The following definitions apply to this subpart:

Advance payment means a payment made to a recipient before “outlays” are made by the recipient.

Affected means subject to an actual or potential health, economic or environmental threat. Examples of affected parties include people:

(1) Who live in areas near NPL facilities, whose health may be endangered by releases of hazardous substances at the facility; or

(2) Whose economic interests are threatened or harmed.

Affiliated means a relationship between persons or groups where one group, directly or indirectly, controls or has the power to control the other, or, a third group controls or has the power to control both. Factors indicating control include, but are not limited to:

(1) Interlocking management or ownership (e.g., centralized decisionmaking and control);

(2) Shared facilities and equipment; and

(3) Common use of employees.

Allocable cost means a cost which is attributable to a particular cost objective, such as a grant, project, service, or other activity, in accordance with the relative benefits received. A cost is allocable to a Government award if it is treated consistently with other costs incurred for the same purpose in like circumstances and if it:

(1) Is incurred specifically for the award;

(2) Benefits both the award and other work and can be distributed in reasonable proportion to the benefits received; or

(3) Is necessary to the overall operation of the organization, although a direct relationship to any particular cost objective cannot be shown.

Allowable cost means those project costs that are: eligible, reasonable, allocable to the project, and necessary to the operation of the organization or the performance of the award as provided in the appropriate Federal cost principles, in most cases 2 CFR part 200 Subpart E—Cost Principles, and approved by EPA in the assistance agreement.

Applicant means any group of people that files an application for a TAG.

Application means a completed formal written request for a TAG that you submit to a State or the EPA on EPA form SF-424, Application for Federal Assistance (Non-construction Programs).

Award document or grant agreement is the legal document that transfers money or anything of value to your group to accomplish the purpose of the TAG project. It specifies funding and project periods, EPA's and your group's budget share of “eligible costs,” a description of the work to be accomplished, and any additional terms and conditions that may apply to the grant.

Award Official means the EPA official who has the authority to sign grant agreements.

Budget means the financial plan for spending all Federal funds and your group's matching share funds (including in-kind contributions) for a TAG project that your group proposes and EPA approves.

Cash contribution means actual non-Federal dollars, or Federal dollars if expressly authorized by Federal statute, that your group spends for goods, services, or personal property (such as office supplies or professional services) used to satisfy the matching funds requirement.

Contract means a written agreement between your group and another party (other than a public agency) for services or supplies necessary to complete the TAG project. Contracts include contracts and subcontracts for personal and professional services or supplies necessary to complete the TAG project.

Contractor means any party (for example, a technical advisor) to whom your group awards a contract.

Cost analysis is the evaluation of each element of cost to determine whether it is reasonable, allocable, and allowable.

Eligible cost is a cost permitted by statute, program guidance or regulations.

EPA means the Environmental Protection Agency.

Explanation of Significant Differences (ESD) means the document issued by the agency leading a cleanup that describes to the public significant changes made to a Record of Decision after the ROD has been signed. The ESD must also summarize the information that led to the changes and affirm that the revised remedy complies with the “National Contingency Plan” (NCP) and the statutory requirements of CERCLA.

Federal facility means a facility that is owned or operated by a department, agency, or instrumentality of the United States.

Funding period (previously called a “budget period”) means the length of time specified in a grant agreement during which your group may spend Federal funds. A TAG project period may be comprised of several funding periods.

Grant agreement or award document is the legal document that transfers money or anything of value to your group to accomplish the purpose of the TAG project. It specifies funding and project periods, EPA's and your group's budget share of eligible costs, a description of the work to be accomplished, and any additional terms and conditions that may apply to the grant.

In-kind contribution means the value of a non-cash contribution used to meet your group's matching funds requirement in accordance with 40 CFR 30.23. An in-kind contribution may consist of charges for equipment or the value of goods and services necessary to the EPA-funded project.

Letter of intent (LOI) means a letter addressed to your EPA regional office which clearly states your group's intention to apply for a TAG. The letter tells EPA the name of your group, the Superfund site(s) for which your group intends to submit an application, and the name of a contact person in the group including a mailing address and telephone number.

Matching funds means the portion of allowable project cost contributed toward completing the TAG project using non-Federal funds or Federal funds if expressly authorized by Federal statutes. The match may include in-kind as well as cash contributions.

National Contingency Plan (NCP) means the federal government's blueprint for responding to both oil spills and hazardous substance releases. It lays out the country's national response capability and promotes overall coordination among the hierarchy of responders and contingency plans.

National Priorities List (NPL) means the Federal list of priority hazardous substance sites, nationwide. Sites on the NPL are eligible for long-term cleanup actions financed through the Superfund program.

Operable unit means a discrete action defined by EPA that comprises an incremental step toward completing site cleanup.

Operation and maintenance means the steps taken after site actions are complete to make certain that all actions are effective and working properly.

Outlay means a charge made to the project or program that is an allowable cost in terms of costs incurred or in-kind contributions used.

Potentially responsible party (PRP) means any individual(s) or company(ies) (such as owners, operators, transporters or generators) potentially responsible under sections 106 or 107 of CERCLA (42 U.S.C. 9606 or 42 U.S.C. 9607) for the contamination problems at a Superfund site.

Project manager means the person legally authorized to obligate your group to the terms and conditions of EPA's regulations and the grant agreement, and designated by your group to serve as its principal contact with EPA.

Project period means the period established in the TAG award document during which TAG money may be used. The project period may be comprised of more than one funding period.

Reasonable cost means a cost that, in its nature or amount, does not exceed that which would be incurred by a prudent person under the circumstances prevailing at the time the decision was made to incur the costs.

Recipient means any group that has been awarded a TAG.

Record of decision (ROD) means a public document that explains the cleanup method that will be used at a Superfund site; it is based on technical data gathered and analyses performed during the remedial investigation and feasibility study, as well as public comments and community concerns.

Remedial investigation/feasibility study (RI/FS) means the phase during which EPA conducts risk assessments and numerous studies into the nature and extent of the contamination on site, and analyzes alternative methods for cleaning up a site.

Response action means all activities undertaken by EPA, other Federal agencies, States, or PRPs to address the problems created by hazardous substances at an NPL site.

Start of response action means the point in time when funding is set-aside by either EPA, other Federal agencies, States, or PRPs to begin response activities at a site.

Suspend means an action by EPA that temporarily withdraws Federal sponsorship under an award, pending corrective action by the recipient or pending a decision to terminate the award by the Federal awarding agency. Suspension of an award is a separate action from suspension under Federal agency regulations implementing Executive Orders 12549 (3 CFR, 1986 Comp., p. 189) and 12689 (3 CFR, 1989 Comp., p. 235), Debarment and Suspension.