FY13 Discretionary Funding Opportunity: Low or No Emission Vehicle Deployment Program (LoNo) Program, 1668-1672 [2014-00134]

Agencies

• Federal Transit Administration
• DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 6 (Thursday, January 9, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 1668-1672]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-00134]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Transit Administration


FY13 Discretionary Funding Opportunity: Low or No Emission 
Vehicle Deployment Program (LoNo) Program

AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration (FTA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice for Request for Proposals (RFP).

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SUMMARY: The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announces the 
availability of $24.9 million of Fiscal Year 2013 funds for the 
deployment of low or no emission transit buses. Of that amount, $21.6 
million is available for buses and $3.3 million is available for 
supporting facilities and related equipment. If additional funding is 
appropriated for this program in FY 2014, FTA may, at its discretion, 
also make those funds available under this announcement.

DATES: Complete proposals must be submitted electronically through the 
GRANTS.GOV ``APPLY'' function by March 10, 2014. Prospective applicants 
should initiate the process by registering on the GRANTS.GOV Web site 
promptly to ensure completion of the application process before the 
submission deadline. Instructions for applying can be found on FTA's 
Web site at https://www.fta.dot.gov/grants/13077.html and in the 
``FIND'' module of GRANTS.GOV. Mail and fax submissions will not be 
accepted.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sean Ricketson, FTA Office of Research 
Demonstration and Innovation, 202-366-6678 or sean.ricketson@dot.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Table of Contents

A. Program Authority
B. Program Purpose
C. Eligible Areas
D. Eligible Recipients and Applicants
E. Eligible Subrecipients
F. Eligible Projects
G. Eligible Vehicles
H. Cost Sharing
I. Project Requirements and Considerations
J. How To Apply
K. Application Content
L. Proposal Evaluation Criteria
M. Review and Selection
N. Award Information
Appendix--Registering in GRANTS.GOV

A. Program Authority

    The Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21), 
Public Law 112-141, July 6, 2012, amended 49 U.S.C. 5312 to add a new 
paragraph (d)(5) authorizing FTA to make grants to finance eligible 
projects under the ``Low or No Emission Vehicle Deployment Program'' 
(LoNo Program).
    The Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2013, 
(also referred to as the Full Year Continuing Appropriations Act, 2013) 
Public Law 113-6, March 26, 2013, has made available $24.9 million in 
FY 2013 (after sequestration) to carry out the LoNo Program. Of that 
amount, $21.6 million is available for buses and $3.3 million is 
available for supporting facilities and related equipment. Given that 
projects must be competitively selected pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 
5312(d)(5)(E), if additional funding is appropriated for this program 
in FY 2014, FTA may, at its discretion, apply those funds to either 
scale up selections made under this announcement, or to fund 
meritorious proposals that were not selected for lack of FY 2013 
funding.

B. Program Purpose

    The LoNo Program provides funding for transit agencies for capital 
acquisitions and leases of zero emission and low-emission transit 
buses, including acquisition, construction, and leasing of required 
supporting facilities such as recharging, refueling, and maintenance 
facilities.
    The main purpose of the LoNo Program is to deploy the cleanest and 
most energy efficient U.S.-made transit buses that have been largely 
proven in testing and demonstrations but are not yet widely deployed in 
transit fleets. The LoNo Program is a capital program focused on 
deploying new production vehicles that are market-ready or near market-
ready. It is not a program for designing and developing prototypes. The 
program gives priority consideration to the deployment of buses with 
the lowest energy consumption and least harmful emissions, including 
direct carbon emissions.

C. Eligible Areas

    An Eligible Area is defined under section 5312(d)(5)(A)(i) as an 
area that is:
    1. Designated as a nonattainment area for ozone or carbon monoxide 
under section 107(d) of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7407(d)); or
    2. A maintenance area, as defined in section 5303, for ozone or 
carbon monoxide.

D. Eligible Recipients and Applicants

    Eligible Recipients and Applicants are:
    1. A recipient for an eligible area and designated, in accordance 
with the planning process under section 5303 and 5304, by a Governor of 
a State, responsible local officials, and publicly owned operators of 
public transportation, to receive and apportion amounts under section 
5336 to urbanized areas of 200,000 or more in population; or
    2. A State, for an urbanized area in which an ``eligible area'' as 
defined under section 5312(d)(5)(A)(i) is located that also has a 
population under 200,000 individuals, as determined by the Bureau of 
the Census.

