Request for Comments: Biosketch and Current and Pending Support Disclosure Policy, 54070-54073 [2024-14170]

Agencies

• National Aeronautics and Space Administration

[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 125 (Friday, June 28, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54070-54073]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-14170]


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NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION

[NASA Document No: NASA-24-040; NASA Docket No: NASA-24-0003]


Request for Comments: Biosketch and Current and Pending Support 
Disclosure Policy

AGENCY: National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

ACTION: Notice of information collection.

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SUMMARY: National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Grants 
Policy and Compliance (GPC) in the Office of Procurement is soliciting 
public comment on the Agency's forthcoming policy on disclosures made 
in grant applications and annual certifications.

DATES: Comments must be received by July 30, 2024.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for this information 
collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of this notice. 
We encourage respondents to submit comments electronically to ensure 
timely receipt. You may send comments, identified by NASA Docket Number 
NASA-24-0003 to the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting 
comments. We encourage you to submit comments electronically through 
the Federal eRulemaking Portal at https://www.regulations.gov.

[[Page 54071]]


FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information 
should be directed to Senior Policy Analyst, Laila Ouhamou, NASA 
Headquarters, 300 E Street SW, Rm. 6O87, Washington, DC 20546, phone 
202-993-5942, or email [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 4(b) of National Security 
Presidential Memorandum-33 (NSPM-33) directs that ``research funding 
agencies shall require the disclosure of information related to 
potential conflicts of interest and commitment from participants in the 
federally funded R&D enterprise . . . The appropriate disclosure 
requirement varies depending on the individual's role in the United 
States R&D enterprise.'' Section 4(b)(vi) directs that ``agencies 
should standardize forms for initial disclosures as well as annual 
updates, . . . and should provide clear instructions to accompany these 
forms and to minimize any associated administrative burden.''
    The NSTC Research Security Subcommittee worked to develop 
consistent disclosure requirements from senior personnel, as well as to 
develop proposed common disclosure forms for the Biographical Sketch 
and Current and Pending (Other) Support sections of an application for 
Federal grants or cooperative agreements. The purpose of the 
Biographical Sketch is to assess how well qualified the individual, 
team, or organization is to conduct the proposed activities. The 
purpose of Current and Pending (Other) Support is to assess the 
capacity of the individual to carry out the research as proposed and to 
help identify any potential scientific and budgetary overlap/
duplication, as well as overcommitment with the project being proposed. 
These forms were approved and rolled out by the Office of Science and 
Technology Policy (OSTP) on February 14, 2024, and NASA plans to 
implement these new forms starting on October 1, 2024. NASA plans to 
amend grant guidance materials to incorporate the mandatory use of 
these forms as outlined at the end of this notice.
    These common forms are intended to clarify what is expected of 
senior personnel applying for NASA grants and cooperative agreements 
and NASA plans to alter guidance documents to require the use of these 
forms for senior/key personnel listed in NASA grant applications. For 
information on what these forms will look like (with minor deviations), 
interested parties can visit https://www.nsf.gov/bfa/dias/policy/nstc_disclosure.jsp. When finalized, NASA will post the NASA-approved 
forms on the NASA website for applicants to download, fill out, 
certify, and submit within their NASA grant application. After an 
entity receives an award, entities shall disclose new current and 
pending support activities that have arisen since application in their 
regular Research Performance Progress Report submission.
    NASA also intends on ensuring compliance with the CHIPS and Science 
Act of 2022, Section 10632, which requires certifications that senior/
key personnel are not a party to a malign foreign talent recruitment 
program, which will have to be recertified annually during the grant 
award's period of performance. These requirements will also be 
incorporated into the NASA grant guidance documents as outlined below:
    The policy below will be incorporated into the NASA's grant policy 
documents during the next revision cycle in 2024.

