Newsroom

May 15, 2014

Washington, D.C. — Dozens of federal, state and local elected officials and dignitaries, including U.S. Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx, Virginia State Senator Barbara Favola, Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett are scheduled to show their support for this year’s Bike to Work Day by meeting and greeting cyclists at local Bike to Work Day pit stops on Friday, May 16. Commuters are expected to leave their cars at home, help reduce traffic congestion, improve air quality, and suppo​

May 15, 2014

The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) today launched a fundraising campaign through the on-line crowd-funding site Kickstarter, Inc. to support its creative efforts focused on the region’s foster parents. COG works to highlight the need for foster parents by creating documentaries and sponsoring events to honor foster parents in Washington, D.C., suburban Maryland and Northern Virginia.​

May 14, 2014

While the rain poured down at historic levels this April representatives from 20 federal regional and local agencies gathered in the U.S. General Services Agency (GSA) Headquarters in the District of Columbia to brainstorm strategies to lessen the impacts of both gradual changes in climate and more extreme weather events as a result climate change. The workshop hosted by the Council of Governments NASA National Capital Planning Commission Smithsonian GSA and U.S. Global Change Research Prog​

May 14, 2014

According to an annual report by the Council of Governments, there are 11,946 homeless people living in the Metropolitan Washington region – a 3.5 percent increase from 2013. The report, Homelessness in Metropolitan Washington , which contains the results of the 14th annual count of the region’s homeless population, was released during the COG Board of Directors meeting.

May 14, 2014

The 2014 Foster Parents of the Year for metropolitan Washington were honored at the Council of Governments May Board meeting for their commitment to their foster sons and daughters as well as to the children’s birth families. The foster parents were praised for developing productive partnerships with the birth families that benefitted the children and entire communities.

May 12, 2014

The 2014 update to the region’s Constrained Long-Range Transportation Plan has entered its next phase: the federally required Air Quality Conformity Analysis, to assess whether future vehicle emissions under the proposed plan will exceed regional budgets approved by the federal government. The analysis will be completed by September, in time for the Transportation Planning Board to review the results before considering the update for final approval in October.

May 12, 2014

Fairfax County Supervisor and COG Chesapeake Bay Policy Committee Chair Penny Gross spoke at Smithsonian Garden Fest on May 9 as part of National Drinking Water Week. She encouraged people to protect area waterways use water wisely and drink tap water while local water utilities provided reusable bottles and fresh tap water to attendees.

May 7, 2014

As communities across the country embrace sustainable initiatives the Washington area is a leader in implementing sustainable infrastructure through actions such as growing our uses of solar energy building super-efficient housing and incorporating sustainability principles into our unique mix of government commercial and residential development in the Region’s Activity Centers. These efforts are changing the face of several communities.

May 6, 2014

On Saturday, May 3rd, the Council of Governments Corrections Chiefs Committee sponsored the 23rd Annual Wreath Laying Ceremony in honor of fallen corrections officers at the National Law Enforcement Memorial in Washington, DC. The ceremony commenced National Correctional Employees Week, and brought together local officials from Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia as well as correctional employees and their families from around the United States.

May 5, 2014

The latest growth forecasts from the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) predict more than 1.5 million new jobs and 2 million new residents in the Washington region by 2040. Most of this new growth will occur in denser, mixed-use housing and job centers known as Activity Centers, according to the forecasts. COG works directly with its member jurisdictions to update its "Cooperative Forecasts" on a periodic basis. The forecasts predict how much the region will grow in coming deca​