CSLIP, a replacement for the Transportation Alternatives Program, provides funding for small, local transportation projects that improve the safety and mobility for all transportation users. This competitive grant program can fund projects such as (but not limited to): Complete Streets projects, traffic-calming and intersection improvements, Americans with Disabilities Act upgrades, Mobility Hubs, bike racks and technology advancements such as transit signal priority and traffic control devices. CSLIP, along with the policies that govern the Program, was approved by the MPO Board at their July 9, 2015 meeting and the policies were last updated on July 9, 2020.
 
The Broward MPO staff is proposing amendments to the CSLIP policies to address outstanding items regarding the change in project delivery to the Local Agency Program (LAP) process, lessons learned from previous CSLIP cycles and revisions to create consistency between CSLIP evaluation criteria and the project prioritization criteria from the 2045 Metropolitan Transportation Plan (MTP). In addition, staff has recognized the need to complement the six project prioritization criteria in the new 2045 MTP and has modified the CSLIP criteria accordingly. The updated CSLIP Policies will be effective starting with CSLIP Cycle 6 (2022), and will not be applied retroactively to previous CSLIP Cycles.

For the proposed amendments to the CSLIP policies, please see Attachment 1. Amendments to CSLIP are being presented as an administrative item to notify the Board of outstanding concerns from the TAC (See the following "Committee Recommendations" section) and MPO staff responses (See the following "MPO Staff Recommendations" section). It is anticipated that this item will return to the Board for action at the September Board meeting.

At the June 23, 2021 Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) meeting, this item was presented for action. After lengthy discussion, the TAC recommended that this item be TABLED to allow time for MPO staff to consider Member feedback on the proposed CSLIP policies. The TAC feedback related to reimbursements through LAP, requirements to designate a lead staff person who works full time with the city, degree of acceptable changes in project scopes, references to LAP policies, as well as a desire to have the CSLIP evaluation criteria included as part of the agenda item. The concerns of the TAC Members have been highlighted in the PowerPoint presentation (see Attachment 2) and are addressed below by MPO staff.

The Citizens' Advisory Committee (CAC) recommended approval of the amendments to the CSLIP policies at their June 23, 2021 meeting.

MPO staff proposed Policy language on reimbursements: “Resolutions should also note that the project(s) located on a local facility, off the state highway system will be delivered using the federally mandated Local Agency Program (LAP) process in which the local agency seeks reimbursement for project costs.” A TAC Member suggested the use of the words “will be reimbursed” in lieu of the proposed “seeks reimbursement.” MPO staff believes that “seeks reimbursement” is the appropriate choice of words due to the fact that reimbursement is not automatic or guaranteed unless the local agency is LAP certified for a particular project, demonstrates that they are in compliance with the Program and that they are requesting/seeking reimbursement for participating project costs (eligible for Federal Aid) and any other items identified in Chapter 10 of the LAP Manual.

MPO staff proposed Policy language on lead staff person: “Applicant designates lead staff person responsible for coordination with MPO and Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) staff on the implementation of the project. This lead staff person shall be a full-time employee of the local agency who is also a qualified professional with experience in project management, engineering and/or planning (or related field), who will be responsible for coordination with MPO and FDOT staff. Please refer to Section 2.4 of FDOT’s LAP manual for the duties and responsibilities of the responsible charge.” TAC members took issue with the “lead staff person shall be a full-time employee of the local agency” as this may be difficult for some municipalities to meet. However, MPO has included this language because this is a requirement of Section 2.4 of the FDOT LAP manual.  Section 2.4 of the manual specifically states that: “The person delegated as the 'responsible charge' shall be a full time employee of the Local Agency.” MPO staff recognizes that local agencies may have the need to hire consultants to assist with delivering CSLIP projects via LAP and this Policy does not prevent them from doing so. However, the consultant cannot be the responsible entity or point of contact for the local agency. Additionally, the use of the language “full time” should not be misinterpreted as an employee of the local agency who manages CSLIP projects exclusively as a full-time position.

MPO staff proposed Policy language on changes in scope: “Change in project scope after submittal may result in the removal of the project from consideration for funding.” TAC members believe that “Substantive” should be added before “Change.” Adding “Substantive” may be misleading as the definition of “substantial, big, sizable” may be different depending on the interpreter. MPO staff believes that any change may result in the removal of the project from consideration for funding and this evaluation will be done on a case-by-case basis. Further, the more general language is necessary in order to prevent changes in scope that affect the project’s ranking.

The TAC proposed a reference to the LAP Policies: There is a hyperlink to FDOT’s LAP Certification webpage provided on the CSLIP homepage. Applicants may access the LAP manual through clicking the hyperlink on the LAP Certification page. This ensures that the most current LAP Policies are accessed.

The TAC expressed a desire to have the CSLIP evaluation criteria included as part of the agenda item approval. MPO staff presented the proposed revised CSLIP evaluation criteria themes (Safety, Accessibility, Equity, Mobility, Economic Vitality and Environmental Stewardship) at the April 28, 2021 TAC/CAC meetings and the May 13, 2021 MPO Board meeting. These six themes are also proposed in the amended CSLIP Policies (See Attachments 1 and 2) in order to create consistency with the 2045 MTP. MPO staff is currently developing a new objective ranking tool and adjusting the scoring methods and the points associated with each criterion’s data set(s). The full details of the amended CSLIP evaluation criteria and the associated scoring methodologies will be presented to the advisory committees and MPO Board for approval during the August-September meeting cycle. 

In conclusion, MPO staff will bring this item back to the TAC at their August 25, 2021 meeting with the full details of the evaluation criteria and the MPO staff recommendations as outlined above. Further, MPO staff has been notified that FDOT will be hosting a LAP training for local agencies on July 27 – 28, 2021 that will be specific to District Four.
 

If you have any questions about this item, please contact Kerrie MacNeil at (954) 876-0072 or macneilk@browardmpo.org.