Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 179 / Monday, September 20, 2021 / Notices 52291 

receives before issuing a final General 

Conformity Determination. 

Issued in Washington, DC. 

Jamie P. Rennert, 

Director, Office of Infrastructure Investment, 

Federal Railroad Administration. 

[FR Doc. 2021–20192 Filed 9–17–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–06–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Transit Administration 

Fiscal Year 2021 Competitive Funding 

Opportunity; Grants for Buses and Bus 

Facilities Program 

AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration 

(FTA), Department of Transportation 

(DOT). 

ACTION: Notice of Funding Opportunity 

(NOFO). 

SUMMARY: The Federal Transit 

Administration (FTA) announces the 

opportunity to apply for approximately 

$409.59 million in fiscal year (FY) 2021 

funds under the Grants for Buses and 

Bus Facilities Program (Federal 

Assistance Listing #20.526). As required 

by Federal public transportation law 

and subject to funding availability, 

funds will be awarded competitively to 

assist in the financing of capital projects 

to replace, rehabilitate, purchase or 

lease buses and related equipment, and 

to rehabilitate, purchase, construct or 

lease bus-related facilities. 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 

administration expenses. FTA may 

award additional funds if they are made 

available to the program prior to the 

announcement of project selections. 

DATES: Complete proposals must be 

submitted electronically through the 

GRANTS.GOV ‘‘APPLY’’ function by 

11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on November 

19, 2021. Prospective applicants should 

initiate the process by promptly 

registering on the GRANTS.GOV 

website to ensure completion of the 

application process before the 

submission deadline. Instructions for 

applying can be found on FTA’s website 

at http://transit.dot.gov/howtoapply and 

in the ‘‘FIND’’ module of 

GRANTS.GOV. The GRANTS.GOV 

funding opportunity ID is FTA 2021– 

008–TPM–Bus. Mail and fax 

submissions will not be accepted. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Thomas Wilson, FTA Office of Program 

Management, 202–366–5279, or 

thomas.wilson@dot.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Table of Contents 

A. Program Description 

B. Federal Award Information 

C. Eligibility Information 

D. Application and Submission Information 

E. Application Review Information 

F. Federal Award Administration 

Information 

G. Federal Awarding Agency Contacts 

H. Other Information 

A. Program Description 

Federal public transportation law (49 

U.S.C. 5339(b)) authorizes FTA to award 

grants for the Grants for Buses and Bus 

Facilities Program through a 

competitive process, as described in this 

notice. Grants under this program are 

for capital projects to replace, 

rehabilitate, purchase, or lease buses 

and related equipment, or to 

rehabilitate, purchase, construct, or 

lease bus-related facilities. 

FTA will evaluate projects based on 

how they will address significant repair 

and maintenance needs and improve the 

safety of transit systems through timely 

and efficient investment in public 

transportation. FTA may prioritize 

projects that support FTA’s strategic 

goals and objectives. 

This program supports President 

Biden’s Build Back Better initiative to 

mobilize American ingenuity to build a 

modern infrastructure and an equitable, 

clean energy future. In addition, this 

NOFO will advance the goals of the 

President’s January 27, 2021, Executive 

Order 14008, Tackling the Climate 

Crisis at Home and Abroad, and has the 

potential to enhance environmental 

stewardship and community 

partnerships, consistent with the goals 

of Executive Order 13985, Advancing 

Racial Equity and Support for 

Underserved Communities Through the 

Federal Government. 

B. Federal Award Information 

Federal public transportation law (49 

U.S.C. 5338(a)(2)(M)) authorizes 

$289,044,179 in FY 2021 funds for the 

Grants for Buses and Bus Facilities 

Program. The Consolidated 

Appropriations Act, 2021, appropriated 

an additional $125,000,000 for the 

Grants for Buses and Bus Facilities 

Program. After the mandatory oversight 

takedown of $4,455,331, FTA is 

announcing the availability of 

$409,588,848 for the Grants for Buses 

and Bus Facilities Program through this 

notice. In FY 2020, the program 

received applications for 282 projects 

requesting a total of $1.8 billion. Ninetysix projects were funded at a total of 

$464 million. 

As required by Federal public 

transportation law at 49 U.S.C. 

5339(b)(5), a minimum of 10 percent of 

the amount awarded under the Grants 

for Buses and Bus Facilities Program 

will be awarded to projects located in 

rural areas. As required by 49 U.S.C. 

5339(b)(8), no single grant recipient will 

be awarded more than 10 percent of the 

amount made available. FTA may 

further cap the amount a single 

recipient or State may receive as part of 

the selection process. There is no 

minimum grant award amount. FTA 

intends to fund as many meritorious 

projects as possible. 

