The American Public Transportation Association (APTA) announced Thursday they support the Senate’s passage of public transportation appropriations and urge the House to do the same.
On Nov. 1, the Senate passed a series of appropriations bills, including the Transportation-HUD bill as part of a bipartisan appropriations package. The bills had previously been passed out of committee this summer and are the first and only bipartisan appropriations bills to clear either chamber of Congress the year, U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations said in a statement.
“Our bill directly addresses America’s housing crisis by protecting affordable housing and homeless assistance programs that will help more than 10 million people,” .S. Sen. Brian Schatz (D-HI), Chair of the Transportation-Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee, said. “It also includes record level of investment in Native housing, and maintains funding to improve public transit, airports, railways, and roads across the country.”
APTA President and CEO Paul Skoutelas said his organization applauded the bill’s passage.
“The bipartisan effort in the Senate provides the overwhelming majority of the authorized public transit and passenger rail funding, including $21.1 billion for public transit (with more than $4 billion for Capital Investment Grants (CIG)) and $16.7 billion for passenger and freight rail,” he said in a statement. “Fully funding the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will make public transit and passenger rail faster, more modern, frequent, and reliable while tackling climate change, advancing equity, and providing communities with sustainable mobility choices.”
The bill would increase FAA’s resources by $1.255 billion to address the shortage of air traffic controllers, improve safety, reduce flight delays and increase efficiency, as well as invest $32 million in rail safety deficiencies, continue investments into the country’s transit and highway infrastructure and expand transportation infrastructure assistance for Tribal nations.
However, APTA said, it’s critical that the House pass a similar appropriations package.
“The U.S. House of Representatives’ THUD Appropriations bill cuts public transit investment by $2.3 billion, slashing CIG funding to the lowest level in at least two decades. These cuts would cost America more than 100,000 jobs,” Skoutelas said. “We urge the House of Representatives to similarly honor the commitment of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and fully fund public transportation investments in the FY 2024 THUD appropriations bill.”