Office of the Secretary of Transportation July 2012 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Pursuant to the recently enacted Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21), DOT announces the availability of funding authorized in the amount of $1.75 billion ($750 million in Federal Fiscal Year (FY) 2013 funds and $1 billion in FY 2014 funds (and any funds that may be available from prior fiscal years)) to provide TIFIA credit assistance for eligible projects. The FY 2013 and FY 2014 funds are subject to an annual obligation limitation that may be established in appropriations law. The amount of TIFIA budget authority available in a given year may be less than the amount authorized for that fiscal year. Under TIFIA, DOT provides secured (direct) loans, lines of credit, and loan guarantees to public and private applicants for eligible surface transportation projects. Projects must meet statutorily specified eligibility criteria to receive credit assistance. This notice outlines the process that project sponsors must follow in seeking TIFIA credit assistance. DOT is publishing this notice to give project sponsors an opportunity to submit Letters of Interest for the newly authorized funding as soon as possible. However, in addition to authorizing more funding for TIFIA credit assistance, MAP-21 made some significant changes to the TIFIA program's structure, including the terms and conditions pursuant to which DOT can provide TIFIA credit assistance. While this notice provides guidance about how DOT will implement some of the changes made by MAP-21, it does not provide guidance about how DOT will implement all of these changes. Further information about the changes made by MAP-21 and additional DOT guidance for implementation of these provisions is provided in Part VII below. Also, Part VII invites interested parties to submit comments about DOT's implementation of MAP-21 and DOT's guidance for awarding TIFIA credit assistance. Unless otherwise noted, statutory section references in this notice are to sections of title 23 of the U.S. Code, as amended by MAP-21, which takes effect on October 1, 2012. Letter of Interest Submission: All project sponsors wishing to apply for TIFIA credit assistance must first submit a Letter of Interest, as more fully described in this notice of funding availability. Letters of Interest will be received on a rolling basis commencing on the date hereof, using the form on the TIFIA Web site: https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/ipd/tifia/guidance_applications/index .htm. Project sponsors that have previously submitted Letters of Interest for a prior fiscal year's funding, but have not been asked by DOT to submit an application as of the date of this notice, must submit a new Letter of Interest to be considered for the funding described in this notice of funding availability. Addresses for Letters of Interest: Submit all Letters of Interest to the attention of Mr. Duane Callender via email at: TIFIACredit@dot.gov. Submitters should receive a confirmation email, but are advised to request a return receipt to confirm transmission. Only Letters of Interest received via email, as provided above, shall be deemed properly filed. Addresses for Comments: You must include the agency name (Office of the Secretary of Transportation) and the docket number DOT-OST-2012- 0130 with your comments. To ensure your comments are not entered into the docket more than once, please submit comments, identified by the docket number DOT-OST-2012-0130, by only one of the following methods: Web site: The U.S. Government electronic docket site is www.regulations.gov. Go to this Web site and follow the instructions for submitting comments into docket number DOT-OST-2012-0130; Fax: Telefax comments to: 202-366-2908. Mail: Mail your comments to U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Docket Operations, M-30, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590; or Hand Delivery: Bring your comments to the U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Docket Operations, M-30, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. Instructions for Submitting Comments: You must include the agency name (Office of the Secretary of Transportation) and Docket number DOT- OST-2012-0130 for this notice at the beginning of your comments. You should submit two copies of your comments if you submit them by mail or courier. For confirmation that the Office of the Secretary of Transportation has received your comments you must include a self- addressed stamped postcard. Note that all comments received will be posted without change to www.regulations.gov, including any personal information provided, and will be available to Internet users. You may review the Department's complete Privacy Act Statement in the Federal Register published April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477), or you may visit www.regulations.gov.