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Freight Rail Security Grant Program FY 2009

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Dates/Timelines

Fiscal Year 2009 FRSGP Important Dates

Date & Time

Event

Additional Info

Thursday
November 6, 2009
2:30 PM EST

Kick-Off FY 2009 FRSGP Conference Call

Call-in number:
877-988-9600
Passcode 6827433

EVERY THURSDAY
November 13, 2008 through
January 8, 2009
1:00 PM EST

FY 2009 FRSGP Conference Call

Call-in number:
877-988-9660
Passcode: 6827433

Conference Call Summaries

01/22/09 Conference Call

Freight Rail Security Grants Program (FRSGP)
January 22, 2009
1:00 PM EST

Opening Comments:

Hello and welcome to the FRSGP weekly conference call. We would like to start with a few announcements. The application deadline is tomorrow Friday, January 23, 2009 at 11:59 p.m. EST. We are aware of the technical problems that some applicants have experienced on Grants.gov; please send an email to TSAGrants@tsa.dhs.gov and carbon copy AskCSID@dhs.gov with the error message you are receiving, the grants.gov ticket number assigned, when you first received the error, and when you first alerted the issue to grants.gov. Do this as soon as possible. At this time I would like to open the call up for questions.

Questions and Answers:

Please see the following website for questions and answers:

http://www.tsa.gov/what_we_do/grants/programs/frsgp/2009/questions_answers.shtm

Closing Comments:

TSA: If there are no other questions we will conclude this call. As of now this is the last conference call we will have this grant cycle. Thank you to everyone who has participated in these weekly calls. We expect the have an after action conference or at least a conference call to solicit your feedback on the process to improve future cycles. We encourage you to participate in the conference and/or conference call, as this is how we learn of the concerns and recommendations you may have.

Thank you for joining us on this call and have a good afternoon. If you have any questions please email us at TSAgrants@tsa.dhs.gov and carbon copy ASKcsid@dhs.gov.
This concludes this call.

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01/15/09 Conference Call

Freight Rail Security Grants Program (FRSGP)
January 15, 2009
1:00 PM EST

Opening Comments:

TSA: Hello and good afternoon. We would like to start with a few general announcements. You may have been notified by email that the application deadline has been extended to January 23, 2009 by 11:59pm EST. Everything is up and operational on Grants.gov.

If you are not able to meet this deadline, please let us know so that we can determine how much time it takes you to complete the forms.

We are still planning to announce awards on or before April 10, 2009.

At this time I would like to open the call up for questions.

Questions and Answers:

Please see the following website for questions and answers: http://www.tsa.gov/what_we_do/grants/programs/frsgp/2009/questions_answers.shtm

Closing Comments:

TSA: If there are no other questions we will conclude this call. We have another call next week on Thursday, January 22, 2009 at 1PM EST. The call-in number is 1-877-988-9660, and the Passcode is 6827433.

Thank you for joining us on this call and have a good afternoon. If you have any questions during the week, please email us at TSAgrants@tsa.dhs.gov and carbon copy ASKcsid@dhs.gov.

This concludes this call.

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01/08/09 Conference Call

Freight Rail Security Grants Program (FRSGP)
January 8, 2009
1:00 PM EST

Opening Comments:

TSA: Thank you for calling. We have an update on Grants.gov that we would like to give you and at this time, so I will pass the call over to FEMA.

FEMA: We are now in the process of getting Grants.gov up and running, and it should be available for use in the next couple of days. [Note: grants.gov became available on Thursday, January 8, 2009.] We will also be extending the deadline for submitting your grant applications, but the final date has not been set yet. When the date is finalized, we will be issuing an Information Bulletin which we will email to all of our stakeholders. [Note: the updated deadline is Friday, January 23, 2009] The Information Bulletin should be ready later today or tomorrow. [Note: Information Bulletin #305 was released on January 8, 2009 and is available at both www.tsa.gov/grants.] If you have any questions, please send them to ASKCsid@dhs.gov and carbon copy TSAGrants@tsa.dhs.gov.

To reiterate, the deadline will not be next Tuesday, January 13. We want to ensure that everyone has adequate time to apply and complete the forms on the Grants.gov site. We realize that everyone has been very concerned about the application date, and we will ensure that the final date is comfortable for everyone.

TSA: We will now open the call to questions

Questions and Answers:

Please see the following website for questions and answers: http://www.tsa.gov/what_we_do/grants/programs/frsgp/2009/questions_answers.shtm

Closing Comments:

TSA: We want to thank you for calling, and hope this extension will help. As FEMA said, we will give you every opportunity to get your forms completed and the information uploaded to the site for your grant application.

We will meet back on this call at 1pm EST. The call-in number is 1-877-988-9660, and the Passcode is 6827433. And please feel free to email any questions that you have to TSAgrants@tsa.dhs.gov and AskCSID@dhs.gov.

