Metro News Release

For immediate release: May 26, 2011

Governance Committee develops Metro Board's first ever bylaws


Directors focus on policymaking, oversight and business planning

Metro’s Board of Directors is on track to adopt in June its first ever permanent bylaws that clearly define the roles and responsibilities of the Board and clarifies the governing body’s focus on policy, financial direction and Metro’s relationship with its customers and jurisdictional partners.

The new bylaws define Board responsibilities as governing through policies and exercising oversight over policy compliance and results. Active healthy debate is encouraged; and once a decision is made, the Board speaks with one voice. Further, the bylaws indicate the Board’s role in ensuring regular reporting to the public.

Since coming together under the leadership of its Chair Catherine Hudgins in January, Metro’s new Board of Directors has undertaken multiple initiatives to improve the regional governance of Metro, including: forming a Governance Committee to examine the roles and responsibilities of Board Members; developing bylaws and procedures; delegating proper authority to an experienced transportation professional for day-to-day operations as general manager and chief executive officer; and refining performance measures that measure progress on board-adopted agency goals.

Continuing its commitment to transparency and public involvement, Metro’s Governance Committee met with representatives from the Board of Trade (BOT) and Council of Governments (COG) to review Board-developed draft permanent bylaws that clearly define the roles and responsibilities of the Board and clarify the governing body’s focus on policy, fiduciary responsibility and long-range business planning. The Riders Advisory Committee and the Accessibility Advisory Committee are also meeting with Board members over the next weeks to provide their insights and comments.

“The deliberate and thoughtful work of this Board over the last several months demonstrates that we are moving forward as a governing body with a regional perspective and a shared mission to set policies that reinforce safety, reliability and service for Metro’s customers,” said Metro Board Chair Catherine Hudgins. “I appreciate the leadership of Committee Chair Mary Hynes in effectively managing this process and look forward to the work that we will do next to set performance standards and establish a transparent business plan to guide Metro policymaking for the future.”

“As stewards of Metro for the region, this Board has worked diligently over the last five months to ensure that the way we govern the Authority reflects our unified commitment to transparency, public inclusiveness, and the responsible exercise of oversight duties,” said Governance Committee Chair Mary Hynes. “There has been a healthy public dialogue between the Members, as well as an opportunity for public comment on our bylaws and procedures that I believe ultimately strengthens our Board and will deliver results for our riders.”

At Thursday’s Governance Committee Meeting, representatives from the Joint MWATA Governance Review Task Force joined the discussion about the progress made on governance matters.

In a statement, the Task Force said, “The Task Force applauds the actions you have taken that correspond to some of our key recommendations – defining the General Manager as Chief Executive Officer and giving the position clear authority and autonomy to oversee WMATA’s day-to-day management, ending the custom of rotating the office of Chair annually among the three jurisdictions, and creating a Governance Committee to strengthen governance and improve accountability.”

At the invitation of the Governance Committee, the Task Force also provided specific feedback on items in the proposed bylaws, including alternate members, the use of the veto for non-budgetary matters, and the inclusion of the Second Vice Chair position.

After weeks of public comments and hearings on the coming fiscal year, the Board is set to vote on an FY2012 budget to fund the Authority next month, without a fare increase or major service cuts. This summer, the Board will also begin a strategic planning process to develop a long-range business plan that will guide the Authority’s policy decisions.

The draft bylaws and procedures are available on the Metro website for review. The Governance Committee will discuss all comments received at its June 9 meeting.

News release issued at 1:07 pm, May 26, 2011.