Federal Public Transportation Program: In Brief

Federal funding assistance to public transportation providers is provided primarily through the public transportation program administered by the Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration. The federal public transportation program was authorized from FY2022 through FY2026 as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA; P.L. 117-58). As with previous authorization acts, the IIJA funds public transportation from the mass transit account of the Highway Trust Fund. Unlike previous authorization acts, the IIJA also provides funding with a multiyear advance appropriation from the general fund of the U.S. Treasury. Consequently, the IIJA provided a large increase in annual federal funding for public transportation when compared with the annual amount provided in the previous authorization, the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (P.L. 114-94) of 2015. Public transportation, public transit, mass transit, mass transportation, Department of Transportation, DOT, Federal Transit Administration, FTA, federal public transportation program, Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, IIJA, Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act, FAST Act, Urbanized Area Formula, State of Good Repair, SGR, Capital Investment Grants, CIG, New Starts, Rural Area Formula, Low or No Emission Vehicle, Bus and Bus Facilities, Enhanced Mobility of Seniors and Individuals with Disabilities.