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III.MPO Planning Today MPOs are designated by federal law to have the lead responsibility for regional transportation planning for areas with a population greater than 50,000.There are approximately 400 MPOs across the country and six in Oregon. MPOs serve as a forum for cooperative transportation decision-making for the local jurisdictions within metropolitan areas, producing plans and programs that focus on the regional aspects of transportation planning. MPOs are responsible for distributing federal transportation dollars in metropolitan areas. MPOs work is guided primarily by federal laws including SAFETEA-LU, the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and the Clean Air Act. The MPOs’ five core functions include: Establishing a fair and impartial setting for regional decision making; Evaluating transportation alternatives; Maintaining a long-range transportation plan (regional transportation plan or RTP) covering a 20 year planning horizon; Developing a 4 year Transportation Improvement Program or Metropolitan Transportation Improvement Program (TIP or MTIP) and prioritizing projects; and Involving the public. The federal government is the primary funding source for most Oregon MPOs. Each MPO also may receive some funding from other sources including the state, transit districts, and local governments. The MPOs in general – Portland Metro is the exception in Oregon -- are neither local nor state governmental organizations nor are they regional land use planning agencies. Each MPO has a policy board made up of elected and appointed officials. Except for the MPO in the Portland metro area, the Councils of Government or local governments in each area provide staff for and conduct transportation planning for the MPOs. Portland Metro, which 2 is a local government, supports the Portland metro area MPO. Although the MPO work is not directly subject to Oregon laws, the Transportation Planning Rule (TPR) – adopted by LCDC – establishes state requirements for metropolitan transportation planning. The TPR applies to local governments (cities and counties) that are MPO members – and is implemented by them through adoption and amendment of regional and local transportation system plans (TSPs). On the other hand, MPO boundaries are established for federal planning purposes and do not coincide with urban growth boundaries established under Oregon law and used in planning processes throughout the state. The TPR requirements generally parallel and are consistent with the federal requirements. Several key features are worth noting: 2 The Joint Policy Advisory Committee on Transportation (JPACT) is the designated policy making body for the Portland area MPO. Page 9