MPO Policy and Procedures Manual - Indianapolis Metropolitan ...

e reallocated from slower activities to faster or new activities that can be completed before the
end of the year.
A related issue is the mismatch in fiscal years between the City of Indianapolis (January-
December) and the INDOT (biannual budget, July-June). PL grant carryovers cannot be
assumed available in the City fiscal year immediately following. Instead, the carryover must first
be reconciled in the INDOT program budget, and only then can it be considered available for the
City to program. This City-State budget reconciliation typically results in a two-fiscal-year lag in
PL carryovers.
Local Match Contributions
Of the MPO’s work program funding, 80% comes from the federal government, while the
remaining 20% (local match) comes from municipal sources. Prior to 2003, when the City of
Indianapolis comprised 80% or more of the population of the Indianapolis MPA, the City of
Indianapolis provided the entire required local match. In 2003, however, following the expansion
of the MPA to roughly double its prior area, the equity of the City providing the entire local match
began to be questioned. Conversations with suburban municipalities and planning partners
revealed a willingness to contribute towards the local match requirement. Simultaneously,
discussions with planning partners (such as IMAGIS and CILC) indicated willingness for those
organizations to provide local match for activities pertinent to their respective missions.
In 2009 the Indianapolis Regional Transportation Council (IRTC) Policy Committee adopted new
by-laws that became effective on January 1, 2010. Those by-laws require the member
community to pay their proportional share (based on population) of the local match for
transportation planning purposes in order to have a vote on the Committee and to remain
qualified to receive federal transportation funds for planning and construction activities.
Federal Grant Process
PL grant agreements are executed between the City of Indianapolis and INDOT. These grant
agreements are developed simultaneous with and refer to the Unified Planning Work Program
(UPWP). A change in a grant agreement must be reflected in the UPWP.
Other types of grant agreements exist. One example pertains to the use of FTA’s New Starts
monies, which have funded the MPO’s studies of regional rapid transit. Grant agreements for
these funds must utilize an FTA-eligible grantee, such as INDOT’s multi-modal section or a local
transit company, such as IndyGo.
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