Survey of State Funding for Public Transportation—Ways to Improve It (2012)

Below is the uncorrected machine-read text of this chapter, intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text of each book. Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT This work was sponsored by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), in cooperation with the Federal Highway Administration, and was conducted in the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP), which is administered by the Transportation Research Board (TRB) of the National Academies. COPYRIGHT INFORMATION Authors herein are responsible for the authenticity of their materials and for obtaining written permissions from publishers or persons who own the copyright to any previously published or copyrighted material used herein. Cooperative Research Programs (CRP) grants permission to reproduce material in this publication for classroom and not-for-profit purposes. Permission is given with the understanding that none of the material will be used to imply TRB, AASHTO, FAA, FHWA, FMCSA, FTA, Transit Development Corporation, or AOC endorsement of a particular product, method, or practice. It is expected that those reproducing the material in this document for educational and not-for-profit uses will give appropriate acknowledgment of the source of any reprinted or reproduced material. For other uses of the material, request permission from CRP. DISCLAIMER The opinions and conclusions expressed or implied in this report are those of the researchers who performed the research. They are not necessarily those of the Transportation Research Board, the National Research Council, or the program sponsors. The information contained in this document was taken directly from the submission of the author(s). This material has not been edited by TRB.

The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. On the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Ralph J. Cicerone is president of the National Academy of Sciences. The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. Charles M. Vest is president of the National Academy of Engineering. The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, on its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Harvey V. Fineberg is president of the Institute of Medicine. The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy’s purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Ralph J. Cicerone and Dr. Charles M. Vest are chair and vice chair, respectively, of the National Research Council. The Transportation Research Board is one of six major divisions of the National Research Council. The mission of the Transporta- tion Research Board is to provide leadership in transportation innovation and progress through research and information exchange, conducted within a setting that is objective, interdisciplinary, and multimodal. The Board’s varied activities annually engage about 7,000 engineers, scientists, and other transportation researchers and practitioners from the public and private sectors and academia, all of whom contribute their expertise in the public interest. The program is supported by state transportation departments, federal agencies including the component administrations of the U.S. Department of Transportation, and other organizations and individu- als interested in the development of transportation. www.TRB.org www.national-academies.org

i CONTENTS Executive Summary ................................................................................................................................................... iii 1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................................................... 1 2 Assessment of Existing Report ........................................................................................................................... 1 2.1 Review of Data Collection Method .............................................................................................................. 1 2.2 Survey of State DOTs on Potential Improvements ...................................................................................... 2 3 Recommended Approach to Data Collection .................................................................................................... 8 3.1 Continue Current Excel-based Reporting Approach .................................................................................... 8 3.2 Provide Written Instructions that Define Major Terms ................................................................................ 8 3.3 Enhance Post-submission Data Checks ........................................................................................................ 9 3.4 Standardize the “Major Features” Request .................................................................................................. 9 3.5 Allow States to Revise Previous Data Submissions ..................................................................................... 9 3.6 Drop Dedicated and Non-dedicated Funding Data Request ....................................................................... 10 3.7 Drop “Pass Through” as a Category for Distribution of Funds .................................................................. 10 3.8 Collect Data on the Source of Funds for All State Transit Funding instead of by Program ....................... 10 4 Recommended Changes to the Report Organization ..................................................................................... 11 4.1 Emphasize Report’s Purpose as a Database ............................................................................................... 11 4.2 Provide Five Years of Data for Historical Tables ...................................................................................... 11 4.3 Make Changes to Tables and Graphics in Chapter 1 ................................................................................. 11 5 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................................... 14 Appendix A – Recommended Excel Spreadsheets (Example) ............................................................................ A-1 Appendix B – Suggested Guidance to Reporters .................................................................................................. B-1 Appendix C – State DOTs Participating in Survey ............................................................................................. C-1 Appendix D – Survey to State DOT Reporters of Funding Data ....................................................................... D-1 Appendix E – Survey to Other Recipients of State Survey Report ..................................................................... E-1

ii AUTHOR ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The research reported herein was performed under National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Project 20-65-41 by High Street Consulting Group (High Street) and ICF International (ICF). The study was conducted for the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. The report was prepared by Rob Padgette, Director (High Street) with support from Michael Grant, Principal (ICF) and Eva Hsu, Associate (ICF).

iii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Survey of State Funding for Public Transportation report (State Survey report) offers a unique source of information on state-level public transportation funding, the source of funds, the potential use of funds and method of funds distribution for each transit program. There is no other existing resource available that provides the level of detail contained in this report. The preparation of this report is based on data provided by representatives within each state Department of Transportation (DOT) and the approach to data collection and report preparation has remained unchanged for a number of years. This research project seeks to evaluate the current report and make recommendations for improvements. While the report contains a number of recommendations for changes, the research team is recommending a continuation of the general approach to data collection and report preparation. Although available technology would enable a transition to a web-based data collection approach, given the limited reporting burden under the current approach, the research team recommends a continuation of the Excel-based approach to data collection. The research team also recommends the continued preparation of both hard copy and PDF formats to maximize accessibility to prepared information. Based on a review of the existing Survey of State Funding for Public Transportation and outreach to state DOTs, associations, and other users of the report, the research team recommends the following changes to the approach for data collection and report production: • Provide brief written instructions that define major terms to data reporters at each state DOT; • Enhance post-submission data checks to improve data quality; • Generate data files for distribution to improve the accessibility of collected information; and • Eliminate questions related to non-transit related ferry funding. The research team also recommends changes in data collected for the report as indicated in Table ES-1. Table ES-1. Summary of Recommended Changes in Data Collected Data Currently Collected Recommended for Collection Funding By Program Funding for All Transit Programs Combined Funding by Program Funding for All Transit Programs Combined Total State Funds X - X X Source of State Funds X - - X Eligible Use (Operating, Capital) X - X - Type of Funding (Dedicated, Non- Dedicated) X - - - Method of Distribution (Discretionary, Formula, Pass Through) X - X - Non-transit related ferry funding X X - -