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Good news!
Today the @FTA_DOT rescinded a Trump policy that made it difficult for local gov'ts to receive transit construction grants.
The old guidance added strenuous requirements to the Capital Investment Grants program, severely restricting FTA's release of these funds.
Today the @FTA_DOT rescinded a Trump policy that made it difficult for local gov'ts to receive transit construction grants.
The old guidance added strenuous requirements to the Capital Investment Grants program, severely restricting FTA's release of these funds.
Not to toot our own horn here or anything, but repealing this guidance was one of our recommendations to the incoming administration. This is a major win.
If you're wondering how exactly the Trump guidance made receiving transit capital grants much more difficult for local gov'ts, @samjmintz spelled it out:
The old policy treated "federal loans as part of the federal share," meaning that...
The old policy treated "federal loans as part of the federal share," meaning that...
... local gov'ts couldn't use any separate federal funding sources to meet the "local match" of a project's cost. Given that @FTA_DOT only covers approx 40% of the cost of transit projects, that is a TON of money that locals need to raise without any federal support.
AND under the old Trump rule, local gov'ts had to secure all of this funding before @FTA_DOT would even consider releasing the federal share of the transit project.
Remember: the federal gov't covers approximately 80% of the cost of a highway project. Even 90% in some cases.
Remember: the federal gov't covers approximately 80% of the cost of a highway project. Even 90% in some cases.
This now-rescinded Trump rule was just one of the host of policies in the federal transportation program that DIS-incentivizes local gov'ts from investing in transit.
