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Office of Real Estate Services - Project Development Guide
16.1. COORDINATION WITH FEDERAL AGENCIES There are times during the development of a project that an acquiring agency will have to coordinate its highway activities with other federal agencies besides the FHWA. This coordination may require a direct involvement, such as the acquisition of real property or a joint-use project, or an indirect involvement. In such cases, the acquiring agency should coordinate its efforts so that the transportation project development process is not hindered.
The federal departments or agencies which may require that land transfer be conducted under their own statutory authority include:
Acquisition from these federal agencies should be coordinated directly. These agencies' regulations, governing the disposition of their property, may also require the payment of compensation. Where transfer without compensation is not possible, after negotiating the transfer conditions, the acquiring agency will have to acquire these federal lands through their acquisition process.(1) Other direct involvement with federal agencies may include joint-use or multi-use projects. Such projects may include a highway and mass transit facility, a highway and recreation facility or a highway and land restoration or mitigation projects. Such projects will require coordination with the federal agency funding or participating in the joint project. Acquiring agencies can become indirectly involved with another federal agency by assisting them with their acquisition program. These federal agencies will often contract with the state and/or local highway agencies or other Federal agencies because of the latter's experiences in administering the acquisition program under the Uniform Act at the state or local levels. Many of the federal agencies do not have local offices to administer their acquisition programs. Federal agencies, such as the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), have contracted with state and local highway agencies for land acquisition and relocation as part of airport and Coast Guard projects. Under these circumstances, the acquiring agency should utilize its own procedures for coordinating with those federal agencies. 16.2. COORDINATION WITH STATE AGENCIES Following the passage of the Uniform Act, each State legislature passed legislation certifying that the State could comply with the provisions of the Uniform Act. These laws are referred to as State consent legislation or implementing legislation. State agencies acquiring property and relocating people for any Federal-aid program should be aware of their responsibilities under the Uniform Act, and the role of the lead agency in each State. In most States, the State Transportation Department (STD) is the lead agency, and this improves communication and cooperation between local and STD. Coordination of efforts in these areas will lead to uniform treatment of persons affected by a project, and lead to smoother public acquisition processes and the saving of public funds. STDs have the available expertise to assist other State agencies in acquisition of property and the relocation of persons and businesses. Most STDs have a long history of assisting other state and federal agencies in a variety of public benefit projects. Other transportation and natural resource agencies are among those most often assisted by the STD in acquisition for airports, mass transit facilities, and recreational or environmental mitigation projects. Other state agencies also work with highway personnel, particularly in coordinating public improvements. Regular coordination between agencies is an often sought goal, and improvements in this area lead to mutual benefits. State highway agencies have extensive experience in applying the requirements of Federal law and regulations implementing the Uniform Act. They are also fully knowledgeable of State law and requirements, and can provide invaluable assistance to other State agencies in the application of these laws and Federal reimbursement requirements.
An important element of coordination concerns the flexibility afforded by 49 CFR Part 24 Subpart G, which allows a State agency to apply for certification of its program in lieu of providing assurances required by 49 CFR 24.4. This certification concept permits the State agency to fulfill its responsibilities under the Uniform Act by certifying that it will operate in accordance with approved State laws and regulations which will accomplish the purpose and effect of the Uniform Act. This certification program has certain benefits in that Federal program oversight is reduced and the State has the advantage of possibly more streamlined operations as the result.
16.3. COORDINATION WITH LOCAL PUBLIC AGENCIES In the Federal regulations, "agency" is considered to be any governmental agency which acquires property (see definitions section for more detail). Individual States have over the years developed a series of laws governing public acquisitions under their jurisdiction. In addition, State agencies have promulgated regulations to facilitate their own acquisition and relocation programs. The State is ultimately responsible for the acquisition activities of local acquiring agencies on Federal-aid projects, unless the local agency has received approval under the Certification procedures. It is advisable, therefore, that the State and the local acquiring agency work closely together during the entire acquisition process to expedite the acquisitions and to assure that all Federal and State requirements are met. There should be free and open lines of communication both at the administrative/ management and journeyman levels. Normally, the State will have a larger, more experienced staff which can, and should, serve as a valuable resource for the local acquiring agency. Acquisition activities should be carefully coordinated with other aspects of the project to assure that the appraisals, negotiations, relocation, and property management, including any utility work, are accomplished in a professional and timely manner. The State and the local acquiring agency should establish a mutually acceptable program of State assistance which will best aid the local acquiring agency in the accomplishment of its acquisition program.
16.3.1. SIMPLIFICATION OF PROCESS There are few shortcuts in a quality acquisition program, but there are ways to simplify and streamline the acquisition process. Although some of these methods are explored in greater depth in previous chapters in this guide, they are worth repeating here. They may include:
16.3.1.1. SEPARATION OF FUNCTIONS Those charged with managing and implementing acquisition programs have a responsibility both to the governmental body and to the public to ensure that such acquisition programs are professionally and fairly carried out. To this end, it is imperative that certain functions in the acquisition process be kept separate and distinct:
No appraiser shall act as a negotiator involving real property which that person has appraised, except that the acquiring agency may permit the same person to both determine the value of and negotiate an acquisition where the value of the acquisition is $2,500 or less, unless otherwise approved by an agency waiver of the regulations. However, this valuation should usually be reviewed and approved before the commencement of negotiations, although there may be exceptions to this under certain circumstances as discussed in Section 9.7. It is important that the acquiring agency assure that there is no conflict of interest in the acquisition process. All aspects of the acquisition program must be achieved with discretion and confidentiality. Just as the government has the right to acquire private property, the owner of the private property also has rights, such as the right to receive just compensation. The acquiring agency should advise property owners of their rights by means of a written statement or brochure and assure that they receive all of the services and payments to which they are entitled.
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