AICP General 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which federal law requires metropolitan areas to establish a Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) to coordinate transportation planning?
- Clean Air Act
- National Environmental Policy Act
- Federal Aid Highway Act of 1962 (Correct answer)
- Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century
Correct answer: Federal Aid Highway Act of 1962
The Federal Aid Highway Act of 1962 mandated MPOs for urbanized areas with populations over 50,000 to coordinate comprehensive transportation planning.
Question 2: A planner discovers that a proposed rezoning would benefit a property owned by a city council member who will vote on the rezoning. The planner's most appropriate action is to:
- Recommend the rezoning if it is professionally sound
- Disclose the conflict of interest to the planning commission (Correct answer)
- Refuse to prepare the staff report
- Notify the local newspaper immediately
Correct answer: Disclose the conflict of interest to the planning commission
AICP ethics require planners to disclose conflicts of interest so decision-makers and the public can evaluate the situation appropriately.
Question 3: The concept of 'transfer of development rights' (TDR) is primarily used to:
- Increase density in all zones uniformly
- Preserve open space or historic properties by redirecting development elsewhere (Correct answer)
- Allow temporary construction variances
- Transfer zoning authority between municipalities
Correct answer: Preserve open space or historic properties by redirecting development elsewhere
TDR programs protect sending areas (farmland, historic sites) by allowing owners to sell development rights for use in designated receiving zones.
Question 4: Which planning theory holds that decisions should emerge from open public deliberation among all affected parties rather than from expert-driven analysis alone?
- Rational comprehensive planning
- Communicative action theory (Correct answer)
- Incrementalism
- Advocacy planning
Correct answer: Communicative action theory
Communicative action theory, associated with Habermas and Healey, emphasizes inclusive deliberation and consensus-building as the foundation of legitimate planning decisions.
Question 5: Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), newly constructed public sidewalks must include curb ramps:
- Only on arterial streets
- At all intersections where the sidewalk crosses a curb (Correct answer)
- When requested by residents with disabilities
- On collector and arterial streets only
Correct answer: At all intersections where the sidewalk crosses a curb
ADA Title II requires curb ramps at all locations where a pedestrian walkway crosses a curb, regardless of street classification.
Question 6: A city's general plan land use element designates an area as 'mixed-use.' Which of the following best describes what this designation typically allows?
- Only retail on ground floors of residential buildings
- A combination of residential, commercial, and sometimes light industrial uses within the same area or building (Correct answer)
- Industrial uses mixed with open space
- Two-family residential uses only
Correct answer: A combination of residential, commercial, and sometimes light industrial uses within the same area or building
Mixed-use designations typically allow residential, retail, office, and sometimes light industrial uses to coexist in the same area or vertically within the same building.
Question 7: Which of the following best defines 'fiscal impact analysis' in the context of land use planning?
- An assessment of a project's effect on property tax rates
- An estimate of public revenues and costs associated with a proposed development (Correct answer)
- A review of a municipality's bond rating
- An audit of a planning department's budget
Correct answer: An estimate of public revenues and costs associated with a proposed development
Fiscal impact analysis estimates the net effect of a development on local government revenues (taxes, fees) versus expenditures (services, infrastructure) over time.
AICP General 2
Which federal law requires metropolitan areas to establish a Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) to coordinate transportation planning?