Standard Terms Used on Recovery.org

Amendment / Addendum - Any change to a solicitation issued by a contracting officer.

Advance Notice - Communication of an upcoming State or Municipal project that has not yet been issued for formal Bid or RFP. State and Municipal equivalent of a Federal Presolicitation notice. See Presolicitation.

Allocation - An administrative distribution of funds for programs that do not have statutory distribution formulas. See Outlays.

Apportionment - The distribution of funds as prescribed by a statutory formula. See Outlays.

Appropriation - Action of a legislative body that makes funds available for expenditure with specific limitations as to amount, purpose, and duration. In most cases, it permits money previously authorized to be obligated and payments made.

Award - A legally binding contract for goods and/or services authorized through a purchase order signed by a contracting officer.

Bid - An advertisement or invitation to bid on products, goods and small works but typically not professional services. Described in a scope, specification, or bid document. See RFI, RFP and RFQ.

Bid Results - List of bidders and their respective job-total bid amounts. May include bid line item and/or bid summary dollar amounts.

Cancellation - Announcement of project cancelled by the Agency or designee.

Expenditure - Actual cash or electronic transfer payments made to the States or other entities. Outlays are typically provided as reimbursement for the Federal share for approved highway program activities. Also known as Outlay.

Formula Grant - Allocations of money to States or their subdivisions in accordance with distribution formulas prescribed by law or administrative regulation, for activities of a continuing nature not confined to a specific project.

Grant - An authorized expenditure to an entity for a defined public or private purpose. This classification of spending comes in two types - "Formula Grants" and "Project Grants" and may require application for funding.

Obligation - The Federal government's legal commitment to pay or reimburse the States or other entities for the Federal share of a project's eligible costs immediately or in the future. See Outlay.

Outlay - Actual cash or electronic transfer payments made to the States or other entities. Outlays are typically provided as reimbursement for the Federal share for approved highway program activities. Also known as Expenditure. See Obligation.

Planholder / Bidders List - List of contractors that may be bidding or responding to the project.

Presolicitation - Communication of an upcoming Federal project that is not yet out for formal bid.

Project Grants - Funding, for fixed or known periods, of specific projects. Project Grants can include fellowships, scholarships, research grants, training grants, traineeships, experimental and demonstration grants, evaluation grants, planning grants, technical assistance grants, survey grants, and construction grants.

RFI - Request for Information, typically a fact gathering process prior to spending for information about goods, services or qualified vendors.

RFP - Request for Proposal, typically as a procurement of professional services described in the scope of work where factors in addition to cost are considered and weighted in awarding the contract and where the method of award is "best value." See Bid.

RFQ - Request for Quote, for products, goods, small works and professional services. See Bid.

Sole Source - The only source known to be able to perform a specific contract.