Glossary, Roles, Statuses, and Codes
General Terminology
Appropriation number (APPR) - Indicates the authorization act that authorized the funds and the category of funds within the act.
Archived - The database record for a solicitation is archived when the study status is changed to solicitation withdrawn. When a solicitation is archived (withdrawn), all commitments to the study are released.
Commitment - Acknowledgment by a study partner that it will formally obligate funding to the pooled fund study or provide funding in the form of a check or provide in-kind support. Study partners indicate their funding commitments for the life of the study; many times, this consists of contributions for each year of the study.
Commitments Required - Total dollar amount needed to complete the study.
Deliverables - Products of the study, such as reports, models, recommendations, software, or new/improved designs, to be delivered by the contractor. Deliverables are specified in the work statement.
FMIS - Fiscal Management Information System of Federal Highway Administration (FHWA).
Obligation - The process of 1) formally assigning eligible federal funds to a study or 2) providing funds via check to FHWA or to the sponsoring agency after the TPF number is assigned. Study partners that are federal, state, regional, or local agencies complete obligation forms (Federal-Aid Project Agreement, PR-2) to assign the federal funds.
100 percent SP&R funds - The normal match for SP&R funds is 80 percent federal and 20 percent non-federal funding, but the FHWA has the authority to approve the use of 100 percent federal SP&R funding for pooled-fund studies if it is in the interest of the federal-aid highway program. A sponsoring organization that is a state transportation agency submits its request for approval of 100 percent SP&R funds through its affiliated FHWA division office. FHWA grants approval at the time it assigns the study number, which may occur before or after the solicitation process.
Problem statement - The document that the sponsoring agency completes to post a solicitation on the pooled-fund web site. The problem statement includes the study title, funds (commitments) required, background, study objectives, scope of work, estimated study duration, and contact information for the sponsoring agency funding contact. It also specifies the lead agency. If the FHWA has approved the use of 100 percent SP&R funding, that information is included as well.
Request for proposals - A document issued by the lead agency inviting proposals to conduct the work described in the work statement. The contracting laws and regulations of the lead agency will govern the process for selecting a contractor. Not all studies will involve a request for proposals.
Solicitation - The process whereby a sponsoring agency proposes a study through the pooled-fund web site to find study partners that will contribute funding.
Study - An activity, program or project that is funded through the Transportation Pooled Fund Program. The duration of a study may be fixed or indefinite.
Study number - The number assigned to the study by FHWA by which the study is referenced in FMIS.
Work statement - Developed under the direction of the technical advisory committee, the work statement serves as the basis for the agreement with the contractor and includes the following: statement of problem, description of work to be accomplished, researcher requirements, study performance timeline, estimated budget, study communications requirements, deliverables required, and implementation plan.
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