Project types. The Sun Grant Program provides funds for two distinct project types. Subject to paragraph (b), of the funds provided by NIFA to the Centers and Subcenter, the required use of funds by each of the Centers and the Subcenter is as follows:

Regional competitive research, extension, and education grant programs. Seventy-five percent must be used for regional competitively awarded research, extension, and education subgrants to eligible entities (described in § 3430.1003(b)) to conduct, in a manner consistent with the purposes described in § 3430.1001, multi-institutional and integrated, multistate research, extension, and education programs on technology development and technology implementation. Regional competitive grants programs will target specific elements of the purposes described in § 3430.1001, implementing national priorities in the context of regional scale biogeographic and climatic conditions.

Requests for applications. The Centers and Subcenter must develop regional requests for applications (RFAs) utilizing guidance from regional advisory panels created and administered by the Centers and Subcenter for purposes of addressing region-specific issues, and which include representation from academia, the national laboratories, Federal and State agencies, the private sector, and public interest groups. Advisory panel members will have appropriate expertise and experience in the areas of biomass and bioenergy.

Peer review of proposals. Each region will announce RFAs and solicit proposals. These proposals must be peer reviewed by panels in a manner similar to the system of peer review required by section 103 of the Agricultural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998 (7 U.S.C. 7613), and may include representation from Federal and State laboratories, the national laboratories, and private and public interest groups, as appropriate. The Centers and Subcenter may use implementing regulations found in §§ 3430.31 through 3430.37 as a guideline for appropriate peer review standards. Additional guidance may be provided by NIFA. To ensure consistency across the regions, prior to announcing the regional RFAs that will be used to solicit proposals, the Centers and Subcenter must provide NIFA the RFAs for approval by the designated NIFA program contact, as identified in the NIFA program solicitation. The Centers and Subcenter shall award subgrants on the basis of merit, quality, and relevance to advancing the purposes of the Sun Grant Program.

Research, extension, and education activities conducted at the Centers and Subcenter. Except for funds available for administrative expenses as provided in § 3430.1005(b), the remainder of the funds must be used for multi-institutional and multistate research, extension, and education programs on technology development and multi-institutional and multistate integrated research, extension, and education programs on technology implementation, in a manner consistent with the purposes described in § 3430.1001.

Special provisions for the Western Center and Western Insular Pacific Subcenter. Funds provided by NIFA to the Western Insular Pacific Subcenter shall come from an allocation of a portion of the funds received by the Western Center, as directed by NIFA in the program solicitation, rather than directly from NIFA. For the Center, the phrase “funds provided by NIFA” in paragraph (a) of this section refers to those funds provided by NIFA for the Sun Grant Program that are not allocated to the Subcenter. For the Subcenter, the phrase “funds provided by NIFA” in paragraph (a) of this section refers to those funds that are allocated to the Subcenter.

Priorities. For the regional competitive grants program under paragraph (a)(1) of this section, the Centers and Subcenter shall use the plan approved by NIFA under § 3430.1007 in making subawards and shall give a higher priority to proposals that are consistent with the plan.