The memorandum spells out which portion of work each agency will pay for. There are no specific needs identified in the Highway System Plan for this category. The funding is set aside to pay for items of work which provide general support for the highway construction program. Eligible work includes activities such as legal services, right of way plan updates, and audit reviews of contracts. This category also includes a reserve for emergent needs in the Regions.
Regions can spend the reserve on eligible work in the preservation and improvement subprograms.
Because there are no specific needs in this category, no prioritization process is involved. The needs in this category have been identified by regional planners working with colleagues in the Region Maintenance and Traffic Operations offices. Needs are reviewed against a set of eligibility and deficiency criteria developed by a statewide task force. This process creates a final list of needs by Region. The 97-99 biennium was the first time this category was in place and some refinement of the prioritization process is still necessary.