GRANT FUNDING OPPORTUNITY
Federal Cost Share for Low-Carbon Fuel
Research and Development
GFO-16-307
http://www.energy.ca.gov/contracts/index.html
State of California
California Energy Commission
August 2016
Table of Contents
I. Introduction 1
A. Purpose of Solicitation 1
B. Key Words/Terms 1
C. Applicants’ Admonishment 2
D. additional requirements 2
E. Background 4
F. Funding 5
G. Key Activities Schedule 6
H. Pre-Application Workshop 7
I. Questions 8
II. Eligibility Requirements 10
A. Applicant Requirements 10
B. Project Requirements 11
III. Application Organization and Submission Instructions 12
A. Application Format, Page Limits, and Number of Copies 12
B. Electronic Method For Delivery 13
C. Hard Copy Delivery 13
D. Application Organization and Content for Stage One (Pre-Federal Award) Applications 14
E. Application Organization and Content For Stage Two (Post-Federal Award) Applications 16
IV. Evaluation and Award Process 19
A. Application Evaluation 19
B. Pass/Fail, Notice of Proposed Award, and Agreement Development 20
C. Grounds to Reject an Application or Cancel an Award 21
D. Miscellaneous 22
E. Stage One: Preliminary Application Screening and Scoring (Pre-Federal Award) 24
Application Scoring (Stage One) 25
F. Stage Two: Final Application Screening and Scoring (Post-Federal Award) 30
Application Scoring (Stage Two) 32
AttachmentsAttachment Number / Title
1 / Application Form (requires signature)
2 / Executive Summary Form
3 / Fact Sheet Template
4 / Project Narrative Form
4a / Revised Project Narrative Form Cover Page (if applicable to Stage Two proposals)
5 / Project Team Form
6 / Scope of Work Template
6a / Project Schedule (Excel spreadsheet)
7 / Budget Forms (Excel spreadsheet)
8 / CEQA Compliance Form (requires signature)
9 / Reference and Work Product Form
10 / Contact List Template
11 / Commitment and Support Letter Form (letters require signature)
12 / California Based Entity Form
GFO-16-307
Federal Cost Share for Low-Carbon Fuel
August 2016 Page ii Research and Development
I. Introduction
A. Purpose of Solicitation
The purpose of this solicitation is to provide cost share funding to applicants that apply for and receive an award under an eligible federal Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) and meet the requirements of this solicitation. This solicitation will provide federal cost share funding for cutting-edge, pre-commercial low-carbon fuel production systems with wide-scale adoption potential, and that support California’s greenhouse gas emission reduction efforts.
Under this solicitation, the California Energy Commission will offer eligible applicants funds to be used as cost share if they are awarded funds from eligible Federal Funding Opportunity Announcements (FOAs). The objectives of this solicitation are to:
· Maximize opportunities to bring federal funding to California for projects that provide GHG emission reduction benefits and support efforts to improve the efficiency of the freight system in California.
· Provide a fair, transparent, and streamlined process for applicants to apply for and receive a commitment of Energy Commission funds for federal cost share.
· Minimize the time and staff resources required to identify and notice eligible FOAs in our solicitations, screen and score proposals, develop and approve letters of commitment and develop and approve federal cost share agreements.
Applicants are not eligible to receive cost share under this solicitation to supplement an existing federal award. Eligible FOAs are listed in Table 1 in Part II of this solicitation. This is a continuous solicitation and the Energy Commission will update Table 1 as new FOAs are released.
Part II of this solicitation includes applicant and project eligibility requirements. Applicants may submit multiple applications, but each application must be for a distinct project (i.e., no overlap with respect to the tasks described in the Project Narrative Form (Attachment 4) or Scope of Work (Attachment 6).
Applications will be evaluated in two stages as described in Part IV of this solicitation. Stage One involves the pre-screening and scoring of proposals based on the evaluation criteria in Part IV, Section E. If the applicant passes Stage One it will receive a Letter of Intent that can be submitted with its federal application. If the application receives a federal award it may proceed to Stage Two, which will involve final screening and a scoring process that takes into consideration the budget and scope of work for the federally-funded project (see Part IV, Section F). Please refer to Part III for required submissions for Stages One and Two.
