The following files are to be downloaded for use in completing the required information:

The following items are required elements of the full proposal. Each element should be prepared, proofed and saved. Please combine elements A - F into a PDF file, G into one PDF and H (if applicable) into a PDF file, in the order listed below:

1. Signed Title Page
2. Project Record Form 90-2
3. Budget Form 90-4
4. Budget Justification
5. Proposal Narrative Sections
6. Biographical Data Sheet(s)
7. Cost-sharing letter
8. University of Florida faculty only: a fully-completed and signed DSR-1 form (original and PDF)

SIGNED TITLE PAGE: Investigators and the responsible university research or sponsored programs office must signify endorsement of the proposed project and associated budget/cost sharing. Please submit the original signed page to the Florida Sea Grant office. After signatures are obtained, scan and save as a PDF.

PROJECT RECORD FORM (90-2): The project record form follows the title page and is not numbered. This form is very important in the review process. We suggest completing it as the final step in writing the proposal to concisely summarize what is stated in the text. Please follow instructions given below.

The Project Record Form is intended to present a concise description in non-technical language of the proposed project in a form useful to a variety of readers who do not require detailed information. The description must fit on one page. You will need to provide information for each of the following headings:

PROJECT TITLE: Project titles should be carefully constructed to give as much information as possible about the project in not more than two lines (about 16 words, preferably less). Consider always that there will be people who will judge the content of a program from scanning a list of titles. The title should be specific, descriptive of the activity, and clearly indicate subject and anticipated outcome.

DATES: (1) The revision date is the date you prepared the document; (2) initiation date is 10/1/2012; (3) completion date is 9/30/2014.

PRINCIPAL, CO-PRINCIPAL, ASSOCIATE INVESTIGATORS: Names of the Investigators (last name first, full first name and middle initial) whose efforts are significant to the success of the project.

AFFILIATION: The academic affiliation of investigators, e.g., University of Florida, Department of Biology.

OBJECTIVES: This section should state concisely what the investigator intends to do. Stated objectives should enable comparison later to project results. NOTE: Be specific and brief. State the overall project goal, and then the individual objectives.

METHODOLOGY: Describe the methods to be used, including the proposed spatial and temporal extent of any field sampling, the modeling approaches to be used, experimental design and statistics. Be specific, concise and limit this section to one paragraph.

RATIONALE: This section should make a concise statement of why the issue or opportunity is being addressed. The project need not promise to fully solve a problem, but it should be shown that it is a logical step towards a solution. Long, involved background statements should be avoided.

IMPACTS: Describe the potential benefits/impacts to management of the invasive species. This might include new processes, tools, policies, technologies or information for improved decision-making.

Instructions for Preparing Budget Pages: Please note – the cumulative budget page will summarize Year 1 and Year 2 automatically. Therefore, you should not need to enter any information on the cumulative budget page.

All expenditures listed in the budget must be in compliance with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) circular A-21 on cost accounting standards. OMB circular A-21 states that administrative and clerical salaries and other general office supplies will be charged as indirect costs. For more information on circular A-21 please contact the contracts and grants office of your institution. Any variation from OMB circular A-21 will be the sole responsibility of the grantee institution.

Please be informed that no budget justification information is to be put on the budget form 90-4. Each line item of your budget needs to be justified in the budget justification narrative that is prepared (See separate instructions, below in this section).

1. The Budget year line should have a number after the word year representing the year of the Budget, i.e. Budget Year 1, Budget Year 2, or Cumulative Budget.
2. The Grantee Institution line – Line 7 Column C - is for the name of your institution, e.g., University of Puerto Rico.
3. Principal Investigators line: Should contain the name of the primary principal investigator at the institution who is responsible for this project. If there is more than one investigator at the institution, you may list them as well. e.g., J.C. Porter/T.W. Day.
4. Duration/Months: The number of months this budget period comprises; e.g., 10/1/12 to 9/30/12 = 12 months, the number 12 will go into that space.
5. The Grant Project Number will be assigned by Florida Sea Grant. Leave this space blank.

Lines A1a through line A2h:

6. Column E: The Number of People involved with each line item. For line A2h you may type in your own description.
7. Column F: Cumulative man-months committed by all individuals identified in the line item.
8. Column G: Sea Grant Funds represents the amount of federal funding you are requesting from Sea Grant.
9. Column H: This is the amount of matching funds that your institution will provide. One dollar of matching will need to be provided for every two dollars of federal funding received. Any form of pass-through federal dollars cannot be used as matching funds. For example, if an agency in your state or commonwealth is providing matching funds, and those funds came from another federal source, they cannot be used for this purpose.
10. Each salary line items will need a complete justification on the Budget Justification page. (See instructions below.)
11. Line B: Fringe Benefits, represents the cumulative amount for all employees.
12. Line C: Each item must be separately identified and justified in the budget justification page of the grant.
13. Line D: Expendable Supplies and Equipment. You must break down the cost of your expendable supplies in the budget justification, by category.
14. Line E 1 +2: Travel. The cumulative costs for domestic and international travel will need to be shown separately. Make sure in your justification that you identify each trip that will take place and its cost separately. Identify the cost for each category of expenses for each trip (e.g. flights, hotel, mileage, etc.).
15. Line F: Publications. Make sure that the cumulative cost of this line has been justified in the budget justification page of the grant.
16. Lines G 1-9: Other Cost. Some of the major components of the other cost section have been identified for you. Make sure you justify each line item in the justification section of your proposal. Two lines have been left blank so you may write your own description. Misc. is not considered a valid description; if you use the caption Misc. make sure it is for a small amount and break down the cost of these items in your proposal budget justification section.
17. Line TDC: The total direct cost line is the sum of all the direct project costs identified within the Grant Budget Period.
18. Line MTDC: This is the Modified Total Direct Cost line. The amount that goes here is the amount of direct costs that will have University Indirect Costs (IDC) assessed.
19. Line IDC: Indirect Cost - Enter your IDC percent in the appropriate column and on its corresponding line. Multiply the MTDC line for each column by the IDC % that applies to each line in that column. Please note there is a line called "Other IDC" if you feel your IDC calculation does not fit the budget form enter the amount of IDC required for each column and explain it in the Budget Justification. The indirect cost will vary from institution to institution depending on what was negotiated between the federal government and your institution. The amount will not always be the same as the total direct cost line.

