(b) Any municipality, upon the approval of its governing body, may submit to the department an application, in a form and containing information as the department may require, for State assistance toward the cost of an eligible project. The procedures outlined in this section are only applicable to funding provided pursuant to this Subpart.

1. (1) Each application will undergo an initial review by the department to determine potential project eligibility and compliance with terms set forth in the notice of availability. This initial review is not intended to be a detailed project review to determine full or final eligibility of the project or project costs but instead to eliminate clearly ineligible projects from further consideration. The initial review may include meetings and presentations of project aspects in order for the department to gain an understanding of the project and consequently expedite review.
2. (2) The department may require any additional information from an applicant as may be necessary to complete a project application. A project application will be reviewed and may be approved, disapproved or modified by the department, consistent with the requirements of this Part.
3. (3) The department will evaluate, rate, rank or score eligible applications received in accordance with the procedures identified in the notice of availability to determine which, if any, of the projects will be funded through the State assistance program.