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12/18/08 Conference Call

Freight Rail Security Grants Program (FRSGP)
December 18, 2008
1:00 PM EST

Opening Comments:

TSA: Although the grants.gov site is working, the standard forms for the administrative part of applying for the grants are not yet up on grants.gov. FEMA leadership is very aware that documents are needed for this and other grant programs, and wants to ensure that organizations adequate time to get the forms completed.

The templates for Investment Justification (IJ) and budget are up and available on the TSA website (www.tsa.gov/grants) so you can start working on them. When you submit your application you will upload those actual documents from the IJ and budget templates. You will not have to copy and paste into another form. Go ahead and use those templates and put everything you need into them. It is the administrative forms that are not yet available.

If you anticipate applying for a grant this year we recommend that you do go ahead and get registered as this can take a couple weeks. You can register at grants.gov now; get your CCR number, your DUNS number, user name and password. You will need to be registered with CCR and have a DUNS number to apply on grants.gov.

We released two Information Bulletins (IB) that you should have received by emails. The first describes the expansion of eligibility to include offerors to be eligible for GPS tracking equipment. The second discusses GPS tracking equipment requirements. There will be an IB issued by FEMA as soon as the grants.gov issue is resolved. If you are not getting these IBs, please email TSAgrants@TSA.dhs.gov so we can get you on the email list to get those emails.

I will now open the call up for questions.

Questions and Answers:

Please see the following website for questions and answers: http://www.tsa.gov/grants.

Closing Comments:

TSA: If there are no other questions, we would like to thank you for calling in and wish you all a Happy Holiday season. There will be no call next week or the week after due to the Christmas and New Year's Day holidays. The next and final call will be on Thursday, January 8, 2009 at 1pm EST. The call-in number is 1-877-988-9660, and the Passcode is 6827433.

As always, if you have any questions before our final call, please e-mail us at AskCSID@dhs.gov and carbon copy TSAgrants@tsa.dhs.gov. You will get a formal response from us after we review your question. This concludes the call.

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12/11/08 Conference Call

Freight Rail Security Grants Program (FRSGP)
December 11, 2008
1:00 PM EST

Opening Comments:

TSA: The Information Bulletin (IB) detailing revisions to GPS tracking equipment specifications has been posted on our website. Go to www.tsa.gov/grants and go to the Freight Rail Security Grant Program page for 2009. Under the Grant Guidance and Application Kit section, you will see a newly posted IB #301.

If you were unable to make it to the workshop that was held in November in Chicago, the summary notes have been posted to the web site along with a lot of good questions and answers. We encourage you to check out this information.

I will now open it up for questions.

Questions and Answers:

Please see the following website for questions and answers: http://www.tsa.gov/grants.

Closing Comments:

TSA: If there are no other questions, we would like to thank you for calling in. The next conference call will occur on Thursday, December 18, 2008 at 1 pm EST. The call-in number is 1-877-988-9660, and the Passcode is 6827433.

As always, if you have any questions, please e-mail us at TSAgrants@tsa.dhs.gov and carbon copy FEMA at AskCSID@dhs.gov. Thanks for calling. This concludes the call.

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12/04/08 Conference Call

Freight Rail Security Grants Program (FRSGP)
December 4, 2008
1:00 PM EST

Opening Comments:

TSA: Welcome and thank you for calling in today. There are no updates other than to remind you that the applications package on grants.gov is still not up and running. Applications are due January 13, 2009 through grants.gov. FEMA will issue an information bulletin (IB) as soon as the documents are up and the SF424s and other application forms are available.

You can start working on your Investment Justification (IJ) and detailed budget because those documents are available on the TSA website at www.tsa.gov/grants; under the "Program" section select the FRSGP program; go to "Grant Guidance and Application Kit" to download the IJ and Detailed Budget templates. You will need to provide the information contained in those forms to apply for your grant.

Although you can't start submitting via grants.gov yet, you can go to the site and start the process by registering for a DUNS number, registering with CCR, obtaining a user name and password. You can then register with grants.gov using that information. Have your Business Point of Contact respond to the registration email from grants.gov and login into the site to authorize you as an Authorized Organization Representative.

I will now open it up for questions.

Questions and Answers:

Please see the following website for questions and answers: http://www.tsa.gov/grants.

Closing Comments:

TSA: If there are no other questions, we would like to thank you for calling in. The next conference call will occur on Thursday, December 11, 2008 at 1 PM EST. The call-in number is 1-877-988-9660, and the passcode is 6827433.

As always, if you have any questions, please e-mail us at AskCSID@dhs.gov and carbon copy TSAgrants@tsa.dhs.gov. Thanks for calling. This concludes this call.

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11/20/08 Conference Call

Freight Rail Security Grants Program (FRSGP)
November 20, 2008
1:00 PM EST

Opening Comments:

Hello.

As some of you know, we were in Chicago for a workshop and we received some excellent questions during the course of the workshop. We are making sure we get the answers for you, and we will post them on the website as soon as we do. Some of the questions were legally based, and those will take some research, but the purpose of the workshop was to field your questions, and give you complete and comprehensive answers to them.

At this time we will open the floor for questions.

