The American Public Transportation Association applauded the U.S. House of Representatives’ move to introduce legislation extending federal funding through Dec. 11, 2020, in a statement on Monday.
The bill, HR 8319, the ‘Continuing Appropriations Act, 2021 and other Extensions Act’, would extend federal spending, including transportation appropriations and surface transportation appropriations through Dec. 11. The bill would prevent a federal government shutdown and includes a one-year extension of the surface transportation authorization act.
APTA President and CEO Paul P. Skoutelas said the bill was critical to the public transportation industry.
“If enacted, this bill will provide public transit agencies with much-needed certainty regarding public transit funding in FY 2021. The Surface Transportation Extension Act, specifically, authorizes at least $12.6 billion for public transit investment and will prevent a $6 billion across-the-board cut to public transit agencies while also providing $3.2 billion to the Mass Transit Account of the Highway Trust Fund,” Skoutelas said in a statement.
However, Skoutelas said, Congress still needs to address providing public transportation with at least $32 billion in emergency funding during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“As ongoing COVID-19 emergency funding conversations occur on Capitol Hill, APTA implores both chambers of Congress and the Administration to provide at least $32 billion in critical federal support to enable the industry to survive during this unprecedented pandemic,” he said. “We continue to serve essential employees every day, but without additional emergency funding, many transit agencies will soon need to cut transit services and routes and furlough transit workers, leaving our communities without service and jobs when they need us most.”