Senate to Take Up Transportation Budget Next Week

The U.S. Senate announced it will mark-up the Fiscal Year 2025 (FY25) Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (T-HUD) bill on July 25th. This will be an opportunity for advocates of better rail and transit service in the U.S. to fight back against cutbacks included in the House’s FY25 transportation budget, which includes a 12 percent cut to Amtrak operations, a 66 percent cut to the Capital Investment Grants transit program, and a 15 percent cut to rail safety programs.

“We’re working with Senators to push back against cutbacks included in the House bill which, if enacted, would result in degradation of service in lots of ways, both big and small,” said Jim Mathews, Rail Passengers President and CEO. “Nationwide, more people are riding Amtrak than before the pandemic. We’re asking Senate Appropriators to support this growth. That means offering more frequencies, more staff to help passengers on trains and at stations, accessibility improvements in stations, and easier ticketing options.”

The Senate allocations will conform with the bipartisan debt deal passed in 2023, which increases both non-defense and defense spending levels by 1 percent. We don’t yet know how that increase will be allocated among the competing priorities within the T-HUD bill (as just one example: increased cost of housing will place a greater financial burden on rental assistance programs). However, America’s passengers can reasonably expect better numbers on rail and transit spending in the Senate’s T-HUD bill.

But we can't be complacent! Rail Passengers is asking advocates to join us in our campaign to support the growth of passenger trains in the America. Use our advocacy platform to quickly and easily write your two Senators to oppose House cuts and support more and better trains!