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PA Bulletin, Doc. No. 17-1732

NOTICES

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Pennsylvania Malt and Brewed Beverage Industry Promotion Board; Grant Solicitation Announcement and Application Procedures

[47 Pa.B. 6496]
[Saturday, October 21, 2017]

 1. Introduction. The Pennsylvania Malt and Brewed Beverage Industry Promotion Board (Board) annually, or more frequently as the availability of fund permits, will solicit proposals for grants to conduct promotion, marketing and research projects to increase the quality, profitability, production and sale of malt and brewed beverages produced in this Commonwealth. The Board was established by section 446.1 of the Liquor Code (47 P.S. § 4-446.1). The Board makes recommendations for the awarding of grants by the Liquor Control Board from funds provided through the Liquor Code (47 P.S. §§ 1-101—10-1001). This notice establishes the procedures by which grant applications will be solicited and reviewed, and grants awarded.

 2. Grant Solicitation. The Board will be accepting grant applications for the purposes, in the form and according to the schedule set forth herein for a period of not less than 30 days beginning on the date of publication of this notice in the Pennsylvania Bulletin. Additional publication and dissemination of this notice shall be made as determined by the Board, and may include directly to State universities and State-supported universities in this Commonwealth, universities with colleges of agricultural science in this Commonwealth and individuals or entities who have requested notification from the Department of Agriculture or the Board of grant availability.

 3. Process Overview. The Board will employ the review process described as follows to select projects to recommend to the Liquor Control Board for the making of a grant. In the event of a recommendation to the Liquor Control Board to make and fund a grant, the decision as to whether to award a grant will be made by the Liquor Control Board. If the Liquor Control Board approves the grant recommendation, the terms and conditions of the grant will be governed by a grant agreement between the Liquor Control Board and the applicant, which shall be tendered to the applicant for execution by the Board on behalf of the Liquor Control Board, returnable in no more than 30 days.

 4. Application Deadlines. Interested applicants must deliver a complete project proposal and grant application to the Board by 4 p.m. on Thursday, November 30, 2017, if hand-delivered, or sent by United States Mail and postmarked on or before the same date. Applications should be addressed and delivered to the Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Market Development, ATTN: Agricultural Commodity Board Grant Program, 2301 North Cameron Street, Harrisburg, PA 17110-9408.

 a. Applicants are expected to participate by conference call to provide a brief presentation of 3 to 5 minutes of their proposal to the Board, and answer questions regarding the proposal, at the Board's next scheduled meeting on Friday, December 1, 2017, beginning at 10 a.m. Applicants shall call (717) 612-4733, PIN 243893, to participate. The location of the meeting will be in Room 309, Agriculture Building, 2301 North Cameron Street, Harrisburg, PA 17110-9408. In-person attendance of applicants is not required.

 5. Format of the Project Proposal and Grant Application. The project proposal and grant application shall be formatted as follows:

 a. Cover Page, titled Pennsylvania Malt and Brewed Beverage Industry Promotion Board—Project Proposal and Grant Application, providing: the title of the proposed project; the name and address of the applicant; the name, address, telephone number and e-mail address of the applicant's principal contact person for matters relating to the application; and the total maximum grant amount sought for the proposed project or program.

 b. Section 1, titled Linkage to Funding Priorities, addressing: how the project will support one of the funding priorities established by the Board which are listed in paragraph 12; the geographic area of this Commonwealth where impact will occur; and the intended impact created by the project and who will benefit.

 c. Section 2, titled Statement of Purpose, addressing: the purpose for which the grant funds would be utilized; how the project links, supports and benefits Pennsylvania beer; the specific details of the proposed project, with an emphasis on innovation, including what is new or different about this project that will enhance success; and the staffing and resources required for project success.

 d. Section 3, titled Methodology and Evaluation, addressing: the type of project (promotion, marketing, outreach, research, tech transfer, and the like); the methodology to be employed, including an evaluation component; the expected impact and outcomes; a qualitative or quantitative estimate of economic impacts (direct, indirect, induced); and the sectors of the industry that will receive this benefit.

 e. Section 4, titled Statement of Need, addressing: the need for the grant funds sought; any other partners or partner organizations that will be involved with the project; and any noncash resources that will be committed to the project and the sources thereof.

 f. Section 5, titled Budget, presenting a detailed budget for the proposed project or program, including any other matching funds and the value of any noncash resources that will be included in the project.

 g. Section 6, titled Industry Support, addressing the extent of support, participation and funding from this Commonwealth's beer industry, including associations or organizations, or both, that may represent the industry or government agencies with an interest in the project outcome; any letters of support should be attached.

