§ 30.100

Purpose of regulation.

This subchapter (hereinafter referred to as "Regulation") establishes and codifies uniform policies and procedures for all grants awarded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

§ 30.101 Authority.

This Regulation is promulgated by the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency pursuant to the authority conferred by Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970 and pursuant to the following statutes which authorize the award of Environmental Protection Agency grants:

(a) The Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as amended (33 U.S.C. 1151 et seq.);

(b) The Clean Air Act, as amended (42 U.S.C. 1857 et seq.);

(c) The Solid Waste Disposal Act, as amended (42 U.S.C. 3251 et seq.);

(d) The Noise Pollution and Abatement Act of 1970 (42 U.S.C. 1858 et seq.); (e) Section 210 of the National Emission Standards Act, as amended (42 U.S.C. 1857f-6b);

(f) Section 301 et seq. of the Public Health Service Act, as amended (42 U.S.C. 241, 242b, 243, and 246);

(g) Section 204 (5) of the National Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.); and

(h) The Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 1891 et seq.).

§ 30.102 Applicability and scope.

This part contains policies and procedures which apply to all grants made by the Environmental Protection Agency and is designed to achieve maximum uniformity throughout the various grant programs of the Agency. Except as directed by the President, Congress. or other superior authority, these policies and procedures are mandatory with respect to all Environmental Protection Agency grants and shall apply to grants awarded or administered within and outside the United States, unless otherwise specified herein.

[36 FR 22716, Nov. 27, 1971, as amended at 37 FR 11650, June 9, 1972]

97-025-73-8

Copies of this Regulation in FEDERAL REGISTER and Code of Federal Regulations form may be purchased by Federal agencies and the public from the Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402. Copies of this Regulation in loose-leaf volume form may be obtained by Federal agencies from the Environmental Protection Agency, in a very limited quantity, and may be purchased by the public from the Superintendent of Documents. § 30.105 Citation.

This Regulation will be cited in accordance with FEDERAL REGISTER standards. Thus, this section, when referred to in divisions of this Regulation, should be cited as "§ 30.105 of this subchapter." When this section is referred to formally in official documents, such as legal briefs, it should be cited as "40 CFR 30.105." Any section of this Regulation may be informally identified, however, for purposes of brevity, as "EPA-GR" followed by the section number, such as "EPA-GR 30.105."

This Regulation may be amended from time to time to establish new or improved grant policies and procedures, to simplify and abbreviate grant application procedures, to simplify and standardize grant conditions and related requirements, and to improve the administration of grants by the Agency as well as the grantee. The development of new grant techniques, procedures, or policies is encouraged. To the maximum practicable extent, and where appropriate and feasible, public comment and the views of interested Federal agencies will be

solicited in the development of this Regulation. Suggestions for changes to this Regulation may be addressed to the Director, Grants Administration Division, Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C. 20460. § 30.107

Grant information. Information concerning Agency grants and application forms may be obtained through the Grants Administration Division, Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C. 20460, or any Regional Office Grants Administration

The Environmental Protection Agency has a broad mandate to prevent and abate degradation of the environment and to promote environmental enhancement. Grants constitute one of EPA's principal means of achieving these objectives. EPA assistance may be awarded for research, demonstration, training and fellowships, State and local government assistance, or such other programs as will advance the mission of the Agency. § 30.201 Role of the Administrator.

The Administrator is responsible pursuant to Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970 for the administration of the grant activities of the Environmental Protection Agency.

§ 30.202 Responsibility of the grantee. It is the responsibility of the grantee to comply with all the terms and conditions of the grant, to efficiently and effectively manage grant funds within the approved budget, and to complete the project in a diligent and professional manner; this responsibility may be neither delegated nor transferred. The extent to which the Government will monitor grant performance will depend upon a variety of factors. However, neither the extent of monitoring performed by or on behalf of the Government nor the amount of EPA grant assistance shall serve to diminish or shift the responsibility of the grantee. For purposes of this Regulation, an award of a grant shall be deemed to constitute a public trust. This trust is placed in the grantee upon whom the burden of performing the project is principally placed. The personnel of the Environmental Protection Agency must assure that the best interest of the public is served.

