All items on the consent agenda are considered to be routine and non-controversial by COG staff and will be approved by one motion if no member of the Committee or public wishes to comment or ask questions.  If comment or discussion is desired by anyone, the item will be removed from the consent agenda and will be considered in the listed sequence with an opportunity for any member of the public to address the Committee concerning the item before action is taken.

Approve Resolution 2020-10, adopting the City of Huron's 2019-20 Transportation Development Act claims totaling $345,483.

Summary: Fresno COG is seeking assistance from community organizations, schools, agencies and businesses to solicit ongoing public input into key activities associated with the 2022 Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) and the Sustainable Communities Strategy scenarios within it. COG will provide mini-grants ranging from $1,500 – $2,500 each to organizations from throughout the county that have existing community contacts. Successful applicants will reach out to residents of the Fresno County region, include them in the RTP and SCS transportation planning process via workshop and online participation, and obtain defined input regarding their perceived community transportation needs. The original deadline for proposal submission was noon on March 26, 2020. The deadline has now been extended to noon on April 15, 2020.

RTP COMMUNITY OUTREACH MINI GRANT APPLICATION

Action: Information. The Committee may provide additional direction at its discretion.

Summary: This is an update on those tasks underway through Fresno COG's Circuit Planner and Engineer Program, which provides technical assistance to the small cities in Fresno County. Such assistance may include, but is not limited to: planning studies, delivering projects, grant applications, environmental documents, engineering services, etc.

Circuit Planning & Engineering

• Reedley Manning/Buttonwillow master plan assistance – VSCE has prepared a draft site plan for the project site and with Rincon are developing draft concepts for discussion with City staff.
• Consultants are reaching out to additional cities on potential projects previously identified.

Circuit Planning

• Coalinga – Rincon completed the request for proposals for Coalinga Trails CEQA/NEPA analysis and the City will be releasing the RFP in April.
• Sanger zoning review – Collins & Schoettler have completed Sanger’s zoning review and are completing the draft report.

Circuit Engineering

Conducting the active transportation counts listed below have been put on hold during the COVID-19 pandemic. The cities have requested this as the traffic counts will not reflect normal conditions during this time.

• Fowler – VSCE is developing a plan for conducting Active Transportation Program (bike/ped) counts
• Mendota - VSCE is developing a plan for conducting Active Transportation Program (bike/ped) counts
• Firebaugh – VSCE continues to coordinate with staff on potential projects.

Action: Information. The Committee may provide additional direction at its discretion.

Summary:  The 2020 Unmet Transit Needs Assessment public hearing will be held on April 30, 2020, at the regularly scheduled Fresno COG Policy Board meeting. The hearing is being held for staff and the transit agencies to address any public comments received prior to the Fresno COG Policy Board taking action on the report in June.

Action:  Information only.  The Committee may provide additional direction at its discretion.

Fresno COG was awarded a Caltrans Planning Grant for an electric vehicle readiness plan to support electric vehicle implementation within Fresno County. Using stakeholder engagement and data-driven analysis of electric vehicle forecasting as the foundation, the plan will include information about permitting, funding, and potential siting locations. The project update below provides a status of the project tasks to date.

The consultant has identified existing conditions impacting the EV market and EV charging, including current levels of uptake and key influencing factors.  This will serve as the baseline data to develop a customized EV forecast specific to Fresno COG through 2030 and accounts for a number of factors, including return-on-investment and model availability.  Analysis continues for prioritizing sites using an optimization framework accounting for density, vulnerability, equity, stakeholder input, and other factors. The consultant team has analyzed electrification on transit fleets, including an initial outlook at the current and planned electrification needs for FCRTA, FAX and Clovis Transit. The analysis will consider transit fleet needs to convert bus fleets to 100 percent electric under multiple scenarios, including maximum demand and cost implications of conversion.

Fresno COG, FCRTA and AECOM continue to hold stakeholder engagement meetings as identified in the Public Outreach Plan. This effort provides opportunities for stakeholders to voice concerns, contribute to baseline understanding, and leverage partnerships. To date, a series of focus groups and one-on-one meetings have been held with SJVAPCD, auto industry providers and retailers, school districts and higher education institutions, several community based organizations and vanpool providers. Below are preliminary findings from the stakeholder engagement to date.  

