Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) Program

 

To finance projects of national or regional significance by filling market gaps and leveraging substantial non-Federal and private co-investment. TIFIA credit assistance is intended to facilitate the financing of projects that would otherwise have been significantly delayed because of funding limitations or difficulties accessing the capital markets. Through TIFIA, the DOT provides Federal credit assistance to eligible highway, transit, rail, and intermodal freight projects, including access to seaports.

General information about this opportunity
Last Known Status
Active
Program Number
20.223
Federal Agency/Office
Office of The Secretary, Department of Transportation
Type(s) of Assistance Offered
E - Direct Loans; F - Guaranteed/Insured Loans
Program Accomplishments
Fiscal Year 2017 As of June 26, 2017, the Department has closed seven TIFIA loans totaling 1.9 billion in transportation infrastructure investments and is in position to close additional loans by the end of the fiscal year. The seven loans that have closed are Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Tunnel, IH-35 E, West Side Purple Line Section II, Sound Transit’s Northgate project, Monroe Expressway project, C-470 Express Lanes, and the BelRed Street Network project.
Fiscal Year 2019 During FY2019 through July 2019, the USDOT approved four TIFIA loans totalling over $1.5 billion, including a $657 million loan for a transit project in the Seattle area, a $605 million loan for a highway project in the Houston area, a $46 million loan for a highway project in the Austin area, and a $225 million loan for a highway project in San Bernardino County, California.
Authorization
Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, Public Law 112-141, 23 U.S.C. 601-609
Who is eligible to apply/benefit from this assistance?
Applicant Eligibility
Public or private entities seeking to finance, design, construct, own, or operate an eligible surface transportation project may apply for TIFIA assistance. Examples of such entities include state departments of transportation; local governments; transit agencies; special authorities; special districts; railroad companies; and private firms or consortia that may include companies specializing in engineering, construction, materials, and/or the operation of transportation facilities.
Beneficiary Eligibility
Public or private entities seeking to finance, design, construct, own, or operate an eligible surface transportation project. Examples include state departments of transportation; local governments; transit agencies; special authorities; special districts; railroad companies; and private firms or consortia that may include companies specializing in engineering, construction, materials, and/or the operation of transportation facilities.
Credentials/Documentation
All applicants must demonstrate relevant experience, strong qualifications, a sound project approach, and a project that can demonstrate financial feasibility. Applicants also must meet various Federal standards for participation in a Federal credit program. For example, applicant may not be delinquent or in default on any Federal debts. Such requirements will be specified in the contractual documents between the DOT and each applicant.
What is the process for applying and being award this assistance?
Pre-Application Procedure
Preapplication coordination is required. An environmental impact statement is required for this listing. An environmental impact assessment is required for this listing. This program is excluded from coverage under E.O. 12372. For more information, please visit the TIFIA website at http://www.transportation.gov/tifia.
Application Procedure
2 CFR 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards applies to this program. Upon receiving the DOTs notification that the project meets the basic eligibility criteria, the applicant may submit an application. An application fee must be submitted with the proposal. The application form is available on the TIFIA web site at http://www.transportation.gov/tifia.
Award Procedure
Final approval is granted by the Secretary of Transportation.
Deadlines
Not applicable.
Approval/Disapproval Decision Time
After a complete application has been filed with all supporting documents, processing time is approximately 90 days. The average time to execute a TIFIA agreement from the date of Secretarial approval is 1 to 6 months.
Appeals
Not applicable.
Renewals
Not applicable.
How are proposals selected?
DOT reviews the Letters of Interest on a "first come, first serve" basis. Under MAP-21, DOT has been given the direction to focus on creditworthiness. Projects are also review to ensure they meet the eligibility requirements under related statutes.
How may assistance be used?
Eligible projects include highway, transit, passenger rail, intercity bus vehicles and facilities, certain port facilities, surface transportation facilities at airports, rural infrastructure projects, transit oriented development projects (TOD), and any other type of project that is eligible for grant assistance under title 23 or Chapter 53 of Title 49 of the United States Code. Additionally, under the recently enacted Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, TIFIA credit assistance may be used to capitalize State Infrastructure Banks (SIBs) to fund rural infrastructure projects.
What are the requirements after being awarded this opportunity?
Reporting
Not applicable.
Auditing
See Index of Current Regulations, Federal Highway Administration.
Records
Documentary evidence that may be requested for each project includes: audited financial statements, updated budget and cash flow projections, audit reports, sources and uses of funds, coverage ratios, project schedules, operating statistics, and management updates (within no more than 180 days following the recipient's fiscal year-end). In addition, the credit agreement obligates the borrower to provide the DOT an annual update to the project's financial plan in accordance with specified requirements. Each borrower will be required to give notice to the DOT of material events, including litigation, which could affect project development or the credit quality of the project.
Other Assistance Considerations
Formula and Matching Requirements
Statutory formula is not applicable to this assistance listing.

