Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey, Office of Acquisition and Federal Assistance, Mail Stop 205B, Room 6A331, 12201 Sunrise Valley Drive, Reston, VA 20192

T -- FEDERAL GEOGRAPHIC DATA COMMITTEE (FGDC) FRAMEWORK DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS PROGRAM (FDPP) COMPETITIVE COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT PROGRAM POC Tammy Fanning, Contract Negotiator, (703) 648-7363 This is not an announcement of a request for proposals. This is a notice of phaseone of a two phase approach in connection with the Framework Demonstration Projects Program (FDPP). On behalf of the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC), the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) plans to issue a program announcement to request proposals for the FDPP later this fiscal year. Organizations interested in theprogram have asked for the ability to provide project summaries to the FGDC for comment in advance of the program announcement. Therefore, the first phase of thistwo phase approach invites organizations interested in the program to provide a projectsummary to the FGDC for comment. Participation in phase one is voluntary. Organizations who submit a project summary in phase one are not obligated to applyfor the program announcement. Organizations who do not submit a summary for phase one are eligible to request the program announcement in phase two. The FGDCwill provide comments to the Organization describing how a project can be strengthened. The FGDC will also use insights gained from the summaries to guidethe development of the FDPP announcement. The purpose of the FDPP is to facilitateand provide resources for the development and implementation of the framework forthe National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI). The framework concept, outlined inthe report ''Development of a National Digital Geospatial Data Framework'' (April 1995), proposes a means by which the geospatial data community can work together toproduce and maintain commonly needed themes of data for national, regional, state,and local analyses. Included in this report is the definition of a basic informationcontent, and the technical, institutional, and business contexts by which a distributed,collaborative data collection and maintenance effort for the nation would operate. I.Project Summary Narrative - Project summaries will be reviewed by the factors setforth below (see ~A~ through ~E~). The project summary should address each of thefollowing factors in the sequence as they are listed. A. Relevance to the NSDI Framework: Describe the degree to which the project contributes to the development ofthe NSDI framework concept, its potential application to other institutions, and theextent to which the proposed project may stimulate growth of similar efforts. Describe the relationship of the proposed effort to related and similar ongoing projects.Narrative should not include reiterations of text from FGDC/NSDI fact sheets andother committee publications. B. Information Content: Identify which of the framework themes (geodetic control, digital orthoimagery, elevation and bathymetrydata, transportation, hydrography, governmental units, cadastral) will be addressed inthe proposed project. Summary should describe the geographic area to be addressed,and the scale and resolution of data. C. Technical/Operational Context: Brieflysummarize the key unique technical and operational activities to be implemented in theproposed project that address the framework goals of : integration of high-resolution,locally-produced data; providing geospatial data at varying resolutions for any givenlocation; enabling users to integrate new framework data into their data holdingswithout endangering their existing investments in spatial data and attribute information;and integrating data between themes (vertical), and within themes (horizontal). D.Business Context: Describe the approach proposed to ensure that the project will resultin framework data that are widely used and useful. Project summary should describethe approach to: avoiding restrictive practices that would inhibit use of the framework;providing information about the data limitations, optimal uses, and liability; providingdata in public, non-proprietary format(s); conforming to approved standards ; andcontaining data that are certified to ensure that they meet the minimal standard for allframework criteria. E. Institutional Organization Process: Identify the participatingorganization and briefly describe each organizations tasks and responsibilities. II.Unsuitable Project Summaries - Project summaries will not be considered for projectson topics not being sought under this program. Data collection is not considered anappropriate activity for funding under this program. Project summaries focused onmetadata and clearinghouse development will not be considered (the FGDC encouragesthese activities to seek support through the NSDI Competitive Cooperative AgreementsProgram (1434-HQ-97-PA-00022)). Additionally, project summaries will not be considered for the following: from Federal agencies or Federally Funded Research andDevelopment Centers where the agency or center is identified as the lead on the proposed project, from and work in foreign countries, from projects in which there is areal or the appearance of a conflict of interest, and from projects solely involving thedirect procurement of a product or service. III. Project Summary Preparation Instructions - Organizations wishing to participate in the first phase should submit anunbound, signed original and one copy of the project summary. The project summaryshall not exceed 3 single-spaced pages (including any figures or tables), and the typesize shall not be smaller than 12 pitch/10 point type. Pages shall be numbered. Pleasenote, that regardless of how many pages are submitted, only the first 3 pages of theProject Summary will be reviewed. IV. Project Summary Delivery Instructions - Project summaries must be received on or before January 17, 1997, at 3:00 p.m. EST.Project summaries delivered by mail should be sent to Ms. Tammy Fanning, U.S. Geological Survey, Office of Acquisition and Federal Assistance, MS 205B, 12201 Sunrise Valley Drive, Reston, VA 20192. Project summaries delivered by hand, during the work week, should be taken to the USGS, Office of Acquisition and Federal Assistance, Room 6A331, Attention: Ms. Tammy Fanning, MS 205B, 12201 Sunrise Valley Drive, Reston, Virginia, between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m.Project summaries received after the closing date and time will be returned to theapplicant. V. Planned Terms and Conditions for the FDPP to be issued later thisfiscal year - At the completion of phase two, the USGS intends to award cooperativeagreements with funds totalling $260,000 during fiscal year 1997. Funds requested fora project shall not exceed $65,000. One year project periods are anticipated. Thisestimate does not bind the USGS to a specified number of awards. Each project mustbe collaborative and involve two or more organizations. Please Note: The projectsummaries submitted in response to this notice for phase one will not be used to makeaward selections, and will not be provided to the selection panels. No special consideration in the phase two FDPP selection process will be given to applicationsprovided by organizations that submitted a program summary in response to phase one.The USGS anticipates that it will announce phase two in late winter. VI. BackgroundMaterial - The FGDC report ~Development of a National Geospatial Data Framework~will be helpful in developing project summaries. It may be obtained by writing to MsTammy Fanning at the address above. Requests may also be made by facsimile to (703) 648-7901. Confirmation by telephone at (703) 648-7372 is recommended. Notelephone request for this package will be accepted. An electronic version of the reportand additional background information about the framework is available through theWorld Wide Web at http://www.fgdc.gov/Fram/index.html. The Government does not intend to award a cooperative agreement on the basis of this notice or to otherwise payfor the information solicited as a direct cost. The subsequent program announcementto be released in phase two will be synopsized in both the CBD and the Federal Register prior to release. (0324)

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