C. Eligibility Information 

1. Eligible Applicants 

Eligible applicants include designated 

recipients that allocate funds to fixed 

route bus operators, States or local 

governmental entities that operate fixed 

route bus service, and Indian tribes. 

Eligible subrecipients include all 

otherwise eligible applicants and also 

private nonprofit organizations engaged 

in public transportation. 

States may submit a statewide 

application on behalf of public agencies 

or private nonprofit organizations 

engaged in public transportation in rural 

areas or for other areas to which a State 

allocates funds. Except for projects 

proposed by Indian tribes, all proposals 

for projects in rural (non-urbanized) 

areas must be submitted by a State, 

either individually or as a part of a 

statewide application. States and other 

eligible applicants also may submit 

consolidated proposals for projects in 

urbanized areas. The submission of a 

statewide or consolidated urbanized 

area application shall not preclude the 

submission and consideration of any 

application from other eligible 

recipients in an urbanized area in a 

State. Proposals may contain projects to 

be implemented by the recipient or its 

subrecipients. 

To be considered eligible, applicants 

must be able to demonstrate the 

requisite legal, financial, and technical 

capabilities to receive and administer 

Federal funds under this program. 

2. Cost Sharing or Matching 

The maximum Federal share for 

projects selected under the Grants for 

Buses and Bus Facilities Program is 80 

percent of the net project cost (i.e., the 

non-Federal amount must be at least 20 

percent of the net project cost, not 20 

percent of the requested grant amount), 

unless any of the following exceptions 

applies: 

The maximum Federal share is 85 

percent of the net project cost of 

52292 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 179 / Monday, September 20, 2021 / Notices 

acquiring vehicles (including clean-fuel 

or alternative fuel vehicles) for purposes 

of complying with or maintaining 

compliance with the Clean Air Act 

(CAA) or the Americans with 

Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990. 

The maximum Federal share is 90 

percent of the net project cost of 

acquiring, installing or constructing 

vehicle-related equipment or facilities 

(including clean fuel or alternative-fuel 

vehicle-related equipment or facilities) 

for purposes of complying with or 

maintaining compliance with the CAA 

or ADA. The award recipient must 

itemize the cost of specific, discrete, 

vehicle-related equipment associated 

with compliance with the CAA or ADA 

to be eligible for the maximum 90 

percent Federal share for these costs. 

Eligible sources of non-Federal match 

include the following: Cash from nonGovernment sources other than 

revenues from providing public 

transportation services; revenues 

derived from the sale of advertising and 

concessions; amounts received under a 

service agreement with a State or local 

social service agency or private social 

service organization; revenues generated 

from value capture mechanisms; or 

funds from an undistributed cash 

surplus, replacement or depreciation 

cash fund or reserve, or new capital. In 

addition, transportation development 

credits or documentation of in-kind 

match may substitute for cash match if 

identified in the application. 

If an applicant proposes a Federal 

share greater than 80 percent, the 

application must clearly explain why 

the project is eligible for the proposed 

Federal share. 

3. Eligible Projects 

Eligible projects are capital projects to 

replace, rehabilitate, purchase, or lease 

buses, vans, or related equipment; or to 

rehabilitate, purchase, construct, or 

lease bus-related facilities. A single 

application may include both vehicle 

and facility components, along with 

associated equipment and workforce 

development activities. 

Recipients are permitted to use up to 

0.5 percent of their requested grant 

award for workforce development 

activities eligible under Federal public 

transportation law (49 U.S.C. 5314(b)) 

and an additional 0.5 percent for costs 

associated with training at the National 

Transit Institute to pay not more than 80 

percent of the cost of such activities (49 

U.S.C. 5314(b)(4) and 49 U.S.C. 

5314(c)(4)(A)). Applicants must identify 

the proposed use of funds for these 

activities in the project proposal and 

identify them separately in the project 

budget. 

D. Application and Submission 

Information 

1. Address To Request Application 

Package 

A complete proposal submission 

consists of two forms: The SF–424 

Application for Federal Assistance 

(downloaded from GRANTS.GOV) and 

the supplemental form for the FY 2021 

Grants for Buses and Bus Facilities 

Program (downloaded from 

GRANTS.GOV or the FTA website at 

www.transit.dot.gov/busprogram). 

2. Content and Form of Application 

Submission 

Application submissions must 

include both the SF–424 Application for 

Federal Assistance and the FY 2021 

Grants for Buses and Bus Facilities 

Program supplemental form. The 

supplemental form and any supporting 

documents must be attached to the 

‘‘Attachments’’ section of the SF–424. 

