Application Notes:

Proposals must be received by 11:59 p.m. ET on April 25, 2024.

Proposals must be submitted online at www.ecivis.com/grants.gov. Proposals submitted via hard copy, fax, email, other means will not be accepted.

Proposals must include:

• SF 424
• Supplemental form
• Fleet transition plan (if applicable)
• Additional supporting information (optional):
  • Letters of support
  • Project budgets
  • Fleet status reports
  • Excerpts from relevant planning documents

Supplemental forms must be submitted in .pdf format.

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.

Optional webinars for this program are scheduled as follows:

General Session for All Applicants Webinar:
February 22, 2024
1:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. ET
Registration: usdot.zoomgov.com

Question-and-Answer (Q&A) Session for Rural and Tribal Applicants Webinar:
March 5, 2024
2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. ET
Registration: usdot.zoomgov.com

Proposals will be evaluated according to the following criteria:

• Demonstration of need
• Demonstration of benefits
• Planning and local or regional prioritization
• Local financial commitment
• Project implementation strategy
• Technical, legal, and financial capacity

Refer to pages 9-10 of the NOFA for information regarding additional prioritization criteria for this program.

Refer to the NOFA and SupplementalForm files for additional application information.

Match Notes:

Applicants must provide nonfederal cash and/or in-kind matching contributions, the amount of which will vary according to project type, as follows:

• Leasing or acquiring transit buses for purposes of complying with or maintaining compliance with the Clean Air Act (CAA) or the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): at least 15 percent of the net project cost
• Acquiring, installing, or constructing vehicle-related equipment or facilities for the purpose of complying with or maintaining compliance with the CAA or ADA: at least 10 percent of the net project cost

For all other projects, applicants must provide at least 20 percent of the project cost.

Eligible sources of match include:

• Cash from non-government 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 financing mechanisms
• Funds from an undistributed cash surplus
• Replacement or depreciation cash funds or reserves
• New capital
• In-kind contributions or transportation development credits

Other federal funds from non-U.S. Department of Transportation sources may only be used as match if the proposed project is eligible under the other federal program and the other federal program providing the matching funds expressly authorizes its funds to fulfill the match requirement of other federal programs.

Funding Notes:

A total of $390,045,823 is available to support awards through this program.

No single recipient will be awarded more than 10 percent of the total funding available through this program.

At least 15 percent of the total funding available through this program will be allocated to projects located in rural areas.

Awards will be made within 75 days after the application deadline.

Funds must be obligated within three fiscal years after the fiscal year in which awards are announced. Projects that can obligate funds within 12 months of award selection, and that can be implemented within a reasonable time frame, may be rated higher by the funding agency.

For projects related to zero-emission vehicles, 5 percent of the total requested award amount attributable to zero-emission project components must be used for workforce development retrain the existing workforce and develop the workforce of the future, including registered apprenticeships and other joint labor management training programs, as outlined in the applicant’s zero-emission transition plan, as well as supportive services, unless the applicant certifies that less funding is needed to carry out the zero-emission transition plan. These allocation amounts must be additional, not a take-down, from other eligible project expenses.

Up to 0.5 percent of the total requested award amount may be used for eligible workforce development activities. An additional 0.5 percent of the total requested award amount may be used for costs associated with training at the National Transit Institute.

The funding agency will grant award recipients the authority to incur pre-award costs beginning on the date of the award announcement.

Funds may not be used to support or oppose union organizing.

For FY 2024, a total of $1,497,553,559 was distributed via awards ranging from $131,168 to $99,499,531 through this program. For FY 2023, 47 awards ranging from $233,760 to $47 million were distributed. For FY 2022, a total of $551,366,311 was distributed via 50 awards ranging from $115,000 to $54 million. Refer to the Award file for details.

July 25, 2024
Information regarding awards through this program has been released and appended to 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.