The Ferguson Group Blog

Department of Transportation to Host Webinars on TIGER IV

For those of you who submitted your TIGER IV pre-applications on February 20^th, you may want to consider joining DOT’s series of webinars on the TIGER IV program prior to submitting your final application on March 19^th.

DOT hosted a similar webinar for the previous TIGER round and it was very informative. Registration will be limited, so hurry up and sign up today!! The first webinar session will be held on Thursday, March 1^st from 1:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. EST and will offer tips and best practices in application preparation. To sign up for this informative session click here.

The second webinar will be on Tuesday, March 6^th from 1:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. EST and will offer guidance in preparing and effective and accurate benefit-cost analysis. To sign up for DOT’s Benefit Cost Analysis Guidance Seminar click here.

Webinar participants will get the opportunity to ask questions, in order to strengthen their application. This is a great chance to ask the TIGER program experts any of those unanswered questions and to really get some insight into what DOT is looking for.

If you are unable to participate, make sure you reach out to us here and we can assist you with any of those unanswered questions. If you are a TFG client, make sure you turn to our TIGER IV toolkit for all the necessary information you need to move your project application to the top of the list.

House Moves Toward Shorter Transportation Authorization Bill

Until last week, the most commonly used word to describe progress on the House and Senate versions of the transportation authorization bill – currently known as SAFETEA-LU – was “stalemate.”   In the House, it was a problem finding funds to offset the non-Highway Trust Fund portion of its 5-year bill and, in the Senate, it was a struggle over the freight-related portion of its 2-year bill.
 
During the Presidents’ Day Recess, word leaked out that the House Leadership was beginning to see the virtues of a shorter bill akin to the Senate’s 2-year bill, which would make it easier to: (1) offset the non-trust fund portion of the bill and (2) find common ground when conferencing the bill with the Senate.
 
Another important development, of late, is the decision by the House to drop a proposal to strip Highway Trust Funds from the transit portion of the bill, which was of great concern to transit stakeholders around the nation.
 
All of these developments bode well for a deal being reached on the bill before the current extension expires on March 31.  Stay tuned.

- Bill Hanka, The Ferguson Group

COPS Hiring: A Second Chance!

If you applied for a COPS Hiring Grant last year, and were unsuccessful or didn’t receive the funding level you’d asked for, the Department of Justice wants to hear from you again. Don’t delay – between March 1st and March 22^nd you’ll need to update and resubmit your application from last year in order to be considered in this new FY2012 round of funding.  Before you do that, though, I wanted to make sure that you are aware of some changes to the program:

•Grants awards will cover up to 75 percent of the approved entry-level salary and benefits for three years for newly hired, full-time sworn officer positions or for rehired officers who have been laid off, or are scheduled to be laid off as a result of local budget cuts.  This is new -- a minimum 25 percent local cash match is required this year.  However, agencies will have an opportunity during the application update process to request a waiver of the local match requirement based on documented fiscal distress. While I hope that your community isn’t in fiscal distress, if it is, please don’t miss the chance to file for this waiver.

• Another important change this year is that if your agency is awarded funding for a new hire, the newly hired officer must be a military veteran who served on active duty for a period of at least 180 days, any part of which occurred on or after September 11, 2001. 

This round is not open to communities that were fully funded last year , so If you applied last year and weren’t successful, two pieces of good news: 

1.  You are among the only communities that can apply for the $111 million in available funding for the COPS hiring program this year.  

2. We’re here to help you improve your application, submit waiver match requests, build political support for your application, and secure the funds you’ll need to keep or get more police officers on your streets.

 

Building a Better Transit Grant Application

I just received word today that the FTA is going to give folks a chance to get the scoop on filing a successful application for their pending grant programs, so I jumped at the opportunity to sign up and be one of the 200 participants per session. These webinars are well done and may help you identify ways that you can improve your chances for success. Even better, when I plan with clients that we’re going to work together to apply (or reapply if unsuccessful in an earlier round) for a grant opportunity, I make sure that we have a chance to discuss their project with agency staff who may be in a position to give some helpful feedback. This allows us to shape the project to meet not only the grant’s requirements, but also to ensure that it hits on those buzzwords and policy priorities that aren’t always evident in the funding opportunity announcement.

Since the grant announcement is already on the streets, it’s too late to request one of those early conversations with FTA staff now, but I’ve found these agency webinars to be very helpful:

FTA to Host Webinar on the FY 2012 State of Good Repair Initiative, Bus Livability Initiative and Clean Fuels Grant Programs

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) will conduct two informational webinars on the Fiscal Year 2012 State of Good Repair Initiative, Bus Livability Initiative and Clean Fuels Grant Program funding opportunities. The webinars will be held on Wednesday, February 29th from 2:30-4:00 p.m. EST and Thursday, March 1st from 3:00-4:30 p.m. EST and will provide an overview of the grant programs, information on applicant and project eligibility, and a review of the criteria that will be used to select projects. Participants will also receive step-by-step instructions for completing the required forms and submitting their application in grants.gov. All Webinar Participants must pre-register by February 24th through the following link: FY 2012 Discretionary Webinars . Due to the limited number of available phone lines, registrations will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis for the first 200 registrants of each webinar session.

