The Build America Bureau released the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for the Innovative Finance and Asset Concession Grant Program. This grant will award around $57.72 million in total for the first three fiscal years and a max of $2 million can be awarded to each winning grant proposal. No more than $4 million can be given to grantees in a single state. Submissions are due by 11:59 p.m. EST on May 10th, 2024.
Authorized through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, this new program allocates $100 million over 5 years to fund state and local government technical, financial, and legal advisory service costs for alternative project delivery. Those eligible to apply are public entities that own, control, or maintain assets that could be enhanced through projects eligible for credit assistance through the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA). City or township governments, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), special district governments, and county governments are all encouraged to apply.
Funding will be awarded on a competitive basis to assist eligible entities in evaluating public-private partnerships and exploring opportunities for innovative delivery of transportation infrastructure projects including highway, passenger rail, rural infrastructure, airport, and other transit-oriented development projects. According to the Build America Bureau’s website, these grant projects can focus on a variety of asset development tasks such as: “identification of appropriate assets, planning and design, soliciting and negotiating contracts or concession agreements, cost/benefit for money analyses, lifecycle cost analysis, securing financial expertise or legal service, or other pre-construction or pre-development activities.”
There will be two different types of grants available through this program. Technical Assistance Grants will be awarded to build organizational capacity to develop, review, or enter into asset concessions to advance TIFIA-eligible projects. Expert Service Grants will be awarded for project development of identified assets, including hiring professional services to explore opportunities for leverage. Although applicants can choose to compete for either type of grant, they must choose one for this round of funding.
To learn more about the Innovative Finance and Asset Concession Grant Program, see the attached flyer.
