WASHINGTON In a turn about, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has announced that charter bus operators will be eligible to apply for the bus security grants the agency will award this fall.

Last year, when the department announced its bus security grant program, it restricted those that could apply to a cobbled-together list of roughly 95 companies, all of which were supposedly fixed-route operators.

Charter companies were expressly forbidden from seeking grant money.

That prohibition touched off a firestorm of criticism from the United Motorcoach Association, the American Bus Association and others in the coach industry.

The associations and other critics said it made no sense to exclude 97 percent of the industry from the grant process, especially when many of those companies park tour buses next to the nations most-important landmarks and other potential targets in cities that are considered to be the most at risk of a terrorist attack. Or, these operators send their coaches into vulnerable tunnels and over exposed bridges in high-risk cities.

The security bureaucrats at the department apparently got the message and opened the application process this year to both charter and fixed-route operators.

However, there is criterion this year that will once again eliminate most charter operators from being eligible to apply. Those applying must have coaches that make a minimum of 50 trips annually to one or more of the urban areas that Homeland Security officials have determined to be the most at risk, and service a facility or facilities in the high-risk areas.

The grant program guidelines and application kit identify the urban areas thought be the most likely targets of terrorists.

For fiscal 2006, bus security grants totaling $9.5 million will be awarded. This years grant total is the smallest since the first such grants, totaling $5 million, were given in 2003. Last year, the grant total was $9.66 million and in fiscal 2004 it was $10 million.

A total of 25 companies received grants last year, with the smallest being $18,175, and the largest being $5.47 million and going to Greyhound Lines. Each year, since the grants began, Greyhound has typically received half or more of the money.

As it has happened in the past, the department has set a very tight deadline Aug. 4 for the grant applications. That is less than a month from the date the program was announced, meaning companies that have not had experience applying will have a very short and steep learning curve.

The bus security grant application process is not for the faint of heart because of the time and paperwork demands. Those companies that have applied in the past and especially those that have been successful clearly have a leg up. Winning an Intercity Bus Security Grant, as the program is officially known, is a competitive process and it focuses on six priorities:

* Security enhancements to facilities that are located in what the feds consider high security risk areas

* Driver security enhancements

* Vehicle security improvements

* Emergency communication technology

* Coordinating with local police and emergency responders

* Training

Beyond those priorities, however, there is a "strong emphasis" this year on security upgrades that prevent the use of -- or detect -- improvised explosive devices, the "IEDs" that are widely used by insurgents in Iraq, plus bomb sensors and canine units.

Those companies eligible to apply for the grants can submit one application, but that application can seek money for up to three projects. Money may be awarded for all, some or none of the projects submitted.

Evaluating the applications will be staff from the Department of Homeland Security Office of Grants and Training, Transportation Security Administration, and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.

Plus, the TSA will ask state homeland security officials to bless the selections in their areas.

Application forms and instructions are available at Grants.gov.

To access the materials, go to http://www.grants.gov, select "Apply for Grants," and then select "Download Application Package." Enter the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number, which is: 97.057. Select "Download Application Package," and then follow the prompts to complete the download.

To download the instructions, go to "Download Application Package" and select "Instructions."

Note, you will not be able to download the application package unless you have installed PureEdge Viewer on your computer. That can be done from the Grants.gov Web site.

The application package must be submitted through Grants.gov. Unless you have used Grants.gov before, federal officials urge potential applicants to visit the Web site early and often to gain an understanding of its processes and requirements.

There also is a Grants.gov Help Desk at (800) 518-4276.

Oh, one last hoop. To use Grants.gov, grant applicants must have a DUNS Number and register in the Central Contractor Registry, a database of business information for contractors that want to do business with the federal government. It typically takes a minimum of five days to complete the CCR registration.

Both UMA and ABA have designated key staffers to assist their members interested in applying for the grants.