Congress Agrees to Keep Transit Operating Aid in War Bill
House and Senate negotiators struck a deal last night on a $106 billion war spending bill that also gives cash-strapped transit agencies the ability to use 10 percent of their economic stimulus grants to pay operating costs.
The issue of operating costs has heated up in recent weeks, with local transit officials supporting federal aid as a step towards more equitable funding consideration of all transportation modes.
Critics of the idea contend that it is disingenuous to bill stimulus money for transit operating as a short-term response to the economic recession — or as Rep. Tom Latham (R-IA) put it last week, “there is nothing more permanent than a temporary government program.”
But despite Latham’s skepticism, the deal is done. The final version of the war spending bill, with the transit operating aid provision intact, is expected to become law as soon as next week.
Streetsblog has migrated to a new comment system. New commenters can register directly in the comments section of any article. Returning commenters: your previous comments and display name have been preserved, but you'll need to reclaim your account by clicking "Forgot your password?" on the sign-in form, entering your email, and following the verification link to set a new password — this is required because passwords could not be carried over during the migration. For questions, contact tips@streetsblog.org.