• Many stakeholders represent disadvantaged communities, and their direct and immediate priorities are not necessarily electrification of necessary services; therefore the co-benefits of meeting targets have to be communicated effectively
• Stakeholders often find support for obtaining an electric vehicle or a charger, but not for maintenance or long-term costs that they may incur
• Most stakeholders are not tracking metrics, existing infrastructure use or planned infrastructure
• Renting can be a barrier to installing a home charger, a common prerequisite for buying a PEV in the absence of public charging options
• Determining effective siting criteria will rely on considering the barriers for disadvantaged communities
• Advance planning for PEV charging infrastructure is critical as many of the available funding opportunities are granted on a first-come/first-served basis

A complete summary memo of the stakeholder engagement findings and an existing conditions report will be available in the upcoming agendas. Contact Trai Her-Cole at traih@fresnocog.org for more information. 

Action: Information only.  The Committee may provide additional direction at its discretion.

Summary: Fresno COG received grant funding from Caltrans under the Senate Bill (SB) 1 Adaptation Planning Grants Program to conduct a Transportation Network Vulnerability Assessment (TNVA) for Fresno County. The TNVA aimed to assist Fresno COG and its member agencies in understanding and adapting to the potential impacts of climate change on the region’s transportation infrastructure. The study's major work products included a public outreach plan and synopsis, a vulnerability assessment report, and an adaptation strategies report. 

The TNVA found that much of the Fresno region's transportation system and its users are likely to be affected by changing climate conditions. Primary climate-related hazards affecting transportation include: flooding, wildfire, extreme temperatures, and precipitation-induced landslides. 

One of the analysis' major components was a risk indicator scoring process that combined relevant data on climate hazards and assets into vulnerability scores representing the relative risks facing different assets. This systemwide process helps identify the most vulnerable assets, which should be assessed at the project level. 

The TNVA also identified potential adaptation strategies that can be implemented around the county to prepare for climate change impacts. The resulting list of strategies is intended to act as a menu of various response options, which Fresno COG and its stakeholders can pull from as needed. There are a wide range of responses to consider, including changes to planning, policy, design, operations, and maintenance.

This information can inform the next Regional Transportation Plan/Sustainable Communities Strategy (RTP/SCS) update and also help local jurisdictions meet the SB 379 requirements, which mandate that all cities and counties address climate adaptation and resiliency strategies in the next revision of their general plans' safety elements.  

The draft final report is available at: https://www.fresnocog.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/FCOG-DRAFT-Final-Report_200331_wAppendices.pdf.

Action: Staff requests that TTC/PAC recommend that the Policy Board accept the Fresno County Transportation Network Vulnerability Assessment Final Report. The Committee may provide additonal direction at its discretion.

Summary: The State established the Active Transportation Program (ATP) in September 2013. ATP funding is distributed as follows:

• Fifty percent to the State for a statewide competitive program (“Statewide Competitive ATP”);
• Ten percent to the small urban and rural area competitive program, managed by the State; and
• Forty percent to the large urbanized area competitive program, with funding distributed by population and managed by the Metropolitan Planning Organization (“Regional ATP”).

Fresno COG is responsible for developing guidelines for the regional ATP and for recommending projects to the California Transportation Commission. The Regional ATP Guidelines substantially follow those of the CTC but include some differences based on the region’s priorities. Fresno COG developed the guidelines in consultation with Fresno COG’s ATP Multidisciplinary Advisory Group (MAG), which includes representatives from Caltrans, other government agencies, and active transportation stakeholder organizations with expertise in public health and pedestrian and bicycle issues, including Safe Routes to School programs. The California Transportation Commission (CTC) is scheduled to approve the guidelines at its May meeting.

The California Transportation Commission (CTC) adopted final 2021 ATP Guidelines on March 25, 2020. There were changes at the statewide level from Cycle 4 to Cycle 5, including new and revised language in categories such as project/program amendments (scope changes), performance metrics, scoring criteria and timely use of funds.  Considerable program changes include:

• Updated Disadvantaged Communities criteria to include a  Healthy Places Index
• An updated project size threshold for small and medium infrastructure/non-infrastructure projects
• Eligible projects – quick-build project pilot program

The MAG agreed that the regional guidelines and criteria should match the adopted statewide guidelines as closely as possible. Only a few minor differences remain between the statewide guidelines and Fresno COG’s regional guidelines.  As in previous cycles, the MAG agreed to continue with no minimum funding award and to encourage funding awards of $2 million or less per project. Fresno COG will hold a separate call for projects for the Regional ATP and have a regional scoring committee. Applicants may apply for either the State ATP program or Regional ATP program, or both. Fresno COG encourages all ATP projects to be submitted to the State ATP competitive program, although it is not required. Projects not selected for programming in the statewide competition must be considered in the regional competition.

