Frequently Asked Questions: Grant Programs

Grants are not benefits or entitlements. A federal grant is an award of financial assistance from a federal agency to a recipient to carry out a public purpose of support or stimulation authorized by a law of the United States. Federal grants are not federal assistance or loans to individuals.

Discretionary Grant opportunities offered by the federal agencies can be found on the Grants.gov website http://grants.gov/. FTA publishes all discretionary funding opportunities in grants.gov and in many instances also announces them in the Federal Register http://www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/browse.html and on the FTA website as “notices of funding availability” at http://www.fta.dot.gov/funding/apportionments/grants_financing_7829.html .

FTA posts all competitive grant and cooperative agreement opportunities on Grants.gov, the comprehensive government wide website for announcing competitive grant opportunities. Grants.gov is one of 24 Federal E-government initiatives to improve access to services via the Internet. It is the single, secure Federal website unifying 1000 grant programs from 26 Federal grant-making agencies. Please follow this link to search for competitive opportunities or to find out more about Grants.gov http://grants.gov/.

FTA sponsors a number of major grant programs and each program is referred to by name and number that correlates to Title 49 of the United States Code. The Clean Fuels Formula Program, for example, can be found in 49 USC § 5308. A listing of all FTA grant programs and associated information can be found by following the available links at http://www.fta.dot.gov/funding/grants_financing_263.html.

If you are an individual looking for information on government benefits, refer to GovBenefits.gov http://www.govbenefits.gov, the official government benefits website, a free, confidential tool that helps individuals find government benefits they may be eligible to receive, as well as information on how to apply.

All discretionary grants offered by the 26 federal grant-making agencies can be found on Grants.gov http://grants.gov/. The opportunities are located under “Find grant opportunities” http://www07.grants.gov/applicants/find_grant_opportunities.jsp . New applicants for grants or cooperative agreements must submit their applications via grants.gov or as indicated in the announcement of funding availability. You do not have to register with Grants.gov to find grant opportunities. However, once you are ready to apply for a grant, you will need to register. This process takes 3-5 business days.

FTA publishes Notices of Funding Opportunities in the Federal Register as well as posts them on the FTA website at http://www.fta.dot.gov/funding/grants_financing_7829.html. Additionally you may be able to find opportunites announced via the Grants.gov website at http://grants.gov/