One Call FY 2019 NOFO.docx

Notice of Funding Opportunity

Pipeline Safety One-Call Grant

Fiscal Year 2019

NOFO Posted Date: March 15, 2019 Application Due Date: May 1, 2019 Questions Due Date: April 15, 2019

Applicants must be registered with Grants.gov to apply for this grant. It is highly recommended that applicants begin the registration process as soon as possible to avoid delays in submission. Additionally, applicants must maintain a valid Dun and Bradstreet Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number and an active registration in the System for Award Management (SAM) at www.SAM.gov.

Furthermore, applicants must register with FedConnect at https://www.fedconnect.net for an account before submitting an application. Your organization’s Marketing Partner ID number (MPIN), which can be retrieved from SAM, is required to create an account. For instructions on how to register in FedConnect and how to use the portal, view the FedConnect: Ready, Set, Go! Tutorial under the Need Help? section on the FedConnect home page.

Assistance Listing Program Number (formerly CFDA)

20.721 One-Call Grants

PHMSA Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) Number

693JK319NF0003

U.S. Department of Transportation

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA)

Table of Contents

Program Summary 3

MISSION 4

SECTION G – FEDERAL AWARDING AGENCY CONTACTS 11

Program Summary

Federal Agency Name: United States (U.S.) Department of Transportation

(DOT)

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA)

Funding Opportunity Title: Pipeline Safety One-Call Grants – Fiscal Year (FY) 2019

Announcement Type: Initial Announcement

Funding Opportunity Number: 693JK319NF0003

Assistance Listing Program (formerly CFDA) Number: 20.721

Questions Due Date: April 15, 2019

MISSION

The mission of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) is to ensure our nation has the safest, most efficient and modern transportation system in the world. DOT’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) protects people and the environment by advancing the safe transportation of energy and other hazardous materials that are essential to our daily lives. To do this, the agency establishes national policy, sets and enforces standards, educates, and conducts research to prevent incidents. We also prepare the public and first responders to reduce consequences if an incident does occur. To accomplish this, PHMSA awards grants to states, localities, communities, and nonprofits that help make sure pipelines operate safely and shipments arrive without incident.

SECTION A – PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

A.1 Purpose PHMSA administers this grant program to provide funding for state agencies’ damage prevention efforts, including training, changing state underground damage prevention laws, related compliance activities, and public education.

A.2 Statute and Program Authority The One-Call program is authorized by the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (Public Law 105-178); 49 U.S.C. § 60114; the Protecting our Infrastructure of Pipelines and Enhancing Safety (PIPES) Act of 2016, (Public Law 114-183); 49 U.S.C. § 6106; and 49 U.S.C. § 6107.

A.3 Background The Secretary is authorized under 49 U.S.C. § 6106, to award grants in support of the One-Call program. 49 U.S.C. § 6107 authorized $1,058,000 for Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 to carry out 49 U.S.C. § 6106. The amount of any grant will not exceed $60,000 for a single recipient; however, total available funds and the maximum award amount are contingent upon Congress’ appropriation of funding for the One-Call program. The Secretary may support the improvement of various One-Call damage prevention activities by making a grant of financial assistance to a state. This grant opportunity is open to state agencies that are permitted to conduct pipeline safety inspections per a 49 U.S.C. § 60105 certification and/or a 49 U.S.C. § 60106 agreement with PHMSA to perform pipeline safety inspections.

SECTION B – FEDERAL AWARD INFORMATION

B.1 Funding 49 U.S.C. § 6107, states that “[of] the amounts made available under section 60125(a)(1), the Secretary shall expend $1,058,000 for each of fiscal years (FY) 2016 through 2019 to carry out section 6106.”

Applicants are hereby notified that Congress has not yet appropriated FY 2019 funds for this grant program. PHMSA anticipates awarding approximately $1,058,000 under this NOFO, subject to the availability of funds, the quantity and quality of proposals received, and other considerations. The amount available for FY 2019 will be determined when Congress enacts a full-year appropriation for PHMSA.

The amount of any grant may not exceed $60,000 per grant recipient; however, the total available funding and maximum award amount will be contingent upon an enacted FY 2019 appropriation. The funds may not be used for lobbying, regulatory compliance activities, the typical operations and maintenance of pipeline facilities, or in direct support of litigation.

B.2 Period of Performance The period of performance is 12 months from the effective date of award for each grant. Applicants should only apply for funding that can be reasonably expended within this timeframe and for projects that can be completed within the period of performance.

