GRANT PROPOSAL GUIDE
Dear Colleague Letter

National Science Foundation
Office of Budget, Finance & Award Management
4201 Wilson Boulevard
Arlington, VA 22230

August 15, 1999

Dear Colleagues:

We have published an updated version of the NSF Grant Proposal Guide (GPG) (NSF 00-2) and Proposal Forms Kit (NSF 00-3) that is effective for proposals submitted on or after October 1, 1999. This document supersedes the prior version of the GPG (NSF 99-2) and the Proposal Forms Kit (NSF 99-3).

This revision incorporates the following significant changes:

• issuance of Important Notice No. 123, Working Toward A Paperless Proposal System, dated September 3,1998, <https://www.nsf.gov/cgi-bin/getpub?iin123>. In this Important Notice, the NSF Director described NSF's vision for the future in electronic business and outlined the schedule for implementation. As a reminder, effective October 1, 2000, all proposals will be required to be submitted to NSF via FastLane. Proposers however, must check the FastLane Web site prior to proposal preparation and submission to verify whether use of FastLane is required in preparation of all or part of a proposal;
• implementation of the National Science Board approved cost sharing policy;
• clarification of the importance of the second merit review criterion in the preparation and review of proposals submitted to NSF;
• revision of instructions on preparation of the biographical sketch; and

• clarification of instructions on submission of collaborative proposals to NSF.

Other sections have been revised, as appropriate, for clarity as well as to make the Guide consistent with current NSF policies, practices and procedures. A summary of significant changes is included on pages iii and iv of the GPG.

The GPG (including all forms) is available on the NSF Web site at: <https://www.nsf.gov/> in HTML, Microsoft Word, ASCII text, and Portable Document Format (PDF).

Please address any questions or comments about the GPG to the Division of Contracts, Policy & Oversight, Policy Office, on 703-306-1243 or by e-mail to <policy@nsf.gov>.

Joseph L. Kull
Chief Financial Officer