Grantee Resource Center

Welcome to the Grantee Resource Center for FTA Region 5. We periodically update and add resources to help provide the best information and materials to our grantees. If you have resources you’d like to see added that are not available on the regional or national sites, please contact us.

FY 2024 FTA Region 5 Grant Timeline Guidance

FTA Region 5 encourages recipients to follow the timeline below. This timeline is a good resource to help recipients internally plan out grantmaking activities and supports timely awarding of grants by the end of Federal Fiscal Year 2024 (FY 2024). Due to the complexity of some grants, your pre-award manager may request actions to be completed earlier than the dates shown below. Please contact your assigned pre-award manager early and often with any questions prior to submitting grant applications.

Date(s)	Action(s)
November - December 2023	Review Region 5 Grantmaking Reference Guide. The Guide is updated each fiscal year. Work to complete and submit any grant applications, amendments, or budget revisions that were started but not completed in the previous fiscal year. Meet with your pre-award manager to discuss any planned construction projects that may require NEPA and/or Section 106 consultation. More information, including examples of projects that require consultation, is available here. The Region’s goal is to have all NEPA and/or Section 106 completed by mid-May for grants awarded in FY24. Completing environmental work can take up to several months, so build in enough time to your schedule when planning out your timeline of grantmaking activities. Schedule a fiscal year kick-off meeting with your FTA Region 5 representatives to discuss the following: Review all active grants, and if there are any changes to projects in your active grants your FTA Region 5 representatives can provide guidance on necessary revisions or amendments. If you have remaining unused funds in your active grants, identify a plan to use those funds for a different eligible project. Your FTA Region 5 representatives will provide guidance on moving the funds to a different grant if necessary. Identify all lapsing fund apportionments and finalize a plan for those funds. Note: lapsing funds must be awarded prior to TrAMS closing in September 2024. Identify all federally assisted projects that need to be added to or amended in the TIP/STIP. Identify all flex funds (STBG/CMAQ/CRP) expected to be used within the fiscal year and initiate the transfers as early as possible
January – February 2024	Ensure that both the Authorizing Official and Attorney are registered in TrAMS to execute the Certifications and Assurances. See the Grantmaking Reference Guide for more details. Review your Users in TrAMS, taking time to deactivate and/or edit role assignments for each user as needed. Review/Update your Recipient Point of Contact and Profile Information in TrAMS. Be sure that your Designated Recipient/Direct Recipient documentation is included. Work with your local MPO/State to include all federally assisted projects in updated TIPs/STIPs.
March – April 2024	Coordinate with your FTA Region 5 representatives to develop FY 2024 grant applications, discussing timelines, projects, approvals, and other relevant milestones. Ensure Civil Rights Programs are up to date. Pin FY 2024 Certifications & Assurances. Certifications and Assurances must be properly and accurately pinned before grants can be awarded.
April 1, 2024	Ensure all flex fund (STBG/CMAQ/CRP) transfers needed for FY24 grants have been initiated. FTA Region 5 cannot guarantee the awarding of grants within the fiscal year for flex fund transfers that are initiated after this date. Grants should not be submitted until flex fund transfers are completed and funds are loaded into TrAMS.
May 15, 2024	Ensure all federally assisted projects are in the current approved TIP/STIP and all other federal planning requirements have been met. Ensure NEPA and/or Section 106 consultation has been completed and approved. Meet with your FTA Region 5 representatives to discuss any active grants at risk of becoming inactive by FY25. If applicable, create a plan with your pre-award manager to mitigate inactive grants.
June 15, 2024	Transmit grants in TrAMS for preliminary FTA Region 5 review.
July 23, 2024	Submit all grants in TrAMS for DOL certification (if applicable) and final FTA Region 5 review. DOL may not guarantee certification past this date; more information will be communicated through TrAMS during the fiscal year. All grants containing lapsing funds should also be submitted by this date for final FTA approval.
Third Week of September 2024	TrAMS Year End Close (estimated date to be determined)
September 30, 2024	End of Federal Fiscal Year.

The contents of this document do not have the force and effect of law and are not meant to bind the public in any way. This document is intended only to provide clarity to the public regarding existing requirements under the law or agency policies.

Announcements

Section 106 Webinar

FTA Region 5 conducted a National Historic Preservation Act (Section 106) ;webinar on Thursday, May 31, 2018. The webinar provided an overview on:

How Section 106 fits into the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process
The Section 106 players and their roles
The steps in the Section 106 process
Determining if Section 106 applies to your Project
Where you can find more information on Section 106

View the webinar recording

See our Questions and Answers summary or download documents referenced during the webinar:

2018 Section 106 Webinar Presentation
Project Descriptions

Pre-Award Grant Activities Webinar

FTA's Region 5 Office conducted a webinar, Overview of FY 2017 Pre-Award Grant Activities, on Wednesday, March 22, 2017. The webinar provided a broad overview of pre-award activities and schedules, including:

Prerequisites to receiving FTA funding
Grantmaking in TrAMS
Grant structure
Grant content
Deadlines
Questions and answers

View the webinar recording. (Please note: the voice recording for the webinar does not begin until the 12:30 mark. We apologize for this glitch, but the discussion is captured by the Caption Pod until that point.)

See our webinar Questions and Answers summary or download documents referenced during the webinar:

Grant Making Guidance

Region 5 created the FY24 Grant Making Reference Guide to help grant recipients use FTA's Transit Award Management System (TrAMS). Recipients are encouraged to contact their FTA Region 5 grant representative prior to creating a new TrAMS grant application. See FTA Region 5's staff organization chart.

Last updated: Friday, February 23, 2024

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