{"id":50,"date":"2020-09-21T21:07:35","date_gmt":"2020-09-21T21:07:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/crp-uat.netrixlab.com\/nchrp25562\/?page_id=50"},"modified":"2022-03-07T16:21:03","modified_gmt":"2022-03-07T16:21:03","slug":"6-0institutional-considerations-and-alignment","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrpwebresource1\/6-0institutional-considerations-and-alignment\/","title":{"rendered":"6.0\tInstitutional Considerations and Alignment"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"6-0-institutional-considerations-and-alignment\">6.0  Institutional Considerations and Alignment<\/h1>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\" style=\"margin-left:50px\"><li><strong><a href=\"#sec6-1\">6.1 What Is Included?<\/a><\/strong><\/li><li><strong><a href=\"#sec6-2\">6.2 Why Consider Institutional Issues and Alignment?<\/a><\/strong><\/li><li><a href=\"#sec6-3\"><strong>6.3 Level&nbsp;of Effort<\/strong><\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#sec6-4\"><strong>6.4 Who\u2014Roles and Responsibilities<\/strong><\/a><\/li><li><strong><a href=\"#sec6-5\">6.5 Self-Assessment: Institutional Considerations and Alignment<\/a><\/strong><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"sec6-1\">6.1  What Is Included?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>This section addresses the capabilities and potential alignment of State department of transportation (DOT) institutional units in the performance of greenhouse gas&nbsp;(GHG) reduction tasks. It expands on the potential roles and responsibilities with respect to the DOT functional units listed in <a href=\"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrpwebresource1\/4-0greenhouse-gas-action-across-the-agency\/#Table4.3\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrpwebresource1\/4-0greenhouse-gas-action-across-the-agency\/#Table4.3\">Section&nbsp;4.0, Greenhouse Gas Action Across the Agency<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"sec6-2\">6.2  Why Consider Institutional Issues and Alignment?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>If anything is going to be done to address an overarching issue within a DOT context, some organizational unit must lead and others must deliver, in cooperation with other parts of the agency. Even the simplest pothole patching operation has to rely on someone trained, equipped, and directed to complete the task. Vastly more complex operations, like GHG reduction, require many organizational units to operate in a concerted manner, and each unit must be trained, equipped, and directed to play its role within the constraints of competing priorities and available resources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"sec6-3\">6.3  Level&nbsp;of Effort<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Determining institutional roles and launching a concerted GHG reduction effort should require at least a modest effort. If established roles and responsibilities are clearly understood and practiced with some modicum of rigor, a simple directive from the Executive to cognizant functional units should set an initiative in motion\u2014provided someone has been charged with the responsibility and granted the authority to see it through. This section describes \u201cthe moving parts\u201d that make up the typical DOT and discusses how they might be configured to advance agencywide GHG reduction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Effort required for ongoing development and coordination will depend upon the objectives to be achieved and the resources available. Ongoing coordination efforts would typically involve periodic (e.g., quarterly) meetings of responsible key staff from across the agency to track and manage progress, but the focus here is on \u201cwho does what\u201d about GHG emission reduction. More on how to actually \u201cset things in motion\u201d is presented in <a href=\"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrpwebresource1\/19-0-putting-it-all-together\/\">Section&nbsp;19.0, Putting It All Together<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"sec6-4\">6.4  Who\u2014Roles and Responsibilities<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrp25562\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2020\/10\/sec6-4-1024x109.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-641\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Coordination of DOT activities falls to the <strong>Executive,<\/strong> but a wide range of functional areas can contribute to GHG efforts, especially at the higher levels of engagement. Organizational functions vary from agency to agency, but typical DOT organizational interests and functions as they relate to GHG reduction (per <a href=\"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrpwebresource1\/4-0greenhouse-gas-action-across-the-agency\/#Table4.3\">Table&nbsp;4.3<\/a>) are presented below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Institutional unit responsibilities and strategies for GHG reduction may be organized into five categories:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul style=\"margin-left:50px\"><li><strong>Preparing and supporting leadership for understanding, goal setting, and action.<\/strong> Be it the Commissioner\u2019s Office advising the Governor or the Environmental Director informing the Chief Engineer, it is every unit\u2019s responsibility to inform and support its management on the topics, interests, developments, and relationships within its purview.<\/li><li><strong>Providing GHG program leadership and staffing within a DOT.<\/strong> DOT managers are typically all too familiar with the age-old \u201cwho\u2019s in charge\u201d and \u201cwho does what\u201d questions that attend almost any wide-ranging new development. Organizational involvement can and should vary by engagement level.<\/li><li><strong>Providing mechanisms for internal coordination.