Sign up today and you may also be one of the lucky 200 per session. And if you aren’t, feel free to get in touch with me at [email protected] after the 29th and I’ll let you know what I learned!

Have you been successful in this or other FTA grants? Do you have any hints or best practices you’d be willing to share with your fellow local government leaders? If so, please share in the comments section.

- Posted by Amanda Wood, The Ferguson Group

President Obama Releases FY 2013 Budget Proposal

On Monday, February 13, President Obama released his proposed budget for the federal Fiscal Year (FY) 2013, which begins on October 1, 2012. When both discretionary spending and mandatory programs such as Social Security and Medicare are accounted for, the budget calls for approximately $3.8 trillion in spending for FY 2013. As the first budget released since the Budget Control Act of 2011 was passed last August, the President’s FY 2013 request adheres to the discretionary spending caps established by the legislation while incorporating many of the elements first included in his American Jobs Act proposal. As a result, the budget goes far beyond the scope of discretionary funding, also proposing significant changes to the tax code and mandatory spending programs that would increase tax revenue, decrease spending on health care, and reauthorize federal transportation programs.

The President’s budget calls for raising $1.5 trillion over 10 years in new tax revenue, much of which would be gained by allowing tax cuts enacted by President George W. Bush to expire for households earning over $250,000 a year and imposing new taxes on millionaires. This revenue will not only contribute to deficit reduction but also help offset the cost of several newly proposed expenditures, including extensions of the payroll tax cut and unemployment insurance through the end of 2012, and new tax incentives for domestic manufacturers that create jobs. The budget also includes more than $600 billion in mandatory spending cuts, including $360 billion from Medicare, Medicaid and other health programs, and calls for the passage of a six-year, $476 billion transportation authorization bill and an immediate investment of $50 billion in transportation infrastructure.

To view a complete overview of the President’s FY 2013 Budget, click here.

Acceleration of Spending of ARRA Funding – Waiver Request Deadline Approaching

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued Memorandum 11-34 on September 15, 2011 directing federal agencies to accelerate the spending of remaining Recovery Act funds.  Further, OMB directed agencies to reclaim all unspent funds as of September 30, 2013.  OMB stated the purpose of the directive is to promote further economic stimulus by spending remaining funding as quickly and efficiently as possible.

There is a waiver provision included in OMB M-11-34.  Federal agencies may request a waiver under certain circumstances, including situations where contractual commitments prevent adjusting the spending timeline, where a project must undergo a complex environmental review that cannot be completed within the timeframe, or where programs are long term by design.  Some federal agencies have already contacted grantees regarding the accelerated spending requirement. 

It is important to note that M-11-34 requires the federal agency – not the grantee – to apply for the waiver, and OMB directs agencies to request waivers sparingly and only due to compelling legal, policy, or operational challenges.  Waiver requests must be submitted to OMB by September 30, 2012.

The OMB Memorandum 11-34 (M-11-34) can be found here.

- Posted by Mike Miller, The Ferguson Group

Fuel and Electric Propulsion Costs Now An Eligible Use of Transit Funding Under FTA Section 5307 Program

Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Administrator Peter Rogoff has announced that Urbanized Area Formula Program (Section 5307) grantees will be able to use a portion of the funds already apportioned to them for Fiscal Year 2012 to reimburse fuel and electrical propulsion costs. Funding utilized for this purpose will require a 20% non-federal share.

FTA has put a cap on the amount that may be used under this new authority by all grantees collectively at $100 million.  It is important to note that this new initiative does not provide grantees with extra dollars for these expenses over and above their usual apportionment.  Rather, it will provide grantees with additional flexibility in how they may use their usual apportionments in 2012.  

Authority to use funding for these costs will be distributed by FTA only to grantees that indicate both the desire and ability to obligate this funding by the end of FY 2012. Interested grantees should submit a Statement of Interest detailing their intention to utilize this flexibility through the Grants.Gov website by Wednesday, February 15th. After receiving these Statements, FTA will utilize a formula to divide the $100 million in authority among those interested entities and announce how much each entity will be able to spend on fuel and electric propulsion costs no later than March 31st.

It is anticipated that if all Section 5307 recipients request to use a portion of their funds to reimburse fuel and electrical propulsion costs, each could expect to receive authorization to use at least 2.2% of their annual formula apportionment for this eligibility. This amount may be higher if some urbanized areas do not apply, or if some urbanized areas request an amount less than 2.2% of the annual apportionment.