Questions and Answers:

Please see the following website for questions and answers: http://www.tsa.gov/what_we_do/grants/programs/frsgp/2009/questions_answers.shtm

Closing Comments:

If there are no more questions or comments we can sign off.

Thank you for calling. Please remember that there is not a call next week, but we will resume our weekly calls on December 4th. We will talk to you then! If we don't have your questions answered through email by then, please be sure to bring them back up.

Again, the email addresses are: TSAgrants@tsa.dhs.gov or AskCSID@dhs.gov.

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11/13/08 Conference Call

Freight Rail Security Grants Program (FRSGP)
November 13, 2008
1:00 PM EST

Opening Comments:

TSA: Welcome and thank you for joining us today on this call. I would like to start with a roll call. The lines are open for everyone so please make sure to be mindful of others and do not try to talk over each other. Today, we are also conducting a Freight Rail workshop in Chicago to review the funding priorities and application process. I am sorry for those of you who could not make the workshop in Chicago, but all materials from the workshop will be posted on our website at www.grants.gov.

One of the things I wanted to mention to everyone is we have an information bulletin (number 299) that details this year how Shippers and Offers will be eligible for grant awards to acquire and install satellite Global Positioning System (GPS) tracking on cars they lease that transport TIH materials. They would have to have a Concurrent Agreement in place with the owner of the tank cars so that we are not double funding.
I will now open up the line for questions.

Questions and Answers:

Please see the following website for questions and answers:http://www.tsa.gov/grants.

Closing Comments:

You can find the grants guidance and other templates and materials on our website: www.tsa.gov/grants. We will also be posting a summary of this call along with the questions and answers on our website.

If there are no further questions, we will conclude this call. Our next weekly call is scheduled for Thursday, November 20 at 1:00PM EST. The call in number is 877-988-9660 and the passcode is 6827433.

As always, if you have any questions, please e-mail us at ASKCSID@dhs.gov and carbon copy TSAgrants@tsa.dhs.gov.

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11/06/08 Conference Call

Freight Rail Security Grants Program (FRSGP)
Kick-Off Conference Call Summary
November 6, 2008
2:30 PM EST

Opening Comments:

TSA: Welcome and thank you for joining us today on this call. If we could start off the call with a roll call, that would be great. The lines are open for everyone so please make sure to be mindful of others and do not try to talk over each other.

The FY 2009 Freight Rail Security Grant Program (FRSGP) guidance was released late yesterday. We are sorry that it was not posted sooner. We have made a few significant changes to the program including expanding the eligibility criteria and funding priorities. This year we increased eligibility to include railroad car owners and it will also be opening up to lessees soon. We are drafting an Information Bulletin (IB) to address this and expect that it will come out soon. This is relevant to railroad car owners and lessees that carry bulk Toxic by Inhalation (TIH) as they are now eligible for program funding. The cost share was also eliminated in FY 2009 for FRSGP and TSGP. Program funding priorities have been expanded in that we are now funding vulnerability assessments, security plans, and training, plus Global Positioning Systems (GPS). You can find more specific information about program eligibility and other priorities in the guidance. The application deadline is Jan 13, 2009. That is the absolute end date for application submissions.

You must register with grants.gov to apply and you must also submit other qualifying documents as part of your application. To access grants.gov you must have a DUNS number and CCR number. It can take several weeks to obtain these numbers if you do not already have them. You will need them to register on grants.gov and you must be registered on grants.gov to apply for the grant. We will be holding weekly conference calls throughout the application period on Thursdays. They will start on Thursday, November 13th and run through January 8th. Again, the application due date is January 13, 2009.

Starting tomorrow you will be able to access templates and other information on the TSA Grants website at www.tsa.gov/grants to assist you with applying for the grants. If you have individual questions, please direct them to TSA Grants at TSAGrants@tsa.dhs.gov and Ask CSID at AskCSID@dhs.gov. You must submit the questions formally to receive an official and coordinated response. Since this is a competitive grant program, we cannot respond to individual questions. Any questions that are asked and answered are shared with the community and posted on our website. To reiterate, we are funding security plans, vulnerability assessments, training of frontline employees and GPS on tank cars that carry TIH.

I will now open up the line for questions.

Questions and Answers:

Please see the following website for questions and answers: http://www.tsa.gov/grants.

Closing Comments:

TSA: Next Thursday, November 13th, we will be holding a workshop in Chicago at Union Station to discuss the FY 2009 grant guidance, funding priorities and other topics related to the program. The freight rail Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) will be there to discuss the GPS projects and other important information about the program. We highly encourage you to attend and think that it will offer you invaluable information on what we are looking for that will assist you with applying. Information on the exact location at Union station will be available on-line.

You can find the grants guidance and other materials on our website: www.tsa.gov/grants. We will also be posting a summary of the workshop and this call along with the questions and answers from both on our website.

If there are no further questions, we will conclude this call. We hope to see you in Chicago at the workshop and for those who are unable to attend, we will be conducting a conference call.
As always, if you have any questions, please e-mail us at AskCSID@dhs.gov and carbon copy TSAgrants@tsa.dhs.gov. This concludes this call.

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