<\/strong> If anything as new and overarching as GHG reduction is to be effectively accomplished across multiple DOT functional units, someone will have to be given both the responsibility and the authority needed to get things done. That said, some units (such as Planning) tend to have the experience and relationships needed to work across organizational boundaries, while others (such as Construction) would be at a disadvantage in coordinating the efforts of diverse and unfamiliar units.<\/li><li><strong>Managing partnerships and public outreach. <\/strong>Dealing with external partners and conducting public outreach requires the unit to speak for the agency as a whole. This requires some diplomatic ability together with a practical working knowledge of agency function and capacity to be accomplished effectively.<\/li><li><strong>Leveraging synergies with related programs and initiatives. <\/strong>As in any effective organization, DOT functional units tend to be good at and take pride in what they do. Accordingly, GHG reductions are more easily accomplished by units who are being asked to do more of what they already do as opposed to units that are being asked to do something different than (and perhaps at cross purposes to) what they have always done.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>The following sections outline typical or recommended roles for a range of functional areas with respect to each of the strategy areas described above. Local circumstances will vary with structure, history, culture, and personalities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"6-4-1-executive\">6.4.1  Executive<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Table&nbsp;6.1 presents typical roles of the Executive within each of the strategy areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Table&nbsp;6.1  Description of Potential Executive Roles in GHG Reduction<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"5\" style=\"width:auto\">\n  <tr>\n    <td width=\"141\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Strategy<\/strong><\/td>\n    <td width=\"1109\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Role<\/strong><\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Preparing and    Supporting Leadership for Understanding, Goal Setting, and Action<\/td>\n    <td>For DOTs that are uninvolved with GHG reduction (Engagement Level 1),    it would typically be incumbent upon the Executive office to consult with the    Governor&rsquo;s Office to understand the larger aspects of State GHG policy and ensure    that a &ldquo;hands off&rdquo; approach should be continued. As engagement levels    increase, so should involvement, as GHG reduction efforts will involve more    tradeoffs, stakeholders, expertise, and expense. Other tasks\u2014including    inventory, baseline forecast, strategy development and assessment,    implementation, and monitoring and evaluation\u2014would also involve increasing    executive involvement with understanding, goal setting, and action as they    relate to State policy at higher levels of engagement.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Providing GHG Program    Leadership<br \/>\n      and Staffing Within a DOT<\/td>\n    <td>As with most    complex programs, GHG efforts benefit from executive support and direction.    At lower levels of involvement, executive support and leadership are generally    less important than at higher levels, where tradeoffs, resource commitments,    knowledge, and interests involve the day-to-day work of more and more agency    units. To advance agency engagement, an &ldquo;executive sponsor&rdquo; is often    designated as the &ldquo;champion&rdquo; of the effort, with staffing from subunits as    necessary and appropriate.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Providing    Mechanisms for Internal Coordination<\/td>\n    <td>Almost by    definition, coordination of a program that cuts across organizational    boundaries requires executive involvement\u2014with more involvement required for    larger crosscutting efforts. In some cases, designation of an &ldquo;executive    sponsor&rdquo; or champion to preside over regular interunit meetings to set    policy, make plans, and track progress has been successful. In others,    regular staff meetings and assignments have proven to be more effective in leveraging    the agency&#8217;s &ldquo;normal&rdquo; mechanisms for internal coordination.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Managing Partnerships    and Public Outreach<\/td>\n    <td>Inform and    work with Governor, Governor&rsquo;s Office staff, and State legislators on ongoing    and upcoming GHG reduction efforts. Serve as public face to news media of    transportation work to reduce GHGs.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Leveraging    Synergies with Related Programs and Initiatives<\/td>\n    <td>The Executive office would    clearly employ synergies with public outreach, budgeting, operations,    staffing, and procurement in the development of higher levels of GHG    engagement that cut across organizational lines and involve considerable    analysis and feedback.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n<p>Executive involvement varies with the level of engagement and, as an agency leader, the Executive will be the one to determine the agency\u2019s level of engagement. Table&nbsp;6.2 provides more detail on executive-level strategies for each of the five categories and indicates which activity in each category roughly corresponds to which level of engagement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Table&nbsp;6.2  Summary of Executive Roles in GHG Reduction by Level&nbsp;of Engagement<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"5\" style=\"width:auto\">\n  <tr>\n    <td width=\"540\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Executive Strategies <\/strong><\/td>\n    <td width=\"125\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Level&nbsp;of Engagement <\/strong><\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td colspan=\"2\" bgcolor=\"#CFF3E4\"><strong>Preparing and supporting    leadership for understanding, goal setting, and action <\/strong><\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Confirm no action on GHG    reduction with senior State officials<strong> <\/strong><\/td>\n    <td>1<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Engage senior State officials on policy initiative<strong><\/strong><\/td>\n    <td>2 <\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Coordinate with senior State    officials on informal efforts<strong> <\/strong><\/td>\n    <td>3 <\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Inform and encourage senior State officials on formal efforts and    implications<strong><\/strong><\/td>\n    <td>4<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td colspan=\"2\" bgcolor=\"#CFF3E4\"><strong>Providing GHG program leadership and staffing within a DOT<\/strong><\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Inform DOT executive staff on State policy<strong><\/strong><\/td>\n    <td>1<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Engage DOT executive staff on informal efforts<strong><\/strong><\/td>\n    <td>2<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Direct DOT executive staff to formalize efforts<strong><\/strong><\/td>\n    <td>3<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Manage comprehensive GHG program<strong><\/strong><\/td>\n    <td>4<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td colspan=\"2\" bgcolor=\"#CFF3E4\"><strong>Providing mechanisms for internal    coordination<\/strong><\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Make initial temporary scoping assignments<\/td>\n    <td>2<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Designate ongoing leadership, set priorities, allocate resources<\/td>\n    <td>3<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Manage ongoing efforts; approve metrics, targets, and tradeoffs<\/td>\n    <td>4<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td colspan=\"2\" bgcolor=\"#CFF3E4\"><strong>Managing partnerships and public    outreach<\/strong><\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Advise partner agencies<\/td>\n    <td>2<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Engage partner agencies; inform public and nongovernmental    organizations (NGOs)<\/td>\n    <td>3<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Act in concert with partner agencies; engage the public and NGOs<\/td>\n    <td>4<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td colspan=\"2\" bgcolor=\"#CFF3E4\"><strong>Leveraging synergies with related    programs and initiatives<\/strong><\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Encourage GHG reductions as part of &ldquo;normal work&rdquo;<\/td>\n    <td>2<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Require GHG reductions as part of &ldquo;normal work&rdquo;<\/td>\n    <td>3<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Manage target GHG reductions as part of &ldquo;normal work&rdquo;<\/td>\n    <td>4<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n<p>Potential roles, responsibilities, and attributes of other agency functional units are summarized below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"6-4-2-central-administration\">6.4.2  Central Administration<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Table&nbsp;6.3 discusses typical Administration unit roles within each of the strategy areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Table&nbsp;6.3  Potential Administrative Roles in GHG Reduction<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"5\" style=\"width:auto\">\n  <tr>\n    <td width=\"195\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Strategy<\/strong><\/td>\n    <td width=\"1055\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Role<\/strong><\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Preparing and    Supporting Leadership for Understanding, Goal Setting, and Action<\/td>\n    <td>Simple as    it may seem, reducing emissions through investment in carbon-friendly fuel    sources and technologies in a public agency setting can be difficult to    achieve. Helping to prepare and support leadership on what is needed to turn the    requisite budgetary and contractual wheels is part of the Central    Administration job. <\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Providing GHG Program    Leadership and Staffing Within a DOT<\/td>\n    <td>Typically    limited. <\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Providing    Mechanisms for Internal Coordination<\/td>\n    <td>Typically    limited.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Managing    Partnerships and Public Outreach<\/td>\n    <td>Typically    limited.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Leveraging Synergies    with Related Programs and Initiatives<\/td>\n    <td>Development    of energy savings from facility upgrades and modernization typically falls to    Central Administration. The resulting energy, financial, and carbon emission benefits    can provide additional motivation for needed investment.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"6-4-3-planning\">6.4.3  Planning<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Table&nbsp;6.4 discusses typical Planning unit roles within each of the strategy areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Table&nbsp;6.4  Potential Planning Roles in GHG Reduction<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"5\" style=\"width:auto\">\n  <tr>\n    <td width=\"146\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Strategy<\/strong><\/td>\n    <td width=\"1104\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Role<\/strong><\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Preparing and    Supporting Leadership for Understanding, Goal Setting, and Action<\/td>\n    <td>At lower    levels of engagement, with a focus mainly on internal emissions, Planning    units would tend to have less involvement with strategy development and    assessment, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation. The Planning unit may develop a    baseline inventory and forecast of transportation system-wide emissions, in    collaboration with the Environmental unit. However, in preparing and    supporting leadership for the higher levels of understanding, goal setting,    and action involved in modifications to the transportation system, Planning    units would typically provide critical input to policy-making by analyzing    the costs and practicality of reducing the comparatively huge emissions from    the transportation system through project and modal choices involved at    Engagement Levels 3 and 4.