"NIFA is back and open for business!" With this enthusiastic statement, NIFA Director Dr. J. Scott Angle announces the return of the USDA agency. "We thank you for your patience during the lapse in appropriations. It has not been easy for our grantees, but we are committed to resuming normal operations as soon as possible. Thank you also for your strong support for our employees. They are truly dedicated to you, and while we are operating under a three-week continuing resolution, we will work hard to get back to business as usual.
"First, we will prioritize items and start with the matters needing the most attention, including the processing of the backlog of awards and payments, rescheduling canceled peer review panels, processing no-cost extensions and other grant actions, responding to ASAP and other grant and program inquiries, and reopening requests for applications (RFAs) that were open during the lapse. The Enhancing Agricultural Opportunities for Military Veterans Competitive Grants and the Food and Agricultural Sciences National Needs Graduate and Postgraduate Fellowship (NNF) Grants Program RFAs will be reposted and extended for seven business days from the date of re-publication. The Biotechnology Risk Assessment Grants Program (BRAG) RFA deadline of February 20, 2019, will be extended seven additional business days."
Source: NIFA