[Federal Register: May 11, 2007 (Volume 72, Number 91)]
[Notices]
[Page 26783-26787]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr11my07-32]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Minority Business Development Agency
[Docket No: 070503107-7108-01]
Solicitation of Applications for the North Carolina, New Mexico
and Oklahoma Native American Business Enterprise Centers (NABECs)
AGENCY: Minority Business Development Agency, Commerce.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with 15 U.S.C. 1512 and Executive Order 11625,
the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) is soliciting
competitive applications from organizations to operate a Native
American Business Enterprise Center (NABEC) in the specified locations
and geographical service areas (see SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION). The
NABEC operates through the use of business consultants and provides a
range of technical assistance services directly to Native American- and
other minority-owned businesses. Responsibility for ensuring that
applications in response to this competitive solicitation are complete
and received by MBDA on time is the sole responsibility of the
applicant. Applications submitted must be to operate a NABEC and to
provide business consultation to eligible clients. Applications that do
not meet these requirements will be rejected. This is not a grant
program to help start an individual business.
DATES: The closing date for receipt of applications is Friday, June 15,
2007. Completed applications must be received by MBDA no later than 5
p.m.
[[Page 26784]]
Eastern Daylight Savings Time (EDT) at the address below for paper
submission or at http://www.Grants.gov for electronic submission. The due date
and time is the same for electronic submissions as it is for paper
submissions. The date that applications will be deemed to have been
submitted electronically shall be the date and time received at
Grants.gov. Applicants should save and print the proof of submission
they receive from Grants.gov. Applications received after the closing
date will not be considered. Anticipated time for processing is ninety
(90) days from the date of publication of this notice. MBDA anticipates
that awards for the North Carolina NABEC, New Mexico NABEC and the
Oklahoma NABEC will be made with a start date of August 1, 2007.
Pre-Application Conference: In connection with this solicitation, a
pre-application teleconference will be held on Friday, May 18, 2007.
Participants must register at least 24 hours in advance of the
teleconference. Please visit the MBDA Internet Portal at http://www.mbda.gov
(MBDA Portal) for registration instructions. A copy of the MBDA panel
evaluation tool and a summary of the questions and answers from the
pre-application conference will be available through the MBDA Portal as
soon as practicable following the conference.
ADDRESSES: (1a) Paper Submission--If Mailed: If the application is sent
by postal mail or overnight delivery service by the applicant or its
representative, one (1) signed original plus two (2) copies of the
application must be submitted. Completed application packages must be
mailed to: Office of Business Development--NABEC Program, Office of
Executive Secretariat, HCHB, Room 5063, Minority Business Development
Agency, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution
Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20230.
Applicants are advised that Department of Commerce mail security
measures may delay receipt of United States Postal Service mail for up
to two weeks. Applicants may wish to use a guaranteed overnight
delivery service. Department of Commerce delivery policies for Federal
Express, UPS, and DHL overnight services require the packages to be
sent to the address above.
(1b) Paper Submission--If Hand-Delivered: If the application is
hand-delivered by the applicant or his/her representative, one (1)
signed original plus two (2) copies of the application must be
delivered to: U.S. Department of Commerce, Minority Business
Development Agency, Office of Business Development--NABEC Program
(extension 1940), HCHB, Room 1874, Entrance 10, 15th Street,
NW., Washington, DC (Between Pennsylvania and Constitution Avenues).
U.S. Department of Commerce ``hand-delivery'' policies state that
Federal Express, UPS, and DHL overnight services submitted to the
address listed above (Entrance 10) cannot be accepted. These
policies should be taken into consideration when utilizing their
services. MBDA will not accept applications that are submitted by the
deadline but rejected due to Departmental hand-delivery policies. The
applicant must adhere to these policies in order for his/her
application to receive consideration for award.
(2) Electronic Submission: Applicants are encouraged to submit
their proposal electronically at http://www.Grants.gov. Electronic
submissions should be made in accordance with the instructions
available at Grants.gov (see http://www.grants.gov/ForApplicants for
detailed information). MBDA strongly recommends that applicants not
wait until the application deadline date to begin the application
process through Grants.gov, in some cases, the process for completing
an online application may require 3-5 working days.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information, please visit
MBDA's Minority Business Internet Portal at http://www.mbda.gov. Paper
applications and Standard Forms (SF) may be obtained by contacting the
MBDA National Enterprise Center (NEC) for the area where the Applicant
is located (see Agency Contacts below) or by visiting the MBDA Portal
at http://www.mbda.gov. Standard Forms 424, 424A, 424B can also be obtained at
http://www.Grants.gov. Forms CD-511 and CD-346 may be obtained at
http://www.doc.gov/forms. Form SF-LLL can be obtained at www.whitehouse.gov/
omb/grants.
