of equipment purchased with Federal funds in nonprofit organizations. Section 6306 contains an expanded authority for vesting title in other tangible personal property and applies to cooperative agreements and contracts as well as grants.

§ 1260.201 Policy.

(a) NASA policy is to use the grant instrument to sponsor required research and research related activities at nonprofit institutions or organizations when it is desired (1) to accomplish a public purpose of support or stimulation in the area of research, (2) when no substantial NASA involvement in the technical performance is anticipated, (3) to provide latitude to investigators that will encourage maximum creativity, and (4) to have the minimum administration consistent with the public interest.

(b) NASA policy is to use the cooperative agreement for the same purpose as grants, except that substantial Federal involvement in significant aspects of the effort are necessary for its accomplishment.

(c) In addition, it is NASA policy to provide appropriate continuity of support in research sponsored under grants.

[51 FR 2626, Jan. 17, 1986, as amended at 54 FR 43050, Oct. 20, 1989]

§ 1260.202 Proposals.

(a) General. An activity leading to a grant or cooperative agreement must be supported by a valid proposal from the prospective recipient organization. Grants and cooperative agreements are not considered to be subject to any statutory requirements for pre-award synopsis. Proposals are not categorized as "grant proposal" or "contract proposal." In many cases the proposals received will be unsolicited. However, instrument selection under Pub. L. 97258 is independent of proposal type; therefore, grants and cooperative agreements can result from either solicited or unsolicited proposals. This paragraph emphasizes certain points and provides supplementary information on proposals in the grant environment.

(b) Unsolicited proposals—(1) Applicable regulations. FAR, 48 CFR 15.5

and the NFS, 48 CFR 1815.5, apply to unsolicited proposals which result in grants and cooperative agreements, unless otherwise noted in this paragraph (b).

(2) Preliminary discussions. In accordance with FAR, 48 CFR 15.504, contact with agency technical personnel prior to proposal submission is permissible and is encouraged to determine if preparation of a formal submission is warranted. Such discussions, confined to the limited objectives of conveying to the potential offeror an understanding of the agency mission and needs relative to the type of effort contemplated, do not jeopardize the unsolicited status of any subsequently submitted proposal.

(3) Proposal validity. If an invalid proposal is received for funding action, the grants officer should give the institution an opportunity to provide the missing information and should notify the sponsoring technical office of any resultant substantive changes. In the event excessive delay or possible cancellation of the action is contemplated, the sponsoring office should be notified. In determining proposal validity, note that a broad agency announcement shall not be considered to be an "acquisition requirement" as the term is used for FAR, 48 CFR 15.507(a)(2).

(4) Renewal proposals. NFS, 48 CFR 1815.505-70 does not apply. Proposals for renewal of ongoing projects generally emphasize changes since the original award was made and may be simpler than proposals for new efforts. For renewal purposes, solicited proposals received in response to NASA Research Announcements (NRA) may be used to fulfill the unsolicited proposal requirement (see § 1260.402 and NFS, 48 CFR 1835.016-70).

(5) Acceptance. (i) The provisions of FAR, 48 CFR 15.507(b), and NFS, 48 CFR 1815.507, do not apply to unsolicited proposals which will result in grants or cooperative agreements.

(ii) The grants officer may commence negotiation with the proposer for the award of a research grant or cooperative agreement when

(A) An unsclicited proposal has received a favorable evaluation;

(B) The proposal is not of the character described in FAR, 48 CFR 15.507(a), i.e., it is not available to the Government without restriction from another source; it does not closely resemble a pending competitive acquisition requirement; and it demonstrates an innovative and unique method, approach, or concept.

