Proposal Specifications and Guidelines
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Specifications
Research topics of interest for this funding cycle:
- Eastern Oysters — oyster restoration and cultivation; impacts of oyster parasitism and diseases; oyster life history, growth rates, mortality, and larval transport; reef dynamics and impact of vertical relief on diversity and ecosystem services; human dimensions: impact of fishing on habitat quality of oyster reefs; socia-economics of the oyster fishery in Texas; alternative methods to assess reefs and influence sustainable harvest.
- Characterization of Habitats Necessary for SBCN Species — general habitat characterization, including but not exclusive to saltmarsh, tidal flats, seagrasses, and nearshore reefs; habitat restoration; habitat mapping
- Southern Flounder — telemetry, movement and location of spawning grounds; hatchery rearing and stock enhancement challenges; general biology, life history, mortality factors; data points that can influence/inform future management.
- Bluecrabs — larval and early life history dynamics; research to address declines, inform management actions
- Coastal/Estuarine Sharks — harvest and utilization of sharks by anglers; understanding the shore-based fishery; quantifying shark nursery habitat characteristics
- Atlantic Tarpon, Snook — life history studies of tarpon and snook; movement and distribution of tarpon and snook along the Texas coast; telemetry studies
Principal Investigators (PIs) should first communicate with the Regional and Program Directors of Coastal Fisheries in the above research topic before beginning their proposal writing process to ensure that their proposals will address the issues of interest to TPWD using methodologies of interest to the agency.
Eligibility
Proposals on these topics are encouraged from university personnel and other qualified researchers from public (governmental) and nonprofit organizations. Primary applicants may include U.S. city, county, state, or federal government agencies, public institutions of higher education or nonprofit organizations. Primary applicants must be in good standing with the Texas Comptroller and TPWD Accounting, regarding business and contracting practices. Partners (secondary applicants, cooperators or collaborators) may include other universities, private individuals, corporations, organizations or foundations. Partners are considered subcontractors of the primary applicant. Contracts will not be awarded to performing agencies (or principal investigators) who are delinquent or deficient in providing deliverables for current or past contracts or an approved final report from a previously awarded research contract.
Proposal Submission Deadline and Contact
The deadline for the submission of proposals is the close of business (4:30 p.m.) on March 16, 2025. Proposals received after this date and time will not be considered for selection. No exceptions will be made.
Applicants must submit an electronic copy (Microsoft Word/Excel files) of their proposal in the format described in the attachments above to TPWD by this deadline. Email proposals to diana.isabel@tpwd.texas.gov.
Questions regarding the content of this RFP for the Coastal Fisheries Division may be directed to diana.isabel@tpwd.texas.gov.
Approximate Timeline (Example)
January 2025 — RFP issued.
March 16, 2025 — Proposals due to TPWD by 5:00 PM CST. Copies of proposals that followed all submission instructions will be distributed for review.
March/April — SWG Review Committee meets to assess, rank and choose final proposals for award.
May — Deadline to alert applicants of funding decisions. Successful grant applicants will be notified, any needed revisions to their proposals will be requested of the PIs, and a TPWD lead biologist will be assigned to each project. The TPWD lead biologist, or Project Coordinator (PC), will work with TPWD's Federal Aid office to guide each proposal through the process of becoming a federal grant (i.e. creation of the grant's project statement using the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's online system, creation of required environmental compliance documentations, etc.). Each project is subject to final approval by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Once the federal award is received, TPWD will enter into a contractual agreement with the sub-recipient and ultimately issue a purchase order to fund the project.
Awardees (PIs) will have until June 1st to submit back to TPWD through their PC any changes to their proposals requested by the SWG Review Committee. Delays in return of these updates/edits will result in a delayed project starting date in the contract.
Due to the time requirements needed for full processing by both the TPWD and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, projects cannot have starting dates earlier than November 1st.
Appendix I: Project Narrative
Each proposal must follow this format and must include all sections below to be considered.
A. Proposal Title
Should be clear, concise, and 12 words or less.
B. Proposal Period (starting and ending dates of the proposed project)
In consideration of the time required for full processing by both TPWD and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, grants may have starting dates of either November 1, 2025, or January 1, 2026.
C. Principal Investigator(S) Name and Affiliation
Current contact information for the principal investigator (PI) and any co-investigator(s) (co-PIs): in priority order. Provide name, affiliation, work address, work telephone number, and email address. A TPWD Project Coordinator (PC) may be identified in this section. This person may serve as co-author on any publications resulting from this research, as long as mutual agreement and discretion is documented in writing. Provide documentation of PC's written approval to function as project coordinator and/or co-author as an attachment to this proposal. If no PC has been identified, write "No PC identified, please assign one" at the end of this section if you have not identified a PC for the project and TPWD will assign a PC for this project.