Agency Contacts:
1. Office of Business Development, 14th and Constitution Avenue,
NW., Room 5075, Washington, DC 20230. Contact: Efrain Gonzalez, Program
Manager at 202-482-1940.
2. Dallas National Enterprise Center (DNEC), 1100 Commerce Street,
Room 726, Dallas, TX 75242. This region covers the states of Arkansas,
Colorado, Louisiana, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South
Dakota, Texas, Utah and Wyoming. Contact: John Iglehart, Regional
Director, DNEC at 214-767-8001.
3. Atlanta National Enterprise Center (ANEC), 401 W. Peachtree
Street, NW., Suite 1715, Atlanta, GA 30308. This region covers the
states of North Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Kentucky,
Mississippi, South Carolina and Tennessee. It also covers Puerto Rico
and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Contact: John Iglehart, Acting Regional
Director, ANEC at 404-730-3300.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
MBDA published a Federal Register notice on August 29, 2003 (68 FR
51981), as amended on September 30, 2003 (68 FR 56267), February 11,
2004 (69 FR 6644) and February 19, 2004 (69 FR 7726), soliciting
competitive applications for operators of the following eight NABDCs
(now NABECs): Arizona Statewide NABDC, California Statewide NABDC,
Minnesota/Iowa Statewide NABDC, New Mexico Statewide NABDC, North
Carolina/Cherokee/Ashville NABDC, North/South Dakota Statewide NABDC,
Northwest NABDC and the Oklahoma Statewide NABDC. This competition
resulted in financial assistance awards (cooperative agreements) being
issued for all eight locations, with a three-year award period of
January 1, 2004 through December 31, 2006.
On September 6, 2006, MBDA published a Federal Register notice (71
FR 52529) soliciting competitive applications for operators of four
regional NABECs (in place of the eight prior NABECs) for the next
three-year award period commencing January 1, 2007. However, on October
25, 2006, MBDA published a Federal Register notice (71 FR 62420) (i)
cancelling the September 6, 2006 solicitation and (ii) amending the
original competitive solicitation to extend the total project award
period for all eight of the original NABECs from three years to four
years. MBDA took these actions in order to provide the Agency with a
sufficient opportunity to solicit input from its stakeholders regarding
any proposed program changes to be implemented during the next three-
year award period. Operators of five of the eight NABECs accepted
MBDA's invitation to extend the original award period for an additional
year, while the operators of the North Carolina/Ashville/Cherokee
NABEC, New Mexico Statewide NABEC and Oklahoma Statewide NABEC declined
MBDA's invitation.
This Notice solicits competitive applications for the North
Carolina NABEC, New Mexico NABEC and the Oklahoma NABEC. This Notice
replaces in its entirety the previously published competitive
solicitation for the North Carolina NABEC, New Mexico NABEC and
Oklahoma NABEC projects, although it generally adheres to
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previous programmatic requirements with updates being made to the
computer requirements.
Geographic Service Areas
The NABEC will be located and will provide services in the
following geographic areas:
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Geographic service
NABEC name Location of NABEC area
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North Carolina NABEC............ Cherokee/ State of North
Asheville, Carolina.
Charlotte,
Lumberton or
Pembroke, NC.
New Mexico NABEC................ Albuquerque, State of New
Farmington or Mexico.
Gallup, NM.
Oklahoma NABEC.................. Oklahoma City or State of Oklahoma.
Tulsa, OK.
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Electronic Access
A link to the full text of the Announcement of Federal Funding
Opportunity (FFO) for this solicitation may be accessed at http://www.Grants.gov, at http://www.mbda.gov, or by contacting the
appropriate MBDA representative identified above. The FFO contains a
full and complete description of the NABEC Program requirements. In
order to receive proper consideration, applicants must comply with all
information and requirements contained in the FFO. Applicants will be
able to access, download and submit electronic grant applications for
the NABEC Program in this announcement at http://www.Grants.gov. MBDA
strongly recommends that applicants not wait until the application
deadline date to begin the application process through Grants.gov as in
some cases the process for completing an online application may require
additional time (e.g., 3-5 working days). The date that applications
will be deemed to have been submitted electronically shall be the date
and time received at Grants.gov. Applicants should save and print the
proof of submission they receive from Grants.gov. Applications received
after the closing date and time will not be considered.
