Key federal programs important to regions need protecting in FY2017 appropriations legislation. Several of these programs are addressed by “Dear Colleague” letters currently circulating in Congress. If these programs benefit your organization or region, we urge you to contact your House and Senate members and ask them to sign on. Please note that the deadlines…
Earlier this week, nine regional councils on the Solar Ready II team and representatives from the U.S. Department of Energy and Meister Consultants Group convened in Washington, D.C. at NARC and the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments’ offices for a final all team meeting. The Solar Ready II project, funded by the U.S. Department of…
Last week, President Obama released the proposed fiscal year 2017 budget – the last of his Administration. The budget includes several new proposals for local programs including funds to address the drug epidemic sweeping the nation, a clean transportation initiative, and an education and training program. Even though critics dismissed the proposal as “dead on…
NARC is working on a new building energy codes initiative with six other national organizations. NARC’s role in the project is to inform regional councils and their member local governments about the upcoming November 2016 vote on the 2018 International Energy Conservation Code. In order to vote, all local governments and city agencies must be…
Characterized as “dead on arrival,” President Obama released the last budget of his Administration last Tuesday. Filled with policy proposals, the budget blueprint was met with accolades from supporters and dismissals from opponents, much like previous presidential budget releases. The budget proposes $2.9 trillion in deficit reduction over the decade from FY 2017 to 2026,…
The Ritz will have the game showing in all the bar and lounge areas with no cover charge. If you prefer to make a reservation for a group, click HERE to see more formal group options at the Ritz. Below are some spots in the immediate neighborhood of the Ritz: Stoney’s on L http://www.stoneysonl.com/ Café…
By Valarie J. McCall, Chair, American Public Transportation Association, and Secretary, Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency Congratulations! Input from NARC and its members has helped shape a new federal transportation bill – the first long-term, fully funded surface transportation bill Congress has enacted in ten years. We now transition from prolonged efforts seeking enactment of…
Building energy codes are an effective tool that regions and local governments can use to reduce energy consumption, electricity bills, and carbon emissions. These codes set the minimum energy efficiency requirements for building construction and renovation. Building energy codes improve efficiency by creating construction guidelines and selecting building components, including wall and ceiling insulation, window…
Congress passed the 2016 Omnibus Appropriations bill to keep the government open through the end of the fiscal year, September 30, 2016. The legislation includes funding for virtually the entire federal government, totaling approximately $1.15 trillion. The bill avoided the automatic spending cuts set back in 2013 (known as sequestration) in addition to some last…
This week, Congress released a $57.6 billion spending package for Transportation-Housing and Urban Development (THUD) programs for fiscal year 2016 as part of the larger Omnibus funding package. The THUD bill adopts the policies and funding levels from the newly-passed FAST Act. The plan also reversed cuts from the TIGER grant program to maintain the…
“The conference agreement on the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST) is, at long last, a long-term, well-funded transportation reauthorization that contains important provisions for metropolitan and rural planning organizations and their local elected officials,” said Leslie Wollack, Executive Director of the National Association of Regional Councils (NARC). “We applaud Congress for recognizing the vital role…
After receiving input from nearly 1,000 urban forestry leaders and stakeholders from around the country, the National Urban and Community Forestry Advisory Council (NUCFAC) released their Ten-Year Urban Forestry Action Plan: 2016 – 2026 during the Arbor Day Foundation’s Partners in Community Forestry Conference in Denver, Colorado. The plan expands awareness of the benefits that…
Washington, DC (November 19, 2015) – The National Association of Regional Councils’ (NARC) Board of Directors is pleased to announce Leslie Wollack as Executive Director, effective today. She will succeed Joanna Liberman Turner, who accepted the position of Director of Government Relations for The Hershey Company. Ms. Wollack served as the Deputy Executive Director at…
Yesterday, the first formal meeting of the Transportation Reauthorization Conference Committee was held. The committee is tasked with resolving policy differences between the House STRR Act and the Senate DRIVE Act to create a final legislative package. Their first order of business was to name Representative Bill Shuster (R-PA), Chairman of the House Transportation and…
NARC Members: Today at 10:00 AM ET, the U.S. House of Representatives will hold a committee markup of the Surface Transportation Reauthorization and Reform Act (STRR; H.R. 3763). The bill contains a step forward on suballocation of STP, increasing the percentage of the program for local priorities to 55% over the life of the bill.…
On Friday, the House Transportation and Infrastructure (T&I) Committee released its proposal to reauthorize the nation’s surface transportation program, in advance of a scheduled committee markup on Thursday, October 22. The Surface Transportation Reauthorization and Reform Act (STRR) is a three-year bill with an additional three years possible if certain congressional requirements for funding are met.…
The National Telecommunications Information Agency (NTIA) released the Broadband Funding Guide with information on available federal funding for broadband planning, public access, digital literacy, adoption, and deployment. While the broadband grant programs funded under the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act have ended, funding is available through other federal program. A companion guide, NTIA’s Introduction…
This morning, NARC, along with its partners, sent a letter to House and Senate Appropriations leadership expressing concern over provisions in the Senate’s proposed Fiscal Year (FY) 2016 Interior, Environment and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill that, if enacted, would have costly consequences for communities and water utility ratepayers throughout the Great Lakes region. The organizations…
On August 25, the National Association of Regional Councils (NARC) and other members of the Local Officials for Transportation (LOT) Coalition (National Association of Counties, National League of Cities, U.S. Conference of Mayors, Association of MPOs, and National Association of Development Organizations) sent a letter to House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee leadership last week outlining…
As demand for solar energy continues to grow, many local governments look for strategies to spur solar deployment in their communities. Regional planning organizations are in a prime position to provide tools, guidance, and technical assistance to their member governments to help them increase local solar adoption. The National Association of Regional Councils (NARC), as…
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