E. Eligible Subrecipients

    Eligible subrecipients are:
    1. Public Transportation Providers
    2. A project team member identified in the proposal and deemed a 
``Key Party'' by FTA, including consultants, manufacturers, vendors, 
systems integrators and facilities providers.

F. Eligible Projects

    The following projects are eligible for funding, in accordance with 
section 5312(d)(5)(A)(ii):
    1. Acquiring or leasing low or no emission transit buses;
    2. Constructing or leasing facilities and related equipment for low 
or no emission transit buses;
    3. Constructing new public transportation facilities to accommodate 
low or no emission transit buses; or,
    4. Rehabilitating or improving existing public transportation 
facilities to accommodate low or no emission transit buses.

G. Eligible Vehicles

    To be eligible, vehicles must be production transit buses used to 
provide public transportation and meet either the zero emission bus, or 
the low emission bus definition below.
    For the purposes of this solicitation, a zero-emission transit bus 
is defined as

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a bus that produces no direct carbon emissions and no particulate 
matter emissions under any and all possible operational modes and 
conditions. A hydrogen fuel-cell bus qualifies as a zero-emission bus. 
A battery-electric bus qualifies as a zero-emission transit bus. A zero 
emission bus and a no emission bus are the same.
    For the purposes of this solicitation, a low emission bus is 
defined as any transit bus that is powered by an engine that produces 
lower non-methane hydrocarbons (NMHC) and oxides of nitrogen 
(NOX) than are legally permitted under EPA's engine 
standards at 49 CFR part 86.

H. Cost Sharing

    FTA has determined that all eligible expenses under this program 
are attributable for purposes of complying with the Clean Air Act. 
Therefore under the provisions of 49 U.S.C. 5323(i) the Federal 
Government's participation in the costs of leasing or acquiring a 
transit bus financed under the LoNo Program is limited to 85 percent of 
the total transit bus cost. The proposer may seek a lower Federal 
contribution.
    Further, the Federal Government's participation in the cost of 
leasing or acquiring transit bus related equipment and facilities under 
the LoNo Program is limited to 90 percent of the net project cost of 
the equipment or facilities attributable to compliance with the Clean 
Air Act. The Federal Share is 90 percent for these itemized items and 
80 percent for the remainder. Again, the proposer may seek a lower 
Federal contribution.
    Therefore, at a minimum, the proposer must provide at least 15 
percent of the cost of all transit bus acquisitions and 10 percent of 
the cost for all related equipment and facilities.

I. Project Requirements and Considerations

1. Priority Consideration

    To meet the requirements of section 5312(d)(5)(F), as amended by 
MAP-21, priority consideration will be given to projects that have the 
greatest reduction in energy consumption and harmful emissions, 
including direct carbon emissions, when compared to standard buses or 
other low or no emission buses. A zero-emission bus project, for 
example, will receive priority consideration over a project that 
proposes buses that produce some level of emissions.

2. Minimum Project Size

    Proposals should result in the deployment of at least five (5) new 
transit buses per location. Buses must be largely identical. If 
possible, FTA asks that proposals be scalable upwards in increments of 
1 or 2 transit buses so FTA can allocate all available funding under 
the LoNo Program, including FY 2014 funds if these become available and 
FTA elects to apply them to proposals received under this announcement.

3. Incremental Costs

    The LoNo Program has limited funds. In order to maximize LoNo 
Program impact, FTA seeks to build on existing transit bus 
procurements, where possible. The LoNo Program strongly encourages 
proposals that leverage other funds such that LoNo Program funds are 
used to cover only the incremental cost of procuring the proposed 
transit bus model above that of a more conventional higher-emission 
transit bus.

4. Leadership and Commitment

    Deploying new technology presents challenges that require 
leadership and commitment to overcome. FTA seeks both prospective and 
existing operators of clean technology buses who can demonstrate the 
technical capacity and commitment required for sustained successful 
deployments. Transit operators who are already industry leaders should 
reiterate their commitment to supporting and deploying the cleanest and 
most energy efficient buses available. Transit agencies new to clean 
bus technology should highlight their technical capacity and commitment 
for applying the resources necessary for success. All proposals should 
describe how the proposed project fits with long term goals of creating 
and deploying a zero-emission bus fleet.