Funding Priorities
Preference may be given during the selection process to
applications which address the following MBDA funding priorities:
( a) Applicants who submit proposals with a scope of work for the
project exceeding the minimum work requirements in the FFO;
(b) Applicants who submit proposals that include performance goals
that exceed the minimum performance goal requirements in the FFO; or
(c) Applicants who demonstrate an innovative approach (consistent
with overall NABEC program requirements) to limit barriers to market
and capital access for Native American- and other eligible minority-
owned businesses.
Funding Availability
MBDA anticipates that a total of approximately $611,000 will be
available in FY 2007 for financial assistance awards under this
competition. Specific funding levels for the North Carolina NABEC, New
Mexico NABEC and Oklahoma NABEC are set forth in the below table. The
anticipated start date for all awards under this competition is August
1, 2007 and the total award period is anticipated to be twelve (12)
months (e.g., August 1, 2007 through July 31, 2008). The maximum
Federal funding amount for each NABEC project is as follows:
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August 1, 2007 through July 31, 2008
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Project name Estimated Non-Federal
program cost Federal share share *
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North Carolina NABEC............................................ $188,000 $188,000 N/A
New Mexico NABEC................................................ 188,000 188,000 N/A
Oklahoma NABEC.................................................. 235,000 235,000 N/A
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* Encouraged, but not required.
Publication of this notice does not obligate the Department of Commerce
or MBDA to award any specific cooperative agreement or to obligate all
or any part of available funds.
Authority: Executive Order 11625 and 15 U.S.C. 1512.
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA): 11.801, Native
American Business Enterprise Centers.
Eligibility
For-profit entities (including sole-proprietorships, partnerships,
and corporations), non-profit organizations, state and local government
entities, American Indian Tribes, and educational institutions are
eligible to operate NABECs.
Program Description
MBDA is soliciting competitive applications from organizations to
operate Native American Business Enterprise Centers (formerly known as
Native American Business Development Centers) (NABDC)) under its Native
American Business Enterprise Center (NABEC) Program. The NABEC will
operate through the use of trained professional business consultants
who will assist Native American and other minority entrepreneurs
through direct client engagements. Entrepreneurs eligible for
assistance under the NABEC Program are Native Americans, Eskimos,
African Americans, Puerto Ricans, Spanish-speaking Americans, Aleuts,
Asian Pacific Americans, Asian Indians and Hasidic Jews. References
throughout this notice regarding a NABEC's provision of services and
assistance to Native American clients also includes the eligible non-
Native American clients listed in the preceding sentence. No service
may be denied to any member of the eligible groups listed above.
The NABEC Program requirements increase the impact of the project
by requiring that project operators deploy standardized business
assistance services to the Native American and
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minority business public directly, develop a network of strategic
partnerships and provide strategic business consulting within the
geographic service area. These requirements will be used to generate
increased results with respect to financing and contracts awarded to
Native American and minority-owned firms and thus, are a key component
of this program.
The NABEC Program also incorporates an entrepreneurial approach to
building market stability and improving quality of services delivered.
This strategy expands the reach of the NABECs by requiring project
operators to develop and build upon strategic alliances with public and
private sector partners, as a means of reaching out and serving Native
American and minority-owned firms with rapid growth potential within
the project's geographic service area. The NABEC Program leverages the
full benefit of telecommunications technology, including the Internet
and a variety of online computer-based resources, to dramatically
increase the level of service that the NABECs provide to Native
American and minority-owned firms. In addition, MBDA will establish
specialized advanced programs for growth assistance to clients with the
capacity to grow and expand. These programs are designed to foster
growth assistance for its clients. The NABEC will also encourage
collaboration and referrals of clients and non-clients that meet the
requirements of these specialized programs and other MBDA sponsored
networks. This will provide a comprehensive approach to serving the
emerging sector of the Native American business community.
MBDA's new strategic growth initiative is focused on serving
emerging Native American and minority firms capable of impacting
economic growth and employment. MBDA wants to ensure that NABEC clients
are receiving a consistent level of service throughout its funded
network. To that end, MBDA will require NABEC consultants to attend a
series of training courses designed to achieve standardized services
and quality expectations.
Please refer to the FFO for this competitive solicitation for
additional programmatic information.