FTA will accept only one 

supplemental form per SF–424 

submission. FTA encourages States and 

other applicants to consider submitting 

a single supplemental form that 

includes multiple activities to be 

evaluated as a consolidated proposal. If 

a State or other applicant chooses to 

submit separate proposals for individual 

consideration by FTA, each proposal 

must be submitted using a separate SF– 

424 and supplemental form. 

Applicants may attach additional 

supporting information to the SF–424 

submission, including but not limited to 

letters of support, project budgets, fleet 

status reports, or excerpts from relevant 

planning documents. Supporting 

documentation must be described and 

referenced by file name in the 

appropriate response section of the 

supplemental form, or it may not be 

reviewed. 

A complete application must include 

responses to all sections of the SF–424 

Application for Federal Assistance and 

the supplemental form, unless 

designated as optional. The information 

on the supplemental form will be used 

to determine applicant and project 

eligibility for the program, and to 

evaluate the proposal against the 

selection criteria described in part E of 

this notice. Information such as 

applicant name, Federal amount 

requested, local match amount, and 

description of areas served may be 

requested in varying degrees of detail on 

both the SF–424 and the supplemental 

form. Applicants must fill in all fields 

unless stated otherwise on the forms. 

Applicants should not place ‘‘N/A’’ or 

‘‘refer to attachment’’ in lieu of typing 

in responses in the field sections. If 

information is copied into the 

supplemental form from another source, 

applicants should verify that pasted text 

is fully captured on the supplemental 

form and has not been truncated by the 

character limits built into the form. 

Applicants should use both the ‘‘Check 

Package for Errors’’ and the ‘‘Validate 

Form’’ validation buttons on both forms 

to check all required fields on the forms, 

and ensure that the Federal and nonFederal amounts specified are 

consistent. 

The SF–424 Mandatory Form and the 

Supplemental Form will prompt 

applicants for information including: 

• Applicant name 

• Unique Entity Identifier/Dun and 

Bradstreet (D&B) Data Universal 

Numbering System (DUNS) number 

• Key contact information (including 

contact name, address, email address, 

and phone) 

• A description, both quantative and 

qualitative, of the area and population 

served by the applicant, including 

ridership demographic information 

and the type of service provided 

• Congressional district(s) where project 

will take place 

• Project information (including title, 

an executive summary, and type) 

• A detailed description of the need for 

the project 

• A detailed description on how the 

project will support the Buses and 

Bus Facilities Program’s objectives 

• Evidence that the project is consistent 

with local and regional planning 

objectives 

• Evidence that the applicant can 

provide the local cost share 

• A description of the technical, legal 

and financial capacity of the applicant 

• A detailed project budget 

• An explanation of the scalability of 

the project 

• Details on the local matching funds 

• A detailed project timeline 

Failure to submit the information as 

requested can delay review or disqualify 

the application. 

3. Unique Entity Identifier and System 

for Award Management (SAM) 

Each applicant is required to: (1) Be 

registered in SAM before submitting an 

application; (2) provide a valid unique 

entity identifier in its application; and 

(3) continue to maintain an active SAM 

registration with current information at 

all times during which the applicant has 

an active Federal award or an 

application or plan under consideration 

by FTA. FTA may not make an award 

until the applicant has complied with 

all applicable unique entity identifier 

and SAM requirements. If an applicant 

Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 179 / Monday, September 20, 2021 / Notices 52293 

has not fully complied with the 

requirements by the time FTA is ready 

to make an award, FTA may determine 

that the applicant is not qualified to 

receive an award and use that 

determination as a basis for making a 

Federal award to another applicant. 

These requirements do not apply if the 

applicant: (1) Is an individual, per 2 

CFR 25.110(b); or (2) has an exception 

approved by FTA or the U.S. Office of 

Management and Budget under 2 CFR 

25.110(c) or (d). SAM registration takes 

approximately 3–5 business days, but 

FTA recommends allowing ample time, 

up to several weeks, for completion of 

all steps. For additional information on 

obtaining a unique entity identifier, 

please visit www.sam.gov. 

4. Submission Dates and Times 

Project proposals must be submitted 

electronically through GRANTS.GOV by 

11:59 p.m. Eastern on November 19, 

2021. Mail and fax submissions will not 

be accepted. 

FTA urges applicants to submit 

applications at least 72 hours prior to 

the due date to allow time to correct any 

problems that may have caused either 

GRANTS.GOV or FTA systems to reject 

the submission. Proposals submitted 

after the deadline will be considered 

only under extraordinary circumstances 

not under the applicant’s control. 

Deadlines will not be extended due to 

scheduled website maintenance. 

