The House passed the Fiscal Year 2015 appropriations package on Dec. 11, which provides approximately $1.1 trillion for FY15 for all government programs. For public transportation, this includes $8.95 billion for core formula programs, $2.12 billion for Capital Investment Grants (New Starts), as well as $500 million for TIGER grants. Both the House and Senate also passed a continuing resolution (CR) extending by two days the existing stopgap legislation, allowing the Senate additional time to pass the appropriations bill. As of press time, policymakers are still working on the bill.
The House also passed the Tax Increase Prevention Act, which provides only for the retroactive extension of parity between employer-provided public transit and parking pre-tax/tax-free benefits for 2014. Although the retroactive provisions offer no immediate or practical benefit for public transit commuters or employers, their inclusion in a final bill will help in making parity permanent in the future.
In addition, the House passed the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA) on Dec. 10, which ensures that America's infrastructure has insurance protection against potential acts of terrorism. On Dec. 8, APTA sent a letter to Congressional leaders urging them to reauthorize TRIA. |