[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 157 (Tuesday, August 14, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48592-48608]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-19438]



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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Transit Administration


Bus and Bus Facilities Discretionary Program Funds

AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration (FTA), DOT.

ACTION: Bus Livability and State of Good Repair Initiatives: 
Announcement of Project Selections.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) Federal Transit 
Administration (FTA) announces the selection of capital projects for 
the State of Good Repair (SGR) and Bus Livability (BLIV) initiatives 
funded under the Section 5309 Bus and Bus Facilities program, which is 
authorized by 49 U.S.C. 5309(b), as amended by Section 3011 of the 
Safe, Affordable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A 
Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU), Public Law 109-59, August 10, 2005.
    On February 7, 2012, FTA published a Notice of Funding Availability 
(NOFA) for its State of Good Repair and Bus Livability Initiatives (77 
FR 6178). The NOFA explained the requirements and procedures for 
eligible applicants to apply for the funds made available by the 
Surface and Air Transportation Programs Extension Act of 2011. In sum, 
the FY 2012 State of Good Repair Initiative made available 
approximately $650 million of Section 5309 Bus and Bus Facilities 
Program funds. The NOFA indicated FTA's intent to award the funds for 
capital investments aimed at replacing or rehabilitating transit 
infrastructure for buses, bus facilities, bus-related equipment, and 
transit asset management systems. The FY 2012 Bus Livability Initiative 
made available approximately $125 million of Section 5309 Bus and Bus 
Facilities Program funds. As outlined in the NOFA, the Section 5309 
funds would be awarded for capital investments for buses, bus 
facilities, and bus related equipment.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Successful applicants should contact 
the appropriate FTA Regional office for specific information regarding 
applying for the funds. A list of Regional offices can be found at 
www.fta.dot.gov. Unsuccessful applicants may contact FTA to arrange a 
proposal debriefing within 30 days of this announcement; SGR applicants 
may contact Sam Snead, Office of Program Management at (202) 366-1089, 
email: [email protected]; BLIV applicants may contact Bryce McNitt, 
Office of Budget and Policy at (202) 366-2618, email: 
[email protected]. For general program information on the Bus and 
Bus Facilities Program, contact Samuel Snead, A TDD is available at 1-
800-877-8339 (TDD/FIRS).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    State of Good Repair Program: In response to its NOFA, FTA received 
568 eligible proposals requesting $2.99 billion in federal funds, 
indicating significant demand for funds. The proposals came from 48 
states plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin 
Islands. Project proposals were evaluated based on the criteria 
detailed in the February 2, 2012 NOFA. FTA is funding 194 projects for 
a total of $651.7 million, including 13 asset management projects. The 
selected projects shown in Table 1 will provide funds to help maintain 
the nation's public transportation bus fleet, infrastructure, and 
equipment in a state of good repair. Funds must be used consistent with 
the competitive proposal and for the eligible purposes defined under 49 
U.S.C. 5309(b)(3).
    Bus Livability Program: In response to the NOFA, FTA received 266 
eligible proposals requesting $1.03 billion in federal funds, 
indicating significant demand for funds. The proposals came from 47 
states plus the District of Columbia. Project proposals were evaluated 
based on the criteria detailed in the February 2, 2012 NOFA. FTA is 
funding 61 projects for a total of approximately $135.6 million. The 
selected projects shown in Table 2 will provide mobility choices, 
improve economic competitiveness, support existing communities, create 
partnerships and enhance the value of communities and neighborhoods. 
Funds must be used consistent with the competitive proposal and for the 
eligible purposes defined under 49 U.S.C. 5309(b)(3). In selecting 
projects for funding using Bus Program funds, FTA ensured that at least 
5.5 percent of the FY 2012 Section 5309 funds, or $6.9 million, is 
being allocated to projects that are not in urbanized areas.
    Project Implementation: Grantees selected for competitive 
discretionary funding should work with their FTA regional office to 
finalize the grant application in FTA's Transportation Electronic Award 
Management system (TEAM) so that funds can be obligated expeditiously. 
Grant applications must only include eligible activities applied for in 
the original project application. In cases where the allocation amount 
is less than the proposer's requested amount, grantees should work with 
the regional office to reduce scope or scale the project such that a 
complete phase or project is accomplished. A discretionary project 
identification number has been assigned to each project for tracking 
purposes and must be used in the TEAM application. Selected projects 
have pre-award authority no earlier than July 23, 2012. Pre-award 
authority is also contingent upon other requirements, such as planning 
and environmental, having been met.
    For more about FTA's policy on pre-award authority, please see the 
FTA Fiscal Year 2012 Apportionments, Allocations, and Program notice 
found in 77 FR 1785 (January 11, 2012). Additionally, for the Bus 
Livability projects, although several projects contained related 
housing or livable communities' initiatives, FTA funds may only be used 
for eligible purposes defined under 49 U.S.C. 5309(b)(3) and described 
in FTA C. 9030.1D. For any Bus Livability projects that will be 
implemented as a joint-development project, please also refer to the 
agency's joint-development guidance found in 72 FR 5788 (February 7, 
2007) for more information.
    Post-award reporting requirements include submission of the 
Financial Federal Report and Milestone reports in TEAM as appropriate 
(see FTA.C.5010.1D). The grantee must comply with all applicable 
Federal statutes, regulations, executive orders, FTA circulars, and 
other Federal administrative requirements in carrying out the project 
supported by the FTA grant. FTA emphasizes that grantees must follow 
all third-party procurement guidance, as described in FTA.C.4220.1F. 
Funds allocated in this announcement must be obligated in a grant by 
September 30, 2014.

    Issued in Washington, DC, this August 3, 2012.
Peter Rogoff,
Administrator.
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[FR Doc. 2012-19438 Filed 8-13-12; 8:45 am]
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