CARES Act grants $521 million in relief funds for local agencies

Busier times on 3rd Avenue, taken in November

On Thursday, the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announced their appropriations for $25 billion in national transit relief funding from the CARES Act, which was passed by Congress a week ago. The relief package includes $521 million in funding for transit agencies in the Seattle area, as well as an additional $133 million for other agencies and cities in Washington state. The relief funds are meant to primarily cover operating costs, especially as agencies have suspended their fare collection and are anticipating a significant drop in sales tax revenue.

The FTA has also announced that all operating expenses incurred beginning on January 20, 2020, are eligible for relief funds or support. These funds will be available to any urban or rural agency that applies directly to the FTA for aid. The share in the current appropriation will be distributed without the need for local matching funds under the normal formula programs (5307 for urbanized areas and 5311 for rural areas).

The urbanized areas of Washington receiving funds from the CARE Act are as follows:

• $520,621,224 for Seattle, including King County Metro, Sound Transit, Pierce Transit, and Everett Transit. Sound Transit has already announced that they anticipate to receive around $150 million.
• $25,622,451 for Vancouver (C-TRAN), part of Portland's $202 million
• $23,440,079 for Spokane (STA)
• $18,973,077 for the Tri-Cities (Ben Franklin Transit)
• $11,716,276 for Bremerton (Kitsap Transit)
• $10,465,977 for Olympia (Intercity Transit)
• $8,786,277 for Bellingham (Whatcom Transportation Authority)
• $7,015,726 for Wenatchee (Link Transit)
• $6,268,035 for Yakima (Yakima Transit)
• $6,126,677 for Marysville (Community Transit)
• $5,882,521 for Mount Vernon (Skagit Transit)
• $3,585,637 for Longview (River Cities Transit)
• $3,452,453 for Walla Walla (Valley Transit)
• $889,362 for Lewiston-Clarkston (Asotin County PTBA)

While these funds will be able to keep transit afloat for the time being, the long-term outlook for funding is uncertain. As The Seattle Times reported ($), Sound Transit and Metro have predicted major losses to tax revenue that accounts for the majority of their operating budgets.

An allotment of $44,121,608 was also made for rural agencies in Washington, which will cover many of the remaining operators in the state. The CARES Act also includes $ in transportation relief funding for tribes and reservations, listed as follows:

• $449,831 for the Spokane Tribe
• $335,716 for the Yakama Nation
• $315,925 for the Kalispel Tribe
• $148,631 for the Muckleshoot Tribe
• $146,469 for the Colville Reservation
• $101,994 for the Samish Nation
• $78,429 for the Cowlitz Tribe
• $72,650 for the Stillaguamish Tribe
• $60,160 for the Snoqualmie Tribe
• $58,519 for the Lummi Nation
• $50,282 for the Tulalip Tribes
• $38,577 for the Makah Tribe
• $34,124 for the Squaxin Island Tribe
• $28,608 for the Quileute Tribe
• $18,781 for the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe
• $11,280 for the Jamestown S'Kallam Tribe

EDIT: The Puget Sound Regional Council has released preliminary allocations for the Seattle portion broken down by agency. These numbers are subject to change but should give us a good idea of what each system will get.

• $242,802,154 for King County Metro
• $166,948,498 for Sound Transit
• $39,943,566 for Washington State Ferries
• $38,046,394 for Community Transit (including Marysville UZA funds)
• $20,946,278 for Pierce Transit
• $13,227,569 for Kitsap Transit (including Bremerton UZA funds)
• $7,219,447 for Intercity Transit
• $3,059,729 for Everett Transit
• $2,708,169 for Pierce County Ferry
• $2,448,081 for City of Seattle (streetcar)
• $1,114,290 for Skagit Transit