GRANTS.GOV scheduled maintenance 

and outage times are announced on the 

GRANTS.GOV website. 

Within 48 hours after submitting an 

electronic application, the applicant 

should receive an email message from 

GRANTS.GOV with confirmation of 

successful transmission to 

GRANTS.GOV. If a notice of failed 

validation or incomplete materials is 

received, the applicant must address the 

reason for the failed validation, as 

described in the email notice, and 

resubmit before the submission 

deadline. If making a resubmission for 

any reason, applicants must include all 

original attachments regardless of which 

attachments were updated and check 

the box on the supplemental form 

indicating this is a resubmission. 

Applicants 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 

applicants may still be required to take 

steps to keep their registration up to 

date before submissions can be made 

successfully: (1) Registration in the 

System for Award Management (SAM) 

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. 

5. Funding Restrictions 

Refer to Section C.3., Eligible Projects, 

for information on activities that are 

allowable in this grant program. 

Allowable direct and indirect expenses 

must be consistent with the 

Governmentwide Uniform 

Administrative Requirements and Cost 

Principles (2 CFR part 200) and FTA 

Circular 5010.1E. 

Funds awarded under this notice 

cannot be used to reimburse applicants 

for expenses incurred prior to the preaward authority effective date. FTA will 

issue pre-award authority to incur costs 

for selected projects beginning on the 

date that project selections are 

announced. FTA does not provide preaward authority for competitive funds 

until projects are selected, and even 

then there are Federal requirements that 

must be met before costs are incurred. 

FTA will issue specific guidance to 

awardees regarding pre-award authority 

at the time of selection. For more 

information about FTA’s policy on preaward authority, please see the most 

recent Apportionment Notice on FTA’s 

website. 

Funds awarded under this notice will 

remain available for obligation for three 

Federal fiscal years, not including the 

year in which the funds are allocated to 

projects. 

6. Other Submission Requirements 

All applications must be submitted 

via the Grants.Gov website. FTA does 

not accept applications on paper, by fax 

machine, by email, or other means. For 

information on application submission 

requirements, please see Section D.1., 

Address to Request Application 

Package. 

E. Application Review Information 

1. Criteria 

FTA will evaluate project proposals 

for the Grants for Buses and Bus 

Facilities Program based on the criteria 

described in this notice. Projects will be 

evaluated primarily on the responses 

provided in the supplemental form. 

Additional information may be 

provided to support the responses; 

however, any additional documentation 

must be directly referenced on the 

supplemental form, including the file 

name where the additional information 

can be found. 

Applicants are encouraged to identify 

scaled funding options in case 

insufficient funding is available to fund 

a project at the full requested amount. 

If an applicant indicates that a project 

is scalable, the applicant must provide 

an appropriate minimum funding 

amount that will fund an eligible project 

that achieves the objectives of the 

program and meets all relevant program 

requirements. The applicant must 

provide a clear explanation of how the 

project budget would be affected by a 

reduced award. FTA may award a lesser 

amount whether or not a scalable option 

is provided. 

If an applicant is proposing to acquire 

autonomous vehicles or other 

innovative motor vehicle technology, 

the application should demonstrate that 

all vehicles will comply with applicable 

safety requirements, including those 

administered by the National Highway 

Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) 

and Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration (FMCSA). Specifically, 

the application should show that 

vehicles acquired will comply with 

applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety 

Standards (FMVSS) and Federal Motor 

Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSR). If 

the vehicles may not comply, the 

application should either (1) show that 

the vehicles and their proposed 

operations are within the scope of an 

exemption or waiver that has already 

been granted by NHTSA, FMCSA, or 

both agencies or (2) directly address 

whether the acquisition will require 

exemptions or waivers from the FMVSS, 

FMCSR, or any other regulation and, if 

the acquisition will require exemptions 

or waivers, present a plan for obtaining 

them. 

a. Demonstration of Need 

Applications will be evaluated based 

on the quality and extent to which they 

demonstrate how the proposed project 

will address an unmet need for capital 

investment in bus vehicles or 

supporting facilities. For example, an 

applicant may demonstrate an excessive 

reliance on vehicles that are beyond 

their intended service life, insufficient 

maintenance facilities due to size or 

condition, a vehicle fleet that is 

insufficient to meet current ridership 

demands, or passenger facilities that are 

insufficient for their current use. 

Applicants should address whether the 

project represents a one-time or periodic 

need that cannot reasonably be funded 

from FTA formula program allocations 

and State or local resources. As a part 

of the response for demonstration of 

need, applicants should provide the 

following information. 