B. Key Words/Terms
Word/Term / Definition /Applicant / The respondent to this solicitation
Application / An applicant’s formal written response to this solicitation
CAM / Commission Agreement Manager, the person designated by the Energy Commission to oversee the performance of an agreement resulting from this solicitation and to serve as the main point of contact for the Recipient
CARB / California Air Resources Board
CBE / California-Based Entities
Energy Commission / California Energy Commission
GHG / Greenhouse Gas
GFO / Grant Funding Opportunity
NOPA / Notice of Proposed Award, a public notice that identifies award recipients
Principal Investigator / The lead scientist or engineer for the applicant’s project, who is responsible for overseeing the project; in some instances, the Principal Investigator and Project Manager may be the same person
Project Manager / The person designated by the applicant to oversee the project and to serve as the main point of contact for the Energy Commission
Project Partner / An entity or individual that contributes financially or otherwise to the project (e.g., match funding, provision of a test site), and does not receive Energy Commission funds
RD&D / Research Development and Demonstration
Recipient / The recipient of an award under this solicitation
Solicitation / This entire document, including all attachments and exhibits (“solicitation” may be used interchangeably with “grant funding opportunity”)
State / State of California
C. Applicants’ Admonishment
This solicitation contains application requirements and instructions. Applicants are responsible for carefully reading the solicitation, asking appropriate questions in a timely manner, ensuring that all solicitation requirements are met, submitting all required responses in a complete manner by the required date and time, and carefully rereading the solicitation before submitting an application. In particular, please carefully read the Screening/Scoring Criteria and Grounds for Rejection in Part IV, and the terms and conditions located at: http://www.energy.ca.gov/contracts/GFO-16-307.
Applicants are responsible for the cost of developing applications. This cost cannot be charged to the State. All submitted documents will become public records upon the posting of the Notice of Proposed Award.
D. additional requirements
1. Time is of the essence. Funds available under this solicitation have encumbrance deadlines as early as June 30, 2018. This means that the Energy Commission must approve proposed awards at a regularly scheduled business meeting prior to June 30, 2018 in order to avoid expiration of the funds. Prior to approval and encumbrance, the Energy Commission must comply with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). To comply with CEQA, the Commission must have CEQA-related information from applicants and sometimes other entities, such as local governments, in a timely manner. Unfortunately, even with this information, the Commission may not be able to complete its CEQA review prior to the encumbrance deadline for every project. For example, if a project requires an Environmental Impact Report, the process to complete it can take many months. For these reasons, it is critical that applicants organize project proposals in a manner that minimizes the time required for the Commission to comply with CEQA and provide all CEQA-related information to the Commission in a timely manner such that the Commission is able to complete its review in time for it to meet its encumbrance deadline.
2. Reservation of right to cancel proposed award. In addition to any other right reserved to it under this solicitation or that it otherwise has, if the Energy Commission determines, in its sole and absolute discretion, that the CEQA review associated with a proposed project would not likely be completed prior to the encumbrance deadline referenced above, and that the Commission’s ability to meet its encumbrance deadline may thereby be jeopardized, the Energy Commission may cancel a proposed award and award funds to the next highest scoring applicant, regardless of the originally proposed applicant’s diligence in submitting information and materials for CEQA review. Examples of situations which may arise related to CEQA review include but are not limited to:
· Example 1: If another jurisdiction, such as a city or county, has taken the role of lead agency, the Energy Commission’s review may be delayed while waiting for a determination from the lead agency.
· Example 2: If the proposed work is part of a larger project for which a detailed environmental analysis has been or will be prepared by another agency, the Energy Commission’s review may be delayed as a result of waiting for a supplemental or initial analysis, respectively, from the other agency.
· Example 3: If the nature of the proposed work is such that a project is not categorically or otherwise exempt from the requirements of CEQA, and an initial study or other detailed environmental analysis appears to be necessary, the Energy Commission’s review, or another lead agency’s review, may take longer than the time available to encumber the funds. If an initial study or environmental impact report has already been completed by a local jurisdiction, the applicant must ensure that such an analysis covers the work in the proposed project, or must obtain a revised analysis and determination from the local jurisdiction reviewing the proposed project.
