
If the tribe has a strategic plan for development, does
the EMDP proposal fit within that strategic plan? A strategic plan
outlines objectives, goals, and methodology for sustainable tribal
economic development.
The tribe's business environment must be conducive to
development.
(f) Additional Funding or Participation From Other Entities; 5
points.
Additional point consideration will be given if other government
agencies (Bureau of Land Management, DOE, etc.) and/or private
companies are involved and contribute to the project.
3. Ranking of Proposals and Award Letters
The EMDP review committee will rank the energy and mineral
development proposals using the selection criteria outlined in this
manual under Section 6. The DEMD will then forward the rated requests
to the Director of the IEED (Director) for approval. Once approved, the
Director will submit all proposals to the Assistant Secretary--Indian
Affairs for concurrence and announcement of awards to those selected
tribes, via written notice. Those tribes not receiving an award will
also be notified immediately in writing.
F. When to Submit
The DEMD will accept applications at any time before the deadline
stated in the DATES section of this notice, and will send a
notification of receipt to the return address on the application
package, along with a determination of whether or not the application
is complete. The DEMD will not consider grant proposals after this
date. A date-stamped receipt of submission by the BIA Regional or
Agency-level office on or before the announced deadline will also be
acceptable.
G. Where To Submit
Applicants must submit the Energy and Mineral Development proposals
to DEMD at the address listed in the ADDRESSES section of this notice.
Applicants should also, as a matter of courtesy, forward a copy of
their proposal to their own BIA Agency and Regional offices.
A tribe may fax the cover letter and resolution for the proposal
prior to the deadline, which will guarantee that the proposal will be
considered as being received on time. However, DEMD asks that tribes or
consultants do not send the entire proposal via the fax method, as this
severely overloads the fax system due to the relatively large number of
proposals that DEMD receives each year.
The cover letter should also state that the proposal is being sent
via FedEx or mail. An original signature copy must be received in
DEMD's office within ten (10) working days after the deadline,
including all signed tribal resolutions and/or letters of tribal
authorization.
BIA Regional or Agency level offices receiving a tribe's submitted
EMDP proposal do not have to forward it on to DEMD. It is meant to
inform them of a tribe's intent to perform energy or mineral studies
using EMDP funding. The BIA Regional or Agency offices are free to
comment on the tribe's proposal, or to ask DEMD for other information.
H. Transfer of Funds
IEED will transfer a tribe's EMDP award funds to the BIA Regional
Office that serves that tribe, via a sub-allotment funding document
coded for the tribe's EMDP project. The tribe should be anticipating
the transfer of funds and be in contact with their budget personnel
contacts at the Regional and Agency office levels. Tribes receiving
EMDP awards must establish a new 638 contract to complete the transfer
process, or use an existing 638 contract, as applicable.
I. Reporting Requirements for Award Recipients
1. Quarterly Reporting Requirements
During the life of the EMDP project, quarterly written reports are
to be submitted to the DEMD project monitor for the project. The
beginning and ending quarter periods are to be based on the actual
start date of the EMDP project. This date can be determined between
DEMD's project monitor and the tribe.
The quarterly report can be a one to two page summary of events,
accomplishments, problems and/or results that took place during the
quarter. Quarterly reports are due two weeks after the end of a
project's fiscal quarter.
2. Final Reporting Requirements
Delivery Schedules. The tribe must deliver all products
and data generated by the proposed assessment project to DEMD's office
within two weeks after completion of the project.
Mandatory Requirement to Provide Reports and Data in
Digital Form. The DEMD maintains a repository for all energy and
mineral data on Indian lands, much of it derived from these energy and
mineral development reports. As EMDP projects produce reports with
large amounts of raw and processed data, analyses and assays, DEMD
requires that deliverable products be provided in digital format, along
with printed hard copies.
Reports can be provided in either MS Word or Adobe PDF format.
WordPerfect format will be accepted but is not preferred. Spreadsheet
data can be provided in MS Excel, MS Access, or Adobe PDF formats. All
vector figures should be converted to PDF format, as that has become a
common format for such files. Faster images can be provided in PDF,
JPEG, TIFF, or any of the Windows metafile formats.
Number of Copies. When a tribe prepares a contract for
energy and mineral development, they must describe the deliverable
products and include a requirement that the products be prepared in
standard format (see format description above). Each energy and mineral
development contract will provide funding for a total of six (6)
printed and six (6) digital copies to be distributed as follows:
(a) The tribe will receive two printed and two digital copies of
the EMDP report.
(b) The DEMD requires four printed copies and four digital copies
of the EMDP report. DEMD will transmit one of these copies to the
tribe's BIA Regional Office, and one copy to the
[[Page 12889]]
tribe's BIA Agency office. Two printed and two digital copies will then
reside with DEMD. These copies should be forwarded to the DEMD offices
in Lakewood, Colorado, to the attention of the Energy and Mineral
Development Program.
All products generated by EMDP studies may be subject to release
under FOIA, as noted above. Products include all reports and technical
data obtained during the study such as geophysical data, geochemical
analyses, core data, lithologic logs, assay data of samples tested,
results of special tests, maps and cross sections, status reports and
the final report.
J. Requests for Technical Assistance
The DEMD staff may provide technical consultation (i.e., work
directly with tribal staff on a proposed project), provide support
documentation and data, provide written language on specialized
sections of the proposal and suggest ways a tribe may obtain other
assistance, such as from a company or consultant specializing in a
particular area of expertise. However, the tribe is responsible for
preparing the executive summary, justification and scope of work for
their proposal.
The tribe must notify DEMD in writing that they require assistance,
and DEMD will then appoint staff to provide the requested assistance.
The tribe's request must clearly specify the type of technical
assistance desired.
Requests for technical assistance should be submitted by the
deadline stated in the DATES section for such requests to allow DEMD
time to provide the appropriate assistance. Tribes not seeking
technical assistance should attempt to submit their EMDP proposals well
in advance of the deadline to allow DEMD time to review the proposals
for possible deficiencies and allow ample time to contact the tribe
with requests for revisions to the initial submission.
Dated: March 10, 2009.
George T. Skibine,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy and Economic Development.
[FR Doc. E9-6545 Filed 3-24-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-4M-P