Curriculum for New State DOT Transit Grant Managers in Administering Federal and State Transit Grants (2014) / Chapter Skim
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Pages 42-126
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From page 42... ...
KEY CONCEPTS • Introduction to Public Transit • A Brief History of Federal Transit Funding • Regulatory Structure • The Role of the States in FTA Programs • The Programs: S. 5307, 5310, 5311, 5339 • FTA Cross-Cutting Requirements DEFINITIONS MAP-21: the acronym for the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act, the current authorizing legislation for federal transit funding. Congress establishes the legal authority to commence and continue FTA programs through authorizing legislation covering several years.
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intercity passenger rail transportation, intercity bus service, charter bus service, school bus service, sightseeing service, courtesy shuttle service for patrons of specific establishments, and intra-terminal or intra-facility shuttle services. Transit Agency/System: an entity (public or private)
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From page 44... ...
Laws and regulations are the basis for FTA funding assistance, and they are referenced time and time again in FTA resources. Also known as federal statutes, laws like MAP-21 are enacted by Congress and codified in the United States Code (USC)
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• All involve FTA oversight reviews. The two comprehensive reviews are the Triennial Review (S.
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KEY CONCEPTS • Subrecipient Legal Authority • Role of the Governing Body and Advisory Committee • Subrecipient Certifications and Assurances • Suspension/Debarment • Lobbying Restrictions In addition to having the subrecipients sign their annual certifications and assurances, two additional actions are required of the state – one dealing with the restrictions on lobbying and another dealing with ensuring that subrecipients are not barred from doing business with the federal government. IMPORTANCE FOR STATE DOT STAFF Establishing that your subrecipients are authorized to receive FTA funds is a critical part of every state's transit program.
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DEFINITIONS Covered Federal Action: Any of the following federal actions: (1) the awarding of any federal contract; (2)
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LEVEL II PREVIEW Subrecipient Legal Authority States are the designated recipient for the FTA funds under S. 5311, S. 5310 (for rural and small urbanized areas; states can be the designated recipient for large urbanized areas as well) , and S. 5307 (for small urbanized areas)
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Near the beginning of each federal fiscal year, FTA publishes the certifications in the Federal Register, highlighting any changes or additions from the previous year. The authorized representative of the recipient must make the requisite certifications.
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KEY CONCEPTS • Life Cycle of a Grant • State Management Plans • Program of Projects • Grant Application Process • Interfacing with FTA/Using TEAM-Web • Milestone Progress Reports • National Transit Database • Grant Modifications • Grant Close-Out IMPORTANCE FOR STATE DOT STAFF The FTA grants to your agency need to be managed in order for you, the state, to fund local transit systems. There may be only a few people (or one person)
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Further, a state may be cited as deficient in a State Management Review (SMR) if FTA grant funds allocated to the state are not spent during their period of availability.
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State Management Plans States must develop and submit a State Management Plan (SMP) to the FTA for the S. 5310 and S. 5311 programs (either standalone plans or combined)
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Grant Application Process FTA's program-specific circulars describe the grant application process and requirements for each program. States should refer to these circulars for instructions for completing a grant application, which is submitted electronically through the web-based TEAM or TrAMS system.
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• The grantee is demonstrating competence and control in executing the project; • The project meets all program requirements; • Any problems developing that may require FTA resources to resolve. The MPR is the primary written communication between the grantee and FTA.
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KEY CONCEPTS • Subrecipient Grant Applications • Subrecipient Funding Allocations/Project Selection • Subrecipient Grant Agreements • Subrecipient Reporting and Tracking • Subrecipient Project Close-Out they need to provide public transit in their communities. Most state transit staff members are involved in this function at some level.
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DEFINITIONS Please refer to the definitions in the FTA Grant Administration module. LEVEL II PREVIEW The Life of a Subrecipient Grant States have two major roles in administering and managing grants: 1)
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Subrecipient Grant Applications States typically have a subrecipient grant application process for determining which projects should receive FTA grant funding. States develop their own local grant application policies, procedures, formats, and means of submission.
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KEY CONCEPTS • Budgeting • Accounting • Financial Reporting and Financial Status Reports • Funds Management • Federal Financial Interest in Assets to draw down all FTA funds. Funds which are not obligated during their period of eligibility to the state will be deobligated by FTA for reallocation to other states.
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Depreciation: Method used to calculate the reduction in value of an item of personal or real property over time. Is the term most often used to indicate that personal property has declined in service potential.
