(a) Award. FRA will execute a contract with a winning bidder that is not or does not include Amtrak, consistent with the requirements of this section and as FRA may otherwise require, not later than 270 days after the bid deadline established by § 269.9(b).

(b) Contract requirements. Among other things, the contract between FRA and a winning bidder that is not or does not include Amtrak must:

(1) Award to the winning bidder the right and obligation to provide intercity passenger rail transportation over that route subject to such performance standards as FRA may require for a duration consistent with § 269.3(b);

(2) Award to the winning bidder an operating subsidy, as determined by FRA and based on Amtrak's final audited publicly-reported fully-allocated operating costs of the route for the prior fiscal year, excluding costs related to Other Postretirement Employee Benefits, Amtrak Performance Tracking System Asset Allocations, Project Related Costs, and Amtrak Office of Inspector General activities, subject to the availability of funding, for the first year at a level that does not exceed 90 percent of the level in effect for that specific route during the fiscal year preceding the fiscal year in which the petition was received, adjusted for inflation;

(3) State that any award of an operating subsidy is made annually, is subject to the availability of funding, and is based on the amount calculated under paragraph (b)(2) of this section, adjusted for inflation;

(4) Condition the operating and subsidy rights upon the winning bidder providing intercity passenger rail transportation over the route that is no less frequent, nor over a shorter distance, than Amtrak provided on that route before the award;

(5) Condition the operating and subsidy rights upon the winning bidder's compliance with performance standards FRA may require, but which, at a minimum, must meet or exceed the performance required of or achieved by Amtrak on the applicable route during the fiscal year immediately preceding the year the bid is submitted;

(6) Subject the winning bidder to the grant conditions established by 49 U.S.C. 24405; and

(7) Subject the winning bidder to the requirements of the appropriations act(s) funding the contract.

(c) Publication. The winning bidder shall make their bid available to the public after the bid award with any appropriate redactions for confidential or proprietary information.