Council of Governments

Councils of governments (CoGs—also known as regional councils, regional commissions, regional planning commissions, and planning districts) are regional governing and/or coordinating bodies that exist throughout the United States. CoGs are normally controlled by their member local governments, though some states have passed laws granting CoGs region-wide powers over specific functions, and still other states mandate such councils.

CoG members are drawn from the county, city, and other government bodies within its area. CoGs can offer planning, coordination, and technical assistance to their members, administer programs at a regional level, and act as intermediaries between the local government members and the state or federal government. A typical council is defined to serve an area of several counties, and addresses issues such as regional and municipal planning, economic, and community development, pollution control, transit administration, transportation planning, human services, and water use. Councils of governments also play a role in regional hazard mitigation and emergency planning and in the collection, analysis, distribution of demographic and cartographic/GIS data.

CoGs may either be distinct from—or encompass—regional Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) and Rural Transportation Planning Organizations (RTPOs). MPOs are multi-governmental urban transportation planning entities that arose out of the requirements of the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1962, which made federal financing for urban transportation projects contingent upon the existence of a "continuing, comprehensive, urban transportation planning process undertaken cooperatively by the states and local governments". RTPOs are bodies similar to, and inspired by the model of MPOs, but organized for rural areas. Though RTPOs existed for decades, they were only formally recognized by on a federal level by the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) of 2012. Of the 556 CoGs in the US, 165 operate an associated MPO, and 265 operate an associated RTPO.

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