The Natural Gas Distribution
Infrastructure Safety and Modernization Grant Program
New
collection (Request for a new OMB Control Number)
No
Emergency
05/02/2022
04/01/2022
Requested
Previously Approved
6 Months From Approved
200
0
7,000
0
0
0
This information collection covers the
collection of applicant data from municipality and community-owned
utilities that are interested in applying to receive funds from the
“Natural Gas Distribution Infrastructure Safety and Modernization
Grant Program.” Solicitation for grants under the Natural Gas
Distribution Infrastructure Safety and Modernization Grant Program
is voluntary. No eligible entity is required to apply. To be
eligible, however, municipality and community-owned utilities must
meet all the requirements set forth in the law. Therefore, DOT must
collect certain information from applicants to determine
eligibility and evaluate applications. DOT must also verify the
accuracy of grant requests from approved applicants, in accordance
with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Section 504 of the
Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and other laws and regulations
governing Federal financial assistance programs, including (but not
limited to) the Anti Deficiency Act, the Federal Funding
Accountability and Transparency Act (FFATA), the Payment Integrity
Information Act of 2019, and 2 CFR part 200, among others. This
information collection also covers the collection of data from
grant recipients. PHMSA expects to receive approximately 100
applications from potential grantees. PHMSA estimates that it will
take the 100 applicants approximately 65 hours to compile and
submit the forms required to complete the application process for
an annual burden of 6,500 hours. PHMSA estimates that 100 grant
recipients will spend 5 hours, annually, submitting post-award
reports for an annual burden of 500 hours. Therefore, PHMSA
estimates that there will be a total of 200 responses (100
applicants + 100 grant recipients) for an aggregate total annual
burden for the information collection of 7,000 hours (6,500 hours
for applications + 500 hours for post-award reports).
PHMSA requests the
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval of an emergency
clearance for a new information collection request (ICR) to enable
the Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials
Safety Administration (PHMSA) to implement the Natural Gas
Distribution Infrastructure Safety and Modernization (NGDISM) Grant
Program. This program was authorized in the Infrastructure
Investment and Jobs Act (Act) (Pub. L. 117-58), enacted on November
15, 2021. As you are aware, this Act is the most significant
investment in our Nation’s infrastructure in more than half a
century. The Act includes funding for PHMSA’s first ever
infrastructure grant program. The NGDISM Grant Program is crucial
to enabling eligible municipality and community owned utilities
(not including for-profit entities) to repair, rehabilitate, or
replace legacy natural gas distribution pipeline systems, or
portions thereof, or to acquire equipment to reduce incidents and
fatalities, and to avoid economic loss. The statutory requirements
of the NGDISM Grant Program are found under the heading “Department
of Transportation -- Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety
Administration -- Natural Gas Distribution Infrastructure Safety
and Modernization Grant Program” in title VIII of division J of
Public Law 117-58 (see enclosure). Those statutory requirements
necessitate swift issuance of a notification of funding opportunity
(NOFO) and a tight deadline to issue awards. Specifically, PHMSA is
statutorily required to issue a NOFO no later than 180 days from
the date the funds were made available and to make awards to
eligible municipality and community owned utilities no later than
270 days after publication of the NOFO. the Act was enacted on
November 15, 2021; therefore, it is the date that the funds were
made available. Accordingly, PHMSA is required to issue the NOFO no
later than May 15, 2022. Considerations to make funds available
under the Act include but are not limited to: (1) the risk profile
of the applicant’s existing pipeline system, including the presence
of pipe prone to leakage; (2) the potential of the pipeline project
for creating jobs; (3) the potential of the pipeline project for
benefiting disadvantaged rural and urban communities; and (4) the
economic impact or growth resulting from pipeline projects. The
statutory requirements for PHMSA’s implementation of the NGDISM
Grant Program are mandatory, and PHMSA is clearly expected to
implement the program as swiftly as possible to reduce incidents,
fatalities, and adverse impacts to the public and/or the
environment, particularly in disadvantaged communities. This is a
completely new program and, as such, there are currently no
existing ICRs that will cover the collection of the required
information. The use of normal clearance procedures for ICR
approval will prevent PHMSA from meeting the statutory deadlines.
If PHMSA does not receive emergency approval for this ICR by May
10, 2022, implementation of the NGDISM Grant Program will be
delayed and we will not meet the statutory deadlines. Due to the
urgency of executing the newly authorized grant program, the
unforeseen requirements of the Act and its tight deadlines, and the
associated urgency to protect the public and environment, PHMSA
respectfully requests that OMB issue emergency approval of the
ICR
The Infrastructure Investment
and Jobs Act (H.R. 3684, Public Law 117 - 58) required PHMSA to
create the “Natural Gas Distribution Infrastructure Safety and
Modernization Grant Program.” The statutory requirements of the
Natural Gas Distribution Infrastructure Safety and Modernization
Grant are found under the heading “Department of Transportation --
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration -- Natural
Gas Distribution Infrastructure Safety and Modernization Grant
Program” in title VIII of division J of Public Law 117-58 Those
statutory requirements necessitate swift issuance of a notification
of funding opportunity (NOFO) and a tight deadline to issue the
awards. Specifically, PHMSA is statutorily required to issue a NOFO
no later than 180 days from the date the funds were made available
and to make awards to eligible municipality and community owned
utilities no later than 270 days after publication of the
NOFO.
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that
the collection of information encompassed by this request complies
with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR
1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding
the proposed collection of information, that the certification
covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a
benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control
number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of
these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked
and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.
NGDISM Grant Program Supporting Statement4.1.22.docx
PHMSA BIL Emergency Clearance Request Justification.pdf
Post Grant Reporting