Six U.S. Congress members from Virginia recently sent a letter to Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao voicing their displeasure over the Federal Transit Administration’s (FTA) February decision to withhold grant money.
A new State Safety Oversight Program (SSOP) was not certified for the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority by the FTA’s Feb. 9 deadline, so the FTA withheld 5 percent of federal funds for the fiscal year under the Urbanized Area Apportionments Program. This will be equal to $15 million if continued through to the end of the fiscal year.
If this happens, infrastructure safety could be put at risk, the representatives said, as transit systems are forced to make budget cut decisions.
The timeframe for negotiating a SSOP was too short and the FTA requirements were unreasonable, the representative said.
“We respectfully request that your office work with the FTA to explore a compromise in which part of these withheld funds can be released as a show of good faith, as the jurisdictions continue their work to construct a stable SSOP,” the letter said.
The letter was signed by Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA), Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA), Rep. Barbara Comstock (R-VA), Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA), Rep. Scott Taylor (R-VA) and Rep. Robert Wittman (R-VA).
By 2019, the FTA must certify SSOP for 29 additional transit authorities.