| (a) Communication regarding the substance of a pending
Grant Application between the Grant Applicant and an Oversight Committee
Member, a Program Integration Committee Member, or a Scientific Research
and Prevention Programs Committee Member is prohibited.
(b) The prohibition on communication begins on the
first day that Grant Applications for the Grant Mechanism are accepted
by the Institute and extends until the Grant Applicant receives notice
regarding a final decision on the Grant Application.
(1) The prohibition on communication does not apply
to the time period when pre-applications or letters of interest are
accepted.
(2) In special circumstances, an Oversight Committee
Member or a Program Integration Committee Member may respond to a
question or request for more information from a Grant Applicant so
long as the response is made available to all Grant Applicants.
(3) The prohibition does not apply to a Scientific
Research and Prevention Programs Committee Member who is assigned
by the Product Development Review Council chairperson to participate
in the business operations and management due diligence review and
intellectual property review as described in Chapter 703 of this title
(relating to Grants for Cancer Prevention and Research). A Scientific
Research and Prevention Programs Committee Member, on behalf of the
Product Development Review Council, may participate in the due diligence
review process and ask clarifying questions of a Grant Applicant to
gain substantive knowledge, which the Product Development Review Council
will use in the review of the Grant Application.
(A) Each Grant Application recommended to the due diligence
stage of review will be subject to the same review and participation
by a Scientific Research and Prevention Programs Committee Member
as described in paragraph (3) of this subsection.
(B) The Institute will maintain documentation of the
Scientific Research and Prevention Programs Committee Members assigned
to participate in due diligence review.
(c) Intentional, serious, or frequent violations of
this rule may result in the disqualification of the Grant Applicant
from further consideration for a Grant Award.
(d) This rule is not intended to prohibit open dialogue
between the public and the Chief Executive Officer, a Program Integration
Committee Member or a member of the Oversight Committee regarding
the general status or nature of pending Grant Applications.
(e) The Chief Executive Officer may grant a waiver
from the general prohibition on communication upon finding that the
waiver is in the interest of promoting the objectives of the Institute
and is not intended to give one or more Grant Applicants an unfair
advantage. The waiver shall be provided to the Oversight Committee
in writing at the time it is granted and state the reasons for the
granting the waiver. The waiver shall be included as part of the public
information supporting the Chief Executive Officer's affidavit(s)
for Grant Award recommendations in the Grant Review Cycle(s) corresponding
to the waiver.
(f) A Program Integration Committee Member shall not
communicate individually with one or more Oversight Committee Members
about a Grant Award recommendation for a Grant Application in a pending
Grant Review Cycle until such time that the Program Integration Committee
has submitted the list of Grant Award Recommendations to the Oversight
Committee and the Chief Executive Officer has submitted the written
affidavit required by Chapter 703, §703.7 of this title (relating
to Program Integration Committee Funding Recommendation). Nothing
herein shall prohibit the Chief Executive Officer or a Program Integration
Committee Member from responding to an individual Oversight Committee
Member's question or request for more information so long as the response
is made available to all Oversight Committee Members.
|
| Source Note: The provisions of this §702.19 adopted to be effective February 11, 2010, 35 TexReg 872; amended to be effective March 2, 2014, 39 TexReg 1385; amended to be effective December 7, 2016, 41 TexReg 9527; amended to be effective June 10, 2021, 46 TexReg 3522 |
