The Ferguson Group Blog

Wednesday News Roundup

Every Wednesday, the TFG Blog posts a series of articles published over the previous week that discusses topics of interest to local governments. Learn about emerging trends and keep up on key policy issues by browsing the TFG Wednesday News Roundup!

What Impact Will the Community Broadband Act Have?

The Community Broadband Act would give cities and counties the right to build municipal broadband networks, making a broad statement for the future of connectivity, according to experts. While partisan politics may doom the measure, advocates for local control believe the effort is already a victory because of the publicity the issue has received. Read more...

What Obama’s 2016 Budget Means for States and Localities

President Barack Obama’s record $4 trillion proposed budget would provide boons to states and localities in a host of areas, from infrastructure to education. But the White House’s spending plan again includes cuts or limits to popular programs such as community development block grants. Read more...

Beyond Traffic – Planning for the Future of Transportation

On February 2, U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx, along with Google executive chairman Eric Schmidt, unveiled Beyond Traffic, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s new framework for building an intelligent transportation network and avoiding the transit nightmare the agency envisions if the current system is not modernized. Foxx said he hopes to stimulate a public conversation about the future of transportation while also warning elected officials that failing to act will have disastrous consequences. Read more...

Can a Crowdsourced Data Service Change Emergency Response?

Smart911, a new emergency data service, links phone numbers with resident contact and medical information. This capability allowed firefighters and dispatchers in Traverse City, Michigan, to locate a person’s house within the area of the traced call during a near-fatal home fire. Read more...

DOL Invests $100M in Apprenticeship Grants

The U.S. Department of Labor recently announced that $100 million in grants will be invested in launching innovative, high-quality apprenticeship programs across the country. These public-private partnerships will identify key goals for economic growth and align strategies to ensure skilled workers are available to fuel and sustain this growth. Many industries, especially manufacturing, are looking to apprenticeship programs as the future of job training to prepare the next generation of skilled workers. Read more...

Check out this year’s Bus and Bus Facilities Grant Winners

This week, winners of the competitive Bus and Bus Facilities “Ladders of Opportunity” Initiative grant program were officially posted on the Federal Register. The Federal Transit Authority (FTA) awarded $100 million in competitive grants to 24 recipients in 19 states to significantly improve bus service and bus facilities in urban and rural communities.

The Bus and Bus Facilities program supports the modernization and expansion of transit bus service, with the purpose of connecting disadvantaged and low-income populations with centers of education, employment, job training, healthcare and other vital services. Grant money provides financial assistance to purchase, replace, or rehabilitate buses, bus facilities, and bus-related equipment, and other eligible capital project costs.

Click here to see this year’s Bus and Bus Facilities “Ladders of Opportunity” Initiative project selections.

This year, the FTA received 446 project proposals from 282 applicants requesting a total of approximately $1.4 billion – 14 times the available funding! This highly competitive response clearly reflects tremendous demand for modern buses and bus facilities in communities across the United States. What needs does your community have?

Got a Big Transportation Project? Here’s Your Chance to get it Noticed!

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is reopening a nationwide survey that it will use to compile a list of surface transportation projects that qualify for the Projects of National and Regional Significance (PNRS) program, that is, those that would significantly improve highway system performance, generate national economic benefits, reduce long term congestion, and improve transportation safety. MAP-21, the 2012 transportation authorization bill, authorized $500 million for the PNRS program, although no funds have actually been appropriated, and requires DOT to submit a report to Congress that lists eligible projects and makes funding recommendations.

The PNRS survey was originally open in June, but because FHWA received so few submissions – only 27 states responded – it announced in the Federal Register today that it will reopen the survey until November 17^th. That’s 45 days to prepare your submission, including a project description, cost information and financial commitments, and how the project meets the national and regional significance criteria. FHWA has also relaxed the applicant eligibility requirements. In the first round, only state departments of transportation, tribal organizations, and transit agencies could submit a project; but for this round, the survey is open to cities, counties, metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs), seaport authorities, railroads, coalitions of local governments, and economic development organizations that have responsibility for planning or implementing infrastructure projects.

Already Submitted a Project?

If your transportation project was already submitted to the Federal Highway Administration during the first survey period, then you won’t need to submit it again. However, this is a chance to review your application and make any changes or submit any additional supporting documentation you might want to.

Interested?

