NAPA COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Board Agenda Letter

Size: px
Start display at page:

Download "NAPA COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Board Agenda Letter"

Transcription

1 Agenda Date: 3/22/2011 Agenda Placement: 10A NAPA COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Board Agenda Letter TO: FROM: Board of Supervisors Florin, Lawrance - Director Community and Intergovernmental Affairs Division REPORT BY: Lawrance Florin, COM AND INTERGOV AFFAIRS MGR SUBJECT: Discussion of Napa County Transportation & Planning Agency's (NCTPA) Future Role RECOMMENDATION Community & Intergovernmental Affairs Manager requests discussion of the Napa County Transportation & Planning Agency's (NCTPA) future role in the County and whether the formation of a Council of Governments (COG) for Napa County and the five (5) municipalities would help foster cooperation and cost savings for solving regional issues. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Napa County Transportation & Planning Agency's (NCTPA) Joint Powers Agreement (JPA) has been amended seven (7) times since the agency's inception in 1991 to address changing needs and regional issues. At the February 1, 2011 Board of Supervisors meeting, the Board requested to discuss NCTPA's future role, and whether the formation of a Council of Governments (COG) for Napa County and the five (5) municipalities could provide a forum that would help foster cooperation, and cost savings in addressing, processing and solving regional issues. Among the regional issues that might be considered by a COG include: economic development, emergency dispatch, fleet management, community development, homeless services, arts and related cultural issues, etc. The COG would also allow NCTPA to streamline and re-focus on its primary mission of transportation and planning. NCTPA's Board of Directors could also sit as the COG's Board of Directors. The background to this Board Letter includes brief summaries of the structures, ranges of issues and responsibilities, annual budgets, and funding sources of four (4) single-county COGs in California.

2 Page 2 PROCEDURAL REQUIREMENTS No action required. FISCAL IMPACT Is there a Fiscal Impact? No ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINATION: The proposed action is not a project as defined by 14 California Code of Regulations (State CEQA Guidelines) and therefore CEQA is not applicable. BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION The Napa County Transportation & Planning Agency (NCTPA) has been in existence under the authority of a Joint Powers Agreement (JPA) since September The agency was first formed as the Napa County Congestion Management Agency (CMA) pursuant to Government Code sections The JPA has been amended seven (7) times in the intervening years to address the changing needs of the agency and regional issues. NCTPA has seen its original focus in transportation and planning grow with the addition of other regional issues to its mission, such as those added in 2006 under JPA Amendment No. 6 which include: land use, demographics, economic development, community development, and arts and related cultural issues. This has created confusion among some as to NCTPA's mission. At the February 1, 2011 Board of Supervisors meeting, the Board requested to discuss NCTPA's future role, and whether the formation of a Council of Governments (COG) for Napa County and the five (5) municipalities could provide a forum that would help foster cooperation, in addressing, and solving regional issues. These regional issues may include: economic development, emergency dispatch, fleet management, community development, arts and related cultural issues, etc. The benefit of a COG is that it would allow NCTPA to streamline and re-focus on its primary mission of transportation and planning. A COG can be created with a JPA and does not need state approval. A COG can be used a number of ways depending on the needs of a particular region or jurisdiction. It can function as an umbrella organization under which a transportation agency, metropolitical planning organization (MPO), other agencies, or even other COGs operate. A COG can be used to consolidate and coordinate duplicative activities in the County and municipalities, such as public works, fleet management, fueling stations, emergency dispatch, lobbying, etc. The main COG's Board of Directors generally sits as the Board of Directors for other agencies and groups under the main COG. The Board of Directors for COG's generally consist of elected officials from the county and each of the jurisdictions. In some cases the COG Board of Directors and the Board of Directors of the Congestion Management Agency are the same. Further research and analysis would be needed to determine the appropriate structure, costs and staffing needs of

