Discretionary Funding Opportunities: Prior Year Section 5309 Bus and Bus Facilities Program (Ladders of Opportunity Initiative) |
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Dorval Carter, Jr.
Federal Transit Administration
June 4, 2014
[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 107 (Wednesday, June 4, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32358-32362]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-12925]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Transit Administration
Discretionary Funding Opportunities: Prior Year Section 5309 Bus
and Bus Facilities Program (Ladders of Opportunity Initiative)
AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration (FTA), DOT.
ACTION: Notice of Funding Availability for FTA Bus and Bus Facilities
Program, Ladders of Opportunity Initiative: Solicitation of Project
Proposals.
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SUMMARY: The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announces the
availability of prior year Section 5309 Bus and Bus Facilities Program
discretionary funds for the Ladders of Opportunity Initiative in Fiscal
Year (FY) 2014.
FTA will make available approximately $100 million from recoveries
from the Section 5309 Bus and Bus Facilities Program authorized by the
Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient, Transportation Equity Act: A
Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU), Public Law 109-59 and prior
authorizations. Additional recoveries or other unallocated program
funding may result in additional funding for proposals submitted under
this notice.
This notice solicits proposals to compete for funding under the
aforementioned program and initiatives, and includes the priorities
established by FTA for these discretionary funds, the criteria FTA will
use to identify meritorious projects for funding, and the description
of how to apply for funding under these discretionary programs. This
announcement is available on the FTA Web site at: http://www.fta.dot.gov. A synopsis of this funding opportunity will be posted
in the FIND module of the government-wide electronic grants Web site at
http://www.GRANTS.GOV. FTA will announce final selections on the FTA
Web site and may also announce selections in the Federal Register.
DATES: Complete proposals are due by 11:59 p.m. EDT on August 4, 2014;
all proposals must be submitted electronically through the GRANTS.GOV
APPLY function. Any agency intending to apply should initiate the
process of registering on the GRANTS.GOV site immediately to ensure
completion of registration before the submission deadline. Instructions
for applying can be found on FTA's Web site at http:/www.fta.dot.govbus
and http:/fta.dot.govcleanfuels and in the ``FIND'' module of
GRANTS.GOV.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Contact the appropriate FTA Regional
Office found at http:/www.fta.dot.gov for proposal-specific information
and issues. For program-specific questions about applying for the
programs outlined in this notice, please contact Sam Snead, Federal
Transit Administration, phone: (202) 366-1089, fax: (202) 366-3475, or
email, Samuel.Snead@dot.gov . A TDD is available at 1-800-877-8339
(TDDFIRS).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Table Of Contents
I. FTA Discretionary Program Overview
A. Authority
B. Policy Priorities
II. Discretionary Program Information
A. Program Description and Purpose
B. Eligibility Information
C. Evaluation Criteria, Review, and Selection
III. Proposal and Submission Information for All Programs and
Initiatives
IV. Award Administration
V. Agency Contacts and Technical Assistance
I. FTA Discretionary Program Overview
A. Authority
Bus and Bus Facilities Program
Section 5309(b) of Title 49, United States Code, as amended by
Section 3011 of SAFETEA-LU, authorized FTA's Bus and Bus Facilities
program as follows: ``The Secretary may make grants under this section
to assist State and local governmental authorities in financing . . .
capital projects to replace, rehabilitate, and purchase buses and
related equipment and to construct bus-related facilities, including
programs of bus and bus-related projects for assistance to
subrecipients that are public agencies, private companies engaged in
public transportation, or private non-profit organizations.''
While this program was not continued under the Moving Ahead for
Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21), funds are still available
under this authority as a result of lapses in allocations or
deobligations of funds originally made available prior to enactment of
MAP-21.
B. Policy Priorities
Public transportation supports the development of communities,
providing effective and reliable transportation options that increase
access to jobs, recreation, health and social services, entertainment,
educational opportunities, and other activities of daily life, while
also improving mobility within and among these communities. Through
various initiatives and legislative changes over the last fifteen
years, FTA has allowed and encouraged projects that help integrate
transit into a community through neighborhood improvements and
enhancements to transportation facilities or services; make
improvements to areas adjacent to public transit facilities that may
facilitate mobility needs of transit users; or support other
infrastructure investments that enhance the use of transit and other
transportation options for the community.
This funding opportunity is a Ladders of Opportunity Initiative,
which is designed to invest in projects that improve the mobility of
Americans with transportation disadvantages and allow them a better
chance of climbing Ladders of Opportunity towards economic self-
determination. It focuses on serving groups for whom finding and
maintaining stable, uplifting employment has long been an intransigent
problem. The Ladders of Opportunity Initiative will invest in projects
that fulfill the following principles:
1. Enhance Access to Work
Improve access for Americans with transportation disadvantages
through reliable and timely access to employment centers, educational
and training opportunities, services and other basic needs of workers.
