Funding Opportunity for the Department of Transportation's Nationally Significant Federal Lands and Tribal Projects Program for Fiscal Year 2018, 50436-50440 [2018-21826]

Agencies

• Federal Highway Administration
• DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 194 (Friday, October 5, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 50436-50440]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-21826]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Highway Administration


Funding Opportunity for the Department of Transportation's 
Nationally Significant Federal Lands and Tribal Projects Program for 
Fiscal Year 2018

AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), U.S. Department of 
Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Notice of funding opportunity.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces a funding opportunity and requests grant 
applications for the Nationally Significant Federal Lands and Tribal 
Projects (NSFLTP) Program. The Fixing America's Surface Transportation 
(FAST) Act established the NSFLTP Program to provide Federal funding to 
projects of national significance for construction, reconstruction, or 
rehabilitation of transportation facilities within, adjacent to, or 
providing access to Federal or Tribal lands. As per the Consolidated 
Appropriations Act, 2018, the Secretary of Transportation may award up 
to $300 million--the amount appropriated by Congress to the NSFLTP 
Program in the Department of Transportation Appropriations Act, 2018--
through the FHWA's Office of Federal Lands Highway. The FHWA will 
distribute these funds as described in this notice on a competitive 
basis in a manner consistent with the selection criteria.

DATES: Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis and evaluated 
quarterly, until available funding has been exhausted. The first 
application deadline is December 17, 2018. After that, subsequent 
deadlines will be 11:59 p.m. on the last business day of the next 
fiscal quarter.

ADDRESSES: Applications must be submitted through Grants.gov. Refer to 
CFDA Number: 20.205, Highway Planning and Construction.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jeffrey Mann, Office of Program 
Development, FHWA, Office of Federal Lands Highway, 21400 Ridgetop 
Circle, Sterling, VA 20166-6511, Telephone: 703-404-6230 or email: 
[email protected].
    Scott Johnson, Office of Program Development, FHWA, Office of 
Federal Lands Highway, 21400 Ridgetop Circle, Sterling, VA 20166-6511, 
Telephone: 703-404-6231 or email: [email protected].
    In addition, the FHWA will regularly post information about the 
NSFLTP Program on its website at https://flh.fhwa.dot.gov/programs/nsfltp/.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Each section of this notice contains 
information and instructions relevant to the application process for 
NSFLTP Program grants. The applicant should read this notice in its 
entirety to submit eligible and competitive applications.

Table of Contents

A. Program Description
B. Federal Award Information
C. Eligibility Information
    1. Eligible Applicants
    2. Cost Sharing and Matching
    3. Other
D. Application and Submission Information
    1. Address To Request Application
    2. Content and Form of Application Submission
    3. Dun and Bradstreet Universal Numbering System (DUNS) Number 
and System for Award Management (SAM)
    4. Submission Dates and Timelines
    5. Intergovernmental Review
    6. Funding Restrictions
E. Application Review Information
F. Federal Award Administration Information
G. Federal Awarding Agency Contact(s)
H. Other Information

A. Program Description

    The FAST Act, Public Law 114-94, section 1123, established the 
NSFLTP Program to fund projects to construct, reconstruct, or 
rehabilitate transportation facilities within, adjacent to, or 
accessing Federal and Tribal lands.
    The NSFLTP Program provides an opportunity to address significant 
challenges across the Nation for transportation facilities that serve 
Federal and Tribal lands.

B. Federal Award Information

    1. Amount Available--For FY 2018, the Secretary may award up to 
$300 million in grants on a competitive basis to Federal and Tribal 
lands projects of national significance that meet the requirements. The 
$300 million funding amount is based on the amount appropriated for the 
NSFLTP Program in the Department of Transportation Appropriations Act, 
2018.
    2. Award Size--The NSFLTP Program provides discretionary funding 
for projects that have an estimated construction cost of at least $25 
million, with construction projects with an estimated cost equal to or 
exceeding $50 million receiving priority consideration in the selection 
process.
    3. Availability of Funds--The funds provided for this program under 
the FY 2018 Appropriations Act are available until expended.

