What are the steps in the grant process?

Any State that was not certified in October 2013 must submit a Certification Work Plan (CWP) to FTA. FTA must approve that CWP prior to the State submitting a grant application.
A CWP outlines a transition plan for a State to achieve certification. The plan should identify gaps or deficiencies in a State’s authority to develop and carry out its SSO program and tactical steps the State plans to take to meet the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) statutory requirements under 49 U.S.C. § 5329(e) under a State-specified timeline. Approved CWPs are intended to provide more certainty that the transition plan will help reach certification. This is a State’s opportunity to receive reasonable assurance that its anticipated SSO program will be MAP-21 compliant and use the available funding for eligible activities that meaningfully and effectively enhance its SSO program. Additional information on the CWP is provided below.
Once the CWP is completed and approved by FTA, the SSO agency must file an electronic grant application with its FTA Regional Office using FTA's Transportation Electronic Award Management (TEAM) system. As part of this process, the State must submit documentation, among other things, evidencing its formal designation of the intended recipient of the FTA SSO grant program funds and the source of its 20 percent local match. The State-designated entity, which may or may not be the SSO agency, must also have the required documents, including the signed Certifications and Assurances on file with the Regional Office. Contact your Regional Office for more information.
States are reminded that grant applications must be in “submitted” status in TEAM by June 30, 2014 to allow time to make awards by FY 2014. For more information, please see the March 10, 2014 Dear Colleague Letter.