5. Project Teams

    FTA prefers proposals that identify project teams, including 
transit agencies/operators, bus manufacturers, and facilities 
providers, as well as systems integrators and project management 
consultants, if any. FTA considers the competitive nature of proposal 
selection to constitute adequate competition for the purpose of 
satisfying third party contracting requirements. This approach will 
enable FTA to select a portfolio of projects that can be implemented 
with the greatest chance of success in the best interest of the Federal 
Government.
    Further, FTA reserves the right to name any or all proposed team 
members as a ``Key Party'' and to make any award conditional upon the 
participation of the ``Key Party.'' A ``Key Party'' is essential to the 
project as approved by FTA and, is, therefore, eligible for a 
noncompetitive award by the project sponsor to provide the goods or 
services described in the proposal. Participation by members of the 
``Key Party'' on a selected project may not later be substituted 
without FTA's approval.
    FTA encourages the use of experienced project management 
consultants on project teams especially if the transit operator 
involved lacks experience with the technology being proposed. In the 
event that an applicant or transit agency has a pending procurement or 
an open procurement for the same type of transit bus that qualifies 
under this NOFA and the agency wishes to expand the procurement through 
the LoNo Program, FTA recognizes that identifying all project team 
members could either contradict or delay the procurement process. 
Therefore, identifying all project team members is not required. 
Applicants in this or similar situations are strongly encouraged to 
apply and in such case the lack of identified team members will not be 
penalized by FTA. Instead, the applicant should cite the procurement as 
evidence of ongoing interest and commitment. This clarification applies 
to procurements of vehicles that qualify under this NOFA.

6. Bus Testing

    Transit buses proposed for deployment under the LoNo Program must 
complete current FTA bus testing for production transit buses pursuant 
to 49 U.S.C. 5318. The LoNo Program is not a platform for the 
development of prototypes.

7. Buy America

    All transit buses and related infrastructure and facilities under 
the LoNo Program must be Buy-America compliant pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 
5323(j) and its implementing regulations. FTA will not consider any Buy 
America waivers under the LoNo Program.

8. Domestic Content

    To maximize the benefit to domestic manufacturing, FTA seeks 
proposals that exceed domestic content requirements for the proposed 
vehicles. If the proposal builds on an existing procurement, the 
proposer may indicate whether the procurement competition rewards 
domestic content levels that exceed minimum Buy America requirements.

9. Documented Success

    FTA seeks transit bus models that have documented successful 
performance in transit revenue service.

[[Page 1670]]

10. FTA Project Administration

    Successful proposals will be awarded through the FTA Transportation 
Electronic Award and Management (TEAM) System as Cooperative Agreements 
or Grant Agreements, at FTA's discretion. Proposals that expand 
existing procurements will likely be handled consistently with the 
agreement supporting the existing procurement. The FTA Research Office, 
in consultation with the appropriate FTA Regional Office, will manage 
project agreements.

11. FTA Program and Project Evaluation Activity

    The legislation that created the LoNo Program requires FTA to 
evaluate all projects in the program. Therefore, the applicant must 
agree to participate and cooperate with FTA project evaluation 
activity. Evaluation activity that FTA expects applicants to perform 
includes collecting and providing raw vehicle and maintenance data, 
meeting with FTA evaluators on a quarterly basis, and providing 
evaluators access to the project site and to project team members, when 
requested by FTA. The FTA Research Office is sensitive to the 
importance of proprietary information and has a successful record of 
accommodating those concerns.

12. Eligible Expenses Prior to Award

    Funds under this NOFA cannot be used to reimburse projects for 
otherwise eligible expenses incurred prior to FTA award of a Grant 
Agreement or Cooperative Agreement unless FTA has issued a ``Letter of 
No Prejudice'' for the project before the expenses are incurred.

13. Grant Requirements

    Except as otherwise provided in this NOFA, grants or cooperative 
agreements are subject to the requirements of 49 U.S.C. 5307 as 
described in the latest FTA Circular 9030.1 for the Urbanized Area 
Formula Program.

