Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority - Governance

Governance

MARTA is a multi-county agency that is governed by a board of directors, consisting of representatives appointed from the city of Atlanta (3 members), and the remainder of the counties of Fulton (3 members) and DeKalb (4 members). Additionally, there is 1 member from the Georgia Department of Transportation, and 1 member from Georgia Regional Transportation Authority) who also serve on the MARTA Board of Directors.

Positions on the MARTA board are directly appointed by the organizations they represent. A board-member controversy occurred March 13, 2007, when Chairman of the MARTA board, Edmund Wall, was arrested at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport for public indecency on allegations of having sex in a bathroom stall with a man he met over the Internet. Wall claims he is innocent of the misdemeanor charge. Although Wall initially said he would not resign his position, on March 16, 2007 he resigned his post as Chairman of MARTA's board of directors.

The highest position at MARTA is the general manager and chief executive officer. In October 2007, Dr. Beverly A. Scott was named the new general manager. Prior to joining MARTA, Dr. Scott served as GM/CEO of the Sacramento Regional Transit District. She has over 30 years of experience in the transportation industry. After 5 years at MARTA, Dr. Beverly Scott will be leaving MARTA by the end of year 2012. She decided not to renew her contract with MARTA's Board of Directors. Keith Parker will be MARTA's new GM/CEO upon Dr. Scott departure. Prior to Dr. Scott, MARTA's General Manager was Richard McCrillis from 2006 to 2007. In October 2007, McCrillis retired after 22 years of service at MARTA.

The Georgia General Assembly has a standing Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Oversight Committee (MARTOC). This committee is charged with financial oversight of the MARTA organization. During the 2009 session, Representative Jill Chambers, the MARTOC chairperson, introduced a bill that would place MARTA under GRTA, and permanently remove the requirement that MARTA split its expenditures 50/50 between capital and operations. This would allow MARTA to avoid service cuts at times when sales tax revenue is low due to recession, without having to ask the state legislature for temporary exemptions (typically a 55/45 split) as it has received before.