2. Provide More Transportation Choices
Develop safe, reliable, and economical transportation choices to
decrease household transportation costs, reduce our nation's dependence
on foreign oil, improve air quality, reduce greenhouse gas emissions
and promote public health.
3. Support Existing Communities
Target Federal funding toward existing communities to increase
community revitalization, improve the efficiency of public works
investments, and safeguard rural communities.
4. Support Economic Opportunities
Improve economic opportunities by linking capital investments with
local workforce development.
5. Support Partnerships
The forming of strong federal and local partnerships to address the
mobility challenge. This includes bringing local workforce development,
training, education, veterans, transportation and planning
[[Page 32359]]
stakeholders together with representation of key customer groups
(people with low-incomes, people with disabilities, youths, veterans,
elderly populations, etc.) to formulate a plan to address building
Ladders of Opportunity in an area. Under MAP-21, Job Access projects
were no longer required to be included in the locally coordinated
public transit human services transportation plan (coordinated plan).
However, to the extent that local areas address access to economic
opportunity consistent with the Ladders of Opportunity policy
priorities in the coordinated planning process, eligible projects
derived from the coordinated planning effort could be considered for
funding in this program.
II. Discretionary Program Initiative
A. Program Description and Purpose
This Ladders of Opportunity Initiative makes funds available to
public transportation providers to finance capital projects to replace,
rehabilitate, and purchase buses and related equipment and to construct
bus-related facilities, including programs of bus and bus-related
projects for assistance to subrecipients that are public agencies,
private companies engaged in public transportation, or private non-
profit organizations. Projects may include costs incidental to the
acquisition of buses or to the construction of facilities, such as the
costs of related workforce development and training activities, and
project development.
B. Eligibility Information
1. Eligible Applicants
``Direct Recipients'' within the meaning of FTA's Section 5307
Urbanized Area Formula program, States, or Indian Tribes are eligible
to submit proposals for this initiative. Except for projects proposed
by Indian Tribes, proposals for funding eligible projects in rural
(nonurbanized) areas must be submitted as part of a consolidated State
proposal. States and Direct Recipients may also submit consolidated
proposals for projects in urbanized areas.
Proposals shall contain projects to be implemented by the Recipient
or its subrecipients. Eligible subrecipients include public agencies,
private non-profit organizations, and private providers engaged in
public transportation.
2. Eligible Expenses
Projects eligible for funding are capital projects such as:
purchase, replacement, or rehabilitation of buses and vans, bus related
equipment (including ITS, fare equipment, communication devices); and
replacement, construction, expansion or rehabilitation of bus-related
facilities (including administrative, maintenance, transfer, and
intermodal facilities), and costs incidental to these purposes. In
order to be eligible for funding, intermodal facilities must have
adjacent connectivity with bus service.
Funds made available under this initiative may not be used to fund
operating expenses, preventive maintenance, or other expanded capital
eligibility items such as security drills or the establishment of a
debt service reserve. However, costs incidental to the acquisition of
buses, or construction of a facility (such as workforce development
activities designed to ensure that current or future employees are
properly trained in the use of the equipment or facility or project
development related to deployment of the equipment or facility) may be
eligible. Funds also may not be used to reimburse projects that have
incurred previous expenses absent evidence that FTA issued a Letter of
No Prejudice (LONP) for the project before the costs were incurred.
Funds may not be used for projects where funds are already obligated in
a grant. There is no blanket pre-award authority for projects to be
funded under this announcement, although such authority will be granted
when selected projects are identified in a subsequent Federal Register
Notice.
3. Cost Sharing
Pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 5309(h)(1) under SAFETEA-LU, costs will be
shared at the following ratio: 80 percent Federal/20 percent local
contribution. FTA will not approve deferred local share requests under
this program. Pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 5323(i)(1), the Federal share may
exceed 80 percent for certain projects related to the Americans with
Disabilities Act (ADA) (42 U.S.C. 12101, et seq.); and the Clean Air
Act (CAA) (42 U.S.C. 7401, et seq.), as follows: (1) For vehicles
acquired for purposes of complying with the ADA or CAA the Federal
Share is 85 percent; (2) Federal share is 90 percent for the net
project cost of vehicle-related equipment or facilities attributable to
compliance with the ADA or CAA. The award recipient must itemize the
cost of specific, discrete, equipment or facility-related items being
purchased to be in compliance with the ADA or the CAA in order to
qualify for the Federal share of 90 percent of the cost for these
itemized elements.
