Date Closed: August 30, 2021
Opportunity ID: FTA-2021-005-TPE
Grant Program: Areas of Persistent Poverty Program
Opportunity Announcement PDF: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2021-06-30/pdf/2021-13980.pdf
Opportunity Announcement TXT: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2021-06-30/html/2021-13980.htm
Overview
The Areas of Persistent Poverty program provides grants for planning, engineering, technical studies, or financial plans to improve transit services in areas experiencing long-term economic distress. It also supports coordinated human service transportation planning to improve transit service or provide new services, including paratransit.
The Areas of Persistent Poverty program supports President Biden’s Build Back Better initiative to mobilize American ingenuity to build modern infrastructure and an equitable, clean energy future.
To determine if your area qualifies as an Area of Persistent Poverty, review the list of counties and census tracts listed in USDOT’s RAISE Persistent Poverty Project Status Tool.
Eligible Activities
The Areas of Persistent Poverty program seeks to provide funding for planning, engineering, technical studies, or financial plans that will result in improved public transportation, new routes and facilities, and innovative technologies in communities experiencing a high poverty rate, for projects eligible under Chapter 53 of title 49 U.S.C. in areas of persistent poverty.
Eligible Recipients
Applicants for the Areas of Persistent Poverty program must be eligible recipients or sub-recipients under section 5307, 5310, or 5311 of title 49, U.S. Code. An application must clearly identify the eligible lead applicant and all project partners on the team. Eligible project partners and sub-recipients may include, but are not limited to:
Public transportation systems
Operators of transportation, such as employee shuttle services or airport connector services, or university transportation systems
State or local government entities
Other organizations that may contribute to the success of the project team including consultants, research consortia or nonprofit industry organizations, and institutions of higher education
Statutory References
Urbanized Area Formula Grants (49 U.S.C. § 5307)
Formula Grants for the enhanced mobility of seniors and individuals with disabilities (49 U.S.C. § 5310)
Formula Grants for Rural Areas (49 U.S.C. § 5311)
Match
The minimum Federal share for projects selected under the Areas of Persistent Poverty Program is 90 percent of the net total project cost (i.e., the local share will be no more than 10 percent of the net total project cost, not 10 percent of the requested grant amount). The applicant must provide the local share of the net project cost in cash, or in-kind, and must document in its application the source of the local match.