DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Division of Transportation Development
RULES CONCERNING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL PROGRAM
2 CCR 601-19
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I.	PURPOSE [No changes]
II.	STATEMENT OF BASIS AND SPECIFIC STATUTORY AUTHORITY
A.	Statement of Basis
Sections 43-1-1601 et seq. C.R.S. was enacted in June 2004. Section 43-1-1604 C.R.S. directs the Department to promulgate Rules for the implementation of a grant based program awarding federal funds to political subdivisions of Colorado to improve safety for pedestrians and bicyclists in School Areas.
The Department promulgated the Rules in May 2005. The Department initiated the rulemaking process to amend the existing Rules in June 2007. The first amendment was needed to revise the contact person to be in compliance with job duties and responsibilities within the Department of Transportation, and Section 1404 of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, and Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy of Users Act of 2005. The second amendment was necessary to attain continuity of services and leadership on the Advisory Committee.
The Department amended the Rules in 2012 as part of a Department-wide initiative to update Rules where warranted, eliminate unnecessary language and lessen restrictions on local government when possible. This initiative was in keeping with the Governor’s Executive Order D2011-005 and Executive Order 2012-002.
The Department amended the Rules in 2014 as a result of HB14-1301. This bill made state general funds available for FY15 for the Safe Routes to Schools Program, and specified that all of the grants awarded using the funds resulting from HB14-1301 must be for non-infrastructure projects. The bill also provides that if the Safe Routes to Schools Program received federal dollars in FY15, general funds appropriated for the program will be reduced by the amount of the federal moneys received. Finally, the bill eliminated the need to distribute projects by geographic distribution of the student population. Instead, the bill requires that the Department consider schools having greater than fifty percent of the students eligible for free or reduced-priced lunch as one of the criteria for awarding grants.
The Department amended the Rules in 2017 as a result of changes enacted in HB14-1301 which were only in effect for one year. The state general funds available in FY15 for Safe Routes to School are no longer available for the grant program. All other aspects of Safe Routes to School Program required by the bill remain in effect.
B.	Specific Statutory Authority
These Rules are promulgated by the Department pursuant to the specific statutory authority of §§43-1-110 (2) and 43-1-1604 C.R.S. and conform to the requirements of PL 114-94 ("Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act” or “FAST Act”) signed into law on December 4, 2015, 23 U.S.C. 101 (29)(B); 23 U.S.C. 213(b)(3) and 23 U.S.C. 403 and its implementing regulations; “SAFETEA-LU” 23 U.S.C. 402, and its implementing regulations; “National Goals and Performance Management Measures” 23 U.S.C. § 150; the National School Lunch Act, 42 U.S.C. § 1751 et seq. and its implementing regulations, 7 CFR 245. Pursuant to § 24-4-105(11), C.R.S., the Department may entertain petitions for declaratory orders.
1.00	DEFINITIONS
[No changes from Rule 1.01 to 1.12]
1.13	“STIP” means the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program that is the federally required, four-year program of planned transportation projects. The STIP is developed in coordination with planning partners throughout the state through the Project Priority Programming Process. The STIP incorporates the Transportation Improvement Programs (TIPs) from each MPO.
1.14	“TIP” means the Transportation Improvement Programs (TIPs) that identify all current federally funded transportation projects to be completed in a Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) region over a four-year period.
1.15	“TPR” means a Transportation Planning Region. TPRs are geographically designated areas of the state with similar transportation needs and commonalities, pursuant to the provisions of § 43-1-1102 and 1103 C.R.S.
2.00	ADVISORY COMMITTEE [No changes from Rules 2.01 to 2.02.2]
3.00	APPLICATION INFORMATION [No changes from Rules 3.01 to 3.02]
4.00	THRESHOLD CRITERIA FOR APPLICANT ELIGIBILITY 
[No changes from Rules 4.01 to 4.01.7]
4.01.8	On-System projects must not conflict with the State and Regional Transportation Plans available on the Department website found at https://www.codot.gov/programs/colorado-transportation-matters
4.01.9	Applicant eligibility is contingent upon compliance with all state and federal laws and regulations. Applicants that fail to comply with all applicable federal and state laws, regulations and requirements will not be considered eligible under these Rules. Compliance by an Applicant with all threshold eligibility criteria does not obligate the Commission to award funds, but only allows the Applicant to be evaluated by the Department and Advisory Committee for consideration for available funding based upon the evaluation criteria described in Section 5.00. of the Rules.
5.00	EVALUATION CRITERIA [No changes from Rules 5.01 to 5.03]
5.04	If the project request is located in an MPO boundary, the application must be certified by the MPO. The certification shall demonstrate that all actions necessary to include the project(s) in the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) for that MPO will be taken before the application may be approved.
6.00	FUNDING [No changes from Rules 6.01 to 6.04]
7.00	INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE
The Rules are intended to be consistent with and not be a replacement for the federal requirements contained in the National School Lunch Act, 42 U.S.C. § 1751 et seq. November 10, 1989, and its implementing regulations, 7 CFR 245, December 13, 2007, which are hereby incorporated into the Rules by this reference, and do not include any later amendments. All referenced laws and regulations shall be available for copying or public inspection during regular business hours from the Office of Policy and Government Relations, Colorado Department of Transportation, 2829 W. Howard Pl., Denver, Colorado 80204, or by contacting staff at https://www.codot.gov/business/rules. Copies of the referenced United States Code may be obtained from the following address: Office of the Law Revision Counsel, U.S. House of Representatives, H2-308 Ford House Office Building, Washington, DC 20515, or by phone at (202) 226-2411. Copies of the referenced Code of Federal Regulations may be obtained from the following address: U.S. Government Publishing Office, 732 North Capitol Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20401, or by phone at (202) 512-1800.
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