HomeMy WebLinkAboutSTF RecommendationsDate: February 11, 2009
To: Deschutes County Board of Commissioners
From: Judith Ure, Management Analyst
Subject: Special Transportation Fund Advisory Committee Recommendations for
Discretionary Grant Awards
Special Transportation Fund Discretionary Grant Program
Each biennium, Deschutes County solicits applications from local transportation service providers
for projects to be included in the County’s request for funding through the Oregon Department of
Transportation (ODOT) Special Transportation Fund (STF) Discretionary Grant Program. Programs
and projects supported by STF Discretionary Grant Program funds can address a wide variety of
uses including capital equipment purchases, vehicle maintenance, and operations. Applications
submitted are reviewed by the STF Advisory Committee which then formulates a recommendation
for consideration by the Board of County Commissioners. Upon Board approval, staff compiles the
recommendations into a composite County request for grant funds.
Program Changes for Fiscal Year 2009-11
In the past, County recommendations to award funds through the STF Discretionary Grant
Program were advisory only. Recommendations for funding accepted by the Board of
Commissioners were forwarded to ODOT to be placed in a competitive pool that was reviewed
by Public Transit Division (PDT) staff, then presented to the Oregon Public Transportation
Advisory Committee which made a final recommendation that was eventually submitted for
approval by the Governor’s office. ODOT determined that this process was cumbersome and
inefficient and, as a result, has made significant changes to the way Discretionary Grant Program
funding will be allocated for fiscal year 2009-11. Beginning this cycle, applications will no
longer compete on a statewide basis and final award decisions will be made at the local level
with limited additional review by PDT staff. Most significantly, however, Discretionary Grant
Program funding will now be distributed to Counties on a formula basis that considers total
population, percentage of elderly residents, percentage of residents with disabilities, and other
factors. The practical outcome of this decision is that Deschutes County will receive $479,136
less this cycle than last.
STF Advisory Committee Review Process
ODOT allocated a total of $550,813 to Deschutes County to fund STF Discretionary Grant
requests. In response to a public solicitation, the County received requests for grants in the
amount of $1,258,727. As a result, transportation providers that submitted multiple applications
for funding were asked to prioritize their requests in order of greatest need. STF Advisory
Committee members considered this information as well as the community priorities outlined in
the Deschutes County Coordinated Human Services Transportation Plan (with draft revisions),
applicant history, scope of benefit, geographical impact, and sustainability issues to formulate
preliminary individual recommendations for discussion purposes. During a public meeting held
on February 3, 2009, the STF Committee met as a group to develop a consensus
recommendation for the Board’s consideration. Representatives of each applicant agency
attended that meeting to provide additional information and answer Committee member
questions.
The attached table details all of the applications submitted and the STF Advisory Committee’s
recommendations for awards (highlighted in gray). As funding was not adequate to provide for
all of the applicant agency’s top priorities, the Committee chose to prorate these requests to
allow each agency to receive approximately 85% of the amount requested for its area of greatest
need.
ODOT has indicated that additional funding may become available if a 2% increase in the gas
tax proposed by the Governor in his 2009 Jobs and Transportation Act is enacted. As a result,
ODOT has requested that all applications submitted be ranked, regardless of whether they are
currently recommended for funding or not, with the intention of approving additional programs
and projects in descending order if additional funds do become available at a later date.
Immediately following the applications recommended for funding, the STF Committee chose to
rank the approximately 15% that was reduced from the top ranking requests. All other programs
and projects follow in order of Committee preference.
Board Action
Staff recommends that the Board of Commissioners approve the recommendations of the STF
Advisory Committee as submitted and to authorize the Board Chair to sign the County’s 2009-11
Discretionary Grant Program application to ODOT when available.