 6. Scoring of Applications. The Board will evaluate each complete and timely-filed project proposal and grant application received in accordance with a 100-point scale as set forth in Addendum 1.

 7. Scores. Upon completion of evaluations, the Board will prepare a record identifying each complete and timely-filed project proposal and grant application received and the numerical score assigned to each. In the event of one or more recommendations to the Liquor Control Board to make and fund a grant, the Board will transmit to the Liquor Control Board the project proposal and grant application along with the score assigned to it by the Board and any other information deemed relevant by the Board or requested by the Liquor Control Board. Request will be made by the Board that the Liquor Control Board respond to all recommendations for grant approval within 30 days.

 8. Term of Grants. Applications should be submitted for projects beginning no later than June 30, 2018, and preferably beginning at a sooner date. Anticipated completion dates will be dictated by the project scope and parameters and may exceed 12 months from commencement if the project so warrants. The Board may recommend that the Liquor Control Board approve grant funding for multiyear projects or extensions of ongoing projects, if applicable, if the Board identifies that a multiyear term or a project extension advances the overall grant project's objectives. Requests for extensions of ongoing projects shall be made, evaluated and processed in accordance with all the requirements of this notice.

 9. Notice of Award. Applicants shall be notified by mail of the decision on their grant applications by the Board. Best efforts will be made to do so within 60 days of the application deadline.

 10. Grant Agreement. With the mailed grant award notice, the Board will provide applicants with a grant agreement for execution and return within 30 days. The Board will obtain the required signature on the grant agreements, including the Liquor Control Board, and any other required Commonwealth entities, and return a copy to the applicant. Unless otherwise stated in the executed grant agreement, no grant agreement is effective and work should not begin until all required signatures have been applied to the grant agreement. Among the terms of the grant agreement shall be a requirement that the grant recipient provide the Board full and complete access to all records relating to the performance of the project and submit information as the Board may require.

 11. Cost-Reimbursment Grant. Unless stated otherwise in the executed grant agreement, payment of all grant funds will occur on a reimbursement basis only and no funds will be included in any grant award for indirect costs.

 12. Funding Priorities. In accordance with paragraph 5.b., the Board has identified the following funding priorities, listed in no particular order. The name given to each priority area is not intended to limit the intended scope and creative thought applied by applicants in developing projects that serve the purposes articulated in this notice.

 a. Agriculture: Projects are sought that will lead to the expansion, through means including cultivation, value added manufacturing and research, of beer industry-related raw material produced or grown, or both, in this Commonwealth. Some examples of desired project scope include:

 • Research and development that will increase the production, quality or yield of raw agricultural commodities (hops, barley, and the like) produced in this Commonwealth and used by the Commonwealth's beer industry.

 • Research that will identify growing conditions for hop production and evaluate each of this Commonwealth's 67 counties on the criteria.

 • Outreach and support to encourage existing agricultural producers to consider hop production.

 • Matching funds for small Commonwealth based start-up businesses or ventures focused on agricultural related cultivation (hops and barley) or value-added manufacturing of beer related raw materials (malting).

 b. Tourism: Projects are sought from organizations interested in marketing and integrating this Commonwealth's beer industry into new or existing regional and Statewide tourism initiatives, such as:

 • Development of beer tourism and beer trails (using and expanding upon the ''Bourbon Trails'' model).

 • Regional integration of breweries and brewery visitation with existing attractions, destinations and the regional hospitality industry.

 c. D Retailer Outreach: Projects are sought that will assist D License holders in efforts to change existing business models and remain viable, competitive and profitable within the parameters of the Liquor Code, including providing consultation, training and business plan development to interested D retailers to assist them in transforming their business models based on recent changes to the Liquor Code. The proposer should illustrate the ability to:

 • Understand, interpret and transfer knowledge related to the Liquor Code.

 • Understand both the new opportunities as well as the threats presented to retailers as a result of recent changes to the Liquor Code.

