2026 Iowa RPA Project Selection Practices_form

The 2026 Iowa RPA Project Selection Practices Survey is intended to provide an updated understanding of how Iowa’s Regional Planning Affiliations (RPAs) allocate and program Surface Transportation Block Grant (STBG) funding to their member jurisdictions. The survey focuses on whether RPAs use formulas or other established methods to monitor or allocate STBG funding among member jurisdictions and, where formulas are used, how closely actual funding decisions follow those formulas. Questions address whether STBG funding is strictly allocated according to a formula, how frequently funding is programmed outside of the formula, and any additional practices or considerations that influence project selection and funding decisions. The results will help provide a current inventory of RPA project selection practices, including the extent to which RPAs use “hard” versus “soft” suballocation approaches. This information will support upcoming federal transportation reauthorization discussions and help inform broader consideration of how project selection and programming practices may affect STBG funding balances. The survey is intended to capture current practices in a straightforward and consistent manner while allowing RPAs to provide additional context about their individual processes.