B.3 Type of Award If funding is made available, PHMSA intends to award multiple grants under this NOFO. The number of awards will depend on the quality of applications, the number of applications received, and the dollar amounts requested. PHMSA may, at its discretion, award a grant based on the application in its entirety, award funds for only portions of a grant application, or reject the application. Submission of an application is not a guarantee of award.

SECTION C – ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION

C.1 Eligible Applicants This grant opportunity is only open to state agencies that are authorized to conduct pipeline safety inspections per a 49 U.S.C. § 60105 certification and/or a 49 U.S.C. § 60106 agreement with PHMSA.

49 U.S.C. § 6103 establishes the minimum standards that applicants must meet to qualify for a One-Call Grant award. PHMSA requires interested state agencies to answer the following questions and provide sufficient details to clearly demonstrate compliance with these requirements. Failure to provide the requested information may lead to rejection of the application.

· Does the State One-Call notification program allow all underground facility operators, including all government operators, to participate, as appropriate?[footnoteRef:1] List any pipeline exemptions. [1: Minimum Standards for State One-call Notification Programs, 49 U.S. Code § 6103(b).]

· Does the State One-Call notification program allow all excavators, including all government and contract excavators, to participate, as appropriate?[footnoteRef:2] [2: Minimum Standards for State One-call Notification Programs, 49 U.S. Code § 6103(b).]

· Does the State One-Call notification program provide for flexible and effective enforcement under state law? Please provide a citation to the state statute for enforcement and identify the enforcement authority.

· Does the State One-Call notification program require that its notification system requirements are applicable, without exemptions, to municipalities, state agencies, or their contractors? Note: if you are currently classified as ineligible by PHMSA based on this requirement, you do not qualify for this grant.

· Does the State One-Call notification program consider the gravity of the offense and the risk to the public when determining appropriate enforcement?

· Does the State One-Call notification program provide no-cost underground facility locate requests, excluding design locate requests, for all individuals planning excavation activities?

· Does the State One-Call notification program provide for the voluntary participation of underground facility owners or activity of an excavator that the State determined to be a de minimis risk to public safety?

· Does the state, to the extent it determines it is appropriate and necessary, provide administrative or civil penalties commensurate with the seriousness of a violation of the State One-Call notification program by an excavator or facility owner?

C.2 Cost Sharing or Matching There are no requirements for cost sharing or matching.

C.3 Other Applications that contain a request for indirect costs should include a budget narrative detailing the proposal for indirect costs, where allowable. The budget narrative should include a signed copy of the applicant’s approved negotiated rate agreement that is valid as of the date of the application, if this is not already on file with PHMSA State Programs division. If the applicant does not have an approved indirect cost rate agreement, PHMSA may consider requests for a grant-specific indirect cost rate, or the applicant may be eligible for the 10-percent de minimis rate provided by 2 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) § 200.414.

SECTION D – APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION

D.1 How to Request an Application Package To begin the application process, an applicant must be registered with both PHMSA’s Federal State Tracking and Reporting System (FedSTAR) and Grants.gov. All applications must be submitted online. Failure to comply with the prescribed application requirements described in this section will result in rejection without review. For registration guidance on FedSTAR or Grants.gov, please contact Carrie Winslow by phone: (757) 689-3168 or via email: carrie.winslow@dot.gov.

D.2 Content and Form of the Application Each application must consist of the following:

· A project narrative detailing the purpose and planned activity;

· A budget estimate that uses standard form (SF) 424 categories; and,

· A Grants.gov application package that includes the following sections:

· Application for Federal Assistance (SF-424);

· Budget Information – Non-construction Programs (SF-424A); and,

· Certification Regarding Lobbying.

D.3 DUNS Number and System for Award Management (SAM) Each applicant must register in SAM before submitting an application, provide a valid DUNS number in the application, and maintain an active SAM registration with current information at all times during which the applicant has an active Federal award or an application under consideration by PHMSA. PHMSA may not make a grant award until the applicant has complied with all applicable DUNS and SAM requirements. PHMSA will review an applicant’s SAM registration status to make a responsibility determination.