· Example 4: If the proposed project clearly falls under a statutory or categorical exemption, or is work for which another agency has already adopted a CEQA finding, the project will likely have greater success in attaining rapid completion of CEQA requirements.
The above examples are not exhaustive of instances in which the Energy Commission may or may not be able to comply with CEQA within the encumbrance deadline, and are only provided as further clarification for potential applicants. Please plan project proposals accordingly.
E. Background
1. Low-Carbon Fuel Research and Development Program
Petroleum based fuels contribute to the largest source of carbon emissions in California. To mitigate this issue, state policy goals are driving research and development to reduce petroleum use by seeking economic and technically viable low-carbon fuel alternatives. The Low Carbon Fuels Standard (LCFS) provides carbon intensity values of alternative fuels based on the full life-cycle accounting of emissions including indirect emissions. The LCFS now provides new pathways that were published in spring of 2016.[1]
One research topic this program will pursue includes drop-in low-carbon fuels production derived from California’s biomass feedstocks. Renewable biofuels, fuels produced from biomass sources, can be produced to be fully compatible with existing infrastructure and vehicle technology. Using existing petroleum distribution systems further minimizes the overall cost of adoption. An additional research topic will focus on producing renewable hydrogen using renewable resources with the opportunity to supply hydrogen fueling stations with a renewable alternative. Additional benefits of this research topic include mitigating fluctuation from renewables, such as over generation from solar and wind resources, by producing renewable methane, and enabling a storage solution for the renewable fuels produced that utilize the existing natural gas system.
With funding from the Budget Act of 2016, the Energy Commission will implement a Low Carbon Fuel Research and Development Program, and release two solicitations in fiscal year 2016-2017 that focus on near-term adoption and implementation of projects that will address critical research needs not addressed in current research programs.
2. Applicable Laws, Policies, and Background Documents
This solicitation addresses the energy goals described in the following laws, policies, and background documents.
Laws/Regulations
· Assembly Bill (AB) 32 (“The Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006”)
AB 32 created a comprehensive program to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in California. GHG reduction strategies include a reduction mandate to reach 1990 levels by 2020 and a cap-and-trade program. AB 32 also required the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to develop a Scoping Plan that describes the approach California will take to reduce GHGs. CARB must update the plan every five years.
Additional information: http://www.arb.ca.gov/cc/ab32/ab32.htm
Applicable Law: California Health and Safety Code § 38500 et. seq.
· AB 118 (Statutes of 2007)
Assembly Bill 118 (Núñez, Chapter 750, Statutes of 2007) created the California Energy Commission's Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Program. The statute, subsequently amended by Assembly Bill 109 (Núñez, Chapter 313, Statutes of 2008), and Assembly Bill 8 (Perea, Chapter 401, Statutes of 2013) authorizes the Energy Commission to develop and deploy alternative and renewable fuels and advanced transportation technologies to help attain the state's climate change policies with an annual program budget of approximately $100 million.
Additional information: http://www.arb.ca.gov/msprog/aqip/aqip.htm
http://www.energy.ca.gov/altfuels/
Applicable Law: California Health and Safety Code § 44060 et. seq.
· Integrated Energy Policy Report (Biennial)
California Public Resources Code Section 25302 requires the Energy Commission to release a biennial Integrated Energy Policy Report (IEPR) that provides an overview of major energy trends and issues facing the state. The IEPR assesses and forecasts all aspects of energy industry supply, production, transportation, delivery, distribution, demand, and pricing. The Energy Commission uses these assessments and forecasts to develop energy policies.
Additional information: http://www.energy.ca.gov/energypolicy
Applicable Law: California Public Resources § 25300 et. seq.
· Senate Bill (SB) 1250 (Statutes of 2006)
SB 1250 includes development of advanced transportation technologies as a PIER goal. Investments in advanced transportation technologies aim to reduce air pollution and GHG emissions beyond applicable standards and to benefit electricity and natural gas ratepayers.
Applicable Law: California Public Resources § 25620 et. seq.
Reference Documents
For information about past research projects and activities associated with transportation research and development, refer to:
Research and Development Reports and Publications
http://www.energy.ca.gov/research/reports_pubs.html