'L' Terms

Legislative Mandates
Requirements outlined in the current Appropriations Act's statutory provisions that limit the use of funds on NIH grant, cooperative agreement, and contract awards.

See §4.2 of the NIH Grants Policy Statement for current appropriation mandates.

See Also: Federal Mandate
Letter Contract
A letter contract is a written preliminary contractual instrument that authorizes the contractor to begin immediately manufacturing supplies or performing services.

Quoted from §16.603-1 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation.

Letter of Intent LOI  
Some ICs request prospective applicants to submit letters of intent prior to the submission of a grant application. The letter usually includes the name, address and phone number of the PI, identifies other key personnel and participating institutions, and the RFA or PA identification. Although a letter of intent is not required, is not binding, and does not enter into the review of a subsequent application, the information that it contains allows institute staff to estimate the potential review workload and plan for the application.

Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Levels of Authority for Research Project Grant and Cooperative Agreement (RPG) Funding Actions
The National Cancer Institute (NCI) document, maintained by NCI's Office of Grants Administration (OGA), giving the level of approval authority required for different grant actions.
License Agreements
Legally binding agreement that gives certain rights to a licensee, e.g., patent rights or use of materials, such as in a Biological Material License (BML) or a Material Transfer Agreement (MTA).

For additional information, see the NCI Technology Transfer Center License Agreements webpage.

LikeThis
LikeThis is a new search tool to aid Principal Investigators in finding and learning about other research projects that have similar goals and objectives as their own. By entering specific scientific terms or accessing their own grant applications or grants and clicking on LikeThis, investigators will be provided a listing of similar funded projects and/or publications.

See the LikeThis Overview.

Quoted from the NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List.

Limitation (Budget)
A restriction on the amount, purpose, or period of availability of budget authority. While limitations are most often established through appropriations acts, they may also be established through authorization legislation. Limitations may be placed on the availability of funds for program levels, administrative expenses, direct loan obligations, loan guarantee commitments, or other purposes.

Quoted from the GAO's A Glossary of Terms Used in the Federal Budget Process.

Limited Competition Request for Application (RFA)
Limited competition may be appropriate when there are justifiable program priorities established and published, under an RFA, which have the effect of restricting competition to less than full and open competition.

A Notice will be published in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts to solicit applications for funding opportunities when the competition is limited.

Loan Repayment Programs LRP  
The NIH Loan Repayment Programs (LRPs) are a set of programs established by Congress and designed to recruit and retain highly qualified health professionals into biomedical or biobehavioral research careers. The escalating costs of advanced education and training in medicine and clinical specialties are forcing some scientists to abandon their research careers for higher-paying private industry or private practice careers.

The LRPs counteract that financial pressure by repaying up to $35,000 annually of a researcher's qualified educational debt in return for a commitment to engage in NIH mission-relevant research. Since tomorrow's medical breakthroughs will be made by investigators starting in their research careers today, the LRPs represent an important investment by NIH in the future of health discovery and the wellbeing of the Nation.

For additional information, visit the NIH Division of Loan Repayment webpage.

Locality Rate
Locality rate means a scheduled annual rate of pay plus an applicable locality payment. An employee's locality rate is computed under §531.604.

Quoted from 5 CFR §531.602.

Lodging
One of the elements that make up standard per diem rates for official travel.
See: Per Diem Allowance
Long Island Breast Cancer Study Project LIBCSP  
A past initiative, this was a multi-study effort to investigate whether environmental factors are responsible for breast cancer in Suffolk and Nassau counties (Long Island), NY, as well as in Schoharie County, NY, and Tolland County, CT.

For additional information, visit the Long Island Breast Cancer Study Project (Past Initiative) webpage.