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3 7) Is this a reaction to the ThriveMSP2040 plan? No. Many cities and counties were unhappy with aspects of the Council’s plan. However, our call for reform is not a reaction to the specifics of the plan, or to how it allocates resources. Instead, the experience drove home to many what little incentive the Council has to take into account the opinions of local governments. The Council does not answer to the local constituency, but rather to a constituency of one- the Governor. We realized that this was the core problem, and the release of Thrive2040 was the catalyst to renew our efforts to build a coalition for governance reform. 8) Is there other support for this? Yes, many other entities and organizations have come out in support for reform. In 2011, for example, the Office of the Legislative Auditor released a report recommending that the Metropolitan Council be composed of a majority elected officials, citing the Council’s “limited credibility” due to a governance structure that limits accountability. The City of Minneapolis also passed a resolution on January 14, 2011, asking the Legislature to reform the Council so that a “majority of council members shall be locally elected city and county officials.” Furthermore, representatives of the Federal Highway Administration and Federal Transit Administration, responsible for certifying the Council as eligible to receive federal transportation and transit funding, have encouraged reform of the Council to make it “more directly accountable to its public.” 9) Would these principles turn the Metropolitan Council into a Council of Governments (COG)? No. Councils of Governments have little authority beyond transportation planning and regional coordination of service. The level of authority that the Legislature has granted the Metropolitan Council, including the authority to levy taxes, is unique. None of the proposed principles diminish Council authority in any way, and will not transform the Council into a COG. 10) Is this a partisan issue? No, this is not a partisan issue- we would feel the same way whether the Governor was a Republican or a Democrat. In fact, our reform efforts started in 2011, when the Governor was Republican. What troubles us is that the entire membership and focus of the Council can shift depending on who is in power. Many regional issues require very long-term, consistent approaches, which can be altered dramatically every four or eight years by a new Governor. The Council should represent the long-term interests of the region, not a single individual.