The Metropolitan Problems Advisory Committee was appointed in 1956 by Mayor Gordon S. Clinton and the Board of King County Commissioners to study regional issues that were too large for individual local governments to handle. The 75-member committee, chaired by John Ellis, identified sewage disposal, regional transportation, and comprehensive planning as the three problems of most concern. The committee recommendations were used to convince the State Legislature to pass the Metropolitan Council Act of 1957 that authorized creation of regional governments. The ultimate outcome of the process and legislation was formation of the Municipality of Metropolitan Seattle, better known as Metro.