Volume 12, number 10: April 5, 2006
FEDERAL NEWS
HRSA Preview Published
The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) has issued the FY 2006 HRSA Preview, which lists basic information on each grant program expected to hold a competition during FY 2006. The Preview contains summaries of all programs, anticipated deadlines, and information on electronic proposal submissions. READ MORE
NSF Removes Consultant Pay Cap
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has removed the ceiling on consultant compensation for funds awarded on or after March 15, 2006 . The new NSF policy states that "payments should be comparable to the normal or customary fees charged and received by the consultant for comparable services, especially on non-government contracts and grants." READ MORE (pdf)
Change in NIH Funding Opportunity Announcements that Use R03, R21, R33, and R34 Grant Mechanisms
Effective June 1, National Institutes of Health (NIH) Small Research Grant (R03), Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant (R21), Phased Innovation Award (R21/R33), and Clinical Trial Planning Grant (R34) paper applications will no longer be accepted. Applications must be submitted electronically using the SF424 Research and Research Related (R&R) application form through Grants.gov. This change requires NIH to expire and/or issue separate Funding Opportunity Announcements (FOAs) for each mechanism to accommodate the new process. NIH has published a notice that groups current FOAs in three categories according to the current plan of action:
- those that will expire effective March 2, 2006;
- those for which the parent R03 and parent R21 FOAs now include the scientific opportunities from currently published FOAs; and
- those that will be reissued on or after March 2, 2006. READ MORE
EPA Protections for Subjects in Human Research Involving Pesticides
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued a final notice that bans EPA-supported research for pesticides involving intentional exposure of human subjects when the subjects are pregnant women or children. The rule also extends new protections to non-pregnant adult subjects in pesticide research intended for submission to the EPA, and creates an independent Human Studies Review Board to advise the agency on the ethical and scientific issues arising in such research. READ MORE
NIH Listserv on Electronic Submission Implementation
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has created a listserv for scientists and research administrators to receive updates about the new NIH electronic grant application submission program. READ MORE
Macintosh and Other Non-Windows User Access to Grants.gov
Grants.gov and the National Institutes of Health are partnering to provide free access to Citrix servers for non-Windows users, such as Macintosh users, who are looking for an alternative to PC emulation software with the PureEdge forms. A Citrix server connection allows non-Windows users to remotely launch a Windows session on their own machines by using the free Citrix client application. While connected to the server, non-Windows users can develop their grant application using PureEdge forms. Applicants will need to download and install the free Citrix client application in order to work on the SF424 (R&R) application package with the specific grant for which they are applying.
Grants.gov has been working with PureEdge to offer a viewer that is compatible with as many operating systems as possible. Once a non-Windows-compatible viewer has been developed, information will be posted on Grants.gov. READ MORE
NIH Time Deadlines for Electronic Applications
The National Institutes of Health announced that the time deadline for all electronic grant applications submitted through Grants.gov is now 5:00 p.m., local time of the applicant institution or organization. This change is effective with submission on April 1, 2006. READ MORE
SuperNOFA for HUD's Discretionary Programs
The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has published its SuperNOFA containing the 39 funding opportunities that constitute HUD's FY2006 program interests. Details of each of the opportunities and application instructions are available from the Federal Register.
Establishment of EPA Human Studies Review Board
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has established a Human Studies Review Board (HSRB). The purpose of this HSRB is to provide advice and recommendations to EPA on issues related to the scientific and ethical review of human subject research. READ MORE
Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration STEP Program
Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has established a new cooperative research program for environment and planning research, the Surface Transportation Environment and Planning Cooperative Research Program (STEP). The general objective of STEP is to improve understanding of the complex relationship between surface transportation, planning, and the environment.
STEP is also the sole source of funds to conduct all FHWA research on planning and environmental issues in FY2006. In addition, Congress mandated several special studies, and STEP will be the funding source for those projects as well. READ MORE
Workshop for the Development of Ocean-Research Priorities
Date: April 18 - 20, 2006
Place: Denver , CO
The National Science and Technology Council Joint Subcommittee on Ocean Science and Technology (JSOST) is holding a public workshop sponsored by the 24 agencies comprising the JSOST. The workshop will provide an opportunity for ocean-science researchers to interact and provide guidance on the development of the ocean research priorities plan. READ MORE