Motor Carrier Safety Assistance High Priority Activities Grants and Cooperative Agreements (20.237)
Motor Carrier Safety Assistance High Priority Activities Grants and Cooperative Agreements (Assistance Listing 20.237) is run by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, part of the Department of Transportation. It awarded $276 million in 324 grants from fiscal 2021 to 2025, about $850,431 per award on average. No funding opportunity is open on Grants.gov right now.
The typical award was $689,664. Half of the 324 awards fell between $352,292 and $1.5 million, and they ranged from $5,263 to $2.0 million.
- Awarded, FY 2021 to 2025$276 million
- Grant awards324
- Typical award$689,664
- Awarded in FY 2025-$5.7 million
- Size rank525 of 1824
- Type of assistanceProject grants (discretionary)
Key findings
- It is the 525th largest of 1,824 federal grant programs by five-year awards.
- The 20 largest recipients received 53% of the money.
- Awards went to recipients in 48 states and territories.
What the program funds
Support, enrich, and augment Commercial Motor Vehicle (CMV) safety programs through partnerships with States, local governments, Federally recognized Indian tribes, other political jurisdictions, and other persons to carry out high priority activities and projects. The High Priority grant program includes: 1) High Priority (HP) grants to implement, promote, and maintain national programs to improve CMV safety; increase compliance with CMV safety regulations; increase public awareness about CMV safety; provide education on CMV safety and related issues; and demonstrate new safety related technologies; and 2) Information Technology Deployment (ITD) grants to advance technological capability and promote deployment of intelligent transportation system applications (CMV, carrier, and driver) as well as support/maintain CMV information systems and networks.
Open opportunities
No opportunity under this program is open or forecast on Grants.gov right now. Programs often post once a year, so the funding history below shows what to expect.
Rules from the program listing
Who can apply
Innovative Technology Deployment (HP-ITD) Eligible Entities The HP-ITD awards are available to States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Individuals and businesses are not eligible to apply for HP-ITD funding. To be eligible for HP-ITD funding, the State applicant shall: i. have a commercial motor vehicle information systems and networks program plan (the Program Plan/Top Level Design (PP/TLD)) approved by the Secretary that describes the various systems and networks at the State level that need to be refined, revised, upgraded, or built to accomplish deployment of commercial motor vehicle information systems and network capabilities; ii. certify that the State’s current Program Plan (PP/TLD) was approved by the Secretary as outlined in FAST Act (Pub. L. No. 114-94); iii. certify to the Secretary that its commercial motor vehicle information systems and network deployment activities, including hardware procurement, software and system development, and infrastructure modifications: a. are consistent with the national intelligent transportation systems and commercial motor vehicle information systems and networks architectures and available standards; and b. promote interoperability and efficiency to the extent practicable. iv.
What the money can and cannot pay for
HP grant funds may be used to: increase public awareness and education on CMV safety and related issues; target unsafe driving of CMVs and non-CMVs in areas identified as high risk crash corridors; improve the safe and secure movement of hazardous materials; improve safe transportation of goods and persons in foreign commerce; demonstrate new technologies to improve CMV safety; support participation in Performance and Registration Information Systems Management (PRISM); and conduct safety data improvement projects that enhance data collection and data quality. ITD grants may be used to: improve safety and productivity of motor carriers, commercial vehicles, and their drivers; streamline enforcement operations; improve efficiency and effectiveness of commercial vehicle safety programs through targeted enforcement; improve security of data and the sharing of commercial vehicle data within States, and between States and FMCSA; reduce Federal/State and industry regulatory and administrative costs; and achieve nationwide deployment of the ITD grant program, with all jurisdictions participating at least at the Core deployment level.
Matching requirements
This program has no statutory formula. A 15% match is required unless otherwise noted in the funding announcement.MOE requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.
Deadlines
May 21, 2025 to Jun 20, 2025
Award range and average, in the agency's words
Awards range from $50,000 to $1,000,000.
