Website: https://www.cleanmobilityoptions.org/
Funding: Total: $20,000,000. Maximum awards: $50K-$1M, depending on voucher type.
Dates: Application Window Set to Open: October 20, 2020 9:00am PT
Summary:
The administrator team, including CALSTART, Shared Use Mobility Center, GRID Alternatives, and Local Government Commission, has developed a streamlined voucher application system intended to improve clean transportation access and to increase zero-emission and near zero-emission mobility choices for disadvantaged and low-income communities. The overarching goal of this program is to reduce GHG emissions, achieve criteria pollutant emission reductions and other co-benefits through the introduction of advanced clean mobility options into the State’s most disadvantaged communities. Consistent with the SB 350 recommendations, this program aims to address the barriers and assess specific transportation needs of the communities.
The CMO Voucher Pilot Program will provide funding and capacity-building in support of small-scale clean mobility projects, such as electric carsharing, bike sharing, vanpooling, and other clean mobility options, as well as community transportation needs assessment projects in disadvantaged communities and eligible low-income and tribal communities. Funds will be used to purchase or lease new or used vehicles, bicycles, scooters, and other clean mobility options along with associated equipment, infrastructure, and operating costs to implement clean mobility services. The CMO also provides funding for eligible applicants to conduct a community transportation needs assessment and begin planning and designing a clean mobility options project based on their assessments. The Program Administrator will also provide training, technical assistance, learning tools, and information-sharing opportunities to build the capacity of under-resourced organizations to enhance mobility access in their communities.
Project Topic Areas:
The CMO provides funding for two types of vouchers for eligible applicants in order to support communities that are in different stages of preparation towards implementing clean mobility projects.
Clean Mobility Project Voucher (Mobility Project Voucher)
Mobility Project Vouchers are intended to support planning, development and implementation of clean mobility options projects, with funding available for a variety of eligible project-related costs. Applicants can apply to launch and operate a clean mobility project such as zero-emission carsharing, carpooling/vanpooling, bikesharing/scooter-sharing, innovative transit services (e.g. on-demand shuttles and circulators, paratransit services and microtransit), or ride-on-demand services (e.g. taxi and “TNC” services). Mobility projects are meant to bridge transportation gaps and provide connectivity between services and locations. Wherever possible, they should complement transit services or existing mobility services. Each project team must include an organization with at least one year of experience operating mobility services (an “experienced partner” that can serve in any capacity —for example, operating the service or acting as a technical advisor). Funding will cover up to three years, including up to one year of project planning and launch activities, and two years of operations. Eligible costs include infrastructure, vehicles, equipment, outreach, operations, and maintenance. Applicants must commit to operating the project for two years after the voucher funding term ends to ensure that the project is sustainable—voucher funds will not cover costs during this period.
Community Transportation Needs Assessments Project Voucher (Needs Assessment Voucher)
Needs Assessment Vouchers are intended to support communities in identifying their unmet transportation needs, evaluating gaps through a community transportation needs assessment process, and develop solutions in collaboration with residents. This voucher award enables applicants who are not yet ready to apply for Mobility Project Voucher funds to conduct a comprehensive needs assessment and begin planning and designing a clean mobility options project based on their assessment, and then be able to apply for the Mobility Project Voucher application in future window(s). Funding will cover up to nine months for conducting the Needs Assessment, writing a report detailing its outcomes, and developing an application for a Mobility Project.
Funding:
The total funding amount available for the CMO Voucher Pilot Program in 2020 is $20,000,000. Voucher funds are available throughout the State and will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. Of this total amount, $18,000,000 is available for Mobility Project Vouchers in eligible disadvantaged, low-income, and tribal communities. An additional $1,000,000 is a guaranteed set-aside for eligible tribal applicants and will be awarded to Mobility Project Vouchers submitted by California Native American Tribes on a first-come, first-served basis. The remaining $1,000,000 will fund Needs Assessment Vouchers in eligible communities statewide, through a separate first-come, first-served process. The maximum award amount for each Mobility Project Voucher is $1,000,000 (and up to $600,000 for the expansion of an existing project) and the maximum award for each Needs Assessment Voucher is $50,000.
Topic Area Requirements:
All projects funded by CMO Voucher Pilot Program must directly benefit residents of low-income and disadvantaged communities, consistent with the following guidelines. The project area is the geographic area where community residents live, services operate, and infrastructure is to be installed. Mobility services and associated infrastructure funded by this program should be mainly located inside the project area to deliver intended benefits to local residents. However, up to 20% of voucher-funded services and infrastructure may be located outside the project area, with documentation of supportive community input reflecting community-identified needs.
The main requirement for receiving a Mobility Project Voucher is that applicants must develop their proposed projects based on a community transportation needs assessment conducted prior to submitting their application. The goal is to ensure the proposed project is responsive to the specific transportation needs, preferences, and choices of community residents. Notably, applicants must document at least two different direct engagements with community members who live in the target community that identify outstanding transportation needs and demonstrate that the proposed service is appropriate. Applicants may conduct Needs Assessments at their own expense or apply for up to $50,000 in funding to conduct the assessment and use the results to satisfy requirements of the Mobility Project application for the same project area as long as the needs assessment is complete before submitting the mobility project application.
Key elements of Community Transportation Needs Assessments include a Transportation Access Data Analysis (i.e. resident surveys and analysis of existing data and community’s transportation accessibility indicators) and Community Engagement (i.e. documented ongoing engagement with a clearly defined audience in the relevant community through two venues such as community forums, in-person or virtual workshops, house meetings, focus groups, interviews, etc.).
Eligible Applicants:
A lead applicant is the entity that submits the application and, if approved, enters into the agreement with the Program Administrator. To be eligible as a lead, you must be one of the following: (1) a government entity, (2) a nonprofit organization that qualifies for tax-exempt status under Internal Revenue Code Section 501 and under California state law, has operated for at least one year and possesses at least one full-time staff person based primarily in California, or (3) a California Native American Tribe. Sub-applicants can be other organizations such as privately-operated mobility service providers.