1. Biographical Sketch Disclosures

    (a) Purpose. A biographical sketch documents an individual's 
qualifications and professional experience, and the information is used 
to assess how well qualified an individual is to conduct proposed award 
activities. Each senior/key person listed on a NASA grant or 
cooperative agreement proposal is required to submit biographical 
sketch disclosures with their application.
    (b) Senior/key persons. Per National Security Presidential 
Memorandum 33 (NSPM-33), a ``senior/key person'' is defined as an 
individual who (a) contributes in a substantive, meaningful way to the 
scientific development or execution of a research and development 
project proposed to be carried out with a research and development 
award from a Federal research agency; and (b) is designated as a 
covered individual by the Federal research agency concerned. NASA will 
designate as a senior/key person all Principal Investigators (PIs), all 
co-Principal Investigators (CoPIs), and co-Investigators (Co-Is) 
proposing to spend 10 percent or more of their time in any given year 
on a NASA-funded grant or cooperative agreement. NASA program offices 
may designate additional personnel categories as a senior/key person on 
a project-by-project basis, and these designations must be explicitly 
stated in all Notices of Funding Opportunities (NOFO).
    (c) Submission. Each senior/key person is responsible for 
preparing, signing, and submitting a biographical sketch form as part 
of their proposal. The form is available on the NASA Grants Policy and 
Compliance website as well as the NASA Shared Services Center website. 
There is no page limit to the biographical sketch form, and all data 
elements marked as required shall be submitted to NASA using the form. 
Senior/key personnel have the option to provide their Persistent 
Identifier in the ``Persistent Identifier (PID) of the Senior/Key 
Person'' section of the form.
    i. Applicants are encouraged to digitally sign their disclosure 
forms. However, if a form with a digital signature is submitted to NASA 
via the NASA Solicitation and Proposal Integrated Review and Evaluation 
System (NSPIRES), the system will remove the certification data 
associated with that digital signature. The signature will still be 
legible, but NASA will not be able to view any certification data 
embedded in the form. As such, award recipients shall maintain original 
forms with digital signatures and make them accessible to NASA in 
accordance with 2 CFR 200.334, Retention requirements for records, and 
200.337, Access to records.
    (d) Disclosure table. A table entitled NASA Pre-award and Post-
award Disclosure Requirements provides helpful reference information 
regarding pre-award and post-award disclosures. The table includes the 
types of activities to be reported, where such activities must be 
reported in the application, as well as when updates are required in 
the application and award lifecycle. A final column identifies 
activities that are not required to be reported.

2. Current and Pending Support Disclosures

    (a) Purpose. Current and pending support information is used to 
assess the capacity of senior/key personnel to carry out proposed award 
activities and helps NASA assess any potential scientific and budgetary 
overlap or duplication, as well as conflicts of commitment, with the 
proposed project. Each senior/key person listed on a NASA grant or 
cooperative agreement proposal is required to submit current and 
pending support disclosures with their application.
    (b) Senior/key persons. Per NSPM-33, a ``senior/key person'' is 
defined as an individual who (a) contributes in a substantive, 
meaningful way to the scientific development or execution of a research 
and development project proposed to be carried out with a research and 
development award from a Federal research agency; and (b) is designated 
as a covered individual by the Federal research agency concerned. NASA 
will designate as a senior/key person all Principal Investigators 
(PIs), all Co-Principal Investigators (CoPIs),

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and Co-Investigators (Co-Is) proposing to spend 10 percent or more of 
their time in any given year on a NASA-funded grant or cooperative 
agreement. NASA program offices are authorized to designate additional 
personnel categories as a senior/key person on a project-by-project 
basis, and these designations must be explicitly stated in all Notices 
of Funding Opportunity (NOFOs).
    (c) Submission. Each senior/key person is responsible preparing, 
signing, and submitting a current and pending support form as part of 
their proposal. The form is available on the NASA Grants Policy and 
Compliance website as well as the NASA Shared Services Center website. 
There is no page limit to the current and pending support form, and all 
data elements marked as required shall be submitted to NASA using the 
form. Senior/key personnel have the option to provide their Persistent 
Identifier in the ``Persistent Identifier (PID) of the Senior/Key 
Person'' section of the form.
    i. Applicants are encouraged to digitally sign their disclosure 
forms. However, if a form with a digital signature is submitted to NASA 
via NSPIRES, the system will remove the certification data associated 
with that digital signature. The signature will still be legible, but 
NASA will not be able to view any certification data embedded in the 
form. As such, award recipients shall maintain original forms with 
digital signatures and make them accessible to NASA in accordance with 
2 CFR 200.334, Retention requirements for records, and 200.337, Access 
to records.
    (d) Disclosure table. A table entitled NASA Pre-award and Post-
award Disclosure Requirements provides helpful reference information 
regarding pre-award and post-award disclosures. The table includes the 
types of activities to be reported, where such activities must be 
reported in the application, as well as when updates are required in 
the application and award lifecycle. A final column identifies 
activities that are not required to be reported.
    (e) Post-award disclosures. After an entity receives an award, 
entities shall disclose new current and pending support activities that 
have arisen since submission of the proposal. Entities shall indicate 
that there are new current and pending support disclosures in the first 
Research Performance Progress Report (RPPR) that is due to NASA after 
the new current and pending support has been disclosed to the entity. 
Entities shall indicate that new current and pending support has been 
identified in the ``Participants & Other Collaborating Organizations'' 
section of the RPPR. If there are new disclosures, senior/key persons 
must prepare, certify, and submit a revised current and pending support 
form along with the RPPR. The NASA Pre-award and Post-award Disclosure 
Requirements table describes which new support requires disclosure as 
part of performance reports.
    (f) Failure to disclose. If an entity discovers that a senior/key 
person has failed to disclose reportable information in accordance with 
this section, then the entity shall notify NASA within 30 calendar days 
per their award's terms and conditions. Upon receipt of the 
information, NASA will consult with the entity as necessary and take 
appropriate action.