The statewide competitive call for projects is now open, and applications will be due to Caltrans on June 15, 2020. Once CTC approves the Regional ATP Guidelines (May 15-16, 2020), the regional call for projects will open, with applications due August 14, 2020. 

The MAG and staff recommend several changes that have been identified in the guidelines, shown in red. These changes are consistent with the statewide guidelines.  Regional ATP documents are all included for review and approval and will be posted to fresnocog.org. Enclosures for this item include:

• Resolution 2020-11
• Final Draft Regional ATP Guidelines (tracked changes shown)
• Final Draft Regional ATP Guidelines (tracked changes accepted)
• Fund estimate
• Multi-disciplinary Advisory Group List

The electronic ATP Cycle 5 applications and other guidance documents can be found at: https://dot.ca.gov/programs/local-assistance/fed-and-state-programs/active-transportation-program/cycle5. Please contact Jennifer Soliz via email at JSoliz@fresnocog.org or via phone at 559-233-4148 ext. 223 with any questions.

Action: Staff and the MAG request that TTC/PAC recommend the Policy Board approve Resolution 2020-11 adopting the Fresno COG Regional Competitive Active Transportation Program Guidelines and accept the Multidisciplinary Advisory Group list.

Summary: Fresno COG is seeking proposals from eligible public agencies for advanced transit and transportation projects that have the potential for broad benefits to Fresno County residents and will assist the region in meeting its air quality goals. Fresno COG and the Fresno County Transportation Authority (FCTA) are proposing to fund projects of regional significance in the areas of research, development, demonstration, and deployment that will advance public transit and transportation. This third cycle of the Measure “C” New Technology Reserve Program will make approximately $5.4 million available for eligible new technology projects/programs.  The 2020 application is attached to this item.

Timeline:

In February 2016, the Policy Board approved a formal process to solicit and accept members to sit on a Multidisciplinary Advisory Group (MAG).  The MAG will review, evaluate and score the New Tech applications and recommend projects for funding.  Nominees are needed from the following: City of Fresno, City of Clovis, east side city, west side city, County of Fresno, Measure C Citizens Oversight Committee, FCTA, transit, business, education and two public seats.  The MAG application will be released in the early summer.  For more information regarding the Measure C New Technology program please visit http://www.fresnocog.org/measure-c-new-technology-reserve-fund and/or contact Peggy Arnest at parnest@fresnocog.org.  

Action: Information only.  The Committee may provide additional direction at its discretion.

All items on the consent agenda are considered to be routine and non-controversial by COG staff and will be approved by one motion if no member of the Committee or public wishes to comment or ask questions.  If comment or discussion is desired by anyone, the item will be removed from the consent agenda and will be considered in the listed sequence with an opportunity for any member of the public to address the Committee concerning the item before action is taken.

Summary: Attached are the most recent legislative reports and resource materials related to COVID 19.

1. Federal Reserve Actions - April 9, 2020

2. Interim Relief Package - April 9, 2020

3. Federal Updates on Coronavirus - April 8, 2020

4. Federal Updates on Coronavirus - April 7, 2020

5. Federal Updates on Coronavirus - April 6, 2020

6. HR 6074 Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Summary

7. H.R. 6201 Families First Coronavirus Response Act Summary 7. H.R. 6201 Families First Coronavirus Response Act Summary

8. S. 3548 Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES) Summary

9. Federal Aid COVID RESOURCES TOOLKIT 3.30.20

10. White House Briefing with State and Local Leaders April 8^th

11. Administering FEMA Covid 19 Funds Tracking and Reimbursement Presentation

12. Administering FEMA Covid 19 Funds Tracking and Reimbursement Summary

To locate current and past-year state bill information, go to the Official California Legislative Information webpage at leginfo.ca.gov/

To locate current and past-year federal bill information go to THOMAS, the Library of Congress’s bill information website at http://thomas.loc.gov/

Action: Information. The Committee may provide additional direction at its discretion.

1.

New Deadlines for Open Grant Applications (Trai Her-Cole) [INFORMATION]

1.

LAFCo Budget Presentation (Dave Fey, LAFCo) [INFORMATION]