C. Eligibility Information

1. Eligible Applicants

    a. Entities eligible to receive funds under the Federal Lands 
Access Program (23 United State Code (U.S.C.) 204), the Federal Lands 
Transportation Program (23 U.S.C. 203), the Tribal Transportation 
Program (23 U.S.C. 202), and the Federal Lands Planning Program (23 
U.S.C. 201) may apply for funding under the NSFLTP Program, except that 
a State, county, or unit of local government may only apply for funding 
under the NSFLTP Program if sponsored by an eligible Federal land 
management agency (FLMA) or federally recognized Indian Tribe.
    b. As sponsors, FLMAs and Tribes will provide quarterly a list of 
project applications they are sponsoring from their organization on 
behalf of State or local governments.
    I. To promote effective communication and coordination, an FLMA or 
Tribe should identify one individual within their organization who will 
serve as Sponsorship Coordinator.
    II. The Sponsorship Coordinator is responsible for providing the 
list of sponsored projects to the NSFLTP Program contacts listed on 
page 1 of this NOFO. The use of Grants.gov permits a wide range of 
eligible applicants to enter project applications. The Sponsorship 
Coordinator role ensures applications have been coordinated through and 
approved by FLMA and/or Tribal leaders.
    III. The list of sponsored projects should provide enough detail so 
that FHWA can match the projects to those received via Grants.gov.
    IV. A list of Sponsorship Coordinators can be obtained from the 
NSFLTP Program contacts listed on page 1 of this NOFO, or at the 
following website--https://flh.fhwa.dot.gov/programs/nsfltp/.
    c. FLMAs and Tribes may sponsor applications on behalf of:
    I. A State or group of States;
    II. a metropolitan planning organization;
    III. a unit of local government or group of local governments;
    IV. a political subdivision of a State or local government;
    V. a special purpose district or public authority with a 
transportation function, including a port authority;
    VI. a group of FLMAs;
    VII. a consortium of Tribal governments; or

[[Page 50437]]

    VIII. a multi-State or multijurisdictional group of public 
entities.
    d. Recipients of NSFLTP Program funding are responsible for meeting 
reporting requirements.

2. Cost Sharing and Matching

    a. The Federal share of the cost of the project shall be up to 90 
percent.
    b. The non-Federal share shall not be less than 10 percent of the 
cost of the project and can be:
    I. Any other Federal funds, as long as they were not authorized 
under title 23 or title 49, U.S.C.;
    II. Any private or public source, as long as the source did not 
receive the funds through programs authorized under title 23 or title 
49, U.S.C.; and
    III. ``Soft-matches'' or ``in-kind matches'' (e.g., donations of 
funds, materials, services, right-of-way acquisition, utility 
relocation).
    IV. Tapered matches are permissible to allow for greater 
flexibility. Tapered match is a form of Federal-aid matching 
flexibility that allows a project's Federal share to vary over the life 
of the project as long as the final contribution of Federal funds does 
not exceed the project's maximum authorized share. Indicate that a 
tapered match will be sought within the project narrative when 
describing how the non-Federal share will be funded.
    c. The application and project agreement must document the match 
requirement and any related commitments.

