Sec. 05.13.02.05. Grant Allocation System and Award Cycle

A. Grant Allocation.

(1) Grant funds shall be allocated in accordance with the criteria set forth in Regulation .07B of this chapter. Grant awards to eligible applicants shall take into consideration the need to fund a variety of projects, and to serve as many geographic areas of the State as possible.

(2) The Department may refuse to consider applications with incomplete information.

(3) The Department may make grant awards to particular projects and decline to make awards to otherwise eligible projects, based on the Department's assessment of the project's overall merit and its merit relative to competing applicants.

(4) The Department may fund projects at levels less than requested based on the:

(a) Number of applications;

(b) Merit of each project; and

(c) Amount of funding available.

B. Application Solicitation.

(1) The Department shall solicit applications for grants under the Program, subject to the availability of Program funds.

(2) At the beginning of each fiscal year in which Program funds are available, the Department shall issue announcements of the availability of funds under the Program to active Main Street Maryland communities.

(3) If any Program funds remain unobligated at the end of the 6th month of a fiscal year, the Department shall issue announcements of the availability of any remaining funds under the Program to:

(a) Active Main Street Maryland communities; and

(b) Local jurisdictions or nonprofit organizations, or both, which are operating downtown revitalization projects in business districts with a significant number of historic commercial buildings.

(4) The announcements in §B(2) and (3) of this regulation shall consist of a description of the application process, total anticipated funding available for eligible grantees, and activities eligible for funding.

C. Grant Awards.

(1) A single local jurisdiction may not be awarded more than 25 percent of the total Program funds for a fiscal year unless, at the end of the 8th month of a fiscal year, all of the Program funds have not been committed.

(2) Local jurisdictions may not receive more than two grants in a fiscal year.

(3) The maximum amount of any one grant may not exceed the amount indicated in §C(1) of this regulation.