(a) This subpart applies to grants made under section 475 of the Act (42 U.S.C. 286b-6). Grants are awarded to medical libraries to enable them to serve as regional medical libraries for their geographic areas. The purpose of the program is to develop a national system of regional medical libraries, each of which would have sufficient facilities to supplement the services of other medical libraries in its region.

(b) The purpose of the program may also be supported by contracts. Since the primary purpose of these contracts is to assist regional libraries and is not for the purpose of acquiring supplies or services for use of the Federal Government, the provisions of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (48 CFR chapter 1) do not apply. Any contract awarded pursuant to section 475 of the Act shall be subject to the applicable provisions of this subpart.

Underfined terms have the same meaning as provided in the Act.

As used in this subpart:

Act means the Public Health Service Act, as amended (42 U.S.C. 201 et seq.).

Annual operating expenses means the average annual operating expenses for the actual years of operation or an estimated amount based on the expenses of libraries or institutions of similar size and function.

Board means the Board of Regents of the National Library of Medicine established by section 466 of the Act (42 U.S.C. 286a).

Geographic area means an area that forms an academically and professionally integrated region. Factors considered are location and extent of communication facilities and systems, presence and distribution of educational and medical and health facilities and programs and other activities which, in the Secretary's opinion, justify the establishment and operation of a regional medical library.

Modify and increase means the use of Federal funds or materials to supplement rather than supplant non-Federal funds available for library resources and services.

Project period—See § 59a.15(b).

Secretary means the Secretary of Health and Human Services and any other official of the Department of Health and Human Services to whom the authority involved is delegated.

Except as otherwise prohibited by law, any public or private nonprofit organization which is authorized and qualified to operate a medical library is eligible for a grant under this subpart.

In addition to any other pertinent information which the Secretary may require, the applicant shall submit a grant application containing a detailed description of a program to provide health-sciences informational services for the geographic area in which it is located. The description shall include:

(a) The need for services;

(b) The adequacy of the applicant's existing or proposed facilities and resources to attain the purposes stated in the application;

(c) The size and nature of the population to be served;

(d) The region to be served;

(e) Cooperative arrangements in effect, or proposed, with other qualified organizations; and

(f) The justification for the funds requested.

(a) General. The Secretary, with the advice of the Board in each case, shall award grants to those applicants whose arrangements and proposed services will, in the Secretary's judgment, have the greatest potential for fulfilling the need for a regional medical library. The Secretary, in determining the priority assigned an applicant, must consider:

(1) The adequacy of the applicant's library in terms of collections, personnel, equipment, and other facilities; and

(2) The size and nature of the population to be served in the applicant's region.

(b) Project period. (1) The notice of grant award specifies how long the Secretary intends to support the project without requiring the project to recompete for funds. This period, called the project period, will usually be for one to five years.

(2) Generally, the grant will initially be for one year and subsequent continuation awards will also be for one year at a time. A grantee must submit a separate application to have the support continued for each subsequent year. Decisions regarding continuation awards and the funding level of these awards will be made after consideration of such factors as the grantee's progress and management practices, and the availability of funds. In all cases, continuation awards require a determination by the Secretary that continued funding is in the best interest of the Federal Government.

(3) Neither the approval of any application nor the award of any grant commits or obligates the Federal Government in any way to make any additional, supplemental, continuation, or other award for any approved application or portion of an approved application.

Although the Secretary may approve exceptions which are consistent with program purposes, in addition to other terms, conditions, and assurances required by law, each grantee must meet the following requirements:

(a) Use of funds. Any funds granted under this subpart shall be expended solely for the purpose for which the funds were granted in accordance with the approved application and budget, the regulations of this subpart, the terms and conditions of the award, and the applicable cost principles in 45 CFR part 75, subpart E.

(b) Library resources—(1) Provision of services. The grantee shall modify and increase its library resources to provide supportive services to other health-sciences informational activities.

(2) Access to and fees for services. The grantee shall provide free loan services to qualified users or, in lieu of loans, make available photoduplicated or facsimile copies of biomedical materials which qualified requesters may retain. Reasonable fees may be charged for copies or other services (other than free loan services) provided by a grantee under this subpart: Provided, That equal access to the health-information resources of the region or of the national network is assured. These fees shall be designed to recover expenses. The grantee's access policies shall determine the qualifications of individuals or organizations for access to the services provided under the grant, so long as those policies are consistent with the mandatory service undertakings of the program. The Secretary may review the grantee's access policies to assure compliance with this requirement.

Several other regulations apply to grants under this subpart. These include, but are not necessarily limited to: