The Joint WMATA Governance Review Task Force will hold an open meeting and forum on July 1, 2010 from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments for elected officials, stakeholders, and members of the public to provide input on how Metro is governed.  For people who cannot attend, COG is accepting public comments on its web site, and will share them with members of the Task Force in advance of the meeting

The Task Force was created last month by the Greater Washington Board of Trade and COG to recommend to Metro improvements in the transit agency’s governance.  Its membership is comprised of area business leaders, former elected and appointed officials, and three current elected officials—COG Chair Kwame Brown of the District of Columbia, COG Vice Chair Andrea Harrison of Prince George’s County, and COG Board Member Penelope Gross of Fairfax County. 

“We want to hear ideas from the public because how Metro is governed determines how D.C., Maryland, Virginia and the federal government pay for its equipment and operations and who is responsible for its safety and management,” said COG Chair and D.C. Councilmember Kwame Brown.

The BOT and COG supported a similar public-private study partnership in late 2004 and early 2005 when they jointly created a Metro Funding Panel.  The panel’s recommendation, to create a federal dedicated source of funding matched by the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia funding, was subsequently approved by Congress and signed into law by the President in 2008.