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SEMCOG University on October 12 focuses on health care costs for local governments Information on the new financial reporting requirements for post-employment benefit plans and solutions to help local elected officials fund these benefits will be the topic of an important SEMCOG University workshop for local governments — Governmental Finance: Keeping up with Health Care Costs — on Wednesday, October 12, 2005, from 9-11 a.m. (registration begins at 8:30 a.m.) in SEMCOG's Buhl Building office in downtown Detroit. Now, more than ever, local governments need to be financially savvy in order to sustain high-quality services while revenues continue to be squeezed. New financial reporting requirements will result in disclosure of the full costs of post-employment benefit plans. These costs will be large and will affect local governments' bottom line, creating the need to look at various funding strategies. The workshop will discuss new financial reporting requirements from the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB 43 and GASB 45); the impact of the new requirements on your bottom line; the Retiree Health Funding Vehicle offered by the Michigan Employees' Retirement System; the advantages of using trusts to prefund retiree health care; and the experiences of two local counties in funding retiree health care. SEMCOG University workshops are free-of-charge for SEMCOG members and partner organizations; there is a $75 charge for nonmember local governments. Seating is limited, so you are encouraged to reserve a spot by Wednesday, October 5, 2005. Contact: Raymonia Dale, SEMCOG Executive Administrative Assistant, to RSVP. You can also register online at www.semcog.org; the link to the workshop is under Planning Issues on the home page.
Public meetings on Ann Arbor to Detroit transit study scheduled for this week Public meetings to discuss the findings of an initial analysis of transit options in the Ann Arbor-Metro Airport-Downtown Detroit corridor are scheduled as follows:
This project is following the formal planning process established by federal procedures to identify and evaluate the transit service expected to have the greatest potential for success. Successful completion of this federal process renders this project eligible for federal transit funding. Public involvement is fundamental throughout this process. Additional information can be found at the project's Web site, www.annarbordetroitrapidtransitstudy.com. Comments can also be sent to Carmine Palombo at SEMCOG, or by phone at 888-963-3362. The deadline for comments is October 7, 2005. Contact: Carmine Palombo, SEMCOG Director of Transportation Programs.
SEMCOG hosts discussion of innovative funding for transportation on October 11 SEMCOG's Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) Development Committee will host an important discussion on transportation funding on Tuesday, October 11, 2005, at 1:30 p.m. in our downtown Detroit office. This will be the last installment of a year-long project focusing on the importance of having sufficient funds for managing our region's transportation system. Three prominent leaders in this area will speak on new revenue-raising strategies and new partnerships in delivering transportation services:
Contact: Christopher Mann, SEMCOG Transportation Coordinator.
September is storm drain awareness month Help keep pollution out of storm drains was the third tip of the "Our Water. Our Future. Ours to Protect. — Seven Simple Steps to Clean Water" campaign that began in April 2004. Storm drain awareness is again the topic of the month in September 2005. To support local efforts, materials are available for ordering. These include:
With the Phase II requirements affecting so many communities in Southeast Michigan, SEMCOG and the Southeast Michigan Partners for Clean Water help coordinate consistent educational messages and leverage resources to provide cost savings. These educational materials can help your community meet the federal Phase II Stormwater Regulations' public education component. As a region, SEMCOG will continue to help residents understand how they can help keep our water resources safe and clean. Contact: SEMCOG Information Services.
MDOT seeks comments on draft State Transportation Improvement Program The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) is seeking comments from the public on its draft State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) document for the 2006-2008 fiscal years. The draft document (available online at www.michigan.gov/stip; by mail from MDOT, Statewide Planning Section, P.O. Box 30050, Lansing, MI 48909; or by phone at 517-335-1510) provides a list of rural state trunkline projects as well as information about the planning process used to develop them. The STIP is a requirement of federal legislation. It is prepared by MDOT in conjunction with SEMCOG and other local transportation agencies. Local urban and trunkline projects within the SEMCOG area are also included in SEMCOG's Transportation Improvement Program (TIP). Public comments should be submitted to MDOT by September 30, 2005; mail or phone comments to the address/phone number noted above; e-mail comments to MDOT-STP_Comment@michigan.gov. Contact: Benjamin Kohrman, MDOT, (517) 335-3084.
SEMNotes Robert Davis, Director of the Governor's Office for Southeast Michigan, was named Chairman of CreateDetroit.
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