NVTA advisory committee backs policy barring use of regional funds to cover project cost overruns, sets narrow petition option

The Northern Virginia Transportation Authority Technical Advisory Committee voted Jan. 15, 2025, to recommend that the Authority adopt a policy prohibiting the use of regional revenue fund allocations to cover project cost underestimates or overruns, while creating a narrowly drawn petition process for rare, extraordinary circumstances.

The recommendation, presented by staff member Mr. Longhey, aims to preserve the Authority's program evaluation integrity by preventing after‑the‑fact transfers that could alter the relative ranking of projects. "The purpose of this policy is to establish that project risks due to cost underestimates and or cost overruns will not be absorbed by the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority," Longhey said during the meeting. He added that the draft policy would "not allow the transfer of authority regional revenue fund project funding between projects."

The nut of the proposal is a two‑part approach: a default rule of no transfers plus a petition process that petitioners must meet only in "unique, extraordinary and circumstance[s] that could not…