3. Facilities, Equipment, & Other Resources

    (a) Applicants are required to submit a technical narrative for 
facilities, equipment, and other resources (F&E) that describes any 
special F&E that are required for the applicant to complete the 
proposed project. This section of the proposal shall:
    i. Describe any required existing F&E for the proposed work effort 
and whether the recipient already has access to items that are in good 
working order, or if such items need to be repaired, upgraded, or 
acquired (see letters of resource support for facilities and equipment 
not controlled by a member of the proposal team in section X.X of the 
GCAM);
    ii. Disclose the following per the NASA Pre-award and Post-award 
Disclosure Requirements table:
    A. In-kind contributions that support the research activity for use 
on the project/proposal being proposed, and
    B. Postdoctoral scholars, students, or visiting scholars who are 
supported by an external entity, and whose research activities are 
intended for use on the project/proposal being proposed; and
    iii. Not include any text that belongs in the page-limited 
Scientific/Technical/Management Plan (e.g., description of the work 
plan, justifications for perceived impact of the work, descriptions of 
proposal team roles and responsibilities).
    (b) Proposals submitted via Grants.gov shall include F&E as a 
separate PDF document to be uploaded to the Grants.gov application and 
titled ``Facilities, Equipment, and Other Resources.''

4. Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment Programs

    (a) In accordance with the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022, Section 
10632 (42 U.S.C. 19232), individuals who are a party to a malign 
foreign talent recruitment program (MFTRP) shall not serve as senior/
key personnel on a NASA grant or cooperative agreement. The definition 
of MFTRP can be found at 42 U.S.C. 19237(4), and all Principal 
Investigators (PIs), all Co-Principal Investigators (CoPIs), and Co-
Investigators (Co-Is) proposing to spend 10 percent or more of their 
time in any given year on a NASA-funded grant or cooperative agreement 
are designated as senior/key personnel.
    (b) Upon completing a biographical sketch and current and pending 
support form, senior/key personnel will be required to sign a 
certification statement reading ``I also certify that, at the time of 
submission, I am not a party to a malign foreign talent recruitment 
program.''
    i. 42 U.S.C. 19232(a)(1) requires that covered individuals submit a 
certification stating that they are not a party to a MFTRP annually 
after proposal submission for the duration of the award. As such, all 
NASA award recipients shall ensure that senior/key personnel have 
signed a certification annually stating that they are not a party to a 
MFTRP. These annual certifications do not have to be submitted to NASA, 
but award recipients must maintain them in their grant files and make 
them available to NASA upon request in accordance with 2 CFR 200.334, 
Retention requirements for records, and 200.337, Access to records.
    (c) Upon submitting a proposal in NSPIRES, entities' Authorized 
Organizational Representatives (AOR) will be required to certify that 
all senior/key personnel associated with the proposal have been made 
aware of and have complied with their responsibility under 42 U.S.C. 
19232 to certify that they are not a party to a malign foreign talent 
recruitment program.

5. Consequences for Violation of Disclosure Requirements

    (a) If it is determined that a senior/key person failed to disclose 
required information, NASA may take one or more of the following 
actions:
    i. Reject a proposal;
    ii. Suspend or terminate an award;
    iii. Temporarily or permanently discontinue any or all funding for 
the individual or entity;
    iv. Preserve an award, but require or otherwise ensure that a 
senior/key person does not perform work under the award;
    v. Suspend or debar recipients as appropriate and consistent with 2 
CFR part 180, OMB Guidelines to Agencies on Governmentwide Debarment 
and

[[Page 54073]]