D.4 Submission Dates and Times Complete applications must be received electronically through FedSTAR and Grants.gov by 5:00 PM Eastern Time on May 1, 2019. Applicants will receive an automated receipt of the date and time of application submission from FedSTAR and Grants.gov. Proposals submitted after the deadline will only be considered under extraordinary circumstances not under the applicant’s control. Deadlines will not be extended due to scheduled website maintenance. Deadline extension requests must be submitted via email to the primary program contact listed in Section G.

Questions Due Date & Time: April 15, 2019 at 5:00 pm EDT NOTE: All questions MUST be submitted via the Message Center in FedConnect. Please do not send questions via e-mail. PHMSA is not responsible for answering questions that were received after the Questions Due Date & Time.

D.5 Funding Restrictions Funds provided under a grant award may not be used for lobbying, direct advocacy regarding pipeline construction or expansion, or in direct support of litigation.

· Advance written approval: Changes in project scope, budget, objectives, project period, or key personnel will require advance written approval by the PHMSA Grant Officer.

· Educational items: Federal regulation 2 CFR § 200 prohibits the use of grant funding for promotional materials; however, funding may be provided for items that are educational in nature. When requesting funds for educational items, applicants should provide a general description of the items that will be purchased and a plan for the distribution of those items.

· Meetings and conferences: Federal regulation 2 CFR § 200 also addresses the use of grant funding for meetings and conferences, which is permissible if the primary purpose of the function is the dissemination of technical information. The cost of meals, transportation, facility rental, speakers’ fees, and other items incidental to such meetings or conferences may be paid using grant funds; however, funding may not be used to cover costs associated with entertainment, such as shows or sporting events, or the purchase of alcoholic beverages.

· All PHMSA awards are subject to the terms and conditions in the grant agreement and the cost principles in 2 CFR § 200, Subpart E – Cost Principles.

D.7 Other Submission Requirements

PHMSA requires applicants for this funding opportunity to apply electronically through FedSTAR and Grants.gov. FedSTAR requires applicants to use an internet browser with a valid username and password for the following site: https://portal.phmsa.dot.gov. Applicants must then download the application package associated with this funding opportunity from Grants.gov at www.grants.gov.

Furthermore, applicants must register with FedConnect at https://www.fedconnect.net for an account before submitting an application. Your organization’s Marketing Partner ID number (MPIN), which can be retrieved from SAM, is required to create an account. For instructions on how to register in FedConnect and how to use the portal, view the FedConnect: Ready, Set, Go! Tutorial under the Need Help? section on the FedConnect home page.

SECTION E – APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION

E.1 Criteria PHMSA will evaluate the One-Call applications using the following criteria:

Criterion 1. Relevance to established funding priorities This criterion will be used to evaluate work proposed under each project in the application, particularly regarding projects that enhance public safety, protect the environment, minimize risks to excavators, and prevent disruption of vital public services. When evaluating public service disruption prevention, PHMSA will specifically look for projects that reduce the incidence of excavation damage to underground facilities through the voluntary adoption and efficient implementation of One-Call notification programs.

Funding priorities are established and communicated to all potential grantees by distribution of the One-Call Grant Application Guidelines, which are updated annually.

Criterion 2. Costs and Project Scope This criterion will be used to evaluate the prospective work under each element in the application and to assess whether the proposed projects will:

· Produce tangible results within the project period;

· Establish clear goals, objectives, milestones, and estimates of project costs; and

· Use funds efficiently and effectively.

Criterion 3. Past Performance This criterion will be used to evaluate the past performance of applicants that have received a PHMSA One-Call grant in the past. Past performance includes fulfillment of grant agreements in a timely manner and compliance with grant terms and conditions. Applicants that are requesting grant funding for the continuation of a project that previously received funding should provide a summary of accomplishments and tasks completed during the previous grant period. The information provided should include measurable results and deliverables, as well as any information about tasks that were not completed or other challenges encountered during the grant period.

E.2 Review and Selection Process PHMSA will conduct an initial administrative review of each completed application to determine whether it is complete and meets the eligibility and responsibility requirements. A team composed of PHMSA Pipeline State Program Division staff and representatives from the National Association of Pipeline Safety Representatives’ Grant Allocation Committee will perform a technical review of each completed application that meets the eligibility requirements and provide recommendations for award.

Final award recommendations will be made by the PHMSA Administrator to the Secretary of Transportation after taking into consideration the ratings and assessment by the technical evaluation panel and how well the applications address PHMSA’s safety priorities which include, but are not limited to: promoting damage prevention (including changes with state’s underground damage prevention laws), related compliance activities, training, and public education.

