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TRANSACTIONS NEWSLETTER ONLINE
April/May 2000
1999 Annual Report

Focus on Funding

During the six-year authorization period of the federal Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA 21), MTC is responsible for "programming" (or committing to projects) approximately $3.6 billion in transportation dollars, mostly from federal sources. The amounts expected from each of the major fund sources, along with the anticipated uses of these dollars, are depicted in the pie charts to the left.

As a programmer of funds, MTC typically has considerable latitude in making investment decisions, often extending to the direct selection of projects from among competing proposals by project sponsors in the region.

In its role as an allocator of certain state and regional funds (those specified in the MTC allocations table), MTC reviews claims submitted by transit operators and other project sponsors, then votes to authorize the expenditure of funds by eligible claimants according to statutory formulas. While this may appear routine, it should be noted that the agency often had a hand -- and sometimes played a leading role -- in forging the policy consensus embodied in the laws it administers.

A notable exception to each of these roles is the "Federal Discretionary" category in the fund-source pie chart below, in which project funding is earmarked by Congress and then included by MTC in the region's comprehensive Transportation Improvement Program. Even here, however, MTC often acts as a vigorous advocate for project funding during the appropriations process.

MTC is guided in the exercise of its funding authority by the agency's own Regional Transportation Plan, which places an emphasis on the maintenance and operation of the region's existing transportation system. The "Funds by Expenditure" pie chart demonstrates MTC's commitment to system maintenance, supplemented by much-needed investment in transit and roadway improvements.

Last but not least, a pair of pie charts depict MTC's operating revenues and expenses as an agency for the past fiscal year.
-- Joe Curley

FUND PROGRAMMING: 1997-98 THROUGH 2002-03
FUNDS BY SOURCE
FUNDS BY SOURCE		 FUNDS BY EXPENDITURE
FUNDS BY PROGRAMMING
Six-Year Total
(in millions)		 $3,636
1 FTA Formula (a) $1,318
2 STIP (b) $825
3 Federal STP/CMAQ (c) $754
4 Federal Discretionary (d) $739
Six-Year Total
(in millions)		 $3,636
1 Transit Rehabilitation $1,554
2 Transit Expansion (e)
(including corridor management)		 $708
3 Road Expansion
(including corridor management)		 $670
4 Road Rehabilitation $291
5 Other (including reserves) $202
6 System Operations $108
7 Pedestrian/ Bicycle/ Enhancements $103
(a) Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Urbanized Area Programs
(b) STIP: State Transportation Improvement Program. STIP programming covers the six-year period from fiscal year 1998-99 through 2003-04.
(c) STP: Surface Transportation Program. CMAQ: Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program
(d) Federal discretionary category includes TEA 21 demonstration projects, FTA Section 5309 Bus and New Starts and various other federal competitive funding programs.
(e) Includes $21 million programmed to VTAÕs Tasman East extension that was swapped for roadway rehabilitation projects now funded through Santa Clara County Measure B.

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