Greetings,

Please note that comments on the Clean Ports and Clean Heavy-Duty Vehicle Programs' Technical Request for Information can be viewed here. A previous edition of this newsletter contained an outdated link.

For more information on the Technical RFI, see the updated July 19 newsletter below.

Thank you,

U.S. EPA Ports Initiative

cleanports@epa.gov

EPA Ports Initiative Newsletter

July 19, 2023

Newsletter Items:

• Update on Clean Ports and Clean Heavy-Duty Vehicle Programs' Technical Request for Information 
• Job Announcement: Environmental Protection Specialist - Air
• Relevant Funding Opportunities Open Now

The EPA technical Request for Information (RFI) on zero-emissions heavy-duty vehicles and port equipment to inform the development of the new Clean Heavy-Duty Vehicle and Clean Ports Programs in the Inflation Reduction Act closed on June 5, 2023. EPA received comments from manufacturers, fleets, ports, municipalities, school districts, utilities, and other stakeholders with zero-emission technology experience or understanding.

This information will help inform EPA, in discussions with other federal, state, and private sector stakeholders, to determine approaches to support different funding opportunities.

EPA requested information on the following technologies:

1. Zero-emission class 6 and 7 heavy-duty vehicles (e.g., electric or fuel cell delivery trucks, refuse trucks, utility trucks, school buses, and day cab tractors)
2. Zero-emission port equipment (e.g., electric or fuel cell dray trucks, harbor craft, locomotives, and cargo handling equipment)
3. Associated charging and other fueling infrastructure

For each of these technologies, EPA requested information on:

• Availability including manufacturer production capacity.
• Performance including durability and maintenance requirements.
• Pricing including payback period and lifecycle costs relative to those operating on conventional fuels.
• Practical considerations for program design including project development best practices and workforce training needs.

Respondents were also requested to explain if equipment and components are currently manufactured in the United States or expect to be in the near future. Responses will help EPA understand the availability of U.S. manufactured equipment and components to better create targeted funding programs and address Build America Buy America requirements.

Thank you to all stakeholders who responded to this RFI. We received many comments from a variety of producers, port organizations, local governments, nonprofits, and other industries.

Though the RFI is closed, EPA is still collecting input to inform the design of the IRA Clean Ports and Clean Heavy-Duty Vehicle Programs. You are welcome to send written input to cleanports@epa.gov or cleanhdvehicles@epa.gov. 

There is now an announcement in USAJOBS for a competitive recruitment GS-13 position (Environmental Protection Specialist - Air) in the Office of Transportation and Air Quality’s Transportation and Climate Division. The person or people selected for this vacancy will be in integral in supporting the Inflation Reduction Act Clean Ports Program, which provides EPA with $3 billion to fund zero-emission port equipment and technology, including electric vehicles and equipment and their charging equipment OR the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Clean School Bus Program, which provides $5 billion over the next five years to replace existing school buses with zero-emission and low-emission models.

The position is located in Ann Arbor, MI, OR Washington, D.C., and is open to qualified applicants internal and external to the federal government. The vacancy announcement number is RTP-LA-DE-2023-0036.

To be considered for this position, applicants must apply on-line at the USAJOBS.gov website by the closing date of the announcement and follow the vacancy announcement instructions including providing all required documentation. The open period is 07/18/2021 – 07/27/2021.

Applicants should make sure that they follow the application instructions and requirements described in the posting.

Duties and Responsibilities

You will:

• Oversee an air media program to ensure compliance with environmental requirements, and resolve unusually complex, controversial, or sensitive environmental and restoration problems.
• Serve as a programmatic and technical expert on air quality and/or restoration programs.
• Review and implement environmental technical standards, guidelines, policies and formal regulations.
• Establish and maintain effective working relationships with internal and external stakeholders.

To qualify for the GS-13 level, you need to have at least one year of full-time experience equivalent to the GS-12 level defined as recommending program changes to enable emissions reductions in the transportation sector, including through electrification; or drafting/recommending policies, directives, and guidance to determine the impact of programs on air quality or greenhouse gases.

Multimodal Project Discretionary Grant (MPDG) program

The MPDG opportunity contains three grant programs: the National Infrastructure Project Assistance grants program (Mega), the Nationally Significant Multimodal Freight and Highways Projects grants program (INFRA), and the Rural Surface Transportation Grant program (Rural). The funding opportunities are awarded on a competitive basis for surface transportation infrastructure projects—including highway and bridge, intercity passenger rail, railway-highway grade crossing or separation, wildlife crossing, public transportation, marine highway, and freight projects, or groups of such projects—with significant national or regional impact, or to improve and expand the surface transportation infrastructure in rural areas.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law makes available up to $5 billion for the Mega; up to $8 billion to the INFRA program; and up to $2 billion for the Rural program, for a combined total of up to $15 billion for FY 2022 through 2026. The deadline for applications is 11:59 pm EDT on August 21, 2023.

The Mega Program (the National Infrastructure Project Assistance program) supports large, complex projects that are difficult to fund by other means and likely to generate national or regional economic, mobility, or safety benefits. The Mega grant program funding is available under the MPDG combined Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO).

INFRA (the Nationally Significant Multimodal Freight & Highway Projects program) awards competitive grants for multimodal freight and highway projects of national or regional significance to improve the safety, efficiency, and reliability of the movement of freight and people in and across rural and urban areas. The INFRA grant program funding is available under the MPDG combined NOFO.

The Rural Surface Transportation Grant Program supports projects that improve and expand the surface transportation infrastructure in rural areas to increase connectivity, improve the safety and reliability of the movement of people and freight, and generate regional economic growth and improve quality of life. Rural Surface Transportation grant program funding will be made available under the MPDG combined NOFO.

Promoting Resilient Operations for Transformative, Efficient, and Cost-saving Transportation (PROTECT) program

Under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), the Promoting Resilient Operations for Transformative, Efficient, and Cost-saving Transportation (PROTECT) Grant program provides funding to ensure surface transportation resilience to natural hazards including climate change, sea level rise, flooding, extreme weather events, and other natural disasters through support of planning activities, resilience improvements, community resilience and evacuation routes, and at-risk coastal infrastructure.



The PROTECT discretionary program offers two types of awards: planning grants and Competitive Resilience Improvement Grants. The deadline for applications is August 18, 2023.

For other funding opportunities for ports and near-port communities, see the Ports Initiative Funding Opportunities Table.

For more information on resources and best practices to address diesel emissions at ports, please visit EPA's Ports Initiative website.

Previous newsletters can be found here: EPA Ports Initiative Newsletter | US EPA