Congress Passes FY22 Budget, Launches New Rail Programs

Congress passed a $1.5 trillion government funding bill last night, sending it to President Biden's desk and avoiding a government shutdown. While the bill was late -- more than five months into the current fiscal year -- the passage of this bill will provide increased resources for the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to implement several critical passenger rail programs created by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL).

Rail was a big winner in the post-BIL funding scene, seeing a 486% increase in funding over FY21 enacted numbers. The majority of that came from advance appropriations provided by the BIL. One key program to watch will be the Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail, which received $7.3 billion to fund new and upgraded passenger service through a competetive grant program.

Separately, there was funding provided in the FY22 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development title, which includes operating funds for Amtrak and the FRA.

“America’s passengers thanks Congress for its work on the transportation title,” said Rail Passengers President Jim Mathews. “It would’ve been a mistake to stand pat with the advance appropriations provided by the BIL, and we’re encouraged that appropriators provided funding through the annual budgeting process. The $35 billion in rail funding authorized by the bipartisan infrastructure law will play a crucial role in ensuring that all Americans enjoy the benefits of an upgraded and expanded passenger national rail network.”

The bill also included several Congressionally directed funding requests, a new program which allows Members of Congress to prioritize local infrastructure. While the list of projects was dominated by airport and highway projects, several key passenger rail and transit initiatives did make the cut.

Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements Grants Program

• $8 million – Georgia Department of Transportation: Environmental Impact Statement for the Atlanta to Savannah Passenger Rail project.
• $5 million – Maryland Transit Administration: Baltimore Penn Station Facility Improvements.
• $3 million – Village of Essex Junction, Vermont: Essex Junction Multimodal Train and Bus Station Redevelopment project.
• $2.5 million – Rhode Island Department of Transportation: Kingston Train Station Intermodal and Parking Expansion project.
• $800,000 – Vermont Agency of Transportation: White River Junction Amtrak Station Platform Reconstruction project.
• $300,000 – City of Ypsilanti, Michigan: Ypsilanti Train Station.

Transit Infrastructure Grants Program

• $10 million – San Diego Association of Governments: COASTER Commuter Rail Corridor Stabilization project.

USDOT Transportation Planning, Research and Development Grants Program

• $1 million – Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority: West Santa Ana Branch Transit Corridor (light rail).
• $750,000 – Berks County, Pennsylvania: Study reestablishing passenger rail between Reading and Philadelphia.