3. Other

    a. To meet the minimum statutory requirements for eligibility, a 
project must meet all of the following conditions:
    b. The project is a single continuous project;
    c. The project meets at least one of the following definitions of 
transportation facilities from section 101 of Title 23, U.S.C., except 
that such facilities are not required to be included in an inventory 
described in section 202 or 203 of such title:
    I. ``Federal lands transportation facility'', which means a public 
highway, road, bridge, trail, or transit system that is located on, is 
adjacent to, or provides access to Federal lands for which title and 
maintenance responsibility is vested in the Federal Government;
    II. ``Federal lands access transportation facility'', which means a 
public highway, road, bridge, trail, or transit system that is located 
on, is adjacent to, or provides access to Federal lands for which title 
or maintenance responsibility is vested in a State, county, town, 
township, tribal, municipal, or local government; or
    III. ``Tribal transportation facility'', which means a public 
highway, road, bridge, trail, or transit system that is located on or 
provides access to tribal land.
    d. All activities required under the National Environmental Policy 
Act of 1969 (NEPA) (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) demonstrate completion 
through:
    I. A record of decision, if the NEPA class of action is an 
environmental impact statement;
    II. A finding of no significant impact, if the NEPA class of action 
is an environmental assessment; or
    III. A determination that the project is a categorical exclusion 
under the lead Federal agency's NEPA policies;
    e. The project must have estimated construction costs, based on the 
results of preliminary engineering, equal to or greater than 
$25,000,000, with priority consideration for projects with estimated 
construction costs equal to or exceeding $50,000,000; and
    f. The project will use NSFLTP Program funds only for construction, 
reconstruction, or rehabilitation of transportation facilities, i.e., 
project design costs are not eligible for NSFLTP Program funds.

D. Application and Submission Information

    1. Address to Request Application--Applications must be submitted 
to Grants.gov.
    2. Content and Form of Application Submission--Include in the 
application package the following:
    a. Standard Form 424 (Application for Federal Assistance);
    b. Standard Form 424C (Budget Information for Construction 
Programs);
    c. Standard Form 424D (Assurances for Construction Programs);
    d. A cover page, including the following chart:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                Project name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Previously Incurred Project Eligible Costs..  $
Future Eligible Project Costs...............  $
Total Project Cost..........................  $
NSFLTP Program Grant Request Amount.........  $
Federal (DOT) Funding including Program       $
 Funds Requested.
Is the project within, adjacent to, or        Yes/No
 accessing Federal and/or Tribal land.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    e. A project narrative--The application must include information 
required for the FHWA to determine that the project satisfies the 
eligibility requirements described in Section IV above. The FHWA 
recommends the project narrative adhere to the following basic 
guidelines to clearly address the program requirements and make 
critical information readily apparent.
    I. Project Description--Describe what activities the requested 
NSFLTP Program funds and matching funds will support, how the project 
is nationally significant based on authorized criteria and Secretary's 
objectives, information on the expected users of the project, a 
description of the transportation challenges the project aims to 
address, and how the project will address these challenges.
    II. Project Location--Provide a detailed description of the 
location of proposed project and geospatial data for the project, as 
well as a map of the project's location and its connections to existing 
transportation infrastructure.
    III. Project Parties--Provide information about who is involved and 
their respective roles in supporting the project.
    IV. Grant Funds, Sources, and Uses of Project Funds--
    i. Funding--Document the funding that will be used to construct 
this project, including past or pending Federal funding requests for 
this project. Include the size, nature, and source(s) of the required 
match for those funds, if applicable. Demonstrate that the requested 
NSFLTP Program funds do not exceed 90 percent of project costs.
    ii. Budget--Provide a detailed project budget containing a 
breakdown of how the funds will be spent. The budget should estimate--
by dollar amount and percentage of cost--the cost of construction work 
for each project component.
    V. Project Readiness--Provide the expected start date, with 
supporting rationale for that date.
    VI. To the extent practicable, provide data and evidence of project 
merits in a form that is verifiable or publicly available. The FHWA may 
ask any applicant to supplement data in its application, but expects 
applications to be complete upon submission.
    VII. Include a table of contents, maps, and graphics, as 
appropriate, to make the information easier to review.
    VIII. The FHWA recommends that the project narrative not exceed 10 
pages, excluding supporting documentation, and be prepared with as a 
single-spaced document, using a standard 12-point font such as Times 
New Roman, with 1-inch margins.
    IX. Provide website links to supporting documentation rather than 
copies of these supporting materials. If supporting documents are 
submitted,

