NSF Researcher Disclosure Requirements

• 4/25/2024: Slides and Video - NSF Implementation of the Common Forms for the Biographical Sketch and Current and Pending (Other) Support, and SciENcv updates

• 3/12/2024: Slides and Video - NSF Proposal & Award Policy Updates - provides an overview of the changes and clarifications to the PAPPG that are effective for proposals submitted or due on or after May 20, 2024.

Individuals involved with MFTRPs are ineligible to participate as senior/key personnel in NSF-funded projects. If you are not certain whether or not one of your engagements is an MFTRP, please contact [email protected] for guidance.  More information is also available on the Research Security: Foreign Talent Recruitment Programs (FTRPs) and Malign FTRPs webpage.

New certification language on MFTRPs has been added to the Biographical Sketches and Current and Pending (Other) Support) to be submitted on or after Monday, May 20, 2024.

Per the PAPPG: “Pursuant to Section 10632 (42 U.S.C. § 19232), each individual identified as senior/key person must certify prior to proposal submission that they are not a party to a malign foreign talent recruitment program and annually thereafter for the duration of the award.

False representations regarding either of the above certifications in (i) and (ii), may be subject to prosecution and liability pursuant to, but not limited to, 18 U.S.C. §§.287, 1001, 1031 and 31 U.S.C. §§ 3729-3733 and 3802.”

Certifications will be required annually.

• "Have I Included...?" - The NSF Current & Pending Support Questionnaire, revised for NSF PAPPG 24-1

• The Rascal Other Support Tool -  a starting point to assist researchers in identifying current and pending sponsored projects required to be disclosed in Other Support/Current and Pending Support forms for federal agencies. Researchers can download an Excel report to send to administrators assisting with C&P Support. The Other Support Tool contains only proposals from and awards to Columbia.  It does not include other information required in C&P Support, such as in-kind contributions. The researcher is responsible for including all required information.

• Research Security and Other Updates, March 2024 (handouts)

NSF’s Current and Pending Support Instructions, PAPPG 24-1, Chapter II, D.2.h(ii)

Also see NSF’s Pre-award and Post-award Disclosures Table, effective 5/20/2024, to determine if certain activities should be disclosed in Current and Pending Support.

• Senior/key personnel are required to disclose contracts associated with participation in programs sponsored by foreign governments, instrumentalities, or entities, including foreign government-sponsored talent recruitment programs.
• This includes direct or indirect support that is funded through an intermediary.

• NSF has removed the page limitation for biographical sketches.

• Depending on the nature of the engagement, some contracts may need to be disclosed in the biosketch, some in Current & Pending (Other) Support.

• Senior/key personnel are required to disclose contracts associated with participation in programs sponsored by foreign governments, instrumentalities, or entities, including foreign government-sponsored talent recruitment programs. This include direct or indirect support that is funded through an intermediary.  

• Appointments and Positions, per PAPPG 24-1, “Provide a list, in reverse chronological order by start date, of all the senior/key person's academic, professional, or institutional appointments and positions, beginning with the current appointment (including the associated organization and location). Appointments and positions include any titled academic, professional, or institutional position whether or not remuneration is received, and whether full-time, part-time, or voluntary (including adjunct, visiting, or honorary). Senior/key personnel must only identify all domestic and foreign professional appointments and positions outside of the primary organization for a period of up to three years from the date the proposer submits the proposal to NSF for funding.”

• Synergistic Activities: Note that for proposals submitted or due on or after May 20, 2024, Synergistic Activities will no longer be included in biographical sketches. Instead, Synergistic Activities will be required as a separate attachment for each senior/key person, limited to one page with up to five distinct examples. Each senior/key person should have one page of Synergistic Activities, combined into one PDF document, uploaded in the Senior/Key Personnel Documents section of Research.gov. See PAPPG 24-1, Synergistic Activities, for more information.

A biographical sketch and current and pending (other) support information must be provided separately for each individual designated as a senior/key person through use of SciENcv (Science Experts Network Curriculum Vitae). SciENcv will produce an NSF-compliant PDF version of the biographical sketch and current and pending (other) support. Senior/key personnel must prepare, save, certify, and submit these documents as part of their proposal via Research.gov

Watch NSF’s 4/25/2024: Slides and Video - NSF Implementation of the Common Forms for the Biographical Sketch and Current and Pending (Other) Support for the latest information on SciENcv.