Examples of funded projects
Fiscal Year2016: The FMCSA provided MHP funds to enable recipients to carry out enforcement activities and projects that improve CMV safety and compliance with CMV regulations. Funding is also available for projects that are national in scope, increase public awareness and education, demonstrate new technologies and reduce the number and rate of CMV accidents. In FY 2016, 42 grants were awarded totaling $15,000,000 for passenger inspection projects, education, and the purchase of material and support for CMV safety projects.Fiscal Year2017: Fiscal Year 2017: $41,557,857Fiscal Year2018: Fiscal Year 2018: The HP-ITD projects include the deployment of intelligent transportation system applications for CMV operations; support/maintenance of CMV information systems/networks, the linking of FMCSA and state information systems, the improvement of safety and productivity of CMVs and commercial drivers and the reduction of costs associated with CMV operations and regulatory requirements. The HP-CMV projects include the augmentation of motor carrier safety projects planned in accordance with the Motor Carrier Safety Assistance Program (MCSAP), as well as projects related to Performance and Registration Information Systems Management (PRISM) and State Safety Data Quality (SSDQ).Fiscal Year2019: The HP-ITD program provides financial assistance to advance technological capability and promote the deployment of intelligent transportation system applications.
Funding history and past recipients
From fiscal 2021 to 2025, Motor Carrier Safety Assistance High Priority Activities Grants and Cooperative Agreements (20.237) awarded$276 million across 324 grant awards, an average of $850,431 per award.
Who usually wins
State and local governments received 79% of the money, colleges and universities 14% and nonprofits 6.6%.
| Recipient type | Awards | Amount | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| State and local governments | 254 | $219 million | 79% |
| Colleges and universities | 50 | $38.4 million | 14% |
| Nonprofits | 20 | $18.2 million | 6.6% |
By state
43 states have a page for this program: those that received at least $1 million or 10 awards.
| State | Awards | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| New York | 19 | $23.7 million |
| California | 11 | $19.0 million |
| North Carolina | 10 | $14.7 million |
| District of Columbia | 16 | $14.2 million |
| Texas | 27 | $14.0 million |
| Indiana | 8 | $11.6 million |
| Virginia | 15 | $11.6 million |
| Connecticut | 11 | $11.5 million |
| Kentucky | 16 | $10.5 million |
| Utah | 8 | $7.9 million |
| Maryland | 9 | $7.6 million |
| South Dakota | 5 | $7.3 million |
| Kansas | 10 | $7.1 million |
| Louisiana | 8 | $7.1 million |
| Alabama | 8 | $7.0 million |
| Arizona | 7 | $6.4 million |
| South Carolina | 4 | $5.8 million |
| Oklahoma | 4 | $5.7 million |
| Vermont | 5 | $5.7 million |
| Iowa | 5 | $5.0 million |
| Ohio | 12 | $4.8 million |
| Wyoming | 5 | $4.7 million |
| Delaware | 6 | $4.4 million |
| West Virginia | 11 | $4.4 million |
| Washington | 5 | $4.4 million |
| Mississippi | 4 | $4.2 million |
| New Mexico | 8 | $4.2 million |
| Montana | 3 | $4.1 million |
| Nebraska | 6 | $4.1 million |
| Michigan | 3 | $4.1 million |
| Colorado | 5 | $3.8 million |
| Massachusetts | 5 | $3.8 million |
| North Dakota | 7 | $2.4 million |
| Arkansas | 2 | $2.1 million |
| Nevada | 4 | $2.0 million |
| Oregon | 1 | $2.0 million |
| Idaho | 1 | $2.0 million |
| New Jersey | 3 | $1.9 million |
| Wisconsin | 3 | $1.6 million |
| Alaska | 4 | $1.5 million |
| Pennsylvania | 1 | $1.4 million |
| Illinois | 3 | $1.2 million |
| Hawaii | 2 | $1.1 million |
| Georgia | 3 | $725,795 |
| Maine | 3 | $668,856 |
| Minnesota | 2 | $472,500 |
| Puerto Rico | 2 | $426,763 |
| New Hampshire | 2 | $264,775 |