DRAFT
FOR DISCUSSION
Survey questions to TIP contacts regarding the MPO Municipal
Elections Process
Below text is from the Boston MPO Certification Report
from Federal Highway and Transit Administrations:
The BRMPO should
review voting procedures for BRMPO Board seats to ensure that they effectively
engage all communities in the region and result in effective representation.
ELECTION OF MPO MEMBERS The MOU establishes
22 voting seats divided into two groups, permanent and elected members. There
are ten permanent voting seats: three are from MassDOT,
two from the City of Boston, and the remaining permanent
voting seats are held by the MBTA, the MBTA Advisory Board, MassPort,
MAPC, and the Regional Transportation Advisory Committee (RTAC). The 12
elected voting Transportation Planning Certification Review of the Boston
Region MPO Page 27 members are cities and towns drawn from the 97
municipalities that comprise the BRMPO, not including the City of Boston. These
elected municipal voting members are comprised of two at large cities, two
at-large towns, and eight cities and towns elected to represent each of the
eight MAPC sub-regional groups. FHWA and FTA are ex-officio, non-voting
members. According to the MOU, MAPC and the MBTA Advisory Board jointly
administer elections. Nominees for the elected municipal seats are the chief
elected official of the municipality that will hold the seat. A candidate must
receive nominations from at least five chief elected officials in the Boston
region. Each chief elected officer in the region may vote for one candidate
municipality for each open seat; consequently, municipalities are not only voting
for representative for their sub-region and the at-large seats, but for all
sub-regional representatives. The Review Team notes that of the 96 BRMPO
municipalities (excluding Boston) only 17 have served in elected seats on the
BRMPO Board in the past 21 years. Two communities of these 96 have been on the
BRMPO for 21 years, four others for over ten years, and nine for six years or
more. All seats were contested in only one year (1999); for 11 years no seats were contested, including a five-year period from
2012 to 2017 when there was no change in membership of the BRMPO. Seven
municipalities have run for BRMPO seats and never won. The Review Team notes
that in the past 21 years only 17% of the eligible municipalities have held
seats on the BRMPO. FINDINGS Recommendation: The BRMPO should develop an
operations plan, as called for in its MOU. An operations plan should clarify
roles and responsibilities among BRMPO members and staff, particularly among
CTPS, MAPC, and MassDOT, pertaining to collaboration,
communication, work assignments, and products. Additionally, it should provide
further clarification on the roles of the Chair and Vice Chair, define officer
roles for sub-committees, and identify other necessary processes to support an
effective 3C process and facilitate BRMPO operations as the regional forum for
transportation decision-making.
Recommendation:
The BRMPO should review voting procedures for BRMPO Board seats to ensure that
they effectively engage all communities in the region and result in effective
representation.
Draft Survey Questions
1.
Does your municipality currently participate in the Boston MPO elections?
(i.e. serves currently or in the past, has run
for the Board, endorsed another community or voted in the Boston MPO
elections)
2.
Are you aware of the Boston MPO Elections and receive information each year
regarding the election nominating process and voting rules?
3. Do
you think that these elections are open, transparent, and fair?
4.
What do you think are the biggest challenges for municipalities to seek
election to the Boston MPO Choose top two:
5. Do
you feel that you understand the role of the elected members of the Boston MPO?
6. Do
you feel that your local or regional transportation concerns are
understood at the Boston MPO?
7.
The Boston MPO currently elects members to represent eight of the MAPC subregions, two At-Large City seats and two At-Large Town
seats. All 96 municipalities in the Boston MPO region can vote for these seats.
The Boston MPO adopted this process to encourage the elected members to feel
that they are representing the best interests of the entire MPO region, and not
just the interests of the subregion they represent,
or the interests of towns or cities.
Do
you agree that the current process promotes regional planning and that the
Boston MPO should continue it? Or do you feel it is
not an effective regional planning processes and that the Boston MPO should allow
the subregional seats to be voted on by just the
municipalities from that subregion, only cities vote
for the At-Lage City seats, and only towns vote for
the At-Large Town seats?
8. Currently,
MPO municipal members serve three-year terms, and can run again after their
term expires. Do you think term limits for the municipally elected seats would encourage
more cities and towns to seek election to the MPO?
9.
What issues, comments or recommendations would like to share with the Boston
MPO to help improve the selection process for municipal representation on the
Boston MPO?
10.
What is your role in your municipality?