[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 46 (Friday, March 8, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8571-8574]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-04247]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Maritime Administration
Small Shipyard Grant Program; Application Deadlines
AGENCY: Maritime Administration, Department of Transportation.
ACTION: Notice of Small Shipyard Grant Application deadlines.
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SUMMARY: Under the Small Shipyard Grant Program, $19,600,000 is
currently available for grants for capital and related improvements to
qualified shipyard facilities that will be effective in fostering
efficiency, competitive operations, and quality ship construction,
repair, and reconfiguration. This notice announces the intention of the
Maritime Administration to provide grants to small shipyards. Catalog
of Federal Domestic Assistance Number: 20.814. Potential applicants are
advised that it is expected, based on experience, that the aggregate
amount of requested funding among all applicants will far exceed the
funds available and that only a small percentage of applications will
be funded. It is anticipated that roughly 10-20 applications will be
selected for funding with an average grant amount of about $1 million.
Timing of Grant Applications
In accordance with the statutory requirement that applications must
be submitted within 60 days of the Consolidated Appropriations Act,
2019 (Pub. L. 116-6), applications must be received by the Maritime
Administration by 5:00 p.m. EDT on April 16, 2019. Applications
received later than this time will not be considered. The Administrator
shall award grants under this section not later than 120 days after the
date of the enactment of the appropriations Act for the fiscal year
concerned.
ADDRESSES: Grant Applications should be sent to the Associate
Administrator for Business and Finance Development, Room W21-318,
Maritime Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC
20590. Only applicants who comply with all submission requirements
described in this notice will be eligible for award.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information concerning
this notice, please contact David M. Heller, Director, Office of
Shipyards and Marine Engineering, Maritime Administration, Room W21-
318, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE, Washington, DC 20590; phone: (202) 366-
5737; or fax: (202) 366-6988.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Grants under the Maritime Administration's
Small Shipyard Grant Program may not be used to construct buildings or
other physical facilities or to acquire land. Grant funds may be used
for maritime training programs to foster employee skills and enhanced
productivity related to shipbuilding, ship repair, and associated
industries. Grants for such training programs may only be awarded to
``Eligible Applicants'' as described below, but training programs can
be established through vendors to such applicants.
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
The Small Shipyard Grant Program was authorized under Section 3501
of the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal
Year 2019 (Pub. L. 115-232), codified at 46 U.S.C. 54101. The statute
authorizes the Maritime Administrator to provide assistance in the form
of grants to make capital and related improvements in small shipyards
and to provide training for workers in shipbuilding, ship repair, and
associated industries. The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2019,
appropriated $20,000,000 to the Small Shipyard Grant Program. The
purpose of the Program is to foster efficiency, competitive operations,
and quality ship construction, repair, and reconfiguration in small
shipyards across the United States in addition to fostering employee
skills and enhanced productivity related to shipbuilding, ship repair,
and associated industries.
B. Federal Award Information
Under the Small Shipyard Grant Program, $19,600,000 is available
for grants for: (1) Capital and related improvements to qualified
shipyard facilities that will be effective in fostering efficiency,
competitive operations, and quality ship construction, repair, and
reconfiguration; and (2) training projects that would be effective in
fostering employee skills and enhanced productivity related to
shipbuilding, ship repair, and associated industries. The Maritime
Administration intends to award the full amount of the available
funding through grants to the extent that there are worthy
applications. No more than 25 percent of the funds available will be
awarded to shipyard facilities in one geographic location that have
more than 600 production employees. The Maritime Administration will
seek to obtain the maximum benefit from the available funding by
awarding grants to as many of the worthiest projects as possible. The
Maritime Administration may partially fund applications by selecting
parts of the total project.
The start date and period of performance for each award will depend
on the specific project and must be agreed to by the Maritime
Administration. The Maritime Administration will administer each Small
Shipyard Grant pursuant to a grant agreement with the Small Shipyard
Grant recipient. Amounts awarded as a grant under this notice that are
not expended by the recipient shall remain available to the
Administrator for use for grants under this program, either in the same
or different fiscal year as this notice.
C. Eligibility Information
To be selected for a Small Shipyard Grant, an applicant must be an
Eligible Applicant and the project must be an Eligible Project.
