Action
Notice.
Summary
The Department of Transportation (DOT) and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2001 (FY 2001 DOT Appropriations Act) (Pub. L. 106-346) was signed into law by President Clinton on October 23, 2000, and provides FY 2001 appropriations for the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) transit assistance programs. Based upon this Act, and the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA- 21), on November 3, 2000, FTA published, on its website, a list of apportionments and allocations for transit programs--excluding the FY 2001 Bus allocations for the Section 5309 Capital Investment Program. Publication of the "FTA Fiscal Year 2001 Apportionments, Allocations and Program Information Notice" in the Federal Register was delayed pending the completion of the appropriation process by Congress. The FY 2001 Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations Act (Pub. L. 106- 554), which was signed by the President on December 21, 2000, contains provisions that impact the level of funding made available to FTA in the FY 2001 DOT Appropriations Act and cause the FY 2001 apportionments and allocations previously published on the website to change. More specifically, the FY 2001 Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations Act contain the following provisions relative to FTA programs in this fiscal year: (1) Section 1403(a) Government-Wide Rescission, which rescinds an amount equal to .22 percent of the discretionary budget authority is to be applied to programs, projects, and activities; (2) Section 1108, which directs that funding for the Clean Fuels Formula Grant program under 49 U.S.C. 5309(m)(3)(C) does not apply to funds made available in the FY 2001 DOT Appropriations Act; and (3) Sections 1105, 1107, and 1123, which appropriate from the Mass Transit Account of the Highway Trust Fund, $1,000,000 for Southeast Light Rail Extension Project, in Dallas, TX, $3,000,000 for the Newark-Elizabeth rail link project in New Jersey, and $500,000 for Alabama A&M University buses and bus facilities, respectively. This notice includes the apportionment of FY 2001 funds made available in the FY 2001 DOT Appropriations Act--adjusted in accordance with the applicable provisions of the FY 2001 Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations Act--for the: Metropolitan Planning Program and State Planning and Research Program; Urbanized Area Formula Program; Nonurbanized Area Formula Program; Rural Transit Assistance Program; Elderly and Persons with Disabilities Program; and the Capital Investment Program for Fixed Guideway Modernization. This notice also contains the adjusted allocations for the New Starts and Bus categories under the Capital Investment Program and the Job Access and Reverse Commute Program. It contains general information about other programs established under TEA-21, including the Over-the-Road Bus Accessibility Program and the Clean Fuels Formula Program. Information regarding TEA-21 funding authorization levels for use in developing Metropolitan Transportation Improvement Programs (TIPs) and Statewide Transportation Improvement Programs (STIPs) is included. For informational purposes, the notice contains the estimated apportionment of FY 2001 funds for the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Metropolitan Planning Program and the estimated apportionment of FY 2001 funds for the FHWA State Planning and Research Program. Listings of prior year unobligated allocations for the section 5309 New Starts and Bus Programs are included, as in previous years. In addition, the FTA policy regarding pre-award authority to incur project costs and the Letter of No Prejudice Policy are provided. Other pertinent program information is also included.