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Bend MPO TAC recommends updated Title VI plan after federal changes
Summary
The Technical Advisory Committee voted to recommend the Bend MPO policy board adopt a revised Title VI plan that removes references to executive-order environmental justice language and aligns mapping with FHWA Title VI guidance; a 21‑day public comment period is open and the policy board will consider adoption in October.
Andrea Napoli, senior planner with the Bend MPO, presented the TAC with an updated Title VI plan on Aug. 5 that reflects changes in federal guidance and agency direction. "Title 6 of the Civil Rights Act referring to nondiscrimination ... no person on the grounds of race, color, or national origin be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance," Napoli said, reading the statutory definition discussed in the draft.
Napoli told the committee the draft deletes references to "environmental justice populations" introduced in earlier versions and aligns the MPO's mapping with the Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) Title VI program. The revised mapping in the draft plan focuses on non‑white and Hispanic populations, limited English proficiency, senior populations and persons with disabilities; Napoli said other demographic layers remain available in the MPO's internal mapping tool for project screening and outreach use.
Napoli said the changes respond to recent federal actions and that the MPO has shared the draft with ODOT, FHWA and FTA for review. A 21‑day public comment period is open; staff plans to forward a recommendation to the policy board for consideration at the board's October meeting.
During discussion, TAC member James Drophy pressed for additional clarity on staff time and implications. Napoli estimated the recent work to update the plan and brief committees required "20 plus hours" of staff time, and reiterated that the edits are largely limited to wording and mapping included in the published Title VI plan rather than removal of other demographic data from internal use.
A TAC member moved to recommend the policy board adopt the draft Title VI plan as presented; the motion received a second and the committee voted in favor. The motion record in the meeting transcript does not include a roll-call tally; the committee chair called for the policy-board recommendation to move forward.
Next steps in the plan schedule: staff will incorporate comments from the 21‑day public comment period and the federal partners, then present the plan to the MPO policy board for adoption in October.