Match Requirements
It is not required that an applicant for a NABEC award propose a
non-Federal cost share contribution. An applicant may, however, propose
a cost-share contribution in any of the following four means or in any
combination thereof: (1) Client fees; (2) cash contributions; (3) non-
cash applicant contributions; and/or (4) third party in-kind
contributions. The NABEC may (but is not required to) charge client
fees for services rendered. Client fees (if imposed) shall be used
towards meeting cost share requirements and must be used in furtherance
of the program objectives. Applicants will be awarded up to five (5)
bonus points to the extent that the proposed project budget includes a
non-Federal cost-share contribution, measured as a percentage of the
overall project budget (see Evaluation Criteria below).
Evaluation Criteria
Applications will be evaluated and selected for funding based on
the following criteria. An application must receive at least 70% of the
total points available for each evaluation criterion, in order for the
application to be considered for funding. The maximum number of total
points for each evaluation criterion is provided below. The number of
points assigned to each evaluation criterion will be determined on a
competitive basis by the MBDA review panel based on the quality of the
application with respect to each criterion. The maximum total of points
that can be earned is 105, including a maximum of five (5) bonus points
for applications proposing a non-federal cost share.
1. Applicant Capability (45 Points)
The applicant's proposal will be evaluated with respect to the
applicant firm's experience and expertise in providing the work
requirements listed. Specifically, the proposals will be evaluated as
follows:
Native American Community--experience in and knowledge of
the Native American and minority business sector and strategies for
enhancing its growth and expansion (5 points);
Business Consulting--experience in and knowledge of
business consulting of Native American and minority firms (10 points);
Financing--experience in and knowledge of the preparation
and formulation of successful financial transactions (5 points);
Procurements and Contracting--experience in and knowledge
of the public and private sector contracting opportunities for Native
American and minority businesses (5 points);
Financing Networks--resources and professional
relationships within the corporate, banking and investment community
that may be beneficial to Native American and minority-owned firms (5
points);
Native American Advocacy--experience and expertise in
advocating on behalf of Native American businesses, both as to specific
transactions in which a Native American business seeks to engage, and
as to broad market advocacy for the benefit of the Native American
community at large (5 points); and
Key Staff--assessment of the qualifications, experience
and proposed role of staff who will operate the NABEC. In particular,
an assessment will be made to determine whether proposed staff
possesses the expertise in utilizing information systems as
contemplated under the heading entitled, ``Computer Requirements'' (10
points).
2. Resources (20 Points)
The applicant's proposal will be evaluated according to the
following criteria:
Resources--discuss those resources (not included as part
of the cost-sharing arrangement) that will be used (10 points);
Partners--discuss how you plan to establish and maintain
the network of five (5) Strategic Partners (5 points);
Equipment--discuss how you plan to accomplish the computer
hardware and software requirements (5 points).
3. Techniques and Methodologies (25 Points)
The applicant's proposal will be evaluated as follows:
Performance Measures--relate each performance measure to
the financial, information and market resources available in the
geographic service area to the applicant and how the performance goals
will be met. Specific attention should be placed on the Dollar Value of
Transactions. This goal represents the sum of (a) Dollar Value of
Financial Transactions and (b) Dollar Value of Gross Receipts. Dollar
Value of Transactions, Dollar Value of Financial Transactions and
Dollar Value of Gross Receipts are defined in Section I.F. of the FFO
under Performance Measures. When proposing the minimum goal under
Dollar Value of Transactions, the applicant is given the flexibility to
address the percentage breakdown for items (a) and (b) above within a
specific range--not more than 60% and not less than 40%. The applicant
should consider existing market conditions and its strategy to achieve
the goal. The applicant may vary the percentage breakdown for items (a)
and (b) above as long as the sum meets the required performance goal as
provided in the FFO (15 points);
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Plan of Action--provide specific detail on how the
applicant will start operations. NABECs have thirty (30) days to become
fully operational after an award is made. Fully operational means that
all staff are hired, all signs are up, all items of furniture and
equipment are in place and operational, all necessary forms are
developed (e.g., client engagement letters, other standard
correspondence, etc.), and the center is ready to open its doors to the
public (5 points);
Work Requirement Execution Plan--The applicant will be
evaluated on how effectively and efficiently all staff time will be
used to achieve the work requirements (5 points).
4. Proposed Budget and Supporting Budget Narrative (10 Points)
The applicant's proposal will be evaluated on the following sub-
criteria:
Reasonableness, allowability and allocability of costs.
