Recent Streetsblog NYC posts about House of Representatives

Will Old Transit Systems Eat Up All the New Starts Grants?

By Tanya Snyder | Dec 17, 2013 | No Comments

One of MAP-21’s many mixed blessings was the New Starts Core Capacity program. It expanded eligibility for New Starts grants — normally reserved as capital assistance for new transit lines — to existing corridors. To qualify, the system just had to show that the improvements would expand the capacity of the line by at least […]

A Conservative Utah Republican’s Path to Transit Enlightenment

By Tanya Snyder | Dec 13, 2013 | No Comments

Greg Hughes is the majority whip of the Utah State Legislature and the chair of its conservative caucus. He got a 100 percent score last year by the conservative Sutherland Institute, a Utah think tank. He also chairs the board of the Utah Transit Authority. The man loves transit. Hughes grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. […]

Budget Deal Is Good News for Transit

By Tanya Snyder | Dec 12, 2013 | No Comments

The House of Representatives is preparing to vote on that rarest of Capitol Hill treasures — a bipartisan budget deal. If both houses approve the deal, negotiated by Democratic Senator Patty Murray and Republican Congressman Paul Ryan, it will be the first time since 2010 that Congress has passed a budget. The deal would erase […]

Was TIGER Eliminated in the Shutdown Deal?

By Tanya Snyder | Oct 24, 2013 | No Comments

Soon after the government shutdown ended, we heard murmurs that the TIGER grant program for innovative transportation projects had been a casualty of the negotiations. Under the rules of the Office of Management and Budget, any program that was de-funded in either chamber’s bill would be de-funded in the continuing resolution (the temporary budget) until […]

Government Shutdown to End, Leaving Transit Agencies to Pick Up the Pieces

By Tanya Snyder | Oct 16, 2013 | No Comments

Congratulations, gentle Congresspeople. You have come up with a deeply flawed solution to a problem only you would create. Never mind that it set up another showdown three months from now. The good news is the government shutdown is almost over, for the moment. More than 18,000 furloughed U.S. DOT officials can return to work. […]

Lawmakers Push to Permanently Upgrade Transit’s Second-Class Tax Benefit

By Tanya Snyder | Sep 10, 2013 | No Comments

While the rest of the Capitol prepared for President Obama’s visit to lobby members of Congress on Syria military strikes, three lawmakers gathered under the hot sun with transit advocates to push for a more bread-and-butter issue: tax benefits for transit riders. For years, car commuters could claim up to $240 per month in tax-free […]

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