1. (a) The Institute shall accept Grant Applications for Cancer Research and Cancer Prevention programs to be funded by the Cancer Prevention and Research Fund or the proceeds of general obligation bonds issued on behalf of the Institute in response to standard format Requests for Applications issued by the Institute.

2. (b) Each Request for Applications shall be publicly announced in the Texas Register and available through the Institute's Internet website. The Institute reserves the right to modify the format and content requirements for the Requests for Applications from time to time. Notice of modifications will be announced and available through the Institute's Internet website. The Request for Applications shall:

   1. (1) Include guidelines for the proposed projects and may be accompanied by instructions provided by the Institute.

   2. (2) State the criteria to be used during the Grant Review Process to evaluate the merit of the Grant Application, including guidance regarding the range of possible scores.

      1. (A) The specific criteria and scoring guidance shall be developed by the Chief Program Officer in consultation with the Review Council.
      2. (B) When the Institute will use a preliminary evaluation process as described in §703.6 of this chapter (relating to Grants Review Process) for the Grant Applications submitted pursuant to a particular Grant Mechanism, the Request for Applications shall state the criteria and Grant Application components to be included in the preliminary evaluation.

3. (c) Requests for Applications for Cancer Research and Cancer Prevention projects issued by the Institute may address, but are not limited to, the following areas:

   1. (1) Basic research;
   2. (2) Translational research, including proof of concept, preclinical, and Product Development activities;
   3. (3) Clinical research;
   4. (4) Population based research;
   5. (5) Training;
   6. (6) Recruitment to the state of researchers and clinicians with innovative Cancer Research approaches;
   7. (7) Infrastructure, including centers, core facilities, and shared instrumentation;
   8. (8) Implementation of the Texas Cancer Plan; and
   9. (9) Evidence based Cancer Prevention education, outreach, and training, and clinical programs and services.
4. (d) An applicant is eligible solely for the Grant Mechanism specified by the Request for Applications under which the Grant Application was submitted.
5. (e) The request for Grant Applications for Cancer Research projects shall seek information from Grant Applicants regarding whether the proposed project has Product Development prospects, including, but not limited to anticipated regulatory filings, commercial abstracts or business plans.
6. (f) Failure to comply with the material and substantive requirements set forth in the Request for Applications may serve as grounds for disqualification from further consideration of the Grant Application by the Institute. A Grant Application determined by the Institute to be incomplete or otherwise noncompliant with the terms or instructions set forth by the Request for Applications shall not be eligible for consideration of a Grant Award.

7. (g) Only those Grant Applications submitted via the designated electronic portal designated by the Institute by the deadline, if any, stated in the Request for Applications shall be eligible for consideration of a Grant Award.

   1. (1) Nothing herein shall prohibit the Institute from extending the submission deadline for one or more Grant Applications upon a showing of good cause.
   2. (2) The Institute shall document any deadline extension granted, including the reason for extending the deadline and will cause the documentation to be maintained as part of the Grant Review Process records.

8. (h) The Grant Applicant shall certify that it has not made and will not make a donation to the Institute or any foundation created to benefit the Institute.

   1. (1) Grant Applicants that make a donation to the Institute or any foundation created to benefit the Institute on or after June 14, 2013, are ineligible to be considered for a Grant Award.

   2. (2) For purposes of the required certification, the Grant Applicant includes the following individuals or the spouse or dependent child(ren) of the following individuals:

      1. (A) the Principal Investigator, Program Director, or Company Representative;
      2. (B) a Senior Member or Key Personnel listed on the Grant Application;
      3. (C) an officer or director of the Grant Applicant.
   3. (3) Notwithstanding the foregoing, one or more donations exceeding $500 by an employee of a Grant Applicant not described by paragraph (2) of this subsection shall be considered to be made on behalf of the Grant Applicant for purposes of the certification.
   4. (4) The certification shall be made at the time the Grant Application is submitted.
   5. (5) The Chief Compliance Officer shall compare the list of Grant Applicants to a current list of donors to the Institute and any foundation created to benefit the Institute.
   6. (6) To the extent that the Chief Compliance Officer has reason to believe that a Grant Applicant has made a donation to the Institute or any foundation created to benefit the Institute, the Chief Compliance Officer shall seek information from the Grant Applicant to resolve any issue. The Grant Application may continue in the Grant Review Process during the time the additional information is sought and under review by the Institute.

   7. (7) If the Chief Compliance Officer determines that the Grant Applicant has made a donation to the Institute or any foundation created to benefit the Institute, then the Institute shall take appropriate action. Appropriate action may entail:

      1. (A) Withdrawal of the Grant Application from further consideration;
      2. (B) Return of the donation, if the return of the donation is possible without impairing Institute operations.
   8. (8) If the donation is returned to the Applicant, then the Grant Application is eligible to be considered for a Grant Award.
9. (i) Grant Applicants shall identify by name all sources of funding, including a capitalization table that reflects private investors, if any, contributing to the project proposed for a Grant Award. This information shall include those individuals or entities that have an investment, stock or rights in the project. The Institute shall make the information provided by the Grant Applicant available to Scientific Research and Prevention Programs Committee members, Institute employees, independent contractors participating in the Grant Review Process, Program Integration Committee Members and Oversight Committee Members for purposes of identifying potential Conflicts of Interest prior to reviewing or taking action on the Grant Application. The information shall be maintained in the Institute's Grant Review Process records.
10. (j) A Grant Applicant shall indicate if the Grant Applicant is currently ineligible to receive Federal grant funds or if the Grant Applicant has had a grant terminated for cause within five years prior to the submission date of the Grant Application. For purposes of the provision, the term Grant Applicant includes the Senior Member and Key Personnel.

11. (k) The Institute may require each Grant Applicant for a Cancer Research Grant Award for Product Development to submit an application fee.

    1. (1) The Chief Executive Officer shall adopt a policy regarding the application fee amount.
    2. (2) The Institute shall use the application fee amounts to defray the Institute's costs associated with the Product Development review processes, including due diligence and intellectual property reviews, as specified in the Request for Application.

Source Note:The provisions of this §703.3 adopted to be effective December 21, 2009, 34 TexReg 9213; amended to be effective August 1, 2010, 35 TexReg 6656; amended to be effective March 2, 2014, 39 TexReg 1386.