Suspension (Nonprocurement) as adopted by NASA at 2 CFR part 1880, 
Nonprocurement Debarment and Suspension;
    vi. Refer the failure to disclose to the NASA Office of Inspector 
General for further investigation or to Federal law enforcement 
authorities to determine whether any criminal or civil laws were 
violated;
    vii. Report the individual or entity in SAM.gov to alert other 
Federal agencies to the noncompliance;
    viii. Take one or more of the actions described in 2 CFR 200.339, 
Remedies for noncompliance; or
    ix. Take such other actions against the senior/key person or entity 
as authorized under applicable law or regulations.
    (b) If action is necessary, NASA will adhere to the regulations in 
2 CFR 200.340, Termination; 2 CFR 200.341, Notification of termination 
requirement; and 2 CFR 200.342, Opportunities to object, hearings, and 
appeals. Additionally, NASA will adhere to the policies in GCAM section 
7.13, Appealing a Suspended or Terminated Award, as necessary.
    (c) In accordance with the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National 
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, Section 223(c)(3) (42 
U.S.C. 6605), in the event a senior/key person fails to comply with the 
NASA's current and pending support disclosure requirements, no 
enforcement action as identified in 42 U.S.C. 6605(c)(2) for such 
failure shall be applied to the entity that submitted a proposal 
unless:
    i. The entity did not meet the requirements of 42 U.S.C. 
6605(a)(2);
    ii. The entity knew that a senior/key person failed to disclose 
information under 42 U.S.C. 6605(a)(1), and the entity did not take 
steps to remedy such nondisclosure before the proposal was submitted; 
or
    iii. The NASA Administrator determines that:
    A. The entity is owned, controlled, or substantially influenced by 
a senior/key person; and
    B. Such senior/key person knowingly failed to disclose information 
under 42 U.S.C. 6605(a)(1).

6. Certifications, Assurances, and Representations, Are Revised as 
Follows

    C5. Certification Regarding Disclosure Requirements in the William 
M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 
2021, Section 223(a)(1) (42 U.S.C. 6605(a)(1)).
    By submission of its proposal, the proposing entity's Authorized 
Organizational Representative certifies that the entity is in 
compliance with the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense 
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, Section 223(a)(1) (42 U.S.C. 
6605(a)(1)), and that each senior/key person that is employed by the 
entity and listed on the application has been made aware of the 
requirements under Section 223(a)(1). Section 223(a)(1) provides that 
``each covered individual listed on the application--(A) disclose the 
amount, type, and source of all current and pending research support 
received by, or expected to be received by, the individual as of the 
time of the disclosure; (B) certify that the disclosure is current, 
accurate, and complete; and (C) agree to update such disclosure at the 
request of the agency prior to the award of support and at any 
subsequent time the agency determines appropriate during the term of 
the award.''
    C6. Certification Regarding Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment 
Programs per the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022, Section 10632 (42 
U.S.C. 19232).
    Per Section 10632 of the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 (42 U.S.C. 
19232), the entity's Authorized Organizational Representative certifies 
that each senior/key person that is employed by the entity and listed 
on the application has been made aware of and has complied with their 
responsibility under that section to certify that they are not a party 
to a malign foreign talent recruitment program.

7. Award Terms and Conditions, Are Revised as Follows

D40. Current and Pending Support Disclosure Requirements

    (a) All NASA grant and cooperative agreement recipients shall 
comply with the current and pending support disclosure requirements in 
section 2, Current and Pending Support Disclosures, of this document. 
Per section 2, senior/key personnel shall make new disclosures by 
submitting an updated current and pending support form as part of their 
performance reports. See the NASA Pre-award and Post-award Disclosure 
Requirements table for more information on which new activities must be 
reported as part of performance reports.
    (b) If an entity discovers that a senior/key person has failed to 
disclose reportable information in accordance with section 2, Current 
and Pending Support Disclosures, then the entity shall notify NASA 
within 30 calendar days of the discovery. Authorized Organizational 
Representatives, or a delegate, shall submit a current and pending 
support form that includes information for the undisclosed activity 
only, and the form shall be submitted to the cognizant NASA Grant 
Officer(s). AORs or their delegates are not required to sign the 
certification on the current and pending support form as that 
certification is intended only for senior/key personnel.

D41. Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment Programs

    (a) All NASA grant and cooperative agreement recipients shall 
comply with the malign foreign talent recruitment program (MFTRP) 
prohibitions described in section 4, Malign Foreign Talent Recruitment 
Programs, of this document. Per section 4, individuals who are a party 
to a MFTRP shall not serve as senior/key personnel on a NASA grant or 
cooperative agreement. The definition of MFTRP can be found at 42 
U.S.C. 19237(4). All Principal Investigators (PIs), all Co-Principal 
Investigators (CoPIs), and Co-Investigators (Co-Is) proposing to spend 
10 percent or more of their time in any given year on a NASA-funded 
grant or cooperative agreement are designated as senior/key personnel.
    (b) 42 U.S.C. 19232(a)(1) requires senior/key personnel listed in 
proposals to certify annually for the duration of a Federal award that 
each such individual is not a party to a MFTRP. As such, all NASA award 
recipients shall ensure that senior/key personnel have signed annually 
a certification stating that they are not a party to a MFTRP. These 
annual certifications do not have to be submitted to NASA, but award 
recipients shall maintain them in their grant files and make them 
available to NASA upon request in accordance with 2 CFR 200.334, 
Retention requirements for records, and 200.337, Access to records.

Laila Ouhamou,
Senior Policy Analyst, National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
[FR Doc. 2024-14170 Filed 6-27-24; 8:45 am]
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