68 FR 69 pgs. 17598-17600 - Inviting Rural Business Enterprise Grant Program Preapplications for Technical Assistance for Rural Transportation Systems
Type: NOTICEVolume: 68Number: 69Pages: 17598 - 17600
FR document: [FR Doc. 03-8818 Filed 4-9-03; 8:45 am]
Agency: Agriculture Department
Sub Agency: Rural Business-Cooperative Service
Official PDF Version: PDF Version
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Rural Business-Cooperative Service
Inviting Rural Business Enterprise Grant Program Preapplications for Technical Assistance for Rural Transportation Systems
AGENCY:
Rural Business-Cooperative Service, USDA.
ACTION:
Notice.
SUMMARY:
The Rural Business-Cooperative Service (RBS), an Agency within the Rural Development mission area, announces the availability of two individual grants: one single $496,750 grant from the passenger transportation funds appropriated for the RBS Rural Business Enterprise Grant (RBEG) program and another single $248,375 grant from the Federally Recognized Native American Tribes funds appropriated for RBS under the RBEG Program for fiscal year (FY) 2003. Each grant is to be competitively awarded to a qualified national organization. These grants are to provide technical assistance for rural transportation.
DATES:
The deadline for receipt of preapplications in the Rural Development State Office is May 15, 2003. Preapplications received at a Rural Development State Office after that date would not be considered for FY 2003 funding.
ADDRESSES:
For further information, entities wishing to apply for assistance should contact a Rural Development State Office to receive further information and copies of the pre-application package. A list of Rural Development State Offices follows:
District of Columbia
Rural Business-Cooperative Service, USDA
Specialty Lenders Division
1400 Independence Avenue, SW.
STOP 3225, Room 6867
Washington, DC 20250-3225
(202) 720-1400
Alabama
USDA Rural Development State Office
Sterling Center, Suite 601
4121 Carmichael Road
Montgomery, AL 36106-3683
(334) 279-3400
Alaska
USDA Rural Development State Office
800 West Evergreen, Suite 201
Palmer, AK 99645-6539
(907) 761-7705
Arizona
USDA Rural Development State Office
3003 North Central Avenue, Suite 900
Phoenix, AZ 85012-2906
(602) 280-8700
Arkansas
USDA Rural Development State Office
700 West Capitol Avenue, Room 3416
Little Rock, AR 72201-3225
(501) 301-3200
California
USDA Rural Development State Office
430 G Street, Agency 4169
Davis, CA 95616-4169
(530) 792-5800
Colorado
USDA Rural Development State Office
655 Parfet Street, Room E-100
Lakewood, CO 80215
(720) 544-2903
Delaware-Maryland
USDA Rural Development State Office
P.O. Box 400
4607 South DuPont Highway
Camden, DE 19934-9998
(302) 697-4300
Florida/Virgin Islands
USDA Rural Development State Office
P.O. Box 147010
4440 NW. 25th Place
Gainesville, FL 32606
(352) 338-3402
Georgia
USDA Rural Development State Office
Stephens Federal Building
355 E. Hancock Avenue
Athens, GA 30601-2768
(706) 546-2162
Hawaii
USDA Rural Development State Office
Federal Building, Room 311
154 Waianuenue Avenue
Hilo, HI 96720
(808) 933-8380
Idaho
USDA Rural Development State Office
9173 West Barnes Dr., Suite A1
Boise, ID 83709
(208) 378-5600
Illinois
USDA Rural Development State Office
