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Dear Chairman DeFazio and Ranking Member Graves,

On behalf of America’s public transportation industry, which directly employs more than 435,000 workers and supports millions of private-sector jobs, we write to thank you for your extraordinary leadership and express our strong support for H.R. 2, the “Investing in a New Vision for the Environment and Surface Transportation in America Act” (INVEST in America Act).

The INVEST in America Act makes critical investments for surface transportation infrastructure, including $105 billion for public transportation and $60 billion for commuter rail, Amtrak, and other high-performance rail. The bill recognizes the immediate need for public transit agencies to continue to provide essential services during the COVID-19 pandemic and support our nation’s economic recovery. It also provides a long-term vision to address the more than $100 billion state-of-good-repair backlog in public transit infrastructure and meet the mobility demands of growing communities, including small urban and rural communities.

This transformative investment in public transportation and passenger rail helps our communities meet growing mobility demands, create family-wage jobs, expand U.S. manufacturing and supply chains, and grow the economy. It also puts us on the path to increase access to opportunities for all Americans and build more equitable communities. In addition, the INVEST in America Act addresses the environmental and sustainability challenges facing our communities, nation, and the world.

These investments are absolutely critical to jumpstart our economic recovery. The time is now to make an important investment in our national infrastructure that will provide staying power to drive our economy for years to come.

Thank you again for your leadership on these issues. We look forward to working collaboratively with you and your colleagues on both sides of the aisle as this bill advances through the legislative process.

Sincerely,

Nuria I. Fernandez
Chair

Paul P. Skoutelas
President and CEO

cc: The Honorable Eleanor Holmes Norton, Chair, Subcommittee on Highways and Transit, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, U.S. House of Representatives

The Honorable Rodney Davis, Ranking Member, Subcommittee on Highways and Transit, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, U.S. House of Representatives

The Honorable Dan Lipinski, Chairman, Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, U.S. House of Representatives

The Honorable Rick Crawford, Ranking Member, Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, U.S. House of Representatives

Members of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, U.S. House of Representatives