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Register in early October. Once this notice is published, the state knows how much FTA funding (total by grant)
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KEY CONCEPTS • Subrecipient Financial Capacity • Eligible Expenditures • Cost Allocation/Indirect Costs • Local Match • Force Account Activities • Audit Requirements and Review are responsible for ensuring that your subrecipients are meeting all the federal regulations and managing their grants in an effective and compliant manner. A state may be cited as deficient in a State Management Review (SMR)
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DEFINITIONS Please refer to the definitions in the FTA Financial Management module. LEVEL II PREVIEW Subrecipient Financial Capacity Annually, the state certifies to FTA (as part of the annual certifications and assurance process)
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An approved cost allocation plan is required to support the distribution of a subrecipient's indirect costs to the FTA grant program. The cost allocation plan must be approved by FTA or the federal agency that provides the most funding to the subrecipient (referred to as the "cognizant" federal agency)
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KEY CONCEPTS • FTA Compliance Reviews of States • State Reviews of Subrecipient Compliance • Project Management of Facility Construction or Rehabilitation Projects IMPORTANCE FOR STATE DOT STAFF State DOTs are responsible for oversight of their subecipients' compliance with FTA requirements. State transit staff need to maintain documentation of grant program activities as well as oversight of subrecipients.
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assets. One aspect of oversight that is important but often overlooked is following up on areas of non-compliance with subrecipients and documenting their corrective actions.
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FTA conducts periodic State Management Reviews (SMRs) of each state DOT to ensure that the state is carrying out its obligations as a primary grantee of FTA funding.
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For capital projects used to purchase assets, state oversight of subrecipient use of the asset should continue until FTA no longer has a financial interest in the asset (i.e., until the asset exceeds its useful life in terms of years or, for vehicles, mileage)
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From page 69... ...
KEY CONCEPTS • Cost Efficiency • Full and Open Competition • Ethics • State Procurement Versus Oversight of Subrecipient Procurement • Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) • Buy America and Vehicle Procurement Requirements • Federal Requirements that Come with the Contract FTA procurement requirements are complex and designed to achieve many goals, including: • Ensuring consistent and fair approaches to procurement by following written policies and procedures and a code of standards of conduct.
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IMPORTANCE FOR STATE DOT STAFF States are responsible for establishing and following their own federally-compliant procurement policies and procedures for making their own purchases (or purchases on behalf of subrecipients)
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assistance through a grant, cooperative agreement, or other agreement. For the purposes of the FTA procurement requirements, "recipient" also includes any subrecipient or subgrantee of the recipient.
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federal requirements detail many elements that must be included in the written policies and procedures. An appeals process must be afforded to vendors who feel the competition was not open.
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amount and type of project, including micro-purchases ($3,000 or less) , small purchases (>$3,000 and <$15,000)
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KEY CONCEPTS • Introduction to FTA-Required State and Local Planning Activities and their Interrelationships • MPO Planning • Statewide and Nonmetropolitan Planning • State and Regional Public Participation Methods • State Program of Projects • Transit Performance Evaluation IMPORTANCE FOR STATE DOT STAFF State DOTs must coordinate the statewide planning process with the planning activities of their MPOs, as well as with local officials and regional organizations responsible for transportation in nonmetropolitan areas. Likewise, they must ensure that MPOs carry out the metropolitan planning process in coordination with the statewide process and with "due consideration of other related planning activities within the metropolitan area." INTRODUCTION Maintaining, enhancing, and planning for a multi-modal transportation system involves numerous actors at the state, regional, metropolitan, and local levels.
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State DOTs are also responsible for statewide transit planning and for transit planning efforts in non-urbanized areas. As designated recipients of planning funding under S. 5303, 5304, and 5305, states must fulfill their planning responsibilities while simultaneously accounting for the activities and concerns of multiple interested parties.
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From page 76... ...
Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) : a prioritized listing/program of transportation projects covering a period of at least four years that is developed and formally adopted by an MPO as part of the metropolitan transportation planning process, consistent with the MTP, and required for projects to be eligible for funding.
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Statewide and Nonmetropolitan Planning States are the designated recipients and only entities eligible to apply for and receive S. 5305 funds directly from FTA. State DOTs can use these funds to carry out statewide transportation planning and to develop the LRSTP and the STIP, documents comparable to the LRTP and the TIP at the metropolitan level.
