(Download
in Adobe PDF Format)
June 20, 2005
The Honorable Judd Gregg
Chairman
Subcommittee on Homeland Security
Senate Committee on Appropriations
135 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Dear Mr. Chairman:
I write on behalf of the American Public Transportation Association's (APTA) more than 1,500 member organizations regarding the FY 2006 Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Appropriations bill.
Last week, the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security set funding for an important transit and rail security program at only two-thirds of the FY 2005 program level, the first year of this new program. The Subcommittee-approved bill would fund the transit and rail security program at $100 million in FY 2006, compared to a $150 million program level in FY 2005. This reduction would make it more difficult to adequately protect the millions of Americans who ride public transportation each day. In contrast, the Administration's FY 2006 Department of Homeland Security budget request proposed significant increases in federal grants for the protection of critical infrastructure, including public transportation.
Since the tragic events of September 11, 2001, the federal government has spent $18 billion on aviation security and only $250 million for public transportation security. For public transportation alone, APTA has identified more than $6 billion in security needs. Now is not the time to reduce the federal commitment to public transit security. With 9.6 billion trips a year on public transportation, transit security is a very important issue for America's transit riders. Americans take public transportation 32 million times a day-16 times more than travel on domestic airlines. We need to take every action possible to avoid a terrorist attack on a transit system like the one in Madrid last year.
We are committed to working with the Bush Administration, the new DHS leadership, and the 109th Congress to make transit security a top priority in our country's homeland security. We strongly urge the Senate to restore these cuts on the Senate floor.
If you have any questions about these issues, please have your staff contact Tom Yedinak of APTA's Government Affairs Department at (202) 496-4865 or email tyedinak@apta.com.
Sincerely yours,
William
W. Millar
President
WWM/tjj
Some of these pages may include links to documents in the Adobe PDF format. Please download the Adobe PDF reader if you have not already done so.
