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Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance

Program Descriptions

CATALOG OF FEDERAL DOMESTIC ASSISTANCE

20.218: National Motor Carrier Safety

Objectives: To reduce the number and severity of accidents and hazardous material incidents involving commercial motor vehicles by substantially increasing the level and effectiveness of enforcement activity and the likelihood that safety defects, driver deficiencies, and unsafe carrier practices will be detected and corrected.

PROGRAM AND AWARD FINANCIAL AND INFORMATION CONTACTS

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FINANCIAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFO.

APPLICATION AND AWARD PROCESS INFORMATION CONTACTS

RELATED PROGRAMS ASSISTANCE CONSIDERATIONS

PROGRAM ACCOMPLISHMENTS POST ASSISTANCE REQUIREMENTS

20.218 ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS:

Applicant Eligibility: A qualified State of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, or the Northern Marianas (a State).

Beneficiary Eligibility: General public.

Credentials/Documentation: Certification by the State that it meets the conditions for grant approval. Submission of a State Plan addressing the commercial motor carrier and highway hazardous materials safety within the State. Cost will be determined in accordance with OMB Circular No. A-87 for State and local governments.

20.218 APPLICATION AND AWARD PROCESS:

Preapplication Coordination: Scheduled regional pre-planning conferences. This program is excluded from coverage under E.O. 12372.

Application Procedure: File with FHWA Division Office an FHWA Form MCSAP-1, which includes a certification of eligibility and the State Enforcement Plan. This program is excluded from coverage under OMB Circular No. A-110.

Award Procedure: The amount of the basic MCSAP grant to a qualifying State will be determined by the Federal Highway Administration based on the availability of funds, the eligibility of a State, and the formula set in 49 CFR 350. State will be required to sign a grant agreement.

Deadlines: Application for a grant must be filed with the FMCSA Division Office by August 1 of each year.

Range of Approval/Disapproval Time: From 30 to 60 days.

Appeals: State will be notified in writing of failure to submit a satisfactory State Plan. State will have 30 days to modify and resubmit the plan.

Renewals: Application for a grant must be made annually.

Criteria for Selecting Proposals: The applicant must meet the statutory and administrative requirements contained in 49 CFR 350. The State Plan must provide for an effective safety program.

Examples of Funded Projects: Roadside driver vehicle inspections.

Range and Average of Financial Assistance: Not less than 0.44 percent or more than 4.994 percent of available funds for basic program grants.

20.218 RELATED PROGRAMS:

20.217 Motor Carrier Safety.

20.218 PROGRAM ACCOMPLISHMENTS:

In fiscal year 1999, the program supported about 9,200 full and part-time State personnel nationwide who performed about 2.2 million inspections. The program has proven successful in increasing uniformity in the enforcement of motor vehicle safety regulations throughout the United States and promoting commercial motor vehicle safety. FHWA's Drug Interdiction Assistance Program continued to be an effective tool to help intercept drugs transported in commercial motor vehicles and remove from the Nation's highways commercial motor vehicle operators who are using drugs illegally. They have thus far trained 56,386 Federal, State, and local officers in drug interdiction techniques. During fiscal year 1999, 7,487 individual officers were trained, 56,607 pounds of marijuana, 8,489 pounds of cocaine, and $18.5 million in currency were seized from commercial vehicles. Wholesale value of illicit drugs and currency seized during fiscal year 1999 was $531.3 million. Over two thousand criminal arrests were made of drivers for possession, use or sale of illicit drugs.

20.218 FINANCIAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFO:

Federal Agency: FEDERAL MOTOR CARRIER SAFETY ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Type of Assistance: Formula Grants.

Obligations: (Grants) FY 99 $98,000,000; FY 00 est $104,000,000; and FY 01 est $185,000,000.

Budget Account Number: 69-8048-0-7-401.

Authorization: Surface Transportation Assistance Act of 1982, Sections 401-408, Public Law 97-424; Motor Carrier Act of 1991, Public Law 102-240; 49 U.S.C. App. 2301-2307; Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21), Public Law 105-178.

Regulations, Guidelines, and Literature: Regulations, Guidelines, and Literature: 49 CFR 1.48. 49 CFR 386-399, Federal Motor Carrier Safety regulations; 49 CFR 100-180, Hazardous Materials Regulations, Government Printing Office, $14-$27 per volume.

20.218 INFO CONTACTS:

Regional or Local Office: State-level office of the Federal Motor Carriers Safety Administration, as listed in Appendix IV of the Catalog.

Headquarters Office: Federal Motor Carrier and Safety Administration, State Programs, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC, 20590. Phone: (202) 366-2519.

(See Appendix IV for more contact info.)

20.218 ASSISTANCE CONSIDERATIONS:

Formula and Matching Requirements: The MCSAP, 49 CFR 350.21. Most funds will be allocated each year among the States according to a formula based on the following in equal proportions: (1) Road Mileage; (2) Special Fuel Consumption; (3) Number of Commercial Vehicles over 10,000 pounds (gross vehicle weight rating); (4) Vehicle Miles Traveled; and (5) Population. Source: Most current FHWA Highway Statistics available. The Federal share shall not exceed 80 percent of the approved incremental increase over the average for the 3 fiscal years prior to December 18, 1991. The State's share is at least 20 percent. The FHWA shall, upon request, waive the requirement for matching funds to be provided by the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, or the Northern Marianas. Additional funds are allocated under the provisions of the Motor Carrier Act of 1991.

Length and Time Phasing of Assistance: Grants are for up to 1 year. Obligations to a State will remain available for expenditure for the fiscal year for which they were obligated plus the next year.

Uses and Use Restrictions: Assistance to States for the implementation of programs for the enforcement of Federal rules, regulations, standards, and orders applicable to commercial motor vehicle safety and compatible State rules, regulations, standards, and orders.

20.218 POST ASSISTANCE REQUIREMENTS:

Reports: A quarterly Activity Report (FMCSA Form MCSAP-3) is to be filed with the FHWA Division Office.

Audits: In accordance with the provisions of OMB Circular No. A-133 (Revised, June 24, 1997), Audits of States, Local Governments, and Non-Profit Organizations," nonfederal entities that receive financial assistance of $300,000 or more in Federal awards will have a single or a program-specific audit conducted for that year. Nonfederal entities that expend less than $300,000 a year in Federal awards are exempt from Federal audit requirements for that year, except as noted in Circular No. A-133.

Records: Records of all program activities covered in the State's State Plan and statistics pertaining to commercial motor vehicle accidents. Such records must be kept for 3 years following the year of funding.