Pa. House passes transportation funding proposal; Lt. Gov. Austin Davis calls it a ‘top priority’

The state House passed a bill to fund transportation on Tuesday, while Lt. Gov. Austin Davis worked to raise awareness during a visit to the Philadelphia region for an issue that is front and center for budget negotiations.

House Bill 1364 would invest nearly $300 million of new funding into mass transit, and $500 million to repair roads and bridges, House Transportation Committee Chairperson Ed Neilson (D-Philadelphia) said.

It draws on, but doesn’t change the state’s existing 6% sales tax. The share dedicated to funding transit would increase from 4.4% to 6.15% of all sales tax revenue, driving a total of $1.5 billion in additional funding over the next five years to 52 public transit systems across the state. The bill would also allow the governor to form a Transportation Funding Advisory Commission.

The measure passed with a bipartisan 107-96 vote.

“This bipartisan bill injects critical dollars into public transit across Pennsylvania and adds new funding to repair roads and bridges — because folks rely on both to get where they need to go. It’s time for the Senate to get this funding done in this year’s budget,” Shapiro said in a statement.

Davis is the son of a Pittsburgh Regional Transit bus driver and on Tuesday, the lieutenant governor spoke about the urgency of passing the transportation bill during a news conference at a SEPTA regional rail station in Croydon, Bucks County.

“I want to be clear, public transit isn’t optional. It’s essential,” Davis said. “One million Pennsylvanians use public transit every single day.”

Davis, Shapiro, and other transit advocates argue for increased funding for mass transit agencies to avoid service cuts and fare increases as they face structural budget deficits.

SEPTA Board Chairperson Ken Lawrence said at Tuesday’s press conference that they are facing a $213 million structural deficit with the end of federal COVID funding and rising costs. If a transit bill isn’t passed by the Pennsylvania General Assembly and signed into law, he said SEPTA would have to cut service by 45%, increase fares by 21.5%, eliminate 50 bus routes and service on five regional rails, including the Trenton line, which services Croydon. He also said all rail service would end by 9 PM, without the funding from the state.

Advocates also stress that increasing funding would benefit rural and urban communities, alike.

Republican Reps. Joe Hogan, Shelby Labs and Kathleen Tomlinson of Bucks County, Tom Mehaffie of Dauphin County; Dane Watro of Schuylkill County; Martina White of Philadelphia; and Craig Williams of Delaware County voted in favor of the bill, Most of those lawmakers’ districts are within SEPTA’s service area, while the rest of the GOP caucus voted in opposition. Every Democrat voted in support of the bill, with the exception of state Reps. Frank Burns of Cambria County and Tarah Probst of Monroe County.

During a press conference rallying support for mass transit in May, White urged fellow lawmakers to not support a state budget unless it included additional SEPTA funding.

Prior to Davis boarding the Trenton line for a ride-along to Suburban Station in Center City, Philadelphia, he emphasized that it’s a priority in upcoming budget negotiations.

“We’re going to continue to keep talking with Senate Republicans, House Democrats, and our budget negotiators over the next 10 days, but I will say this,” Davis said. “This is a top priority for our administration, and as I said earlier, inaction is not acceptable.”

Although identical legislation passed in the House four times last year, it has not advanced in the Republican-controlled Senate.

Sen. Steve Santarsiero (D-Bucks), whose district includes the Croydon train station, challenged his colleagues to bring up the bill for a vote.

“Let’s see where everyone stands on this issue,” Santarserio said Tuesday at the press conference. “I’m happy to put up a vote. Why aren’t my colleagues on the other side of the aisle willing to do that?”

He continued, “The people who live in this area, the people who rely on SEPTA, the people who rely on mass transit in Pittsburgh and other parts of the state, they demand a vote.”

Davis called on Senate lawmakers to look for a compromise and said there’s “no room for inaction.”

“It is time to take off our red jerseys and our blue jerseys and to put on our Pennsylvania jerseys to get this done and to move our commonwealth forward, and I look forward to doing that as we close out this budget process,” Davis said.

While it remains unclear what the Senate will do when they return to session next week, SEPTA’s Ken Lawrence said while there is still a long way to go, passage of the bill in the House is “an important step.”

“I’m encouraged by the progress, and I’m optimistic,” Lawrence said. “Lawmakers recognize the value of transit. SEPTA is doing the work to grow ridership and be safer, more efficient and reliable, and it’s resonating with customers and funding partners.”

“The voices of our riders and our stakeholders are being heard. The tireless efforts of our legislative champions are paying off,” he added.

Mass transit agencies across the commonwealth have sounded an alarm about the looming prospect of higher fares and reduced services, putting the issue at the forefront of state budget discourse for more than a year.

In November, Shapiro transferred $153 million in federal highway capital funds to SEPTA so the agency could hold off on significant immediate fare increases and service cuts. This move was widely criticized by Republicans in the General Assembly, including some who voted in favor of the transportation bill on Tuesday.

Davis told the Capital-Star it’s uncertain whether that would be an option if the budget is late again this year.

“I will say the dynamics with the federal government today are very different than they were in November. When Governor Shapiro flexed those funds, it had to be approved by the federal Department of Transportation,” Davis said. “There’s clearly a different administration now than there was in November. So, I can’t say whether that would be successful or not, given the current setup of the federal government.”

Davis added “We’re open to getting a deal done now, so we don’t have to get to that point.”