MTA asks incoming Democratic Congress to protect $265M in transit funds and cut rolling-stock tariffs

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is pressing the incoming Democratic Congress to lock in federal formula money before a Dec. 11 deadline and to shield its next generation of trains and buses from import tariffs.

The $265 million warning

In a Nov. 5 policy brief, the MTA said Congress should pass another extension of the surface transportation reauthorization that includes advance appropriations — extra multi-year formula funds added under the Biden-era Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.

A short-term IIJA extension enacted in September runs out on Dec. 11, 2026 and left those advance appropriations out, the agency wrote. An extension without them would cut the MTA’s Fiscal Year 2027 formula funding by $265 million, more than 10% of what Congress authorizes, according to the brief and reporting by amNewYork and Streetsblog NYC.

“Cutting 10 percent of our annual federal formula funding would have a dramatic impact for riders across the network,” the memo says.

Share of national transit funding

The MTA says it carries 43% of U.S. transit trips but receives only about 17% of available federal transit formula funding. After the new Congress is sworn in on Jan. 3, 2027, the agency wants a full five-year bill that at least preserves its formula share and prioritizes formula grants over slow discretionary competitions.

Tariffs on rolling stock

Separately, the MTA is planning about $23 billion in new subway cars, buses and commuter rail cars that meet Buy America rules (more than 70% U.S. content). It still must import some specialized parts that are not made domestically. The brief estimates “high and unpredictable” tariff rates would force about $1 billion in direct tariff costs on those replacement programs, and asks Congress to exempt Buy America–compliant rolling-stock components.

Security grants and New York leadership

The agency also wants Congress to reverse long cuts to the Transit Security Grant Program and to block federal rules that steer infrastructure money away from high-ridership cities, Streetsblog summarized from the brief.

Chair and CEO Janno Lieber told WNYC’s On the Way that a Democratic Congress led by Brooklynites Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries leaves the MTA “hopeful that we can do much, much better” than the historical short-changing of New York transit, amNewYork reported.