U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis (R-IL) recently sponsored bipartisan legislation to allocate more federal funding for small community transit systems.
Rep. Davis on July 15 introduced the Small Community Transit Improvement Act of 2019, H.R. 3758, with cosponsor U.S. Rep. Greg Stanton (D-AZ) to increase the apportionment for the Small Transit Intensive Cities (STIC) Program from 2 percent to 3 percent. The change would require no new funding.
“Our bipartisan bill ensures funding for this program is keeping up with demand so we can continue to help successful, small transit systems like these make investments to improve efficiency and service,” said Rep. Davis, who serves as ranking member of the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Highways and Transit.
Specifically, the STIC Program rewards high-transit performance by providing funds to small urban transit providers serving populations between 50,000 and 200,000. The providers must meet at least one of six measurable performance criteria set annually by the average service levels of larger public transit agencies, according to information from Rep. Davis’ office.
The congressman noted on July 26 that the STIC Program “has been incredibly successful over the years” with the program growing from 77 eligible communities when it was originally authorized to 124 as of 2017.
H.R. 3758 is supported by the Community Transportation Association of America and has been referred for consideration to the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.