Tire-Derived Product Business Assistance Program, FY 2006-07

Questions and Answers

Questions were due in writing to CIWMB by March 16, 2007. The question and answer period is now closed for this grant cycle. All questions and answers are posted on this page.

Question: My business was awarded a grant in the first cycle of the BAP [Business Assistance Program]. Are we eligible to apply and receive a grant in this second cycle?

Answer: Unfortunately, your business would not be eligible to receive a grant in the second cycle if it received a grant in the first cycle of the program. Awards for the first cycle were made on August 15, 2006 and awards for the second cycle are expected to be made at the May 15, 2007 Board meeting. The Program requires a minimum of 12 months between grant awards.

Question: We have concerns about the broad brush requirements for business analysis prior to financial assistance through the BAP awards. Is it possible to negotiate with the CIWMB an analysis that will satisfy diversion (volume) analysis and financial stability without the detailed exposure as outlined in the RFA, "Requests for Applicants," while focusing our assistance request on two specific areas, i.e., Technical and Marketing Assistance?

Our particular concern is not demonstrating financial strength visa vi' credit reports such as Dunn and Bradstreet or an aggregate P&L, but rather 1) the detailed breakdown of our financials, and 2) our overall business plan. It is our fear that even though the CIWMB has a "confidential" umbrella to cover this, we know that consultants, albeit not specifically, will use concepts learned in successful consulting practices in the future. It is this gray area that generates our most concern about "conflict of interests" by the consultants, and to a lesser degree CIWMB staff.

Answer: Legally, the CIWMB cannot negotiate different eligibility or application requirements for different stakeholders. There must be one standard for all applicants in order to ensure a “level playing field.” In addition, our stakeholders emphasized this point at the CIWMB Sustainability and Market Development Committee meetings in December 2006 and January 2007.

However, we appreciate your concern regarding the confidentiality of your business information and have taken several measures to provide the highest level of protection possible. These measures include: a strong confidentiality clause in the contract with the Contractor (R.W. Beck), which also binds any subcontractor; information is provided on a “need to know basis” to selective subcontractors; confidential information maintained at the CIWMB in a separate locked file with access limited to the Program Manager and Section Supervisor; and an optional confidentiality agreement between the business and any contractor that may have access to any part of the applicant’s confidential information or that may provide assistance services. A copy of the optional confidentiality agreement is available upon request. Further, the financial and business information disclosed to the contractors providing assistance services is limited to that information necessary for the contractors to perform the work assigned to them.

Question: We are headquartered in California and currently ship California crumb rubber to Mexico for production of a tire-derived product that we sell in California and the western states. Would the production of our product in Mexico make us not eligible for the Program?

Answer: Since you have an operational presence in California and use crumb rubber from California-generated waste tires, the fact that your product is manufactured in Mexico would not affect your eligibility for this cycle of the Tire-Derived Product Business Assistance Program.

FY 2006-07 Cycle Home | TDP Business Assistance Home | Tire Grants Home

Last updated: December 02, 2007