[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 7 (Tuesday, January 11, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 1477-1479]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-00334]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

[Docket No. DOT-OST-2021-0166]


Agency Request for Emergency Approval of an Information 
Collection

AGENCY: Department of Transportation.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the 
Department of Transportation (DOT) provides notice that it will submit 
an information collection requests (ICR) to the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) for emergency approval of a proposed information 
collection. Upon receiving the requested six-month emergency approval 
by OMB, the Office of the Secretary (OST) will follow the normal PRA 
procedures to obtain extended approval for this proposed information 
collection. This collection involves applicants to submit a proposal 
for discretionary grant funding, under the ``National Infrastructure 
Project Assistance Program, established by the Infrastructure 
Investment and Jobs Act of 2021, November 15, 2021, ``Bipartisan 
Infrastructure Law'', or ``BIL''. OST is requesting emergency approval 
due to the urgency of making the associated funds available to 
applicants that meet the eligibility requirements under the law. The 
continued viability of these funds is critical in supporting the 
transportation infrastructure needs across the United States. The 
statutory requirements of the BIL also establish a strict 90-day 
timeframe from the date of enactment to publish a Notice of Funding 
Opportunity.

DATES: Comments should be submitted as soon as possible upon 
publication of this notice in the Federal Register.

ADDRESSES: Comments and questions should be directed to the Office of 
Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), Attn: OST OMB Desk Officer, 
725 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20503. Comments and questions about 
the ICR identified below may be transmitted electronically to OIRA at 
[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Information related to this ICR, 
including applicable supporting documentation may be obtained by 
contacting John Augustine, Office of Infrastructure Finance and 
Innovation in the office of the Under Secretary for Transportation 
Policy (OST-P-40), W84-306, Department of Transportation, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590, (202) 366-5437.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 
U.S.C. chapter 35; as amended) and 5 CFR part 1320 require each Federal 
agency to obtain OMB approval to initiate an information collection 
activity. DOT is seeking OMB approval for the following DOT information 
collection activity:
    OMB Control Number: 2105-XXXX.
    Title: National Infrastructure Project Assistance Program.
    Form Numbers: New Collection.
    Type of Review: Emergency information collection request.
    Expected Number of Respondents: 100.
    Frequency: One-time application, to be followed by grant agreement 
execution, reimbursement of funds, and project closeout.
    Estimated Average Burden per Response: 100 (application submission, 
grant agreement execution, project management, and project evaluation/
reporting).
    Estimated Total Annual Burden: 10,000.
    Abstract: On November 15, 2021 the Infrastructure Investment and 
Jobs Act of 2021 (Pub. L. 117-58) ``Bipartisan Infrastructure Law 
(BIL)'' was enacted. Section 6701 established the National 
Infrastructure Project Assistance Program, to provide capital 
investments in surface transportation infrastructure that will have a 
significant local or regional impact.

Application Stage

    In order to be considered to receive a grant, a project sponsor 
must submit an application to OST containing a project narrative, as 
detailed in the Notice of Funding Opportunity. The project narrative 
should include the information necessary for the

[[Page 1478]]

