CalACT | California Association for Coordinated Transportation

Representing Small, Rural, & Specialized Transportation Providers Statewide

CalACT Mission Statement

CalACT's mission is to promote professional excellence, stimulate ideas and advocate for effective community transportation. CalACT members promote coordination for funding and services, believe mobility is essential to freedom and the quality of life for everyone, seek common ground, are professional, are problem solvers, help each other and promote camaraderie.

Legislative Priorities

The California Association for Coordinated Transportation (CalACT) is a non-profit association of over 300 urban and rural transportation providers, human service organizations, contractors and suppliers in California. Our members include many of the systems that transport the public, seniors and persons with disabilities throughout California, and the agencies that fund these services. These agencies depend on public transportation funds to support transit operations and riders.

Transportation funding provides independence and access to basic needs such as nutrition, health care, education and employment for seniors, people with disabilities, youth, students and low-income families. These services enhance the local economy by providing jobs, transporting people to work and alleviating congestion while making the roads available for movement of goods. Public transit helps reduce greenhouse emissions through increased ridership and a reduction in vehicles on the highways.

CalACT's legislative priorities are to advocate for funding that will provide adequate transportation services for urban and rural residents in California. CalACT's Board of Directors and members have approved the legislative priorities listed below:

Funding

  • Oppose the transfer of Public Transportation Account (PTA) funds to the General Fund, and the expenditure of PTA funds for purposes other than public transit.
  • Oppose the use of bond funds to supplant PTA capital funds.
  • Support implementation legislation for the Proposition 1B transit capital program that allocates the bond funds to transit operators in an efficient and streamlined manner.
  • Support legislation that allows the use of bond funds for the purchase of the entire range of public transit vehicles, including paratransit vehicles that may have a life of five years and are necessary to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. At a minimum, bond requirements should meet FTA standards for vehicle purchases.
  • Support the appropriation of PTA, State Transit Assistance (STA) and Spillover funds pursuant to existing law for the operation of urban and rural transit systems.
  • Oppose any proposal to suspend the transfer of Proposition 42 funding.

CalACT opposes the provisions in the Governor's May budget revision that will harm public transportation. The Governor's May Revision of his January Budget Proposal increases the raid on public transit funds from $1.1 billion to $1.3 billion.

This increase is due to the spillover estimate growing from $617 million to $827 million. The Governor proposes to divert nearly all ($200 million) of this increase to the general fund to partially off set home-to-school transportation costs in the current fiscal year that will hurt public transit.

CalACT opposes the Governor plan to use the spillover and PTA capital funds for the following expenses:

  • $827 million to reimburse the general fund for home-to-school transportation costs. This includes $200 million in the current fiscal year and $627 million in the budget year. If the increased spill over projections are correct this funding shift would grow to $835 million in 2008-09-all at the expense of public transit.
  • 340 million is diverted to pay debt service on transportation related general obligation bonds. This would be a one-time shift with future debt payments being made from the general fund. This is a roundabout process to use bond funds to pay for debt service on bonds.
  • $144 million to fund the transportation costs at the regional centers operated by the Department of Developmental Services. Public Transit providers already transport many regional center clients through ADA service. This will hinder coordination of transportation services by creating additional funding silos.
  • CalACT opposes the Governor proposal to permanently discontinue the flow of spillover dollars into the State Transit Assistance program. There are many ideas for long-term reform of spillover funding, but this one does more harm than good.

State Transit Assistance (STA): With high fuel prices, the base amount for STA is bumped up by $21 million, for a total allocation of $206 million in 2007-08. However, if the Governor did not divert the spillover the STA appropriations would be $598 million in 2007-08 all of which could go to support and increase public transit services.

Supplanting Funds &ndash The Governor's budget continues to propose to use $600 million in Prop 1B bond funds to supplant PTA capital funds programmed in the STIP. The PTA funds are then diverted to the non-transit programs listed above. This not only hinders adequate transportation services but works against state and federal coordination mandates.

Contact CalACT at 916-920-8018, 800-422-5228 or jacklyn@calact.org.

CalACT will be extraordinarily sensitive to legislation that benefits one segment of membership to the detriment of another. The Executive Director shall identify any such legislation, and obtain input from members with respect to benefits and detriments. CalACT will endeavor to achieve consensus on legislation that impacts members. In the event consensus cannot be achieved and a position is not established, every effort will be made to share information regarding the impact of legislation.


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