2118 West Park Court, Suite A
Champaign, IL 61821
(217) 403-6202
Indiana
USDA Rural Development State Office
5975 Lakeside Boulevard
Indianapolis, IN 46278
(317) 290-3100
Iowa
USDA Rural Development State Office
Federal Building, Room 873
210 Walnut Street
Des Moines, IA 50309-2196
(515) 284-4663
Kansas
USDA Rural Development State Office
Suite 100
1303 SW First American Place
Topeka, KS 66604
(785) 271-2700
Kentucky
USDA Rural Development State Office
771 Corporate Drive, Suite 200
Lexington, KY 40503
(859) 224-7300
Louisiana
USDA Rural Development State Office
3727 Government Street
Alexandria, LA 71302
(318) 473-7921
Maine
USDA Rural Development State Office
P. O. Box 405
967 Illinois Avenue, Suite 4
Bangor, ME 04402-0405
(207) 990-9106
Massachusetts/Rhode Island/Connecticut
USDA Rural Development State Office
451 West Street, Suite 2
Amherst, MA 01002-2999
(413) 253-4300
Michigan
USDA Rural Development State Office
3001 Coolidge Road, Suite 200
East Lansing, MI 48823
(517) 324-5100
Minnesota
USDA Rural Development State Office
410 AgriBank Building 375 Jackson Street
St. Paul, MN 55101-1853
(651) 602-7800
Mississippi
USDA Rural Development State Office
Federal Building, Suite 831
100 West Capitol Street
Jackson, MS 39269
(601) 965-4316
Missouri
USDA Rural Development State Office
601 Business Loop 70 West
Parkade Center, Suite 235
Columbia, MO 65203
(573) 876-0976
Montana
USDA Rural Development State Office
P. O. Box 771
900 Technology Blvd., Unit 1, Suite B
Bozeman, MT 59715
(406) 585-2580
Nebraska
USDA Rural Development State Office
Federal Building, Room 152
100 Centennial Mall North
Lincoln, NE 68508
(402) 437-5551
Nevada
USDA Rural Development State Office
1390 South Curry Street
Carson City, NV 89703-9910
(775) 887-1222
New Jersey
USDA Rural Development State Office
Tarnsfield Plaza, Suite 22
790 Woodlane Road
Mt. Holly, NJ 08060
(609) 265-3600
New Mexico
USDA Rural Development State Office
6200 Jefferson Street, NE.
Room 255
Albuquerque, NM 87109
(505) 761-4950
New York
USDA Rural Development State Office
The Galleries of Syracuse 441 South Salina Street, Suite 357
Syracuse, NY 13202-2541
(315) 477-6400
North Carolina
USDA Rural Development State Office
4405 Bland Road, Suite 260
Raleigh, NC 27609
(919) 873-2000
North Dakota
USDA Rural Development State Office
P. O. Box 1737
Federal Building, Room 208
220 East Rosser Avenue
Bismarck, ND 58502-1737
(701) 530-2037
Ohio
USDA Rural Development State Office
Federal Building, Room 507
200 North High Street
Columbus, OH 43215-2418
(614) 255-2500
Oklahoma
USDA Rural Development State Office
SDA, Suite 108
Stillwater, OK 74074-2654
(405) 742-1000
Oregon
USDA Rural Development State Office
101 SW Main Street, Suite 1410
Portland, OR 97204-3222
(503) 414-3300
Pennsylvania
USDA Rural Development State Office
One Credit Union Place, Suite 330
Harrisburg, PA 17110-2996
(717) 237-2299
Puerto Rico
USDA Rural Development State Office
654 Munoz Rivera Avenue
IBM Plaza, Suite 601
Hato Rey, Puerto Rico 00918-6106
(787) 766-5095
South Carolina
USDA Rural Development State Office
Strom Thurmond Federal Building 1835 Assembly Street, Room 1007
Columbia, SC 29201
(803) 765-5163
South Dakota
USDA Rural Development State Office
Federal Building, Room 210
200 4th Street, SW.
