The Sacramento Democrats saved bankrupt government transportation systems from collapse, for this year. But all these systems have massive deficits. BART deficit this year is $92million—next year it will be over $300 million for instance. But, as San Fran collapses ridership is collapsing.
“As California’s 2025 transit systems’ fiscal cliff approaches, its legislative leaders are working overtime to save the state’s transit systems in the hopes that ridership numbers recover enough to make the system sustainable on its own.
The Senate and Assembly worked late into Sunday night to come to a budget agreement to find billions in additional funding to keep the transit afloat as federal pandemic stimulus money comes to an end.”
This is not about saving bus rides—it is about using tax dollars to pay off unions and greedy corporations—they win, you lose.
Averting ‘fiscal cliff,’ California legislators come to late-night agreement
By Ria Roebuck Joseph | The Center Square, 6/12/23 https://www.thecentersquare.com/california/article_52a37db0-096a-11ee-8ae0-a7a89ac4d45a.html?a?utm_source=thecentersquare.com&utm_campaign=%2Fnewsletters%2Flists%2Ft2%2Fcalifornia%2F&utm_medium=email&utm_content=read%20more
(The Center Square) – As California’s 2025 transit systems’ fiscal cliff approaches, its legislative leaders are working overtime to save the state’s transit systems in the hopes that ridership numbers recover enough to make the system sustainable on its own.
The Senate and Assembly worked late into Sunday night to come to a budget agreement to find billions in additional funding to keep the transit afloat as federal pandemic stimulus money comes to an end.
“The Legislature’s budget agreement is a very positive first step toward securing the future of public transportation in California. Though significant work remains to avoid our transit systems’ fiscal cliff — which was created by the end of federal pandemic emergency aid before transit ridership fully recovered,” Senator Scott Weiner said.
The budget agreement restores $2 billion in transit capital funds cut by Newsom in his budget proposal of $4 billion allocated and adds $1.1 billion in cap-and-trade funding usually reserved for funding decarbonization programs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions – to be used as flexible funding. It is hoped that these subsidies to bay area transit agencies would stave off cuts to service.
“This budget agreement solves a significant portion of transit systems’ collective operating deficit. It does so by allocating $1.1 billion in largely cap-and-trade funds over three years to public transportation operations — allowing those funds to be flexible and thus eligible for transit operations. This is a very meaningful step in tackling the fiscal cliff, and we estimate that, over the next three years, this flexible funding eliminates as much as half of the Bay Area’s transit fiscal cliff,” Weiner said.
As part of a long-term strategy to cut greenhouse gasses, California has embarked on a program of eliminating gas-powered vehicles and designing communities where residents live close to transit stations or work closer to where they live to reduce long commutes. The state, therefore cannot afford to allow its transit agencies to go over the “fiscal cliff” or suffer long-term damage.
“Transit capital projects are critically important for our economy and climate goals,” Weiner stated. “For every dollar California invests in transit infrastructure, it will receive up to $10 in federal matching funds.”
That is if the agencies limit their use of flexible funding for operational costs and preserve most of the capital funding for infrastructure projects.
Wiener alluded to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed, which appropriated the largest federal investment in infrastructure, including transit infrastructure, in recent history. “It would be short-sighted to cannibalize significant transit capital funds and forfeit billions in federal matching funds.”
The late-night session averted service cuts expected as early as this fall, but a long-term plan is still to be created.
“It is also my hope — this year and next year — that the Legislature and governor will consider using a portion of California’s excess federal highway funds to fund transit operations,” Weiner offered. “California is receiving more than $1 billion each year for the next five years in federal highway funds, above and beyond what we anticipated. We should make at least a portion of these funds flexible to solve the remaining portion of the transit fiscal cliff.”