(C) The sponsoring technical office supports its recommendation with a Justification for Acceptance of an Unsolicited Proposal (JAUP). The JAUP shall describe the facts and circumstances that preclude competition, along with consideration of the evaluation factors listed in FAR, 48 CFR 15.506-2(a). The JAUP shall be in writing and shall be submitted for approval of the Grants Officer after prior review and written concurrence by the head of the cognizant technical division or laboratory, as applicable. In reviewing the "Justification for Acceptance of an Unsolicited Proposal," the grants officer should bear in mind that the criteria of FAR, 48 CFR 15.506-2(a)(1), are also generally descriptive of work often suitable for support by a grant or cooperative agreement. Since proposals of this type are intellectual products, it is inappropriate and unrealistic to attempt to establish that no one else can perform similar work. It is only necessary to establish that the proposal is the only one available for the type of effort contemplated or has better promise than related or overlapping ones available for evaluation at the same time.

(c) Solicited proposals. As a result of the instrument section criteria specified by Pub. L. 97-258 and NASA's implementation in section 1260.203, the award of a grant or cooperative agreement based on a solicited proposal may be appropriate. Grants and cooperative agreements based on solicited proposals are most likely to result from proposals submitted in response to broad agency announcements, such as NRAS or "Announcements of Opportunity" (see NFS, 48 1870.103).

CFR

[51 FR 2626, Jan. 17, 1986, as amended at 53 FR 38286, Sept. 30, 1988]

§ 1260.203 Criteria for selection of award instrument.

(a) General. (1) This section provides guidance on the appropriate choice of award instruments consistent with Pub. L. 97-258 and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) implementation of that Law. As a matter of policy, NASA's use of grants, grant regulations and administrative procedures are tailored to educational institutions. Therefore, instrument selection will be made on the basis of this § 1260.203, which accommodates both statute and policy, rather than any additional local interpretation of Pub. L. 97-258. This paragraph applies to all program and individual transactions where the choice of award instruments is within the administrative discretion of NASA and is not otherwise prescribed or limited by law. A variety of award instruments is available as the means for defining the terms and conditions and the nature of the relationship between NASA and eligible recipients. The award instruments are intended to be different in purpose, application, content, and nature. When properly employed, they create different relationships between the parties. Because of these differences, the decision to use a particular instrument to implement a particular purpose must be made deliberately.

(2) Procurement contracts. A procurement contract shall be used as the legal instrument to reflect a relationship between the Federal Government and a recipient whenever (i) the principal purpose of the instrument is the acquisition by purchase, lease, or barter of property or services for the direct benefit or use of the Federal Government; or (ii) whenever NASA determines in a specific instance that the use of a type of procurement contract is appropriate.

(3) Grants. A grant agreement shall be used as the legal instrument to reflect a relationship between the Federal Government and a recipient whenever the principal purpose of the relationship is transfer of a thing of value to the recipient in order to accomplish a public purpose of support or stimulation authorized by Federal statute, rather than by acquisition, purchase,

lease, or barter of property or services for the direct benefit or use of the Federal Government; and no substantial involvement is expected between NASA acting for the Federal Government and the recipient during performance of the contemplated activity. A proposed award which exhibits the general characteristics set forth in § 1260.203(b)(1) meets the above-described statutory criteria for use of the grant instrument.

(4) Cooperative agreements. A cooperative agreement shall be used as the legal instrument to reflect a relationship between the Federal Government and a recipient whenever the principal purpose of the relationship is the transfer of a thing of value to the recipient to accomplish a public purpose of support or stimulation authorized by Federal statute, rather than acquisition by purchase, lease, or barter of property or services for the direct benefit or use of the Federal Government; and substantial involvement is expected between NASA, acting for the Federal Government, and the recipient during performance of the contemplated activity. Situations requiring use of cooperative agreements are limited. The examples and discussions set forth in paragraph (b) of this section shall be used in determining the existence of "substantial involvement."