If you’ve got a big transportation project that you’d like to get noticed, then check out the announcement and the survey.  And we do mean big by the way: eligible PNRS projects must be at least 50% of their state’s total highway assistance funds apportionment, viewable here, or $500 million, whichever is smaller. FHWA is also holding an informational webinar on October 6th. 

U.S. DOT Awards 72 TIGER Grants

An official DOT TIGER announcement wasn’t expected until mid-September, but after several lawmakers pre-emptively announced projects in their states last week, DOT released award announcements early.

On Friday, Secretary Foxx announced $600 million in TIGER awards among 72 transportation projects in 46 states and the District of Columbia. The TIGER program is a unique opportunity within DOT that invests in high-impact projects including roads, bridges, freight and passenger rail, transit buses and streetcars, port infrastructure, and bicycle and pedestrian paths, in order to achieve critical objectives for the nation. This year, DOT funded 26 road projects, 17 transit projects, 12 regional planning projects, 7 maritime projects, 7 rail projects and 3 bike pedestrian projects.

View the full list of FY2014 TIGER award recipients here.

Does your community have a high-impact transit project that needs additional funding? If so, you should learn more about DOT’s TIGER Program by visiting http://www.dot.gov/tiger.

House Passes Highway Trust Fund Patch & Authorization Extension

Yesterday, the House of Representatives passed legislation providing an $11 billion bailout to the Highway Trust Fund (HTF) and steady state funding for highway and transit projects and programs through May 2015.  Only 45 Republicans and 10 Democrats voted against H.R. 5021.  

The bill now moves to the Senate where Majority Leader Harry Reid wants to have the bill on the Senate floor before the August recess.  Environment & Public Works Committee Chairman Barbara Boxer wants the authorization portion of H.R. 5021 to end five months earlier to force additional consideration prior to the end of 2014 and is likely to offer an amendment on the floor. 

The House bill sources the $11 billion by way of customs fees, redirecting funds set aside for leaking underground storage tanks, and  “pension smoothing,” which allows companies to pay in less pension benefits and report higher taxable profits.  According to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), allowing pension plans to use higher interest rates when calculating their future liabilities would reduce the minimum contributions that employers are required to make to such plans, leading to increases in offsetting receipts, direct spending, and revenues. The CBO report also noted its expectation that H.R. 5021 would increase the amount of underfunding in pension plans.  A Senate Finance Committee amendment with a slightly different plan to provide the $11 billion HTF bailout waits in the wings.  The Senate plan relies less on pension smoothing and more on tax law compliance enforcement.

Senators Propose 12 Cent Gas Tax Hike

On June 18 Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) and Senator Bob Corker (R-TN) released their proposal to increase the fuel tax by 12 cents over two years to create revenue necessary to shore up the Highway Trust Fund and pay for a long term transportation authorization bill.

Senator Murphy wrote notes in a press release “…the purchasing power of the gas tax is approximately 63 percent of what it was in 1993…” when last the tax was increased.  The Senators’ proposal would increase the federal gasoline and diesel taxes by six cents in each of the next two years. According to the Senators, this increase would provide enough funding to offset current MAP-21 spending levels over the next 10 years and replace all of the buying power the federal gas tax has lost since it was last raised in 1993.

The plan also would index the gas tax to inflation, using the Consumer Price Index (CPI), to ensure that it remains viable into the future.

The press release with a link to a one-page fact sheet is located here:

http://www.murphy.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/murphy-corker-unveil-bipartisan-plan-to-shore-up-highway-trust-fund-boost-economic-growth

What are your thoughts on this proposal?

Obama Administration Releases Grow America Act Transportation Bill

Yesterday, the Obama Administration released the Grow America Act proposal to finance and fund transportation infrastructure projects. The administration’s proposal is the first one out of the gate - both Houses of Congress are working on legislation that is expected to be released in the coming weeks. The collective goal (we hope) is to have a signed transportation bill before MAP-1 expires at the end of September. 

The Grow America Act proposal includes several new elements that may make it through the legislative sausage making process.  The proposal codifies the TIGER program and eliminates project minimums.  It includes a new FAST program for transportation projects (based on Race to the Top) with a $50 million pay-out.  It also includes a new Rapid Growth Area Transit competitive grant program and allows use of TIFIA fees for small projects.

If you are interested in reading the full text of the bill, click here for a link to the proposed legislation and here for a section-by-section review from the Administration.

