House Appropriations Committee Approves FY 2027 THUD Appropriations Bill

House Appropriations Committee Approves
FY 2027 THUD Appropriations Bill

FY 2027 THUD Appropriations Bill significantly cuts
public transit and passenger rail investment

On June 3, the House Committee on Appropriations approved H.R. 9170, the Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2027 (THUD Appropriations bill) by a party-line vote of 34 – 27.

As the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) expires on September 30, 2026, there is currently no authorization legislation that applies to Fiscal Year (FY) 2027. The FY 2027 THUD Appropriations legislation freezes Highway Trust Fund contract authority at the FY 2026 levels, without any increase. The bill applies this same approach to public transit, Federal-aid highways, and highway safety programs funded from the Highway Trust Fund. The bill also does not contain any advance appropriations.

The House THUD Appropriations bill significantly cuts public transit and passenger rail funding, compared to the FY 2026 enacted levels. Specifically, the THUD Appropriations bill provides $16.5 billion for public transit in FY 2027, a cut of $4.6 billion (-22 percent) from the FY 2026 enacted level.

In addition, the House THUD Appropriations bill appropriates $3.1 billion for passenger and freight rail in FY 2027 and transfers $5.1 billion from unobligated prior funding in the Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail program to other initiatives. Thus, the bill results in a net loss of $1.9 billion for passenger and freight rail funding, which is a $17.8 billion cut from the FY 2026 enacted level (-112 percent).

The legislation includes several important U.S Department of Transportation (DOT) policy provisions, including a provision regarding immigration enforcement. Section 424 prohibits DOT from providing grants or loans to a local jurisdiction that refuses to comply with a request from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) “to provide advance notice of the scheduled release date and time for a particular illegal alien in local custody.”

Public Transit

The House THUD Appropriations bill provides $16.5 billion for public transit in FY 2027, a cut of $4.6 billion (-22 percent) from the FY 2026 enacted level and freezes public transit contract authority investments at last year’s levels.

In addition, it provides $737 million for Capital Investment Grants (CIG), a cut of $2.6 billion (-78 percent) from the FY 2026 enacted level. Of this amount, the bill includes only $31 million for Small Start projects.

The House THUD Appropriations bill provides the lowest CIG funding in more than 35 years.

The bill significantly cuts CIG funding even though many public transit agencies are pursuing CIG projects to address the mobility demands of their communities. Currently, communities are requesting $31 billion of CIG funds in FY 2026 and subsequent years to fund construction of 48 projects in 23 States. View APTA CIG Project Pipeline Dashboard.

The Committee combines the $737 million FY 2027 CIG appropriation with the $1.93 billion of prior year CIG unallocated balances to determine that $2.67 billion is available for the program. It designates this CIG funding for 18 specific projects detailed in the Committee Report (p. 67-68) that accompanies the legislation. The legislation funds seven New Start and 11 Small Start projects. The legislation requires FTA to make allocations to the designated projects within 120 days of the date of enactment of the THUD Appropriations Act. Moreover, FTA may not deviate from the listed funding amount for each project by more than 10 percent. Congress adopted this same approach to designating specific CIG projects in the THUD Appropriations Act, 2026 (P.L. 119-75, Division D).

The THUD Appropriations bill provides $875 million to support the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and $10 million for buses and bus facilities competitive grants “for the purposes of assisting with the cost of procurement, installation, or retrofit of bus driver protection barriers for new or existing buses.” The bill also provides $86.7 million for Congressionally Directed Spending on designated public transit projects.

The THUD Appropriations bill includes several important public transit policy provisions, including section 163, which blocks the Rostenkowski Test, preventing an across-the-board cut of FY 2027 transit formula funds to each public transit agency. However, the bill does not prohibit the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) from impeding or hindering a project from advancing or approving a project seeking a CIG Federal share of more than 40 percent.

Finally, concerning Chinese rolling stock procurement prohibitions, section 164 prohibits funds from being used to award or amend a contract for bus or rail rolling stock with a manufacturer that has met the criteria outlined in § 5323(u), including any entities resulting from a reorganization or restructuring or any successor organizations regardless of whether the reorganized, restructured, or successor entity currently meets those restrictions.

View H.R. 9170, the THUD Appropriations Act, 2027, Funding Table (Public Transit)

Passenger Rail

The House THUD Appropriations bill appropriates $3.1 billion for passenger and freight rail in FY 2027 and transfers $5.1 billion from unobligated prior funding to other initiatives. Thus, the bill results in a net loss of $1.9 billion for passenger and freight rail funding, which is a $17.8 billion cut from the FY 2026 enacted level (-112 percent).

The THUD Appropriations bill provides $2.1 billion for Amtrak grants ($1.5 billion for the National Network and $650 million for the Northeast Corridor), a cut of $4.7 billion (-69 percent) from the FY 2026 enacted levels.

The bill provides $522.8 million for Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) Grants, a decrease of $614.7 million (-54 percent) from the FY 2026 enacted level. The bill includes $22.8 million for Congressionally Directed Spending for designated CRISI projects. Under the bill, CRISI grants may be used for railroad system planning (including the preparation of regional intercity passenger rail plans and State rail plans) and project development activities.

The Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail Program receives no funding under the House THUD Appropriations bill. Unobligated balances from this program are used to fund the Railroad Crossing Elimination Program, Amtrak Northeast Corridor and National Network grants, CIG, and several other grants across DOT. In total, $5.1 billion in unobligated funds are transferred from Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail Grants to other initiatives.

The bill provides $100 million for Railroad Crossing Elimination Grants, a decrease of $500 million (-83 percent) from the FY 2026 enacted levels. Under current law, Railroad Crossing Elimination Grants for commuter rail projects must be transferred to the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) and requires the agency to administer the funds in accordance with Chapter 53 of Title 49. Section 155 amends 49 US.C. § 22909 to authorize the transfer of such grants to FTA but does not require it.

Section 154 of the bill prohibits any funding for the Amtrak Texas high-speed rail project, known as the Texas Central Railway project.

View H.R. 9170, the THUD Appropriations Act, 2027, Funding Table (Passenger Rail)

U.S. Department of Transportation

The legislation provides $550 million for Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) grants for surface transportation projects, including public transportation and multi-modal projects.

The bill provides $100 million to advance President Trump’s Executive Order No. 14252, Making the District of Columbia Safe and Beautiful. It includes $70 million to rehabilitate and repair Washington Union Station and $30 million for the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) to support transit safety, security, and operational costs associated with major events occurring in the National Capital Region.

The THUD Appropriations bill includes several important DOT policy provisions, including a provision regarding immigration enforcement. Section 424 prohibits DOT from providing grants or loans to a local jurisdiction that refuses to comply with a DHS request “to provide advance notice of the scheduled release date and time for a particular illegal alien in local custody.”

The legislation also includes specific oversight requirements on DOT grantmaking. Section 185 requires DOT to notify the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations prior to making, withdrawing, terminating, or rescinding a discretionary grant, loan or loan guarantee, or Full Funding Grant Agreement. Congress first adopted these new oversight requirements in the THUD Appropriations Act, 2026 (P.L. 119-75, Division D).

In addition, section 196 prohibits DOT from providing grants or loans to an entity that disseminates advertisements for companies headquartered in China.

Finally, section 193 prohibits DOT from enforcing a mask mandate in response to the COVID-19 virus in FY 2027.

View H.R. 9170, the THUD Appropriations Act, 2027

View H. Rept. 119-686, Committee Report on H.R. 9170, the THUD Appropriations Act, 2027