Matching requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.

MOE requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.
Length and Time Phasing of Assistance
The maximum maturity of all TIFIA credit instruments is 35 years after a project's substantial completion. Lump sum award but actual disbursements fluctuates based on expenditures of the project.
Who do I contact about this opportunity?
Regional or Local Office
None/Not specified.
Headquarters Office
Dimitri Kombolias
1200 New Jersey Ave S.E., Room E
Washington, DC 20590 US
dimitri.kombolias@dot.gov
Phone: (202) 366-1059

Eric Morvey
1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
Room W12-450
Washington, DC 20590 USA
eric.morvey@dot.gov
Phone: 202-366-4249
Website Address
https://www.transportation.gov/buildamerica/programs-services/tifia
Financial Information
Account Identification
69-4145-0-3-401
Obligations
(Direct Loans) FY 18$1,235,863,164.00; FY 19 est $1,150,000,000.00; FY 20 est $2,000,000,000.00; FY 17 est $3,982,000,000.00; -
Range and Average of Financial Assistance
Not applicable/available.
Regulations, Guidelines and Literature
See TIFIA website at http://www.transportation.gov/tifia/legislation-regulations.
Examples of Funded Projects
Fiscal Year 2017 In November of 2016, a $385 million TIFIA loan was approved for the IH-35 E project. The Project is the initial phase in a multi-phase project to reconstruct and expand a 28-mile section of IH35E between IH635 to US380 in Texas. In November of 2016, a $339 million TIFIA loan was approved for the Chesapeake Bay Bridge project. The project is located in Norfolk/Virginia Beach and connects the area to Virginia’s Eastern Shore. The project is 17.6 mile toll Tunnel. In December of 2016, a $307 million TIFIA loan was approved for the West Side Purple Line project. The Project entails the construction of the second section of a three-section, 9-mile underground heavy rail line that will extend the existing Metro Purple line along Wilshire Boulevard to a new western terminus in West Los Angeles near the Veterans Affairs Hospital in Westwood. Section 2 extends the line another 2.6 miles through the cities of Los Angeles and Beverly Hills and includes two new stations and the procurement of 20 heavy rail cars. In December of 2016, a $615 million TIFIA loan was approved for the Northgate project. The Project expands the Borrower’s existing transit system in the Seattle, Washington, area, by adding 4.3 miles of light rail, running mostly underground, and three stations at Northgate Transit Center, Roosevelt neighborhood, and the University District near the west side of the University of Washington Campus. In February of 2017, a $166 million TIFIA loan was approved for the Monroe Expressway project. The Monroe Expressway Project is a new, four-lane tolled expressway that will extend nearly 20 miles from US 74 near I-485 in Mecklenburg County to US 74 between the towns of Wingate and Marshville in Union County, North Carolina. In June of 2017, a $107 million TIFIA loan was approved for the C-470 Express Lanes project. The project is a 26-mile highway that runs along the southern and western part of the Denver metropolitan area, linking the intersection of I-25 and E-470 in the east, to the intersection of US-36 and I-70 in the west. The project is intended to deliver additional capacity along this congested corridor by adding express tolled lanes (ETLs) and improving road layout over approximately 11.2 miles of the highway. In June of 2017, a $100 million TIFIA loan was approved for the BelRed Street Network project. The City of Bellevue, Washington is developing the BelRed Street Network (Project), a combination of 12 multimodal roadways, to support the new BelRed neighborhood in the heart of the City. The Project, along with the introduction of East Link light rail by Sound Transit, is intended to provide a catalyst for redevelopment of the BelRed neighborhood to be connected, multi-modal, pedestrian-friendly, and transit-oriented.

 



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