May 3, 2007
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The Honorable Max Baucus
Chairman
Senate Committee on Finance
219 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Dear Chairman Baucus:
On behalf of the more than 1,500 member organizations of the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), I urge you to include public transportation initiatives in forthcoming energy and climate change legislation. As our nation reevaluates our patterns of energy use to reduce energy consumption and improve the environment, we must recognize that important energy savings and environmental benefits are derived from transit use.
Earlier this year, a report by ICF International calculated that transit reduces petroleum consumption by a total of 1.4 billion gallons of gasoline each year. This represents 108 million fewer cars filling up - almost 300,000 every day. These savings result from the efficiency of carrying multiple passengers in each transit vehicle, reduced traffic congestion from fewer automobiles on the roads, and the varied sources of energy for public transportation.
To realize additional energy savings and the concomitant environmental benefits, we must invest in both public transportation facilities and service expansion. APTA believes that any tax or cap and trade programs that Congress develops to address energy conservation and climate change should be designed to increase travel choices while encouraging energy efficiency by directing a portion of any revenues generated to strategic transportation investments like public transportation. If transportation-related fuel consumption is to decline, we must not only change our technology, we must also provide viable alternatives that reduce consumption. Giving credit for the contributions that the use of public transportation services makes toward improving the energy efficiency of travel must be a key element of any policy. Current law recognizes the consequences that transportation plans and investments have on air quality. The time has come to recognize similarly the implications of transportation planning and investments on long-term energy use and greenhouse gas emissions.
APTA realizes that systematic change will take time, but there are immediate legislative steps that Congress can take to promote public transportation use. We cite the following recommendations:
Amend tax law to make commuter benefits for public transportation equal to those provided for parking. Federal law should provide at least the same tax incentives for transit as that provided for parking.
A similar step would be to provide a tax credit to employers who pay for transit commute costs, thus encouraging even more commuters to switch to public transportation.
Make transit agencies eligible for federal incentives to invest in "green technology" at facilities if such incentives are provided to federal, state and local agencies. These incentives would not only reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but would likely reduce the cost of such technology as competition for products increases and research and development costs are spread over an expanding market.
Require federal facilities to be located in places where public transportation is readily accessible. To do otherwise is to perpetuate an energy intensive system that does not offer transportation choices or alternatives.
Increase federal support for transit agencies to purchase buses that utilize new technology to conserve fuel and reduce emissions. The administration's Fiscal Year (FY) 2008 budget proposal would waive the local share on the incremental cost of purchasing hybrid buses. While APTA appreciates this gesture, the waiver would actually reduce the total number of buses purchased since existing federal transit funds would be substituted for the non-federal share. A better incentive would be to offer new federal grants that are in addition to existing grant programs to pay for the cost of implementing hybrid and alternative fuel technology. No local share on these new grants should be required.
Extend the tax credits created by the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (P.L. 109-58) for the purchase of alternative fuel vehicles, fuel cell vehicles and hybrids and extend the credits for the construction of alternative fuel vehicle refueling facilities. These incentives are set to expire on various dates beginning in 2009, and they need to be renewed.
Extend the volumetric excise tax credits created by the Safe, Accountable, Flexible Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU, P.L. 109-59) for alternative fuels and alternative fuel mixtures. These credits allow more transit agencies to utilize alternative fuel vehicles, but the credits are set to expire in 2009.
APTA hopes that Congress will choose to promote greater public transportation use as an important policy option to address energy independence and reduce emissions on par with other strategies such as increasing automotive fuel efficiency, developing new energy technologies, and maximizing renewable U.S. energy resources.
We thank you for your consideration of APTA's views. If you have questions about these issues, please have your staff contact Rob Healy of APTA's Government Affairs Department at (202) 496-4811 or email rhealy@apta.com.
Sincerely,
William W. Millar
President
WWM/tjj
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