D. Description
Essentially an executive summary or abstract of the project; should not be more than a paragraph.
E. Geographic Location
Identify as explicitly as possible the bounds of the study area including amount and number of public and private properties (e.g., Site or ranch name or street address if you have written landowner permission to disclose; county; region, municipality, or township; other description or information related to location). Include GPS Coordinates in degrees, minutes, and seconds, if available. If administrative/office activities are proposed, provide the address(s) where the work will occur. Provide a map of all field location(s) as an attachment. If ground disturbing activities will be conducted, provide a 7.5-minute USGS topographic map with the specific location of these activities, and include photos of the site. Please provide the congressional district.
F. Need
Describe why the project is being proposed and provide an assessment of the need that will be met or the problem to be solved by the project. This section should contain the necessary background information, historical perspective, and other supporting information that will help the reader understand the importance of the project. It should cite appropriate references and must include at least one reference to pertinent sections of the State Wildlife Action Plan for Texas as updated in 2023.
G. Purpose
State the purpose of the project based upon the need. This is a short and broad statement that states the desired outcome of the proposed project in general terms. This section is usually one or two sentences.
H. Objective(s)
This is comprised of one or a few short, concise statements that list the things that will be accomplished through the project to address the need(s) listed above. The Objective section is typically one to three sentences. The objectives of the grant should be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time- and space-bounded. Please provide a rough deadline for each objective.
I. Approaches
This section describes the activities, methods, or procedures that will be used to accomplish the objective(s) of the project. The activities, methods and procedures should be described in a logical sequence of events and should describe the data that will be collected and provided in each Report. The level of detail should be commensurate with the nature and complexity of the project and the level of funding requested. Provide specific references to support the activities, methods or procedures proposed. Note: A detailed approach describes all field activities (e.g., habitat manipulation, ground disturbance, off-road vehicle use, etc.) and identifies the majority of information needed to document environmental compliance. This section must also clearly describe the data analysis methods to be used. Identify any assumptions made; the sampling or experimental units; minimum sample size; and any controls, treatments, and replication. Include experimental design and statistics to be used. Approaches must specifically correspond to each objective.
J. Expected Results or Benefits
This section should describe the anticipated or desired benefits or management implications of accomplishing the project objectives. It should explain the limits to which results are applicable over space and time. It should define what would constitute project success. In most cases, this includes the expected benefits to the public, species, and/or habitat. It should include a clear and complete description of the data that will be collected during the project and the data that will be provided in the Interim and Final Reports for the project. Anticipated publications may also be noted.
K. Useful Life
Any grant that involves a capital improvement that has a cost or value of $10,000 or more must include a statement of the anticipated useful life of that capital improvement. If this section is not applicable, provide a statement such as "No capital improvements will be made using grant funds."
A capital improvement, per 50 CFR 80.2, means:
- A structure that costs at least $10,000 to build; or
- The alteration, renovation, or repair of a structure if it increases the structure's useful life or its market value by at least $10,000.
L. Program Income
In one or two sentences, state whether the proposed project will generate any outside income because of the grant's activities. In nearly all cases we expect that program income will not be generated. If this section is not applicable, make a statement indicating as such.
M. Equipment
Federal regulation (2 CFR 200.33) identifies equipment as tangible personal property (including information technology systems) having a useful life of more than one year and a per-unit acquisition cost which equals or exceeds the lesser of the capitalization level established by the non-Federal entity for financial statement purposes, or $10,000. Any equipment that is anticipated to be purchased using federal grant funds must be identified in this section for pre-approval of the expenditure, along with a projection of the equipment's useful life and a source supporting the useful life determination. Any item purchased using federal funds, which meets the federal definition of equipment, shall become the property of TPWD for tracking and auditing purposes. If the PI does not plan to purchase any equipment meeting the above definition, then a simple statement such as “No equipment will be purchased using grant funds.” may be written in this Section.
N. Relationship with Other Grants
Describe any relationship between this project and other work funded by Federal grants that is planned, anticipated or underway. Please note that this is not a criterion upon which the proposal will be evaluated. Whether or not related work is being funded under other federal grant programs will not affect whether a proposal is selected for funding. This is simply an information item that federal agencies require when preparing grant awards.
O. Timeline
Provide a brief outline or approximate timeline for the activities that will be carried out under the grant. Where applicable, please include project milestones or significant dates/deadlines in the timeline. Do not include reporting dates.
