Once the evaluation team completes the application review process, the Award Negotiation Phase begins. The final award decisions rest solely in the hands of the DCEO Director / Designee with fiduciary responsibility and legal authority to enter binding agreements. An evaluation team reviews and makes award recommendations based on the programmatic and financial reviews of the applications. These recommendations are reviewed to ensure high-quality, fair, and unbiased decisions. The evaluation team may make a "conditional recommendation" of an application based on any programmatic, technical or budget concerns identified in the review process.