Beyond the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) digital data management requirements, the following additional guidance is provided for data management plans (DMPs):

  • The principal investigator should determine which data should be the subject of the DMP and in the DMP indicate which data should be shared and/or preserved in accordance with the requirements.
  • In determining which data should be shared and preserved, researchers must consider the data needed to validate research findings as described in the requirements and are encouraged to consider the potential benefits of their data to their own fields of research, fields other than their own, and society at large.
  • DMPs should reflect relevant standards and community best practices for data and metadata and make use of community-accepted repositories whenever practicable.
  • Costs associated with the scope of work and resources articulated in a DMP may be included in the proposed research budget as permitted by the applicable cost principles.
  • To improve the discoverability of and attribution for datasets created and used in research, EERE encourages the citation of publicly available datasets within the reference section of publications and the identification of datasets with persistent identifiers such as digital object identifiers (DOIs). In most cases, EERE can provide DOIs free of charge for data resulting from DOE--funded research through the Office of Scientific and Technical Information Data ID Service.
  • View a list of suggested elements for a DMP.

Visit the EERE Project Management Center to access forms, review regulations, and manage EERE-funded projects.