Companion Guide to Video May 2015

www.fhwa.dot.gov/federal-aidessentials

Did you know that 75 percent of the Nation’s 

roads are owned and maintained by local 

public agencies, known as LPAs? You 

might be surprised to learn that as much as 

20 percent of the Federal-aid Highway 

Program is sub-allocated for LPA projects, 

all of which makes LPAs important partners 

in helping to maintain our critical 

transportation infrastructure. 

As part of a broad effort to improve the 

efficiency and effectiveness of their 

operations, some State departments of 

transportation, or State DOTs, are taking a 

fresh look at the ways they partner with 

LPAs, and some are implementing LPA 

certification programs as their approach to 

LPA oversight. The Federal Highway 

Administration, or FHWA, supports using

certification programs as a method for State 

DOTs to effectively use limited resources 

while assuring compliance with project 

delivery requirements. 

On Federal-aid projects, an LPA certification 

program results in the delegation of project 

administration to local agencies. However, 

the State DOT retains full responsibility for 

LPA compliance with Federal requirements. 

LPA certification programs will vary from 

state to state. For example, one State DOT 

may delegate a single project phase, such 

as the design, while another may delegate 

the administration of projects of a specified 

nature or size, such as sidewalks. 

Federal-aid Program Overview

Local Public Agency Programs

Certification Programs

Certification programs are an effective approach to ensure compliance with 

project delivery requirements
Federal-aid Essentials for Local Public Agencies

The requirements for an LPA to participate 

in a State DOT’s certification program are 

described in a certification agreement. The 

agreement identifies the processes and 

procedures for participating in the program 

and for delivering a project in accordance 

with State and Federal requirements. 

The successful delegation of responsibilities 

from the State DOT to the LPA may require 

both agencies to change some business 

practices. Let’s see how that works. 

When delegating responsibilities to an LPA, 

including through an LPA certification 

program, the duties of the State DOT’s LPA 

program staff typically evolve from day-today project administration to program 

management and oversight. This process 

focuses on the review of project 

documentation, participation in key field 

visits, and the provision of guidance 

whenever issues are encountered. 

Additionally, in order to assume the added 

responsibilities of project administration, the 

LPA needs to retain and develop qualified 

staff. Therefore, all LPA certification 

programs include training on Federal, State, 

and local requirements. Training can be on 

the job, instructor-led, online, or any 

combination of the three. 

Here’s how one State DOT started with an 

LPA certification program: 

To begin, management needed information 

about the potential benefits of an LPA 

certification program and the experiences of 

other State DOTs. So agency 

representatives participated in a peer 

exchange with a neighboring State that had 

a mature and successful LPA certification 

program. 
Federal-aid Essentials for Local Public Agencies

Next, the State DOT formed a new group to 

oversee the LPA certification program. The 

group included the existing LPA program 

staff and several new positions at 

headquarters. 

The group’s first task was to review 

manuals, checklists, and other resources 

gathered during the peer exchange. Based 

on its research, the group recommended a 

process for determining an LPA’s initial and 

ongoing eligibility for the program. The 

group recommended that it first evaluate an 

LPA’s capacity for project administration 

and then test its capacity during a pilot 

project. Ongoing eligibility would be based 

on an annual review of at least one project 

from each participating LPA. 

Using the recommended process, two LPAs 

were selected to pilot the program, and a 

certification agreement was developed for 

each. One LPA was certified to administer 

the design phase of a project while the other 

was certified to administer all project 

phases, including construction. 

During the pilot process, as LPA staff 

assumed its new administrative duties, the 

State DOT staff reviewed the LPA’s 

processes and procedures and answered 

questions. After the pilot, the State DOT 

could effectively reduce the level of its onhands oversight and still fulfill its oversight 

responsibilities. 

Since the program’s implementation, the 

pilot process has been acknowledged as 

rigorous, but staff from both the State DOT 

and the LPA are realizing a higher level of 

requirement compliance, product quality 

and of process efficiency on Federal-aid 

projects. 

As an employee of a State DOT or LPA, you 

may be under increasing pressure to build 

projects efficiently. If your LPA program is 

currently not benefiting from a certification 

program, contact your State DOT or FHWA 

division office to learn more about the 

process.
Federal-aid Essentials for Local Public Agencies

The content of this 

document is not a 

substitute for 

information obtained 

from State departments 

of transportation, 

appropriate FHWA 

Division Offices, and 

applicable laws. 

Scenarios have been 

simplified for emphasis 

and do not necessarily 

reflect the actual range of 

requirements applicable 

to the scenario or this 

topic. This document

was created under 

contract number 

DTFH61-14-P-00163 by 

the Federal Highway 

Administration, U.S. 

Department of 

Transportation, and is 

offered to the public to 

heighten and focus 

awareness of Federal-aid 

requirements within the 

local public agencies 

community and 

reinforces the 

importance of these 

necessary policies, 

procedures, and 

practices.

This Companion Resource 

is the script content for 

the video production of 

the same name. 

Additional Resources

• FHWA Local Public Agency program office website with links to 

additional information

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/federalaid/lpa/

• FHWA Order 5020.2 - Stewardship and Oversight of Federal-Aid Project 

Administered by Local Public Agencies (LPA) - dated August 2014

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/legsregs/directives/orders/50202.cfm

• FHWA EDC2 Peer Exchange Report of event hosted by Washington DOT 

in June 2014

https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/everydaycounts/pdfs/wsdotudot_peer_exchange_report_final_082014.pdf

• FHWA memo regarding LPA Stewardship Issues and OIG findings dated 

2012

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/federalaid/lpa/120213.cfm