Call For Projects

The Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) Improvement Program is a Federal funding program under the Fixing America’s Transportation Act (FAST Act). The purpose of the CMAQ program is to fund cost-effective transportation projects that help attain Federal air quality standards.

Applicants submitting for CMAQ funding must have an existing Master Agreement with Caltrans or be sponsored by a government agency that has a Master Agreement with Caltrans. Using CMAQ funds requires projects to follow federal requirements, including compliance with National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requirements, and additional administrative and financial management requirements. As with other federally funded programs, some projects may not be the best fit for CMAQ funds due to the federal processes involved with project delivery.

Through this call for projects, the Tehama County Transportation Commission (TCTC) intends to program projects for CMAQ funding beginning in FY 2023/24 on an annual basis.

The Tehama County Transportation Commission Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) has elected to take advantage of the Caltrans Toll Credit Policy, which allows the required 11.47% match amount to be covered utilizing CMAQ Toll Credits. Note: Utilizing the Toll Credit Policy eliminates the need for local funding to cover the 11.47% required match, but has the effect of reducing the total amount of CMAQ funding available for projects, because 11.47% of TCTC’s federal CMAQ apportionments is then utilized to cover the match requirement for each project.

To calculate the 11.47% match (CMAQ Toll Credits) required for projects requesting CMAQ funds, take the total project amount requested multiplied by 88.53% to get the federal participation amount and then subtract that amount from the total project request to get the 11.47% CMAQ Toll Credit match amount.

TCTC is requesting agencies interested in applying for CMAQ grant funds for beginning in FY 2023/24 to notify TCTC staff of potential applications to verify project eligibility.