All of the proposed expenditures must be discussed and the budget line
item narrative must match the proposed budget. Fringe benefits and
other percentage item calculations must match the proposed budget line-
item (5 points); and
Performance Based Budget. Discuss how the budget is
related to the accomplishment of the work requirements and the
performance measures. Provide a budget narrative that clearly shows the
connections (5 points).
Bonus for Non-Federal Cost Sharing (maximum of 5 points): Non-
Federal cost sharing is not required under the NABEC program. However,
applicants will be awarded bonus points to the extent that the proposed
overall project budget includes non-Federal contributions, measured as
a percentage of the overall project budget (i.e., Federal and non-
Federal shares). Specifically, a maximum of five (5) bonus points will
be awarded based on the following scale: more than 0--less than 5%--1
point; 5% or more--less than 10%--2 points; 10% or more--less than
15%--3 points; 15% or more--less than 20%--4 points; and 20% or more--5
points. The non-Federal contributions (if proposed) may consist of one
or more of the following: (1) Client fees; (2) cash contributions; (3)
non-cash applicant contributions; and/or (4) third party in-kind
contributions, and must be adequately identified and documented in the
application
Review and Selection Process
1. Initial Screening--Prior to the formal paneling process, each
application will receive an initial screening to ensure that all
required forms, signatures and documentation are present.
2. Panel Review--Each application will receive an independent,
objective review by a panel qualified to evaluate the applications
submitted. MBDA anticipates that the review panel will be made up of at
least three independent reviewers who are Federal employees who will
review all applications based on the above evaluation criteria. Each
reviewer will evaluate and provide a score for each proposal. In order
for an application to be considered for funding, it shall need to
achieve 70% of the available points for each evaluation criterion.
Failure to achieve the minimum required points will deem the
application as unsuccessful.
3. Final Recommendation--The MBDA National Director makes the final
recommendation to the Department of Commerce Grants Officer regarding
the funding of applications, taking into account the selection criteria
as outlined in this notice and the following:
A. Evaluations and rankings of the independent review panel;
B. Funding Priorities. The National Director (or his designee)
reserves the right to conduct a site visit (subject to the availability
of funding) to applicant organizations receiving at least 70% of the
total points available for each evaluation criterion, in order to make
a better assessment of the organization's capability to achieve the
funding priorities for this competition; and
C. Availability of funding.
Intergovernmental Review
Applications under this program are not subject to Executive Order
12372, ``Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs.''
Limitation of Liability
In no event will the Department of Commerce or MBDA be responsible
for proposal preparation costs if this program is cancelled because of
other Agency priorities. Publication of this announcement does not
oblige the Department of Commerce or MBDA to award any specific project
or to obligate any available funds.
Universal Identifier
Applicants should be aware that they will be required to provide a
Dun and Bradstreet Data Universal Numbering system (DUNS) number during
the application process. See the June 27, 2003 Federal Register notice
(68 FR 38402) for additional information. Organizations can receive a
DUNS number at no cost by calling the dedicated toll-free DUNS Number
request line at 1-866-705-5711 or by accessing the Grants.gov Web site
at http://www.Grants.gov.
Department of Commerce Pre-Award Notification Requirements for Grants
and Cooperative Agreements
The Department of Commerce Pre-Award Notification Requirements for
Grants and Cooperative Agreements contained in the Federal Register
notice of December 30, 2004 (69 FR 78389) are applicable to this
solicitation.
Paperwork Reduction Act
This document contains collection-of-information requirements
subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). The use of Standard Forms
424, 424A, 424B, SF-LLL, and CD-346 have been approved by OMB under the
respective control numbers 0348-0043, 0348-0044, 0348-0040, 0348-0046,
and 0605-0001. Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, no person
is required to respond to, nor shall any person be subject to a penalty
for failure to comply with a collection of information subject to the
Paperwork Reduction Act unless that collection displays a currently
valid OMB Control Number.
Executive Order 12866
This notice has been determined to be not significant for purposes
of E.O. 12866.
Administrative Procedure Act/ Regulatory Flexibility Act
Prior notice and an opportunity for public comment are not required
by the Administrative Procedure Act for rules concerning public
property, loans, grants, benefits, or contracts (5 U.S.C. 533(a)(2)).
Because notice and opportunity for comment are not required pursuant to
5 U.S.C. 533 or any other law, the analytical requirements of the
Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C 601 et seq.) are inapplicable.
Therefore, a regulatory flexibility analysis is not required and has
not been prepared.
Dated: May 8, 2007.
Ronald N. Langston,
National Director, Minority Business Development Agency.
[FR Doc. E7-9096 Filed 5-10-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-21-P
