Rural Task Force Program Overview
The Rural Task Force Program provides federal dollars to rural counties with a population under 400,000 (78 out of 83 counties). These dollars must be spent in their geographic areas and both road and transit capital projects are eligible.
The money is provided within two funding sources:
Surface Transportation Program (STP) Rural for improving the federal aid system; and Transportation Economic Development Fund (TEDF) Category D for building an all-season network.
All project selection is through the Rural Task Force process which is comprised of equal representation from the county road commission, the cities and villages under 5,000 population within the county, and the rural transit provider.
There are four Rural Task Force areas in the EMCOG planning Region:
7A - Huron, Tuscola and Sanilac Counties
7B - Bay, Gratiot and Saginaw Counties
7C - Clare, Gladwin, Isabella and Midland Counties
7D - Arenac, Iosco, Ogemaw and Roscommon Counties
Small Urban Program
The Small Urban Program provides federal Surface Transportation Program (STP) funding to areas with a urbanized population of 5,000 to 49,999. Road and transit capital projects are eligible for STP funds.
There are six Small Urban Areas in the EMCOG planning region:
Alma - St. Louis
Au Sable
Caro
Clare - Farwell
Houghton Lake
Mt. Pleasant