What is the purpose of a Capital Improvement Plan (CIP)?

• A. To schedule and prioritize capital projects and align funding with long-term needs.
• B. To describe daily flight schedules.
• C. To compile environmental data for planning.
• D. To manage vendor contracts for ongoing services.

Answer: (A)

A Capital Improvement Plan is a multi-year roadmap for major physical projects and investments. It identifies needs, estimates costs, sets priorities, and schedules projects so funding can be planned and aligned with long-term goals. This approach ensures scarce resources are directed to the most impactful projects and that funding—from budgets, debt, or grants—is available when work starts. It also communicates planned work to stakeholders and provides a framework to monitor progress and adjust as priorities or finances change. Daily flight schedules are operational, environmental data collection is planning information, and managing vendor contracts is procurement—none of these capture the multi-year, funding-aligned focus of a CIP.