On Thursday, August 21, Federal Transit Administration Administrator Marc Molinaro announced that the agency has proposed updated guidelines to remove the "social cost of carbon" calculation as part of the rating criteria for transit grants under the Capital Investment Grant (CIG) program.
According to an agency release, the CIG Program is the federal government's largest discretionary grant program to fund transit capital investments, including heavy rail, commuter rail, light rail, streetcars, and bus rapid transit.
"These proposed actions remove unnecessary regulatory requirements and provide the best support possible for locally driven transit projects," Molinaro said.
The agency has requested feedback on these new standards to continue the process of updating CIG Policy Guidance, which provides direction to project sponsors pursuing CIG construction grants.
Following feedback from transit industry partners, FTA is proposing to remove the social cost of carbon calculation from the Environmental Benefits section of the CIG Policy Guidance. Instead, FTA will revert to a previously used methodology that relies on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) designation, based on which city a transit project is located.
FTA published a proposed interim guidance update for public comment. The proposed revisions address Executive Orders (E.O.) 14148, Initial Recissions of Harmful Executive Orders and Actions, 14154, Unleashing American Energy, and 14151, Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing, signed by the President in early 2025.
FTA is also publishing a Request for Information (RFI) to solicit public input on a comprehensive update to the CIG program guidance at a later date. Federal law requires FTA to update CIG Policy Guidance at least every two years.
Comments to the proposed CIG Interim Guidance are due by September 2, 2025, in the Regulations.gov docket, and September 18 for the Request for Information in the Regulations.gov docket.