1. Eligible Applicants
Section 54101, Title 46, United States Code, provides that
shipyards can apply for grants. The shipyard facility for which a grant
is sought must be in a single geographic location and may not have more
than 1,200 production employees. The applicant must be the operating
company of the shipyard facility. The shipyard facility must construct,
repair, or reconfigure vessels 40 feet in length or greater for
commercial or government use, or construct, repair, or reconfigure
vessels 100 feet in length or greater for non-commercial vessels.
2. Cost Sharing or Matching
The Federal funds for any eligible project will not exceed 75
percent of the total cost of such project. The remaining portion of the
cost shall be paid in funds from or on behalf of the recipient. The
applicant is required to submit detailed financial statements and
supporting documentation demonstrating how and when such matching
requirement is
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proposed to be funded as described below. The recipient's entire
matching requirement must be paid prior to payment of any Federal funds
for the project.
3. Eligible Projects
Eligible projects include: (1) Capital and related improvement
projects that will be effective in fostering efficiency, competitive
operations, and quality ship construction, repair, and reconfiguration;
and (2) training projects that will be effective in fostering employee
skills and enhanced productivity related to shipbuilding, ship repair,
and associated industries. For capital improvement projects, all items
proposed for funding must be new and to be owned by the applicant. For
both capital improvement and training projects, all project costs,
including the recipient's share, must be incurred after the date of the
grant agreement.
D. Application and Submission Information
1. Address for Application
Applications must be filed on standard form SF-424, which is
available on the Maritime Administration's website at
www.marad.dot.gov.
2. Content and Form of Application Submission
Although the form is available electronically, the application must
be filed in hard copy as indicated below due to the amount of
information requested. Applicants must submit an original paper copy of
the application, one additional paper copy of the application, and two
CDs each containing a complete electronic version of the application in
PDF format to: Associate Administrator for Business and Finance
Development, Room W21-318, Maritime Administration, 1200 New Jersey
Ave. SE, Washington, DC 20590. A shipyard facility in a single
geographic location applying for multiple projects must do so in a
single application. The application for a grant must include all of the
following information as an addendum to form SF-424. The information
should be organized in sections as described below:
Section 1: A description of the shipyard including (a) location of
the shipyard; (b) a description of the shipyard facilities; (c) years
in operation; (d) ownership; (e) customer base; (f) current order book
including type of work; (g) vessels delivered (or major projects) over
last 5 years; and (h) website address, if any.
Section 2: For each project proposed for funding the following must
be included:
(a) A comprehensive detailed description of the project, including
a statement of whether the project will replace existing equipment, and
if so, the disposition of the replaced equipment.
(b) A description of the need for the project in relation to
shipyard operations and business plan and an explanation of how the
project will fulfill this need.
(c) A quantitative analysis demonstrating how the project will be
effective in fostering efficiency, competitive operations, and quality
ship construction, repair, or reconfiguration (for capital improvement
projects) or how the project will be effective in fostering employee
skills and enhanced productivity related to shipbuilding, ship repair,
and associated industries. The analysis should quantify the benefits of
the projects in terms of man-hours saved, dollars saved, percentages,
or other meaningful metrics. The methodology of the analysis should be
explained with assumptions used, identified, and justified.
(d) A detailed methodology and timeline for implementing the
project.
(e) A detailed itemization of the cost of the project together with
supporting documentation, including current vendor quotes and estimates
of installation costs.
(f) A statement explaining if any elements of the project require
action under the National Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 4321, et
seq.) or require any licenses or permits.
Items 2(a) thru 2(f) should be repeated, in order, for each
separate project included in the application.
Section 3: A table with a prioritized list of projects and total
cost and Federal government share (in dollars) for each.
Section 4: A description of any existing programs or arrangements,
if any, which will be used to supplement or leverage the Federal grant
assistance.
Section 5: Shipyard company officer's certification of each of the
following requirements:
(a) That the shipyard facility for which a grant is sought is in a
single geographic location and (i) the shipyard facility has no more
than 600 production employees, or (ii) the shipyard facility has more
than 600 production employees, but less than 1200 production employees
(the shipyard officer must certify to one or the other of (i) or (ii));
(b) That the applicant has the authority to carry out the proposed
project; and
(c) In accordance with the Department of Transportation's
regulation restricting lobbying, 49 CFR part 20, that the applicant has
not, and will not, make any prohibited payments out of the requested
grant. Certifications are not required to be notarized.
Section 6: Unique entity identifier of shipyard's parent company
(when applicable): Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS + 4 number)
(when applicable).