The proposal Budget Justification is the place in the proposal where the responsibilities of each PI co-investigator are identified. The Budget Justification should track directly with each line of the budget sheet, giving item-by-item justifications for expenses and cost sharing. Explain percentages of time for faculty and graduate students (e.g., "graduate student 1 - this employee will be a 1/3 time appointment and will perform the following duties…). Federal funds cannot be spent on student expenses for class work, and only can be spent on thesis-related activities while the research is occurring. For example, funds cannot support publication costs of manuscripts resulting from the student research, or any other costs that happen after the research is done.

All capital or permanent equipment must be listed separately along with the cost, a brief description, and the purpose of each item. Capital equipment and office or general equipment must be approved by the federal office before purchase. Construction funds and purchase or repair of vessels and vehicles are not eligible for Sea Grant funding, but prior approval of rental for vessels may be obtained from the agency. Rates per hour or trip and estimated number of hours needed should be given.

For travel, give the formula for deriving the proposed amount (e.g., number of miles X rate per mile to some destination so many times a year). Remember to include estimated airplane fare or mileage allowances rate, per diem, lodging and or food and incidental rates and number of days and personnel. This information is required for each trip, including location if possible.

Do not include costs for reprints or publication page charges. Manuscript, illustration preparation costs are allowable.

Consultants must be very well justified as essential to the project, not just convenient. The Federal office must also approve them in advance based upon this justification and a curriculum vitae supplied with the proposal. Rates and estimated number of hours must be stated. Biographical Data Sheets must also be included for consultants.

The Budget Justification also should include a description per line of each source of matching funds, particularly from user groups. Institutional matching funds should be distinguished from those obtained from participating users. Institutional matching funds are in-kind items such as faculty salaries and overhead, operating expenses on campus, etc., while extramural funds are so-called hard dollars, represented by actual dollars given to the project, labor supplied, etc. In the review process, extramural matching funds are an advantage as they demonstrate end-user commitment. Note: matching funds on the budget form should not exceed the 2 federal dollars to 1 non-federal dollar ratio.

1. PROJECT TITLE: Please make this succinct and explicitly reflect both the (1) scientific aim and (2) anticipated application and intent of the project. Capitalize the first letter of major words ONLY.
2. INTRODUCTION AND RATIONALE: This section needs to address both the scientific rationale for the project, and quantify from a practical standpoint that the issue is a high priority. Identify the specific priority from section B that you are responding to with the research proposal. Describe using quantitative information the issue, the magnitude of the situation or opportunity, and the relevance of the issue or problem to regional needs. Describe why this topic important and what makes the project innovative.
3. GOAL AND OBJECTIVES: In one sentence, concisely state the overall goal of the proposed project. Then, please number and list the objectives. Proposals must state objectives in a way that enables measurable comparison to expected project results.
4. RESEARCH DESIGN: Describe the overall project design. If a hypothesis is being tested, state the hypothesis and explain how it will be tested. Describe specific methodology and major aspects such as the spatial and temporal scale, controls, replication, sampling, surveys, selection of models, calibration, validation, etc. If the project involves developing new policies, tools, or technologies explain clearly how their effectiveness will be evaluated.
5. EXPECTED RESULTS, APPLICATIONS AND BENEFITS: In distinct sections within the text, please address the following: (a) describe the expected scientific results of the project; (b) explain how the results can be applied and/or implemented; and (c) explain how successful application of the project results can provide measurable benefits to management strategies for lionfish.
6. PARTICIPANTS AND CO-SPONSORS: Identify any industry, agency, or other participants. Describe their role (e.g., matching funds, vessel time, personnel, etc.). Proposals should explicitly identify extramural co-sponsors and clearly describe their commitment to funding and participation.
7. LINKS TO OTHER PROJECTS: How will this project coordinate with any other related research? Such projects may be local, regional or national. Please be specific in identifying and explaining these links.
8. LITERATURE CITED: Provide complete reference information, per your disciplinary reviewed literature format but always including title of article (e.g., author, date, title, journal, pages).

COST SHARING LETTER

DSR-1FORM: The DSR-1 form is a requirement for UF faculty.