FWS Region 1 - FY2009 Science Support (SSP) and Quick Response Program (QRP) - Request For Proposals (RFP)

Date:         March 26, 2008
To:             Region 1 employees
From:         Paul Heimowitz, Regional Research Coordinator
Subject:     CALL FOR PROPOSALS - FY09 Science Support Partnership and Quick Response Programs (Due: COB June 13, 2008)

Proposals are now being accepted for the FY 2009 Science Support Partnership (SSP) and Quick Response Programs (QRP).  SSP and QRP funds are held within the USGS budget for work on research and information needs "solely identified" by the USFWS.  SSP funding can extend through multiple years and involve both experimental research and technical assistance. QRP funding can only be used for one-year projects with a maximum budget of $25,000 or less.

For both SSP and QRP, USGS scientists spend the money and lead the work, but the project proposals are submitted by USFWS staff to meet USFWS needs (a summary describing USFWS and USGS roles in carrying out SSP/QRP activities is attached).  For FY09, approximately $200,000 is available in Region 1 for new SSP/QRP projects. Although there are no specific limitations this year for proposal topics, applicants should consider the following priorities:

Proposal addresses timely regional scientific information needs of at least one FWS program, with preference to projects that address cross-program priorities

• Proposal demonstrates budget efficiency, with preference given to budgets that do not exceed three years and request less than $25,000 per year
• Proposal addresses management-oriented research questions rather than technical assistance requests (e.g., literature reviews)
• Proposal addresses the biological planning, conservation design and/or monitoring/research for implementation of the Strategic Habitat Conservation approach (SHC report available online at www.fws.gov/science/doc/SHC_FinalRpt.pdf)
• Proposal demonstrates partnership support

Significant Process Submission Change for FY09:  Proposals must be submitted using the web-based Fish and Wildlife Information Needs system (FWIN) rather than emailing electronic documents.  FWIN can be accessed online (https://sds.fws.gov/sep) by all R1 employees using your active directory user name and password, similar to accessing the USFWS intranet.  Only USFWS employees can access FWIN. Entering SSP/QRP proposals via FWIN is straight-forward and involves exactly the same information as the electronic proposal template used in previous years.  However, applicants should factor in sufficient lead-time to learn and use the system, rather than attempting to access FWIN for the first time immediately prior to the proposal deadline. The FWIN site includes a user manual and other online help, and you can also contact me for trouble-shooting.   

In its current form, FWIN includes a “pre-proposal” phase.  After preliminary information for the proposal is submitted, a member of the regional research team must electronically “accept” the pre-proposal before the applicant can proceed with the full proposal. This is an automated feature; FWIN will alert me that a pre-proposal is available for review, and FWIN will then notify you by email when the pre-proposal has been reviewed and approved. We do not anticipate that this intermediate step will involve any significant delay. 

Proposals must be submitted via FWIN no later than COB June 13, 2008.  Separate proposals for SSP vs. QRP are not required; any project meeting QRP criteria will be reviewed both for QRP and SSP funding.  Proposals should be developed jointly between the Service Project Officer and the selected USGS researcher or facility.  All proposals must identify a FWS Project officer.  Proposals should clearly articulate the resulting products and how those results can be applied to FWS management needs. A budget must be included as an Excel file (FWIN provides for attachment of Excel documents) with sufficient detail to allow for discussions/decisions at the regional level (e.g., separate line items for PI salary, technicians, supplies, travel, overhead, etc.). The attached proposal guidelines include information on USGS overhead rates.  Project officers are strongly encouraged to carefully review the budget details with USGS prior to submittal.  Incorrect application of overhead rates or other budget inaccuracies may jeopardize project selection and/or implementation.

Proposals will be reviewed by the Region 1 Research Coordinating Committee (see attached list), and funding recommendations will be forwarded to the Regional Director by August 15, 2008.  Applicants will then be notified regarding the funding decisions.  Part of the subsequent USGS process will involve peer review of selected proposals that involve experimental research (technical assistance proposals do not require the same peer review process).  The ultimate goal is to have the final selections to USGS prior to October 1 to facilitate their development of work plans and hopefully allow the start of some projects in the fall (after USGS receives its FY09 budget allocation).  Note that the FWIN system will also be used to track funded SSP and QRP projects, and serves as a repository for associated reports and products.

Although there are typically not enough funds to support all proposals, this is still one of the most direct opportunities to focus USGS research and science support on USFWS information needs in Region 1.  Please contact me with any questions about either the SSP or QRP process.

Download this RFP as a .doc file

View FY2008 list of SSP and QRP projects in Region 1