FTA Announces More than $800 Million in Available Grants

Earlier this week, the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announced the availability of approximately $850 million in FY 2012 grant funding for bus and bus facility capital projects. Only direct recipients of FTA Section 5307 Urbanized Area funding, States, and Tribes are eligible to submit applications for this funding, although other local governments can implement a grant as a subrecipient of funding. Outlined below is a quick snapshot of the four discretionary grant programs currently available through FTA with these funds.

• State of Good Repair - $650 million in funding is available under this program for capital projects that will replace, rehabilitate and purchase buses and related equipment, and to construct or rehabilitate bus-related facilities. Emphasis is placed upon projects that will replace or rehabilitate buses and facilities that are past their useful life. The required local match for State of Good Repair grants ranges between 10-20%, with lower matches required for project elements that meet certain criteria. All applications for State of Good Repair funding must be submitted by March 22nd.

• Bus Livability - $125 million is available under this program, which funds the same types of projects as funded under State of Good Repair, as well as facility expansion and bike facility projects. This program also places a greater emphasis on projects that add new transit service or access, rather than simply replace outdated buses, equipment or facilities. In addition, projects need to be strongly aligned with the Partnership for Sustainable Communities' Livability Principles. The required local match for Bus Livability grants ranges between 10-20% and applications are due on March 29th.

• Clean Fuels - $51.5 million is available under this program for the purchase or leasing of clean fuel buses, the construction of leasing of clean fuel bus facilities or electrical recharging facilities, and projects that demonstrate emerging clean fuel or electric bus technologies. Although the program primarily funds projects in non-attainment or maintenance areas under the National Ambient Air Quality Standards for ozone and carbon monoxide, this year FTA will also consider applications from applicants in attainment areas. The average local matching requirement for Clean Fuel grants is 17%, with 10% available on specific project components. Grant applications are due on April 5th.

• Veterans Transportation and Community Living Initiative - $30 million is available under this program for capital bus and bus facility projects that create, expand or increase access to local One-Call/One-Click Transportation Resource Centers. One-Call/One-Click Centers provide a single location for veterans, service members, military families, persons with disabilities and other disadvantaged populations to access rides and other transportation options. In addition there is limited funding available for research and demonstration costs associated with the implementation of an eligible project. Capital grants will require a 20% local match while research funding requires no match. Grant applications are due on April 19th.

To view the Federal Register notice that provides additional information about the first three programs, click here. To obtain more information about the Veterans Transportation and Community Living Initiative, click here.

Updates from FEMA on Fire and Emergency Response Grant Funding

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) continues to announce the FY 2011 Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) recipients. To view the most recent AFG awards, click here. FEMA will continue to announce awards on a weekly basis until all the FY 2011 funds have been exhausted. To date, the FY 2011 awards announced amount to a total of $185,533,305. There was approximately $380 million available under this program.

If you applied for an FY 2011 AFG grant and were unsuccessful, it is never too late to begin gearing up for the next round. FEMA is currently developing the FY 2012 AFG grant guidance, and expects to open that application period in April/May 2012. Unsuccessful applicants will want to arrange a debrief with FEMA to find out what their application shortfalls were and use those recommendations to improve for the FY 2012 round.

As a reminder, the FY 2011 Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant Program is now open. FEMA will accept applications until February 24^th. Click here for a copy of the SAFER grant guidance. There is expected to be a separate round of applications for FY 2012 SAFER funding in September, although this date remains tentative.

FEMA has completed the draft guidance for the FY 2011 Fire Prevention and Safety (F&PS) grants and the application guidance is currently under final review. As soon as the review period is complete, FEMA will release the FP&S grant guidance. FEMA expects to open the FY 2011 F&PS grant application period in March 2012. There is also expected to be a second round of FP&S grants solicited this year to expend FY 2012 funding. FEMA is expected to release guidance on this round in October, although this date is very tentative.

Stay tuned to the blog for further updates on these FEMA grant programs.

 

Fiscal Year 2012 Spending Plans for Corps of Engineers and Bureau of Reclamation

Both the Bureau of Reclamation and the Corps of Engineers received additional discretionary funds in the final fiscal year 2012 Energy and Water Development appropriations bill and were directed by Congress to prepare work plans detailing how the additional funds are to be spent. 

The Bureau of Reclamation received an additional $50 million, including $30 million for rural water projects, $5 million for fish screen and fish passage projects, $6 million for water conservation and delivery studies, projects and activities, and $5 million for facilities operation, maintenance and rehabilitation.  Reclamation’s spending plan, which was due on January 23^rd, has now been released and can be found here.

The Corps of Engineers received an additional $34,740,000 million for Investigations, $253,033,000 for Construction, $46,037,000 for Mississippi River and Tributaries, and $173,409,000 for Operation and Maintenance.  The Corps has released its spending plan, which can be found here.

- Bob Schmidt, The Ferguson Group