Huron, SD 57350
(605) 352-1100
Tennessee
USDA Rural Development State Office
3322 West End Avenue, Suite 300
Nashville, TN 37203-1084
(615) 783-1300
Texas
USDA Rural Development State Office
Federal Building, Suite 102
101 South Main Street
Temple, TX 76501
(254) 742-9700
Utah
USDA Rural Development State Office
Wallace F. Bennett Federal Building 125 South State Street, Room 4311
P. O. Box 11350
Salt Lake City, UT 84147-0350
(801) 524-4321
Vermont/New Hampshire
USDA Rural Development State Office
City Center, 3rd Floor
89 Main Street
Montpelier, VT 05602
(802) 828-6010
Virginia
USDA Rural Development State Office
Culpeper Building, Suite 238
1606 Santa Rosa Road
Richmond, VA 23229-5014
(804) 287-1550
Washington
USDA Rural Development State Office
1835 Black Lake Boulevard, SW.
Suite B
Olympia, WA 98512-5715
(360) 704-7740
West Virginia
USDA Rural Development State Office
Federal Building
75 High Street, Room 320
Morgantown, WV 26505-7500
(304) 284-4860
Wisconsin
USDA Rural Development State Office
4949 Kirschling Court
Stevens Point, WI 54481
(715) 345-7610
Wyoming
USDA Rural Development State Office
Federal Building, Room 1005
100 East B Street
P. O. Box 820
Casper, WY 82602
(307) 261-6300
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
The passenger transportation portion of the RBEG program is authorized by section 310B(c)(2) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (CONACT) (7 U.S.C. 1932(c)(2)). The RBEG program is administered on behalf of RBS at the State level by the Rural Development State Offices. The primary objective of the program is to improve the economic conditions of rural areas. Assistance provided to rural areas under this program may include on-site technical assistance to local and regional governments, public transit agencies, and related nonprofit and for-profit organizations in rural areas; the development of training materials; and the provision of necessary training assistance to local officials and agencies in rural areas.
Awards under the RBEG passenger transportation program are made on a competitive basis using specific selection criteria contained in 7 CFR part 1942, subpart G, and in accordance with section 310B(c)(2) of the CONACT. That subpart also contains the information required to be in the preapplication package. For the $248,375 grant, at least 75 percent of the benefits of the project must be received by members of Federally Recognized Tribes. The project that scores the greatest number of points based on the selection criteria and Administrator's points will be selected for each grant. Preapplications will be tentatively scored by the State Offices and submitted to the National Office for review, final scoring, and selection.
To be considered "national", a qualified organization is required to provide evidence that it operates in multi-State areas. There is not a requirement to use the grant funds in a multi-State area. Under this notice, grants will be made to qualified, private, non-profit organizations for the provision of technical assistance and training to rural communities for the purpose of improving passenger transportation services or facilities. Public bodies are not eligible for passenger transportation RBEG grants.
The information collection requirements contained within this Notice have received approval by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under OMB Control Number 0570-0022 (7 CFR part 1942, subpart G).
Fiscal Year 2003 Preapplications Submission
Each preapplication received in a Rural Development State Office will be reviewed to determine if this preapplication is consistent with the eligible purposes contained in section 310B(c)(2) of the CONACT. Each selection priority criterion outlined in 7 CFR part 1942, subpart G, section 1942.305(b)(3), must be addressed in the preapplication. Failure to address any of the criteria will result in a zero-point score for that criterion and impact the overall evaluation of the preapplication. Copies of 7 CFR part 1942, subpart G, will be provided to any interested applicant making a request to a Rural Development State Office listed in this notice. All projects to receive technical assistance through these passenger transportation grant funds are to be identified when the preapplications are submitted to the Rural Development State Office. Multiple project preapplications must identify each individual project, indicate the amount of funding requested for each individual project, and address the criteria as stated above for each individual project. For multiple-project preapplications, the average of the individual project scores will be the score for that preapplication.
All eligible preapplications, along with tentative scoring sheets and the Rural Development State Director's recommendation, will be referred to the National Office no later than June 13, 2003, for final scoring and selection for award.
The National Office will score preapplications based on the grant selection criteria and weights contained in 7 CFR part 1942, subpart G and will select a grantee subject to the grantee's satisfactory submission of a formal application and related materials in the manner and time frame established by RBS in accordance with 7 CFR part 1942, subpart G. It is anticipated that the grantees will be selected by July 31, 2003. All applicants will be notified by RBS of the Agency's decision on the awards.
Dated: April 3, 2003.
John Rosso,
Administrator, Rural Business-Cooperative Service.
[FR Doc. 03-8818 Filed 4-9-03; 8:45 am]
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