J. How To Apply

    Project proposals must be submitted electronically through 
GRANTS.GOV by March 10, 2014. Mail and fax submissions will not be 
accepted. A complete proposal submission will consist of at least two 
files: (1) The SF424 Mandatory form (downloaded from GRANTS.GOV) and 
(2) the Applicant and Proposal Profile supplemental form for LoNo 
funding (Supplemental Form) found on GRANTS.GOV and the FTA Web site by 
clicking (or copying and pasting) the LoNo Program link at 
www.fta.dot.gov/grants/XXXXX.html [Supplemental Form is still being 
developed--link will be provided]. The Supplemental Form provides 
guidance and a consistent format for proposers to respond to the 
criteria outlined in this NOFA. Once completed, the Supplemental Form 
must be placed in the attachments section of the SF424 Mandatory Form. 
Proposers must use the Supplemental Form designated for the LoNo 
Program and attach it to the submission in GRANTS.GOV to successfully 
complete the application process. A proposal submission may contain 
additional supporting documentation as attachments. If an applicant 
elects to attach an additional proposal narrative, it must not exceed 
10 numbered pages. Submissions must be presentable. The use of non-
standard fonts, font sizing, and less than one-inch margins for the 
inclusion of extra information will create a perception of poor 
judgment.
    Within 48 hours after submitting an electronic application, the 
applicant should receive three email messages from GRANTS.GOV: (1) 
Confirmation of successful transmission to GRANTS.GOV, (2) confirmation 
of successful validation by GRANTS.GOV, and (3) confirmation of 
successful validation by FTA. If confirmations of successful validation 
are not received or a notice of failed validation or incomplete 
materials is received, the applicant must address the reason for the 
failed validation, as described in the email notice, and resubmit 
before the submission deadline. If making a resubmission for any 
reason, include all original attachments regardless of which 
attachments were updated and check the box on the supplemental form 
indicating this is a resubmission.
    FTA urges proposers to submit applications at least 72 hours prior 
to the due date to allow time to receive the validation messages and to 
correct any problems that may have caused a rejection notification. FTA 
will not accept submissions after the stated deadline. GRANTS.GOV 
scheduled maintenance and outage times are announced on the GRANTS.GOV 
Web site. Deadlines will not be extended due to scheduled Web site 
maintenance.
    Proposers are encouraged to begin the process of registration on 
the GRANTS.GOV site well in advance of the submission deadline. 
Registration is a multi-step process, which may take several weeks to 
complete before an application can be submitted. Registered proposers 
may still be required to take steps to keep their registration up to 
date before submissions can be made successfully: (1) Registration in 
the System for Award Management (SAM) is renewed annually; and, (2) 
persons making submissions on behalf of the Authorized Organization 
Representative (AOR) must be authorized in GRANTS.GOV by the AOR to 
make submissions. Instructions on the GRANTS.GOV registration process 
are provided in the Appendix.
    Applicants that submit multiple projects in one proposal must be 
sure to clearly define each project by completing a separate 
Supplemental Form for each project.
    Information such as proposer name, Federal amount requested, local 
match amount, description of areas served, etc. may be requested in 
varying degrees of detail on both the SF424 form and Supplemental Form. 
Proposers must fill in all fields unless stated otherwise on the forms. 
The Supplemental Form template supports pasting copied text from other 
documents; applicants should verify that pasted text is fully captured 
on the Supplemental Form and has not been truncated by the character 
limits built into the form. Proposers should use both the ``Check 
Package for Errors'' and the ``Validate Form'' validation buttons on 
both forms to check all required fields on the forms, and ensure that 
the federal and local amounts specified are consistent.

K. Application Content

    The SF424 Mandatory Form and the Supplemental Form will prompt 
applicants for the required information, including:
    1. Applicant name;
    2. Dun and Bradstreet (D&B) Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) 
number if available. (Note: If selected, applicant will be required to 
provide DUNS number prior to award);
    3. Key contact information (including contact name, address, email 
address, phone and fax number;
    4. Description of services provided by the agency, including areas 
served;
    5. Congressional district(s) where the deployment will take place;
    6. A list of project team organizational members, by organization 
name and address;
    7. A Letter of Commitment from each organizational member of the 
project team;
    8. A description of the technical, legal and financial capacity of 
the applicant and partners to carry out the proposed project;
    9. A description of the project and how it meets the program 
purpose, including any related projects funded under other sources;
    10. A description of the transit bus model(s) proposed, including 
propulsion type, operating ranges, recharging/refueling requirements, 
and

[[Page 1671]]

whether it qualifies as a zero-emission bus under this notice;
    11. A description of all greenhouse gas and criteria pollutants 
that may be emitted by the bus;
    12. A description of required support facilities and infrastructure 
in existence, being procured through other programs, and being proposed 
through this program;
    13. A project management plan;
    14. A line-item budget. The budget should be at least for the 
minimum 5 bus deployment and show the source of funds (requested under 
this NOFA, local share, other Federal (identify source));
    15. If the project can be scaled, a scaling plan;
    16. A project schedule outlining steps through completion, 
including significant milestones; and
    17. The proposed deployment location(s).