A Federal share of 90 percent may also be applied to projects to
provide access for bicycles to public transportation facilities, to
provide shelters and parking facilities for bicycles in or around
public transportation facilities, or to install equipment for
transporting bicycles on public transportation vehicles. 49 USC 5319.
C. Evaluation Criteria, Review and Selection
1. Project Evaluation Criteria
FTA will evaluate projects based on the proposals submitted
according to the following criteria. Each proposer is encouraged to
demonstrate the responsiveness of a project to all of the selection
criteria with the most relevant information that the proposer can
provide, regardless of whether such information has been specifically
requested or identified in this notice. FTA will assess the extent to
which a project addresses the following criteria.
i. Support of Ladders of Opportunity Policy Priorities
FTA will evaluate each project to determine how it supports the
following five Ladders of Opportunity Priniciples:
Enhance access to work. FTA will evaluate whether the
project will improve access for Americans with transportation
disadvantages through reliable and timely access to employment centers,
educational opportunities, services and other basic needs of workers.
Provides More Transportation Choices. FTA will evaluate
whether the project will significantly enhance user mobility through
the creation of more convenient transportation options for travelers;
Support Existing Communities. FTA will evaluate whether
the project will increase community revitalization, improve the
efficiency of public works investments or safeguard rural communities.
Support Economic Opportunities. FTA will evaluate whether
the project improves economic opportunities by linking capital
investments with local workforce development.
Support partnerships. FTA will evaluate the extent the
applicant will form strong federal and local partnerships to address
the mobility challenge. This includes the extent the applicant has or
will bring local workforce development, training, education, veterans,
transportation and planning stakeholders together with representation
of key customer groups (people with low-incomes, people with
disabilities, youths, veterans, elderly populations, etc.) to formulate
a plan to address building Ladders of Opportunity in an area.
[[Page 32360]]
ii. Demonstration of Need
FTA will evaluate each project to determine its needs for
resources. In addition to the project-specific criteria below, this
will include evaluating the project's impact on service delivery and
whether the project represents a one-time or periodic need that cannot
reasonably be funded from FTA program formula allocations or State and/
or local resources.
a. For bus projects (replacement, rehabilitation or expansion):
The age of the asset to be replaced or rehabilitated by
the proposed project, relative to its useful life.
The degree to which the proposed project addresses a
demonstrated and verifiable backlog of deferred maintenance.
Consistency with the proposer's bus fleet management plan.
Condition and performance of the asset to be replaced by
the proposed project, as ascertained through field inspections or
otherwise, if available.
For expansion requests, the degree to which the proposed
project will have a significant impact on service delivery and evidence
of need for additional capacity to address Ladder of Opportunity Policy
priorities.
The project conforms to FTA's spare ratio guidelines.
b. For bus facility and equipment projects (replacement and/or
expansion):
The age of the asset to be rehabilitated or replaced
relative to its useful life.
The degree to which the proposed project addresses a
demonstrated and verifiable backlog of deferred maintenance.
The degree to which the proposed project will enable the
agency to improve the maintenance and condition of the agency's fleet
and/or other related transit assets.
For expansion requests, the degree to which the proposed
project addresses a current capacity constraint that is limiting the
ability of the agency to address the policy priorities of the Ladders
of Opportunity program that are listed above.
c. Planning and Local/Regional Prioritization: The extent to which
the proposed project is consistent with planning documents and local
priorities. This will involve assessing whether:
Project is consistent with the transit priorities
identified in the long range plan and/or contingency/illustrative
projects or local coordinated plan. Proposer should note if project
could not be included in the financially constrained Transportation
Improvement Program (TIP)/Statewide Transportation Improvement Program
(STIP) due to lack of funding (if selected, project must be in TIP and
STIP before grant award).
Local support is demonstrated by availability of local
match and letters of support for the project.
In an area with more than one transit operator, the
proposal demonstrates coordination with, and support of, other transit
operators, or other related projects within the proposer's Metropolitan
Planning Organization (MPO) or the geographic region within which the
proposed project will operate.
d. Project Readiness: The extent to which the project is ready to
implement. FTA will assess whether:
The project qualifies for a Categorical Exclusion (CE) or
the required environmental work has been initiated or completed for
construction projects requiring an Environmental Assessment (EA) or
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) under, among others, the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended.
Project implementation plans are complete, including
initial design of facilities projects.
The TIP and/or STIP can be amended (evidenced by MPO/State
endorsement).
Project funds can be obligated and the project implemented
quickly, if selected (within 12 months from time of award).
The applicant demonstrates the ability to carry out the
proposed project successfully.
