APTA Letter to House and Senate Appropriators Urging Increased FY 2026 Transit Security Grant Program Funding

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Dear Chair Britt, Ranking Member Murphy, Chair Amodei, and Ranking Member Underwood,

On behalf of the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), which represents the $93 billion public transportation industry that directly employs more than 430,000 people and supports millions of private-sector jobs, I write to urge you to provide at least $93 million to the Transit Security Grant Program (TSGP), as proposed in S.____, the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2026, an $8.5 million increase from FY 2025's appropriated funding.

Safety and security are core values for the public transportation industry-non-negotiable operating principles and key commitments to riders and workers. Public transportation agencies have adopted a layered approach to address security concerns, such as increasing the number of law enforcement personnel on transit vehicles. As a result, traveling by public transportation is 10 times safer for passengers than traveling by car.

This success is in no small part due to the support of Federal partners, including funding from the Department of Homeland Security's TSGP, and this continued partnership will be crucial going forward, given heightened threats in the United States caused by ongoing global conflicts. We are greatly appreciative of the House Committee on Appropriations' efforts to provide level funding in its companion bill (H.R. 4213), but the safety and security needs of public transit agencies continue to grow. In addition, public transit ridership continues to rise, with riders taking more than 8 billion trips in the past year. To continue improving safety for the millions of Americans who rely on public transportation each day, Congress must increase funding for TSGP.

TSGP provides competitive grants to eligible public transportation agencies to protect critical surface transportation infrastructure and the traveling public. Pursuant to section 1406 of the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007 (P.L. 110-53), public transit agencies use TSGP funds for law enforcement, surveillance training, public awareness campaigns, detection equipment, security cameras, cybersecurity technologies, and hardening infrastructure.

We look forward to working with you to ensure the millions of Americans who use public transportation can travel safely and securely to their jobs, to see loved ones, and to engage in their communities.

Sincerely,
Paul P. Skoutelas

President and CEO

cc: The Honorable Susan Collins, Chair, Committee on Appropriations, U.S. Senate

The Honorable Patty Murray, Vice Chair, Committee on Appropriations, U.S. Senate

The Honorable Tom Cole, Chairman, Committee on Appropriations, U.S. House of Representatives

The Honorable Rosa DeLauro, Ranking Member, Committee on Appropriations, U.S. House of Representatives

Members, Subcommittee on Homeland Security, Committee on Appropriations, U.S. Senate

Members, Subcommittee on Homeland Security, Committee on Appropriations, U.S. House of Representatives