House, Senate Approve FY23 THUD Bill

Written by Carolina Worrell, Senior Editor
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House and Senate Appropriations Committee leaders on Dec. 23 approved the Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 Transportation and Housing and Urban Development (THUD) funding bill of $21.2 billion for public transit and $16.6 billion for passenger and freight rail, the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) announced.

According to APTA, the bill, which was approved before the 117th Congress adjourned on Dec. 23, is part of H.R. 2617, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, which represents “a bipartisan, bicameral agreement on Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 appropriations legislation among Senate Democrats, Senate Republicans and House Democrats.” House Republican leaders do not support the bill.

Specifically, APTA says, the THUD Appropriations bill, together with the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act’s (IIJA) advance appropriations, includes an increase for public transit of $704 million from the FY 2022 enacted level, and $66 million less than the total amount authorized in the IIJA; and an increase for passenger and freight rail of $69 million from the FY 2022 enacted level, and $3.2 billion less than the amount authorized in the IIJA.

APTA’s Public Transit Funding Table of the THUD Appropriations Bill

“We are encouraged to see Congress honor the promise of the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act by providing this funding for public transit and passenger rail for FY 2023,” said APTA President and CEO Paul P. Skoutelas. “This is a transformational investment in public transportation infrastructure that our country so desperately needs. These historic and generational investments will enable our communities to provide access to opportunities and create family-wage jobs, advance equity, tackle climate change, and meet growing and evolving mobility demands.”

Public Transit

According to APTA, the THUD Appropriations bill fully funds the public transit contract authority of $13.6 billion, as provided by the IIJA. The THUD Appropriations bill, together with the IIJA advance appropriations, provides $4.2 billion for Capital Investment Grants (CIG), $387 million more than the FY 2022 enacted level. The THUD bill’s $2.6 billion CIG appropriation includes $1.8 billion for New Starts, $100 million for Core Capacity projects, $215 million for Small Starts, $100 million for the Expedited Project Delivery for CIG Pilot Program, and an additional $425 million for projects with existing Full Funding Grant Agreements (Section 165).

The THUD Appropriations bill also provides an additional $542 million for specific initiatives, including: $90 million for Buses and Bus Facilities Competitive Grants; $50 million for Low-No Emission Bus Grants; $32.5 million for Passenger Ferry and Rural Ferry Grants; and $360 million for congressionally directed spending on designated public transit projects.

Additionally, the bill, APTA says, includes several important policy provisions. Section 163 of the bill blocks the Rostenkowski Test, preventing a possible across-the-board cut of FY 2023 transit formula funds to each public transit agency. Section 164 prohibits the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) from impeding or hindering a project from advancing or approving a project seeking a CIG federal share of more than 40 percent. Finally, the legislation authorizes projects in the Expedited Project Delivery for CIG Pilot Program to be eligible for funding under the CIG program without further evaluation or rating.

Passenger Rail

According to APTA, the THUD Appropriations bill provides $3.4 billion for passenger rail investments, including $2.5 billion for Amtrak grants ($1.2 billion for National Network grants and $1.3 billion for the Northeast Corridor), $560 million for Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvement (CRISI) grants, and $100 million for Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail grants. The THUD Appropriations bill provides $25 million for specific CRISI projects and allows CRISI grants to be used for commuter railroad projects that implement or sustain positive train control systems.

USDOT Programs

The THUD Appropriations bill and IIJA provide $2.3 billion for Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) competitive grants for surface transportation projects, including public transportation and multi-modal projects. The THUD Appropriations bill provides $800 million for RAISE grants in FY 2023, which is $25 million more than the FY 2022 enacted level.

FTA Emergency Relief Program

Division N, Title X of the Consolidated Appropriations bill provides $214 million for the Federal Transit Administration’s (FTA) Public Transportation Emergency Relief Program (49 U.S.C. § 5324) for public transit systems affected by major declared disasters occurring in calendar years 2017, 2020, 2021 and 2022.

APTA says it “specifically advocated for Congress to provide emergency appropriations to the Public Transportation Emergency Relief Program in the FY 2023 Consolidated Appropriations Act.”

Statutory Pay-as-You-Go-Act of 2010

According to APTA, Division O, Title X, Section 1001 of the Consolidated Appropriations bill waives the Statutory Pay-as-You-Go-Act of 2010 (PAYGO) for FY 2023 and FY 2024. Waiving Statutory PAYGO “ensures that the federal government continues to make Build America Bonds (BABs) subsidy payments to fulfill its commitments to public transit agencies that issued BABs,” APTA said. Created in the American and Recovery Reinvestment Act in 2009, BABs was “a new financing tool that allowed state and local governments to borrow at lower costs to build infrastructure projects, including public transportation projects.”

APTA and its Coalition partners urged Congress to waive Statutory PAYGO provisions before the end of the 117th Congress.

The 118th Congress will be sworn in on January 3, 2023.

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