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KEY CONCEPTS • Subrecipient Applications/Local POPs • Relationship of Local Application/Local POP to STIP/TIP • Specialized Transportation Coordination • Transit Services Planning • Transit Performance Evaluation • City/County/Regional Planning • Land Use Planning • Planning Requirements for ITS Projects State transit staff should be aware of local planning activities, such as county and land use plans, and encourage their subrecipients to be engaged in these activities. States are responsible for ensuring that FTA-funded ITS projects conform to the National ITS Architecture, as well as to U.S.
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DEFINITIONS Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) : a federally designated organization charged with carrying out the transportation planning process for an urbanized area with a population of 50,000 or more.
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Relationship of Local Application/Local POP to STIP/TIP At least every four years, each state submits a STIP for federal transportation funds. As is the case with the state's POP, to be eligible for FTA funding, local POPs/project applications must be included in the STIP.
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by U.S.
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KEY CONCEPTS • Program of Projects Public Participation Requirements • Public Participation in the Coordinated Public TransitHuman Services Transportation Planning Process • Public Comment on Fare and Service Changes • Title VI Public Participation Requirements • Public Review and Comment for Capital Projects (Environmental Planning) IMPORTANCE FOR STATE DOT STAFF State DOTs are responsible for ensuring that the state and its subrecipients involve the public in a meaningful way as decisions are made on transit programs, services, and fares.
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LEVEL II PREVIEW Program of Projects (POP) Public Participation Requirements Section 5307 and Other Applications for Projects in Urbanized Areas Both federal planning regulations and S. 5307 require public participation for the POP in a S. 5307 application.
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metropolitan planning process. States must include S. 5311 funds in the STIP.
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Public Review and Comment for Capital Projects (Environmental Planning) Any application for a capital project that will "substantially affect a community or the public transportation service of a community" must include a certification to the effect that the applicant has provided an adequate opportunity for public review and comment; held a public hearing on the project; considered the economic, social, and environmental effects of the project; and found that the project is consistent with official plans for developing the community.
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KEY CONCEPTS • Real Property • Equipment • Maintenance • Transit Asset Management Planning and Reporting Requirements Established by MAP-21 IMPORTANCE FOR STATE DOT STAFF States are responsible for monitoring the use of FTA-funded real property, facilities, and equipment. Assets that are not maintained in a state of good repair present potential risks, including safety, service unavailability, and high maintenance and repair costs.
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DEFINITIONS Asset: equipment, rolling stock, infrastructure, and facilities for use in public transportation; owned or leased by a recipient or subrecipient of FTA financial assistance. Equipment: an article of nonexpendable, tangible personal property having a useful life of more than one year and an acquisition cost which equals or exceeds the lesser of the capitalization level established by the governmental unit for financial statement purposes, or $5,000.
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LEVEL II PREVIEW Preventive Maintenance State are responsible for ensuring that subrecipients maintain FTA-funded vehicles, facilities, and facility related equipment in good operating order. Each state is required to develop maintenance requirements for FTA-funded vehicles to protect the federal interest and ensure that the equipment is maintained in good operating order.
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Satisfactory Continuing Control Continuing control refers to a grantee's control over the use of an FTA-funded asset. FTA requires that grantees maintain "satisfactory continuing control" over FTA-funded vehicles, facilities, etc.
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KEY CONCEPTS • Public Transit Agency Safety Plans • State Safety Oversight • Public Transportation Safety Certification Training Program • Funding for Employee Safety Training • Currently Available FTA Guidance • One Percent of S. 5307 Funds on Security Projects • Safety-Related Elements in Other FTA Requirements IMPORTANCE FOR STATE DOT STAFF States may have oversight responsibility of subrecipient agency safety plans once the final rule for 49 CFR 5329 is established. FTA has not yet determined these responsibilities.
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From page 91... ...
LEVEL II PREVIEW 49 USC 5329 provides FTA with the authority to establish a new comprehensive framework to oversee the safety of public transportation throughout the United States. The law requires, among other things, that DOT issue a national public transportation safety plan, establish safety performance criteria for all modes of public transportation, define a "state of good repair," establish minimum safety performance standards for public transportation vehicles, and develop a safety certification training program.
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From page 92... ...
Safety Certification Training Program Part of 49 USC 5329 requires FTA to establish a Public Transportation Safety Certification Training Program applicable to federal and state employees, contractors who conduct oversight, and those employees at transit systems who are responsible for safety oversight. Recipients of S. 5307 or S. 5311 funds may use up to 0.5 percent of apportioned formula funds to pay for up to 80 percent of the costs of an applicable transit agency employee's participation in the Safety Certification Training Program.
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From page 93... ...