(b) Factors to consider in the selection of award instrument. The cognizant technical officer shall recommened to the contracting officer of the funding installation the selection of the research support instrument (grant, cooperative agreement or contract), regardless of the type of proposal involved, taking into account statutory requirements, NASA policies for dealing with universities, the nature of the proposed research, the manner in which it will be performed, and the nature and extent of interaction between NASA and the performer. Research grants and cooperative agreements may be awarded only to nonprofit institutions of higher educa

tion or to nonprofit organizations whose primary purpose is the conduct of scientific research to support research or research-related efforts. Conferences which clearly relate to and have potential for contributing to

NASA research interests are considered to be research-related. Research in any academic discipline bearing on NASA research interests normally will qualify as research-related; however, advice of counsel should be sought in unusual situations (see § 1260.301(c)). Similarly, in instances where use of the grant instrument and organizational eligibility does not clearly require a deviation, but where unusual project activities or organizational attributes are evident, advice of local counsel should be obtained. "Travel Grants" or "Equipment Grants" are not authorized as research-related. Award of grants or cooperative agreements to types of organizations or for purposes other than set forth in this § 1260.203(b) requires a deviation (see § 1260.106). As a matter of policy, NASA does not generally award grants for donative assistance purposes, but only to meet program objectives; hence, consideration of any potential benefit accruing to the recipient is extraneous to determination of the support instrument. Since prime responsibility for the pursuit of most basic studies is with the university researcher, it is anticipated that the use of cooperative agreements will be limited to those situations where the project would not he possible without extensive NASA-university collaboration. The close NASA-investigator working relationship normally expected under a research agreement does not constitute substantial involvement. Cooperative agreements would be appropriate, for instance, where a university investigator works for a substantial amount of time at a NASA center (or a NASA investigator works at the university), or when the NASA-university scientific collaboration is such that a jointly authored report is appropriate. The cooperative agreement special provision wording, required by § 1260.419, must state precisely the nature of the NASA-recipient cooperative interaction without which the effort would not be possible. Under no circumstances are cooperative agreements to be used solely to obtain the stricter control requirements typical of a contract. Subject to the statutory requirements set forth in paragraph (a) of this section, the characteristics gener

ally inherent in grants, cooperative agreements, and contracts are as follows:

(1) Characteristics of a grant instrument. (i) The principal purpose is to accomplish a NASA objective through stimulating or supporting the acquisition of knowledge or understanding of the subject or phenomena under study, or attempting to determine and exploit the potential of scientific discoveries or improvements in technology, materials, processes, methods, devices, or techniques and advance the state of the art;

(ii) The exact course of the work and its outcome cannot be defined precisely and specific points in time for achievement of significant results cannot be realistically specified;

(iii) NASA desires, or the nature of the proposed investigation is such, that the grantee will bear prime responsibility for the conduct of the research, and exercises judgment and original thought toward attaining the scientific goals within broad parameters of the research areas proposed and the related resources provided;

(iv) The research problem is such that long term support (i.e., in excess of 1 year) is required for the study to mature to maximum scientific effectiveness (however, this does not preclude shorter-term grants in special cases);

(v) Meaningful technical reports (as distinguished from the Semiannual Status Reports) can be prepared only as new findings are made, rather than on a predetermined time schedule;

(vi) Simplicity and economy in execution and administration are mutually desirable; and

(vii) The effort is research or research-related.

(2) Characteristics inherent in a cooperative agreement include the characteristics of a grant plus the following:

(i) Substantial NASA involvement in and contribution to the technical aspects of the effort are necessary for its accomplishment;

(ii) The project, conducted as proposed, would not be possible without extensive NASA-university technical collaboration; and

(iii) The nature of the collaboration can be clearly defined and specified in advance.

(3) Characteristics inherent in a contract are as follows:

(i) The principal purpose is the purchase for the direct use or benefit of NASA's well-defined, specific effort clearly required for the advancement of a programmed NASA mission or project;

(ii) The work to be conducted is directed closely toward the solution of a specific problem;

(iii) A specific service, piece of hardware, or improved performance of a specific device is the end product;

(iv) NASA considers it necessary, and it is reasonable in consideration of the nature of the project, to exercise control over the objectives, direction, specifications, costs or methods of the research, and schedule control is desirable and feasible;

(v) The work to be conducted is classified (however, access to security clas- 200 sified information may be given grantees where a demonstrated need exists);

(vi) The end result is clearly defined and/or parameters and specifications are prepared in advance of the work; and

(vii) A significant portion of the total effort will be performed by an organization other than the one submitting the proposal, and such portion will involve the development, fabrication or acquisition of instruments or hardware.

