TO: AC Transit Board of Directors
FROM: Michael A. Hursh, General Manager/Chief Executive Officer
SUBJECT: Monthly Legislative Report
ACTION ITEM
AGENDA PLANNING REQUEST: ☐
RECOMMENDED ACTION(S):
Title
Consider receiving the Monthly Legislative Report and approving legislative positions.
Staff Contact:
Beverly Greene, Executive Director of External Affairs, Marketing & Communications
Body
STRATEGIC IMPORTANCE:
Goal - Strong Public and Policymaker Support
Initiative - Financial Efficiency and Revenue Maximization
The Monthly Legislative Report helps the District track state, regional and federal legislation to ensure alignment with the District’s Strategic Plan and the specific goal of having strong public and policymaker support. Policy decisions at all levels of government can positively or negatively affect District operations and revenues and as such, are important to track and influence as needed.
BUDGETARY/FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no budgetary or fiscal impact associated with this report.
BACKGROUND/RATIONALE:
Federal Update
On March 8, the Senate passed the House-approved, six-bill “minibus” that provides $460 billion in funding through the end of fiscal year 2024 for the departments of Veterans Affairs, Agriculture, Interior, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD), Justice, Commerce and Energy. At the time this report was submitted, the President was expected to sign the bill, thus averting a partial government shutdown.
Overall, the bill includes $106.4 billion for the Department of Transportation, a slight increase above FY 2023 levels. The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) will receive $20.9 billion, 2 percent less than FY 2023. The total funding approved represents 96 percent of the amount authorized in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) / Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act (IIJA).
Included in the THUD portion of the bill was $2.65 million in “earmark” funding that will support two key District priorities.
• $1.8 million will support the installation of hydrogen sensing technology and equipment at our Central Maintenance Facility in East Oakland.
• An additional $850,000 will help fund the full architectural design needed to bid the ZEB U project for construction.
These investments will improve worker safety, support workforce development, and help place and keep zero emission buses running in disadvantaged communities, all while promoting equity and improving quality of life throughout our service area. The District is deeply appreciative of the advocacy by Senator Alex Padilla and Representatives Barbara Lee and Eric Swalwell to secure this much-needed funding.
Congress has until March 22 to complete work on the remaining six appropriations bills, which fund more contentious areas such as the departments of Defense, Homeland Security, and Health & Human Services.
State Update
The Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO), which provides nonpartisan analyses of the state budget, now projects that the state will face a $73 billion budget deficit in FY 2024-25 due to weaker cash receipts from corporate tax collections and income tax withholding falling below projections. The $73 billion figure is nearly double the deficit projection assumed in the Governor’s proposed budget, released in January. LAO has suggested that $2 billion could be rescinded from transportation funding programs, including the Hybrid and Zero-Emission Truck and Bus Voucher Incentive Project (HVIP) and the Transit and Intercity Rail Program (TIRCP), to help address the shortfall. Transit operators, in coordination with the California Transit Association (CTA), will vigorously engage to avert any cuts while advocating for additional funding.
February 16 marked the deadline for legislators to introduce bills in the second year of the 2023-24 Legislative Session. The Legislature has introduced over 2,100 bills this year. Notably, SB 925 (Weiner), which would have authorized a regional transportation revenue measure, and SB 926 (Wahab), which would have required the State Transportation Agency to develop a plan to consolidate all Bay Area transit agencies, have been combined into a single new bill, SB 1031. This new bill, to be authored by Senator Wiener, is currently a spot bill and staff are working to shape its provisions. SB 1031 is expected to contain language dedicating at least $750 million annually towards transit operations and delivering improvements included in the Transit Transformation Action Plan, such as fare integration, real time transit information, improved mapping and wayfinding, regional transit network priority and more. SB 1031 will also include a study of consolidation in the nine-county Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) region, which may then inform the creation of a plan for consolidation.
The following bill positions are offered for Board consideration.
WATCH - AB 1837: San Francisco Bay area: public transportation. AB 1837 is currently a spot bill that contains intent language to enact legislation that will encourage coordination and collaboration among transit agencies in the Bay Area. A WATCH position is recommended because the bill does not yet contain any substantive provisions.
SUPPORT - AB 1904: Transit buses: yield right-of-way sign. AB 1904 would allow any transit operators to equip its bus with yield right-of-way signs. These signs could be an illuminated sign or a static decal. A SUPPORT position is recommended because the bill provides operators with the option to use signage that may increase transit efficiency and safety.
SUPPORT - AB 2043: Medi-Cal: nonmedical and nonemergency medical transportation. AB 2043 is the reintroduction of AB 719 from last session, which was supported by the District but vetoed by the Governor. The updated bill requires managed health care plans to reimburse paratransit service operators who are enrolled Medi-Cal providers for the cost of providing nonmedical and non-emergency medical transportation. A SUPPORT position is recommended because the bill would provide funding to help offset the cost of providing paratransit service.
WATCH - SB 960: Transportation: planning: transit priority projects: multimodal. SB 960 would require Caltrans to develop a transit priority policy for state-owned roadways, expediting approvals for transit priority and “complete streets” infrastructure projects. It would also require all transportation projects funded or overseen by Caltrans to provide adequate “complete streets” facilities. A WATCH position is recommended because bill language is still being developed, with input from District staff.
Lastly, the 2024 committee assignments for the Assembly and Senate are included as Attachments 4 and 5, respectively.
ADVANTAGES/DISADVANTAGES:
This report is provided to inform the Board of monthly legislative activities. Ensuring favorable legislation is adopted by policymakers helps further the District’s goal of having strong public and policymaker support.
ALTERNATIVES ANALYSIS:
There were no alternatives considered as this report provides an update of monthly legislative activities.
PRIOR RELEVANT BOARD ACTION/POLICIES:
Staff Report 23-420a: Adopted 2024 Federal and State Advocacy Programs
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Federal Report
2. State Report
3. State Matrix
4. 2024 Assembly Committee Appointments
5. 2024 Senate Committee Appointments
6. 2024 Federal Advocacy Program
7. 2024 State Advocacy Program
Prepared by:
Steven C. Jones, External Affairs Representative
Approved/Reviewed by:
Claudia Burgos, Director of Legislative Affairs & Community Relations
Beverly Greene, Executive Director of External Affairs, Marketing & Communications