For bus projects (replacement, 

rehabilitation or expansion): Applicants 

must provide information on the age 

52294 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 179 / Monday, September 20, 2021 / Notices 

and mileage, condition, and 

performance of the assets to be replaced 

or rehabilitated by the proposed project. 

For service expansion requests, 

applicants must provide information on 

the proposed service expansion and for 

the reason that transit riders and the 

community need the new service. For 

all vehicle projects, the proposal must 

address how the project conforms to 

FTA’s spare ratio guidelines. 

For bus facility and equipment 

projects (replacement, rehabilitation, or 

expansion): Applicants must provide 

information on the age and condition of 

the asset to be rehabilitated or replaced 

relative to its useful life. For expansion 

requests, applicants must provide 

information on the proposed expansion 

and the reason that transit riders and the 

community need the expansion. 

b. Demonstration of Benefits 

Applications will be evaluated based 

on how well they describe how the 

proposed project will improve the 

condition of, or otherwise modernize, 

the transit system; improve the 

reliability of transit service for its riders; 

or enhance access and mobility within 

the service area. 

System Condition: FTA will evaluate 

the potential for the project to improve 

the condition of the transit system by 

repairing or replacing assets that are in 

poor condition or have surpassed their 

minimum or intended useful life 

benchmarks, lowering the average age of 

vehicles in the fleet, or reducing the cost 

of maintaining outdated vehicles, 

facilities and equipment. 

Service Reliability: FTA will evaluate 

the potential for the project to reduce 

the frequency of breakdowns or other 

service interruptions caused by the age 

and condition of the agency’s bus fleet. 

Applicants should document their 

current service reliability metrics and 

benchmark goals, including their 

strategy for improving reliability with or 

without the award of Bus and Bus 

Facilities Program funds. 

Enhanced Access and Mobility: FTA 

will evaluate the potential for the 

project to improve access and mobility 

for the transit riding public, such as 

through increased reliability, improved 

headways, creation of new 

transportation choices, or eliminating 

gaps in the current route network. 

Proposed benefits should be based on 

documented ridership demand and be 

well-described or documented through a 

study or route planning proposal. 

c. Planning and Local and Regional 

Prioritization 

Applicants must demonstrate how the 

proposed project will be consistent with 

local and regional long-range planning 

documents and local government 

priorities. This will involve assessing 

whether the project is consistent with 

the transit priorities identified in the 

long range plan, contingency or 

illustrative projects included in that 

plan, or the locally developed human 

services public transportation 

coordinated plan. Applicants are not 

required to submit copies of such plans, 

but should describe how the project will 

support regional goals. 

Applicants may also address how the 

proposed project will impact overall 

system performance, asset management 

performance or specific performance 

measures tracked and monitored by the 

applying entity to demonstrate how the 

proposed project will address local and 

regional planning priorities. 

Evidence of additional local or 

regional prioritization (e.g., Statewide 

Transportation Improvement Plan and 

Long Range Transportation Plan) should 

include letters of support for the project 

from local government officials, public 

agencies (e.g., Metropolitan Planning 

Organizations), or non-profit or other 

private sector partners. 

d. Financial Commitment 

Applicants must identify the source of 

the non-Federal cost share and describe 

whether such funds are currently 

available for the project or will need to 

be secured if the project is selected for 

funding. FTA will consider the 

availability of the non-Federal cost 

share as evidence of financial 

commitment to the project. Additional 

consideration will be given to those 

projects for which non-Federal funds 

have already been made available or 

reserved. Applicants should submit 

evidence of the availability of funds for 

the project, for example by including a 

board resolution, letter of support from 

the State, a budget document 

highlighting the line item or section 

committing funds to the proposed 

project, or other documentation of the 

source of non-Federal funds. 

e. Project Implementation Strategy 

Projects will be evaluated based on 

the extent to which the project is ready 

to implement within a reasonable 

period of time and whether the 

applicant’s proposed implementation 

plans are reasonable and complete. 

In assessing whether the project is 

ready to implement within a reasonable 

period of time, FTA will consider 

whether the project qualifies for a 

categorical exclusion, or whether the 

required environmental work has been 

initiated or completed for projects that 

require an environmental assessment or 

environmental impact statement under 

the National Environmental Policy Act 

of 1969 (NEPA). As such, applicants 

should submit information describing 

the project’s anticipated path and 

timeline through the environmental 

review process. 

The proposal must also state whether 

grant funds can be obligated within 12 

months from time of award, and 

indicate the timeframe under which the 

Metropolitan Transportation 

Improvement Program or Statewide 

Transportation Improvement Program 

can be amended to include the proposed 

project. Additional consideration will 

be given to projects for which grant 

funds can be obligated within 12 

months of the time of award. 

