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2007 SESSION

079355303
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 691
Offered January 10, 2007
Prefiled January 10, 2007
Establishing a joint subcommittee to study an Urban Partnership Agreement between the Counties of Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, and Prince William, the Cities of Fairfax and Alexandria, the Virginia Department of Transportation, the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation, and the United States Department of Transportation. Report.
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Patron-- Frederick
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Referred to Committee on Rules
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WHEREAS, portions of the Commonwealth, particularly Northern Virginia, are experiencing serious and ever worsening traffic congestion; and

WHEREAS, such traffic congestion not only wastes fuel and motorists' time but contributes to air pollution as well; and

WHEREAS, it is highly desirable for the Commonwealth to explore every opportunity to cultivate partnerships between state agencies, local governments, and federal agencies whereby additional resources and new strategies to mitigate traffic congestion may be explored; and

WHEREAS, a solicitation for Urban Partnership Agreements was published by the United States Department of Transportation in the Federal Register on December 8, 2006 (71 FR 77084); and

WHEREAS, resources to fund such agreements are available under the United States Department of Transportation’s Intelligent Transportation Systems Operational Testing to Mitigate Congestion Program and Value Pricing Pilot Program, each as described in the solicitations published by the Department in the Federal Register on December 18, 2006 (71 FR 75806) and December 22, 2006 (71 FR 77084); now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That a joint subcommittee be established to study an Urban Partnership Agreement between the Counties of Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, and Prince William, the Cities of Fairfax and Alexandria, the Virginia Department of Transportation, the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation, and the United States Department of Transportation. The joint subcommittee shall have a total membership of 11 members who shall consist of six legislative members, three nonlegislative citizen members, and two ex officio members. Members shall be appointed as follows: four members of the House of Delegates, who shall represent districts in Northern Virginia, to be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Delegates in accordance with the principles of proportional representation contained in the Rules of the House of Delegates; two members of the Senate, who shall represent districts in Northern Virginia, to be appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules; two nonlegislative citizen members, one of whom shall represent the United States Department of Transportation and one of whom shall be knowledgeable about transportation planning practices, to be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Delegates; and one nonlegislative citizen member, who shall be a local government attorney, to be appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules. The Secretary of Transportation or his designee shall serve ex officio with nonvoting privileges. Nonlegislative citizen members of the joint subcommittee shall be citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Unless otherwise approved in writing by the chairman of the joint subcommittee and the respective Clerk, nonlegislative citizen members shall be reimbursed only for travel originating and ending within the Commonwealth of Virginia for the purpose of attending meetings. If a companion joint resolution of the other chamber is agreed to, written authorization of both Clerks shall be required. The joint subcommittee shall elect a chairman and vice chairman from among its membership, who shall be members of the General Assembly.

In conducting its study, the joint subcommittee shall consider the following, as elements to be included in any such Urban Partnership Agreement:

1. Development of a comprehensive congestion reduction strategy within the localities subject to the agreement that (a) incorporates congestion pricing, transit, telecommuting, and intelligent transportation systems and (b) explains how each component of the strategy would interact with the other;

2. Describing the role congestion pricing would play in the congestion reduction strategy, including without limitation and in specific terms how traffic would be affected, what areas or routes would be priced, how congestion prices would be determined, and which vehicle categories would be affected (e.g., single occupant vehicles or all vehicles);

3. Describes the transit services, including bus rapid transit and other commuter transit services, that are to be provided or supplemented and the expected impacts of such services on congestion;

4. Indicates telecommuting, flextime, and various related employer-employee policies to be adopted, including likely employer participants and the number and location of employees affected and other activities like parking cash-outs or other suitable incentives that seek to reduce peak hour and drive-alone travel;

5. Indicates any major transportation projects or project components that are sought to be expedited through an Urban Partnership Agreement and indicate the expected effects on congestion from early completion of such projects;

6. Indicates the estimated number of daily travelers who will be directly affected by priced facilities and by other measures expected to be adopted by the jurisdictions, including the estimated number of persons (or vehicles) who will pay congestion charges, as well as the likely number of persons diverted to other travel times, routes, and other transportation services, such as transit; and

7. Indicates the extent to which the localities subject to the agreement plan to operationally test innovative technology in achieving their congestion reduction targets.

The joint subcommittee shall further consider, if selected by the U.S. Department of Transportation as a “preliminary urban partner,” what the further terms and conditions of such agreement should be and when it should become effective.

The joint subcommittee shall, if it determines that entering into such an Urban Partnership Agreement is desirable and feasible, recommend draft legislation by which participation in the agreement would be subject to a referendum of the citizens of the localities seeking to participate in an Urban Partnership Agreement.

The joint subcommittee, too, shall make specific recommendations on (i) use of revenues derived from congestion pricing to the participating localities and to the Commonwealth, (ii) debt service for indebtedness secured by any facility subject to the agreement, (iii) a reasonable return on investment of any private financing of such facility, and (iv) the costs necessary for the proper operation and maintenance of such facility (including reconstruction and rehabilitation). Recommendations of the joint subcommittee shall ensure that no revenues raised by the localities subject to the agreement in any period through the congestion pricing of any facility as set forth in the Urban Partnership Agreement and transmitted to the Commonwealth pursuant to the agreement will result in a net increase of revenue to the Commonwealth.

Administrative staff support shall be provided by the Office of the Clerk of the House of Delegates. Legal, research, policy analysis, and other services as requested by the joint subcommittee shall be provided by the Division of Legislative Services. Technical assistance shall be provided by the Virginia Department of Transportation and the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation. All agencies of the Commonwealth shall provide assistance to the joint subcommittee for this study, upon request.

The joint subcommittee shall be limited to four meetings for the 2007 interim, and the direct costs of this study shall not exceed $8,200 without approval as set out in this resolution. Of this amount an estimated $1,000 is allocated for speakers, materials, or other resources. Approval for unbudgeted nonmember-related expenses shall require the written authorization of the chairman of the joint subcommittee and the respective Clerk. If a companion joint resolution of the other chamber is agreed to, written authorization of both Clerks shall be required.

No recommendation of the joint subcommittee shall be adopted if a majority of the House members or a majority of the Senate members appointed to the joint subcommittee (i) vote against the recommendation and (ii) vote for the recommendation to fail notwithstanding the majority vote of the joint subcommittee.

The joint subcommittee shall complete its meetings by November 30, 2007, and the chairman shall submit to the Division of Legislative Automated Systems an executive summary of its findings and recommendations no later than the first day of the 2008 Regular Session of the General Assembly. The executive summary shall state whether the joint subcommittee intends to submit to the General Assembly and the Governor a report of its findings and recommendations for publication as a House or Senate document. The executive summary and the report shall be submitted as provided in the procedures of the Division of Legislative Automated Systems for the processing of legislative documents and reports and shall be posted on the General Assembly's website.

Implementation of this resolution is subject to subsequent approval and certification by the Joint Rules Committee. The Committee may approve or disapprove expenditures for this study, extend or delay the period for the conduct of the study, or authorize additional meetings during the 2007 interim.