Which statement about area-wide planning organizations is true?

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Area-wide planning organizations are cooperative bodies created by agreement among multiple local governments to plan and coordinate at a regional level. They are not a separate layer of government with sovereign powers; their authority comes from the participating jurisdictions or state enabling statutes, and they rely on intergovernmental agreements rather than independent governance. They can produce regional plans and coordinate programs, but their power to implement is derived from member governments, not from any autonomous authority. That’s why saying they are not a separate layer of government is the true characterization.