[[Page 50438]]

clearly identify the relevant portion of the project narrative that 
each document supports.
    X. The FHWA recommends using appropriately descriptive names (e.g., 
``Project Narrative,'' ``Maps,'' ``Memoranda of Understanding and 
Letters of Support,'' etc.) for all attachments.
    3. Unique Entity Identifier and SAM--
    a. Each applicant must:
    I. Be registered in SAM before submitting its application;
    II. provide a valid unique entity identifier in its application; 
and
    III. continue to maintain an active SAM registration with current 
information at all times during which it has an active Federal award or 
an application or plan under consideration by a Federal awarding 
agency. The Department may not make a grant to an applicant until the 
applicant has complied with all applicable unique entity identifier and 
SAM requirements and, if an applicant has not fully complied with the 
requirements by the time the Department is ready to make a grant, the 
Department may determine that the applicant is not qualified to receive 
a grant and use that determination as a basis for making a grant to 
another applicant.
    4. Submission Dates and Timelines--
    a. Deadline--Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis and 
evaluated quarterly, until available funding has been exhausted. The 
application deadline will be 11:59 p.m. on the last business day of 
each fiscal quarter. The first application deadline is December 17, 
2018. Subsequent, quarterly deadline dates include March 29, 2019, and 
June 28, 2019. It is possible for all funding to be awarded in the 
first round. Information regarding awards and available funding will be 
posted to the website cited on page 1 of this NOFO.
    b. To submit an application through Grants.gov, applicants must:
    I. Obtain a DUNS number;
    II. Register with SAM at www.SAM.gov;
    III. Create a Grants.gov username and password; and
    IV. Respond to the registration email sent to the applicants E-
Business Point of Contact (POC) from Grants.gov and login at Grants.gov 
to authorize the applicant as the Authorized Organization 
Representative (AOR).
    c. Please note there can be more than one AOR for an organization. 
Applicants are encouraged to submit applications in advance of the 
application deadline; however, applications will not be evaluated, and 
awards will not be made until after the application deadline.
    d. Please note the Grants.gov registration process usually takes 2-
4 weeks to complete and the Department will not consider late 
applications that are the result of failure to register or comply with 
Grants.gov applicant requirements in a timely manner. For information 
and instruction on each of these processes, please see instructions at 
https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/applicant-faqs.html. If 
applicants experience difficulties at any point during the registration 
or application process, please call the Grants.gov Customer Service 
Support Hotline at 1(800) 518-4726, Monday-Friday from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. 
EST.
    e. Consideration of Applications--Only applicants who comply with 
all submission deadlines described in this notice and electronically 
submit valid, sponsor-approved applications through Grants.gov will be 
eligible for award. Applicants are strongly encouraged to make 
submissions in advance of deadlines.
    f. Late Applications--Applications received after a quarterly 
deadline will be considered in the following fiscal quarter.
    5. Intergovernmental Review--The NSFLTP Program is not subject to 
the Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs.
    6. Funding Restrictions--Developmental phase activities including 
planning, feasibility analysis, revenue forecasting, environmental 
review, preliminary engineering, design, and other preconstruction 
activities are not eligible for funding under the NSFLTP Program.

