Substantial Involvement. A cooperative agreement means a legal instrument of financial assistance between a Federal awarding agency and a recipient or a pass-through entity and any subrecipients. (See 2 CFR § 200. 1.) A cooperative agreement is distinguished from a grant in that it provides for substantial involvement of the Federal awarding agency in carrying out the activity contemplated by the Federal award. AMS will be substantially involved throughout the period of performance of the award. Substantial involvement may include, but is not limited to, the following: • USDA will maintain engagement to ensure that implementation maintains consistency across states and in alignment with RFSI program purpose while also being responsive to the specific needs of the producers in the state. This may include coordinating state partner meetings. • Sharing expertise and resources on local and regional food systems, market development, value chain coordination or other topics identified as useful to support state RFSI activities. • Providing specific direction or redirection of work during the period of performance, including reallocation of Infrastructure Grant funds or supply chain coordination funds to alternative projects or uses, as needed. • Developing and disseminating clear and consistent branding for this program. USDA will coordinate with states on all award announcements to ensure they are amplified at the federal level and provide opportunities for USDA officials to attend announcement events if feasible. States will also coordinate with USDA on events or ribbon-cuttings or other events to highlight success of Infrastructure Grant projects. • Collaborating with States on data collection methods and data analysis for performance reports.
Appears in 2 contracts
Sources: Cooperative Agreement, Cooperative Agreement