§ 30.203 Grant objectives.

EPA grants are intended to encourage accomplishment of statutory and EPA goals with the minimum administrative requirements necessary to protect the public interest.

§ 30.204 Records of grant actions.

An official file shall be established for each EPA grant which shall contain documentation of actions taken with respect to such grant, from application to final disposition. To the extent that retained copies of documents do not represent all significant actions taken, suitable memoranda or a summary statement of such undocumented actions should be prepared promptly and be retained in the grant file.

§ 30.205 Comprehensive grants.

A comprehensive grant is a grant funded under more than one grant authority by EPA or an EPA grant awarded in conjunction with one or more Federal agencies. A comprehensive grant shall be awarded and administered pursuant to such conditions and procedures for EPA assistance as the Administrator may direct, which requirements shall comply with this Regulation to the greatest extent practicable.

§ 30.206 Foreign grants.

Foreign grants shall be awarded and administered pursuant to such conditions and procedures for EPA assistance as the Administrator may direct, which requirements shall comply with this Regulation to the greatest extent practicable. Grants or agreements entered into with funds under the Special Activities Overseas Program which utilize U.S.-owned excess foreign currencies shall not be subject to the Regulation.

§ 30.207 Cost sharing.

Cost sharing is mandatory for all projects for which EPA grants are awarded. There must be a contribution by the grantee (see § 30.702) of no less than 5 percent of the allowable actual project costs, except as otherwise required by statute, and provided that in the case of grants for wastewater treatment works contributions by other Federal or State agencies may be credited toward grantee contributions.

Subpart B-Application and Award § 30.300 Preapplication procedures.

Informal inquiries by potential grant applicants will generally expedite preparation of the grant application documents by the grantee as well as evaluation of these documents by EPA. Grantees are encouraged, therefore, to make full use of such preapplication procedures as are available through the grant program office. Such procedures will range from informal telephone advice to the potential applicant to briefings of individual potential applicants or classes of applicants.

§ 30.300-1 Preproposal.

Applications for grants which are received by EPA grant offices but which do not substantially comply with the application requirements of this subchapter may be deemed to be preproposals. The party submitting a preproposal shall be promptly notified by the appropriate grant office (a) that the documents submitted fail to comply with this Regulation; (b) that EPA grant application requirements may be found in this Regulation; and (c) that informal assistance will be rendered upon request to enable the potential applicant to comply with grant application requirements.

[36 FR 22716, Nov. 27, 1971, as amended at

All applications for EPA grants shall be submitted upon EPA Form 5700-12. Each grant application shall bind the applicant to accept the grant conditions and other requirements of this Regulation; the grantee shall clearly indicate any requested deviations and the justification therefor, in accordance with § 30.1001. EPA reserves the right to make grant awards in appropriate cases, notwithstanding failure to comply with formal grant application requirements. [36 FR 22716, Nov. 27, 1971, as amended at 37 FR 12638, June 27, 1972]

(e) The name, address and telephone number of administrative, financial, and technical personnel who may be contacted by EPA for further information regarding the grant application, for evaluation of the proposal, or for negotiation of a grant award;

(f) Proposed starting and completion dates, expressed either as calendar dates or in relation to award of a grant;

(g) The type (new or continuation) and amount of the grant requested, expressed both as a percentage of the total estimated allowable project cost and dollars;

(h) Proposed budget, including detailed cost estimates;

(i) Proposed subagreements;

(j) Names of any other Federal agencies to which an application has been submitted for Federal assistance for all or a part of the project, or an integrally related project; or which is funding the proposed project, any portion thereof, or an integrally related project;

(k) The period (not less than 90 days) for which the application proposal is valid, or the date (if any) by which the grant award must be made for the project;

(1) Applications for continuation of grant support should be accompanied by an estimate of the amount of unspent, uncommitted funds which will be carried over beyond the term of the prior grant, and shall be accompanied by a statement comparing expenditures with the previously approved project budget for each of the categories identified pursuant to paragraph (h) of this section;