E. Application Review Information

    The FHWA will award NSFLTP Program funds based on the selection 
criteria and policy considerations outlined below.
    1. Statutory Criteria--In accordance with the FAST Act, section 
1123, when selecting projects for funding under the NSFLTP Program, the 
FHWA will evaluate the extent to which the project:
    a. Furthers the goals of DOT, including safety, state of good 
repair, economic competitiveness, and quality of life, by considering;
    I. An analysis of the project's safety improvements compared to a 
baseline in which the project is not done. For more information, see 
Section 4.3, pages 13 through 15, of the DOT's Benefit-Cost Analysis 
Guidance for TIGER and INFRA Applications, https://cms.dot.gov/sites/dot.gov/files/docs/mission/office-policy/transportation-policy/284031/benefit-cost-analysis-guidance-2017_1.pdf.
    II. Technical data provided about existing facilities in poor 
repair or, where the project is new construction, the extent to which 
the existing conditions demonstrate a need for new transportation 
facilities;
    III. An analysis of the project's economic benefits--such as travel 
time savings, and vehicle operating cost savings, and emissions 
reductions--compared to a baseline in which the project is not done. 
For more information on what impacts are considered economic benefits 
and how to estimate the value of such effects, see section 4 of the 
Department's guidance on benefit-cost analysis. Where values cannot be 
monetized, provide other quantitative or qualitative information.
    IV. How the project is expected to improve the quality of life for 
a local community and/or the traveling public, providing data and 
analysis where relevant and feasible, such as estimates of trips and/or 
vehicle miles traveled.
    b. Improves the condition of critical transportation facilities, 
including multimodal facilities, by considering the requirements the 
applicant communicates in the application. Examples may include but are 
not limited to: A bridge in poor condition that may be subject to 
closure in the absence of funds; primary transportation facility that 
provides access to critical community services, high use recreation 
destination areas and/or economic generators within Tribal and/or 
Federal lands.
    c. Needs construction, reconstruction, or rehabilitation;
    d. Has costs matched by funds that are not provided under the 
NSFLTP Program or titles 23 or 49 by giving preference to;
    I. Projects with over 30 percent in non-NSFLTP Program funding, 
with additional preference given to projects that exceed even this 
threshold; followed by
    II. Projects with between 20 percent and 30 percent in non-NSFLTP 
Program funding; followed by
    III. Projects with between 10 percent and 19 percent in non-NSFLTP 
Program funding; followed by
    IV. Projects with the minimum 10 percent in non-NSFLTP Program 
funding;
    e. Is included in or eligible for inclusion in the National 
Register of Historic Places;
    f. Uses new technologies and innovations that enhance the 
efficiency of the project;
    g. Is supported by funds, other than funds received under the 
NSFLTP

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Program, to construct, maintain, and operate the facility, by 
considering what other funds exist, besides those available for match, 
to aid in maintenance and operation of the facility, as well as the 
reasonable expectation that those funds will remain available;
    h. Spans two or more States; and
    i. Serves land owned by multiple Federal agencies or Indian Tribes.
    2. Departmental criteria--After applying the above preferences, the 
Federal Highway Administrator will take into account the following key 
Departmental objectives:
    a. Using innovative approaches to improve safety and expedite 
project delivery;
    b. Supporting economic vitality at the national and regional level;
    c. Utilizing alternative funding sources and innovative financing 
models to attract non-Federal sources of infrastructure investment;
    d. Accounting for the life-cycle costs of the project to promote 
the state of good repair; and
    e. Beginning projects in a timely manner after award of NSFLTP 
Program funding.
    3. Review and Selection Process--The FHWA will review all eligible 
applications received within a fiscal quarter. The review and selection 
process will consist of a Technical Review and Senior Review.
    a. Technical Review--In the Technical Review, a team comprising 
technical staff from FHWA will review all eligible applications and 
rate each project's alignment with the selection criteria, using the 
following guidelines.
    I. Highly Recommended--The project aligns extremely well with the 
objectives of the selection statutory criteria under consideration. 
Projects with several criteria rated as ``Strong Alignment'' are likely 
to receive this rating, as well as projects that have ``Alignment'' 
with all of the statutory criteria.
    II. Recommended--The project aligns well with the objectives of the 
selection criterion. Projects with at least one criteria rated as 
``Strong Alignment'' or that have ``Alignment'' with most of the 
statutory criteria are likely to receive this rating.
    III. Acceptable--The project somewhat aligns well with the 
objectives of the selection criterion under consideration. Projects 
with no criteria rated as ``Strong Alignment'' but with a several 
criteria rated as ``Alignment'' are likely to receive this rating.
    IV. Not Recommended--The project does not align well with 
objectives of the selection criterion under consideration.
    b. The Senior Review Team, comprised of senior leadership from 
FHWA, will determine which projects rated as Acceptable and higher by 
the Technical Review Team to advance to the Secretary.
    4. The final funding decisions will be made by the Secretary of 
Transportation.
    5. Additional Information--Prior to award, each selected applicant 
will be subject to a risk assessment required by 2 CFR 200.205. The 
Department must review and consider any information about the applicant 
that is in the designated integrity and performance system accessible 
through SAM, currently the Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity 
Information System (FAPIIS). An applicant may review information in 
FAPIIS and comment on any information about itself. The Department will 
consider comments by the applicant in addition to the other information 
in FAPIIS, in making a judgment about the applicant's integrity, 
business ethics, and record of performance under Federal awards when 
completing the review of risk posed by applicants.