 • Have working knowledge of the beer industry retail trade and practices, the constraints on the industry, SOPs, financial models, and the like.

 • Identify and document best practices within this Commonwealth's retail beer industry (D license holders) regarding layout and design (shelf space, lighting, signage), hours of operation and staff models, promotions and displays, value added merchandise and best practices in urban, suburban and rural markets.

 • In conjunction with existing industry stakeholders, like the Malt Beverage Distributors Association (MBDA), develop guidelines, standards and communicate best practices in a user friendly format, as well as offer training and outreach conferences in appropriate locations throughout this Commonwealth.

 • In conjunction with existing industry stakeholders like the MBDA, the project may include efforts to create special grants or business loans made available to retailers to implement new business models.

 d. Beer Industry Research: The Board seeks research and the development of quantitative data on the beer industry in this Commonwealth, such as:

 • Research that will identify and map the size and impacts of this Commonwealth's macro beer industry (production, wholesale and retail) identifying direct, indirect, induced impacts.

 • Research that will identify the upstream and downstream economic opportunities related to this Commonwealth's beer industry.

 • Research that can measure the economic impacts on this Commonwealth's beer industry of recent changes to the Liquor Code.

 • Research that will offer guidance on how the Liquor Code could be further amended to benefit this Commonwealth's beer industry and what existing regulation could be added or removed to improve the competitive advantages of this Commonwealth's beer industry.

 e. Technical Assistance, Support and Research and Development: Projects are sought that will advance best practices, technology transfer, research and development, workforce development and training in this Commonwealth's brewing industry. The Board is interested in funding projects that will: increase beer knowledge/science; advance best practices in brewing; provide education/training opportunities related to beer production, quality, packaging, marketing and sales; and promote innovation in the brewing and manufacturing processes. Examples could include:

 • Engagement of consultants, speakers and subject matter experts for industry related training, presentations or problem solving in conjunction with conferences, technical work groups and association members.

 • Research and development projects on relevant topics concerning brewing and manufacturing processes.

 • Customized training/education in areas related to: differing levels of brewery, wholesale and retail management; sales and marketing; brewery—wholesaler relationships; beer market best practices; and industry recognized certifications.

 f. Innovation: The Board will consider projects that do not fall into any of the other funding priorities but nevertheless offer unique approaches to supporting and promoting Pennsylvania beer. The Board believes that innovation is the driving force behind the growth and success of this Commonwealth's beer industry. This category of funding is designed for projects and initiatives that demonstrate new thinking, ideas and approaches to promoting Pennsylvania beer—and do not fit into any other category.

RUSSELL C. REDDING, 
Secretary

Addendum 1 to Grant Solicitation Announcement and Application Procedures

Section Title
Evaluation Criteria
Points
Feasibility • To what extent can the Purpose be accomplished with the funds requested?
• Is there enough non-cash capacity to fulfill the objectives of the project?
• Are the proposed outcomes and impacts in proportion to the grant request?
• Can the project be completed within the timeline established?
• Are the outcomes proposed realistic?
10
Linkages to PA's Beer Industry • Is there a compelling link to PA's Beer Industry?
• How quickly will the industry benefit from project outcomes?
10
Innovation • Does the proposal offer a ''new approach'' in supporting PA Beer?
• Will the project offer or create any new competitive advantages?
• Do the project outcomes offer new and unique benefits to the industry?
• What components of the project are sustainable once completed?
20
Expected Impacts & Outcomes • Will the project raise the visibility of PA Beer?
• Will the impacts and outcomes offer long-term benefits?
• Do they provide solutions to current industry challenges?
• How will the impacts and outcomes ultimately strengthen PA's beer industry?
• How much of the industry will benefit from the project?
20
Economic Benefits Generated • Does the project create jobs?
• Does the project save money for the industry?
• Will it strengthen the economic viability of the industry and how?
• Does the project support and promote intrastate and/or interstate tourism?
20
Methodology & Evaluation • Can the methodology produce the desired outcomes?
• Does the evaluation component measure the right outcomes?
• Can the methodology produce stated economic benefits and can the evaluation accurately measure so benefits?
10
Industry Support • Is there strong industry support for this project?
• Are there any matching funds or leveraged resources?
10
[Pa.B. Doc. No. 17-1732. Filed for public inspection October 20, 2017, 9:00 a.m.]



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