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TIP – Air Quality Conformity
OVERVIEW • INTERACTIVE DATABASE • DEVELOPMENT PROCESS: HIGHWAY
INITIATION AND DEVELOPMENT • EVALUATION PROCESS • AIR QUALITY CONFORMITY
TIP CONTACTS • TRANSPORTATION PROGRAMMING INVENTORY
Air Quality Conformity of the Transportation Improvement Program
The 1990 federal Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAA) require metropolitan planning organizations within air quality nonattainment areas to perform air quality conformity determinations prior to the approval of Transportation Plans and Transportation Improvement Programs (TIP), and at such other times as required by state and federal regulations. A nonattainment area is a region that the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has designated as not meeting certain air-quality standards.

A conformity determination is a demonstration that a MPO´s plans, programs, and projects are consistent with the State Implementation Plan (SIP) for attaining federal air quality standards. The SIP is developed by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection. The federal CAAA requirement to perform a conformity determination ensures that the federal government approves and funds only those transportation activities that are consistent with air-quality goals. This requirement is set out in federal regulations (40 CFR Part 93) and in Massachusetts Conformity Regulations (310 CMR 60.03).

For a more detailed discussion of air quality and the Transportation Improvement Program, see Chapter 4 – Determination of Air Quality Conformity.
Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) Improvement Program
The TIP programs transportation improvements under a variety of different funding categories. One of those funding categories is the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) Improvement Program. The purpose of this program is to fund transportation projects or programs that will contribute to the attainment or maintenance of national ambient air quality standards for ozone, carbon monoxide, and particulate matter. The CMAQ program supports two important goals: to improve air quality and to relieve congestion. The Boston Region MPO programs approximately $8 million each year to CMAQ-eligible projects and programs.

Clean Air and Mobility Program
The MPO´s Clean Air and Mobility Program funds a wider variety of projects that improve air quality and mobility and that reduce congestion in the region using federal Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) funds. There is $2 million in funds available annually. Eligible projects and programs fall into three categories; transit operations, Transportation Demand Management (TDM)/Transportation Systems Management (TSM) programs or projects, and infrastructure projects.

For a complete list of CMAQ-eligible projects see the federal CMAQ Program Guidance. View the Clean Air and Mobility Program webpage for more details on the program.