Payments are commonly authorized as follows: one-third at the time of award, one-third at project mid-point after award, and the remainder upon acceptance of the final report by NASA. The first two payments will be made 30 days after receipt of valid invoices. The final payment will be made 30 days after acceptance of the final report, the New Technology Report, and other deliverables as required by the contract. Electronic funds transfer will be employed and offerors will be required to submit account data if selected for contract negotiations.

5.5.1 Non-NASA Reviewers. In addition to Government personnel, NASA, at its discretion and in accordance with 1815.207-71 of the NASA FAR Supplement, may utilize qualified individuals from outside the Government in the proposal review process.Any decision to obtain an outside evaluation shall take into consideration requirements for the avoidance of organizational or personal conflicts of interest and the competitive relationship, if any, between the prospective contractor or subcontractor(s) and the prospective outside evaluator. Any such evaluation will be under agreement with the evaluator that the information (data) contained in the proposal will be used only for evaluation purposes and will not be further disclosed.

5.5.2 Non-NASA Access to Confidential Business Information. In the conduct of proposal processing and potential contract administration the Agency may find it necessary to provide access to proposals to other NASA contractor and subcontractor personnel.NASA will provide access to such data only under contracts that contain an appropriate Handling of Data clause that requires the contractors to fully protect the information from unauthorized use or disclosure.

Information contained in unsuccessful proposals will remain the property of the applicant. The Government may, however, retain copies of all proposals. Public release of information in any proposal submitted will be subject to existing statutory and regulatory requirements. If proprietary information is provided by an applicant in a proposal, which constitutes a trade secret, proprietary commercial or financial information, confidential personal information or data affecting the national security, it will be treated in confidence to the extent permitted by law. This information must be clearly marked by the applicant as confidential proprietary information. NASA will treat in confidence pages listed as proprietary in the following legend that appears on Cover Sheet (Form A) of the proposal:

"This data shall not be disclosed outside the Government and shall not be duplicated, used, or disclosed in whole or in part for any purpose other than evaluation of this proposal, provided that a funding agreement is awarded to the offeror as a result of or in connection with the submission of this data, the Government shall have the right to duplicate, use or disclose the data to the extent provided in the funding agreement and pursuant to applicable law. This restriction does not limit the Government's right to use information contained in the data if it is obtained from another source without restriction. The data subject to this restriction are contained in pages ____ of this proposal."

Note: Do not label the entire proposal proprietary. The Proposal Cover (Form A), the Proposal Summary (Form B), and the Optional Briefing Chart should not contain proprietary information.

Cost sharing occurs when a Contractor proposes to bear some of the burden of reasonable, allocable and allowable contract costs. Cost sharing is permitted, but not required for proposals under this Solicitation. Cost sharing is not an evaluation factor in consideration of your proposal. Cost sharing, if included, should be shown in the budget summary. No profit will be paid on the cost-sharing portion of the contract.

Both joint ventures and limited partnerships are permitted, provided the entity created qualifies as an SBC in accordance with the definition in Section 2.14. A statement of how the work load will be distributed, managed, and charged should be included in the proposal. A copy or comprehensive summary of the joint venture agreement or partnership agreement should be appended to the proposal. This will not count as part of the 25-page limit for the Phase 1 proposal.

Upon award of a contract, the contractor will be required to make certain legal commitments through acceptance of numerous clauses in the Phase 1 contract. The outline that follows illustrates the types of clauses that will be included. This is not a complete list of clauses to be included in Phase 1 contracts, nor does it contain specific wording of these clauses. Copies of complete provisions will be made available prior to contract negotiations.

5.13.1 Standards of Work. Work performed under the contract must conform to high professional standards.Analyses, equipment, and components for use by NASA will require special consideration to satisfy the stringent safety and reliability requirements imposed in aerospace applications.

5.13.2 Inspection. Work performed under the contract is subject to Government inspection and evaluation at all reasonable times.

5.13.3 Examination of Records. The Comptroller General (or a duly authorized representative) shall have the right to examine any directly pertinent records of the contractor involving transactions related to the contract.

5.13.4 Default. The Government may terminate the contract if the contractor fails to perform the contracted work.

5.13.5 Termination for Convenience. The contract may be terminated by the Government at any time if it deems termination to be in its best interest, in which case the contractor will be compensated for work performed and for reasonable termination costs.

5.13.6 Disputes. Any dispute concerning the contract that cannot be resolved by mutual agreement shall be decided by the Contracting Officer with right of appeal.

5.13.7 Contract Work Hours. The contractor may not require a non-exempt employee to work more than 40 hours in a work week unless the employee is paid for overtime.

5.13.8 Equal Opportunity. The contractor will not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, religion, age, sex, or national origin.

5.13.9 Affirmative Action for Veterans. The contractor will not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because he or she is a disabled veteran or veteran of the Vietnam era.

5.13.10 Affirmative Action for Handicapped. The contractor will not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because he or she is physically or mentally handicapped.

5.13.11 Officials Not to Benefit. No member of or delegate to Congress shall benefit from an SBIR or STTR contract.

5.13.12 Covenant Against Contingent Fees. No person or agency has been employed to solicit or to secure the contract upon an understanding for compensation except bona fide employees or commercial agencies maintained by the contractor for the purpose of securing business.

5.13.13 Gratuities. The contract may be terminated by the Government if any gratuities have been offered to any representative of the Government to secure the contract.

5.13.14 Patent Infringement. The contractor shall report to NASA each notice or claim of patent infringement based on the performance of the contract.

5.13.15 American-Made Equipment and Products. Equipment or products purchased under an SBIR or STTR contract must be American-made whenever possible.

5.13.16 Export Control Laws. The contractor shall comply with all U.S. export control laws and regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) and the Export Administration Regulations (EAR).Offerors are responsible for ensuring that all employees who will work on this contract are eligible under export control and International Traffic in Arms (ITAR) regulations. Any employee who is not a U.S. citizen or a permanent resident may be restricted from working on this contract if the technology is restricted under export control and ITAR regulations unless the prior approval of the Department of State or the Department of Commerce is obtained via a technical assistance agreement or an export license. Violations of these regulations can result in criminal or civil penalties.

In accordance with the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) Part 45, it is NASA's policy not to provide facilities (capital equipment, tooling, test and computer facilities, etc.) for the performance of work under SBIR/STTR contracts. An SBC will furnish its own facilities to perform the proposed work as an indirect cost to the contract. Special tooling required for a project may be allowed as a direct cost.

When an SBC cannot furnish its own facilities to perform required tasks, an SBC may propose to acquire the use of available non Government facilities. Rental or lease costs may be considered as direct costs as part of the total funding for the project. If unique requirements force an offeror to acquire facilities under a NASA contract, they will be purchased as Government Furnished Equipment (GFE) and will be titled to the Government.

An offeror may propose the use of unique or one-of-a-kind Government facilities if essential for the research.

If a proposed project or product demonstration requires the use of unique Government facilities or equipment that will be funded with SBIR dollars, the offeror must provide a) an explanation of why the SBIR/STTR research project requires the use of the Federal facility or personnel, including data that verifies the absence of non-Federal facilities or personnel capable of supporting the research effort, and b) a statement, signed by the appropriate Government official at the facility, verifying that it will be available for the required effort. The proposal should also include relevant information on the funding source(s) private, internal, or other Government. Failure to provide this explanation and the site manager's written authorization of use may invalidate any proposal selection. If the offeror proposes the use of SBIR/STTR funds for Government equipment or facilities, this explanation will be provided to SBA during the Agency waiver process.