L. Proposal Evaluation Criteria

1. General Evaluation Criteria

    FTA desires a portfolio of projects that will deploy a significant 
number of the cleanest, most energy efficient transit buses. Buses that 
have been successfully demonstrated in revenue service but are not yet 
in wide use in U.S. transit agency fleets have the best chance for 
selection. Minor modifications or upgrades of earlier successful models 
are acceptable. FTA seeks to further reduce risk by selecting projects 
that include agencies or partners or teams with experience working with 
new bus technology. Transit agencies lacking experience should 
demonstrate its technical capacity to successfully deploy new clean bus 
technology. To maximize program impact, FTA seeks projects that 
leverage other sources of funding.

2. Project Evaluation Criteria

    (a) The likelihood the project will result in the successful 
deployment of at least five largely-identical qualified transit buses 
operating in a single geographic location;
    (b) The amount of projected emissions of the proposed transit bus 
model, including greenhouse gas and Criteria (EPA-regulated) emissions;
    (c) The extent to which the proposal leverages or expands a fleet 
of zero-emission transit buses;
    (d) The extent to which the proposal demonstrates an ongoing and 
long-term commitment to the deployment of a zero-emission bus fleet;
    (e) The extent to which the proposal identifies and demonstrates 
the technical capacity and commitment of agencies, partners or teams 
with expertise in the sustained successful deployment of similar 
projects or propulsion technologies;
    (f) The extent to which the proposed project is scalable upwards in 
increments of 1 or 2 transit buses.
    (g) The extent to which the proposal offers a method to use program 
funds to cover only the incremental cost of the proposed bus model over 
the cost of a transit bus with a more conventional propulsion system;
    (h) The extent to which the proposal identifies project teams, 
including transit agencies/operators, bus manufacturers, and facilities 
providers, as well as systems integrators, and project management 
consultants.
    (i) The extent to which the proposal builds on past or current 
Federally-funded research efforts;
    (j) The extent to which the proposal presents transit bus 
technology with existing documentation of successful revenue operation 
in a transit system;
    (k) The FTA Bus Testing report for the proposed transit buses; if 
transit bus testing is not complete, the demonstrated commitment to 
complete transit bus testing prior to bus delivery and acceptance;
    (l) The extent to which the proposal builds upon existing 
investments in charging or fueling infrastructure;
    (m) The effectiveness of the project in achieving impacts on 
general FTA objectives including:
    i. Safety
    ii. Fuel economy and energy efficiency
    iii. Adequate driving range (especially for buses that may have 
limited range, such as battery-electric).
    (n) National Applicability. The applicant should demonstrate the 
national applicability of the project, including whether the project 
could be replicated by other transit agencies regionally or nationally.
    (o) Domestic Content. The extent to which the buses proposed for 
acquisition exceed Buy-America domestic content requirements.
    (p) Project Management. The applicant must demonstrate the capacity 
to carry out the project through a project management plan that shows:
    i. The applicant is in a fundable status for the FTA grant award;
    ii. The applicant's project team has the technical capacity to 
carry out the project,
    iii. A viable project approach, budget, and schedule;
    iv. The applicant has the ability and commitment to collect 
information and document the results of the project as part of an FTA 
project evaluation effort;
    v. There are no outstanding legal, technical, or financial issues 
with the applicant that would make this a high-risk project; and,
    vi. The source(s) of local share and that the funds are available 
for prompt project implementation if selected.

