Executive Director's Report

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR STEVE HEMINGER’S REPORT TO THE
COMMISSION MEETING OF MAY 25, 2011

SUMMARY OF EVENTS:

Commission Workshop
Half Moon Bay, April 27-28

I just wanted to thank Chair Tissier and all the commissioners and staff who participated in this two-day session. I thought we had a very productive discussion about the two major planning projects underway at MTC: Plan Bay Area and the Transit Sustainability Project. Several commissioners mentioned to me that the co-dependency of these two projects became much clearer as the workshop proceeded – which was one of the intended purposes for the event.

Affordable Housing Awards
San Francisco, May 4

Vice Chair Worth received the Distinguished Public Agency award on the Commission’s behalf at the 15th annual award ceremonies of the Non-Profit Housing Association of Northern California.

SCAG General Assembly
Palm Springs, May 5

I joined my counterparts from the San Diego and Los Angeles regions on a panel discussion about SB 375 implementation at the General Assembly of the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG).

AIA Convention
New Orleans, May 11-12

ABAG Executive Director Ezra Rapport, BCDC Executive Director Will Travis, and I traveled to New Orleans for the annual meeting of the American Institute of Architects to make a presentation on our efforts in the Bay Area to cope with climate change.

AMPO Advocacy Visits
Washington DC, May 16

As Vice Chair of the Board of Directors for the Association of Metropolitan Planning Organizations (AMPO), I participated in meetings with congressional staff and Obama Administration officials about ongoing efforts to reauthorize the federal surface transportation program. A bootleg version of the Administration proposal has been circulating in Washington for the past few weeks, but there is no word about when an official version might finally clear the gauntlet for release at the Office of Management and Budget. It appears that the relevant House and Senate authorizing committees may be headed toward mark-up of their respective proposals this summer. The April 28th issue of The Economist magazine featured an excellent article highlighting the challenges facing our leaders in Washington on this subject.

TRB Conference on Performance Measures
Irvine, May 18

I was one of the keynote presenters at the opening session of this conference on performance measures and management sponsored by the Transportation Research Board. I spoke about my work on the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission as well as our local efforts to advance this topic in the current Transportation 2035 Plan and the forthcoming Plan Bay Area to be adopted in 2013.

LIIF Conference
San Francisco, May 24

I was invited to speak at a conference hosted by the Low Income Investment Fund (LIIF), our partner in the Bay Area Transit-Oriented Affordable Housing Fund that MTC recently capitalized with a $10 million investment.

• Capital Solutions for Equitable Transit-Oriented Development: SF Bay Area Perspective (PowerPoint)
  
  

Comings and Goings

As you know, Dorothy Dugger recently departed BART after serving as general manager for the past four years. Cindy McKim also has retired as Caltrans Director after 40 years of state service. Both women have been replaced by acting directors: former general counsel Sherwood Wakeman at BART and Chief Deputy Director Malcolm Dougherty at Caltrans.

Map of the Month

The map of the month shows how federal funding is distributed throughout the country based on the amount of taxes paid by each state. By comparing the amount of taxes paid per state to the amount of federal spending received by each state, an index was created to show which states are benefitting more from federal spending, and which states are supporting them. "Get More States" have a Federal Spending Received per Dollar of Taxes Paid ratio of greater than $1.00, while "Pay More States" have a ratio of lower than $1.00. Please note that the map depicts all federal spending, not just the transportation program.

• Federal Spending Received per Dollar of Taxes Paid by State FY2005 (PDF)

MTC Operational Statistics

The monthly report on the performance of MTC’s operating programs:

• MTC Operational Statistics (PDF)

Upcoming Events

May 30 — Bay Bridge Oakland Detour Opens (eastbound)
June 3 — High Speed Rail Conference, San Francisco
June 16 — NACO Urban County Caucus, Berkeley