Regional councils take many forms
What's a Regional Council?
In the early 1960’s, statewide enabling legislation (Maine Revised Statutes, Title 30-A, Chapter 119, on Regional Cooperation) created the legal framework for establishing regional planning commissions (RPC) or councils of governments (COG). Both RPCs and COGs share the same enabling statute and similar missions and purpose. The statute states:
The purposes of a regional planning commission are to:
A. Promote cooperative efforts toward regional development.
B. Prepare and maintain a comprehensive regional plan.
C. Coordinate with state and federal planning and development programs.
D. Provide planning assistance and advisory services to municipalities.
E. Provide programs and services to municipalities.
Maine's 10 regional councils provide municipalities with resources and expert guidance in areas such as land use, housing, economic development, environmental sustainability, and transportation planning. Some regional councils also hold other federal designations, such as Metropolitan Planning Organizations, or Economic Development Districts. In some areas of the state, these regional designations cover different geographies, and are staffed differently than the regional planning commissions in those areas.
What does a Regional Planning Commission Do?
Regional Councils across the state were all formed for the same reason - to address the issues facing municipalities on a regional scale, offering efficiencies, capacity, and expertise unavailable at the local level. In general, municipalities across Maine face many shared challenges, such as development pressures, financial capacity, environmental protection, maintaining safe roads, or keeping business in town. That said, the communities of Maine also vary in many ways, from popular coastal tourist cities, to mountainous rural industry towns. These differences lead to different challenges, and the RPC’s across the state have adapted to provide services which best support their member communities. The list below includes examples of services many Maine RPC’s offer, but no two RPC’s are exactly alike.
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Technical Assistance for land use planning, including ordinance development, comprehensive planning, or addressing affordable housing.
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Transportation planning support, such as traffic analysis, corridor planning, or transit planning.
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Economic development planning and programs, such as business assistance grants or loans.
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Grant writing and administration for regional projects.
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Cooperative Purchasing programs to reduce costs for municipalities.
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Solid waste management support.
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Technical assistance and planning for municipal sustainability and climate change planning, such as climate action planning.
What's a Metropolitan Planning Organization?
A Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) is a United States Department of Transportation designation for populated areas that share regional travel and commuting patterns. There are four MPO’s in Maine, three of which are housed within regional councils. These federally designated regions are the hub for transportation planning, capital project prioritization, and XX for those communities. MPO’s coordinate between municipalities, transit agencies, and the Maine Department of Transportation on regional and municipal transportation projects.
What's an Economic Development District?
An Economic Development District (EDD) is a United States Economic Development designated regional organization that maintains and implements a Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS), and provides communities with assistance and resources to promote economic development. There are seven EDD’s in Maine, all of which are housed within regional councils.