Section 7: The most recent year-end audited, reviewed, or compiled
financial statements, prepared by a certified public accountant (CPA),
per U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (not tax-based
accounting financial statements). If CPA prepared financial statements
are not available, provide the most recent financial statement for the
entity. Do not provide tax returns.
Section 8: Statement regarding the relationship between applicants
and any parents, subsidiaries or affiliates, if any such entity is
going to provide a portion of the match.
Section 9: Evidence documenting applicant's ability to make
proposed matching requirement (loan agreement, commitment from
investors, cash on balance sheet, etc.) and in the times outlined in
2(d) above.
Section 10: Pro-forma financial statements reflecting (a) financial
condition beginning of period; (b) effect on balance sheet of grant and
matching funds (e.g., a decrease in cash or increase in debt,
additional equity and an increase in fixed assets); and (c) impact on
company's projected financial condition (balance sheet) of completion
of project, showing that company will have sufficient financial
resources to remain in business.
Section 11: Statement whether during the past five years, the
applicant or any predecessor or related company has been in bankruptcy
or in reorganization under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code, or in any
insolvency or reorganization proceedings, and whether any substantial
property of the applicant or any predecessor or related company has
been acquired in any such proceeding or has been subject to foreclosure
or receivership during such period. If so, give details.
Additional information may be requested as deemed necessary by the
Maritime Administration to facilitate and complete its review of the
application. If such information is not provided, the Maritime
Administration may deem the application incomplete and cease processing
it.
[[Page 8573]]
3. Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management (SAM)
The Maritime Administration may not make a Small Shipyard Grant
Award to an applicant until the applicant has complied with all
applicable unique entity identifier and SAM requirements. Each
applicant must be registered in SAM before submitting its application,
provide a valid unique entity identifier number in its application, and
maintain an active SAM registration with current information throughout
the period of the award. Applicants may register with the SAM at
www.SAM.gov. If an applicant has not fully complied with the
requirements by the submission deadline, the Maritime Administration
may determine the applicant is not qualified to receive an award and
use that determination as a basis for making a Federal award to another
applicant.
4. Submission Dates and Times
Applications must be received by the Maritime Administration by
5:00 p.m. EDT on April 16, 2019. Applications received later than this
time will not be considered. The Maritime Administration encourages
applicants to submit applications using a carrier and method that will
provide proof and time of delivery. The Administrator shall award
grants under this section not later than 120 days after the date of the
enactment of the appropriations Act for the fiscal year concerned.
5. Funding Restrictions
Grants under the Maritime Administration's Small Shipyard Grant
Program may not be used to construct buildings or other physical
facilities or to acquire land.
6. Other Submission Requirements
Applicants must submit an original paper copy of the application,
one additional paper copy of the application, and two compact discs
(CDs) each containing a complete electronic version of the application
in PDF format to: Associate Administrator for Business and Finance
Development, Room W21-318, Maritime Administration, 1200 New Jersey
Ave. SE, Washington, DC 20590.
E. Application Review Information
1. Selection Criteria
This section specifies the criteria that the Maritime
Administration will use to evaluate and award applications for Small
Shipyard grants. The criteria incorporate the statutory eligibility
requirements for this Program, which are specified in this notice as
relevant.
Consistent with the requirements of 46 U.S.C. Sec. 54101(b)(1),
the Maritime Administration will evaluate the applications on the basis
of how effective the project will be in fostering efficiency,
competitive operations, and quality ship construction, repair, and
reconfiguration (for capital improvement projects) or how effective the
project will be in fostering employee skills and enhancing productivity
related to shipbuilding, ship repair, and associated industries.
After applying the above preferences, the Maritime Administrator
will consider the following key Departmental objectives:
(A) Supporting economic vitality at the national and regional
level;
(B) Utilizing alternative funding sources and innovative financing
models to attract non-Federal sources of infrastructure investment;
(C) Accounting for the life-cycle costs of the project to promote
the state of good repair;
(D) Using innovative approaches to improve safety and expedite
project delivery; and,
(E) Holding grant recipients accountable for their performance and
achieving specific, measurable outcomes identified by grant applicants.
