National Infrastructure Project Assistance (Mega Projects)

 

The goal of the National Infrastructure Project Assistance (Mega Projects) program is to identify and award grant funding to transportation projects that will generate national or regional economic, mobility, and or safety benefits.

Active 20.937 Office of The Secretary, Department of Transportation B - Project Grants Fiscal Year 2022 In 2022, the Department selected Nine Mega applications to receive approximately $1.2 billion in discretionary grant funding from a pool of approximately 140 applications. Public Law 117-58
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 (Pub. L. 117-58, November 15, 2021) authorized and appropriated $5 billion to be awarded by the Department of Transportation (“DOT”) for National Infrastructure Project Assistance projects from Fiscal Years 2022-2026. Eligible applicants for Mega grants are: (1) a State or a group of States; (2) a metropolitan planning organization; (3) a unit of local government; (4) a political subdivision of a State; (5) a special purpose district or public authority with a transportation function, including a port authority; (6) a Tribal government or a consortium of Tribal governments; (7) a partnership between Amtrak and 1 or more entities described in subparagraphs (1) through (6); and (8) a group of entities described in any of subparagraphs (1) through (7). Not applicable. To submit an application through Grants.gov, applicants must: Obtain a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number; Register with the System Award for Management (SAM) at www.sam.gov; Create a Grants.gov username and password; and The E-business Point of Contact (POC) at the applicant's organization must respond to the registration email from Grants.gov and login at Grants.gov to authorize the POC as an Authorized Organization Representative (AOR). Please note that there can only be one AOR per organization. 2 CFR 200, Subpart E - Cost Principles applies to this program. Preapplication coordination is required. This program is eligible for coverage under E.O. 12372, "Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs." An applicant should consult the office or official designated as the single point of contact in his or her State for more information on the process the State requires to be followed in applying for assistance, if the State has selected the program for review. 2 CFR 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards applies to this program. Notice of Funding Opportunities (NOFO) for this listing will be posted on Grants.gov. Applications are solicited through Grants.gov and the publication of a Notice of Funding Opportunity on the DOT website. Applications must be submitted for each round by the published application deadline. Additional information on Application requirements can be found in the Notice of Funding Opportunity. NIPA funding will be awarded to projects selected by the United States Department of Transportation through a competitive selection process. After an application is selected, the Department will work with the project sponsor to complete the necessary work prior to formally obligating the funding through an obligating agreement. The obligating agreement will establish the terms and conditions of the Mega Project award. The FY 23-24 solicitation has an application deadline of 11:59:59 pm, Eastern Daylight Time, August 21, 2023. The evaluation, selection, and notification timeline varies from 4-9 months. Not applicable. Not applicable. The selection criteria for proposals are published in the Notice of Funding Opportunity. Eligible projects for Mega grants are: a highway or bridge project on the National Multimodal Freight Network; a highway or bridge project on the National Highway Freight Network; a highway or bridge project on the National Highway System; a freight intermodal (including public ports) or freight rail project that provides public benefit; a railway highway grade separation or elimination project; an intercity passenger rail project; a public transportation project that is eligible under assistance under Chapter 53 of title 49 and is a part of any of the project types described above. Mega grants may be used for development-phase activities and costs, including planning, feasibility analysis, revenue forecasting, alternatives analysis, data collection and analysis, environmental review and activities to support environmental review, preliminary engineering and design work, and other preconstruction activities, including the preparation of a data collection and post-construction analysis plan and construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, acquisition of real property (including land relating to the project and improvements to that land), environmental mitigation (including projects to replace or rehabilitate culverts or reduce stormwater runoff for the purpose of improving habitat for aquatic species), construction contingencies, acquisition of equipment, protection, and operational improvements directly relating to the project. Not applicable. In accordance with the provisions of 2 CFR 200, Subpart F - Audit Requirements, nonfederal entities that expend financial assistance of $750,000 or more in Federal awards will have a single or a program-specific audit conducted for that year. Non-Federal entities that expend less than $750,000 a year in Federal awards are exempt from Federal audit requirements for that year, except as noted in 2 CFR 200.503 The program follows 2 CFR 200 audit requirements. Any awarding procedures, documentation of expenditures and copies of reports as well as policies and procedures for the life of the grant. Statutory formula is not applicable to this assistance listing.

Matching is mandatory. 40%. NIPA grants may be used for up to 60 percent of future eligible project costs. Other Federal assistance may satisfy the non-Federal share requirement for an NIPA grant, but total Federal assistance for a project receiving an NIPA grant may not exceed 80 percent of the future eligible project costs. Unless otherwise authorized in statute, local cost-share that exceed the 80 percent Federal-share maximum will not be considered matching funds if the source of those funds is ultimately a Federal program. Non-Federal sources include State funds originating from programs funded by State revenue, local funds originating from State or local revenue funded programs, private funds or other funding sources of non-Federal origins. Funds from the Tribal Transportation Program (23 U.S.C. 202), TIFIA, a Federal land management agency, or other Federal source that is expressly authorized in statute may be used for the non-Federal share. Unless otherwise authorized in statute, local cost-share may not be counted as non-Federal share for both the NSFHP and another Federal program. For any project, the Department cannot consider previously incurred costs or previously expended or encumbered funds towards the matching requirement. Matching funds are subject to the same Federal requirements as awarded funds. Matching requirements are voluntary.

This program has MOE requirements, see funding agency for further details. Additional Information: This program has MOE requirements, see funding agency for further details. There is not statutory period of availability for NIPA funding, however the Department will consider the proposed project schedule as part of the competitive selection process. NIPA funding will be provided on a reimbursement basis for work completed on selected and awarded projects. None/Not specified. Paul Baumer
U.S. Department of Transportation, Office of the Secretary of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE,
Washington, DC 20590 US
MPDGrants@dot.gov
Phone: 2023661092 https://www.transportation.gov/grants/mega-grant-program 69-0143-0-1-407 (Project Grants) FY 22$1,000,000,000.00; FY 23 est $1,000,000,000.00; FY 24 est $1,000,000,000.00; FY 21 Estimate Not Available - (Project Grants) FY 22$1,000,000,000.00; FY 23 est $1,000,000,000.00; FY 24 est $1,000,000,000.00; - There is no minimum award size. The maximum award size for any project is 60% of proposed project costs. Not applicable. Not applicable.