In assessing whether the proposed 

implementation plans are reasonable 

and complete, FTA will review the 

proposed project implementation plan, 

including all necessary project 

milestones and the overall project 

timeline. For projects that will require 

formal coordination, approvals, or 

permits from other agencies or project 

partners, the applicant must 

demonstrate coordination with these 

organizations and their support for the 

project, such as through letters of 

support. 

f. Technical, Legal, and Financial 

Capacity 

Applicants must demonstrate that 

they have the technical, legal, and 

financial capacity to undertake the 

project. FTA will review relevant 

oversight assessments and records to 

determine whether there are any 

outstanding legal, technical or financial 

issues with the applicant that would 

affect the outcome of the proposed 

project. Applicants with outstanding 

legal, technical or financial compliance 

issues from an FTA compliance review 

or Federal Transit grant-related Single 

Audit finding must explain how 

corrective actions taken will mitigate 

negative impacts on the proposed 

project. 

2. Review and Selection Process 

In addition to other FTA staff that 

may review the proposals, a technical 

evaluation committee will perform an 

administrative and merit evaluation of 

proposals based on the published 

evaluation criteria. Members of the 

technical evaluation committee and 

other FTA staff may request additional 

information from applicants, if 

necessary. 

After applying the above criteria, and 

in support of Executive Order 14008, 

FTA will give priority consideration to 

projects that support the governmentVerDate Sep<11>2014 16:49 Sep 17, 2021 Jkt 253001 PO 00000 Frm 00172 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 E:\FR\FM\20SEN1.SGM 20SEN1
Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 179 / Monday, September 20, 2021 / Notices 52295 

wide Justice40 Initiative with the goal of 

delivering 40 percent of the overall 

benefits of relevant Federal investments 

to disadvantaged communities. For the 

purposes of the Justice40 Initiative, a 

community is either a group of 

individuals living in geographic 

proximity to one another, or a 

geographically dispersed set of 

individuals (such as migrant workers or 

Native Americans), where either type of 

group experiences common conditions. 

Furthermore, to determine whether a 

specific community is disadvantaged, 

factors include, but are not limited to, 

the following variables: Low income, 

high and/or persistent poverty; high 

unemployment and underemployment; 

racial and ethnic segregation; linguistic 

isolation; high housing cost burden and 

substandard housing; distressed 

neighborhoods; high transportation cost 

burden and/or low transportation 

access; transit dependency associated 

with income, disability, or lack of access 

to a private automobile; 

disproportionate environmental burden 

and high cumulative impacts; limited 

water and sanitation access and 

affordability; disproportionate climate 

impacts; and high energy cost burden 

and low energy access. If a project 

supports the Justice40 Initiative, the 

applicant should state the community 

definition used, including ridership 

demographic information relevant to the 

Justice40 definition of disadvantaged 

community, the variable(s) considered, 

and what immediate and long-term 

benefits will be provided by the project 

request. In support of the Justice40 

Initiative, the applicant also should 

provide evidence of strategies that the 

applicant has used in the planning 

process to seek out and consider the 

needs of those traditionally 

disadvantaged and underserved by 

existing transportation systems, such as 

low-income and minority households. 

Examples should include, the number of 

meetings held, including a description 

of the audience of each meeting and 

documentation for how the input was 

considered for the proposed project. 

Applicants are encouraged to contact 

FTA if they have any questions or 

feedback on the implementation of the 

Justice40 Initiative. 

In further support of Executive Order 

14008, FTA will give priority 

consideration to applications that are 

expected to create significant 

community benefits relating to the 

environment, including those projects 

that incorporate low or no emission 

technology or specific elements to 

address greenhouse gas emissions and 

climate change impacts. FTA 

encourages applicants to demonstrate 

whether they have considered climate 

change and environmental justice in 

terms of the transportation planning 

process or anticipated design 

components with outcomes that address 

climate change (e.g., resilience or 

adaptation measures). The application 

should describe what specific climate 

change or environmental justice 

activities have been incorporated, 

including whether a project supports a 

Climate Action Plan, whether an 

equitable development plan has been 

prepared, and whether tools such as 

EPA’s EJSCREEN have been applied in 

project planning. The application 

should also describe specific and direct 

ways the project will mitigate or reduce 

climate change impacts including any 

components that reduce emissions, 

promote energy efficiency, incorporate 

electrification or low emission or zero 

emission vehicle infrastructure, increase 

resiliency, or recycle or redevelop 

existing infrastructure. 

