Important Changes for NSF Proposals and Awards
The National Science Foundation is issuing several important policy changes with the NEW Proposal Award Policies and Procedures Guide (PAPPG) that will take effect for proposals submitted on or after January 30, 2023.
These changes involve 1) decommissioning of Fastlane, 2) research disclosure requirements, 3) UEI and SAM registration requirements for subrecipients, 4) safe and inclusive work environments, 5) required responsible and ethical conduct of research training for all grant funded personnel; and 6) biosketch and current and pending transition to SciENcv.
NSF provides an extensive summary of the changes in the PAPPG and faculty and staff who work with the agency should carefully review them. SPA has indicated in this guidance which changes are effective as of January 30, 2023, and which ones go into effect later in the year.
SPA staff are available to attend departmental meetings to discuss the most significant changes. Please contact Whitney Wells to arrange a meeting.
A summary of these key changes are as follows:
1. Fastlane Decommissioning for Proposal Submission
Effective with the implementation of the PAPPG on January 30, 2023, FastLane will be removed as a submission option from all funding opportunities. SPA will require NSF proposals to be submitted through Research.gov.
Exceptions will be made if an NSF solicitation requires the use of the NSF BAAM system or the use of the Grants.gov system.
NSF reminds users of the following:
- Proposal and supplemental funding request information cannot be transferred from FastLane to Research.gov.
- In-progress proposals and supplemental funding requests as of January 27, 2023, must either be submitted by 5:00 PM submitter’s local time or they must be restarted in Research.gov to be submitted.
- Proposal file updates and budget revisions must be executed in the same system as the proposal was submitted (i.e., all in FastLane or all in Research.gov).
See the NSF Fastlane System Decommissioning Plan for more information.
SPA is working on a plan to remove all legacy records (e.g., progress reports, notifications, and requests) from Fastlane before September 2023.
2. Research Disclosures
As part of the proposal preparation and submission process, all senior personnel identified on a proposal are required to submit information to assist reviewers and program staff in making informed recommendations and funding decisions. This information is commonly referred to as research disclosures and is intended to capture any potential scientific overlap, conflict of commitment, or budgetary overlap. NSF states very clearly that these disclosures must be taken seriously.
Disclosures are provided for in the following proposal sections:
- Biographical Sketch (see Chapter II,D.h(i));
- Current and Pending Support (see Chapter II.D.h(ii)); and
- Collaborators and Other Affiliations (see Chapter II.D.h(iii)).
NSF has provided a table explaining what activities should be disclosed on which form. Investigators should review this information carefully when preparing these forms and in considering what activities must be disclosed to NSF during the award. SPA also provides Guidance for Research Disclosures and Other Support (refer to the section for Guidelines, then the document “Research Disclosures and Other Support” ) on this topic.
NSF will require senior personnel on potential awards to submit updated Current and Pending Support information prior to the award and as part of the annual and final reporting processes when applicable.
NSF will also require that senior personnel certify that the information provided in their Biographical Sketch and Current and Pending Support documents are accurate, current, and complete.
3. Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) and Registration in the System for Award Management (SAM)
For proposals with subrecipients, faculty should pay particular attention to the requirements for the Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) and SAM registration for organizations, especially businesses and foreign collaborators.
NSF indicates that subrecipients identified in a proposal must have a UEI number AND register in Research.gov for the proposal submission process. These registration requirements often add additional time to proposal preparation and can stop a proposal submission through Research.gov. SPA staff are unable to complete these registrations for collaborating organizations.
Investigators should notify their Proposal Coordinator as soon as possible when planning proposals with subrecipients.
4. Safe and Inclusive Work Environments for Off-Campus or Off-Site Research
Faculty conducting NSF funded off-campus or off-site research will need to provide program participants with a university approved code of conduct and plan for nurturing a safe and inclusive off campus working environment.
SPA, ORCIS, and the office of NIU Ethics and Compliance are developing a plan to meet this requirement and to assist faculty with managing these expectations.
5. Responsible and Ethical Conduct of Research (RECR)
For proposals submitted on or after July 31, 2023, NSF will require that faculty and other senior personnel supported by NSF awards also receive training in the Responsible and Ethical Conduct of Research. This expands the previous NSF Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) training to include faculty and senior personnel.
SPA and ORCIS are reviewing this requirement and will share additional information, including what faculty can expect as part of NIU’s RCR program, prior to the July mandate.
6. Biosketch and Current and Pending Transition to SciENcv
For proposals submitted or due on or after October 23, 2023, NSF will mandate the use of ScienCV for the preparation of the biographical sketch and current and pending reports. In the interim, proposers may continue to prepare and submit these documents via use of SciENcv or the NSF fillable PDF forms. However, NSF encourages the community to use SciENcv prior to the October 2023 implementation.
SPA anticipates offering training in the use of SciENcv prior to the October mandate.