If the project is multimodal in nature, the proposal
demonstrates coordination with and support of other transportation
modes and partners.
e. Technical, legal, and financial capacity to implement the
particular project proposed: FTA will evaluate whether:
The proposer has the technical capacity to administer the
project.
For fleet replacement, the acquisition is consistent with
the bus fleet management plan.
There are no outstanding legal, technical, or financial
issues with the grantee that would make this a high-risk project to
implement quickly.
The proposer has adequate financial systems in place and
has identified the source of local match if selected (no deferred local
share will be allowed).
The grantee is in fundable status for grant-making
purposes.
2. Review and Selection Process
In addition to other FTA staff that may review the proposals, a
technical evaluation committee will review proposals under the project
evaluation criteria. Members of the technical evaluation committee and
other involved FTA staff reserve the right to screen and rate the
applications it receives and to seek clarification from any applicant
about any statement in its application that FTA finds ambiguous and/or
request additional documentation to be considered during the evaluation
process to clarify information contained within the proposal.
After consideration of the findings of the technical evaluation
committee, the FTA Administrator will determine the final selection and
amount of funding for each project. Geographic diversity and the
applicant's receipt of other discretionary awards may be considered in
FTA's award decisions.
III. Proposal and Submission Information
A. Proposal Submission Process
Project proposals must be submitted electronically through http://www.GRANTS.GOV by the established due date. Mail and fax submissions
will not be accepted. A complete proposal submission will consist of at
least two files: (1) The SF 424 Mandatory form (downloaded from
GRANTS.GOV) and (2) the supplemental form found on the FTA Web site at
http://www.fta.gov. The supplemental form provides guidance and a
consistent format for proposers to respond to the criteria outlined in
this NOFA. Once completed, the supplemental form must be placed in the
attachments section of the SF 424 Mandatory form. Proposers must use
the correct supplemental form and attach it to their submission in
GRANTS.GOV to successfully complete the application process. A proposal
submission may contain additional supporting documentation as
attachments.
Within 24-48 hours after submitting an electronic application, the
applicant should receive three email messages from GRANTS.GOV: (1)
Confirmation of successful transmission to GRANTS.GOV, (2) confirmation
of successful validation by GRANTS.GOV and (3) confirmation of
successful validation by FTA. If confirmations of successful validation
are not received and a notice of failed validation or incomplete
materials is received, the applicant must address the reason for the
failed validation, as described in the notice, and resubmit before the
submission deadline. If making a resubmission for any reason, include
all original attachments regardless of which attachments were updated
and check
[[Page 32361]]
the box on the supplemental form indicating this is a resubmission.
Complete instructions on the application process can be found at
http://www.fta.gov. Important: FTA urges proposers to submit their
applications at least 72 hours prior to the due date to allow time to
receive the validation message and to correct any problems that may
have caused a rejection notification. Submissions after the stated
submission deadlines will not be accepted. GRANTS.GOV scheduled
maintenance and outage times are announced on the GRANTS.GOV Web site
http://www.GRANTS.GOV. Deadlines will not be extended due to scheduled
maintenance or outages.
B. Proposal Content
Proposers may submit one proposal for each project or one proposal
containing multiple projects. Proposers submitting multiple projects in
one proposal must be sure to clearly define each project by completing
a supplemental form for each project. Supplemental forms must be added
within the proposal by clicking the ``add project'' button in Section
II of the supplemental form.
Information such as proposer name, federal amount requested, local
match amount, description of areas served, etc. may be requested in
varying degrees of detail on both the SF 424 form and supplemental
form. All fields are required unless stated otherwise on the forms. Use
both the ``Check Package for Errors'' and the ``Validate Form''
validation buttons on both forms to check all required fields on the
forms. Ensure that the federal and local amounts specified are
consistent.
1. Applicant Information
This provides basic sponsor identifying information:
i. Applicant name and FTA recipient ID number.
ii. Applicant eligibility information,
iii. A general description of services provided by the agency
including ridership, fleet size, areas served, etc.
2. Project Information/Evaluation Criteria
At a minimum, every proposal must:
i. Submit an SF-424 with the correct supplemental form attached.
ii. Describe concisely, but completely, the project scope to be
funded. FTA may elect to fund only part of some project proposals. If
applicable, the scope should be declared as ``scalable'' with specific
components of independent utility clearly identified.
iii. Address each of the evaluation criteria separately,
demonstrating how the project responds to each criterion.
iv. Provide a line-item budget for the total project, with enough
detail to indicate the various key components of the project. As FTA
may elect to fund only part of some project proposals, the budget
should provide for the minimum amount necessary to fund specific
project components of independent utility.
v. Provide the Federal amount requested.
vi. Document the matching funds, including amount and source of the
match, demonstrating strong local or private sector financial
participation in the project.
vii. Provide support documentation, including financial statements,
bond-ratings, and documents supporting the commitment of non-federal
funding to the project, or a timeframe upon which those commitments
would be made.
viii. Provide a project time-line, including significant milestones
such as the date anticipated to issue a request for proposals for
vehicles, or contract for purchase of vehicle(s), and actual or
expected delivery date of vehicles, or notice of request for proposal
and notice to proceed for capital construction/rehabilitation projects.