3 Page 3 a Napa COG and whether cost savings and other benefits could be generated by creating this new government body. About Council of Governments (COG) The California Association of Councils of Governments (CALCOG) represents 36 COG's in California. CALCOG serves as a convener, bringing together its member COGs, the League of California Cities, and the California State Association of Counties (CSAC), to share information on successful regional programs. CALCOG also works to assist each member in developing the capacity to serve its members' needs for regional coordination and policy development. COGs are funded in a variety of ways, including revenue from the gas tax, increases in the local sales tax, federal and state funds and grants, and dues from members within a COG. Most COGs are formed under joint powers agreements of cities and counties. Many others began as transportation commissions created by the State Legislature. All COGs are governed by locally-elected city council members and county supervisors chosen by their peers. COGs are assigned issues that local officials have decided are better addressed by mutual cooperation to find a unified local response to regional concerns. COGs serve as a forum for local governments to prepare regional plans, set regional policy, strengthen the effectiveness of local government, and develop and maintain regional databases. These efforts are usually focused in the areas of transportation, housing, water and air quality, growth management, and environmental protection. COGs also serve as the regional clearinghouse for reviewing and assuring consistency between federal and state plans, projects and grants, and carrying out various federal and state mandates. Other major roles can include serving as the airport land use commission, local transportation commission, congestion management agency, local transportation sales tax authority, and administering agency for roadside emergency call boxes. Most COGs are single-county organizations. However, there are a number of COGs that span multiple counties, including: Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG), Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG), Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) in the Bay Area, Sacramento Area Councils of Governments (SACOG), as well as Monterey/Santa Cruz area (Association of Monterey Bay Area Governments (AMBAG). The following is a brief summary of four single-county California COG's: MERCED COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF GOVERNMENTS (MCAG) MCAG, formed in 1972, consists of an 11-member governing board that includes a supervisor from each of the five county districts and an elected official from each of the six incorporated cities: Atwater, Dos Palos, Gustine, Livingston, Los Banos, and Merced. Issues and responsibilities: providing planning assistance and community planning services to MCAG member governments; providing information services as the State Census Affiliate Data Center; providing a coordinating structure for programs jointly sponsored by MCAG member governments; providing administrative staff services to the Solid Waste Advisory Board (SWAB); assisting homeless citizens to secure permanent housing; serving as a clearing house for federal and state grants; developing and operating Geographic Information System program (GIS) for the region; operating the "One Voice Legislative Program," to coordinate and focus the region's federal and state lobbying activities. The MCAG is exploring the possible addition of the following responsibilities next year: police and fire dispatch; animal control services; fleet services. Budget and funding: $3.4 million; County and cities pay dues by population (the total dues amount matches the amount of federal transportation dollars the region receives annually) SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS (SLOCOG) SLOCOG, formed in 1968, consists of a 12-member governing board that includes five members of the County

4 Page 4 Board of Supervisors and one representative from each of the seven incorporated cities: Arroyo Grande, Atascadero, Grover Beach, Morro Bay, Paso Robles, Pismo Beach, and San Luis Obispo. Issues and responsibilities: facilitating cooperative subregional and regional planning, coordination and technical assistance on issues of mutual concern; Regional Transportation Planning Agency (RTPA) - responsible for the long range inter-modal transportation plan, a twenty year planning document updated every four year, programming of state funds for transportation projects, and the allocation of transportation development act funds required by state statutes; Metropolitan Planning Organization - responsible for all transportation planning and programming activities required under federal law, including the development of long-range transportation plans and funding programs, and the selection and approval of transportation projects using federal funds; Regional Census Data Affiliate (CDA) - responsible for being the conduit for government and public access to census data and the analysis of census data as it relates to San Luis Obispo County; Service Authority for Freeways and Expressway - responsible for the installation, operation, and administration of the system of approximately 162 roadside call boxes in SLO County, which are financed by a $1 per year fee on all motor vehicles registered within the County; Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) - responsible for allocating the need for housing units assigned by the State Department of Housing over a seven-year period. Budget and funding: $4.8 million; federal and state grants CITY/COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF GOVERNMENTS OF SAN MATEO COUNTY (C/CAG) C/CAG, formed in 1991, consists of a 21-member governing board that includes one supervisor and 20 elected officials from each of the incorporated cities: Atherton, Belmont, Brisbane, Burlingame, Colma, Daly City, East Palo Alto, Foster City, Half Moon Bay, Hillsborough, Menlo Park, Millbrae, Pacifica, Portola Valley, Redwood City, San Bruno, San Carlos, San Mateo, South San Francisco, Woodside. Issues and responsibilities: managing and overseeing airport land use, solid waste management, abatement for abandoned vehicles, storm water management, hazardous materials, climate protection, lobbying Budget and funding: $10 million; members pay yearly fee using a combination of their gas tax and general fund revenues SAN JOAQIN COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS (SJCOG) SJCOG, formed in 1968, consists of a 10-member governing board that includes three members of the County Board of Supervisors, two representative from the city of Stockton, and one each from the other five incorporated cities: Lodi, Manteca, Tracy, Ripon, Escalon and Lathrop. Issues and responsibilities: fostering intergovernmental coordination and cooperation with members and state and federal agencies; operating as regional transportation planner; managing population statistics and related data; overseeing airport land use, habitat and open space planning (a nonprofit group was created for this issue under the COG), growth, transportation, environmental management, housing, open space, air quality, fiscal management, public safety, and economic development; and other regional issues. Budget and funding: $8 million; mix of federal and state funds and grants SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS

5 Page 5 None CEO Recommendation: Approve Reviewed By: Danny Nguyen