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Rural and Tribal Assistance Pilot Program - FY 2023

Agency: U.S. Department of Transportation
CFDA: 20.943
Federal FON: DOT-OST-2023-0097
Office: Office of the Secretary Build America Bureau
Multipart Grant: No
Next Due: Rolling
Solicitation Date: 06/15/2023
   
Match Required: No
Actual Funds: $3,400,000 (Confirmed)
Summary:

The purpose of this program is to provide early-stage development assistance for rural and tribal transportation infrastructure projects that are reasonably expected to be eligible for certain U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) credit and grant programs. Program funds will support hiring of staff or the procurement of expert firms to provide financial, technical, and legal assistance; assistance with development-phase activities; and information regarding innovative financing best practices and case studies. Eligible activities may include:

  • Financial services:
    • Revenue forecasting
    • Economic assessments and cost/benefit analyses
    • Value for money analyses and procurement options
  • Technical services:
    • Project planning
    • Feasibility studies
    • Environmental review and permitting
  • Legal services:
    • Statutory and regulatory framework analyses
    • Drafting and negotiation of concession agreements
    • Drafting and negotiation of interagency agreements

Refer to page 3 of the NOFA file for additional eligible activities.

Projects must be reasonably expected to be eligible for any one or more of the following funding agency programs:

  • Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA)
  • Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing (RRIF)
  • Nationally Significant Freight and Highway Projects Program (INFRA)
  • Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE)
  • National Infrastructure Project Assistance Program (Mega)
  • National Culvert Removal, Replacement, and Restoration Grant Program

There is no requirement for award recipients to apply for other funding programs in the future.

Applicants are strongly encouraged to reflect the funding agency's strategic goals of safety, economic strength and global competitiveness, equity, climate and sustainability, transformation, and organizational excellence in their projects.

Applicants that include consideration of the extent to which the proposed project may address the unique challenges rural and tribal communities face relative to the funding agency's strategic goals are also strongly encouraged.

An optional webinar is scheduled for this program. In addition, optional information sessions are expected to be scheduled for this program. Refer to the Application section for details.

Last Updated: December 20, 2024

Eligibility Notes:

Eligible applicants are:

  • Rural units of local government or political subdivisions located outside of an urbanized area with a population of more than 150,000 residents, as determined by the U.S. Census Bureau
  • States
  • Federally recognized tribes
  • The Department of Hawaiian Home Lands

Projects undertaken by states must be in an area located outside of an urbanized area with a population of more than 150,000 residents, as determined by the U.S. Census Bureau.

Applicants may submit a maximum of three applications for this program. A separate application must be submitted for each proposed project.

FY 2023 award recipients include:

  • City of Independence (OR)
  • Contra Costa County (CA)
  • City of Blair (NE)
  • Nulato Village (AK)
  • Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians (MI)

Refer to the Award file for additional information regarding FY 2023 award recipients.

Eligible Applicants:
Local Government
Native American Tribe
State Government
Application Notes:

Applications will be accepted on a first-come, first-served rolling basis beginning at 2:00 p.m. ET on August 14, 2023, and ending on September 28, 2023.

Applications must be submitted online at transportation.gov/buildamerica. Emailed, mailed, or faxed applications will not be accepted.

Applications must include:

  • Applicant information
  • Eligibility
  • Project information:
    • Project title
    • Project location (100 words max)
    • Project description (500 words max)
  • Federal debt delinquency
  • Appropriateness of services requested (400 words max)
  • Viability of services requested (400 words max)
  • Certification and signature

The following are required in order to submit an application:

  • Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number
  • SAM (System for Award Management) registration

Applicants may obtain a UEI number and verify or renew SAM registration status at www.ecivis.com/sam.

An optional webinar will be held on:

June 15, 2023
3:00 p.m. ET
Registration: zoomgov.com

Applicants requiring any accommodations, translations, or other needs for the webinar should contact the program staff, using the information provided in the Contact section, by June 13, 2023.

Optional information sessions are expected to be scheduled for this program before the application window opens. Details will be posted online at transportation.gov/buildamerica.

Applications will be evaluated according to the following criteria:

  • Appropriateness of services requested: whether and to what extent the proposed tasks will materially advance the overall project identified in the application
  • Viability of grant funds requested: whether and to what extent the funding package is likely to result in fully funding and completing the specified tasks while also providing the deliverables necessary to materially advance the projects

Refer to the NOFA, FedRegSolicitation, AppTemplate, and WebinarPresentation files for additional application information.

Match Required: No
Actual Funds: $3,400,000 (Confirmed)
Match Notes:

Matching funds are not required for this program; however, applicants should detail any amount of matching funds in the application.

