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Kern COG adds local-road projects to CMAQ contingency list, treats Wasco project as rankable
Summary
The Kern COG board voted to place local-road projects on the CMAQ contingency list and to treat the City of Wasco’s application as rankable while the city finalizes a functional-classification change; staff will ask the TAC to review eligibility policy ahead of the next CMAQ cycle.
Kern Council of Governments board members voted to add local-road projects to the CMAQ (Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality) call-for-projects contingency list and to treat the City of Wasco’s application as a rankable project while the city completes paperwork to change the road’s functional classification.
Unidentified staff presenter summarized the issue, saying, “9 of the 42 applications received are functionally classified as local roads through the Caltrans CRS mapping system.” Staff noted that, while coordination with Caltrans District 6 showed local roads can be CMAQ-eligible, the Kern COG Project Delivery Policies and Procedures (chapter 5) currently exclude local roads from CMAQ eligibility.
The Transportation Technical Advisory Committee recommended adding local-road projects to the contingency list on the condition that applicants meet eligibility requirements before requesting funding authorization. Board members and staff described a compromise: place affected projects on the contingency list now so they remain eligible for funding consideration later, and direct the TAC to re-examine whether the functional-classification requirement should remain in future cycles.
An unnamed board member moved to "add local road projects to the CMAQ call for projects contingency list" and to "consider the City of Wasco project as a non-local road project in the CMAQ call for projects" so it could be rankable. The motion was seconded and passed on a roll-call vote with 11 recorded yes votes and no recorded no or abstain votes.
Staff explained the Wasco project’s special status: city staff had already submitted mapping updates to the state and the TTAC judged Wasco to be only a fraction away from meeting eligibility, so the board’s action places Wasco in the pool of rankable projects while other local-road submissions remain on contingency pending paperwork.
The board also agreed to refer a policy review to the TAC to consider whether the Caltrans functional-classification requirement remains appropriate for future CMAQ cycles. Staff said the CMAQ cycle runs every two years, giving time for a TAC-led policy review and possible revision before the next call for projects.
The action leaves projects on the contingency list rather than immediately authorizing funds; applicants will still need to meet eligibility requirements before requesting funding authorization.
