PSIAP - Public Safety Radio Data (PSRD) FAQs

Notice of Funding Opportunity - Frequently Asked Questions 

1. How do I apply?

Applicants must submit their application materials via grants.gov. The application package is available at www.grants.gov under Funding Opportunity Number 2021-NIST-PSIAP-PSRD-01.

2. What are the application submission deadlines?

Applications must be received at grants.gov no later than 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time, Tuesday, April 20, 2021.

3. Can I submit multiple applications?

NIST will only consider one application per applicant; however, an applicant entity may be proposed as a sub-recipient, contractor, or unfunded collaborator within applications submitted by other entities.

4. What type of work will be performed under the award?

The intent of this NOFO is for the award recipient to collect Public Safety LMR usage data and make the datasets available for research related to the comparison of LMR to LTE. The award recipient will help achieve this by partnering with no less than two (2) public safety organizations (PSOs) located within the United States, of varying size or geographic location, for the collection of data necessary for conducting research relevant to the comparison of LMR to LTE. The award recipient will make the collected data publicly available for the conduct of such research. Applicants must also propose their own research project(s) related to the comparison of LMR to LTE as part of their application.

5. Who is eligible to apply for this award?

Eligibility for the program listed in this NOFO is open to all non-Federal entities. Eligible applicants include accredited institutions of higher education; non-profit organizations; for-profit organizations incorporated in the United States; state, local, territorial, and Indian tribal governments; foreign public entities; and foreign organizations. Please note that individuals and unincorporated sole proprietors are not considered “non-Federal entities” and are not eligible to apply under this NOFO. Although Federal entities are not eligible to receive funding under this NOFO, they may participate as unfunded collaborators.

6. How many awards are available?

In FY21, NIST anticipates funding 1 award for up to $1,000,000 with a project performance period of up to 2 years.

7. We are already working with NIST under a CRADA (Cooperative Research and Development Agreement). Are we eligible to apply for this grant?

Potentially: Being a CRADA partner does not preclude anyone from applying to this competition, but conflicts are possible. For example, an entity cannot receive NIST funds for the same activities being performed under the CRADA. If the applicant is a current CRADA partner and considering applying, please contact PSCR directly to discuss the specific situation.

8.  When will NIST announce the award recipient?

Review of Applications, selection of successful applicants, and award processing is expected to be completed by May 2021. NIST expects the earliest start date for awards under this NOFO to be June 2021.

9. What’s the “unique entity identifier number”?

Applicants will need a “D-U-N-S” number, which is a free, unique identifier provided by Dun and Bradstreet. Applicants will also need to obtain an Employer Identification Number (EIN) provided by the Internal Revenue Service. 

Note, if your organization does not have these numbers, it may take some time to acquire them. Please see the Organization Applicant Registration page on the Applicants tab on Grants.gov.

10. Are references, citations, or bibliographies required? Do they count towards the page limit?

No, references, citations, or bibliographies are not required. If they are included, they should be part of the Project Narrative and should match the Project Narrative’s format. See the NOFO for Project Narrative format specifications. Bibliographies should not be attached in the online application’s optional field, as anything attached in that field will not be reviewed.

Yes, Bibliographies do count towards the Project Narrative’s 20-page limit. If the Project Narrative exceeds twenty pages, any information beyond 20 pages will be redacted in the review process.

11.  Are federally funded research and development centers (FFRDC) eligible to apply?

Because of the funding instruments used to manage FFRDCs, FFRDCs are generally not eligible to apply. Interested FFRDCs should discuss this further with their Contracting Officer. FFRDCs are, however, eligible to be subcontractors to other eligible applicants.

12.  Where can I find information about past awards?

To learn more about research and development projects funded by PSCR, visit https://www.nist.gov/ctl/pscr/funding-opportunities/past-funding-opportunities

13.  Can you review our technical proposal and provide comments to ensure it meets the objectives in the NOFO?

No. Applicants should refer to Section I of the PSIAP-PSRD NOFO for details about the program goals and objectives. Applicants can send questions to pscr [at] nist.gov (pscr[at]nist[dot]gov) before submitting their proposal but will not receive feedback about specific research questions or proposed projects.

14. Can organizations partner together as a consortium to apply for this award?

Yes, partnering is encouraged, but there must be a primary applicant organization that, if awarded, will be legally responsible for the award.

15.  How should we estimate travel cost to the PSCR Annual Stakeholder Meeting?

The PSCR Annual Stakeholder Meeting is always in the summer, held in the continental United States, scheduled for 3-4 days, and registration is about $300-$400 per person.

16.  What criteria are used to evaluate applications?

Applications will be judged according to the evaluation criteria, which can be found in Section V.1 of the PSIAP-PSRD NOFO.

17.  When are all data/research required to be completed/submitted/available to the public by?

All work under the award must be completed before the end of the 2-year performance period. However, datasets may be published as they are collected, allowing research to be conducted prior to the end of the period of performance.

18.  If my application is selected, is all the funding given at one time or is it distributed over quarters/milestones?

Funding will be provided in accordance with the Multi-Year Funding Policy in Section II.2 of the NOFO. 

19.  What expenses can be covered by the funding (travel, personnel, equipment, software, etc.)?

Information on cost allowability is available in the Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards at 2 C.F.R. Part 200 (http://go.usa.gov/SBYh), which apply to awards in this program.