In addition to the terms defined in § 1466.3, the following definitions will be applicable to this section:

EQIP eligible means any farming entity, land, and practice that meets the definitions of EQIP as defined in 7 CFR part 1466.

Grant agreement means a document describing a relationship between NRCS and a State or local government, or other recipient whenever the principal purpose of the relationship is the transfer of a thing of value to a recipient in order to accomplish a public purpose of support or stimulation authorized by Federal law and substantial Federal involvement is not anticipated.

Grant Review Board consists of representatives of NRCS staff as determined by the Chief.

Technical Peer Review Panel means a panel consisting of Federal and non-Federal technical advisors who possess expertise in a discipline or disciplines deemed important to provide a technical evaluation of project proposals submitted under the funding opportunity announcement.

Project means the activities as defined within the scope of the grant agreement or cooperative agreement.

Project director means the individual responsible for the technical direction and management of the project as designated in the application.

On-farm conservation research means an investigation conducted to answer a specified conservation-related question using a statistically valid design, while employing farm scale equipment on farm fields.

Purpose and scope. (1) The purpose of Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) is to stimulate the development and adoption of innovative conservation approaches and technologies while leveraging Federal investment in environmental enhancement and protection in conjunction with agricultural production. Notwithstanding any limitation of this part, NRCS will administer CIG in accordance with this section. Unless otherwise provided for in this section, grants under CIG are subject to the provisions of 2 CFR 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards.

Applications for CIG are accepted from the 50 States, District of Columbia, Caribbean Area (Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands of the United States), and Pacific Islands Area (Guam, American Samoa, and Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands).

Grants will be awarded using a two-tiered process. A nationwide grants competition will be announced in grants.gov or successor Federal grants portal. In addition, at the Chief's discretion, each State may implement a separate State-level component of CIG.

Applications for CIG should demonstrate the use of innovative approaches and technologies to leverage Federal investment in environmental enhancement and protection, in conjunction with agricultural production. CIG will fund projects that promote innovative on-the-ground conservation, including pilot projects and field demonstrations of promising approaches or technologies. CIG projects are expected to lead to the transfer of conservation technologies, management systems, and innovative approaches (such as market-based systems) into NRCS technical manuals and guides or to the private sector. Technologies and approaches eligible for funding in a project's geographic area through EQIP are not eligible for CIG funding except where the use of those technologies and approaches demonstrates clear innovation. The burden falls on the applicant to sufficiently describe the innovative features of the proposed technology or approach.

For the purposes of CIG, the proposed innovative project or activity must promote environmental protection or natural resources enhancement, and encompass development and pilot field testing, on-farm research and demonstration, evaluation, and/or implementation of:

Conservation adoption incentive systems, including market-based systems, or

Promising conservation technologies, practices, systems, procedures, or approaches.

Projects or activities under CIG must comply with all Federal, State, and local regulations throughout the duration of the project and:

Make use of proven technology or a technology that has been studied sufficiently to indicate a high probability for success,

Demonstrate, evaluate, or verify environmental (soil, water, air, plants, energy and animal) effectiveness, utility, affordability, and usability of conservation technology in the field,

Adapt conservation technologies, management, practices, systems, procedures, approaches, and incentive systems to improve performance, and encourage adoption,

Introduce conservation systems, approaches, and procedures from another geographic area or agricultural sector, or

Demonstrate transferability of knowledge.

CIG funding will be available for single-or multi-year projects. Funding for CIG will be announced in grants.gov or a Federal grant portal through an Announcement for Program Funding (APF). The Chief will determine the funding level for CIG on an annual basis. Funds for CIG are derived from funds made available for EQIP. The Chief may establish funding limits for individual grants.

Selected applicants may receive grants or cooperative agreements of up to 50 percent of the total project cost not to exceed the Federal project cap. Applicants must provide non-Federal funding equal to the amount of Federal funds requested. Non-Federal funds must be derived from cash and/or in-kind sources.

CIG is designed to provide financial assistance to grantees. Procurement of any technical assistance required to carry out a project is the responsibility of the grantee. Technical oversight for grant projects will be provided by a Federal technical representative who will be designated by NRCS.

CIG applications must describe the use of innovative approaches or technologies to address a natural resource conservation concern or concerns. The resource concerns for CIG will be identified by the Chief and may change each year. The resource concerns will be published in the APF.

To be eligible, CIG applicants must be an Indian Tribe, State or local unit of government, nongovernmental organization, or individual.

To be eligible, projects must involve landowners who meet the eligibility requirements of § 1466.6(b)(1) through (3). All agricultural producers receiving a direct or indirect payment through participation in a CIG project must meet those eligibility requirements.

Up to 10 percent of the total funds available for CIG may be set aside for applications from historically underserved producers or veteran farmers or ranchers, or a community-based organization comprised of or representing these entities. Funds not awarded from the set-aside pool will revert back into the general CIG funding pool.

The CIG APF will contain guidance on how to apply for the grants competition. CIG will be advertised through the NRCS Web site and grants.gov or other Federal grants portal. Grant applications will be available on the NRCS Web site or by contacting NRCS at the address provided in the APF. CIG grant applications will consist of standard cover sheet and budget forms, in addition to a narrative project description and required legal declarations and certifications.

Complete applications will be evaluated by a peer review panel based on the application evaluation criteria identified in the APF. Application evaluations will be forwarded to a Grant Review Board. The Grant Review Board will make recommendations for awards to the Chief, and the final selections will be made by the Chief. Grant or cooperative agreement awards will be made by the NRCS national office after selection of the grantees is made and after the grantee agrees to the terms and conditions of the NRCS Grant or cooperative agreement document.

NRCS has the option of implementing a State-level CIG component. A State program will follow the requirements of this section, except for those features described in this subsection.

Funding availability, application, and submission information for State competitions will be announced through public notices (grants.gov or a successor Federal grants portal and on the State NRCS Web site), separately from the national program. The State component will emphasize projects that cover limited geographic areas including individual farms, multi-county areas, or small watersheds.

The State Conservationist will determine the funding level for the state CIG competition, with individual grants not to exceed $75,000.

NRCS may choose to adhere to the CIG national resource concerns for a state or may select a subset of those concerns that more closely match the resource concerns of the State.

Allocation of rights to patents and inventions shall be in accordance with 7 CFR 3019.36. This regulation provides that small businesses normally may retain the principal worldwide patent rights to any invention developed with USDA support. In accordance with 7 CFR 3019.2, this provision will also apply to commercial organizations for the purposes of CIG. USDA receives a royalty-free license for Federal Government use, reserves the right to require the patentee to license others in certain circumstances, and requires that anyone exclusively licensed to sell the invention in the United States must normally manufacture it domestically.