KEY CONCEPTS • Threshold for subrecipients • Oversight of applicable subrecipients - EEO Officer designation - utilization analysis - narrative and statistical assessment of employment practices - monitoring and reporting system • States should educate subrecipients on the FTA EEO requirements and be able to answer questions on what a subrecipient needs to do to comply with these requirements. • States must include EEO in the certifications and assurances in the subrecipient grant application package, as well as in the grant agreement.
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requirements (i.e. review and evaluate for compliance)
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LEVEL II PREVIEW Federal Threshold Requirements An EEO program is required of all subrecipients that both: 1) employ 50 or more transit-related employees (including temporary, full, and part-time)
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5. Goals and Timetables.
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KEY CONCEPTS • Prevailing Wage Requirement • Employee Protective Arrangements - DOL Certification - National (Model) Agreement - Special Warranty for Rural Areas - Special Warranty Notice to Employees As a recipient of FTA funds, the state must ensure that it and its subrecipients comply with labor standards and protect their employees.
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From page 98... ...
To ensure subrecipient compliance: • States should educate subrecipients on the labor standards and on their responsibilities to both DOT and DOL. • States must require Special Warranty certification and submission of DOL-required information as part of S. 5311 subrecipient applications.
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From page 99... ...
LEVEL II PREVIEW Prevailing Wage Requirement Prevailing wages mean that for construction projects only, laborer and mechanic contractors and subcontractors must "be paid wages not less than those prevailing on similar construction in the locality..." Prevailing wages are determined by the Secretary of the DOL in accordance with 40 USC Chapter 31, also known as the Davis-Bacon Act. Employee Protective Arrangements FTA funding is conditioned on employee protective arrangements.
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National (Model) Agreement Employee protections can be developed through local negotiations between transit providers and employees/labor organizations.
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KEY CONCEPTS • Drug and Alcohol Program for Safety-Sensitive Employees • Drug-Free Workplace Act Policy and Program DEFINITIONS Accident: an occurrence associated with the operation of a vehicle, if as a result: (1) An individual dies; or (2)
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(4) With respect to an occurrence in which the public transportation vehicle involved is a rail car, trolley car, trolley bus, or vessel, the public transportation vehicle is removed from operation.
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Required Policies Subrecipients (and their contractors, subcontractors, and lessees) with safety-sensitive employees must have a drug and alcohol policy detailing the provisions of their drug and alcohol program.
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Pre-Employment Procedures Subrecipients with safety-sensitive employees, after obtaining an employee's written consent, must request information from the employee's previous employers on the DOT drug and alcohol testing history of anyone seeking to begin safety-sensitive duties for the subrecipient for the first time. If the employee refuses to provide written consent, the subrecipient must not permit the employee to perform safety-sensitive functions.
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From page 105... ...
Monitoring Vendors The state, as the grantee, is ultimately responsible for the integrity of the drug and alcohol testing program and the quality of testing services provided by vendors. Consequently, the state should ensure that subrecipients have a written contract that references 49 CFR Part 40 with each vendor and should monitor the quality of testing service vendors, including collection sites, medical review officers, and substance abuse professionals.
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From page 106... ...
KEY CONCEPTS • Process for Handling and Resolving Complaints • When Accessible Vehicles Must be Purchased • Accessibility Features in Buses and Vans • Facilities Accessibility • General Service Requirements • Service Requirements Specific to Fixed-Route • Maintenance of Accessibility Features • Complementary Paratransit Requirements • Intercity Bus Service • Ferry Service States are responsible for oversight of subrecipient compliance with ADA. When making decisions about which services to fund, states should closely examine the service description with an eye toward service accessibility and ADA compliance.
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From page 107... ...
DEFINITIONS Accessible: with respect to vehicles and facilities, complying with the accessibility requirements of 49 CFR Parts 37 and 38. As a general term, accessible is used to describe services, equipment, and facilities that people with disabilities are able to use or access.
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Public Entity: any state or local government; any department, agency, special purpose district, or other instrumentality of one or more state or local governments; and the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) and any commuter authority.
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From page 109... ...
doors/steps/thresholds, space for maneuvering, securement locations of a certain dimension, securement devices, seat belt and shoulder harnesses, priority seating signage, and interior circulation/support rail/lighting standards. In addition, some vehicles operated in fixed-route service must include an onboard public address system for stop announcements, a stop request system, and destination and route signs.
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• Not deny an individual transportation because a vehicle's securement system is unable to secure the mobility device. • Make public information and communications available in accessible formats.
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they operate the service on behalf of the grantee (the state) , a public entity.