F. Federal Award Administration Information

    1. Federal Award Notices--The FHWA will announce awarded projects 
by posting a list of selected projects at https://flh.fhwa.dot.gov/programs/nsfltp/. Following the announcement, the FHWA will contact the 
POC listed in form SF-424 to initiate negotiation of a project-specific 
agreement.
    2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements--All awards will 
be administered pursuant to the Uniform Administrative Requirements, 
Cost Principles and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards found in 2 
CFR part 200, as adopted by DOT at 2 CFR part 1201. In addition, 
applicable Federal laws, rules and regulations of the FHWA will apply 
to the projects that receive NSFLTP Program funds, including planning 
requirements, agreements, Buy America compliance, and other grant 
program requirements.
    3. Reporting--Each recipient of NSFLTP Program funding must submit 
the Federal Financial Report (SF-425) on the financial condition of the 
project and the project's progress bi-annually, as well as an Annual 
Budget Review and Program Plan to monitor the use of Federal funds and 
ensure accountability and financial transparency in the NSFLTP Program. 
The FHWA reserves the right to request additional information, if 
deemed needed, to better understand the status of the project.
    4. Reporting Matters Related to Integrity and Performance--If the 
total value of a selected recipient's currently active grants, 
cooperative agreements, and procurement contracts from all Federal 
awarding agencies exceeds $10,000,000 for any period of time during the 
period of performance of this Federal award, then the applicant during 
that period of time must maintain the information reported to SAM and 
FAPIIS, about civil, criminal, or administrative proceedings described 
in paragraph 2 of this award term and condition. This is a statutory 
requirement under section 872 of Public Law 110-417, as amended (41 
U.S.C. 2313). As required by section 3010 of Public Law 111-212, all 
information posted in the designated integrity and performance system 
on or after April 15, 2011, except past performance reviews required 
for Federal procurement contracts, will be publicly available.

G. Federal Awarding Agency Contact(s)

    For further information concerning this notice please contact:
    1. Jeffrey Mann, NSFLTP Program Manager, via email at 
[email protected]; by telephone at 202-366-9494; Office hours are 
from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. EDT., Monday through Friday, except Federal 
holidays.
    2. Scott Johnson, Director Office of Program Development, via email 
at [email protected]; by phone at 202-366-9494; Office hours are 
from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. EDT., Monday through Friday, except Federal 
holidays.
    3. Both can also be reached by mail at Federal Highway 
Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590.
    4. For legal questions, please contact Ms. Vivian Philbin, Office 
of the Chief Counsel, by telephone at (720) 963-3445; by email at 
[email protected]; or by mail at Federal Highway Administration, 
Central Federal Lands Highway Division, 12300 West Dakota Avenue, 
Lakewood, CO 80228. Office hours are from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. MDT., 
Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.

H. Other Information

    1. Protection of Confidential Business Information--All information 
submitted as part of or in support of any application shall use 
publicly available data or data that can be made public and methods 
that are accepted by industry practice and standards, to the extent 
possible. If the application includes information the applicant 
considers to be a trade secret or confidential

[[Page 50440]]

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. The 
FHWA protects such information from disclosure to the extent allowed 
under applicable law. In the event FHWA receives a Freedom of 
Information Act (FOIA) request for the information, FHWA will follow 
DOT 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.

    Authority: Section 1123 of Public Law 114-94.

    Issued on: October 1, 2018.
Brandye L. Hendrickson,
Deputy Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2018-21826 Filed 10-3-18; 4:15 pm]
 BILLING CODE 4910-22-P