Department to determine that the project satisfies eligibility 
requirements as warranted by law.
    The Department will receive applications and reports electronically 
via email and via websites from grant awardees upon approval from OMB. 
In order to minimize the burden on applicants, OMB approved standard 
forms are being used to collect information where possible. Such 
standard forms include the Application for Federal Assistance (SF-424), 
available online at https://apply07.grants.gov/apply/forms/sample/SF424_2_1-V2.1.pdf, and the post-award Federal Financial Reports form 
(SF-425), available online at https://apply07.grants.gov/apply/forms/sample/SF425_2_0-V2.0.pdf.
    All information submitted as part of or in support of any 
application shall use publicly available data or data that can be made 
public. If the application includes information the applicant considers 
to be a trade secret or confidential commercial or financial 
information, the applicant 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. DOT protects such 
information from disclosure to the extent allowed under applicable law. 
In the event DOT receives a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request 
for the information, DOT will follow the procedures described in its 
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. This grant program is voluntary. No stakeholder 
is required to participate. However, participating stakeholders will be 
expected to provide the following information.
    The Department will collect the following information:
     Legal name of the applicant (i.e., the legal name of the 
business entity), as well as any other identities under which the 
applicant may be doing business.
     Address, telephone, and email contact information for the 
applicant.
     Name and title of the authorized representative of the 
applicant (who will attest to the required certifications).
     DOT may also require the identity of external parties 
involved in preparation of the application, who may be assisting the 
applicant that is applying for assistance under this program.
     The specific statutory criteria that the applicant meets 
for eligibility under this program.
    [cir] The statute defines eligible applicants to include States, 
the District of Columbia; the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; the 
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands; the United States Virgin 
Islands; American Samoa; and, any other territory or possession of the 
United States; a unit of local government; a metropolitan planning 
organization; a unit of local government; a political subdivision of a 
State; a special purpose district or public authority with a 
transportation function, including a port authority; a Tribal 
government or a consortium of Tribal governments; a partnership between 
Amtrak and 1 or more entities described above; and a group of entities 
described above.
    [cir] The statute defines eligible projects to include:
    (A) A highway or bridge project carried out on: (i) The National 
Multimodal Freight Network established under section 70103; (ii) the 
National Highway Freight Network established under section 167 of title 
23; or (iii) the National Highway System (as defined in section 101(a) 
of title 23);
    (B) a freight intermodal (including public ports) or freight rail 
project that provides a public benefit;
    (C) a railway-highway grade separation or elimination project;
    (D) an intercity passenger rail project;
    (E) a public transportation project that is: (i) Eligible for 
assistance under chapter 53; and (ii) part of a project described in 
any of subparagraphs (A) through (D); or
    (F) a grouping, combination, or program of interrelated, connected, 
or dependent projects of any of the projects described in subparagraphs 
(A) through (E); and the eligible project costs of which are: (A) 
Reasonably anticipated to equal or exceed $500,000,000; or (B) for any 
project funded by the set-aside under subsection (m)(2): (i) More than 
$100,000,000; but (ii) less than $500,000,000.
     The specific statutory criteria for the applicant's 
location:
    [cir] Whether the applicant is located in an urban or rural area, 
as defined by the statute and outlined in the Notice of Funding 
Opportunity. This information and supporting documentation will be 
required to ensure geographical diversity, and a balance between rural 
and urban communities.
    [cir] Whether the applicant is located in an area of persistent 
poverty and/or a historically disadvantaged community.
     A narrative description of how the project aligns with the 
program criteria.
     Criteria include the extent to which the project: Supports 
achieving a state of good repair; the level of benefits the project is 
expected to generate; the benefits as compared to the costs; the number 
of persons or volume of freight supported by the project; national and 
regional economic benefits; as well as additional considerations, 
including: Contributions to geographical diversity the including a 
balance between the needs of urban/rural areas; whether multiple states 
would benefit from a project; whether, and the degree to which, a 
project uses: Construction materials/approaches that have: Demonstrated 
GHG reductions, and a reduced the need for maintenance of other 
projects; technologies that will allow for future connectivity and 
automation; whether a project benefits: A historically disadvantaged 
community or population or an area or persistent poverty; whether a 
project benefits users of multiple modes, including: Pedestrians, 
bicyclists, and users of non-vehicular rail and public transportation, 
including intercity and commuter rail; whether a project improves 
connectivity between modes of transportation moving persons or goods 
nationally or regionally.
     A detailed project budget, including the grant request 
amount, other Federal funds, and non-Federal contributions. DOT 
requires this information to calculate the cost share requirements 
outlined in statute. Applicants will be required to provide supporting 
documentation in sufficient detail to describe the project cost 
breakdown.
     A plan for the collection and analysis of data to 
identify: The impacts of the project; and the accuracy of any forecast 
prepared during the development phase of the project and included in 
the grant application.
     Other identification numbers, such as their Data Universal 
Numbering System (DUNS) number, Unique Entity Identifier under 2 CFR 
part 25, etc. All applicants will be required to have pre-registered 
with the System for Award Management (SAM) at https://sam.gov/SAM/.

Grant Agreement Stage

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    The grant agreement is an agreement between DOT and the recipient. 
In the grant agreement, the recipient must describe the project that 
DOT agreed to fund, which is typically the project that was described 
in the application or a reduced-scope version of that project. The 
grant agreement must also include a detailed breakdown of the project 
schedule and a budget listing all major activities that will be 
completed as part of the project.

Project Management Stage

    The reporting requirements under this stage are necessary to ensure 
the proper and timely expenditure of federal funds within the scope of 
the approved project. The requirements comply with the Common Grant 
Rule, and are also included in sections of the grant agreement. During 
the project management stage, the grantee will complete Quarterly 
Progress and Monitoring Reports to ensure that the project budget and 
schedule will be maintained to the maximum extent possible, that the 
project will be completed with the highest degree of quality, and that 
compliance with Federal regulations will be met. The substantive 
requirements of the report include: The project's overall status; 
project significant activities and issues; action items/outstanding 
issues; project scope overview; project schedule; project cost; an SF-
425 Federal Financial Report; and certifications. This reporting 
requirement will greatly reduce the need for on-site visits by staff.

Project Evaluation Stage

    The reporting requirement under this stage is necessary to assess 
the long-term impact of the project by comparing the baseline data 
provided in the data collection plan as required in the application to 
project data collected during the five (5) years after project 
completion. This electronic spreadsheet report is collected once, at 
least five (5) years after project completion from grantees to help 
measure the effectiveness of the grants as a program. Information 
provided will allow the Government to analyze project performance.

    Authority: The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C. 
chapter 35, as amended; and 49 CFR 1:48.

    Issued in Washington, DC.
John Augustine,
Director, Office of Infrastructure Finance and Innovation, Office of 
the Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2022-00334 Filed 1-10-22; 8:45 am]
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