The Council of Mayors was established through the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP) to provide a forum for early public involvement and partnership in the various transportation plans and projects developed for Northeastern Illinois.

The eleven sub regional councils, one of which is the Kane / Kendall Council of Mayors, are responsible for programming federal Surface Transportation Program (STP) funds for transportation improvements each year and are key players in the development of the region's Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) and Regional Transportation Plan.