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• Response time to reservation requests (on a "next day" basis during normal business hours, including acceptance on Sundays of trip requests for Mondays) • Unrestricted trip purpose • Fare limits (not to exceed twice the non-discounted fare for a similar fixed route trip)
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From page 113... ...
KEY CONCEPTS • Title VI Program • Notifying Beneficiaries of Protection under Title VI • Title VI Complaint Procedures and Complaint Form • Recording and Reporting Transit-Related Title VI Investigations, Complaints, and Lawsuits • Promoting Inclusive Public Participation • Limited English Proficiency (LEP) • Subrecipient Assistance • Subrecipient Monitoring • Title VI and Facilities Planning • Requirements and Guidelines for Fixed Route Transit Providers DEFINITIONS Discrimination: any action or inaction, whether intentional or unintentional, in any program or activity of a federal aid recipient, subrecipient, or contractor that results in disparate treatment, disparate impact, or perpetuating the effects of prior discrimination based on race, color, or national origin.
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Limited English Proficient (LEP) Persons: persons for whom English is not their primary language and who have a limited ability to read, write, speak, or understand English.
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LEVEL II PREVIEW Title VI Program FTA requires that all direct and primary recipients (including states) document their compliance with DOT's Title VI regulations by submitting a Title VI Program to their FTA regional civil rights officer once every three years or as otherwise directed by FTA.
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Recording and Reporting Transit-Related Title VI Investigations, Complaints, and Lawsuits FTA requires all recipients to prepare and maintain a list of any active investigations, lawsuits, or complaints that allege discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin. Promoting Inclusive Public Participation Title VI and the DOT LEP Guidance must be integrated into each recipient's established public participation plan or process.
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2. Collect Title VI Programs from subrecipients and review programs for compliance.
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From page 118... ...
KEY CONCEPTS • Eligible/Incidental Use of FTA Funds • Half-Fare: Applicability, Eligibility, and Information • FTA Prohibition of Charter Service • FTA Prohibition of School Bus Operations • Oversight of Subrecipients School Bus Operations: Recipients may not engage in school bus operations exclusively for the transportation of students or school personnel in competition with private school bus operators. First included in the 1973 Federal-Aid Highway Act, Congress intended to protect private school bus operators that could be unfairly displaced by federally funded transit systems.
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IMPORTANCE FOR STATE DOT STAFF States are responsible for ensuring that S. 5307, 5310, 5311, and 5339 funds, as well as capital facilities and equipment funded under the former S. 5309 program, are being used to support eligible projects and services. As a recipient of FTA funds, the state must ensure that it and its subrecipients comply with the prohibition against both charter service and exclusive school bus service.
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From page 120... ...
rail transportation provided by AMTRAK; intercity bus service; charter bus service; school bus service; sightseeing service; courtesy shuttle service for patrons of one or more specific establishments; or intra-terminal or intra-facility shuttle services. Senior: an individual who is 65 years of age or older.
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From page 121... ...
The half-fare requirement is applicable to all fixed route services, whether the services are provided by the grantee directly, by a contractor, by a subrecipient, or by another entity. It does not apply to demand responsive or route deviation services, services that operate only during peak hours (e.g.
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From page 122... ...
buses, facilities, and equipment does not apply to school tripper service. However, tripper service must "operate and look like all other regular service." If the recipient is authorized to provide school bus service under one of three possible exemptions, it must enter into a different written agreement stating that it will notify FTA of any changes that might impact the exemption.
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From page 123... ...
KEY CONCEPTS • FTA-Required Training for Subrecipients • Building Technical Capacity of Subrecipients • Rural Transit Assistance Program IMPORTANCE FOR STATE DOT STAFF States are responsible not only for training their subrecipients on FTA requirements, but also for ensuring that their subrecipients provide FTA-required staff training. INTRODUCTION FTA requires states to inform subrecipients of applicable federal requirements and provide technical assistance in meeting those requirements.
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From page 124... ...
FTA REQUIREMENTS AND RESOURCES FTA-Required Training for Subrecipients FTA requires states to inform subrecipients of applicable federal requirements and provide technical assistance in meeting those requirements. Several FTA topic areas have specific requirements for subrecipients to train their own staff.
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From page 125... ...
Rural Transit Assistance Program (RTAP) FTA provides RTAP funds to assist states in providing training and technical assistance to S. 5311 subrecipients.
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From page 126... ...
• National Center on Senior Transportation (NCST) - funded under a cooperative agreement from Agencies on Aging and FTA, NCST is implemented by Easter Seals in partnership with the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging.
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