History

The fundamental question of why SCAG was created is best answered in the words of Ventura County Supervisor John Montgomery back in 1966, who said, "Regional planning is not a matter of if, but rather when and who. Regional planning must come via cooperation and mutual assistance . regional planning will (either) be accomplished through local governments working together or by big brother mandates from state and national governments."

SCAG was formed on October 28, 1965, when elected officials from 56 cities and five counties met at the Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles. SCAG, initially governed by a 20-member Executive Committee, was charged with conducting growth forecasts and regional planning. To help accommodate new responsibilities mandated by the federal and state governments, as well as to provide more broad-based representation of Southern California's many cities and counties, SCAG's Bylaws were amended in 1992 to expand the Executive Committee to a 70-member Regional Council. SCAG changed its regional representation to correspond to population size and established districts based in part upon population.

During the past four decades, SCAG has become the largest of nearly 700 councils of government in the United States, functioning as the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for Southern California. SCAG is mandated by the federal and state governments to develop regional plans for transportation, growth management, housing development, air quality and other issues of regional significance.

In addition to the six counties and 187 cities that make up SCAG's region, there are five County Transportation Commissions (CTCs), the Tribal Government Regional Planning Board and the Imperial Valley Association of Governments that have primary responsibility for programming and administering transportation projects, programs and services in their respective jurisdictions.

Southern California's individual communities are as diverse in their needs as their residents and businesses. But no matter how many differences Southern Californians have, those of us involved with the work of SCAG over the years recognize that we have many more goals in common. In the interest of future generations, we have started bringing change to the way that local planning decisions are made by providing regional perspectives to those decisions, by focusing on the "big picture" and by helping our region collectively define Southern California's future.

One thing is certain—our population will continue to grow. Millions of new residents will call Southern California home by 2030, with the majority of that growth resulting from births within the region. This tremendous growth will have impacts that transcend city and county borders, and we must work together regionally to address challenges associated with growth. Decisions made by individual communities have increasingly important implications on other communities and the region as a whole.

The issues facing Southern California today and in the future are complex and challenging. We must continue to explore the interconnected nature of traffic, housing, air quality, and land use planning. If we fail to take a comprehensive approach to planning our future, our future could be threatened in Southern California, our economic and social vitality could decline. We could face worsening traffic congestion. Housing could become more difficult to afford, with people moving farther away from work, thereby jeopardizing our ever-dwindling open space and other natural resources. The result will be longer commutes, further worsening traffic congestion and air quality.

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