FTA also will give priority 

consideration to applications that 

encourage racial equity in two areas: (1) 

Planning and policies related to racial 

equity and overcoming barriers to 

opportunity; and (2) project investments 

that either proactively address racial 

equity and barriers to opportunity, 

including automobile dependence as a 

form of barrier, or redress prior 

inequities and barriers to opportunity. 

This objective has the potential to 

enhance environmental stewardship 

and community partnerships, and 

reflects Executive Order 13985, 

Advancing Racial Equity and Support 

for Underserved Communities Through 

the Federal Government. 

FTA encourages the applicant to 

include sufficient information to 

evaluate how the applicant will advance 

racial equity and address barriers to 

opportunity. The applicant should 

describe any transportation plans or 

policies related to racial equity and 

barriers to opportunity they are 

implementing or have implemented in 

relation to the proposed project, along 

with the specific project investment 

details necessary for FTA to evaluate if 

the investments are being made either 

proactively to advance racial equity and 

address barriers to opportunity or 

redress prior inequities and barriers to 

opportunity. All project investment 

costs for the project that are related to 

racial equity and barriers to opportunity 

should be summarized. 

In determining the allocation of 

program funds, FTA may consider 

geographic diversity, diversity in the 

size of the transit systems receiving 

funding, and the applicant’s receipt of 

other competitive awards. 

Due to funding limitations, projects 

that are selected for funding may receive 

less than the amount originally 

requested, even if an application did not 

present a scaled project option. In those 

cases, applicants must be able to 

demonstrate that the proposed projects 

are still viable and can be completed 

with the amount awarded. 

3. Integrity and Performance Review 

Prior to making an award, FTA is 

required to review and consider any 

information about the applicant that is 

in the Federal Awardee Performance 

and Integrity Information Systems 

(FAPIIS) accessible through SAM. An 

applicant may review and comment on 

information about itself that a Federal 

awarding agency previously entered. 

FTA will consider any comments by the 

applicant, in addition to the other 

information in FAPIIS, in making a 

judgment about the applicant’s integrity, 

business ethics, and record of 

performance under Federal awards 

when completing the review of risk 

posed by applicants as described in 2 

CFR 200.206. 

F. Federal Award Administration 

Information 

1. Federal Award Notice 

Final project selections will be posted 

on the FTA website. FTA will also 

publish a list of the selected projects, a 

summary of final ratings for selected 

projects, Federal award amounts, and 

recipients in the Federal Register. 

Selected recipients should contact their 

FTA regional offices for additional 

information regarding allocations for 

projects under the Grants for Buses and 

Bus Facilities Program. 

2. Administrative and National Policy 

Requirements 

a. Grant Requirements 

If selected, awardees will apply for a 

grant through FTA’s Transit Award 

Management System (TrAMS). 

Recipients of Grants for Buses and Bus 

Facilities Program funding in urban 

areas are subject to the grant 

requirements of the Urbanized Area 

Formula Grant program (49 U.S.C. 

5307), including those of FTA Circular 

‘‘Urbanized Area Formula Program: 

Program Guidance and Application 

Instructions’’ (FTA.C.9030.1E). 

Recipients of funding in rural areas are 

subject to the grant requirements of the 

Formula Grants for Rural Areas Program 

(49 U.S.C. 5311), including those of FTA 

Circular ‘‘Formula Grants for Rural 

Areas: Program Guidance and 

52296 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 179 / Monday, September 20, 2021 / Notices 

Application Instructions’’ 

(FTA.C.9040.1G). All recipients must 

accept the FTA Master Agreement and 

follow FTA Circular ‘‘Award 

Management Requirements’’ 

(FTA.C.5010.1E) and the labor 

protections required by Federal public 

transportation law (49 U.S.C. 5333(b)). 

Technical assistance regarding these 

requirements is available from each FTA 

regional office. 

By submitting a grant application, the 

applicant assures that it will comply 

with all applicable Federal statutes, 

regulations, executive orders, directives, 

FTA circulars and other Federal 

administrative requirements in carrying 

out any project supported by the FTA 

grant. Further, the applicant 

acknowledges that it is under a 

continuing obligation to 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. 

b. Buy America and Domestic 

Preferences for Infrastructure Projects 

All capital procurements must 

comply with FTA’s Buy America 

requirements (49 U.S.C. 5323(j)), which 

require that all iron, steel, and 

manufactured products be produced in 

the United States, and imposes 

minimum domestic content and final 

assembly requirements for rolling stock. 