2. Review and Selection Process
The Maritime Administration reviews all eligible applications
received before the deadline. The Small Shipyard Grant review and
selection process consists of three phases: Technical Review, Senior
Review, and Final Selection. In the Technical Review phase, a Review
Panel made up of technical experts, including naval architects and
engineers from the Maritime Administration's Office of Shipyards and
Marine Engineering will review all timely applications. Additional
input may be provided to the Review Panel on economic issues by the
Office of Financial Approvals, on environmental issues by the Office of
Environment, and on legal issues by the Office of Chief Counsel. The
Review Panel will assign a rating of ``Highly Recommended,''
``Recommended,'' or ``Not Recommended'' based on how well the
applications align with the selection criteria. As a secondary
criteria, higher considerations for award shall be made if applicants'
percentage match contribution toward the overall project is greater
than the minimum and greater than other competing grant applications.
In the second review phase, the Senior Review Team, which is led by
the Maritime Administrator, will consider applications based upon the
input of the Review Panel. The Senior Review Team will determine which
projects to advance to the Secretary. In the third phase, the Secretary
selects projects for final award.
3. FAPIIS Check
The Maritime Administration is required to review and consider any
information about the applicant that is in the designated integrity and
performance system accessible through SAM (currently FAPIIS) (see 41
U.S.C. 2313). An applicant, at its option, may review information in
the designated integrity and performance systems accessible through SAM
and comment on any information about itself that a Federal awarding
agency previously entered and is currently in the designated integrity
and performance system accessible through SAM. The Maritime
Administration will consider any comments by the applicant, in addition
to the other information in the designated integrity and performance
system, 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.
F. Federal Award Administration Information
1. Federal Award Notices
Following the evaluation outlined in Section E, and after the
required notice to Congress, the Maritime Administration will announce
awarded projects by posting a list of selected projects at
www.marad.dot.gov/ships-and-shipping/small-shipyard-grants. Following
the announcement, the Maritime Administration will contact the point of
contact listed in the SF-424 to initiate development of the grant
agreement.
2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements
All awards must be administered pursuant to applicable Federal
laws, rules, and regulations of the Maritime Administration.
Federal wage rate requirements included in Subchapter IV of Chapter
31 of Title 40, United States Code, apply to all projects receiving
funds under this Program, and apply to all parts of the project,
whether funded with Small Shipyard Grant funds, other Federal funds, or
non-Federal funds.
3. Reporting
Each applicant selected for a Small Shipyard capital or training
grant will be required to work with the Maritime Administration on the
development and implementation of a plan to collect information and
report on the project's
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performance with respect to the relevant long-term outcomes that are
expected to be achieved through the capital project or training.
Performance indicators will not include formal goals or targets, but
will require analysis of post-project outcomes, which will inform the
Small Shipyard Grant Program in working towards best practices,
programmatic performance measures, and future decision-making
guidelines.
4. Requirements for Products Produced in the United States
Consistent with the requirements of Section 410 of Division G--
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies
Appropriations Act, 2019, of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2019,
(Pub. L. 116-6), the Buy American requirements of 41 U.S.C. Chapter 83
apply to funds made available under this notice.
G. Federal Awarding Agency Contacts
For further information concerning this notice please contact David
M. Heller, Director, Office of Shipyards and Marine Engineering,
Maritime Administration, Room W21-318, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE,
Washington, DC 20590; phone: (202) 366-5737; or fax: (202) 366-6988. To
ensure applicants receive accurate information about eligibility or the
Program, you are encouraged to contact the Maritime Administration
directly, rather than through intermediaries or third parties, with
questions.
H. Other Information
All information submitted as part of or in support of any
application shall use publicly available data or data that can be made
public and methodologies that are accepted by industry practice and
standards, to the extent possible. If the application includes
information you consider to be a trade secret or confidential
commercial or financial information, you should do the following: (1)
Note on the front cover that the submission ``Contains Confidential
Business Information (CBI);'' (2) mark each affected page ``CBI;'' and
(3) highlight or otherwise denote the CBI portions. The Maritime
Administration protects such information from disclosure to the extent
allowed under applicable law. In the event the Maritime Administration
receives a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for the
information, the Maritime Administration will follow the procedures
described in the Department of Transportation FOIA regulations at 49
CFR 7.17. Only information that is ultimately determined to be
confidential under that procedure will be exempt from disclosure under
FOIA.
(Authority: 46 U.S.C. 54101 and the Consolidated Appropriations Act,
2019, Public Law 116-6)
* * * * *
Dated: March 5, 2019.
By Order of the Maritime Administrator.
T. Mitchell Hudson, Jr.
Secretary, Maritime Administration.
[FR Doc. 2019-04247 Filed 3-7-19; 8:45 am]
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