Proposal Oversight Panel

1. Charge

   Assume responsibility for completing any missing third reviews of the regular Proposal Review Panels. Review proposals with large rating discrepancies and resolve disputes related to proposal rating appeals.

   Missing Third Reviews

   The Proposal Oversight Panel (POP) will complete any missing third reviews of the regular Proposal Review Panel process. The POP may perform the third review themselves, delegate to another reviewer, or if the two existing scores are close, choose to accept the two reviews as adequate.

   Review of Discrepant Proposal Ratings

   The POP reviews the proposal ratings of new proposals in which there is a discrepancy of greater than 1.5 points between the lowest and highest rating.

   The POP panel members review the comments and ratings and decide whether the reviewer's rating should remain or if the reviewer's comments should be removed and the PI's proposal rating be re-averaged.

   Appeal of a Proposal Rating

   The rating received on a proposal may be appealed in cases where a complete description of the proposed experiment was provided, but the reviewer's comments make it evident that the proposed project was not correctly understood or was given a low rating inappropriately. The appeal will be reviewed by the Proposal Oversight Panel, and a final decision of the rating will be made.

   The PI must submit an appeal prior to the POP meeting, which is scheduled approximately 5 weeks after the submission deadline. Please contact nslspass@bnl.gov for further information on the appeal process and/or to submit an appeal.

2. Meeting Frequency

   Dates are arranged by the User Administration Office, approximately 1 week prior to the allocation panel meeting for each cycle, usually the first week of March, July and November.