The Administrator will also consider the following key Departmental objectives:

A) Supporting economic vitality at the national and regional level;

B) Utilizing alternative funding sources and innovative financing models to attract non-Federal sources of infrastructure investment;

C) Accounting for the life-cycle costs of the project to promote the state of good repair;

D) Using innovative approaches to improve safety and expedite project delivery; and, E) Holding grant recipients accountable for their performance and achieving specific, measurable outcomes identified by grant applicants.

Final award decisions will be made by the Secretary of Transportation.

For each of the project requests, the review team will rate the application using the following guidelines:

Rating Guideline

Exceptional - The application demonstrates that the NOFO requirements are very well understood and the approach will likely result in a very high quality performance. The application clearly addresses and exceeds requirements with no weaknesses. The application contains outstanding features that meet or exceed on multiple dimensions the expectations of the Government. The application scope aligns very well with the DOT objectives and priorities. The risk of poor performance is very low.

Acceptable - The application demonstrates that the NOFO requirements are understood and the approach will likely result in satisfactory performance. The application addresses and meets requirements with some minor but correctable weaknesses. The application demonstrates requisite experience, qualifications, and performance capabilities. The application scope aligns with the DOT objectives and priorities. The risk of poor performance is low.

Marginal - The application demonstrates that the NOFO requirements are mostly understood and the approach will likely result in satisfactory performance for part of the request. The applicant addresses some of the requirements with some correctable weaknesses. The applicant demonstrates some experience, qualifications, and/or performance capabilities. The application scope marginally aligns with the DOT objectives and priorities. The risk of poor performance is moderate.

Unacceptable - The application does not meet the NOFO requirements of the NOFO. The application fails to address many requirements. The applicant may be ineligible to apply for the grant. The application could not satisfy critical requirements without a major revision and/or a rewrite of the application or a major redirection effort. The application scope does not align with the DOT objectives and priorities. The risk of poor performance is high.

SECTION F – FEDERAL AWARD ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION

F.1 Federal Award Notices The PHMSA awarding official will make grant awards to applicants whose applications are judged to be eligible and appropriate under the procedures set forth in this NOFO. All funds awarded by PHMSA under this grant program must be expended solely for their designated purposes, in accordance with the approved application and the budget, regulations, applicable Federal cost principles, DOT financial assistance regulations, and terms and conditions of the award. Funds may not be used for lobbying, direct advocacy regarding pipeline construction or expansion, or in direct support of litigation.

The award document will provide pertinent information and instructions that, at a minimum, include the:

· Legal name and address of the recipient;

· Title of the project;

· Name(s) of key personnel chosen to direct and control approved activities;

· PHMSA-assigned Federal Award Identifier Number;

· Period of Performance

· Total amount of financial assistance approved for the project;

· Legal authority/authorities under which the award is issued;

· Assistance Listing Program (formerly CFDA) number and name;

· Applicable award terms and conditions;

· Approved total budget categorizing allocable project funds to accomplish the stated purpose of the award; and

· Other information or provisions deemed necessary by PHMSA.

F.2 Administrative and National Policy Requirements Several Federal statutes and regulations apply to grant applications considered for review and grants awarded under this program. For a list of statutes and regulations that are applicable to this funding opportunity, please see Attachment 1: Terms and Conditions. Note: Attachment 1 may be updated at the time of the award due to the timing of the award and notices.

F.3 Reporting Recipients must submit a final performance report in FedSTAR no later than 90 days after the end of the grant period of performance. Instructions on how to complete the report will be sent separately to each grant recipient.

SECTION G – FEDERAL AWARDING AGENCY CONTACTS

Primary Point of Contact:

Nadine Graham, Agreement Specialist Phone: (202) 366-4059 Email: nadine.graham@dot.gov

Secondary Point of Contact:

Ben Patterson, Agreement Officer Phone: (202) 366-5102 Email: Ben.Patterson@dot.gov

NOTE: All questions related to the content of this funding opportunity MUST be submitted via the Message Center in FedConnect. Please do not send questions via e-mail.

Only for technical issues or questions related to FedConnect, please email support@fedconnect.net or call 1-800-899-6665.

Only for technical issues or questions related to Grants.gov, please email support@grants.gov or call 800- 518-4726.

NOFO # 693JK319NF0003

U.S. DOT: PHMSA Page 4 of 12

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