M. Review and Selection

    A technical evaluation committee comprised of FTA staff and 
representatives of other collaborative government agencies will review 
project proposals against the described evaluation criteria. The 
technical evaluation committee reserves the right to evaluate proposals 
it receives and to seek clarification from any proposer about any 
statement that is made in a proposal that FTA finds ambiguous. FTA may 
also request additional documentation or information to be considered 
during the evaluation process. To provide the ability to evaluate 
technologies in a wide variety of conditions and locales, FTA may 
select projects to ensure geographic diversity among demonstrations 
under this NOFA.
    After the evaluation of all eligible proposals, the technical 
evaluation committee will provide project recommendations to the FTA 
Administrator. The FTA Administrator will determine the final list of 
project selections, and the amount of funding for each project.

N. Award Information

    To enhance the value of the portfolio of the projects to be 
implemented, FTA reserves the right to request an adjustment of the 
project scope and budget of any proposal selected for funding. Such 
adjustments shall not constitute a material alteration of any aspect of 
the proposal that influenced the proposal evaluation or decision to 
fund the project.
    If an application proposes a specific party(ies) to provide unique 
or innovative goods or services on a project, FTA reserves the right to 
name such party as a key party and to make any award conditional upon 
the participation of the key party. A key party is essential to the 
project as approved by FTA and is therefore eligible for a 
noncompetitive award by the project sponsor to provide the goods or 
services described in the application. A key party's participation on a 
selected project may not be substituted without FTA's approval.
    After FTA selects the successful proposals, successful applicants 
will apply for and FTA will award funding through FTA's current TEAM 
System. FTA's Office of Research, Demonstration, and Innovation (TRI), 
in consultation with the appropriate FTA

[[Page 1672]]

Regional Office, will manage Project Grant Agreements and Cooperative 
Agreements.
    Applicants must sign and submit current Certifications and 
Assurances before FTA may award funding under a Cooperative Agreement 
or Grant Agreement for a competitively selected project. If the 
applicant has already submitted the annual Certifications and 
Assurances for the fiscal year in which the award will be made in FTA's 
current TEAM System, they do not need to be resubmitted. The applicant 
assures that it will comply with all applicable Federal statutes, 
regulations, executive orders, FTA Circulars, and other Federal 
administrative requirements in carrying out any project supported by 
the FTA agreement. The applicant acknowledges that it is under a 
continuing obligation to comply with the terms and conditions of the 
agreement executed with FTA for its project. The applicant understands 
that Federal laws, regulations, policies, and administrative practices 
might be modified from time to time and may affect the implementation 
of the project. The applicant agrees that the most recent Federal 
requirements will apply to the project, unless FTA issues a written 
determination otherwise.

Peter Rogoff,
Administrator.

Appendix A--Registering in System for Award Management (SAM) and 
GRANTS.GOV

Registration in Brief

    Registration can take as little as 3-5 business days, but since 
there could be unexpected steps or delays (for example, if you need 
to obtain an Employer Identification Number), FTA recommends 
allowing ample time, up to several weeks, for completion of all 
steps.

Step 1: Obtain DUNS Number

    Same day. If requested by phone (1-866-705-5711) DUNS is 
provided immediately. If your organization does not have one, you 
will need to go to the Dun & Bradstreet Web site at https://fedgov.dnb.com/webform to obtain the number. *Information for 
Foreign Registrants. *Webform requests take 1-2 business days.

Step 2: Register With SAM

    Three to five business days or up to two weeks. If you already 
have a TIN, your SAM registration will take 3-5 business days to 
process. If you are applying for an EIN please allow up to two 
weeks. Ensure that your organization is registered with the System 
for Award Management (SAM). If your organization is not, an 
authorizing official of your organization must register.

Step 3: Username & Password

    Same day. Complete your AOR (Authorized Organization 
Representative) profile on Grants.gov and create your username and 
password. You will need to use your organization's DUNS Number to 
complete this step. https://apply07.grants.gov/apply/OrcRegister.

Step 4: AOR Authorization

    *Same day. The E-Business Point of Contact (E-Biz POC) at your 
organization must login to Grants.gov to confirm you as an 
Authorized Organization Representative (AOR). Please note that there 
can be more than one AOR for your organization. In some cases the E-
Biz POC is also the AOR for an organization. *Time depends on 
responsiveness of your E-Biz POC.

Step 5: Track AOR Status

    At any time, you can track your AOR status by logging in with 
your username and password. Login as an Applicant (enter your 
username & password you obtained in Step 3) using the following 
link: applicant--profile.jsp.

[FR Doc. 2014-00134 Filed 1-8-14; 8:45 am]
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