MPOJC policy board approves FY26 budget, transit apportionments and regional assessments

The MPOJC Urbanized Area Policy Board met Jan. 29 at the Iowa City Council Chambers and approved a package of administrative and funding actions, including the FY26 budget, federal transit apportionments for FY24 and Johnson County’s pass-through assessments to the East Central Iowa Council of Governments.

The board approved the proposed FY26 MPO budget and financial forecast, accepted a set of FY24 Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Section 5307 apportionments for the three local transit systems, and authorized participation in Iowa Department of Transportation pavement data collection. The board also adopted the process for programming Surface Transportation Block Grant (STBG), Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) and Carbon Reduction Program (CRP) funds and confirmed Johnson County’s appointments to the ECICOG board.

Why it matters: these approvals set the MPO’s operating plan and the distribution of roughly $20 million in federal transportation funds that the board will program through the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) over coming years.

The FY26 budget that the board approved shows a modest increase from FY25. "Our overall budget reflects about a 2.38% increase from FY25," Kent Ralston, executive director of the MPO, told the board. Ralston said the MPO’s FY25 total was about $790,000 and the FY26 proposal is roughly $809,000; he also said the MPO expects to use…