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Providing GHG Program Leadership and Staffing Within a DOT<\/td>\n    <td>Planning units are well equipped to lead or coordinate agency GHG    efforts at higher levels of engagement involving development of goals,    objectives, strategies, modal choices, and project types by virtue of their    experience in developing transportation system-level inventories, forecasts,    and strategy evaluation.      Given the potential magnitude of GHG reductions at the system level,    leadership from Planning could be seen as a realistic option at Engagement Levels&nbsp;3    and 4.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Providing    Mechanisms for Internal Coordination<\/td>\n    <td>Leading or    coordinating GHG efforts would be in keeping with the policy, strategy, goal    setting and implementation responsibilities of Planning units as related to transportation    system effects at higher engagement levels.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Managing    Partnerships and Public Outreach<\/td>\n    <td>Coordinate    with metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) and regional planning agencies    on statewide and regional transportation GHG reduction efforts. <\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Leveraging    Synergies with Related Programs and Initiatives<\/td>\n    <td>The Planning unit is a critical player that must contribute to the implementation of GHG    reduction policies at the higher levels of GHG engagement involving    transportation mode, project selection, and operational investments. The    Planning unit&rsquo;s role, experience, and expertise in assessing costs,    practicality, and results of systems-level investments can help it to bring major    synergies to GHG reduction efforts. <\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"6-4-4-programming\">6.4.4  Programming<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Table&nbsp;6.5 discusses typical Programming unit roles within each of the strategy areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Table&nbsp;6.5  Potential Programming Roles in GHG Reduction<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"5\" style=\"width:auto\">\n  <tr>\n    <td width=\"213\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Strategy<\/strong><\/td>\n    <td width=\"1037\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Role<\/strong><\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Preparing and    Supporting Leadership for Understanding, Goal Setting, and Action<\/td>\n    <td>Provide    information on the costs and practicality of reducing emissions within their program    areas\u2014particularly at higher levels of involvement.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Providing GHG Program    Leadership and Staffing Within a DOT<\/td>\n    <td>The    Programming unit could be well suited to lead or coordinate agency GHG    efforts in accordance with goals and objectives developed through planning.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Providing    Mechanisms for Internal Coordination<\/td>\n    <td>The    Programming unit could be well suited to lead or coordinate agency GHG    efforts, particularly at higher levels of engagement involving the assignment    of resources in support of modal and project choices, by virtue of its    experience, expertise, and relationships with other functional units.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Managing    Partnerships and Public Outreach<\/td>\n    <td>Oversee and    coordinate funding for GHG reduction programs and projects through MPOs and    project funding recipients [active transportation, Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement (CMAQ) Program, etc.].<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Leveraging    Synergies with Related Programs and Initiatives<\/td>\n    <td>Programming is well placed to leverage the synergies involved in    related GHG efforts at higher levels of engagement involving the assignment    of resources in support of modal and project choices. <\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"6-4-5-environmental\">6.4.5  Environmental<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Table&nbsp;6.6 discusses typical Environmental unit roles within each of the strategy areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Table&nbsp;6.6  Potential Environmental Unit Roles in GHG Reduction<\/strong><br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"5\" style=\"width:auto\">\n  <tr>\n    <td width=\"143\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Strategy<\/strong><\/td>\n    <td width=\"1107\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Role<\/strong><\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Preparing and Supporting Leadership for Understanding, Goal Setting, and Action<\/td>\n    <td>Environmental units could be expected to be the in-house experts and    advocates for GHG reduction and thus highly involved in preparing and    supporting leadership for understanding, goal setting, and action, especially    at lower levels of agency engagement. <br \/>\n      As engagement levels increase and the agency becomes committed to a policy    of significant GHG reductions, Environmental unit involvement would tend to    become more technical as executive leadership information needs become more    technical\/operational and involve questions on modal choice and project    selection.