(m) A project proposal including objectives, strategies, and expected results; required financial, facility, equipment, and manpower resources; and such technical and other information as may be required by Parts 35, 40 or 45 of this subchapter;

(n) Each application containing data, including confidential data, which the applicant desires to be held confidential and to be used by EPA for evaluation purposes only, shall be marked on the cover sheet with the following, or similar, legend:

Data contained in pages of this application shall not be used or disclosed, except for evaluation purposes, unless such data is obtained from another source without restriction. If, however, a grant or contract is awarded as a result of or in connection with this application, the Government shall have the unlimited right to duplicate, use or disclose such data for any purpose, unless otherwise provided in such grant or contract. Such data may be subject to disclosure pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. 552. If a grant or contract is not awarded as a consequence of this application, those portions of this application containing such data shall be returned promptly to the applicant no later than 6 months after receipt, unless such period of time is extended at the request of the applicant.

(0) The signature of a person authorized to obligate the applicant to the terms and conditions of the grant, if approved.

§ 30.302 Evaluation of applications.

Each application shall be subjected (a) to administrative evaluation to determine the adequacy of the application in relation to this Regulation and (b) to technical and program evaluation to determine the merit and relevancy of the project.

§ 30.302-1 Supplemental information.

Each applicant shall be notified that the application has been received and is in the process of evaluation pursuant to this Regulation. The applicant may be requested to furnish information or documents required by this Regulation and necessary in order to complete administrative, program, or technical evaluation of the application; the applicant shall be notified that evaluation will be suspended until such additional information or documents have been furnished. § 30.302-2 Procedure.

Every application shall be evaluated in accordance with the following procedure: (a) Preliminary administrative evaluation; (b) program relevance; (c) technical and scientific evaluation; (d) final administrative evaluation. At each stage of the evaluation, such informal contact or negotiations as are required shall be conducted. Technical, scientific and program relevancy evaluation shall be performed by the appropriate program office(s), with the advice of such advisory councils or boards as are required by statute or established pursuant to this Regulation.

§ 30.303 Criteria for award of grant.

Each application shall be evaluated in accordance with the requirements and criteria established pursuant to this Regulation and promulgated herein. Program award critera may be found in Parts 35, 40, and 45 of this subchapter. Grants may be awarded without regard to nonstatutory criteria in exceptional cases, particularly in the case of comprehensive grants: Provided, That the appropriate Regional or Assistant Administrator shall make a written statement setting forth the basis for each such award, which shall be included within the grant file prior to grant award.

§ 30.304 Responsible prospective grantee.

§ 30.304-1 Scope.

The policy and procedures established by this section shall be followed to determine, prior to award of any grant, whether a prospective grantee will qualify as responsible.

§ 30.304-2 General policy.

The award of grants to applicants who are not responsible is a disservice to the public, which is entitled to receive full benefit from the award of grants for the protection and enhancement of the environment. It frequently is inequitable to the applicants themselves, who may suffer hardship, sometimes even financial failure, as a result of inability to meet grant or project requirements. Moreover, such awards are unfair to other competing applicants capable of performance, and may discourage them from applying for future grants. It is essential, therefore, that precautions be taken to award grants only to reliable and capable applicants who can reasonably be expected to comply with grant and project requirements. A responsible prospective grantee is one which is found to meet the minimum standards set forth in § 30.304-3 and such additional standards as may be prescribed and promulgated for a specific grant program. § 30.304-3 Standards.

In order to qualify as responsible, a prospective grantee must meet the following standards as they relate to the particular proposed grant under consideration:

(a) Has adequate financial resources for performance, or has the ability to obtain such resources as required;

(b) Has the necessary experience, organization, technical qualifications, and facilities, or has the ability to obtain them (including proposed subagreements);

(c) Is able to comply with the proposed or required completion schedule for the project;

(d) Has a satisfactory record of integrity, judgment, and performance, including, in particular, performance upon grants and contracts from the Federal Government;

(e) Appears to be able to conform to the Equal Opportunity requirements of this Regulation;

(f) Is otherwise qualified and eligible to receive a grant award under applicable laws and regulations.