Funding Notes:

A total of $3.4 million is available to support awards through this program. Awards are expected to range from $150,000 up to the statutory limit of $320,000 for FY 2022 funds or $360,000 for FY 2023 funds.

A total of $1.6 million of program funds consisting of $800,000 from each fiscal year will be set aside for awards to tribal entities.

No more than 20 percent of available funds for a single fiscal year will be awarded for projects in a single state.

Funds will be provided on a reimbursement basis.

Award notifications will be provided no later than 60 days after the date the completed application was received.

Funds may not be used for pre-award costs, unless prior authorization is granted in writing by the funding agency.

Funds may not be used for construction costs.

For FY 2023, a total of $3.4 million was distributed via 13 awards ranging from $40,000 to $320,000 through this program. Refer to the Award file for details.

Contacts:

Program Staff
RuralandTribalTA@dot.gov

Susan Wilson
(202) 366-0765

Agency Address
U.S. Department of Transportation
Build America Bureau
1200 New Jersey Ave., SE
Room W12-426
Washington, D.C. 20590

Contact Notes:

Questions should be directed to the program contacts provided. Answers to frequently asked questions will be posted online at transportation.gov/buildamerica.

Applications must be submitted online at transportation.gov/buildamerica.

The agency address provided is for reference purposes only.

Files:
Other Pre-Award File: US16912_WebinarPresentation_FY2023.pdf (3.6 Mb)
Other Pre-Award File: US16912_AppTemplate_FY2023.pdf (165.7 Kb)
NOFA File: US16912_NOFA_FY2023.pdf (337.8 Kb)
Other Pre-Award File: US16912_FedRegSolicitation_FY2023.pdf (238.1 Kb)
Other Pre-Award File: US16912_Correction_FY2023.pdf (200.4 Kb)
Other Pre-Award File: US16912_FAQ_FY2023.pdf (207.5 Kb)
Award File: US16912_Award_FY2023.pdf (192.5 Kb)
File Notes:

The NOFA file contains the full solicitation for this program. The WebinarPresentation file contains slides from a webinar held for this program on June 15, 2023. The AppTemplate file contains a sample of the online application and should be used for reference purposes only. The FedRegSolicitation file contains an alternate version of the solicitation as it appears in the U.S. Federal Register. The Correction file contains corrections to the Federal Register solicitation for this program, including a revised application period end date. The FAQ file contains a list of answers to frequently asked questions regarding this program. The Award file contains information regarding FY 2023 award recipients.

December 20, 2024
Beginning in FY 2024, this program can be found in eCivis Grants Network as US16912A and US16912B.

September 16, 2024
Information regarding awards through this program has been released and attached as the Award file. A sample of award recipients has been added to the Eligibility section, and a brief summary of the awards has been added to the Financial section.

July 14, 2023
A list of answers to frequently asked questions regarding this program has been released and attached as the FAQ file. The Financial section has been updated accordingly.

July 12, 2023
A list of answers to frequently asked questions regarding this program has been released and attached as the FAQ file.

June 27, 2023
Corrections to the Federal Register solicitation for this program, including a revised application period end date, have been released and attached as the Correction file. The Application section had been updated accordingly.

June 16, 2023
Full solicitation information for this program has been released and attached as the NOFA file. All sections have been updated accordingly.

Grant Keywords
BIL, VFM, DOT, USDOT, Build American Bureau, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, financing, project delivery, finance method, financing method, state, state government, tribe, tribal, tribal government, Native American tribe, Indian tribe, local government, legal advisor, technical advisor, financial advisor, infrastructure, infrastructure project, feasibility study, feasibility studies, project planning, revenue forecast, revenue forecasting, financing option, preliminary engineering, engineering, design work, environmental review, economic assessment, cost benefit analysis, cost benefit analyses, public benefits study, public benefits studies, statutory framework analysis, regulatory framework analysis, statutory framework analyses, regulatory framework analyses, value for money study, value for money studies, VFM study, VFM studies, private finance, private financing, development, Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, unit of local government, political subdivision, feasibility analysis, value for money analysis, interagency agreement, concession agreement, negotiate, negotiation, public engagement, property development feasibility analysis, land use, property development, land use feasibility analysis, transportation infrastructure rural community, rural communities, tribal community, tribal communities, TIFIA, RRIF, INFRA, RAISE, Mega, National Culvert Removal Replacement and Restoration Grant Program, federally recognized tribe, federally recognized Indian tribe, Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, IIJA
Grant Categories
Community Development
Rural Issues
Transportation