A comprehensive administrative and technical review will be conducted to determine the merits of the proposals and their relevance to the topic areas of focus. All proposals will be evaluated using only the materials provided in each proposal. PHMSA will reject proposals that duplicate work already planned, completed, or validated under recent initiatives. All research topics require resource sharing. For research topics developing technology, the mandatory minimum cost share is 50 percent from non-Federal sources. For research topics developing knowledge, the mandatory minimum cost share is 20 percent from non-Federal sources. Firm letters of commitment for resource sharing should be provided with the proposals. Proposals that do not contain all letters of commitment will not be awarded. A Technical Advisory Panel (TAP) is required for all awarded projects. TAPs will be utilized to make technical recommendations to PHMSA about project execution. Project work scope and results must be tailored toward U.S. regulations and policy on pipeline safety.