Example:
- January 1, 2026: Official project start date
- January 2026 - April 2026: hire and enroll MS student to complete the project, purchase supplies
- April - August 2026: perform fieldwork as per Approach
- September - December 2026: analyze data
- April - August 2027: perform fieldwork as per Approach
- September - December 2027: data analysis
- December 31, 2027: Official project end date
P. Environmental Compliance
If selected, PI will be required to provide compliance documents based on the proposed work. This will typically include an informal Section 7 to comply with the Endangered Species Act. Provide a statement if federally threatened or endangered species may be impacted by this project. For information regarding potential impacts on federally threatened and endangered species in your proposed project area, please refer to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Information, Planning and Conservation System (IPaC) for the most current range maps and other information. The link can be found at: ecos.fws.gov/ipac.
If there will be ground disturbing activities as part of the project, then the applicant must comply with Section 106 of the National Historical Preservation Act. Applicants should also provide statements that explain whether or not the proposed grant activities are likely to affect water quality or wetlands (Clean Water Act), air quality (Clean Air Act).
Q. Literature Cited
A list of the citations and relevant, recent literature used to develop the proposal.
R. Biographical Sketch
A brief biographical sketch must be prepared for each Principal Investigator and Co-Investigator. Each biographical sketch is limited to one page for each individual. The biographical sketch is not intended to be a full Curriculum Vitae or Resume; it only needs to provide an overview of his or her educational background, relevant experience, and relevant publications. It may also include any relevant professional affiliations and collaborating entities (e.g. museums, biological field stations, research labs). This information does not count against the ten-page proposal maximum size limit.
S. Checklist
Please include the follow documents/information to ensure a complete RFP application package. These items will not count against the ten-page proposal maximum size limit.
- Are all sections listed in the project narrative guidelines (items A through S) included?
Yes
No - Does the budget format follow the state fiscal year (Sept 1 through Aug 31) and have you had your grants or financial office review and sign off on the budget? Is the federal reimbursement request of your total project cost 65.00% or less?
Yes
No - Please list the name, mailing address, phone number, and e-mail address of the likely point of contact for this project in your grants or financial office (the person with whom we would coordinate on the development of the Contractual Agreement and grant purchase order).
Name:
Mailing Address:
E-mail:
Phone: - If the project budget includes the use of an indirect cost rate (F&A), please provide a copy of (or a link to) your current Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (NICRA). Note that, if selected, it is up to the sub-recipient to submit their entity's updated NICRA to TPWD as they are approved on an annual basis for the duration of the contract. Include the SAM Unique Entity ID (UEI), Employer Identification Number (EIN), and Texas Identification Number (TIN) for your organization (your grants or financial office should have these):
SAM UEI:
EIN:
TIN: - Do you anticipate that any soil-disturbing activities will be required as a part of this project? If so, this may trigger the need for TPWD and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to consider the potential impact to cultural resources under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act or potential Tribal Consultation.
Yes
No - Is the PWD 0153a Landowner Permission for Wildlife Research form attached?
Yes
This work will not take place on private lands - In order for TPWD to complete the required risk assessment of your entity if selected as a sub-recipient, please provide information regarding the following:
- Does your organization have prior financial experience with similar awards (i.e., projects funded by Sport Fish Restoration, Wildlife Restoration, State Wildlife Grants, Endangered Species Section 6, or similar.) Were past awards from TPWD successfully completed? Significant financial problems or concerns?
- Do you have prior programmatic experience with similar awards (i.e., projects funded by Sport Fish Restoration, Wildlife Restoration, State Wildlife Grants, Endangered Species Section 6, or similar.) Were past awards from TPWD successfully completed? Significant performance problems or concerns?
- Does your organization have substantially changed systems, i.e. new, programmatic personnel, new fiscal personnel, or a new financial management system?
- Is this project considered Research & Development? As per the Texas Comptroller, "Research and Development (R&D)" means all research activities (both basic and applied) and all development activities performed by a non-federal entity. "Research" is defined as a systematic study directed toward fuller scientific knowledge or understanding of the subject studied. The term also pertains to training individuals in research techniques when these activities use the same facilities as other research and development activities and are not included in the instruction function. "Development" is the systematic use of knowledge and understanding gained from research directed toward the production of useful materials, devices, systems or methods — including design and development of prototypes and processes. (Uniform Guidance [2 CFR 200.1])
Yes
No
Appendix II: Budget
Example Budget Table and Budget Narrative
Note: WSFR verifies the cost share ratio to two decimals.