Columbia’s SciENcv webpage contains internal training materials developed in the fall of 2023. These materials are useful to assist with logging into SciENcv and assigning delegates. However, the webpage is under construction and will need to be updated to include updates for NSF’s implementation of the Common Forms.

Post-award Disclosure of Current Support and In-Kind Contribution Information:

Per PAPPG 24-1, “If an organization discovers that a PI or co-PI on an active NSF award failed to disclose current support or in-kind contribution information^[76] as part of the proposal submission process (see PAPPG Chapter II.D.2.h(ii)), the AOR must submit the information specified in the applicable general term and condition article entitled, “Post-award Disclosure of Current Support and In-kind Contribution Information” within 30 calendar days of the identification of the undisclosed current support or in-kind contribution through use of the Notification and Request Module in Research.gov.”

See your most recent Notice of Award (NoA) to identify the applicable terms and conditions that apply to your award. The following links contain the important post-award disclosure requirements, and are provided as reference, however, the NOA contains the terms specific to the NSF project. Always refer to the NOA.

See Article 40 of the Research Terms and Conditions/Agency Specific Requirements (specific to research grants): https://www.nsf.gov/bfa/dias/policy/fedrtc/agencyspecifics/nsf_0524.pdf

See Article 52 of the Cooperative Agreements - Financial & Administrative Terms and Conditions (specific to Cooperative Agreements) (CA-FATC): https://www.nsf.gov/bfa/dias/policy/cafatc/cafatc_0524.pdf

Per PAPPG 24-1, Chapter IX.C. Research Security: “PIs and co-PIs on active NSF awards must indicate if there has been a change in active other support since submission of the proposal, or the last reporting period in their annual and final project report. If there has been a change, the individual must submit a revised current and pending support document prepared in SciENcv as part of their project report.

NSF may consult with the PI or co-PI and the AOR, if necessary, and determine the impact of the new information on the NSF-funded award, and, where necessary, take appropriate action.”

On October 5, 2020, NSF added the following question to the Edit Participants screen:

• Has there been a change in the active other support of the PI/PD(s) since the last reporting period? If Principal Investigators (PIs)/Project Directors (PDs) and co-PIs/co-PDs select “Yes,” they will be required to upload their most up-to-date Current and Pending Support document in an NSF-approved format to notify NSF that active other support has changed since the award was made or since the most recent annual report.

11/01/2023 - On November 1, 2023, the U.S. Government released common disclosure forms for “Current and Pending (Other) Support Information” and “Biographical Sketch”.  The common disclosure forms are part of the Government’s effort to harmonize disclosure requirements across federal agencies. NSF will require senior and key personnel to use the common disclosure forms starting January, 2024. The common forms and related definitions are available on NSF’s website at https://www.nsf.gov/bfa/dias/policy/nstc_disclosure.jsp.”   

8/15/2023 - see new SciENcv webpage containing training materials

8/7/2023 - NSF SciENcv webinars - NSF will mandate the use of SciENcv for the preparation of the biographical sketch and Current and Pending (Other) Support information, effective with new proposals submitted or due on or after October 23, 2023. Register for a webinar to learn SciENcv.

9/29/2020 - NSF Update: Important Changes to the RPPRs, effective October 5, 2020

9/14/2020 - Enforcement of NSF-approved Biographical Sketch and Current and Pending Support Formats Begins on 10/5/2020

9/11/2020 - Webinar: Updates on NSF Current & Pending Support and Biographical Sketches

5/5/2020 - NSF updates their PDF-fillable C&P and Biosketch Forms

1/13/2023 - Slides from Town Hall #2: NSF PAPPG Changes, and NSF Disclosures Refresher

12/14/2023 - Slides from Town Hall #1: NSF PAPPG Changes

9/18/2020 -  NSF Update: Biographical Sketches and Current & Pending. Click here for slides and here to watch the recorded video.

5/6/2020 – LDEO Presentation: NSF Policy and Forms Changes - Biographical Sketches and Current & Pending

5/1/2020 – NSF Policy and Forms Changes - Biographical Sketches and Current & Pending