(4) Other instruments authorized by statute shall be used only after it has been determined, with the advice of General Counsel, that the action cannot be accomplished under a grant, cooperative agreement, or contract, as described above.

[51 FR 2626, Jan. 17, 1986, as amended at 54 FR 43050, Oct. 20, 1989]

§ 1260.204 Processing the instruments.

(a) If a grant or cooperative agreement is selected as the research support instrument, negotiation will be by the funding installation, except for grants to foreign institutions subject to NMI 1362.1

(b) If the award is based on an unsolicited proposal, grants officers will

ensure that the appropriate proposal control unit (at either the Installation or Headquarters or both) is informed of the acceptance action. Local installation procedural guidance or guidance from the Headquarters proposal control unit (the Office of Space Sciences and Applications, Code EPM-20) should be followed, as applicable.

(c) Grants officers at field installations and the Headquarters Contracts and Grants Division will furnish to the Procurement Management Division completed NASA Forms 1356, "C.A.S.E. Report on College and University Projects," after all awards, regardless of any exceptions arising from guidance applicable to actions in paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section (see § 1260.602).

[51 FR 2626, Jan. 17, 1986, as amended at 54 FR 43051, Oct. 20, 1989]

§ 1260.205 Civil rights requirements nondiscrimination in certain federally funded programs.

(a) Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Pub. L. 88-352; 42 U.S.C. 2000d-1), Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1680 et seq.), section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended (29 U.S.C. 794), and the Age Discrimination Act of 1975 (42 U.S.C. 6101 et seq.) provide that no person in the United States shall, on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, handicapped condition, or age be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be otherwise subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance, and requires that each government agency which is empowered to extend such financial assistance shall issue rules or regulations effectuating these laws with respect to such programs or activities administered by the agency. NASA's Civil Rights regulations are published as 14 CFR Part 1250 and incorporated into NASA's directives system as NMI 2090, “Civil Rights ActNondiscrimination in Federally-Assisted Programs of NASA."

(b) For Civil Rights purposes, NASA determined that research grants and cooperative agreements made under the authority of Pub. L. 97-258 are within the purview of Title VI, Title

IX, § 1260.504 and the Age Discrimination Act.

(c) Further implementation instructions, which set forth procedures and guidance and assign responsibility to NASA officials, are contained in 14 CFR Part 1250 (NMI 2090). No grant shall be made unless and until appropriate assurances of compliance with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration regulations under Title VI, Title IX, § 1260.504 and the Age Discrimination Act have been obtained as set forth in 14 CFR Part 1250 (NMI 2090).

§ 1260.206 Printing, binding, and duplicating.

Printing, binding, and duplicating required by NASA shall be obtained in accordance with the Government Printing and Binding Regulations published by the Joint Committee on Printing, Congress of the United States, and NMI 1490.2, "Responsibilities, Procedures, and Standards for NASA Printing, Duplicating, and Binding." Technical proposals should be carefully reviewed to assure that unauthorized printing, binding, or volume duplicating constituting printing are not included in grants. When a proposed grant may involve printing, binding, or duplicating, close coordination will be effected with the Installation Central Printing Management Officer in the review process to ensure compliance with these regulations.

§ 1260.208 Clean Air and Federal Water Pollution Control Acts.

(a) Pursuant to regulations issued by authority of E.O. 11738 by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and published in 40 CFR Part 15, no grant or subgrant or subcontract thereunder in excess of $100,000 shall be awarded, renewed, or extended, except as provided in paragraph (b), if any facility to be utilized thereunder or in the performance thereof is listed on the EPA "List of Violating Facilities," published pursuant to 40 CFR 15.20, the Clean Air Act, as amended (42 U.S.C. 1857 et seq., as amended by Pub. L. 91-604), and the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as amended (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq., as amended by Pub.