C. Submission Dates and Times
Complete proposals for the Ladders of Opportunity Initiative must
be submitted electronically through the GRANTS.GOV Web site by 11:59
p.m. EDT on August 4, 2014. Proposers are encouraged to begin the
process of registration on the GRANTS.GOV site well in advance of the
submission deadline. Registration is a multi-step process, which may
take several weeks to complete before an application can be submitted.
Registered proposers may still be required to take steps to keep their
registration up to date before submissions can be made successfully:
(1) Registration in the Central Contractor Repository (CCR) is renewed
annually and (2) persons making submissions on behalf of the Authorized
Organization Representative (AOR) must be authorized in GRANTS.GOV by
the AOR to make submissions.
D. Award Information
Federal transit funds are available to Federally recognized tribes
and State or local governmental authorities as recipients and other
public transportation providers as subrecipients. There is no monetary
floor or upper limit for any single grant award; however, FTA intends
to fund as many meritorious projects as possible. In addition,
geographic diversity and the applicant's receipt of other discretionary
awards may be considered in FTA's award decisions. Consistent with 49
U.S.C. Section 5309(m)(8), as amended by SAFETEA-LU, the Secretary
shall consider the age and condition of buses, bus fleets, and bus-
related facilities and equipment of proposers in its award of Bus and
Bus Facility grants.
E. Funding Restrictions
Only proposals from eligible recipients for eligible activities
will be considered for funding. Due to funding limitations, proposers
that are selected for funding may receive less than the amount
originally requested.
IV. Award Administration
A. Award Notices
At the time the project selections are announced, FTA will extend
pre-award authority for the selected projects. There is no blanket pre-
award authority for these projects before announcement.
B. Administrative and National Policy Requirements
1. Grant Requirements
If selected, applicants will apply for a grant through TEAM and
adhere to the customary FTA grant requirements of the Section 5309 Bus
and Bus Facilities program, including those of FTA Circular 9300.1B,
Circular 5010.1D, and the labor protections of 49 U.S.C. Section
5333(b). All discretionary grants, regardless of award amount, will be
subject to the Congressional Notification and release process.
Technical assistance regarding these requirements is available from
each FTA regional office.
2. Planning
FTA encourages proposers to notify the appropriate State
Departments of Transportation and MPO in areas likely to be served by
the project funds made available under these initiatives and programs.
Selected projects must be incorporated into the long-range plans and
transportation improvement programs of States and metropolitan areas
before they are eligible for FTA funding.
3. Standard Assurances
The applicant assures that it will comply with all applicable
Federal statutes, regulations, executive orders, FTA circulars, and
other Federal administrative requirements in carrying out any project
supported by the FTA grant. The applicant acknowledges that it is under
a continuing obligation to
[[Page 32362]]
comply with the terms and conditions of the grant agreement issued for
its project with FTA. The applicant understands that Federal laws,
regulations, policies, and administrative practices might be modified
from time to time and may affect the implementation of the project. The
applicant agrees that the most recent Federal requirements will apply
to the project, unless FTA issues a written determination otherwise.
The applicant must submit the Certifications and Assurances before
receiving a grant if it does not have current certifications on file.
4. Reporting
Post-award reporting requirements include submission of Federal
Financial Reports and Milestone Reports in TEAM on a quarterly basis
for all projects. Documentation is required for payment.
V. Agency Contacts and Technical Assistance
Contact the appropriate FTA Regional Office at http://www.fta.dot.gov for proposal-specific information and issues. For
general program information, please use the contacts for each program
identified in the front of this notice. Please contact the Grants.gov
Helpdesk for assistance with electronic applications at http://
www.grants.gov You may also contact support@grants.gov or call toll
free (800) 518-4726.
For additional technical assistance, FTA will post answers to
commonly asked questions at http://ww.fta.gov. FTA also expects to
conduct webinars during the application period and will post this
information on its Web site.
Issued in Washington, DC, this 29th day of May, 2014.
Dorval Carter, Jr.,
General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2014-12925 Filed 6-3-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-57-P