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Providing GHG Program    Leadership and Staffing Within a DOT<\/td>\n    <td>While Environmental    units have the knowledge, expertise, and relationships with resource agencies    to lead GHG efforts, they often lack authority over &quot;mainstream&quot;    units and may lack a clear understanding of their inner workings and    resources. That said, at early engagement levels involving relatively few    changes in agency policy and investment, Environmental units might assume a    leadership role in the development of strategies for the reduction of agency    emissions. At higher levels, Environmental units may also serve as staff to an    &ldquo;executive sponsor&rdquo; to good effect.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Providing    Mechanisms for Internal Coordination<\/td>\n    <td>As with    program leadership, Environmental units have the knowledge, expertise, and    relationships with resource agencies to lead GHG efforts, but they tend to lack    the experience with and the authority over &quot;mainstream&quot; units that they    would need for effective management at higher engagement levels. They may,    however, understand what needs to be done by the various units and can play a    critical contributing role\u2014especially under the auspices of an executive    sponsor.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Managing    Partnerships and Public Outreach<\/td>\n    <td>State air    quality or energy agencies often lead statewide GHG reduction efforts.    Environmental units typically have established working relationships with    these agencies for other issues (e.g., State Implementation Plan development).    Environmental units could serve as liaisons with these agencies on    technical and policy matters. <\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Leveraging    Synergies with Related Programs and Initiatives<\/td>\n    <td>Where Environmental units have responsibility for environmental    policy, synergies with GHG policy development would seem obvious and    compelling. On a more operational level, synergies would tend to be more    limited. <\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"6-4-6-design\">6.4.6  Design<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Table&nbsp;6.7 discusses typical Design unit roles within each of the strategy areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Table&nbsp;6.7  Potential Design Unit Roles in GHG Reduction<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"5\" style=\"width:auto\">\n  <tr>\n    <td width=\"211\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Strategy<\/strong><\/td>\n    <td width=\"1039\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Role<\/strong><\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Preparing and    Supporting Leadership for Understanding, Goal Setting, and Action<\/td>\n    <td>The Design    unit can play a supporting role in preparing and supporting leadership for    understanding, goal setting, and action on GHG policy-making by providing    information on the costs and practicality of reducing emissions within its    program areas\u2014particularly at higher levels of involvement.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Providing GHG Program    Leadership and Staffing Within a DOT<\/td>\n    <td>The Design    unit would tend to be comparatively disadvantaged in leading or coordinating GHG    efforts, although it would play an important role in implementing agency    efforts through development of design options.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Providing    Mechanisms for Internal Coordination<\/td>\n    <td>The Design    unit would tend to be at a disadvantage in leading or coordinating GHG    efforts, although it could play an important role in implementation.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Managing    Partnerships and Public Outreach<\/td>\n    <td>The Design unit    could interact with NGO and trade groups related to GHG reduction project    design and implementation. <\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Leveraging    Synergies with Related Programs and Initiatives<\/td>\n    <td>The Design unit can contribute to the wise implementation of policy on    low-carbon materials selection (e.g., asphalt, concrete, or steel specifications), as well as detour planning, construction staging, vegetation options, and other design factors affecting GHG emissions. <\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"6-4-7-construction\">6.4.7  Construction<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Table&nbsp;6.8 discusses typical Construction unit roles within each of the strategy areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Table&nbsp;6.8  Potential Construction Unit Roles in GHG Reduction<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"5\" style=\"width:auto\">\n  <tr>\n    <td width=\"214\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Strategy<\/strong><\/td>\n    <td width=\"1036\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Role<\/strong><\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Preparing and Supporting Leadership for Understanding, Goal Setting, and Action<\/td>\n    <td>The Construction unit can play a supporting role in preparing and    supporting leadership for understanding, goal setting, and action on GHG    policy-making by providing information on the costs and practicality of    reducing emissions within its program area\u2014particularly at higher levels of    involvement.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Providing GHG Program Leadership and Staffing Within a DOT<\/td>\n    <td>The Construction unit would tend to be comparatively disadvantaged in    leading or coordinating GHG efforts, although it would play an important    role in implementing agency efforts through construction activities.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Providing    Mechanisms for Internal Coordination<\/td>\n    <td>The    Construction unit would tend to be disadvantaged in leading or coordinating GHG    efforts, although it would play an important role in implementation.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Managing    Partnerships and Public Outreach<\/td>\n    <td>The Construction    unit could interact with NGO and trade groups related to GHG reduction    project construction, appropriate equipment use, and use of Environmental    Product Declarations.