New Round of TIGER Grants Announced

Exciting News from the US Department of Transportation!  On Feb. 26, the Department released the Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) for the next round of the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) Grant Program, which is also known as “TIGER VI.” A total of $600 million is available for grants in this round of TIGER, which is a $50 million increase over the TIGER V round. The NOFA is very similar to the last round, except that there is a set-aside this time of up to $35 million for planning grants. These grants should be especially attractive for smaller communities and projects that are not far enough along in the environmental process to qualify for a TIGER construction grant. Another important change is the far longer length of time this round in which TIGER awardees will have to obligate their federal money (the shortness of which in the last round was something the Department wished to rectify).

The deadline for TIGER VI applications is April 28, 2014, at 5:00 p.m. EDT and you can download the NOFA on the TIGER website at: www.dot.gov/TIGER.

Wednesday News Roundup

Every Wednesday, The Ferguson Group (TFG) blog posts a series of articles published over the previous week that discusses topics of interest to local governments. Learn about emerging trends and keep up on key policy issues by browsing the TFG Wednesday News Roundup!

 

White House Delays Health Insurance Mandate For Medium-sized Employers Until 2016

 

Under new rules released Monday by the U.S. Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service, employers with 50 to 99 employees will be given until 2016 before they are responsible for paying a employer shared responsibility penalty if they don’t offer their full-time workers health insurance. The mandate gives mid-sized employers an extra year to comply with the regulations. However, employers with 100 or more employees will still be required to begin implementing these new regulations starting in 2015.Read More…

 

What Government Can Learn From Colleges About Transportation Policy

 

A new report, released by the Frontier Group and the U.S. Public Interest Research Group, suggests that transportation policies on college campuses could help cities promote public transportation, and bike and car sharing programs in their communities.  The report authors argue that cities and colleges share some of the same incentives for reducing car-related commuting, such as reducing congestion, promoting efficient land use, attracting youth to the area, and reducing environmental impacts. Read More…   

 

Philly Teaches Officials With New Innovation Academy

 

Philadelphia is taking municipal innovation to the classroom by enrolling 19 of the city’s officials in a new eight-week program that aspires to institutionalize some of the processes and ideas driving government innovation. The Municipal Innovation Academy was designed in partnership with Philadelphia University, which is currently piloting its own undergraduate innovation program. The Municipal Innovation Academy will have lessons ranging from the basics of innovative thinking, to more advanced principles such as design thinking, the use of analytics, systems thinking, and problem solving strategy.Read More…

 

FEMA: Caught Between Climate Change and Congress

 

As we have seen in the past few years, FEMA has had to deal with its fair share of extreme weather disasters, and the agency has had a hard time keeping up. Some experts say that the agency is failing to properly account for climate change when planning its yearly budget and resource allocations, which is one of several critical reasons FEMA is struggling to function. Another impediment to FEMA's functionality is an annual budget that has roughly stayed the same since the 1980's. The budget can only increase at the hand of Congress, and that prospect looks grim.Read More…

 

Latest Senate Attempt to Revive Jobless Benefits Falters

 

On February 6^th, the Senate failed to move forward on a three-month extension of long-term unemployment benefits (S. 1845), falling one vote short of the 60 votes needed to proceed. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has not said when he will schedule another vote on S. 1845.  Meanwhile, Reid moved S. 1963, a bill restoring earned retirement pay for military retirees. The Senate will likely revisit the legislation upon its return from the week-long President’s Day recess.Read More…

Expedited Airport Screening Program Now Offered by TSA

TSA recently announced the first application site for its TSA Pre✓™ Application Program at the Indianapolis International Airport. The agency also unveiled the online pre-enrollment program. TSA Pre✓™ is an expedited screening lane program that allows travelers to leave on their shoes, light outerwear and belt, and keep their laptops and authorized liquids in their carryon bag.

Those seeking to enroll may begin their application online and make an appointment before visiting an enrollment center. Travelers must visit an application center to pay the non-refundable $85 application fee and provide required biographic information (name, date of birth, address, etc.), fingerprints and identity and citizenship or immigration documentation. Approval may take up to three weeks.

Over the next few weeks, TSA plans to open additional enrollment centers in the New York City area, the Washington, D.C. metro area and in Los Angeles. By the spring of 2014, the TSA plans to have more than 300 enrollment centers open around the country. TSA Pre-check lanes are now available at more than 100 airports and on nine major U.S. airlines.

Additional program information and how to enroll can be found at www.tsa.gov.