The cost of components and 

subcomponents produced in the United 

States must be more than 70 percent of 

the cost of all components, and final 

assembly of rolling stock must occur in 

the United States. Any proposal that 

will require a waiver must identify the 

items for which a waiver will be sought 

in the application. Applicants should 

not proceed with the expectation that 

waivers will be granted. 

c. Disadvantaged Business Enterprise 

Recipients of planning, capital, or 

operating assistance that will award 

prime contracts (excluding transit 

vehicle purchases), the cumulative total 

of which exceeds $250,000 in FTA 

funds in a Federal fiscal year, must 

comply with the Disadvantaged 

Business Enterprise (DBE) program 

regulations (49 CFR part 26). 

To be eligible to bid on any FTAassisted vehicle procurement, entities 

that manufacture transit vehicles or 

perform post-production alterations or 

retrofitting must be certified Transit 

Vehicle Manufacturers (TVM). If a 

vehicle remanufacturer is responding to 

a solicitation for new or remanufactured 

vehicles with a vehicle to which the 

remanufacturer has provided postproduction alterations or retro-fitting 

(e.g., replacing major components such 

as engine to provide a ‘‘like new’’ 

vehicle), the vehicle remanufacturer 

must be a certified TVM. 

The TVM rule requires that, prior to 

bidding on any FTA-assisted vehicle 

procurement, manufacturers of transit 

vehicles submit a DBE Program plan 

and annual goal methodology to FTA. 

FTA then will issue a TVM concurrence 

and certification letter. Grant recipients 

must verify each manufacturer’s 

compliance with these requirements 

before accepting its bid. A list of 

compliant, certified TVMs is posted on 

FTA’s website at www.transit.dot.gov/ 

TVM. Recipients should contact FTA 

before accepting a bid from a 

manufacturer not listed on this Web 

posting. In lieu of using a certified TVM, 

a recipient may establish projectspecific DBE goals for its vehicle 

procurement. FTA will provide 

additional guidance as grants are 

awarded. For more information on DBE 

requirements, please contact Monica 

McCallum, Office of Civil Rights, 206– 

220–7519, email: Monica.McCallum@

dot.gov. 

d. Planning 

FTA encourages applicants to notify 

the appropriate State Departments of 

Transportation and Metropolitan 

Planning Organizations (MPOs) in areas 

likely to be served by the project funds 

made available under this program. 

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. Reporting 

Post-award reporting requirements 

include the electronic submission of 

Federal Financial Reports and Milestone 

Progress Reports in FTA’s electronic 

grants management system. Recipients 

of funds made available through this 

NOFO are also required to regularly 

submit data to the National Transit 

Database. Applicant should include any 

goals, targets, and indicators referenced 

in their application to the project in the 

Executive Summary of the TrAMS 

application. 

As part of completing the annual 

certifications and assurances required of 

FTA grant recipients, a successful 

applicant must report on the suspension 

or debarment status of itself and its 

principals. 

If the award recipient’s active grants, 

cooperative agreements, and 

procurement contracts from all Federal 

awarding agencies exceeds $10,000,000 

for any period of time during the period 

of performance of an award made 

pursuant to this Notice, the recipient 

must maintain the currency of 

information reported to the System for 

Award Management (SAM) that is made 

available in the designated integrity and 

performance system (currently the 

Federal Awardee Performance and 

Integrity Information System (FAPIIS)) 

about civil, criminal, or administrative 

proceedings in connection with the 

award or performance of a grant, 

cooperative agreement, or procurement 

contract from the Federal Government. 

See Appendix XII to 2 CFR part 200 for 

more information. 

G. Federal Awarding Agency Contacts 

For further information concerning 

this notice, please contact the Grants for 

Buses and Bus Facilities Program 

manager, Thomas Wilson, via email at 

Thomas.wilson@dot.gov or by phone at 

202–366–5279. A TDD is available for 

individuals who are deaf or hard of 

hearing at 800–877–8339. In addition, 

FTA will post answers to questions and 

requests for clarifications on FTA’s 

website at http://transit.dot.gov/ 

busprogram. In support of the 

President’s Justice40 Initiative, FTA 

staff will also conduct a webinar for 

potential applicants to learn more about 

the program, provide stakeholder 

engagement, and review the application 

submittal process. All interested 

stakeholders with questions regarding 

the implementation of the Justice40 

Initiative in the Grants for Buses and 

Bus Facilities Competitive Program are 

encouraged to contact Thomas Wilson. 

To ensure the receipt of accurate 

information about eligibility or the 

program, applicants with questions are 

encouraged to contact FTA directly, 

rather than through intermediaries or 

third parties. 

H. Other Information 

This program is not subject to 

Executive Order 12372, 

‘‘Intergovernmental Review of Federal 

Programs.’’ 

Nuria I. Fernandez, 

Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 2021–20203 Filed 9–17–21; 8:45 am] 

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