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Leveraging    Synergies with Related Programs and Initiatives<\/td>\n    <td>The Construction unit can contribute to the wise implementation of    policy on deconstruction\/demolition material and fuels. <\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"6-4-8-maintenance\">6.4.8  Maintenance<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Table&nbsp;6.9 discusses typical Maintenance unit roles within each of the strategy areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Table&nbsp;6.9  Potential Maintenance Unit Roles in GHG Reduction<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"5\" style=\"width:auto\">\n  <tr>\n    <td width=\"167\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Strategy<\/strong><\/td>\n    <td width=\"1083\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Role<\/strong><\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Preparing and    Supporting Leadership for Understanding, Goal Setting, and Action<\/td>\n    <td>The    Maintenance unit can play a supporting role in preparing and supporting    leadership for understanding, goal setting, and action on GHG policy-making by    providing information on the costs and practicality of reducing emissions    within its program area\u2014particularly at higher levels of involvement.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Providing GHG Program    Leadership<br \/>\n      and Staffing Within a DOT<\/td>\n    <td>Given their    typical role, knowledge, expertise, and relationships, Maintenance units    would tend to be comparatively disadvantaged in leading or coordinating GHG    efforts outside their own area of responsibility. However, at early stages of    involvement focused on agency emissions, much of the actual work of    inventory, forecasting, strategy development, implementation, and monitoring could    fall to Maintenance, where this unit&#8217;s depth, strength, and experience in managing    programs could be used to good effect.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Providing    Mechanisms for Internal Coordination<\/td>\n    <td>The    Maintenance unit would tend to be disadvantaged in leading or coordinating GHG    efforts at higher levels of engagement, although it could play a useful    role in implementation.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Managing Partnerships    and Public Outreach<\/td>\n    <td>As with    Construction, Maintenance does have a local public outreach role involving    detours, materials, and methods during maintenance operations. As efforts to    reduce GHG emissions affect these activities, maintenance staff may be    involved in explaining them to local officials and the public. <\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Leveraging    Synergies with Related Programs and Initiatives<\/td>\n    <td>Maintenance can contribute to the wise implementation of policy on the    costs and practicality of modifications to fleets, buildings, fuels, highway    lighting, and operations to reduce GHG emissions. <\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"6-4-9-operations\">6.4.9  Operations<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Table&nbsp;6.10 discusses typical Operations unit roles within each of the strategy areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Table&nbsp;6.10  Potential Operations Unit Roles in GHG Reduction<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"5\" style=\"width:auto\">\n  <tr>\n    <td width=\"189\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Strategy<\/strong><\/td>\n    <td width=\"1061\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Role<\/strong><\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Preparing and Supporting Leadership for Understanding, Goal Setting, and Action<\/td>\n    <td>The Operations unit can play a supporting role in preparing and    supporting leadership for understanding, goal setting, and action on GHG    policy-making by providing information on the costs and practicality of    reducing emissions within its program area\u2014particularly at higher levels of    involvement.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Providing GHG Program    Leadership<br \/>\n      and Staffing Within a DOT<\/td>\n    <td>Operations    units would tend to be comparatively disadvantaged in leading or coordinating    GHG efforts outside their own area of responsibility. However, leadership by this unit could be an option at higher    levels of engagement focused on emissions from the transportation system and    the potential magnitude of the possible reductions possible through    &ldquo;operational&rdquo; strategies and synergies.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Providing    Mechanisms for Internal Coordination<\/td>\n    <td>The    Operations unit would tend to be disadvantaged in leading or coordinating GHG    efforts, although it would play important roles in implementation.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Managing    Partnerships and Public Outreach<\/td>\n    <td>The Operations    unit could serve as a liaison with local and regional transportation agencies with whom it interacts through transportation management centers and other facilities designed to encourage smoother traffic flow. <\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Leveraging    Synergies with Related Programs and Initiatives<\/td>\n    <td>The Operations unit can help leverage synergies in the improvement of traffic flow and reductions in GHG emissions, and it could contribute greatly to the implementation of cost-effective strategies to reduce emissions from the transportation system. <\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"6-4-10-regions-districts\">6.4.10  Regions\/Districts<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Table&nbsp;6.11 discusses typical Region\/District&nbsp;office roles within each of the strategy areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Table&nbsp;6.11  Potential Region\/District&nbsp;Office Roles in GHG Reduction<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"5\" style=\"width:auto\">\n  <tr>\n    <td width=\"192\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Strategy<\/strong><\/td>\n    <td width=\"1058\" bgcolor=\"#27A570\" style=\"color:#FFF\"><strong>Role<\/strong><\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Preparing and    Supporting Leadership for Understanding, Goal Setting, and Action<\/td>\n    <td>Regions\/Districts&nbsp;can    play a supporting role in preparing and supporting leadership for    understanding, goal setting, and action on GHG policy-making by providing    information on the costs and practicality of reducing emissions within their counties    and municipalities\u2014particularly at higher levels of involvement.