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Craven County approves memorandum to route remaining federal transit planning funds to New Bern-area MPO
Summary
Craven County commissioners approved a memorandum of agreement authorizing the county to receive and pass through remaining Section 5307 funds so the New Bern Area MPO can continue regional transportation planning after loss of prior 5303 funding.
Craven County commissioners on July 21 approved a memorandum of agreement that will let the county receive remaining Federal Transit Administration Section 5307 funds and make them available to the New Bern Area Metropolitan Planning Organization.
The move follows the 2020 census, which removed the area’s urbanized designation and eliminated Section 5303 planning funding used historically by the MPO. County staff and the MPO told commissioners the change requires a new funding pathway for regional transportation planning.
"The MPO is responsible for planning for all modes of transportation," Deanna Treble, New Bern Area MPO administrator, told the board. She said Section 5303 funding used for planning is going away and that Section 5307 funds can be used for planning if routed through a direct recipient. Craven County will serve as the direct recipient and the MPO the subrecipient under the proposed MOU.
Jean Hodges, county staff, told commissioners the county has identified an available balance from existing CARTS (Craven Area Rural Transit System) federal allocations that could be encumbered for MPO planning. Treble said the county could use the Section 5307 money to cover planning across multiple fiscal years — potentially stretching funding through several budget cycles to bridge to the next census-driven urbanized designation.
The agreement being approved formalizes roles, communications and a pro rata local match based on population. Treble and staff said Section 5307 requires a 20% local match (rather than the prior 10% match under the outgoing program), and that the local share would be split among member agencies per the MOU.
Commissioners voted to accept the information, approve the memorandum of agreement between Craven County and the City of New Bern, and authorize the county manager to execute related documents. The motion carried after a voice vote; no roll-call tally was recorded in the transcript.
County staff said the intention is to execute the MOU by October so an application can be filed in January for fiscal-year 2027 funding.