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Providing GHG Program    Leadership and Staffing Within a DOT<\/td>\n    <td>Given their    typical role, knowledge, expertise, and relationships, Regions\/Districts&nbsp;would    tend to be disadvantaged in leading or coordinating GHG efforts outside their    own boundaries. They could, however, be very productively engaged in piloting    strategies and thus provide agency leadership as other Regions\/Districts&nbsp;employ    new reduction measures on an agencywide basis.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Providing    Mechanisms for Internal Coordination<\/td>\n    <td>Regions\/Districts&nbsp;would    tend to be disadvantaged in leading or coordinating GHG efforts, although    they would play important roles in implementation.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Managing    Partnerships and Public Outreach<\/td>\n    <td>Support,    explain, and advocate for DOT GHG reduction strategies and policies    affecting  Regions\/Districts&nbsp;with local officials, NGOs, and the media.<\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n  <tr>\n    <td>Leveraging    Synergies with Related Programs and Initiatives<\/td>\n    <td>Regions\/Districts&nbsp;can leverage considerable synergies in piloting    or implementing GHG efforts within their geographic regions. <\/td>\n  <\/tr>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n<p>Functional units within DOTs exhibit a valuable (and variable) range of potential responsibilities, capabilities, strategies, and roles depending upon local circumstances and engagement level. More detail on each is presented in the separate functional unit sections. Guidance on how to organize these \u201cmoving parts\u201d to affect GHG reductions agencywide is presented in <a href=\"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrpwebresource1\/19-0-putting-it-all-together\/\">Section&nbsp;19.0, Putting It All Together.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"sec6-5\">6.5  Self-Assessment: Institutional Considerations and Alignment<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>A self-assessment worksheet is provided to assist State DOT staff, especially in the Executive functional area (but also others with responsibility for leading GHG initiatives), in determining where their agency falls on the GHG engagement spectrum for institutional alignment. Self-assessments for other individual functional units may be found in their respective sections and more on program implementation may be found in <a href=\"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrpwebresource1\/19-0-putting-it-all-together\/\">Section&nbsp;19.0, Putting It All Together.<\/a> &nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Click to download &#8211; <strong><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrpwebresource1\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2020\/12\/FR1_NCHRP-2556_RdGHGEms_SelfAssessment_6.5.docx\" target=\"_blank\">Self-Assessment:  6.0 Institutional Considerations and Alignment<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><a href=\"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrpwebresource1\/5-0developing-a-greenhouse-gas-policy\/\">Previous<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrpwebresource1\/7-0partnerships\/\">Next<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>6.0 Institutional Considerations and Alignment 6.1 What Is Included? 6.2 Why Consider Institutional Issues and Alignment? 6.3 Level&nbsp;of Effort 6.4 Who\u2014Roles and Responsibilities 6.5 Self-Assessment: Institutional Considerations and Alignment 6.1 What Is Included? This section addresses the capabilities and potential alignment of State department of transportation (DOT) institutional units in the performance of greenhouse gas&nbsp;(GHG) &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrpwebresource1\/6-0institutional-considerations-and-alignment\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;6.0\tInstitutional Considerations and Alignment&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":95,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-50","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrpwebresource1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/50","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrpwebresource1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrpwebresource1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrpwebresource1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/95"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrpwebresource1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=50"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrpwebresource1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/50\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3244,"href":"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrpwebresource1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/50\/revisions\/3244"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrpwebresource1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=50"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrpwebresource1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=50"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crp.trb.org\/nchrpwebresource1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=50"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}